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The understated look and feel allows for a natural fit into your home or office while never compromising on quality, performance of configurability. /r/buildapc is a community-driven subreddit dedicated to custom PC assembly. Anyone is welcome to seek the input of our helpful community as they piece together their desktop. My only wish is that the cable grommets at the top of the case were a bit bigger.
NZXT H6 Flow Mid Tower Case - Matte Black
The Define also dampened the sound of the Casewarmer’s Cooler Master Hyper D92 quite well. I noticed barely any change in system noise during the CPU load phase of my tests. Another nifty modular feature is the trio of “ModuVent” covers at the top of the case. These foam-backed plastic panels can pop out if you want to mount fans or a radiator to the R5’s ceiling, or they can be left in place for maximum silencing power.
Picking the right Fractal Design PC case
Around back, there’s another 140-mm spinner, seven expansion slots, and a mount for the power supply at the bottom of the case. To paraphrase a Steve Jobs-ism, however, it’s important to remember that design isn’t just about how something looks, but also how it works. Companies can pay as much lip service as they like to the idea of good design, but the rubber has to hit the road at some point. Let’s see whether Fractal Design’s Scandinavian approach has produced an enclosure that measures up.
Universal Multibracket - Type A (2-pack)
The Meshify C is for those looking for a huge case with a ton of features packed in, all while carrying a price tag that isn't too high. If you want a full-tower PC case from Fractal Design, look no further. A community for links to products that are on sale at various websites.
New OEM 150W AC Power Supply ADP-150BF T 614-00023 for Mac Mini A1993 Late 2018
The Fractal Design Define Nano S is the best ITX case that the company makes. Just like the Define 7, Fractal Design has made a lot of effort to get around the disadvantages of the form factor with this one. The Define Nano S can take full-sized components and has an ATX-like layout. The case also gets sound dampening, making it a good fit for a quiet ITX build. When it comes to compact cases, it can be tough to pick the right one.
The Define R5 also has plentiful slots for zip ties in this area, if the Velcro straps aren’t enough. The three fan headers and SATA power connector for the built-in fan controller reside here, as well, along with two 2.5″ drive trays. If you care about system noise, using the Define’s built-in fan controller isn’t a set-and-forget process. With the fan controller on high, load noise levels are about the same, but the larger, more pleasant-sounding Fractal Design fans are doing more of the work. Accordingly, it pays to switch the fan controller between its high and low settings as needed.
Exceptionally silent
After I removed two of the modular top panels, installing the 240M was a snap. The radiator mount is offset significantly from the motherboard, so there was plenty of room to connect the Nepton’s fans to the twin CPU headers on my Asus Crossblade Ranger mobo. Builders willing to push their luck probably have enough room to mount push-pull fans on slim radiators like the Nepton 240M’s, though doing so would obstruct the rear fan considerably.
That said, the rubber grommets are soft and thick, so maybe the extra effort will pay off with lower noise and vibration levels. While the drive cages are ostensibly tool-free, the thumbscrews used to secure them are super-tight out of the box, so a screwdriver is a must here, too. With all of the drive cages removed, the R5 can accept radiators up to 360 mm in length behind the front fan mounts, as well as extra fans or radiators at the bottom of the case.
There’s also generous room for SATA power and data cables behind the drive cages—much more than in my Obsidian 450D or the Cooler Master Silencio 652S. The spacious cable area means that the side panel slides back on effortlessly, and the panel doesn’t bow out at all, even with the added thickness of the noise-deadening foam. There’s plenty of space for cable routing behind the motherboard tray, plus some thoughtful touches. Fractal includes three Velcro straps in the R5, which are used to route the front-panel cables by default.
The Define R5 case reaches the highest level of silent computing through strategically placed dense sound-dampening material, ModuVent™ fan vent covers and finely tuned Dynamic Series fans. Should you wish to expand your system with water cooling components or more fans, the layout can easily be configured to meet your demand. The Define R5’s cable routing features are some of the best I’ve used, too.
Monitors, cables, processors, video cards, fans, cooling, cases, accessories, anything for a PC build. Overall, the R5 is the quietest case I’ve tested, but it’s not going to make an otherwise noisy system quiet on its own. Silent-PC enthusiasts will still need to choose parts carefully to minimize overall system noise. With the motherboard in control of its fans, the Define R5 is anywhere from two to four dBA quieter than the 450D for the most part, both at idle and under load.
When I used the Q-fan system, I profiled each case’s fans using Asus’ fan tuner, and I used the Standard built-in fan profile for my tests. As I noted in my dissection of the Define R5’s interior, I’m not a big fan of this case’s drive mounting system. The Define’s metal sleds require four grommets and screws per 3.5″ drive, which feels archaic nowadays.
I doubt the R5’s higher temps are anything to worry about, but they are worth pointing out. The omission of a top filter is also strange considering Fractal includes a full-length filter at the bottom of the case. While some builders might put a fan or radiator down here, I think top-mounted fans or radiators are a far more common choice. For those who do wish to add bottom-mounted cooling, removing the drive cages makes room for a pair of 120- or 140-mm fans—or a radiator up to 240 mm in length.
I am fine with completely removing the stock 3 bay cage with one that has 6 bays, or something that can attach to the stock cage or the bottom of the 5.25in bay frame/cage. While I would like 6 total 3.5in bays, I am also open to even something that adds just 2. It's a little expensive, but as I said, you're paying a premium for the tremendous build quality and Fractal Design has packed in a lot of cool features too. Plus, if you need to tweak the features, you can get additional HDD trays, SSD trays, a HDD...
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