Fractal Designs R4 Review
Fractal Designs R4 Review
Published: 20th July 2012 | Source: Fractal Designs | Price: £79.99 |
Introduction
The R3 was a firm favorite here with all members of the OC3D team, and was at the centre of quite a bit of controversy at one point in time. We are sure we don't need to go into any detail, if you don't know what we are on about you missed out! As with many things in life, cars, graphics cards, women, girl friends, wife? There is a new model in town that is crying out for your attention! Please welcome to the stage the Fractal R4, its now time for OC3D to peel back her layers and see if the package tastes as sweet as her older sister. Ok enough innuendos this isn't a 50 shades book!
Specifications
| Motherboard compatibility | ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX |
| Front interface | 2 - USB 3.0, 2 - USB 2.0 Audio in/out Power button with LED (blue) Reset button Fan controller (behind door) |
| Drive bay capacity | 2 - 5.25” bays 8 - 3.5” HDD trays - all compatible with SSDs 2 - 2.5” extra SSD positions |
| Expansion slots | 7 + 1 |
| PSU compatibility | ATX PSUs up to 170 mm deep when using the bottom fan location; when not using this fan location longer PSUs (up to 270 mm deep) can be used |
| Graphics card compatibility | Graphics cards up to 295mm in length with the top HDD cage installed With the top cage removed, graphics cards up to 430mm in length may be installed |
| Cooling / Ventilation | 3 - ModuVent™ plates – two in the top and one in the side 7 - Fan positions (2 fans included) Filtered fan slots in front and bottom |
| CPU cooler compatibility | CPU coolers up to 170 mm tall (when no fan is installed in the side panel) |
| Additional information | 26 mm of space for cable routing behind the motherboard plate Thick rubber grommets on all holes on the motherboard plate |
| Colours available / SKU | Pearl Black / FD-CA-DEF-R4-BL Titanium Grey / FD-CA-DEF-R4-TI Arctic White / FD-CA-DEF-R4-WH |
| Case dimensions (WxHxD) (mm) | 232 x 464 x 523 |
| Net weight (kg) | 12.3 |
| Package contents | Define R4 computer case User manual Accessory box |
| Front | 1 - hydraulic bearing 140mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1000 RPM speed (included) 1 - 120/140mm fan |
| Rear | 1 - hydraulic bearing 140mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1000 RPM speed (included) |
| Top | 2 - 120/140mm fans - positions also support 240/280mm radiators |
| Bottom | 1 - 120/140mm fan |
| Side | 1 - 140mm fan |
| Fan controller | 1 - integrated fan controller for up to 3 fans (included) |
Video Review
Conclusion
So where to start, the R4 keeps to the same family heritage as the R3 now this is definately a good thing but at the same time we think they could have been slightly braver considering this is an all new case. Its just the design is so similar to the older version youd be fooled into thinking its just some subtle tweaks to the original design.
The new model is wider and slightly taller than the older version, the extra girth gives you extra cable management room behind the motherboard tray and also a 140mm fan at the back end of the case too. The 140mm fan comes hand in hand with extra room in the business side of the case which allows you to fit much larger CPU heatsinks, saying that the NH-D14 fit in the R3 albeit a little on the snug side. Talking of CPU heatsinks as a general rule of thumb we would say this case does NOT support the H100, in some remote cases you may get it in around your kit but for 99% of you we would say its a no no.
The main updates on the R4 are the removeable hard drive bay at the front of the case, yes this does allow massive GPU's to be fitted but seeing as a 7970 fits in there fine anyways we would say the main point of this is increased airflow to the cards. The HDD bay can be rotated but due to the direction the HDD's would have to be fitted and removed we honestly see this as being unusable/completely pointless so we'll just ignore it.
The other main upgrade is the ability to now use 140mm fans in the front of the case, should you already have a set of 120mm fans though dont stress as both sizes are supported. Another nice touch is the built in fan controller behind the front door, with 12v, 7, and 5V options and the ability to connect up to 3 fans natively is a great step forward from the old PCI slot style fan controller that was bundled with the R3.
Those purists will be hapy to find out the best features of the R3 are all still here, bitumen lined doors that have the cloth coating for that extra quality touch, the optional fan mounts in the roof and door also still have the blanking plates covering them that also have the thick foam sound deadening on them too and they also still have the cloth tops.
All in all the R4 is a brilliant case for £80, just like the R3 is best suited to those of you looking for a very quiet or even silent case to base your system in. The thing is with the ability to now remove that HDD bay it could also be a great choice for those of you looking for a subtle case to base your performance rig in. Only time will tell if the R4 is as popular as its older sister or will create as much controversy but for now we think she is gold award worthy and we look forward to seeing what the future holds when you all get to show what you can do with her too!
Thanks to Fractal for the R4 on test here today, you can discuss your thoughts on this review in the OC3D Forums.
Most Recent Comments
If they had placed them offset like the Midi then you could fit a H100 and other rads and I would have bought one.
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Originally Posted by Yeren
and to think tomorrow i was going to purchase a R3, haven't heard a release date yet so think i may have to wait
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Silence - Buy the R4
Gaming - Buy the Arc Midi
I really think if they made the R4 slightly higher and fan mounts to accommodate a 240 radiator or a H100 they'd have nailed it.
I also find it a bit weird just weeks after announcing an optional window panel for the R3 they then release the R4... and its obvious from the review that the window panel for the R3 won't fit on the R4
What really baffles me is though... Fractal Design have no intention of releasing a window panel for the Arc Midi, which is basically designed for gaming yet they released a window panel for the R3 which is designed for silence. That doesn't make sense to me.
could have been. with R3 sales, i'm sure it was a high demand case, as when the shelves
were thining, customers were fearing discontinuation. i'd thought Fractal would have turned
the volume up on features a bit more. Fractal taughts a host of features (fan control,
upgraded 140mm fans [R2], wider, SSD mounts on mobo tray and front filter bay enhancement.
MEAH... at best. the R3 was a great case and this follows the mold, but not making forward
progress in design. doesn't make me wanna buy the R4, today.
to buy the R4.5 or R5 i'd want it to be taller (500mm+), water cooling compatible,
4 USB 3.0 (with 2.0 pigtails) and convertible opti bay to use that area for HDD inline with
the other cages and fix that friggin' door to open WIDER or hinge at the bottom or reversable!
just let me access the fan area easier. make the front fan cartrige less clumbsy and more
adaptable than the clip-on fan clips (that break) use fan attachment bosses (brass
preferably) for more fan selection (140mm fan market is not as selectable as the 120mm
are at this time). just make thin metal brackets to attach to the back of mobo to secure
the SSD drives, they dont weigh any amount of mass to worry about ripping away from
the tray (optional placement). and please, please stop making the public cry for a
windowed-side panel. state it on release that a panel will be available, PERIOD! instead
of waiting for public opinion to scream for it (the XL got one...).
get it close to this and my dollars will be your dollars Fractal Design. till then i'll stay with
my Arc Midi (R4 without a door).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqLxS...layer_embedded
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Originally Posted by VulgarDisplay88
This was just posted on another forum by a member:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqLxS...layer_embedded |
Not exactly gunna guess it unless you're explicitly told are you. Surely that's an even worse design though as they're trying to show off watercooling support with a 'slim 240mm' radiator. I'm guessing by the hinged door thats the max you can have with or without the hard drive cage there
But I wonder now if the H100 tubes are long enough to reach from that front mount.
and think "different" is "wrong," so these silly hard drive cages persist...|
Originally Posted by jamdox
They need to get rid of the hard drive cages. Pillars like in the LL PC-90 or a "shelf" like in the Mac Pro take up less space and have better airflow. Of course, engineers/nerds tend to be closet authoritarians and think "different" is "wrong," so these silly hard drive cages persist...
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till then the cages are gunna be around. windowed versions will be kinda bland.
airdeano
Love the location but hate the mounts on the back of the CPU tray. Some kind of easy to use mounts would vastly improve the case.
Now if you can put in 120x2 or 140x2 rad in the front, SSDs and maybe a bay mounted pump reservoir you could do a water cooled case.
I think this would case as is would be good for.
Home server.
Air cooled gaming rig.
HTPC.
An a high end office PC
Audio workstation.
And if you put say an i7 or Xeon with a Quadro or FirePro card and you would have a good workstation for CAD, Video, or 3d work.
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The replacement for the ever popular R3 has finally been released. But will the R4 be as good in our eyes as its older brother?
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