SilverStone FARA 514X High Air Flow Case Review

In the DIY computing world, there is a concept that many people seem to have forgotten.  The concept has been a driving force for computer builders since the very beginning and was often directly associated with price.  Not only do the components need to be considered but also the effort needed to place the item on (or next to) your desk, in the living room, in your dorm room or, left after a bad date.

That concept is “Right Sizing” and was one of the driving factors for DIY computer builders to get the most from their purchases without spending too much.  For some, the right size is always the cheapest and for others it was where the pricing curve starts to climb up the logarithmic scale.  Of course, there is a different version of “Right Sizing” that we can apply to computer cases which describes a goldilocks design that isn’t too big but just large enough to house anything you want.

In this review we will be looking at the SilverStone FARA 514 High Air Flow Chassis that really exemplifies how computer cases have evolved from the popular beige box into smaller purpose-built designs that only contain what enthusiasts and system builders find important.

Model No. SST-FA514X-BG (Black) / SST-FA514X-WG (White)
Material: Steel, plastic, tempered glass
Motherboard: ATX (12" x 11"), Micro-ATX (9.6" x 9.6"), Mini-ITX (6.7" x 6.7")
Drive bay

• Internal: 3.5" x 2 / 2.5" x 2

Cooling system

• Front: 120mm x 3 (120mm x 3 ARGB fans included)
• Rear: 120mm x 1 (120mm x 1 ARGB fan included)
• Top: 120mm x 3 / 140mm x 2

Radiator support

• Front: 120mm / 240mm / 360mm
• Rear: 120mm
• Top: 120mm / 140mm / 240mm / 280mm / 360mm

Limitation of CPU cooler: 168mm
Expansion slot: 7
Limitation of expansion card

• Length : 378mm (Front mounted fans installed inside the front chassis)
  394mm (Front mounted fans installed outside the front chassis)
• Width : 174mm

Power supply: Standard PS2 (ATX)
Limitation of PSU

• 217mm (Drive cage installed at the front position)
• 185mm (Drive cage installed at the rear position)

Front I/O port

• USB Type-C x 1
• USB 3.0 x 2
• Audio x 1
• Mic x 1

Dimension

• 220mm (W), x 492.7mm (H), x 458.6mm (D), 49.7 liters
• 66" (W), x 19.4" (H), x 18.06" (D), 49.7 liters

Net weight: 8.6 kg