The German hardware manufacturer be quiet! has become known worldwide primarily for its high-quality and particularly quiet power supply units. For many years, be quiet! has also been a major player in the CPU cooler and case segment and has already won a few awards with products from the “Dark Base”, “Silent Base” and “Pure Base” series. At Computex 2023, be quiet! finally presented a successor for the high-end Dark Base 900 case. The new big tower is called the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 and we put it through its paces in today’s test.
Right away, the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 definitely belongs in the high-end range with a purchase price of € 299.29 * and is anything but affordable
be quiet! advertises the Dark Base Pro 901 on its own homepage with a particularly modular design as well as interior construction, with a particularly generous amount of space for air and water cooling, maximum user-friendliness and a high airflow with a simultaneous low noise level. Whether the be quiet! Dark Base 901 Pro can keep all these promises and is worth its money, you will find out in the following chapters.
Technical details
| Model: | be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 |
| Case type: | Big Tower |
| Dimensions: | 275 mm (W) x 569mm (H) x 604 mm (D) |
| Weight: | 16.30 kg |
| Material: | Steel, Plastic, Tempered Glass |
| Color: | Black |
| Front ports | 1x USB-C 3.1 (10Gb/s, 20-pin Key-A header), 4x USB-A 3.0 (5Gb/s), 1x headphones, 1x microphone |
| External drive bays: | 1x 5.25″ |
| Internal drive bays: | 2x 3.5″ (landscape, hard disk cage), 2x 2.5″ or 6x 2.5″ 5x 3.5″ (optional) or 10x 2.5″ (optional) |
| Expansion slots: | 8x horizontal |
| Form Factors: | XL-ATX, EATX, ATX, mATX, ITX |
| Ventilation: | Front: 3x 120/ 140 mm Rear: 1x 120/ 140 mm Lid: 3x 120 / 140 mm Side: 3x 120 mm Bottom: 1x 120/ 140 mm |
| Radiators: | Front: 1x 240/ 280/ 360/ 420 mm Rear: 1x 120/ 140 mm Lid: 1x 240/ 360 mm Side: 1x 240/ 360 mm |
| Max. CPU cooler height: | 190 mm |
| Max. Graphics card length: | 495 mm (without HDD cage), 350 to 370 mm (with HDD cage) |
| Max. PSU length: | 300 mm (without HDD cage), 200 mm (with HDD cage) |
| Space for cable management: | 28 – 35 mm |
| Price: | € 299.29 * |
| Features: | Dust filter, cable management, 4x pre-installed 140mm fans including control board, tempered glass, ARGB accent lighting, illuminated I/O panel, GPU mount, invertible motherboard tray, built-in fan and ARGB control |
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 review: The scope of delivery
Even with this high-end case, be quiet! does without a conspicuously printed cardboard box. Instead, the Dark Base 901 is delivered in plain brown cardboard. Two pictures of the big tower and a table with all relevant data of the case are printed on the cardboard. Inside the packaging, be quiet! wraps the Dark Base Pro 901 in two extra-strong blocks of regular Styrofoam as well as a black cloth sack, which also features the manufacturer’s colored logo.
But now to the accessories. The Dark Base Pro 901 has plenty of them, which is why we’ll list them in bullet points today. Inside two large boxes we find
– a sorting box with all mounting screws and reusable cable ties
– a magnetic GPU support with integrated cable guide
– the 5.25″ bay for mounting an optical drive
– a mounting frame for a lateral fan mounting
– a large panel for cable management of the HDD bays
– a front panel insert made of mesh
– an airflow insert for the power supply cover
– a cable channel for inverted mounting
– a GPU mount for inverted installation
Pre-installed in the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 are also
– three be quiet! Silent Wings 4 140mm fans
– numerous insulation elements in the lid, on the side and in the front
– two dust filters for front and bottom
– one fan and ARGB control board with touch control and backlight in the I/O panel
Exterior impression
Visually, you can definitely tell that the be quiet Dark Base Pro 901 is the successor to the Dark Base 900. The dimensions and the high weight of 16.3 kilograms of the big tower are particularly impressive. In addition, the use of brushed aluminum as well as steel and glass dominates in the delivery state. As standard, be quiet! installs the closed panel with aluminum front and noise insulation at the back. However, the aluminum elements are only thin plates that have been glued onto a plastic bezel. Additionally, generously designed mesh vents can be seen on the sides.
The top panel is modular in design and, to improve airflow, can be replaced with the included mesh panel. To do this, the retaining tabs must be pushed out of the holes from behind. The lower area of the front panel has a hinged panel for the external 5.25″ drive. It is locked in place via a plastic pin in the center. Unfortunately, opening the cover is a Herculean task for the fingernails – or rather the tips of the fingers. However, be quiet! has thought of a separate dust filter in the form of a magnetic filter mat.
Behind the front panel, you’ll find a fine and easily removable dust filter, as well as a modular fan frame that can accommodate three 140mm or three 120mm fans or corresponding radiators. However, a full complement of 140 mm fans can only be installed if no 5.25″ drive is installed. Furthermore, there is no mesh insert for the lower area and only the side vents remain. The fan frame is disassembled using four thumbscrews.
Now we move on to the lid. This consists of a large mesh panel that has been framed in a plastic frame as well as two elongated strips of brushed aluminum. In the front area, there are two hidden push-pin mechanisms (also made of plastic) below the panel. If you press hard on both sides, the mesh panel lifts and can be removed. Two covers with a noise insulation can then be seen underneath. The panels can be positioned differently or removed completely if necessary. One step lower still, be quiet! places a modular mounting frame for three 120mm or three 140mm fans.
Another special feature of the modular fan frames is that each of them has been equipped with an integrated PWM connection board for up to three fans. Via pin contacts and a circuit board on the body, the frame can thus be disassembled including the fans without having to fight with annoying cables. The board’s cables are routed to the fan controller in the front panel in both cases. This feature should make wiring the case fans or installing a radiator extremely easy.
The I/O panel is positioned at an angle between the front and the lid and is equipped with an extra number of ports. There are a total of five USB ports (4x USB-A 3.2 and 1x USB-C 3.2), jacks for headphones and microphone and two touch panels for the five-stage fan and ARGB control. To top it all off, the manufacturer also provides the front panel with a white backlight that dims itself when inactive. Directly behind the I/O panel, the manufacturer has also installed a charging area, on which, for example, smartphones can be charged wirelessly with up to 15 watts.
When it comes to the side panels, be quiet! falls a bit short of our expectations. Other cases in this price range now often have hinged side panels. With the Dark Base Pro 901, however, they rely on a classic mounting with steel lugs and two thumbscrews each, as well as recessed grips on the back. The left side is made of tempered glass, which is glued to a steel frame, and the right side is made of steel and lined with an insulating mat from the inside. Also, the right side panel has a large but unfiltered ventilation grille in the front area. The stability of both side panels is very good and probably together they weigh more than some cases.
At first glance, the design of the back resembles that of many other midi and big towers. However, the back is recessed a bit deeper than usual. Why this is so, we will show in the next chapter
As usual, the PSU is placed at the bottom and slid into the PSU tunnel from behind via a modular frame. Above the PSU, eight reusable slot covers can be seen, which have been perforated to improve the airflow. Above that, be quiet! installs a third 140mm Silent Wings 4 PWM fan and prepares the cutout for the motherboard’s I/O panel.
Another special feature is that be quiet! does not rely on an optionally available bracket to mount the graphics card vertically. Instead, the frame with the slot bezels can simply be removed by removing a few screws and rotated by 90 degrees. However, a corresponding riser cable for connecting the graphics card has to be purchased additionally. We have already seen this technology in the Thermaltake Ceres 300 TG ARGB and will certainly encounter it more often in the future.
Due to the high weight, be quiet! relies on four very stable steel feet for the Dark Base Pro 901. These were painted black and look very appealing due to the open shape. In addition, the undersides of the feet are covered with thick rubber mats to ensure a non-slip and low-vibration stand. Apart from that, a large, fine-mesh dust filter can be seen, which can be removed to the front for removal. However, the latter can only be done when the front panel is removed first. Otherwise, the underside is generously perforated and also offers space for a 120 or 140 mm fan.
Interior impression
In order to be able to utilize the interior space ideally, be quiet! initially leaves it at a standard layout for the Dark Base Pro 901. This consists of a very large main chamber and a significantly smaller power supply chamber. The main chamber offers space for an ATX or, after minor modifications, EATX or XL-ATX mainboards. There are also three elongated openings both above and below as well as to the right of the tray to route cables to the rear. The opening on the right is covered by a steel cover at the factory. There are no rubberized openings.
Out of the box, the two pre-installed front fans can move air into the interior unimpeded because there are no HDD sleds in the way. By purchasing optional mounting frames, these can be placed directly behind the front fans. Only the plastic covers have to be removed for this. If the blown air has warmed up, then the third pre-installed case fan at the rear transports it back outside. In addition, the warm air can passively escape via the ventilation openings in the lid as well as through the slot covers.
Unlike many other cases, the PSU cover is made of two parts. The top is made of steel and riveted to the body. It also has an elongated cable management opening under the motherboard tray as well as a closed or modular plastic panel in the front area, which has to give way if a particularly thick radiator is to be installed in the front. Alternatively, the closed cover can also be replaced by a panel with ventilation slots, which is available as an accessory.
The side of the PSU compartment is made of plastic and is adorned with the manufacturer’s logo and an ARGB strip. To remove it, you only have to press the bezel down in the middle and then you can take it out. The ARGB cable can also be easily disconnected.
A modular HDD cage and the mounting point for the PSU can be seen under the PSU cover. To prevent vibrations from being transmitted to the body, the manufacturer places elongated strips of rubber in the base under the PSU on which the power supply can rest. As already mentioned in the previous chapter, the power supply unit of the Dark Base Pro 901 is pushed into the power supply tunnel from behind via a modular power supply frame. The HDD frame bracket placed in front of it can be removed after removing four screws.
Behind the motherboard tray, there is otherwise a lot of space for cables and an excellently designed cable management system. Thus, be quiet! not only provides the Big Tower with reusable cable ties, but also with cable management channels, which are also modular. The manufacturer also does not do without classic steel eyelets and a cutout for backplates of large CPU coolers. The included plastic bezel can also be positioned on the left side. This then hides the view through the grille of the side panel to possible hard drive cables.
Ex works, the Dark Base Pro 901 offers space for two 3.5″ and two 2.5″ data media or optionally for six 2.5″ data media. These are placed in the HDD cage or on the frame behind the mainboard tray. Mounting 2.5″ SSDs requires screws, whereas 3.5″ HDDs can be attached to the frame with quick-release fasteners. Optionally, the Dark Base Pro 901 offers room for five more 3.5″ or ten more 2.5″ data carriers with optional HDD frames. The frames can be attached in the interior behind the front fans.
If you prefer to have your case on the left side of your desk rather than the right, you still don’t have to do without the side window on the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901. The reason for this is the invertible motherboard tray. After removing four screws, the tray can be pulled out and reinserted from the right side. This naturally leads to the CPU cooler being at the bottom and the graphics cards at the top of the case. be quiet! takes this design even further and also makes all the cable management channels on the back modular or even places another channel in the box for accessories. This should allow the system to be very neatly wired even with the motherboard tray inverted.
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 review: The workmanship
Basically, the weight of the Dark Base Pro 901 alone speaks for a very good material strength and build quality. The brushed aluminum applications are without blemish and have been evenly incorporated into the plastic elements. The steel used has an excellent material strength at every point and the finish of all materials is also flawless with no flaws. We didn’t even look for sharp edges, we wouldn’t have found any anyway. What we did find, however, are certain color differences between the steel and plastic elements. Especially on the inserts of the PSU cover, this difference is unfortunately clearly visible.
Overall, the build quality of the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 is very good. Considering the price range, however, we think that too much plastic is used overall. Although this is mostly of good quality, feels valuable and enables the very modular design of the big tower in parts, there are cheaper big towers that use more steel or even aluminum. Due to the use of plastic, the haptics are also somewhat lacking in places. The lid’s push pins sometimes come loose even when touched lightly, and releasing the front flap requires a lot of force, at least the first few times. Finally, the mounting system of the removable covers in the front panel could have been designed a bit more durable.
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 review: Installation of the components
Now we come to the system installation in the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 test. For hardware, we are using an AMD Ryzen 5 1400* on a ASUS TUF Gaming B550M-Plus* with 16GB Crucial Ballistix Sport LT gray DDR4-2666*. The Ryzen is cooled by an Alpenföhn Brocken 4* and is overclocked to 3.8 GHz (1.175 V). A Gigabyte AORUS GTX 1060 6GB is responsible for the image output. The power supply is handled by the fully modular LC-Power LC550 V2.31 Platinum*.
As expected, the installation of all components of the test system was very easy and could be done within a very short time. The removable mainboard tray was particularly practical. This meant that it was easy to fit the mainboard and all other components outside of the case and then slide it back inside. Cabling was also a breeze due to the very generous amount of space behind the motherboard tray and the excellent cable channels. Lastly, the magnetic GPU mount should also be mentioned. This not only prevents the graphics card from sagging, it also looks chic and makes the PSU cables disappear perfectly. Thanks to the magnetic base, it can also be placed variably. Overall, we were able to create a visually appealing system in the Dark Base Pro 901.
Due to its size, it should be clear that the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 can swallow just about anything in current hardware. Thus, CPU coolers may be up to 190 millimeters high and graphics cards up to 495 millimeters long without HDD cage or 350 millimeters long with HDD cage. There is 288 millimeters of space for the power supply
In terms of radiators, the Dark Base Pro 901 can fit a maximum of one 420 mm radiator in the front and one 360 mm radiator in the lid at the same time. This allows for an extremely potent water cooling system. However, the large front radiator only fits if no 5.25″ drive is installed.
Ex works, the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 comes with three pre-installed case fans of the type be quiet! Silent Wings 4 PWM High-Speed with a frame width of 140 millimeters. The connection is made via a 4-pin PWM cable in each case. This allows the fans to be regulated between 300 and 1900 revolutions per minute. In terms of design, it remains unspectacular. Black frame, black rotor and a black logo in the fan hub. In return, however, be quiet! equips all mounting points with rubber decouplers.
Load test
Finally, we come to the temperatures that were reached in the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 test. During the stress test, Prime95 and FurMark were run for 15 minutes at a room temperature of 20 °C. In addition, the test was performed with three different fan speeds as well as in silent or airflow mode.
Scenario |
Temperature |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) Open-Air-Benchtable (no additional fans) |
CPU: 58.3 °C GPU: 58.2 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm minimum speed (300 rpm) Silent setup |
CPU: 73.4 °C GPU: 69.1 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm 50% PWM (1050 rpm) Silent setup |
CPU: 63.3 °C GPU: 64 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm 100% PWM (1900 rpm) Silent setup |
CPU: 60.5 °C GPU: 62 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm minimum speed (300 rpm) Airflow setup |
CPU: 65.3 °C GPU: 64.3 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm 50% PWM (1050 rpm) Airflow setup |
CPU: 61.2 °C GPU: 62.2 °C |
| CPU: 50% PWM (950 rpm) GPU: 50% PWM (1650 rpm) 3x 140 mm 100% PWM (1900 rpm) Airflow setup |
CPU: 58.6 °C GPU: 60.1 °C |
The measurements show one thing directly: with Silent-Panel and a low fan speed, CPU and GPU reach relatively high, but not yet critical temperatures. The higher the fan speed, the lower the temperature difference between the Silent and Airflow variants. Nevertheless, the mesh panel logically achieves even slightly better temperatures that are very far away from critical values.
In terms of volume, the Silent Wings 4 are clearly audible at full speed. However, their wide speed range makes it very easy to achieve the perfect symbiosis of performance and volume. In addition, the fans have no ambient noise and there is no transmission of vibrations to the case due to the decoupling mechanisms.
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 review: The lighting options
The lighting options of the Dark Base Pro 901 are kept rather discreet by be quiet! Thus, there is a plain RGB strip on the front above the flap and on the side of the power supply cover. These are connected to the control board in the I/O panel ex works and can be controlled via touch control. The control board has various modes and color variants, which are also always displayed in the I/O panel. Alternatively, the control board can also be connected to a 3-pin 5V ARGB header of the mainboard. So it’s up to the buyer how and if the Dark Base Pro 901 should be illuminated. Finally, a few impressions of the activated illumination.
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 review: Conclusion
The new high-end case from be quiet! can absolutely convince in many areas overall. For example, the Dark Base Pro 901 is a highly modular big tower with a spacious interior that offers good cooling performance for current high-end components. Since the manufacturer includes both insulated panels and mesh panels in the scope of delivery, and the motherboard tray is modular, it is up to the buyer to decide on which side of the desk the case should be placed or whether it should be operated in an airflow or silent configuration.
Add to that the three excellent Silent Wings 4 140mm case fans, an excellent cable management system, and discreet but chic ARGB lighting. Finally, the generously equipped I/O panel with lighting as well as built-in PWM and ARGB control or the extensive accessories including GPU mount should be mentioned.
The negative features of the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 are definitely limited. First of all, we miss side panels with hinges in a case of this price range. This would make their (dis)assembly much easier to handle. In addition, we think that the feel and probably also the longevity of some components suffer from the fact that a relatively large amount of plastic is used. Other manufacturers have already shown that modular case elements can also be implemented with steel.
Overall, the many positive features of the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 are unfortunately also reflected in the price. With a purchase price of € 299.29 , this big tower isn’t exactly cheap and, in our view, already falls into the “luxury” category. Looking at the overall package of features offered, the price of the Dark Base Pro 901 is mostly justified. However, the large amount of plastic elements installed in the be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901 is a bit of a shame. This unfortunately undermines the otherwise very high quality of the Dark Base Pro 901 a bit in places. If you can also do without some features and only need the space, then there are also cheaper alternatives on the case market, which are, however, significantly less modular.
be quiet! Dark Base Pro 901
Workmanship
Structure
Features
Cooling
Value for money
92/100
be quiet! presents its new high-end case, the Dark Base Pro 901, with plenty of space, a good build quality and a highly modular design that allows for both a silent and airflow system. This is joined by excellent fans, the cooling performance achieved as a result, as well as discreet ARGB lighting and other exceptional features. However, the amount of plastic elements and their feel is somewhat disappointing considering the purchase price.
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