Thermal Performance – Noise Normalized 25 dBA
This is the fourth chassis review I have made following the new methodology for thermal evaluation so that you will find only four entries in the charts below. Soon enough, there will be plenty of them!
IDLE Thermal Results
As I wrote in the previous review, I wonder why I bother providing IDLE temperatures.
Torture (Prime95 + Furmark) Thermal Results
I used the silent configuration of the chassis, having blocked the top and front panels with the corresponding parts, so thermal performance took an impact. I could also evaluate the high airflow mode if the day had more than 24 hours.
Gaming Results
As expected, because the hot air is trapped inside the chassis, with the sound-damping parts in place, CPU and GPU frequencies stay lower than the other cases I used for comparison.
CPU & GPU Average Clock Frequencies
We have to look at the average CPU and GPU clocks to have the complete picture since higher clocks mean more thermal load, which pushes the cooling system more. If we have two cooling systems with only a 1-2 degrees Celsius difference and a 100-200 MHz difference in the clock speeds of the CPU or the GPU, it is easy to find the best performer.
While it will add more time to the review process, I think it would be great if you could add a section for noise normalized and fan normalized measurements. I imagine a 1 front intake and 1 exhaust 120mm fan would be suitable for 90% of cases while providing good data for those who plan to use aftermarket fans.
Thank you for your suggestions! Noise normalized, I do already, using the fans of the chassis. Fan normalized is a huge pain for me. Only if I find someone here to completely handle chassis since they are killing me.
It would be good to have a section on memory cooling as well. Heavy memory OC is greatly affected when temps get too high.
Thorough, spot on review, as usual. Every review I’ve seen on this site so far is superb, even preferable to most found on some of the more ubiquitous sites.
This flagship Dark Base chassis from beQuiet!, even if a tad pricey, is likely their best, & one of the best on the market. The only disappointment (for me), is unlike their Silent Base & Pure Base series chasses, the Dark Base has no choice for a solid, non tempered glass solid side panel. While said choice is important to some, for most its a non-issue.