Silverstone GD01 and LC17 HTPC Cases

November 16, 2007 by Mike Chin

Silverstone has been around long enough that its origins as an offshoot from CoolerMaster (when that name was associated only with expensive aluminum cases) has probably been obscured. Silverstone concentrated less on all-aluminum design, and more on hybrids that combine the elegant look of brushed aluminum facia with the sturdy, less resonant qualities of steel for the remainder of the case. They've developed their own unique identity with unusual products like the massive all-aluminum TJ-07, the upside-down motherboard TJ06, and a slew of home theater cases.

The latter offerings have become so voluminous, it's hard to keep track of all the models. There are very small and slim styles, which they call Slim HTPC/Desktop, and larger ones which they call HTPC/Desktop. The cases we're writing about here belong in the latter category, and they're not the latest. In fact, they have been around for a while. The LC17 and the GD01 share many commonalties with newer full-sized HTPC cases from Silverstone, however, especially in their mechanical design and airflow layout, which are keys to cooling and acoustics.

SPCR has reviewed HTPC cases from Silverstone before, specifically the LC11 and LC04, but the only review of one that approached the near-4U height (7") of the LC17 and GD01 was the LC01, which is quite dated. The LC17 and the GD01 are both fairly substantial cases, about the size of a typical mid-tower ATX case turned on its side. Externally there are cosmetically differences, but internally they are almost identical. They could even be considered variants of the same model. In typical Silverstone fashion, the facia is aluminum; the rest is steel.

The more recent GD01 comes in silver or black and sports an LCD display option with built in IR receiver.

The LC17 comes in black or silver. It has no LCD display option.

The LC17 and GD01 both come in large, well-padded cartons.

Both cases came with a small cardboard box containing an installation booklet, the usual bag of screws, and other hardware bits. For the GD01, there was also an MCE-compatible remote control, batteries for it, a breakout ATX cable adapter to get the required voltages to the VFD, and a CD for the remote/VFD software.

Ms Kitty is not an option.