Phanteks Enthoo Pro M Glass Review

Introduction

Since Phanteks first entered the case market in 2013, their line-up of cases in the Enthoo range has grown massively, and now boasts in excess of over a dozen different variants. This tempered glass edition that we have here is the third iteration of the Enthoo Pro M case, following the initial windowed version at launch, and then the full acrylic side panel version that was released at the start of the year.

Given the widespread plaudits that each of the previous models received, it’s not surprising that Phanteks have kept the same chassis as the previous versions when showcasing this tempered glass edition.

So, the question is…does the full tempered glass side panel actually add anything? Or are Phanteks just trying to squeeze out a few more sales, by just tweaking an already successful case?

Specifications

– Dimension: 235 mm x 480 mm x 500 mm (W x H x D), 9.25 in x 18.9 in x 19.7 in

– Colour: Black

– Form Factor: Midtower Chassis

– Material(s): Plastic Exterior, Steel Chassis, Tempered Glass side window.

– Motherboard Support: E-ATX *(up to 264mm wide), ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX

– Front I/O: 2x USB 3.0, Mic, Headphone, Reset

– Side Window: Yes

– Expansion slots: 7

– Internal 3.5″: 8x (2x included)

– Internal 2.5″ (dedicated): 3x (1x included)

– Cooling: 120mm Fan – Front: 2x (3x without ODD Cage), Top: 3x, Rear: 1x

– Cooling: 140mm Fan – Front 2x (1 included), Top: 2x, Rear: 1x (1 included)

– Liquid Cooling: 120mm Radiator – Front: Up to 360mm, Top: Up to 360mm, Rear: 120mm

– Liquid Cooling: 140mm Radiator – Front: Up to 280mm, Top, Up to 280mm, Rear: 140mm

– Graphic card Clearance: 420 mm (16.54 in) No HDD brackets, 300 mm (11.8 in) HDD brackets installed

– PSU Clearance: 318 mm (12.5 in)

– CPU cooler Clearance: 194 mm (7.6 in)

– Cable management: 35 mm (1.38 in)

– Memory clearance (motherboard – fan): 120mm: 68 mm (2.68 in), 140mm: 48 mm (1.89 in)

– Package Dimension: 315 mm x 545 mm x 585 mm (WxHxD)

– Net Weight: 7.4 kg (15.4 lbs)

– Gross Weight: 9.0 kg (19.8 lbs)

– Warranty: 5 Years

Closer Look – Exterior

Following the styling cues of its bigger brother (the Enthoo Pro), was always going to be a winner for Phanteks, given the huge popularity of that case.

The brushed aluminium look of the case gives it a nice finish, but to be honest, you really take no notice of this…your eyes are drawn to, and remain fixed to, the gloriously beautiful full glass side panel.

Is it a finger print magnet? Yes!

Will you forever be buffing & polishing it to remove any smudges or smears? Yes!

However, the beauty of this being a glass panel is that you can gently clean & buff it, without the fear of leaving permanent scratches on the panel, like you would with acrylic.

The front of the case is also pretty minimalistic, with a large vent dominating the majority of the panel. The only other feature here is the 5.25″ drive bay blanking plate.

Removing the front of the case exposes the first of two pre-installed 140mm fans, which sits on rails designed for a varying array of different fan and radiator possibilities. The full extent of the options can be found in the specifications above. The second pre-installed fan sits at the rear exhaust mount.

The front cover itself houses the large dust filter that sits behind the front grill. One bonus I noticed here, over the previous editions of this case, is that the side slats in the case now have a fixed strip of dust filter fitted to the inside. This was omitted on previous versions, so it’s good to see that Phanteks have addressed this in the updated version.

Talking of dust reduction, one final filter can be found underneath the case and sits under the PSU mount. The filter simply slides out to enable quick & easy cleaning.

To the top of the case, sits nothing more than the large magnetic dust filter, and the power button. This gives it a nice sleek look, with the I/O ports located on the side. These consist of two USB 3.0 ports, microphone & headphone jacks, and the reset button.

Closer Look – Interior

As mentioned before, the chassis is identical to the previous iterations of the Enthoo Pro M case, so all the previous features that made this an already fantastic case are present.

The interior is clean & uncluttered, allowing for maximum airflow, as well as plenty of space for water-cooling should that be your build of choice. If you need to add a number of HDD’s, separate mounting brackets can be purchased and fitted inside by removing the blanking plates.

A removable optical drive cage is included out of the box, but no HDD cages unfortunately. This is a shame, given the relatively small amount of money this would have cost Phanteks if I am being honest.

Also worthy of a mention is the retractable radiator bracket that is fitted to the underside of the roof. This is not a new feature obviously, but it is very useful indeed, allowing you to affix fans/radiators whilst extended, rather than have to do this from inside the case. On the test case, I received, this was extremely stiff, to begin with. A small amount of lubricating grease sorted this, though.

Moving around to the backside of the case, and the panel is removed by the usual 2 thumb screws…however, a very small gripe here is that they aren’t capacitive.

With the panel removed, the drive bays that are available out of the box can be seen. To the bottom left are two 3.5″ drive cages, and one 2.5″ “drop & lock” cage. There are two positions that this can be seated in around the back, both just below the motherboard tray cutout. Given that there is also a third location possible within the main cavity of the case, the inclusion of just one mounting bracket is a little disappointing if I’m honest. As before, given the small amount of cost this would have introduced, including a second wouldn’t have broken the bank on Phanteks part.

Cable management remains on point, with a good amount of clearance between the chassis and the rear side panel, and the Phanteks branded velcro straps keep everything pinned where you need it.

Closer Look – The Build

To round off the review, we built the following system into the Enthoo Pro M Glass case…doesn’t it look beautiful?

CPU – Intel i7 5820k
Motherboard – EVGA X99 Micro 2 mATX
GPU – EVGA GTX 780 Hydro Copper
RAM – Avexir 16GB 2400MHz (4x4GB) DDR4
SSD – Samsung SM951 128GB
HDD – 1TB WD Blue
Case – Phanteks Enthoo Pro M (Tempered Glass Edition)
Watercooling – CoolForce Fittings/PETG Tubing with Mayhems Purple Pastel Coolant

Conclusion

Releasing a “new” case, which just has a slab of tempered glass instead of the previous acrylic side panel may also be seen by some as a little lazy. However, that’s not my view at all.

I’ll admit it now, I’m becoming a big fan of the cases being released by Phanteks…and their budget cases at that. My current daily driver is the Phanteks P400, and that is a ridiculous amount of case for the money…but the Enthoo Pro M is something else!

The Enthoo Pro M has always been a fantastic case. It’s a dream to build in, is made with good materials for its price point, and looks great when built up. The full acrylic version stepped it up a notch, whilst keeping the superb chassis untouched…and now the glass edition is the culmination of the Enthoo Pro M’s journey. For the price of just a penny shy of £90, this is the best case you can buy for your money.

There are cheaper cases, and there are better cases…but for sheer value for money, without having to cough up a big chunk of cash, or have to settle for a sub-standard product, the Phanteks Enthoo Pro M Glass Edition cannot be beaten in my opinion. That’s why I’m giving it our Play3r Gold Award.

Big thanks to OcUK for sending in the Phanteks Enthoo Pro M Tempered Glass Edition in for review. Buy yours HERE.