Streacom ST-F12CS Aluminium ATX HTPC Chassis

Final Thoughts

Pricing

If you think that premium build quality like this doesn’t come cheap, you would be absolutely right. The Streacom ST-F12CS Aluminium ATX HTPC Chassis can be picked up from Overclockers.co.uk for £199.99 and that’s a real dent in most people’s wallets. Then again, if you’re matching this up with a large 4K TV, a few high-end GPUs, a sleek AV receiver and more, I guess the cost is more relative to the kind of setup than it would be with a desktop chassis solution.

Overview

This is pure gadget porn, it’s as simple a chassis I could imagine, yet it oozes premium quality from start to finish. All of the fuss you find with a lot of chassis has been stripped out and you’re left with the absolute basics, yet it still manages to deliver everything you’re likely to need. There are a few glaring issues, though, but how much they affect you depends on the type of build you’re trying to achieve. There are no front panel USB ports, or any other types of connectivity for that matter. If you’re wanting to use gaming controllers or storage drives, you may want to look into wireless solutions. The chassis also supports an IRRC or FLIRC IR solution, although that is sold separately and a Bluetooth remote would likely be cheaper and easier to install.

There are no fans pre-installed either, but again, this is outweighed pretty well by the seven huge ventilation cut-outs with high-quality dust filters in each. I’ve no issue with this coming without fans, as when you’re spending this much on a chassis, you’re already in the market of a custom build and likely to invest in your own premium after-market solutions, such as a set of super quiet Noctua fans, if you even need them at all that is.

The whole point of this chassis is super clean looks and room for high-end hardware and it delivers just that. The front panel is gorgeous and there are as few visual distractions as you could hope for from a HTPC-type chassis. If you’ve spent thousands on creating a home cinema, you’re not going to want big buttons and lights everywhere that detract from the viewing experience, although I think I would personally prefer the black version of the chassis, but the silver may match up better with your existing hardware, that’s really up to each individual user.

The modular drive/fan mounts are handy. The baron interior of the chassis can be quickly tailored to your own storage and cooling needs, especially so with those top rails that can be used for extra cooling and even a water cooling radiator.

Pros

• Extremely high build quality
• Extensive cooling and dust filters
• Modular drive/fan mounts
• Support for large GPUs
• Huge amount of space for PSU
• Clean looking front panel
• Tool free top-panel
• IR support

Cons

• No fans pre-installed
• No front panel connectivity

Neutral

• Expensive, but that’s the premium you pay for thick aluminium vs a steel construction chassis

“The F12C is easy to fall in love with. What it lacks in a little practicality, it makes up for with a truly stunning design that makes for a pleasing addition to any home AV setup.”

Thank you OCUK for providing us with this sample.