Be Quiet! Dark Base 700 Case Review

Reviewing the new Be Quiet! Dark Base 700 case, including tests for noise, thermals, build quality, and cable management.
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Host, Test Lead: Steve Burke
Video: Andrew Coleman
Editorial, Review: Patrick Lathan
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[@GamersNexus]

Find Patrick's article here: www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/3122-be-quiet-dark-base-700-case-review You might also like our end of year awards, where Be Quiet! took two of them: kzbin.info/www/bejne/epvQgaOpfqdpd7M

[@Wintonbutter]

Gamers Nexus but I don’t have an article

[@GamersNexus]

Funny, sort of shows the subjective nature of cases -- we found the KL07 to be one of the least memorable for this year. That's not to say it's bad or anything, just that it didn't particularly stand out (to us). On the other side, we mention the RL06 in nearly every content piece. Just shows how much more subjectivity can impact the purchasing decision for a case, as opposed to something like a CPU or GPU.

[@Zarcondeegrissom]

a curiosity I guess. If the extra drive bays are not included with the case, how difficult is it to get them, if someone needs them? And given the improvements to the 700, will the 900 be revised with the same improvements? Great vid GN crew B) I do NOT see the drive bays available on the website? Where do you get them? Hmmm.

[@abigailpatridge2948]

Hey, GN, would you consider reviewing a case from a not big name? Thinking about the Rosewill Blackhawk Ultra. Just seems like such a well considered design for people who are more interested in performance. Stock configuration would probably kinda suck, because Rosewill fans are shit, but replace them with some good fans and...

[@BeastOrGod]

Invert the motherboard, set the top fans to push downward towards the GPU, front fans push out, check thermals. I'll be waiting.

[@JustGleipnir]

Hmm focusing on both silence and noise 1:46.

[@GamersNexus]

Silence and performance*

[@saladwithsalad]

Trung Nguyen This case does both.

[@penguinairlines]

Loving the chart visuals. The highlights are easy on the eyes and well-timed to identify talking points while busy working on other tasks. Keep up the great work guys.

[@Andrei-ck7lv]

I just wanted to thank you for the work put into reviewing the case, and comparing it with all other cases.

[@thegingercrisis]

Hi steve and team! To start i love your work and in depth information. The one thing i wonder though is why you test the cooling with the stock configuration and not say 2 fans in the front, 2 fans on the roof and the 1 fan in the back. Being how your target audience is at the enthusiast level, i don't know any enthusiast that is going to use the stock configuration of fans. Just a thought..i still love you guys. Keep it coming!

[@sarmero8958]

Great review, as always. Would LOVE to see a thermaltake F31 tempered glass review

[@Gamblooor]

I'd be interested to see the perfomance of this case with additional fans, to see if the perfomance could be improved without much increase to sound. I'm currently rocking a Silent Base 600 and it's pretty bad for thermals but is essentially silent under lower stresses.

[@thegingercrisis]

You know your a tech geek when you spend your lunch break watching pc case reviews lol...love the content guys good job keep it up 👍

[@havingstl]

Thanks for the great case review

[@osgrov]

Beautiful case. What I really would like to know is how thermals and noise would look if you had a 280 or 360 CLC on the CPU, and/or add another 140mm fan on the front. That should be how most of these would be used, I would guess.

[@5ch4cht3l7]

CLCs are "the great equalizer" because almost every case has the same temps using these

[@Planehazza]

Was thinking that too. I'm trying to decide what case to get for a new 8700k build so cpu cooling is a big consideration. Really like the 700i and this, but the 700i is too big and this appears to have air/noise problems

[@osgrov]

Harry Marshall, I went with the Dark Base Pro 900 instead since it's a case I was already familiar with. It's great, really nice case overall. Too big on a desk but works well on the floor. Maybe you should take a look at Fractal Define R6 as well? I wish I knew that one was coming befpre I built my new rig. :)

[@michelvanbriemen3459]

OUT OF THE AWARDS TESTING

[@Zarcondeegrissom]

A swift kick in the plumbs award. ok, not quite that bad, if you didn't use the vertical GPU mount, lol. - Looks better than it cools award - B)

[@rolandsuchanek]

I love it. Thanks for proving what to buy next.

[@kravaristheocharis4840]

i am really curious what happens if you install an extra front fan at the hight of the cpu.. do you get decent thermals like with the gpu..?

[@shotbyarian]

i actually really like this case - always had 3 fans inside, so can't tell you the difference, but with 3 fans, a noctua nh-d15 with a ryzen 9 and an rtx 3080 it stays relatively quiet when gaming and supersilent when just doing email/browsing

[@aule10]

It is really important to mention that the testing is done with stock cooler and position. If you care about cooling then you get another 2 silent 3 wings high speed, so you can get 2 front 1 back and 1 top. When you compare this to the other cases that have in stock between 3 and 4 fans, it is ofc. running hotter than they are. It is however a bit unfortunate that they didnt make it 2 cm higher, so you could fit 3 fans in front, but with the slates there it might not matter to much.

[@Meatwad650]

I like the looks and the features. I was thinking about doing this with a 240mm radiator front mounted and then the front fan as an intake fan on the bottom as well.

[@drankyourmilkshake4511]

Feel like you guys should put the phanteks p400s tg on this list. One of the more popular cases this year and was constantly sold out early in its release. I know how much time it takes to do these, so not complaining. Just think it’s a crucial comparison being it’s a well priced option with lots of trendy features. Thanks for the review Steve, informative as always. Best case reviews. Wonder how this performs with an AIO.

[@il2xbox]

Thank god for the USB Type C on the front, hopefully more cases follow suit.

[@liam2483]

well i guess its good in a lot of ways but at the moment it limits motherboard choice i personal think it should be removable

[@illstateofmind]

Yes! My favorite case reviewer reviewing a case that interests me... awesome!

[@illstateofmind]

Not interested in this case after seeing review.

[@parsastrife6629]

That escalated quickly

[@illstateofmind]

Parsa Strife you know it! A testament to NG’s thorough reviews.

[@gogogagetname]

Pretty much everything about the 900 that didn't work for me are addressed with this case, smaller size, usb c....too bad I bought the 900 2 week ago. That being said, looking at the 700 in the video, air flow should still be much better on the 900...more vents at bottom(fan mounts) and top with the 900. So overall still very happy with the 900.

[@5ch4cht3l7]

I like the looks of the 900 more even though this has a PSU shroud. From the front it looks like the case goes down to the bottom, but from the side you have these high feets.

[@videogaminbiker889]

v1 tech makes a psu cover for the dark base pro 900

[@not_a_samsquamsh6777]

It's almost as if Be Quiet! learned from criticisms of the Dark Base 900. Kudos for them not following companies like Bitfenix. I just got the Dark Base 700 last week and moved my build to it 4 days ago. I could not be happier with this case. Well, except for buying more fans, but I figure I'm already spending this much, what's the extra $20 for an extra fan.

[@ToriRocksAmos]

Hi GN, will you take a look at cube shaped cases like the corsair carbide air 540 in the future?

[@ameliasmith6481]

Since one of the main features is the inverted motherboard, it would be interesting to do thermals on the inverted set up.

[@stupidburp]

I have considered putting a dual fan mount rack in the slots intended for vertical GPU mount. This would add airflow down directly over the standard mount graphics card while keeping most of the noise inside the case. A side panel fan would accomplish much the same thing and use cool air from outside the case instead of recirculating warm air but with more noise. Keeping the noise down is more important to me which is why I have been looking at adding a few extra fans to help put airflow on the hottest components in the case. I also have looked into mounting an internal fan over the VRM. The fan mount racks are relatively inexpensive so it seems like it could be a decent investment if it actually works well. But I don't think it would make sense to get an expensive case just for this potential feature.

[@vMaxHeadroom]

Another form over function case...great review, especially as you actually tested the case for thermals and noise..

[@robertnicewonder7647]

Thanks for the case review! How the RGB on the front look?....I don't think you showed that part.

[@jdtechgear]

FINALLY!! I got an ad about PC hardware and not something completely unrelated!!

[@desender]

Wish this was available when I made my new pc. I bought the dark base 900

[@plebicite3704]

It looks so good.

[@Erowens98]

Would have loved to see tests with extra fans. It looks like fan positioning was the big killer here.

[@devonborghese7185]

best case reviews of all tech channels.

[@Shorty2109]

Hardwarecanucks are a very close second. Visually way more appealing, but lacks the details, especially temperature and noise analyses.

[@FabulousFab72]

I am interested by this case because I can do an inverted build. I have to admit that I am a little disappointed with its average score out of the box. So, if I want to go with it, I think I must buy another Silent Wings 3...

[@LeoDavidson]

Another review spotted quite a deal-breaker if you use the case's front/side lighting: Removing the front panel to clean the dust filters can lock up your PC. It has some cosmetic LEDs in the front panel which connect to the case by clever contacts/pins that avoid the panel being tethered by a cable, but also mean a SATA power connector is effectively being plugged/unplugged (and possibly having connections crossed if the panel moves sideways while being taken off?) when the panel is removed, which will cause some PSUs to do funny things. (Probably depending on how sensitive your PSU is. The Fractal Refine R4 had a similar problem with its fan speed switch rebooting my PC. Fixed in the R5 by some electrical change I don't understand but gather was very cheap.)

[@badboyuk777]

simple solution would be switch off the pc then remove the dust filters?

[@GuidoDePalma]

You should have also tested in inverted config, like you did for the 900 pro.

[@n.t.338]

Truly the best case on the market. Top notch build, silent, awesome quality, vertical GPU (even high cards with 120mm fan) if you want it. Boring looks? Man, it's one of the most elegant cases out there. Trumps Fractal because of the RGB and small details anytime.

[@brianlam5847]

Is this case still good in 2021?

[@dogeboyftw8661]

@@brianlam5847 yes its amazing, however i would definitely recommend getting an extra fan or two

[@diarx1]

I'd like to see a video of cooling gains you could achieve from some of these average performing cases with just some slight mods, eg. Dremel or cutters to cut some of the excess intake plastic/metal, but without going so far as to ruin the asthetic?

[@PandaPowerable]

Jack of all trades, master of none! Looks nice though :)

[@msnHD]

nice review, anyone can tell me if this case can provide a better cooling/temps with additional fans in comparison to nzxt s340 elite? any worth of trying to re-build a system there?

[@bigo9465]

Hi, first of all props to the video. If this is average, which case would you recommend?

[@norbgs07]

I’m highly considering this case for its aesthetics and features, however I’m concerned with its inability to move air. If possible, I’d love for you to add another test by occupying all fan slots and retest using the same methodology. I'm also wondering if the CPU is water-cooled with an AIO to see how much that helps the overall temps inside the case.

[@Kromaatikse]

I do think that fitting a third fan (in the upper front) would help this case a lot, by proving fresh air directly and efficiently to the CPU area. Kinda weird for them to cheap out by not providing it stock.

[@peterjansen4826]

I would like to see the Fractal S included in this benchmark. It also is silent, the question is how the airflow is compared to the (more expensive) competitors.

[@marcopa86]

I want the H700D(umb), let's press for it! :P

[@muakira2645]

Is it custom liquid cooling friendly. I like the removable shroud always tough to work with when it's not.

[@Ravenousjoe]

Hey Steve, have you found a decent solution to cooling vertical GPUs in tempered glass cases? Would extra intakes help to force air towards the case and out? Or is that gap there just too small for open air cooled GPUs?

[@callthatwhatyouwant]

Silence and noise impossible to do both well? I think you meant cooling and noise lol

[@GamersNexus]

Yeah, silence + performance.

[@jamespetersen9863]

I mean technically you can't do both well...

[@defaultHandle1110]

You mean cooling and silence. How can it be a good thing to do 'noise' well. Ha!

[@00101001000000110011]

So what you're saying Steve is this is good for liquid cooling alone or not worth it. I think for that it'd be just about the best set of features for my needs. Thanks as usual for the work guys !

[@Zeus-se9pv]

I would have loved to see this with some 5.25" bays

[@MCMonsterbuilder]

My Case is "invertable" as well and didn't cost 190 bucks. I just put it upside down so the GPU fan is pushed down by Gravity as I lost a screw and it was making noises the normal way. And it's also very Silent even without the sidepanel that doesn't fit because the CPU Cooler is to big.

[@Krzysztof.....................]

Thank you

[@curse4444]

At 5:27 there's a weird optical illusion in the back fan be quiet! logo. If you watch the logo as the fan spins, it looks like there's a little orange swastika!

[@RitaMaSTeR]

Looks Gine, bit im waiting for the Fractal R6 xD

[@beerenmusli8220]

You did knew about the fractal R6 before it came out? From where?

[@bgm1911]

A very good looking case.

[@sp00n]

Man, I wish they already had noise normalized and case standardized test for this review. I'd really like to see how it performs with a decent fan setup. ;_;

[@Sareth94]

same here. I love the visual look of this case, but I'm left wondering if a set of Noctua NF-A12x25's can "fix" the front panel.

[@MaksKCS]

So if I mount a GPU vertically with a cooler master riser card in this case it will increase the temperature by 18 degrees?

[@PeakDecline]

I was really hoping more likely configurations would be tested. With other cases you've experimented with fan configurations beyond stock. Should have been done here as it's almost certain the buyers would want more than the two included fans. It's a $180 case chances of the buyers being happy leaving it with just 1 intake seem very low in my opinion.

[@bfvader]

Can you mount any 3.5" drives in the main area while still supporting a front-mounted radiator?

[@kineticman123]

You guys should have talked about AIO radiator placement options.

[@nintendoeats]

Aside from clearly needing another intake fan, how much better would this case be if it had a padded side-panel?

[@srenwetter4157]

Can you review the RL07 next, It just released or is soon to be

[@Vladek16]

4:22 :O please BeQuiet tell me that you sold those drive bay cover ! i want some for my dark base pro 900 :D !

[@Prasanna_Shinde]

hey Steve, is Fractal design Define S have good airflow (i.e. low enough restriction for 800 rpm fans used 2 slim 360mm radiators) ??? thanks in Advance :) :) :)

[@edaucode]

you should reviewing cubegaming cases, Steve. they're focused on mATX. but i dunno if it's available worldwide :(

[@XxLukexX]

Excellent case, i have one.

[@HealthyCriticism]

are you getting your hands on a lian li 550?

[@MXDOUT]

This is a different view to my review which i like a lot ;)

[@fivemillion]

I think an inverted configuration would have improved thermals, and I think you showed that with the 900?

[@ashurgeorge4604]

Have you tested the noise of the corsair 400Q?

[@jmcarlson34]

Will the 700's PSU cover work in the DB Pro 900?

[@grasdubidelevertueux6892]

can we install the gpu vertically ?

[@rupee3]

great review. my take is this case would not be ideal for a AMD 3900x with NH-D15 cooler.

[@brumby92]

I find inverted motherboard cases really attractive.

[@Ademin16Gmz]

Can we see more cheap cases (under 100$) and compare them with high price cases, for example the Cooler Master Masterbox Lite 5 RGB at 80$ packs quite a punch compared to double or triple its price cases ?

[@order6676]

I am between this, enthoo evolv atx, and eclipse p400s tg. But this is basically useless in my decision because I will eventually be water-cooling. What I do like about it is the hard drive cage modularity. It looks like it can be put further towards the psu for better rad support. Evolv and p400s sucks in that regard. Everything else seems pretty similar to the other cases.

[@sebastiaandekooter434]

Hmm it's very hard right now to choose a good case. I already own the Silent Base 800 and IMO the case fans are just too loud. I can always tell when it is not on standby, whereas my 2010 CM 690II does not have this issue at all. In dB there is not a big difference but the SB800 fans are just more annoying. For my Coffee lake upgrade I want to replace the CM 690 II but it is really hard. With all the RGB I would like tempered glass, very good noise levels on idle and no throttling on my GTX 1070 (150W) and 8700K (200W). I thought this case would be perfect but according to this test it is not. However maybe it will work if you let the mobo set the fan speed for silent operation during idle and max rpm during gaming?

[@lapptech]

The Darkbase Pro 900 is only about $25 more here in Swedenland than the 700.

[@warartgaming870]

I didn't understand what he said about mounting of HD drives. Although there are 7 spots, I can only mount 2? I need to mount 3 or 4 HDs, will this case do?

[@MrJohnnyb74]

I want to get this and swap out my Phanteks Evolve.

[@fjlbanks]

Please can you review the Cougar Panzer (not max)

[@DarkPa1adin]

thumbs up for your glove!

[@essentialone1]

I got to ask, I own a Dark Base Pro 900 TG, as you know it comes with no PSU shroud, or HDD inserts for where there are no hdd cages. I see the Dark Base 700 has these things. Are these compatible with the Dark Base Pro 900 TG, in other words will I be able to buy them separately for my 900. I defo could do with some HDD inserts to block all mine off for a clean look.

[@steevty]

For the top panel, cant you just cut it out to make air vents? (Modding basically) I feel like if you mod the top, then this is a perfect case.

[@crimsun7186]

Well...Glass is a resonating device. It's a bit weird that cases with glass panels are advertised as "silent", especially when it's a single glass panel. If you see recording studio windows, they're all double glass windows with an air gap in the middle.

[@cheroiurobert7255]

how would this case perform with 2 ,140 mm fans on the front?... i rly like the look of it but i dont want an oven there....

[@neodavie]

Their site says this supports EATX boards, but what does that look like? Wouldn't it cover up the grommets?

[@edaucode]

David Green EATX are usually used by extreme platform, such as amd TR4 and intel lga2xxx socket mobos. mostly 6-8 ram slot

[@Rvndrkk]

So this is basicly the only option in modern mid tower cases to have inverted layout? Or maybe I just suck at searching stuff.

[@bartekowca666]

I waited for this one. Thanks GN

[@GamersNexus]

Thanks for watching!

[@bartekowca666]

I watch every single video you publish :)

[@whatamericamademe]

Seems like a perfect case for audio if you run the fans on quiet. Im getting it for audio production. No gaming at all. Possibly use liquid cooling front mounted radiator and use regular 140 mm fans for the rest of the case.

[@-primitive-1035]

I am also considering this mobo for audio production.Did u get it ? Is it good for u?

[@DMS_134]

I can't help but lol at the gloves. I am sorry.

[@moritznagelschmied7104]

your preroll is somewhat wrong, steve is talking about coffee lake cpus and the chart shows core i9's and that is skylake X

[@keen1988able]

It did so good in GPU temp... wondering what will happened if you alien the front fan with the cpu cooler...should be much better...Any way, have to buy this as i need a inverted case and 600c is out of stock everywhere....

[@keen1988able]

Also.....it's hard to believe any one will buy this case without a liquid cooler....at least a CPU AIO...

[@insanity3840]

How does this compare to the NZXT H700i?

[@krystvnarco]

3:22 Can it have fans under the GPU?

[@muhammadmhdasri162]

Do the lian li alphas pleaseeeee

[@theoneyoudontsee8315]

Why would you invert the motherboard tray so the gpu is on top of the cpu?

[@JadeB628]

It's a great case. BUT. beware with one flaw in the design. the top part where the top radiator goes is almost closed for ventilation. and due to that flaw that case will run hotter and louder then it would if the top cover had a full opening at the top. (other than that. it's an awesome case)

[@dovahkiin009087]

Whats usb useful for in a case

[@pRostaPlay]

Dear Gamer Nexus :) I need your advice. I want to replace one of my fans from top to the side panel. Sorry for a long storytelling :). I watched one of you reviews (Fractal Design C, if I'm not mistaken). There was a monent. You noticed that the fan on the top of the case (above the cooler) is useless and doesn't help. I have Fractal design R5. And I had 2 fans on front. 1 on back , and last is on top/ Cooler is Macho Rev. B.All fans are 140mm. I decided to turn off the top fan, but i didnt remove it, so I have ventilation holes. And temperatures are the same, as you said. But there is another my observation. There is a place for a fan in left side panel. Once I just removed the noise canseling plate\buffer from it and got 1-2C degree low temperature on GPU (Zotac non-reference design). So I think to replace fan from the top to the side. But I don't know whtas is better - the flow inside the case or oppsite. Mostly I've heard it's right when the flow is in. But isn't to be logical that "flow outside" will gather some of the air from the GPU, because it flows it right to the side panel. Is it make any sence?

[@summushieremiasclarkson4700]

The switched fan control seems like a regression. Isn't the whole point of motherboard pwm controllable headers so one can specify automatic reactions to manually specified thermal trip points? Have a few software toggles between different manual profiles, and boom. My board costs half as much as that case, and allows for better control. (B350 ROG STRIX). Seems pointless. My $50 case does the same job, just not with a tempered glass panel. That is a nice-to-have, I'll admit.

[@not_a_samsquamsh6777]

As someone who recently moved to this case, i guess it could be a regression. It adds to the case's cost, yes, but it's another option for the customer. Maybe i'm just an ape about it, but I never liked adjusting case fans via software. Doing it this way with the controller is just more simple. Plug the fan in, plug the sata power in, and you are good to go with the switch up front. Or also you can plug the 4 pin from the board to the motherboard's fan header and just have auto PWM. In that case the only real benefit is fewer cables being exposed and keeping a cleaner look. Additionally it could potentially help if someone has a fan with a short cable that won't reach where they need it to. I personally had this problem in the Phanteks P400 and Be Quiet!'s pure wings fans. I had to buy a fan hub anyway to accommodate it.

[@hfalex7703]

I cant understand. Corsair 270R(which has giant holes on the top) and cheap 2x 1300rpm fans is just abit louder than Be quiet in silence 3 mode(2 fans x 1100rpm).

[@tonysako]

Lian Lee alpha 550 please review

[@Vladek16]

so... with on more fan, so you can have 2 140mm fans at the front and 1 at the back this case is a very good option am i right :D ?

[@DontFollowZim]

It's another $20 for an additional Silent Wings 3 fan which would bring it to $200 total. Is it worth $200? I like it, but that price seems steep. I'd really like to see Silent Base 600 numbers on these charts because it seems like the value option with a nicer look than the Pure Base 600 IMO. I'm also wondering what the Dark Base 700 would look like sound wise with a solid panel rather than the glass one

[@eamonconnor8898]

Exactly what I was thinking, the only thing with this is the case is $180USD and at that price you really shouldn't have to buy more fans to make it competitive. Be Quiet make excellent cases, this one is just not as good as it could have been.

[@PeakDecline]

Times a thousand. I wish reviewers would review cases in an "ideal" configuration. Personally I am interested in the best mix of thermals/noise and I'm fine spending on fans to achieve this. This review as is honestly tells me very little in how I'd configure the case which is 3 fans up front and 1 in back exhausting at minimum.

[@brandonbreuer6589]

People always say that adding case fans magically adds cost to the case, I can't speak for everyone, but I have case fans sitting around everywhere, so it would be no big deal adding 2 more intake fans (it supports 3 140s in the front).

[@DontFollowZim]

Some people do but many people don't. And I definitely don't have spare Be Quiet Silent Wings fans lying around, which is definitely what I'd like to use with this case.

[@DontFollowZim]

Are they doing a version with a solid sound-dampened panel rather than the glass one?

[@Jermud]

If you are looking for a case without the glass, Be Quiet already has the Pure Base 600 which has better acoustics. You only lose out on the USB C.

[@DontFollowZim]

The Dark Base 700 also has a very nice LED trim, and I like the pure flat front of the DB700 vs the visible drive bays of the PB600. If the DB700 has a solid panel, I suspect it'll have as good or better acoustics compared to the PB600. You're mostly right, though, and I may end up just getting a PB600 or SB600. Or who knows... a Define S? IDK.