INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   It's no secret that the market is currently divided in three different consumer factions the ones who only care about how their systems and peripherals look, the ones who only want to get their hands on the highest performance components and peripherals and finally the ones who place price above all else. Naturally some of the well-established manufacturers do their best to release products that cater to the needs of both people who are looking for top notch performance and unique appearance and although that's not always easy to accomplish the market today is actually filled with such products. SilverStone is among those manufacturers and their recently released Primera PM01 (SST-PM01BR-W) computer case which we have here with us today is one such product.

   Founded in 2003, SilverStone is an established leader in its field, with an elite team of engineers; we started our quest of providing products that create inspirations. We have since expanded the lines of products as well as types of products we produce, giving our customers a wide selection of choices. With distribution centers in different areas of the globe, SilverStone products can be seen all over the world, not just for computer users but also for home entertainment use. Providing leisure with integration of advanced technologies that is functional and making them enjoyable to use. Here at SilverStone Technology, we continue to pride ourselves in providing the highest level of standards in designing and manufacturing computer enclosures, power supplies, and accessories. Our pursuit for the first class aesthetic appeal is relentless; our teams of devoted engineers are constantly searching for the best technologies that suit end-users with different needs and will make our products as technologically sound as they are beautiful.

   The SilverStone Primera PM01 (available in black, matte black, titanium and white colors - as seen from the above picture) is yet another aluminum/plastic mid-tower computer case compatible with ATX and micro-ATX sized mainboards so although it has plenty of room inside for even the largest components if you're looking for an E-ATX or XL-ATX compatible tower you will have to look elsewhere. Going back to interior space the Primera PM01 has 7 PCI expansion slots and enough room for up to 5 drives (3x2.5/3.5" and 2x2.5"), 180mm tall CPU coolers, 419mm long graphics cards, 240mm long power supply units, 7 fans (7x120mm or 6x140mm) and/or two 240/280/360mm radiators. What really stands out however are the several LEDs (red for the dark color models and blue for the white one) this particular PC case has not only thanks to many built-in LED strips and several single LEDs placed all over but also thanks to three pre-installed 140mm LED intake fans located at the front. Time to take a closer look and see where the latest Primera PM01 computer case stands in a market filled with similar offerings.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We received the Primera PM01 inside a white box that has pictures of the black and white versions at the front and rear.

 

 

The features list is printed in 10 languages on the left side.

 

Both the features and specifications of the Primera PM01 can be found on the right side of the box.

 

 

Packing is excellent with the Primera PM01 wrapped inside a thick plastic bag and placed between two very thick foam spacers.

 

 

The bundle is not the richest one we've seen to date and so along with the Primera PM01 you're also getting two 3pin fan cable extenders, bag filled with screws and standoffs and the manual.

 

 

THE PRIMERA PM01 EXTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With a height of 571mm, width of 220mm and length of 560mm the 9kg heavy Primera PM01 computer case is among the largest midi towers currently in the market.

 

 

SilverStone decided to design the left acrylic window after the entire case so instead of it taking most of the left side panel it only takes like 60% of it.

 

 

Just over both side panels SilverStone has placed air ducts which give the Primera PM01 a somewhat aggressive look.

 

 

The entire front is a mesh panel and behind it you can even see the three 140mm fans (unfortunately to remove the fascia and the top cover you must remove both side panels).

 

 

The I/O is located at the top just over the fascia and here we see the power button with the power LED, HDD activity LED, two USB 3.0 ports, two USB 2.0 ports, microphone and headphones ports and the LED button (rotates the 4 available LED settings).

 

 

Moving at the rear we see the 7 PCI expansion slots, PSU area, large perforated section at the top and a 140mm exhaust fan (not LED / can be replaced with an 120mm model).

 

 

There's a small removable air-filter right under the power supply area as you can see from the above picture.

 

 

THE PRIMERA PM01 INTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The lack of any 5.25" drive bays and any 3.5" drive bays leaves the interior of the Primera PM01 empty.

 

 

Here we see the three 140mm red LED fans and the area where you can mount a 240/280/360mm radiator.

 

 

SilverStone has also placed several holes for reservoirs if you choose to go with a custom loop.

 

 

To mount a radiator at the front you will need to open this small hatch and that's where things get complicated since if you choose to go with a 360mm model it will need to be a very slim one (more on this later on).

 

 

There are 8 holes for cable management on the mainboard tray 3 of which are rubber coated.

 

 

All 7 PCI expansion slots are held in place with regular screws.

 

 

The PSU cover can't be removed and has three extra cable management holes one of which is also rubber coated.

 

 

A strip with 6 LEDs is placed in front of the PSU cover.

 

 

Taking a look from the other side we see a 10-port fan hub, two vertical 2.5" drive trays and a drive cage with three 2.5/3.5" trays.

 

 

The 2.5" trays are made of aluminum while the less sturdy 2.5/3.5" ones are made by plastic (both require screws for the drives).

 

 

Remember when i told you that you can't remove the fascia from the outside? Well this is due to the 4 screws placed behind it right next to the fans (accessed only if you remove the side panels). Once you remove them, the fascia and also remove the 4 extra screws used to attach the top cover to the aluminum chassis you can also remove it as seen above.

 

 

There are also two red LEDs beneath the top cover as well.

 

 

Worth pointing out is that once you remove the fascia you will see a removable air-filter in front of the three fans (SilverStone should had made it easier to remove however).

 

 

The three 140mm LED fans can be replaced with 120mm ones.

 

 

You can also mount a 240/280/360mm radiator at the top but the fans will need to go on the outside right under the top cover (also do notice the second LED strip at the top).

 

 

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.

Using a regular sized ATX mainboard leaves a large part of the interior empty.

 

 

Most users will probably choose the Primera PM01 for its water cooling capabilities and this is where things get a bit strange since although at the front you can mount 240/280mm radiators with ease you can't do the same with a 360mm one since it will not be able to pass through the small hatch of the PSU cover. For example we used the AX360 radiator by XSPC both at the front and top and although just 40mm thick it just wouldn't fit at the front (no problems at the top as long as you remember to mount the fans on the exterior - we also tried mounting the EK XLC Predator 280 AIO model by EKWB without luck however because of its thickness).

 

 

Being able to use 180mm tall CPU coolers means you can mount pretty much any model in the market today (if you choose not to go with water cooling).

 

 

Having a clearance of 419mm for a graphics card also means you have nothing to worry about even with the longest one out there.

 

 

Same thing at the rear since you can use power supply units up to 240mm in length.

 

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       The Primera PM01 is one of the best looking cases to pass from our lab in the last six months not only because of its exterior design but also because of its red LED strips and the three 140mm red LED fans placed at the front. It also does extremely well in terms of build quality since the chassis was very sturdy during our tests (perhaps too much since the front fascia along with the top cover can’t be removed without first removing a total of 8 screws) although I was skeptical because of its plastic parts. Perhaps the most important aspect however of the Primera PM01 is its spacious interior which can fit pretty much anything you’d want to place inside a mid-tower including 5 drives (well it could do better here), 7 fans and/or two 240/280/360mm radiators, 180mm tall CPU coolers and the longest possible graphics cards (419mm) and power supply units (240mm). Unfortunately SilverStone is not very clear as to what kind of 360mm radiator you can fit at the front (they do point out that 280mm radiators can’t be over 33mm in thickness in order to be fitted at the top) but 35mm seems to be the thickest one able to pass through the PSU cover hatch. As for noise levels well since the 10-port fan hub placed at the rear of the mainboard tray doesn’t have a built-in fan controller you practically have four 140mm fans running at full RPM and although that means excellent airflow it also means that the Primera PM01 is quite audible when on.

   SilverStone markets the Primera PM01 Mid-Tower computer case as an affordable model with lots of features and with a current price tag set at USD113.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 104Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) we tend to agree with them. We still think SilverStone shouldn’t make it so hard to remove the fascia and top cover and that they should had used a fan controller to allow consumers to reduce noise emanating from the four 140mm fans but overall it’s a very good PC case and that’s why we give it our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Design (Side LED Strips / Top LEDs / Front 140mm LED Fans)
- Four Pre Installed 140mm Fans
- Spacious Interior (419mm Long Graphics Cards / 180mm Tall CPU Coolers / 240mm Long PSUs)
- Space For Up To 7 Fans And/or Two 240/280/360 Radiators
- 10 Port Fan Hub
- Front/Bottom Air Filters
- Airflow Levels
- Price (For Some)

 

CONS

- Fan Hub with No Fan Controller
- Fascia & Top Cover Hard To Remove
- Front 360mm Radiator Restrictions
- Audible