Phanteks Enthoo Evolv Shift Review
Category : Cases
Published by Luca Rocchi on 14.08.17
The Enthoo Evolv Shift from Phanteks appears to be a rather interesting mini-ITX case. Despite the small size it offers plenty of space and flexibility on the inside and therefore you can install high-end graphics cards as well as two 120mm radiators. Apart from that the Phanteks sports a sleek design using premium materials like aluminum and tempered glass. Last but not least also the price is very interesting.
During CES 2017, Phanteks unveiled two prototypes which went by the name Project 217 and Project 217S. Now, several months later, the company is ready to launch an improved version of these two new cases. The Evolv Shift and the Evolv Shift X are meant to house systems to put into your living room and therefore feature a small footprint. Although the Evolv Shift X might look big, both cases are built for mini-ITX motherboards.
The Shift as well as the Shift X feature a sleek shape with an unconventional layout and they look overall similar to Corsair’s ONE gaming PC. When we took the pictures of the Corsair ONE, everyone kept asking if the case was sold separately. Although the two cases from Phanteks are not identical, this is the solution that comes the closest to Corsair's ONE. To be fair, only the exterior looks similar since the interior is completely different.
Today we are going to review the smaller version, the Shift, which is more of a mainstream case than the Shift X but still comes with quite a few interesting features.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Preview
Specifications
| Model: | Enthoo Evolv Shift | Enthoo Evolv Shift X | |
| Case Type: | Small Form Factor | ||
| Dimensions: | 170 mm x 470 mm x 270 mm | 170 mm x 650 mm x 270 mm | |
| Material: | Aluminum, Steel, Tempered Glass | ||
| Color: | Satin black, Athracite grey | ||
| Drive Bay: | 5.25": | 0 | |
| 3.5": | 1 | 2 | |
| 2.5": | 3 | 4 | |
| Expansion slots: | 2 | ||
| Form factors: | mini-ITX | ||
| Cooling: | Front: | 2x 120mm / 2x 140mm | 3x 140mm / 3x 140mm |
| Rear: | / | ||
| Top: | |||
| Bottom: | 1x 120mm / 1x 140mm | 1x 120mm / 1x 140mm | |
| Side: | / | ||
| Watercooling | Front: | 2x 120mm | 1x 240mm / 1x 280mm |
| Rear: | / | ||
| Bottom: | 1x 120mm | 1x 120mm | |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Features
Dust filtersThere are washable dust filters covering all big openings of the Phanteks Enthoo Evolv Shift. Thanks to a quick release system they are very easy and convenient to remove. |
RGB Ambient LightsStraight out of the box Phanteks illuminates the power button, located on top of the case. If you'd like to add more light and color, Phanteks recommends adding their LED strips, which go by the name LED PH-CB_RGB4P. These strips are very easy to install thanks to magnets. Apart from that they are compatible with the new onboard RGB headers you can find on the latest motherboards, which will allow you to control them from within Windows. |
Support for custom watercoolingAlthough the Phanteks Enthoo Evolv Shift is quite small, the case is also ready for watercooling gear. There is the possibility to equip this case with up to two radiators. Both of them can measures 120mm and there is space at the front. |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Product overview
Overview |
|
| The Enthoo Evolv Shift is a small case, measuring 170mm in width, 274mm in depth and 470mm in height. The enclosure itself is made from aluminum with tempered glass side panales and although it’s very compact there is space for powerful components. Due to the compact dimensions very little space is necessary, which allows for placing the system on the desk. Apart from that the system is good looking and therefore it could also be put next to a TV set. In our opinion the chassis is very good looking and it looks great wherever you position it.
Looking at the front and at the back, there are two solid aluminum panels covering, while the left and the right side have been equipped with tempered glass panels. On the left side there are two USB 3.0 ports. Should you be looking for any other ports you won't find any but due to the interior layout the motherboard's I/O panel is at the top and therefore easily accessible. The top of the Shift has been equipped with a cover that can be removed by pressing down on the front edge of it. The power button as well as the RGB color selector can be found at the top. |
|
 | |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Installation
Overview |
|
|
| Disassembling this case we recommend having a quick look at the manual. There are quite a few thumb screws as well as other screws that need to be removed to start installing hardware.
Once all the side panels have been removed the base structure is revealed, which is made from steel. The cables are routed along the exterior of the frame in order to keep the interior clean, well accessible and allow for good airflow. The Evolv Shift can be equipped with mini-ITX motherboards and "full length" graphics cards. The graphics card connects to the motherboard via a riser cable and it’s placed behind the motherboard tray. The bottom chamber of the Shift can house two 2.5" SSDs and one 3.5" HDD. Inside the Shift there is enough space for two 140mm or 120mm fans in the front and another of the same size in the bottom. Apart from that there is space for 120 or 140mm radiators as well as low profile CPU coolers. The power supply is placed in the bottom and the Shift is compatible with SFX and SFX-L units. If you want to achieve a clean cable management we recommend to use sleeved cables. For our test we've used a MSI Z170I Gaming Pro AC motherboard and a closed loop water cooler from Cooler Master with a 120mm radiator. As you can see from the pictures there are plenty of slots for fans and radiators. The Enthoo Evolv Shift is able to accommodate a CPU cooler with a maximum height of 82mm and graphics cards can measure up to 350mm in length. In other words you can install either a 120mm AIO or a Phanteks PH-TC12LS CPU cooler. Due to the graphics card placement we recommend using a reference card with a blower type cooler. |
|
|
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Ventilation options
Overview |
|
 |
|
| The Phanteks Enthoo Evolv Shift doesn't offer too many spots for fans. Included in the delivery you will find one 140mm fan that's already been installed at the front. In total this case offers space for three 120mm or 140mm fans. If you are a fan of all in one water coolers you'll be happy to find out that the Shift has been prepared for that type of cooling. In order words this case can be equipped with a 120 or 140mm AiO for the CPU and another similar cooler for the graphics card. | |
 |
|
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Temperatures
Overview |
|
|
|
|
For testing purposes we're using an MSI Z170I Gaming Pro AC motherboard, an Intel Core i5-6600K CPU, which receives cooling through a Phanteks PH-TC12LS cooler as well as a MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G graphics card. To put the CPU under full load, we're running prime95 for 10 min and in the case of the GPU we use Furmark also for 10 minutes. After these ten minutes, we're going to write down the temperatures. The ambient temperature is close to 27°C. |
|
| All noise dampening panels installed | Idle (°C) | Full (°C) |
| Intel Core i5-6600K | 30 / 33 / 31 / 32 | 58 / 62 / 59 / 55 |
| MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G | 48 | 71 |
| Less is better | ||
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |
Conclusion
Rating |
|||||
| Cooling | Features | Layout | Build Quality | Value for Money | |
| Pros | + Good compatibility for watercooling and aircooling | + Tempered glass panels + Dust filters + Two color options |
+ Interior
space
+ Velcro straps |
+ High quality materials
+ Aluminum |
+ Well priced |
| Cons | - Cable management not perfect
- Limited compatibility with SFX PSU |
||||
The Evolv Shift from Phanteks is a small case that still offers impressive levels of compatiblity. The case can be places in two ways and thanks to the sleek and elegant design it looks great in any environment. Like every Phanteks case, the Shift has been built from high-quality materials such as anodized aluminum panels, which are either in anthracite gray or satin black, steel and tempered glass. The mix of aluminum and tempered glass makes this a gorgeous case to look at.
Although the small footprint, inside the Evolv Shift there is enough space for a compact but powerful gaming PC. The Enthoo Evolv Shift is able to accommodate a CPU cooler with a maximum height of 82mm and graphics cards can measure up to 350mm in length. In addition there is enough space for two 120 or 140mm radiators. In the end building a system with an Intel Core i7 CPU as well as a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics card is no problem at all.
There are some down sides to this chassis but luckily none of them are deal breakers to us. First of the all the cable management could be improved since there isn't much space to put the wires coming from the PSU. In addition not all SFX power supplies are compatible and sometimes the power switch might be blocked by the chassis.
Currently the chassis is available on Geizhals for 114 Euro excluding shipping costs. In our opinion this is a very reasonable price if you keep in mind of what quality this case is. If you are looking for a solid chassis with a small footprint and sexy design, we can definitely recommend having a look at the Shift from Phanteks. Apart from that the company is selling a larger model, which offers quite a bit more flexibility in terms of cooling.
The Phanteks Enthoo Evolv Shift receives 4 out of 5 stars.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Installation |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Ventilation options |
| Page 3 - Features | Page 7 - Temperatures |
| Page 4 - Product overview | Page 8 - Conclusion |