Fractal Design's new case may not be revolutionary, but it still ticks all the relevant boxes.
From the photographs you would be hard pressed to tell the Fractal Design Define R4 from its predecessor, the R3. Both are plain black monoliths of minimalistic Scandinavian design and have a noise-absorbing door hiding their front bays and fans. Look a little closer, however, and there are traces of evolution to see. First of all, the R4 is slightly wider than its predecessor. The 120mm fans of the R3 have been replaced with larger 140mm variants, and the optional dial-based rheostat has been replaced with a three-way dipswitch. The fan filter is now a single piece for easier removal and a second USB 3.0 port has been added.
The bay allocation of the case remains from before, with two 5.25" bays for optical drives and eight 3.5" bays for hard drives. The hard drive caddies insulate your hard drives from the chassis via rubber grommets to cut down on vibrations, and each bay can also accommodate 2.5" SSDs. A key difference is that the bulk of the hard disk bays can now be removed to make way for massive video cards. This was a major problem with the original case, as the largest video cards (like the Direct CU II from Asus) wouldn't fit. Now, so long as you can live with just three drive bays, you can enjoy better ventilation for your components and accommodate video cards of any currently available size.
Two fans are bundled with the R4, but remove the noise-absorbing pads from around the case and you can fit many more. An additional two 140mm fans can be mounted to the roof, an extra 140mm to the front and an additional 140mm in the side panel. You can even mount another fan in the base, allowing for a maximum fan count of six. That's enough expandability for even the hottest-running triple-SU setup, making this a one-case-fits-all solution for those not looking to change their chassis any time soon.
Where the Fractal still excels is in its acoustic prowess. With the dip-switch set to its lowest setting, the fans are simply not audible unless you're centimetres from the system and it would be entirely possible to make a PC that was silent for all intents and purposes. Despite this, the cooling credentials of this case belie its low noise nature. Even when filled with an overclocked Core i7 chip and a GeForce GTX 680 video card, both CPU and GPU temperatures were a match for a much louder-running Cooler Master CM 690 II • that's a showing that almost defies the laws of physics.
At £89.99. the Fractal R4 is moderately pricier than its predecessor, but as this is a larger case with more expensive fans and additional materials, this is a fair enough trade-off.
Some critics may have been looking for more innovation from the R4, but Fractal has taken a timeless design and tweaked it for the better. If it ain't broke, as the old adage goes, don't fix it.
A fantastic low-noise PC case that offers an unrivalled degree of flexibility
| General | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Brand | Fractal Design |
| Product name | Define R4 Black Pearl |
| Product code | FD-CA-DEF-R4-BL |
| Details | |
| Specifications | |
| Case type | Midi tower |
| Form factor | ATX |
| Material | Staal / Plastic |
| Colour | Black |
| Dimensions - Width | 23.2 cm |
| Dimensions - Depth | 53.5 cm |
| Dimensions - Height | 46.6 cm |
| Weight | 12.8 kg |
| Door in front panel |  |
| Lock in front panel door |  |
| Window | |
| Noise reduction mats inside | |
| Capacity (based on measurements) | 57.84 dm³ |
| Internal space | |
| 5.25 inch front accessible | 2 |
| 3.5 inch internal | 8 |
| 2.5 inch internal | 8 |
| Maximum length graphics card | 43.5 cm |
| Maximum height CPU cooler | 19 cm |
| Number of expansion cards | 7 |
| Slimline optical drive space | |
| Low profile | |
| Case fans | |
| 12x12 cm positions | 4 |
| 14x14 cm positions | 7 |
| Bundled case fans | 2 fans |
| Total number of fan positions | 7 |
| Fan connector type | 3-pin |
| Dust filter | |
| User friendliness | |
| Case can be opened without screwdriver | |
| Top panel can be removed | |
| Front panel can be removed without screwdriver | |
| 5.25 inch drives can be added without using screws | |
| 3.5 inch drives can be added without using screws | |
| 2.5 inch drives can be added without using screws | |
| Drives can be added with rail system | |
| Rubber/silicon noise reduction for hard drives | |
| Expansion cards can be added without using screws | |
| Sharp edges | None |
| Removable mainboard tray | |
| Cutout in backplate for CPU cooler | |
| Removable cage for hard disks | |
| Holes in backplate for cable management | |
| Prepared for water cooling | |
| Front connectors | |
| Front connectors location | Frontpanel |
| Front connectors - Audio | |
| Front connectors - USB 2.0 | |
| Front connectors - USB 2.0 (number) | 2 |
| Front connectors - Firewire | |
| Front connectors - eSATA | |
| Front connectors - USB 3.0 | |
| Front connectors - USB 3.0 (number) | 2 |
| Other | |
| Card reader | |
| Fan controller | |
| Temperature sensor(s) | |
| LED display | |
| VFD (Vacuum Fluorescent Display) | |
| Chassis open detection | |
| Lighting | |
| Fan duct for CPU cooler | |
| Case feet | |
| Lock | |
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