Fractal Design R4 definitive hints/tips thread?

[CuriousMike]

I just received my R4 yesterday ( using Neweggs current promotion ) and I'm excited to build into it.

I unpacked the case last night, and it looks terrific. But I've never built into ( what I consider a ) premium case.

As an example of questions I have before starting my build:
a) The case came with two fans installed. The one in the back is "high up", where the fan in the front was mounted "down low." It looks to me like the front fan should be placed in the upper position, to match the back fans position and create a more direct flow of air... ?
b) I have two SSD's and a single HDD. Is it worthwhile to mount the SSDs on the back side of the case?
c) With only a single HDD, the middle drive cage will be removed. Any reason to keep it in?
d) While I have a SATA DVD drive in my current box, I'm considering not installing it in the R4. I have a USB 2.0 DVD drive I can use in those few times it's necessary. It doesn't appear the top 5.25" cage is removable without serious surgery?

 

[almightyobo]

a) if you are only running 1 fan in the front it would prob be better to put it in the top position

b) this is up to you really, you could mount the 2 SSDs on the back of the mobo tray if you want them to be hidden and only having your single HDD visible in the lower trays, or you could put all 3 in the lower tray. I personally have 1 SSD and 1 HDD in the bottom tray.

c) I currently have mine completely removed, the only reason I would see to keep it (besides additional storage) would be to turn it with all cages removed so it still has direct airflow through the case. I dont know if this performs any differently than removing it completely so I just removed it completely in mine due to preference. If I eventually read somewhere that it has better cooling performance to leave it in there but turned Ill put it back in

d) the top cages seem to be pretty much a permanent fixture, though I havent looked at mine too closely, it seems that it would take some work to remove them

 

[dma0991]

a. The current position is fine. You can't have a directed flow anyways if your fans aren't those focus flow types.
b. If there's a dedicated space there; why not?
c. I remove unnecessary parts if it isn't used but it can be used to conceal unwanted cables. I'd remove if you do not need it. Less noise caused by vibration, less dust accumulation when the front fan blows at it and it doesn't block the flow of the front fan.
d. My main rig doesn't even have an optical drive. I always had the thought that I could get an external slim drive but it has been a year and I haven't even bought one. While the cages seems easy to remove, I discourage it.

 

[MoInSTL]

Are you referring to the "secret" SSD spots on the back panel?

If you do that, you will have to pull the motherboard to get to them.

I just went from a Samsung 830 to a Samsung 840 Pro and I would have hated pulling the whole thing just to change drives.

 

[CuriousMike]

Are you referring to the "secret" SSD spots on the back panel?

If you do that, you will have to pull the motherboard to get to them.

I just went from a Samsung 830 to a Samsung 840 Pro and I would have hated pulling the whole thing just to change drives.

Right. The case 'manual' ( what a joke ) does at least mention installing the SSD's prior to installing the mobo.

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

I removed both HDD cages and placed both my SSD's behind the motherboard. Nice and clean with excellent airflow from the front 140mm fans.

 

[CuriousMike]

Did I put my power supply upside down?

Your picture has your fan upwards - I have mine pointing downwards.
That's how I interpreted the screw holes.

 

[CuriousMike]

Are you referring to the "secret" SSD spots on the back panel?

If you do that, you will have to pull the motherboard to get to them.

I just went from a Samsung 830 to a Samsung 840 Pro and I would have hated pulling the whole thing just to change drives.

Thanks for your comment - I have the two SSD's and a single HDD. I went ahead and mounted them on the bottom drive cage. I don't want to yank my motherboard to upgrade my SSD's when I decide to upgrade their capacities in the next year.

 

[almightyobo]

Did I put my power supply upside down?

Your picture has your fan upwards - I have mine pointing downwards.
That's how I interpreted the screw holes.

Im pretty sure PSUs can be mounted either way depending on how you want the airflow

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

Im pretty sure PSUs can be mounted either way depending on how you want the airflow

Yep, either way, it doesn't make a difference on heat, airflow, etc. I put mine this way because my PSU (OCZ Fatal1ty 1000) has a nice red fan and matches my case theme nicely.

Some will tell you to mount the PSU with the fan facing down to lessen the chance of anything falling in it, up to you.

 

[almightyobo]

Ive seen other people mount it like yours as well so that it doesnt collect as much dust as it would if it were sucking in through the bottom vents

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

Ive seen other people mount it like yours as well so that it doesnt collect as much dust as it would if it were sucking in through the bottom vents

Absolutely. The R4 has a nice dust filter on the bottom as well, so no worries with dust either way

 

[CuriousMike]

In the photo above, is the P/S fan blowing air into the case, or is it sucking air out of the case ?

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

In the photo above, is the P/S fan blowing air into the case, or is it sucking air out of the case ?

Out of the case towards the bottom.

 

[Charlie98]

I pulled the top HDD cage out of my Define Mini, but I mounted the SSD in the lower optical drive bay (there isn't enough room behind the mobo to mount the SSD in the Mini, but I wouldn't have anyway.) I did mount my PSU to draw air from the bottom through the filter... very nice.

I have 2 HDD's mounted in the bottom trays, so I left the fan in the lower front port; I also plan on adding a 2nd front fan in the higher front port to try to achieve positive case pressure.

I'm very impressed with the build quality of the Fractal cases... I joke that it makes my CoolerMaster HAF922 look like a hollowed-out beer can.

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

I pulled the top HDD cage out of my Define Mini, but I mounted the SSD in the lower optical drive bay (there isn't enough room behind the mobo to mount the SSD in the Mini, but I wouldn't have anyway.) I did mount my PSU to draw air from the bottom through the filter... very nice.

I have 2 HDD's mounted in the bottom trays, so I left the fan in the lower front port; I also plan on adding a 2nd front fan in the higher front port to try to achieve positive case pressure.

I'm very impressed with the build quality of the Fractal cases... I joke that it makes my CoolerMaster HAF922 look like a hollowed-out beer can.

That's a great idea. I saw a YouTube video of a guy who removed both HDD cages, and mounted the smaller one to the bottom of the lowest optical drive bay. It's a great idea and gives you three mounts to play with. I'm toying with the idea, but I'm really liking the look/performance of my current setup.

We'll see...

 

[Raincity]

You don't have to use the 2.5 mounts on the motherboard tray for the SSD. I used double sided tape and mounted mine on the over side of the mobo tray so they can be accessed for replacement by removing the side panel.

 

[Charlie98]

I'm toying with the idea, but I'm really liking the look/performance of my current setup.

We'll see...

I wouldn't fool too much with yours... it looks pretty solid all the way.

You don't have to use the 2.5 mounts on the motherboard tray for the SSD. I used double sided tape and mounted mine on the over side of the mobo tray so they can be accessed for replacement by removing the side panel.

I felt kind of queasy about using Velcro on the SSD, but I have to say it works very well.

 

[xxthe_remedyxx]

I wouldn't fool too much with yours... it looks pretty solid all the way.



I felt kind of queasy about using Velcro on the SSD, but I have to say it works very well.

Thank you!

 

[ElFenix]

You don't have to use the 2.5 mounts on the motherboard tray for the SSD. I used double sided tape and mounted mine on the over side of the mobo tray so they can be accessed for replacement by removing the side panel.

don't even need double sided tape. plain duct tape works fine. not like SSDs weigh anything or have a bunch of parts moving to work themselves loose.


anyway, the front fan i would recommend sitting in front of a hard drive cage as drives can get a bit toasty when sitting on insulating grommets.

 

[Raincity]

don't even need double sided tape. plain duct tape works fine. not like SSDs weigh anything or have a bunch of parts moving to work themselves loose.


anyway, the front fan i would recommend sitting in front of a hard drive cage as drives can get a bit toasty when sitting on insulating grommets.

Yah I know that. You don't even need any tape. You can just wedge the SSD between some of the cables and tray in the back that are being held down with zip ties.

 

[MoInSTL]

I used Velcro but on the bottom of one of the drive trays with the drive rails removed. One is mounted to the tray and a bracket with the other one is mounted on top of it. I have both cages removed and they sit on the bottom.

IMO, it looks nicer than tape (which can dry out) or wedged in there.

 

[lilrayray69]

I've got the same case, yours looks a nice bit cleaner than mine though. I wish my mobo had the PCI-E slot higher up, mine sits directly above my PSU so that I can't really fit my sound card between them, well I could but I'm afraid it'd compromise airflow to the GPU.

I've got my SSD in the regular cage, I got it after installing the motherboard so I didn't wanna bother with that. Also took out the middle cage, have 2 140mm fans in front, one in back, and another on the bottom next to the PSU (just added it to see if it'd make any difference - it didn't)

 

[Topweasel]

Ive seen other people mount it like yours as well so that it doesnt collect as much dust as it would if it were sucking in through the bottom vents

Just want to notate that the main reason for the PS to have the fan on the bottom exhausting out of the back is A.) The PSU isn't getting hotter sucking in air from the PSU kicking the fan up more. B.) It's its own locked in part of the system by doing it that way it doesn't contribute to the overall pressure in the case.

One big thing to avoid major dust buildups in cases is to go positive pressure. Which means you are bringing more air into the case than you are pushing air out. This means that air ends up actually getting pushed out through all the little openings. This means that the only air going into the case goes through the fans and in theory the dust filter. By flipping the PSU a person is A.) going from the coldest air a PSU can get to some of the hottest. B.) you are introducing another exhaust from case. Which if you want positive pressure means you need to increase the amount of fans sucking air in.

As for the front fan. The theory but probably has less of a true affect on cooling is again. Cold air falls. Hot air rises. So the idea is to grab the air where it is coldest and as it rises through the case it is then exhausted.

 

[hans030390]

To the OP, here's a good article that tests fans in different placements in the R3:

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2012/02/10/the-big-cooling-investigation/1

I removed both HDD cages and placed both my SSD's behind the motherboard. Nice and clean with excellent airflow from the front 140mm fans.

Is that one of those Cougar fans? If so, how well does it work, and how quiet is it? I'm considering getting some for my R4.