Xilence have been busy recently. Having announced the monster Full Tower XL-ATX Interceptor Pro late last year, the manufacturer of PC cooling products is moving more towards the other end of the spectrum with the Mid-Tower Black Hornet.
The Black Hornet is the debuting member of Xilence's new SQ series of cases, targeting a mainstream gaming audience using components with relatively few space requirements but significant cooling needs. The chassis exterior has aggressive styling rather reminiscent of the HAF series of cases; the side panel features a large perforated mesh and the top has perforated mesh roof, chiefly to improve air-flow.
Active cooling options are strong: the Hornet comes with a 140mm front fan and 120mm rear, but may be upgrade by an additional 2*120mm/2*140mm in the top and 2*120mm or single 200mm in the side panel. The case also claims compatibility for a 240mm radiator in the top, though it isn't clear how much clearance this provides and whether it supports push/pull and full-size 60mm thickness radiators.
I/O connectivity options are an important part of any case, and the Black Hornet comes through with two USB 3.0 front panel ports via internal header, one eSATA port, headphone and microphone jacks. The case top also supports a 2.5"/3.5" hot-swap docking station for HDDs and SSDs, a neat addition to round out easily accessible options.
Internal storage potential is fairly balanced: four 5.25", up-to four 2.5" SSD and six 3.5" HDD's bays are reasonable for any mid-tower. Two of the 2.5"/3.5" bays are also hot-swappable and accessible from low on the front fascia, another useful addition which tends to be seen on more high-end cases.
To round out the chassis design features: the case is fan filtered in the front and below the PSU intake and grommeted cable management holes are conveniently placed around the motherboard tray.
Availability and pricing options are not yet known for the Black Hornet. For more information on Xilence products visit Xilence.net or Xilence on Facebook
Source: Via the Xilence Facebook Page
