Phanteks cabinets have a striking design with separate chambers for mobos and GPUs

Phanteks is showing PC cases at Computex that are not a standard rectangular or square case, but have unorthodox designs that tightly enclose the handful of components. The EX5 and EX6 models have separate compartments for the motherboard, video card and power supply.

The Dutch company markets five different models of this special housing and Tweakers saw them at the Computex tech fair. The starting point for system cases for PCs is usually a rectangular or square housing. Manufacturers want to distinguish themselves by paying attention to edges, corners and the internal layout. Phanteks is now opting for a strikingly different approach.

Nowadays, PC cabinets consist largely of empty space. Components such as network and sound cards have long been integrated on motherboards and storage also takes up little physical space. That's why the EX5 and EX6 cases consist of compartments, two of which are large for the video card and the power supply. The bottom one also contains the front I/O. Each model has a fan behind the motherboard that provides this compartment with sufficient airflow over components such as the VRMs and SSDs.

Five models

The EX5 is the basic model, which consists mainly of steel. This model has glass for the video card and a cover for the water cooling hoses. These usually go forward and therefore have to go back in from the outside.

The EX5 Plus and Max come with a pre-installed water cooler. This has fluid hoses that do not go forward, but to the side. The Max version has a water cooler with a small screen.

The EX6 is the more luxurious model, which consists of 3mm thick aluminum. The compartment for the CPU and motherboard is less high and contains a hole for the top of a water cooler.

The EX6 Max is the only more luxurious version of the EX6. This top model has a pre-installed water cooler with more luxurious X30 fans in a frame. A 10" screen is incorporated into the glass. As a result, the motherboard itself is not visible. This screen is somewhat more advanced than the screen of the EX5 Max, so it can be used as a second PC monitor, for example.

Prices and availability

The EX5 costs 110 euros, the Plus version 160 euros and the Max version 230 euros. The EX6 costs 160 euros and the Max version costs 330 euros. Phanteks will launch these housings in August or September.