It seems like it was only yesterday when aluminum cases made their first big splash in the PC market. How times have changed. Aluminum cases are no longer for PC enthusiasts looking for something different, they are for everybody. Want proof? Go to any online shop that sells cases. Notice that new and improved aluminum cases are coming out everyday, while the market for steel cases just continues to dwindle. Don't get me wrong; steel cases will always have a place in the PC market. Aluminum isn't strong enough to handle heavy-duty applications.
Think of a company that makes aluminum cases. I am willing to bet that the first name that you thought of was Lian-Li. While Lian-Li makes great cases, they are wearing thin on me. Every case they make seems like the last one with a new feature added. Enter, please don't laugh, Super Flower. Super Flower is a Taiwanese company that has been manufacturing cases and power supplies since 1991. Their flagship case, the Black Pearl, is in direct competition with the Lian-Li PC60, in both price and features. The Black Pearl has several different names. It is known as the Melody, Black Pearl, and Super-Aluminum case amongst several different vendors. The actual model number is SF-201.
The case arrived in an average sized brown box. The UPS packaging slip indicated that the case weighed twenty pounds. The box had some external damage, so of course I was concerned with the condition of the product inside. After opening the box my fears were put to rest as I discovered that case didn't have a scratch.
Features
- Aluminum structure with acrylic front panel: The entire case is made with a special polishing process.
- More drive bays than most other PC cases: 4 x 5.25" and 3 x 3.5" exposed drive bays.
- Plus 5 x 3.5" hidden hard drive bays located behind front case fans for additional cooling.
- Can work as a light-duty server chassis with a total 12 drive bays.
- Slide-in removable motherboard tray fits ATX and Pentium 4 motherboards.
- I/O Interface located at the front panel: 4 USB ports and Audio ports.
- Thumbscrews are used for easy removal of side panels and add-on cards.
- Airflow holes around the entire case for the best heat dissipation.
- One 80mm fan in top panel exhausts the hot air which rises and accumulates.
- One 80mm fan mounted in side panel drawing in cool air onto the AGP and PCI slots.
- Plastic covers on edges to protect your fingers.
The Black Pearl is a hard anodized case. So often aluminum cases scratch, bend, or crack due to abuse. The Black Pearl seemed to be very sturdy, and the aluminum was much thicker than the aluminum that the Lian-Li PC60 uses. The Black Pearl's thick aluminum may weigh it down a bit, but I would much rather have sturdiness than lightness. After hauling the Black Pearl around to several locations, I am happy to report that it is still as nice looking as the day it arrived.The front of the Black Pearl is very attractive. It is adorned with a very thick, yet easily scratched, acrylic cover that is held on with six gold thumbscrews. The acrylic cover does little more than make the case more visually pleasing. While the acrylic cover can be replaced Directron doesn't carry the replacement covers. Most impressive with the front of the case is the blue power led. To my knowledge the Black Pearl is the only mass-produced case that comes with a blue led. At the very bottom of the front panel are a 4-port USB and multimedia connecter. The multimedia connector comes with plugs for your Firewire devices, microphone and speakers. The port connects to the back of your motherboard with a long set of connectors that loop through the back of your PC. The USB connectors on the right side connect directly to your mainboard. Unfortunately, not too many mainboards have the USB panel connectors built-in, so you won't be able to use two of the four ports on the front panel.
Once you get past the very sturdy exterior you come across the Black Pearl's best feature, the six ball bearing cooling fans that are covered with gold fan grills to protect your fingers. There are two in front of the case that blow across the hard drive cage, one on the side that blows onto your video card, two in back which help exhaust hot air from around your CPU, and another on top which exhausts heat that rises to the top of the case. The included fans were very noisy and only moved 22 CFM. The air movement was not very impressive, so I quickly replaced the included fans with several fans from Sunon. This isn't to say that the stock fans won't work in your situation, I just wasn't very happy with them. Another issue is that the top blowhole is surrounded by an enclosure that impedes airflow. While I could feel some air being moved through the top blowhole, I knew the fan wasn't turning out optimal performance. I strongly suggest that Super Flower ship this case with better fans.
Inside of the Black Pearl we see the removable hard drive cage and the other drive bays. We also see a feature typical of the Lian-Li family; Rubber moulding is surrounding all of the sharp edges of the case so that you don't accidentally cut your finger. Also inside the case is a removable mainboard tray. I am a huge fan of removable mainboard trays, so the fact that the Black Pearl has one makes me even happier. Another feature that the Black Pearl has is a breakaway connector for the power switch, hard drive led, and speaker connector on the mainboard. This is very useful if you intend on using the removable tray and you don't feel like connecting the power switch and led connectors every time, which can be a huge hassle.
You are probably interested in whether or not all of your components will fit in the Black Pearl. I will tell you right now, there is no issue with this case being too small. I was able to fill every drive bay, install my MSI K7D Master and several components, and there was never an issue with a fan or a hard drive getting in the way, as there is with many other cases on the market.
Cooling
So how exactly did the Black Pearl perform when it came to cooling my rig? Before I installed the Sunon fans my case temp was at an average of 82 degrees after a 4 hour run, with an ambient room temp of 76 degrees. After the Sunon fans were installed the case temp dropped down to an average of 80 degrees. Either way, the case offered very impressive cooling under stressful condition. I must say that even though the case packed in six cooling fans, it was fairly quiet. The stock fans were noisy by themselves, but the case didn't vibrate, which is usually the reason a case with so many fans is noisy. The loud "whoosh" sound is just airflow.
Final Words
Super Flower has manufactured one heck of a case. I hope that they gain a bigger presence in the market by continuing to manufacture products of this magnitude. I think at $149.00 the Black Pearl is a steal. It kept my rig cool and it looks great. Besides all of that, the Black Pearl has a blue power led.
Pros
Look great, costs less
Great cooling
Blue Power LED
Cons
Stock fans noisy and don't push enough air
Bottom Line
The Black Pearl is a great case that brings some strong features to the table along with a very competitive price.
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