Fractal Design Define S chassis debuts innovative internal layout

[HEXUS]

'Silent' case with expansive air and liquid cooling support also omits ODD bays.

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[azrael-]

I'm one of the apparently small and ever dwindling part of the audience still needing/wanting to fit an ODD, so this case isn't for me. Looks quite good, though.

Although, to be honest, I'm not too keen on having any buttons on the top of the case either as my case is standing on my desktop just to the right.

Yeah, I'm definitely not in the focus group for this case.

[shaithis]

I do like the look of it.....no ODD isn't a problem for me, can always share one over the LAN or plug a USB external in......but TBH, the only time I use disks these days are when friends/family are desperate for a Windows disk and I need to burn one for them.

Buttons on the top can be a pain if you have cats

But, I think it's an oddity. Why omit 5.25" bays when the case accepts a full size ATX board? Make it smaller, make it cheaper and it will have a niche.

[ZaO]

The R5 is the one to get if you want the drive bays at the front for an ODD. The two cases are very similar. The Define S is kinda cool with mounting the hdd's behind the mobo though.

[Hicks12]

Definitely like the look of this case and if I wanted a dedicated case that wouldnt move often then this seems to be the one I would go for, I have a lot of watercooling components so the space does seem well thought out, unfortunately I am still in that age where I frequently have lans with mates so the usefulness of a compact case is more appealing to me than this large case.. used to have a lian li A70 and Xigamtek case (the huge one) but that proved too much to fit under tables! My bitfenix prodigy has served me well and soon I will be moving it to the fractal design 804 case thanks to Hexus.

Looks good value for money, maybe next time .

[voxstream]

I also like to have and use regularly all three optical drives in my rig. (2 DVD drives and 1 Blu-ray) I also have the identical looking Fractal case, but a full tower. If this new case is as well made and quiet as mine, it ought to do well, if you don't need ODDs

[SUMMONER]

Very nice! Just a shame they didn't add a few cm clearance at the top, to accommodate push/pull radiator setups up there.

[CustardInc]

I think calling it innovative is a bit of a stretch, since it's basically an R5 with the ODD bays removed and some holes drilled

[Ttaskmaster]

I'm one of the apparently small and ever dwindling part of the audience still needing/wanting to fit an ODD

Nah, I want MOAR 5.25"es!!!
Mainly because I find the frames very easy inside which to build modular case-mods.

[tonyd223]

Yes I like the look of the case, yes I don't need a ODD, but...

It's too big. Specifically, too deep. When are we going to get cases that don't have 3.5" drive mounts, that take into consideration that SSD's don't need airflow, and that with a AIO 2 x 120mm radiator you can get a great build into a much smaller volume?

That's a case I wanna buy...

[MSIC]

Very nice. Agree about mATX though. Maybe a sister model?

[MercutioUK]

Wouldn't the 3.5" drives get a bit toasty on the back there without airflow?
Otherwise it almost works well. I'd be another suggesting less depth. Even if you leave size for full (regular not E) atx there's no real need for the additional depth. Plan it around a push/pull on the front, leave room for a push/pull on the roof and call it done.

The drives can mount directly on the back of the motherboard plate, behind the motherboard. Let the front fan's flow be split slightly so any 3.5" drives get a bit of airflow (pop a vent on the off side panel to let air escape). It really doesn't seem so hard to fathom. All the case manufacturers seem to be very conservative. If it's something unusual it's gimicky/asthetics based so generally pointless.

[ZaO]

Wouldn't the 3.5" drives get a bit toasty on the back there without airflow?
Otherwise it almost works well. I'd be another suggesting less depth. Even if you leave size for full (regular not E) atx there's no real need for the additional depth. Plan it around a push/pull on the front, leave room for a push/pull on the roof and call it done.

The drives can mount directly on the back of the motherboard plate, behind the motherboard. Let the front fan's flow be split slightly so any 3.5" drives get a bit of airflow (pop a vent on the off side panel to let air escape). It really doesn't seem so hard to fathom. All the case manufacturers seem to be very conservative. If it's something unusual it's gimicky/asthetics based so generally pointless.

Maybe. Hdd's never seem to get very hot in my experience though. But I suppose with no airflow at all, it could be an issue yeh..

This case is really aimed at water coolers, so isn't that why all that space is needed?

[Hicks12]

All in one coolers dont require as much space as custom loops (or at least in my experience) which is what this case is aimed for as it has more space than normal and along with the specific mounting positions for reservoirs and pumps. With watercooling there should be plenty of airflow in the case so I cant see that being a problem, HDD dont tend to get too hot anyway .

[Moogly]

ODDs. If a case doesn't have them I just ignore its existence.

[aceuk]

ODDs. If a case doesn't have them I just ignore its existence.

I'm the opposite. I like cases without 5.25" bays.