INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Although even just a few years back gamers and most people i used to know picked PC cases solely based on their looks and price tag today it seems that quality, available interior space and number of features are just as important (if not more) for the majority of people and since most manufacturers seem to be well aware of that fact it makes sense that lately we see more and more models that focus in quality and features rather than just design. I too feel that the primary goal of any PC case is to be sturdy with a spacious interior and plenty of useful features so it goes without saying that we'll be bringing all of you a lot more such reviews from now on than in the past. In late 2015 Thermaltake released their brand new Suppressor line of towers and after taking a thorough look at the very good F51 we decided to also take a thorough look at its smaller brother the F31.

   The beginning of every myth and legend is about dreams and desire: the challenging, creative and combative features of Thermaltake Group create an exciting and fascinating user experience to share with everyone, while allowing users to enter a selfless state in terms of function and potential. Thermaltake Group's 3 main brands: Thermaltake, Tt eSPORTS and LUXA2 have been merchandising throughout the world, and have successfully established 6 business footholds in areas such as Europe, America, Oceania, Japan and China, with 95 regional distributors and over 4000 premium retailers. All product planning is orientated by observation of global PC peripheral market and understanding of consumer demands. Thermaltake creates direct contact opportunities with resellers and consumers by participating major global ICT exhibitions and trade shows every year, and develop innovative marketing strategies for the promotions of new products. Meanwhile, Thermaltake incorporates the composite marketing system by making branch offices and regional distributors both the distribution channel and technical support or service center to provide instant support; by maintaining close contact with end users, we manage to strengthen corporate competitiveness and create the momentum for the growth of accomplishments. With its outstanding wisdom and strength Thermaltake Group is recruiting creative talents to build a cultural brand for the enjoyment of entertainment, e-Sports, technology and lifestyle!

   Just like its larger brother the Suppressor F31 is quite unique in the family of PC cases by Thermaltake since its primary focus is noise reduction via the use of several pieces of thick sound-dampening material attached on its side plates, top and front (again much like the Deep Silence line by Nanoxia). Now normally this is a door that opens both ways since on one hand you will certainly enjoy your brand new and almost inaudible system but on the other you will probably notice increased temperatures for all of its components (always compared to what you can expect with the top/side sound-dampening panels removed and/or replaced by fans). Again just like its brother however the brand new Suppressor F31 scores high in features since aside being available in two versions (with and without a side window) it also sports a completely tool-free design, removable drive cages, dust-filters, room for up to 9 fans and/or 4 radiators, spacious enough interior that can hold CPU coolers up to 180mm in height and graphics cards up to 278mm in length (420mm with the drive cage removed) and can also be outfitted with a power supply cover which not only provides extra room for cable management but also two extra spots for 2.5" drives. In short the F31 indeed seems to be just a smaller version of the F51 and if that's the case we're already sold.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We received the Suppressor F31inside a regular cardboard box that has rather large a product drawing at the front along with their logo and their LCS certification.

 

 

Much like the F51 the F31 is also currently available in two versions (with and without a side window) and you can check which one is inside the box from the left side.

 

 

The main product features are printed on the right side in 12 languages.

 

 

Each and every single part of the F31 can be seen at the rear of the box.

 

 

Two foam spacers and a plastic bag keep the tower safe inside the box.

 

 

Along with the tower once again Thermaltake packs the mainboard speaker, 5 cable straps, 12 round rubber pads/feet, bag with screws and standoffs, warranty information paper and the user's manual.

 

 

THE SUPPRESSOR F31 EXTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s always easier to “dress” a square/rectangle shaped PC case with sound-dampening material so again the F31 shares the same design as the F51 (the case weighs 10.5kg and measures 515mm in height, 497mm in depth and 250mm in width).

 

 

Again we received the no-window sample but as with the F51 for a tower focusing in noise-reduction that's for the best. Instead the left side panel has a fan spot taken by a thick piece of sound-dampening material which you can remove to install a 120/140mm intake fan (did we mention that it also comes ready with a magnetic air-filter?).

 

 

The fascia/door is made out of hard plastic but it can pass as brushed aluminum (as long as you don’t touch it).

 

 

Once you open the door you will notice the thick layer of sound-dampening material behind it and of course the two 5.25" drive bays (3 was possible but the top is reserved for a radiator) which feature easy removable covers and the removable lower end panel (it’s also an air-filter).

 

 

Here Thermaltake has placed a single 120mm fan which you can replace with 240/280/360mm radiator or two 140mm fans (you can always add a 2^nd 120mm fan right above it).

 

 

The I/O is placed at the top and includes the on/off power button and LED, reset switch, HDD activity LED, two USB 3.0 ports, 2 USB 2.0 ports and the usual headphones and microphone plugs.

 

 

Almost the entire top is covered by a magnetic air-filter and has enough room inside to accommodate an 240/280/360mm radiator or two 200mm fans (you can also use up to 3x120/140mm fans).

 

 

Featured at the rear are 8 PCI expansion slots, single long rubber grommet, cable holder, exhaust fan and the PSU area.

 

 

Mounted at the rear is a 120mm exhaust fan which can be replaced with another 140mm one or a single 120/140mm AIO liquid cooler.

 

 

A long removable dust filter is placed at the bottom of the case (unfortunately it’s removable from the rear and not the front).

 

 

I was surprised to see that each side panel is held in place via two thumbscrews and two regular screws (I know these are heavy panels but the ones used in the F51 should be heavier but still only have 2 thumbscrews on each side).

 

 

THE SUPPRESSOR F31 INTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thermaltake has placed a good amount of sound-dampening material on the interior of both side panels.

 

 

It may not be as spacious as the F51 but the F31 has quite a bit of space inside.

 

 

Both 5.25" feature tool-free hard plastic mechanisms and as mentioned earlier they can be removed entirely (the bay trays also have holes for 3.5/2.5" drive mounting).

 

 

Unlike the F51 the area beneath the 5.25” drive bays is empty to allow for long graphics cards.

 

 

A removable drive cage is placed on the base of the tower and has enough room for 3 3.5/2.5” drives.

 

 

Drive tray quality is very good and certainly not standard with most cases out there.

 

 

The mainboard tray has a total of 5 rubber grommets for cable management.

 

 

All 8 PCI expansion slots are held in place via regular thumbscrews.

 

 

Four round rubber feet are placed at the PSU area and right next to them there’s room for yet another 120/140mm fan/radiator.

 

 

This is what the other end of the mainboard plate looks like.

 

 

At first glance you may not notice but there are three drive mounting vertical spots which can be used with 3.5/2.5” drives.

 

 

There’s also enough room behind the mainboard tray for good cable management.

 

 

Here you can all see the top fan/radiator are from inside.

 

 

The F31 is one of the very few PC cases out there with enough room for a 360mm radiator at the top (and a 56mm at that although in order to mount fans on it you will have to remove the 5.25” bays).

 

 

BUILDING THE SYSTEM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always the purpose of this section is not to build a functional system but rather to showcase what you can expect from the case at hand in terms of interior space.

It may be smaller than the F51 but still a standard ATX mainboard covers just one of the available cable management holes.

 

 

With room for CPU coolers up to 180mm in height you should be able to fit any model in the F31.

 

 

You can fit very long cards (up to 420mm) since the top drive cage is not present in the F31 (you will have to remove the bottom one if you decide to use all PCIe slots).

 

 

If you don’t care about using the bottom fan/radiator spot the F31 has enough room for even the longest PSUs in the market.

 

 

NOISE LEVEL TEST

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After giving it much thought we decided on performing noise tests with each PC Case we receive by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically ontop of each case to measure the noise levels emanating from the pre-installed fans at both 50% and 100% with the help of a fan controller (if the case doesn't have one we use our own).

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   When we reviewed the F51 a while ago we were all impressed with its level of build quality, many radiator mounts and almost inaudible noise levels even at load but we really thought that Thermaltake should cover all consumers by releasing a larger and a smaller variant. Well we’ve yet to see a larger variant but what’s really impressive with the F31 is that even though it’s smaller it still offers just about every single thing the F51 did including up to 9 fans, 4 radiators, 8 3.5/2.5” drives (using the 5.25” bays too), 8 cards, 180mm tall CPU coolers, 420mm long graphics cards and 220mm long PSUs. Ontop of all these add the ability to use the extra power supply cover and not only will you get more room for cable management (actually more room to hide cables in plain sight) but also two extra 2.5” drive mounts a rather useful feature which the F51 lacks.

   Currently the Suppressor F31 “Silent” Edition (No Window) will set you back USD99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 90Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) but although the price is actually very good there’s just a 10-15% price difference with the slightly larger F51 so I really suggest weighing your space needs prior to making a choice (also do take into account that it comes ready with a fan controller and 1x140mm and 1x200m fans instead of 2x120mm ones). Overall however the F31 is just a slightly smaller F51 and so it also gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Spacious Interior (180mm tall CPU Coolers / 420mm long Graphics Cards)
- 2 Pre-Installed Fans (120/120mm)
- Space For A Total Of 9 Fans (120/140/200mm)
- Space For Up To 4 Radiators (Front 240/280/360mm, Top 240/280/360mm, Bottom 120/140mm, Rear 120/140mm)
- Room For Up To 8 2.5/3.5” Drives
- Low Noise Levels (Almost Inaudible)
- Air-Filters
- Removable Drive Cages & ODBs
- Optional Power Supply Cover (Plus 2x2.5” Drive Mounts)

 

CONS

- Fixed Door Orientation
- 4 Screws on Each Side Panel (two are regular ones)