SilverStone TJ11, internal analysis
Considering that this series of SilverStone cabinets is absolutely unique (FT02/RV01-2-3 and TJ11 Series), we need just a quick look to the outside to see that even in this case we are in front of a futuristic and modern design, which in fact represents the state of the art and the result of a very advanced and innovative study under multiple points of view.
In the past, in the review of the FT02LE, we wrote:
“It's the refinement in the design, combined with the presence of highly significant features that make this product one of the best you can buy. We are confident that SilverStone will continue to propose, design and manufacture products that only have as its ultimate goal the pursuit of excellence. In the ICT market, the companies that really deserve a similar praise can be counted on the fingers of one hand, but all those who have seen and experienced these products know very well what we're talking about. For example, let’s analyze in the wide range of the cabinets on the market today which could be the most advanced and interesting model from the point of view of performance, innovation and design. For some reasons, in many cases you can found standard assembly diagrams, although undoubtedly you can always find unique characteristics. For example, take a look at the Thermaltake Level 10: an enclosure that on paper really excels, which has a unique arrangement but also a design simply amazing. But excluding the design, what are the other crucial aspects in a cabinet? Thermal performance and ease assembly. SilverStone, although it has perhaps a slightly old-style approach with regard to the accessibility and the insertion of tool-less systems, excels in the first two factors, especially in heat dissipation. There are few high-end cabinets that can revolutionize this field, and as you will see SilverStone solutions represent the cutting edge, the best currently available.”
Similar considerations apply to the TJ11: the best currently available. Let's analyze it, starting from the inside part:
Cable management
The back, behind the plate of the motherboard, allows a good management of cables, however there are some important notes to highlight: first, the 8-pin motherboard power connector is difficult to position in the rear, even impossible in some cases. This point should be revised, unless the user decides to modify and sleeve the cable, a quite complex work. Second point, we have the tangle of cables in the base for the hard disk connectors. This is in fact a real con, both visually and in practice, because the 4-pin molex connectors, by their nature, are very uncomfortable. The SilverStone connector CP06 solves only partially the problem, since it doesn't allow the Hot-swap installation, because of the lack of a plastic adapting structure. The thickness of the rear is good but could be larger. The TJ11 is not sound dampened, unlike the FT02, and for this reason there is a little bit more space. There are mechanisms that allow easy attachment of the cables and a better management, thus, with some forethought, you will have a clean system. In the lower part, between the two 180mm fans, there is a space for the passage of power supply connectors: it is necessary to exploit this space to have an ordered system. The fixing of the video-cards and of additional peripherals is made with classic screws, and we recommend keeping these components firmly, because of the particular position against gravity
Motherboard tray
The steel motherboard tray is removable and rotated 90° clockwise. The build quality is very high and there are many holes for cables that, similar to other SilverStone solutions, do not have a rubber protection. As happened in the TJ-04 Evolution, again SilverStone finely finished the edges of these openings, and then, as you can see, there is no risk of damaging cables during the installation.
5.25'' slot management, 3.5'' and 2.5'' hard drives
The 5.25" slot management uses a classic screw-based hooking system to block the peripherals. The hard disks are inserted in a structure improved compared to the FT02LE one, because there is also the possibility to install SSDs and still there are the four decoupling rubbers, of a different type and better than in the past. An interesting feature of the TJ11 is the presence of the six aforementioned CP05 proprietary connectors, which allow to each disk the hot-swap feature. We should remind, however, that in practice you can't really hot-swap a hard drive, but only with the PC turned off. Many times the hot-swap option is incorrectly advertised because you can disconnect hard disks from the running system only if you have a particular hard disk controller that allows this feature.
The disks are cooled by two excellent AP121 fans mounted on the rear and in fact the recorded temperatures are much lower than the competition. The disks must be tightened, through the usual dedicated screws, to the mounting clips, and then slide them horizontally in the cage. The same applies to the management of the SSD, which in this case are also supported natively in these units; it would also be possible to install them posteriorly through the two dedicated systems, included in the bundle.
