Silverstone Grandia GD02-MT Case
Final Conclusions
Published: 16th November 2008 | Source: Silverstone | Price: £289.99 |
Final Conclusions
After spending a few days using the case, I still have mixed emotions with it. The media centre aspect of the case works well and is a pleasure to use. But the niggles I had with building the PC inside the case are still fresh in my mind. I feel that Silverstone could have resolved some of the issues at the design stage quite easily and without having to compromise on other aspects.
Take, for example, the very limited space between the PSU and the hard drive when installed. I cannot understand why Sliverstone did not pick up on this when the case was still in the design stage. The other bugbear is their choice to limit the DVD options to using only a slimline drive. As I mentioned, all that would have been needed was probably another 15mm raise in overall height to enable full sized drive useage. These points may seem quite petty, but when you consider the price point that this case is at, I find it to be more serious. If you are paying a premium for a case, you don't expect things like this.
That said, there are more positive points than negative regards the case. One of the biggest attractions for me was the LCD screen, which worked flawlessly. Although in real world useage, I could imagine it to become less useful as due to the screen size, you have to be pretty close to be able to read the display. It's definitely a talking point though. The remote control is another part of the bundle which works effortlessly and works well. In no time at all, I was changing channels on live TV, flipping between applications and I even managed some web browsing using the remote. The size of the case is also a bonus regarding aesthetics, as it could easily blend into a lounge environment and doesn't stand out like a sore thumb, which is always a good thing for the HTPC aficionados.
All in all, I was impressed with the overall package offered. When building, I did run into a few problems. Once built though, the case performed admirably, and I would recommend it to those considering bulding a HTPC. Pricing will be an issue to some, but when you consider that to buy the components seperately that are within this bundle, the price doesn't seem out of the way.
The Good
+ Visually attractive & stylish
+ Great finish
+ Excellent HTPC functions
+ Compact and ideal for lounge environment
The Mediocre
* All steel construction (apart from front panel)
* Very limited cooling options
The Bad
- Poor cable management
- A couple of design flaws
Our thanks go out to Silverstone for providing us with the Grandia GD02-MT for review. Discuss this review in our forums.
Most Recent Comments
Nice review there, Similar to what ive got atm, the thermaltake DH104...
I found the LCD to be a real dissapointment, took me ages for it to actually find my media, and then I had to use the desktop app to get at it as the LCD didnt find it :S
Anyway, nice one once again stuart!
I found the LCD to be a real dissapointment, took me ages for it to actually find my media, and then I had to use the desktop app to get at it as the LCD didnt find it :S
Anyway, nice one once again stuart!
Thanks mate.
Great review. Dont see enough of these reviews about.
Fair comment with the construction points and limitations.
Personally I think the prices of these scare people. They look good, have some nice gimmicks, but when all the screws are taken out - it's a pc case. For the same price u can get one of those oversized LL server eatx thingies.
Fair comment with the construction points and limitations.
Personally I think the prices of these scare people. They look good, have some nice gimmicks, but when all the screws are taken out - it's a pc case. For the same price u can get one of those oversized LL server eatx thingies.
Great review as always Stuart, and I'm inclined to agree with Rast's comments above. A thoroughly enjoyable read though
Thanks alot fellas, glad you liked the review. I was concerned over the price too, till I found out the price of small LCD's alone. I was shocked to hear how much they retail for (around £150ish). Considering this, I don't think that the price for the case was unfair. As Rast mentioned though, the LCD's are quite gimmicky and the novelty would soon wear off.
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Originally Posted by name='stuartpb'
Thanks alot fellas, glad you liked the review. I was concerned over the price too, till I found out the price of small LCD's alone. I was shocked to hear how much they retail for (around £150ish). Considering this, I don't think that the price for the case was unfair. As Rast mentioned though, the LCD's are quite gimmicky and the novelty would soon wear off.
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It seems crazy they cost so much, I looked into it a while ago, you can get a reasonable desktop LCD for the same cost.
A good gimmick would be for the lcd to display what something like vlc or mediaplayer displays, like the scope/equalizer/album info etc etc - or equally an itunes output, that'd be something apple would jump on (for their pc-itunes ofc 
)
(this is where u step in and say they do)
)(this is where u step in and say they do
)They do
It has a graphic equaliser function, with the track name etc. when playing music. I don't think it shows the album art though or works with iTunes.
It has a graphic equaliser function, with the track name etc. when playing music. I don't think it shows the album art though or works with iTunes.
Yeah it's their "own thing" type of equalizer aint it. I reckon some1 should be bold and map exactly what the players display.
Good review, but I think you should change the load/idle temp graphs so they both scale in x from 0 to 70, as at first glance I thought you were getting lower load temps! I dunno whether I could be fussed with an LCD tbh, does add a bit of wow factor to the case though.
"Take, for example, the very limited space between the PSU and the hard drive when installed. I cannot understand why Sliverstone did not pick up on this when the case was still in the design stage."
Don't you think a 750 watt ps is overkill? 400 should be more than enough for a htpc and you can find a smaller size ps that won't have the space issues. IMHO Thanks for the review the build is helpful b/c I am about to use a simular case if not the same.
Don't you think a 750 watt ps is overkill? 400 should be more than enough for a htpc and you can find a smaller size ps that won't have the space issues. IMHO Thanks for the review the build is helpful b/c I am about to use a simular case if not the same.
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