SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E: Fat Case in a Little Coat
by Dustin Sklavos on August 4, 2011 1:50 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Mini ITX
- SilverStone
- MicroATX
- Mini-Tower
Conclusion: Awesome Performer, But Needs Care
It's awfully hard to argue with results. I was excited to get a chance to test the SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E and now I understand why: SilverStone's design, however offbeat it may seem, ultimately proves itself when it comes to raw thermal performance. If you want to build a powerful computer in a small enclosure, odds are good you can do it with the Temjin.
Unfortunately there are some sizable caveats for building inside the TJ08-E. While I'm used to some difficulty with SilverStone's designs, the cramped quarters internally coupled with the unusual layout made cabling the entire thing borderline nightmarish. Frankly, you absolutely need a small power supply, and you need it to be modular, period, end of discussion. SilverStone is happy to sell you one, but that's definitely an addition to the pricetag that needs to be considered.
Clearance for optical drives is also pretty foggy, and while I think the case would definitely put in an even better performance with a tower-style CPU cooler and proper fan control from the motherboard (at least acoustically), you're not going to be able to fit anything huge in here. Thankfully, Cooler Master's Hyper 212 Plus is reasonably small, good, and cheap. You can also fit a big ol' video card into the TJ08-E without too much trouble, but I'd really hesitate to go for an SLI or CrossFire configuration. While it's true in our testing the Temjin performed markedly better than the more expensive FT03, the FT03's design seems better suited for multi-GPU configurations and our experience with the DigitalStorm Enix seems to confirm this.
With all that said, while the Temjin can be a royal pain to actually assemble (and thus is a poor choice for people who like to tweak their hardware or change it out frequently), for anyone who's going to build once and then maybe add something a year or so in the future it's an excellent choice. There's definitely room for improving the cooling and acoustics by the end user, which I like to see, but the overall thermal design is surprisingly effective.
The best part may just be the pricetag. At $99 the SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E is a very attractive, modern case that in some ways competes with the mid-towers we've tested. Nothing about it feels cheap, and the brushed aluminum face is a particularly nice touch. SilverStone also includes two USB 3.0 ports on the front instead of USB 2.0; these ports use a motherboard header instead of a passthrough, and SilverStone actually includes an adaptor to let them plug into a USB 2.0 header instead. If you're building from the ground up you'll want to spend some extra on the power supply (which you really should be doing anyhow), but at least the Temjin won't break the bank and will give you a heck of a lot of value for your $99. It's a fantastic enclosure...now if they could just make it easier to build.
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MakingMonkeys - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
Looks awesome.EnzoFX - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
Maybe you're too used to oversized cases =P.The room behind the mobo is significant, much more so than a standard case, and I can do a pretty awesome job at wiring those, and YES with non-modular PSU's haha. As far as the ODD space, well, I don't use ODD so who cares lol. There are short drives out there, and maybe shorter PSU's?
The big problem for me was brought up by SPCR, that structural integrity is a bit lacking, most noticeable when you remove the top section.
Dustin Sklavos - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
It's true I've gotten used to cases like Corsair's line (every one of which I've tested has been moronically easy to assemble), but the Temjin is cramped, no way around it, and you really are going to want to put it together in a very specific way. My major beef was with wiring everything; the clearance between the PSU and the ODD is bad and unfortunately largely unavoidable due to the needs of the TJ08-E's design.And while it's true YOU may not use ODDs, some of us still need them. I master blu-rays on my desktop, and I watch them on my media center. You might suggest just ripping them, but wouldn't that still require an ODD? Also, the PSU is pretty much as short as they come and was sent by SilverStone specifically for that reason.
SPCR may have felt the structural integrity was lacking, but that was not a problem that I experienced in testing the TJ08-E. Also, the top section is held on by six screws and really only meant to be removed once, so I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's probably fine.
Havor - Saturday, August 6, 2011 - link
I also seriously don't get your complaint's about lack of building space!I just build for a friend a LAN-PC using this same case.
Parts used:
* Asus ROG Maximus IV GENE-Z (for the PCIe 4x SSD slot)
* Core i7 2600K
* Antec KUHLER H2O 920
* Sapphire HD6990 (A seriously big card ;-)
* Corsair TX750 V2 (not modular!)
* Hitachi Deskstar 7K3000 3TB
* OCZ RevoDrive X3 240GB
* Drawer handle (on top for carry the case to and from lan's)
And I have really no complains about space, and even with a non-modular PSU my build looked a lot cleaner then yours.
TyRaps, stick-on TyRap points and the space under the mobo plate are really your friend!
And a friend of us, even water-jet out the side panel for a window, as it is a sweet looking clean build, specially for suds a small case.
Total actual building time less then 30 min.
I installed all the parts, and PSU last, then pulled all the cables to the right side of the case in the blind space you have there, and there is really a lot of space for all your extra cables and cable lengths next to the PSU, there is even a TyRap point there to zip them all up there!
(do it would had bin nice if they had made more TyRap points there)
http://www.anandtech.com/Gallery/Album/1256#3
szimm - Tuesday, August 9, 2011 - link
Hahaha, an HD 6990... I always chuckle a little when I see someone choose one of those overpriced hunks of junk for their build. Any 2x GPU card really. And unless you are overclocking, you should have settled for the i7 2600, not the K model. Or even the i5 2500, if it's strictly a gaming box. Meh, overkill.Havor - Tuesday, August 9, 2011 - link
A HD 6990 is just as fast as a HD 6970 CF setup, and both solutions cost the same.And the 2600 vs 2600K is 20 Euro difference
So how cares for a couple of Euro's on almost 2000 euro PC.
Meh, don't care.
piroroadkill - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link
Eh, if you have the money, there's nothing wrong with a 6990.I7 2600K, definitely. Don't get the non-K.
Wieland - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
The design is strikingly similar to that of the old Lian Li PC-A05N (and new PC-A05FN). Same inverted motherboard and similar front-to-back hard HDD carriage. The Lian Li is a bit longer, but it can fit a full ATX motherboard. It's a much more practical design in my opinion.Menty - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
I had a coupl've issues with the A05N which I think the TJ08 has solved. Namely that the exhaust fans were much closer to the user, making the A05N quite noisy, and that the exhaust from the PSU had a tendency to get recirculated back into the case. It also had very poor GPU cooling, with warm air tending to get trapped at the top of the case.superccs - Thursday, August 4, 2011 - link
I have that same case, but the one large problem is that the front ventilation is not sufficient if you have the front cover on. The cover prevents waaaaay to much air flow. I also installed a 120mm fan above the GPU slot to clear out stagnant air that gets trapped above the GPU. Over all thought the PC-A05N is very similar.