Question Any experience with either Fractal Design Pop Silent, or Antec VSK4000B?

[mikeymikec]

Pop Silent

Fractal fuse flair with function in the new Pop series of cases that doesn’t skimp on aesthetics or flexibility. The entire series offers a solid foundation and excellent build quality, giving all users plenty of options and room to maneuver.

www.fractal-design.com

Antec VSK4000B-U3/U2 Mid Tower Case - Black - 0-761345-92048-3

Available @ CCL: Antec VSK4000B-U3/U2 Home Mid Tower Case in Black. Fits up to ATX motherboards, Mfg Code: 0-761345-92048-3

www.cclonline.com

For some reason the Antec site doesn't have the 4000B and the E variant looks a little different.

I've used the VSK3000B plenty of times for customer PC builds so going with the Antec case seems less like trying an unknown quantity, but I wondered if anyone here had any experiences with either. My choices seem to be limited somewhat by my requirement for 2 optical drive bays, but that's not going to change.

 

[snoopy7548]

I just built a new PC in the Fractal Design Pop Air, which is similar to the Silent (but it has a mesh rather than solid front).

It has been great so far. Even with, or possibly because of, the mesh front (better airflow), it's extremely quiet. Just using Windows, browsing the internet, watching videos, I can barely hear the fans (when I mute my audio). During gaming, I can hear the GPU fan spin up but again, only if I mute the audio. Temps are great too. The three fans that come with it are very quiet too.

The main difference between the two is the Fractal lets you route/hide cabling behind the motherboard and has the PSU on the bottom, whereas the Antec is more of a traditional case without a dedicated cable area and has a top-mount PSU. After building in the Fractal, I'm never going back to a traditional case; everything is so much more clean and easier to work with.

If you're going to be using an optical drive with the Fractal, going with a Corsair Shift PSU, where the cables connect on the side, is a must, otherwise it's going to be really tight behind the optical drives; you might not be able to fit two with a traditional PSU.

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/Power-Supply-Units/RMx-SHIFT-Series-Fully-Modular-Power-Supplies/p/CP-9020252-NA

Here are a couple of pictures of my build:

 

[mikeymikec]

@snoopy7548

Thanks for the input. I've been erring on the side of mesh fronts as my current case has one and I've achieved near silence with that too, and your comments about the 5.25" bays is definitely noted. Fractal Design's Focus G seems cheaper and more to my liking:

Focus G

www.fractal-design.com

It's a shame about the glass side panel but it'll get covered by the bit of furniture to the left of the tower anyway

 

[Orangeatang]

If you're going to be using an optical drive with the Fractal, going with a Corsair Shift PSU, where the cables connect on the side, is a must, otherwise it's going to be really tight behind the optical drives; you might not be able to fit two with a traditional PSU.

Thanks for posting pics of your build! I just picked up a Fractal Pop Air and really want to use an RMX SHIFT PSU - much appreciated!