Fractal Design Define R4 Case

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The crew at Think Computers gave the Fractal Design Define R4 very high marks in their latest review. If you are shopping for a new enclosure, this case might suit your needs.

Fractal Design is definitely making a name for themselves not only in the power supply market, but in the case market as well. Their cases have been popular with gamers and enthusiasts alike a we can see why. It has been a while since we have taken a look at a larger case from Fractal Design and today we are taking a look at the Define R4, which of course the successor to the extremely popular Define R3.
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If I was building today, I'd look at Fractal before I look at anything else. I really like what they are doing right now.
 
its a great case but i can hear the hard drive cage (with 2 drives in it) makes noise :(
 
Such a nice case from Fractal Design. The only case I would buy from them. The case is a lot wider in person.
 
I wish it had swing out panels instead of sliding side panels, but I get the feeling they will be in the R5. Much quieter than my old antec 300, while running only a bit warmer... will have to see how it fares in the summertime. Like rectangle I can still hear the hum of my hard drives through the front/side vents, but it's only noticeable when in complete silence. This is with the R4 sitting on the desk about a foot away from me. With the hdd's disconnected and only running the ssd, it runs silent. The last thing is this really quite a heavy case, weighing 27lbs, empty! That being said, this is a great case and definately worth the money.
 
rectangle said:
its a great case but i can hear the hard drive cage (with 2 drives in it) makes noise :(
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Not at all....plus you can remove them if you want.

dhappy said:
Such a nice case from Fractal Design. The only case I would buy from them. The case is a lot wider in person.
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Very true, it is pretty wide but I like the added room it gives you to route the cable in the back.

tamshiwen said:
I wish it had swing out panels instead of sliding side panels, but I get the feeling they will be in the R5. Much quieter than my old antec 300, while running only a bit warmer... will have to see how it fares in the summertime. Like rectangle I can still hear the hum of my hard drives through the front/side vents, but it's only noticeable when in complete silence. This is with the R4 sitting on the desk about a foot away from me. With the hdd's disconnected and only running the ssd, it runs silent. The last thing is this really quite a heavy case, weighing 27lbs, empty! That being said, this is a great case and definately worth the money.
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I wish the front door would swing the other way.
 
nertil1 said:
I wish the front door would swing the other way.
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You set yourself up for a joke here and I totally typed one out. I was about to submit it, too. Then I realized I agree. :)

Just got my R4 last night and building in it is pretty nice. Kinda wishing my PSU cables were individually sleeved though.
 
M4rk said:
You set yourself up for a joke here and I totally typed one out. I was about to submit it, too. Then I realized I agree. :)

Just got my R4 last night and building in it is pretty nice. Kinda wishing my PSU cables were individually sleeved though.
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lol well thanks for being mature. Maybe they'll do it with the R5.
 
I bought the R4 for my "Titan Super Rig" and love it. Microcenter is/was selling the R4 for $90 which is a fantastic price for such a nice case.
 
I just got one of these cases myself and have to say I'm very impressed with the thought and effort that went into its design and execution. I'm placing it on the floor next to my desk, and have found that a 10" by 24" by 0.5" shelf ($5 at Lowe's) makes a great stand for it to keep it from sinking into the carpet. The silence after my Cooler Master 830 is a revelation. Can anyone recommend any apps to monitor CPU and GPU temps?
 
MSI Afterburner and HWinfo.

MSI Afterburner will give you onscreen temps and fps like fraps. HWinfo is highly customizable and will put whatever you give it access in the notification tray. It can also hook into the MSI onscreen display server(which is included in MSI afterburner) and give you all that information on the onscreen overlay ingame ala fraps.
 
Can the individual HDD trays be removed without taking out the entire drive cage? I'm looking for a case that has this feature instead of spending $100+ on internal hotswappable drive enclosures.
 
grendel19 said:
Can the individual HDD trays be removed without taking out the entire drive cage? I'm looking for a case that has this feature instead of spending $100+ on internal hotswappable drive enclosures.
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The HDD cages are held together by screws, 2 drive cages are included with the case. One of the middle and one smaller one for the bottom. You can take them out as a whole but you cant take a individual slot out.
 
not sure what you are looking to do, but yes the trays are removable. They are not made to be hot swappable; you still have to open up the pc to access and plug/unplug hdd's. The hard drives are still secured to the trays with screws.
 
tamshiwen said:
MSI Afterburner and HWinfo.

MSI Afterburner will give you onscreen temps and fps like fraps. HWinfo is highly customizable and will put whatever you give it access in the notification tray. It can also hook into the MSI onscreen display server(which is included in MSI afterburner) and give you all that information on the onscreen overlay ingame ala fraps.
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Thanks! I'll check them out!
 
Nice case. But, it is small. It doesn't have any holes for water cooling , and the front panel could come off easier. It could also have more mounting holes for SSD's behind the motherboard.

That being said, I am buying my 2nd this week... ;0)
 
tamshiwen said:
not sure what you are looking to do, but yes the trays are removable. They are not made to be hot swappable; you still have to open up the pc to access and plug/unplug hdd's. The hard drives are still secured to the trays with screws.
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Not looking to hotswap (that'd be just a bonus). I want to be able to remove a single drive without having to take out the entire drive cage. Right now with my 4-in-3 and 3-in-2 drive cages in a Centurion 5, I have to take the entire cage out just to remove a failed drive. Having to open the case and unplugging the cables or even powering off first are fine.

Given that, would the drive trays be removable without having to unmount the entire drive cage first?
 
Eman D. Rahym said:
I just got one of these cases myself and have to say I'm very impressed with the thought and effort that went into its design and execution. I'm placing it on the floor next to my desk, and have found that a 10" by 24" by 0.5" shelf ($5 at Lowe's) makes a great stand for it to keep it from sinking into the carpet. The silence after my Cooler Master 830 is a revelation. Can anyone recommend any apps to monitor CPU and GPU temps?
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Heading to Lowes tomorrow...
 
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