INTRODUCTION
Whenever i think about PC Cases i always end up comparing them with cars since they happen to share quite a few similarities with them. So except the exterior design which i think matters the most lot with both our choice is also largely based on several other things such as the type (coupe/roadster/4 door/2 door/midi tower/full tower/mini tower), interior space, build quality, available features and of course the price tag. Fortunately PC Cases cost a lot less than cars so most people (casual users) don't really pay much attention to anything else other than the design something which i happen to understand since not everyone can be aware of what they should look for in a PC Case but that doesn't mean that i actually agree with it. Today on our test bench is the latest and quite promising (based on its specifications sheet) updated Prominent 5 midi tower by NEXUS.
Nexus Technology BV was established in 2000 by a group of experts on heat conductivity and noise reduction in the computer industry. Their expertise and in depth knowledge and experience on heat conductivity issues and thermal characteristics was gained by working closely with many of the larger pc manufacturers for several years. The idea that brought all of them together and made Nexus a reality was to create a full line of high quality computer components which could improve the working environment by reducing noise levels. Ever since the beginning Nexus is continuously developing products to reduce noise levels and consequentially improve heat conductivity and airflow and their sole goal is to build a strong and reliable trademark for silent computing.
Last time we had the chance to test a product designed and manufactured by Nexus it was roughly 7 months ago (right around our launch) and the PC Case at hand was the surprisingly good Prominent R, a midi tower which combined a high build quality with a long list of features and low noise levels. Well the new Prominent 5 may lack certain features found in the R version but it does share the same high build quality, the same spacious interior and focuses a lot more on noise reduction something which alone should make it ideal for people who put low noise levels above everything else when looking to buy a new PC Case. To get a complete picture on what we're talking about you really need to see for yourselves so read on.
SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS
Once again both at the front and rear of the box NEXUS has only placed their logo and product name.
The NEXUS logo is also placed on the right side.
The specifications table of the Prominent 5 is placed on the left side.
Two Styrofoam spacers and a plastic bag/cover are used to keep the tower secure during shipping.
THE PROMINENT 5 EXTERIOR
The all-black Prominent 5 measures 508mm in length, 207mm in width and 479mm in height and as you can see it comes with a plastic cover placed over the front and top (easiest spots to get scratched).
As you can see NEXUS has once again used a simplistic yet elegant design for their case (it even looks better than the R version).
The company LOGO is pretty much the only thing placed on both side panels.
Most of the front fascia is perforated for better airflow inside the case.
The Prominent 5 has a total of five 5.25" drive bays, one of which is configured for either an 3.5" drive or an 1.44" FDD.
There are two brushed aluminum stripes on each side of the front fascia going all the way from the top to the bottom.
The lower section of the front fascia is also perforated so naturally there should be a front fan behind it.
If you remove the entire front fascia you will see that the interior is covered with air-filters so you don't have to worry about dust getting in from here.
A white low-noise 120mm intake fan is placed at the front.
At the top right of the front fascia we see the HDD activity LED.
The power button doubles as the power LED while right above that we see the closed I/O which includes 2 USB 3.0 ports, 2 USB 2.0 ports, mic/headphones mini-jacks and the reset button. Compared to the original Prominent 5 released over a year ago the updated version lacks the Firewire/eSATA ports.
Moving at the rear top end we see several air vents (kinda reminds me of the ones the Mercedes SLR has on each side).
The rear features the same high quality black matte paint as the rest of the case.
Unfortunately there's no rear exhaust fan pre-installed but you can install your own 80/90/120mm fan.
As expected from a midi tower we see a total of 7 PCI expansion slots.
The PSU spot is once again placed at the lower part of the case.
Turning the case upside down we see an extra fan spot which you can use with an 80/90/120/140mm fan.
THE PROMINENT 5 INTERIOR
I was quite surprised to see that the left side panel comes ready with the thickest noise-absorption material I’ve seen so far.
On the other hand however the right side panel comes with a much thinner one since NEXUS had to leave some space for cables.
The interior of the Prominent 5 is just as spacious as the one of the R version and is also black (the orange/black color combo looks nice).
All of the available 5 ODB's feature locking mechanisms. Also remember that we skipped the contents picture? Well that was because all of the screws are mounted vertically at the rear of the 5.25” drive bays as you can see above (which is kinda nice since you won’t be misplacing them).
There are also five 3.5" drive trays in the Prominent 5.
The quality of the trays is not the best I’ve ever seen but it's very good and they also have mounting holes for 2.5" drives.
The mainboard tray has a single large opening and 5 plastic holders for cable management purposes. Also notice the lack of an opening beneath the CPU area which is replaced with what seems to be another fan spot (although you can't install a fan there).
All 7 PCI expansion slots feature tool-less locks which may not be as sturdy as regular screws (you can also use regular screws if you choose not to use the locks) but they work well.
The extra base fan spot comes ready with an air-filter which unfortunately sits beneath the fan so to clean it you need to remove the fan first (if of course you choose to place one).
There's not much space behind the mainboard tray (even less once you install the right side panel) but it's enough to route a few cables.
At the rear top NEXUS has pre-installed a single 140mm exhaust fan and has also placed room for a second one right next to that.
BUILDING THE SYSTEM
As always the purpose of this section is not to build a fully working system but rather to showcase what you can expect from the case at hand in terms of interior space.
Just like with many other midi towers you may be able to mount an E-ATX factor mainboard inside the Prominent 5 (unfortunately i don't have one here to test that).
You can install pretty much any CPU Cooler out there inside the new Prominent 5 however pay extra attention to its width since the CNPS9900MAX had roughly 2cm of room left between that and the top 140mm exhaust fan.
The new Prominent 5 has room for cards up to 300mm in length so you should have no issue with an mGPU solution.
There's plenty of space to install even the longest PSU at the bottom of the new Prominent 5 but if you do so you will need to remove one of the plastic cable holders.
NOISE LEVELS
After giving it much thought we decided on performing noise tests with each PC Case we receive by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically ontop of each case to measure the noise levels emanating from the pre-installed fans at both 50% and 100% with the help of a fan controller.
CONCLUSION
NEXUS may not be amongst the most recognizable names in the industry like lets say Thermaltake or Cooler Master but both their Prominent R and now the new updated version of the Prominent 5 can easily go up against pretty much everything the top manufacturers have to offer, with of course a few exceptions which naturally are also quite more expensive. So the new Prominent 5 is basically a midi tower with a very high build quality, spacious interior, tool-less design, 2 pre-installed fans (140mm top/120mm front), 3 extra fan spots and plenty of noise-absorbing material on the interior of both side panels. The only downside i can think of is the lack of a CPU hole on the mainboard tray used to swap CPU Coolers and honestly i don't know why that is especially since most PC Cases offer that nowadays. Still just that wouldn't be enough for me to ignore everything else the new Prominent 5 has to offer.
The new Prominent 5 midi tower by NEXUS is also very reasonably priced since currently it can be found for at around 90Euros inside the EU. Unfortunately in the USA i was only able to find the previous Prominent 5 version which lacks the two USB 3.0 ports on the top I/O (has the Firewire/eSATA combo) and so i don't have a price for the new variant. However since the old variant currently retails for at around USD90 i expect the new one to retail for well over USD100. Bottom line if you hate noise and you don't change CPU Coolers on a regular basis (and so you really need a CPU hole on the mainboard tray) i really suggest taking a look at the Prominent 5 since i really doubt you can find something better or just as good in the sub 100Euros price segment and that's also why it gets our Golden Award.
PROS
- Build Quality
- Design (Simple But Elegant)
- Noise Absorbing Coating
- Air-Filters
- Room For Up To 5 120/140mm Fans (2 Preinstalled)
- Can Install Graphics Cards Up To 300mm In Length
- Spacious Interior
- Price (For Some)
CONS
- No CPU Mainboard Hole
- Drive Trays Are Not Very Sturdy (As With Most Cases Out There)