be quiet! Silent Base 601 Mid-Tower Chassis Review

A Closer Look – Exterior

The chassis is pretty smart looking, and it’s almost refreshing to see a chassis without tempered glass in the office. Of course, you can buy one with a tempered glass left side panel, however, we obviously have the solid one. If you’re now the show-off type and want a chassis that’s not seen or heard, this is one of the few new options on the market for you.

It looks like it’s closed up pretty tight, but it does still offer lots of airflow. Air comes through these side vents on the front panel, which come with some stunning orange trim to keep things looking interesting.

There’s some more ventilation in the top side channels too, albeit it’s less obvious and hidden.

Fan Control

The top of the chassis features the I/O panel, which is neat and tidy and even the USB ports are blacked out to keep it neat. There’s the bonus of a three-speed fan controller too, meaning you have more control over noise vs cooling.

The gorgeous front panel is minimalist but not boring, most likely due to the huge orange intakes.

There’s also a scoop intake at the bottom, and overall the bottom of the chassis looks like the front end of a sports car with all that sleek trim.

Down the right side, it’s pretty much identical. Short of a few details, the chassis is nearly symmetrical.

There are a few neat things going on around the back too, such as plentiful ventilation from top to bottom.

Tool Free Opening

You’ll notice there are no thumbscrews holding those side panels in place. They’re actually released with those push buttons on the top rear of the chassis. It keeps things looking clean, and also means tool-free access to your hardware.

There are seven expansion slots on the rear, as well as two more in a vertical configuration.

Finally, we have the PSU mount, which uses a removable plate to install it from the rear.