Xilence X1 gaming case

Under the hood

Moving inside the X1 is where things get a little more interesting.

We've already noted that the case opens from the right panel and not the left, as is usually standard, but having a quick glance at the innards reveals that the motherboard must also mount upside down, with the power supply at the bottom. Even stranger is that the HDD cage is not located near to the front of the case, but nearer to the centre and with a sloping design that has seemingly no purpose.

The slopping shape of the HDD cage's walls would seem only to offer aesthetic benefits, but that idea is dubious considering that it is after all located inside the PC chassis.

Looking closer at the insides shows that the case has a total of seven tool-less expansion slots, located at the top of the case since the motherboard has been oddly flipped. This placement of graphics cards at the top also affords the case an unusual hand-hold since the back of the case is recessed a little around the drive bays.

Of course, we've yet to mention the thermally designed aspect of the case's interior, which in reality is revealed to be a massive red heat-shroud which covers most of the lower half of the motherboard when in place.


This red monstrosity clips onto the single included fan, which is also red and measures in at 120mm, and funnels air in through one grill in the side panel and allows it to flow over the CPU heatsink and out the back of the case.

Fitting a larger CPU heatsink is a bit of a problem however, because the shroud has a smaller funnel inside which is intended to wrap around the fan and bring air in/out directly over the CPU. You're going to have to think about the size and shape of the heatsink if you choose to use the shroud.

The heatsink we found fitted the best was an Intel stock cooler, though we reckon the idea is to encourage users to buy the Xilence Cooler which is advertised on the case's box. Sneaky, that.


The redness of the shroud, combined with the numerous grills on the right side of the case, means that the shroud is plainly visible through the side of the case, which somewhat ruins any stylishly chic look the case may have had going for it.

On the plus side though, the X1 has a lot of room inside it to move around and a few inches in front of the HDD cage is room for a new 120mm fan to be mounted, thus circulating extra air over the hard disks and keeping the general case temperature lower. We're not experts, but that might be a good thing.