| Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Cases | |
| Written by Steven Iglesias-Hearst | |
| Thursday, 14 February 2013 | |
Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case
Manufacturer: Fractal Design Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Fractal Design. In the PC hardware market you tend to get exactly what you pay for. It's not always the case, but 9 times out of 10 you will find that if you pay less you get less. How else can we justify handing over $110 for 12kg of cleverly crafted sheet metal and moulded plastic. We pay for the brand and we pay for the looks, and some of us also pay for build quality. In this article Benchmark Reviews aims to delve deep into the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case (Model: FD-CA-DEF-R4-WH), and see if it's got what it takes to satiate the appetite of today's PC hardware enthusiast. The Fractal Design Define R4 features include: the use of sound reducing materials, A 3-speed fan controller supporting up to three fans, modular drive bays and support for very large hardware.
Features
Technical specifications
Cooling / ventilation
Source:https://www.fractal-design.com Closer Look: ExteriorIn this section we will get a good look at the exterior design of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case, which is sold for $109.99 (NewEgg / Amazon).
The front of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case is very simple indeed with he only visible feature being the power light at the top. The front features are concealed be a door to give the case a unique look.
The left side of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case is slightly less elusive of features. The front air intake is catered for by the vents in the side of the front shroud. There is a location for an optional 120/140mm intake fan located to provide extra airflow over the VGA area.
The rear of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case has a few differences from your regular ATX case. Firstly the exhaust fan is a larger 140mm fan as opposed to the 120mm standard fan seen in these size cases, next we have an extra PCI bracket (7+1) off-set to the side for expansion/ancillary hubs or adapters that don't require direct connection into a PCI slot.
Once again the side of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case is quite plain. The ventilation holes on the front shroud are mirrored on this side of the case too. The great thing I have found with the Define R4 case is that the side panels are interchangeable, so you can swap this side panel with the ventilated side panel for a cleaner look or for modding purposes.
The top of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case has vents for two 120/140mm fans. The 120mm fan mounting holes also allow for slightly off-set mounting which gives you more options when installing a watercooling radiator. The I/O panel looks nicely palced and well laid out, we will look closer at this later in the review.
The most exterior detail found on the Fractal Design Define R4 Case is actually found in the one place you may never look. Four large feet give the Define R4 adequate ground clearance and the intake air filter should ensure your bottom mounted PSU doesn't get clogged up with large clumps of dust and dirt. Towards the front are pre drilled mounting holes which are intended for relocating the bottom drive caddy inside the case. Detailed Exterior FeaturesNow that we have had a look at the exterior Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case, it's time to look closer and in more detail.
Open the door of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case and it immediately transforms and comes to life with detail. On the inside of the door we see the noise reducing bitumen foam described in the features and specifications and we see lots of ventilation to the front intake area.
A closer look at the front I/O panel mounted at the top of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case. From left to right we have; microphone and headphone ports, a reset button, an illuminated power switch, two USB 3.0 ports and two USB 2.0 ports. The ring around the power button and the strip below it will glow red when the power is on, this makes a nice change from the standard blue LED's that are so common these days.
The 5.25" drive bay covers have a latch mechanism that allows for very easy removal and re-fitting, a nice novelty that would have been a god send maybe 10 years ago but not so necessary these days.
To the right of the 5.25" Drive bays the Fractal Design Define R4 Case features a basic 3 position fan controller which can support up to three fans, it works by restricting the voltage feed to the fans relative to the switch position.
Moving down slightly you will notice that the front intake grill has two "eject" logos embossed at the top left and right hand corners, a little push lock/open catch behind each logo will release and/or secure this intake grill.
The front intake grill is hinged at the bottom and will fold down and give you access to the front intake fan holder.
The front fan holder is mainly secured in place by a plastic tab at the top and is completely removable. From here you have access to the fans and the front intake filter.
The Front intake filter slides in and out of the fan holder much the same as the bottom intake filter will on the bottom of the case. Removal and cleaning may not be the most straight forward of tasks, but it isn't so complicated that you won't want to do it. Closer Look: InteriorIn this section we will take a look at the interior features of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case.
The Fractal Design Define R4 Case has a tried and tested interior layout with a couple of extra options and refined cable pass-through locations. From the PCI slots to the drive bays measures 30.5 cm and with the drive bays removed that measurement increases to 44 cm before you collide with the front intake fan holder. From the motherboard tray to the side panel measures 20 cm allowing for the tallest of tower CPU coolers plenty of breathing space. The Fractal Design Define R4 Case supports two 5.25" drives and eight HDD's either 3.5" or 2.5" depending only on which type you have or want to install.
In the top of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case the two exhaust fan locations are blanked with sound reducing foam attached to a plastic frame (ModuVent). Between the roof and the first line of motherboard stand-off's measures 5 cm, this will allow for an all-in-one watercooling solution (25mm radiator + 25mm fan). We also previously discussed that 120mm fans can be installed further offset from the motherboard tray thanks to the mounting options provided, this gives an extra 20mm clearance over the motherboard for thicker radiators that might otherwise collide with RAM slots or chipset/MOSFET coolers.
In the bottom of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case you will see the bottom mounted PSU location has four foam stand-off's to give some clearance for airflow. There is an optional 120mm/140mm intake fan mount located to the right of the PSU section.
Looking towards the back of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case now, the PSU area has a foam gasket installed to minimise vibration and metal to metal contact that could ruin the paint job. There are seven standard PCI slots as expected from an ATX tower plus an ancillary PCI bracket to the left for add-ons that dont require direct connection to a PCI slot.
Moving to the rear of the motherboard tray now, this area is very spacious and open. The CPU back plate cut-out is a very good size and correctly located (some cases can be slightly off), there are plenty of cable tie down points and the cable pass through points are well located also. Detailed Interior FeaturesTime now to take a more in-depth look at the interior features of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case.
Both of the drive caddies are removable and the upper caddy will rotate and install facing the motherboard (image below). Removal of the top drive caddy involves removing two thumb screws and sliding it out, the bottom drive caddy needs to be unscrewed from underneath the case and will require the use of a screwdriver. The bottom drive caddy can be relocated 35mm to the left (using the optional fan mounts and other pre drilled holes) allowing you to install a watercooling radiator in the front of the case.
Shown here the upper drive caddy has been rotated and re-installed into the case, this adjustment will allow for better intake airflow.
Each of the eight drive trays support either 2.5" or 3.5" drives. The 3.5" drive mounts have an anti vibration rubber grommet pre installed and can be relocated depending on your preferred orientation. The drive trays fit very snug and reassuringly snap into place giving confidence in the build quality of the case.
behind the motherboard ray there is ~26mm clearance for routing cables and/or installing SSD's. The sound reducing foam on the inside of the panel may shave a couple of millimeters of this space away but I don't foresee any issues here.
The two pre-installed fans have had their cables neatly braided to keep the premium feel and clean look of the Fractal Design Define R4 Case.
As previously described both side and front door panels are fitted with sound-absorbing material as well as the fan vents. This sound absorbing material adds a lot of weight to the case, the side panels alone weigh just shy of 2kg alone and the case weighs a little under 12kg empty, with all of my hardware installed the whole build weighs 19kg! The Fractal Design Define R4 side panels use an age old method of fitting where tabs along the top and bottom must slide into cut-outs in the case simultaneously, this makes for a tight fit where the side panel needs more force to fit and remove.
Supplied along with the case is an instruction manual and a box of accessories, the accessory box has a contents list printed on the side. Fractal Design Define R4 Final ThoughtsNot all hardware has a benchmark that can quantify its performance. PC cases are no exception to this rule, so we must actually build a system inside it to gauge its build quality, accessibility and special features. Transitioning from one case to another is a little more difficult than installing a scratch build for obvious reasons, so accessibility is desired when performing a PC case upgrade. Small things like pre-installed motherboard stand-off's save time, and well placed cable routing pass through points make a nicer looking finish require less effort. Clearance behind the motherboard for routing cables is desired, and hard drive orientation is also an important factor affecting looks and airflow.
The transition from my previous case to the Fractal Design Define R4 case was very easy and straight forward, there is a lot of room to work with and my only struggle was the top middle motherboard securing screw due to the huge NH-D14 CPU cooler restricting access. Of course I installed the motherboard with the CPU cooler installed as it didn't require any maintenance other than blowing out the dust build up. While swapping out your hardware to your new case it's a good idea to do a little spring clean of your hardware removing dust that builds up over time. The bottom cable pass through can get very crowded since it deals with most if not all of the cables that require routing, and thankfully the Define R4 has an extra large pass through in place to deal with this scenario.
There aren't any flashy cable routing channels behind the motherboard tray like you would see in a more expensive PC case, but I don't think the Fractal Design Define R4 really needs them. There is a very spacious 26mm gap between the motherboard tray and side panel to deal with even the thickest of cables, and plenty of cable tie down points should you require a neater cable arrangement. The cable pass though points of the Define R4 were perfect for my motherboard which meant only minimal cables were visible inside the case. The CPU back plate cut-out requires a trade off between size and structural integrity. Make it too small and it won't suit all motherboards, make it too big and the motherboard tray will be too flexible. Once again I think Fractal design have hit the nail right on the head with this design. The Fractal Design Define R4 Case weighs slightly less than 12kg empty, with my system installed it weighs 19kg. I can only imagine how much it would weigh with two or three video cards and a custom watercooling system installed. Suffice to say the Define R4 is not the sort of case you will be taking to a LAN party, it is best suited to a workstation or stationary home build - designed to blend in and not demand too much attention while still retaining the build quality PC hardware enthusiasts demand. Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White Case ConclusionImportant: In this section I am going to write a brief five point summary on the following categories; Performance, Appearance, Construction, Functionality and Value. These views are my own and help me to give the Fractal Design Define R4 PC case a rating out of 10. A high or low score does not necessarily mean that it is better or worse than a similar PC case that has been reviewed by another writer here at Benchmark Reviews, which may have got a higher or lower score. It is however a good indicator of whether the Define R4 PC case is good or not. I would strongly urge you to read the entire review, if you have not already, so that you can make an educated decision for yourself. Performance of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White PC Case is great. Temperatures of my overclocked system stay well within limits and the noise level is very low indeed. As standard the Define R4 is set up for silent performance and it serves this purpose well, and should you require more performance it has more than enough expansion capability to cater for your needs. Appearance of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White PC case is minimal, the solid color and lack of real exterior styling suits the 'purist' hardware enthusiasts. Swapping the side panels over can minimize this look even further by hiding the vented side panel on the other side of the case out of view. If you want the Define style but would also like to show off your hardware, a windowed side panel version is also available. The Define R4 is also available in Titanium Grey and Black Pearl color schemes, each with their own windowed variants. The construction of the Fractal Design Define R4 Arctic White PC case is solid, even the plastic front door and grill unit feels high grade. The paint job is smooth and glossy and looks great but is not very durable, you will have to handle the Define R4 with care while building your system so as not to scuff or scratch and ruin the nice finish. The side panels could do with an upgraded fitting system, I just hate having to use excessive force to remove and install them and I worry about damaging the paintwork. Functionality is very good. The Fractal Design Define R4 PC case has noise reducing foam installed as standard on the side panels, the front door and also on the roof fan mounting locations. There are two removable intake filters fitted although the front intake filter requires a few extra steps prior to removal. Cable routing is excellent thanks to the spacious area behind the motherboard tray and the well placed cable pass through locations. There are seven standard PCI expansion slots, plus one vertically orientated to cater for expansion hardware that doesn't need direct connection to a PCI slot on the motherboard. The fan speed control is simple in execution but gets the job done and allows you to control the speed of up to three fans. Four USB ports (2x USB 3.0 / 2 x USB 2.0) at the front of the case are much appreciated and mean you are less likely to need a hub. The hard drive caddies are configurable to suit your needs, the top caddy will rotate 45 degrees and the bottom caddy can be moved towards the PSU by 35mm. Value for money has never been more pertinent with PC hardware with the current state of affairs our economy is in, you really don't want to be making any silly purchases right now as money isn't flowing as freely for everyone. It is my opinion that the Fractal Design Define R4 PC Case (Model# FD-CA-DEF-R4-WH) is worth its current $109.99 (NewEgg / Amazon) asking price. There are a lot of nice cases available right now that offer equal value, so you will have to be a savvy shopper and try to secure the best deal you can. Pros:
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Comments
One possible tip, try turning down the contrast a bit on your monitor....
Perhaps some might want to change some of the settings of their monitor, or perhaps buy a new one alltogether.
:P