Page 4 - Installation and Conclusion
The installation process was extremely straightforward with the SilverStone Lucid 05. For the most part, it was very easy to work with as far as a standard mid-tower is concerned. Out of preference, I installed my FSP Hydro PTM X Pro 1000W power supply first, followed by the rest of my components. It does not matter what you install first, since they will all work out just as well in the end. This short 15cm long PSU had no issues fitting in, but if you have something longer like the 21cm long Seasonic PRIME TX-1300 ATX 3.0 1300W, you will need to remove the 2.5"/3.5" removable drive bay.
Executing a good cabling job was reasonable with the SilverStone Lucid 05. As mentioned earlier, there is a gap of 20mm between the side panel and motherboard tray. However, there are no zip tie anchor points or pre-installed Velcro straps to improve the experience, but this is a midrange model after all. There are two large openings adjacent to the motherboard on the right, so choose your half. They are all appropriately placed for routing cables through, whether they are from your power supply or your ARGB LED fans.
The rest of the installation process came and went smoothly. I installed my sample motherboard with a Noctua NH-D15S. I did not install any 2.5" or 3.5" drives, even though the SilverStone Lucid 05 supports them. This is because most modern builds only have NVMe SSDs. All three fans are connected to the central controller hub, so you will only need to connect one PWM and one ARGB connector to your motherboard rather than three each.
Installation of most components will require you to keep your screwdriver handy unless you count the few thumbscrews on the main panels as tool-free. I do not have much beef against this though, since it is usually much more secure, and it is not like I will take my computer apart occasionally anyway. The Lucid 05 will give you no surprises.
After plugging in everything, our system configured inside the SilverStone Lucid 05 was ready to roll. I hit the square power button in front, and my computer came to life. You can see how the three internal ARGB LED fans look when fired up in my above photo.
On a scale from 0.0 to 10.0 where 0.0 is silent and 10.0 is the loudest, the stock SilverStone DF1202512RFLN ARGB LED 120mm fans would come in at 3.5 subjective sound rating at full blast. Slowing them down will keep it at around 1.0 in my personal opinion. I am quite sensitive to perceived sound volume, and as a quiet PC enthusiast, the SilverStone Lucid 05 is reasonably good thanks to the fans. The fans have a smooth-running motor with no annoying noise during operation. That said, there is nothing intrinsically quiet about the SilverStone Lucid 05, as the chassis is fully ventilated with no sound dampening elements.
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The SilverStone Lucid 05 is a mainstream case built to a budget, but comes with a list of premium features. How did they do this? Were the compromises fair, or were there catches? Let us first start with the premium features. The Lucid 05 features a 270° tempered glass view, a popular design in the last couple of years, which looks thoroughly modern and good. This is complemented by a trio of 120mm ARGB LED PWM fans, including reverse fans in the front. These fans are not cheap by themselves, and they are reasonably quiet in operation. A built-in 8-channel PWM and ARGB central controller hub keeps all the preinstalled fans, plus up to five additional fans should you choose to add them, all running in sync. The front I/O panel offers all the buttons and connectors you need, including separate ARGB and reset buttons to ensure you can still run the pre-programmed ARGB effects if you do not have a motherboard that supports custom user settings. All these, of course, come at a price. To start, the SilverStone Lucid 05 has very thin steel panels. The benefit of this is it is light weight, but they may be easy to bend, just like one of my mesh panels that came slightly bent from the factory. Inside, you will not find any cabling guides or Velcro straps. The rear expansion card slots are not only not bridgeless, but the covers are also the break-off type, which reveals its cost-cutting measures. Lastly, the dust covers are all frameless magnetic units, which does the job, but feels flimsy. Not cost related, but I also prefer a combination audio jack rather than two separate 3.5mm jacks for better headset compatibility in 2025. For an MSRP of $86 USD pre-tariff, the SilverStone Lucid 05 is a well-priced midrange case with many premium features, but you will have to decide for yourself whether the tradeoffs are worth it to get these high-end features.
SilverStone provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH Networks Review Focus Summary:
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks, but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Networks Numeric Rating is 7.0/10
Please note that the APH Networks Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other publications.
The SilverStone Lucid 05 is a well-priced midrange ATX mid-tower computer case that comes with a surprising list of premium features.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Installation and Conclusion
