Need a plain adult case. See inside:

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Compman55

Golden Member
Feb 14, 2010
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Fractal design: (Overall nice and plain, but seems high priced)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...140317181446:s

Thermaltake Urban S21: (Nicer price, no ugly blue LED)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811133224

Thermaltake Urban S41: (High price, but has hot swap top bay, and ugly bright blue LED:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811133227

Of these three, I am having trouble deciding. I want a nice plain, professional, modern, looking case. Dell has one of the best cases in the optiplex line. If you have any others you want to share that are plain, please feel free, I could only find these.
 
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Compman55

Golden Member
Feb 14, 2010
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Now that does look nice. Thanks.

Now its between the Fractal and the 330R. Now its even harder.
 
Tifosi248F1

Tifosi248F1

Member
Aug 16, 2006
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I think it's all going to come down to what you intend to put in the case, and how well each case can accommodate those choices.

The Fractal will probably be better on cooling with its 3 included fans, no front door, and no top panel cover. The Corsair will have the edge on noise with its built-in acoustic dampening materials and fan slot covers.

Components that put out a lot of heat might do better in the Fractal, and the side panel fan mount might sway you if you plan on a beefy GPU. There's also the FD Define R4 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811352020 which has the same plain, adult looks as the Arc Midi and 330R. I would call it Fractal's version of the 330R. Front door, sound dampening materials, fan slots that can be covered to provide a quieter system. I don't think you could go wrong with any of the three, though I am a bit biased towards the Fractals.

I have the Arc Midi R2, though the version with the side window. I managed to pick it up on Black Friday for $50. It has good cooling out of the box and is not exceptionally loud, though it is audible. I have the three 140mm fans that came with it plus an additional 120mm and a Cooler Master 212 EVO on the CPU, so there's quite a few fans going.

Both Fractals have the added benefit of a built in fan controller, though it's just a simple 3 position switch for 5v, 7v, and 12v and can handle 3 fans. It can be a bit flaky with some components. My GTX 760 doesn't like the abrupt voltage changes and will blue screen, so I don't switch the fans on the fly.

I have to say the Fractal was a pleasure to build in. Plenty of room so you don't feel cramped when installing things, and I have quite a few drives so the 8 bays give me the space I need without bunching everything up. The 5-bay is also removable so you can have even better airflow if all you need is 3 bays. Their customer service is top notch. I had a faulty fan that came with the case, most likely a result of shipping, and they took care of it in no time.

Corsair also makes real nice cases, and I've built a system in their 400R. It was equally as easy to work with and I likely would have ended up with one as my own case had I not found the great deal on the Fractal.
 
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mv2devnull

Golden Member
Apr 13, 2010
1,526
160
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The leds stay off, if one does not connect them.

I like my Define R3, and IMHO the R4 is a bit better in details than R3.
 
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smitbret

Diamond Member
Jul 27, 2006
3,382
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You get what you pay for with the Fractal Design cases.

That being said, the R4 is a great case unless you need immediate access to the Optical Drives. If you can get by with mATX, the Define Mini is great, too and just a touch smaller.
 
Charlie98

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,298
64
91
As far as Fractal cases... you get what you pay for. They are very solid cases and very well designed. It'll be hard for me to look at another case next time around...

In lieu of the Arc R2, look at the R4 or, if you are mATX'ing it, the Define Mini. Yes, they are all around $100, but you get a very good case... I don't think you would be disappointed.
 
Charlie98

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,298
64
91
smitbret said:
You get what you pay for with the Fractal Design cases.

That being said, the R4 is a great case unless you need immediate access to the Optical Drives. If you can get by with mATX, the Define Mini is great, too and just a touch smaller.
Click to expand...

Geez... double post. Great minds think alike... :D
 
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Compman55

Golden Member
Feb 14, 2010
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Thanks for the input guys. I decided on the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 Mid Tower. Its just the cosmetics that I like over the Define series. I have owned antecs with doors, and I personally just like the ultra plain, no bling appearance of this case.

The case is about the 2nd hardest thing to decide, outside of the motherboard being my #1 hardest thing to pick.
 
Charlie98

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,298
64
91
Compman55 said:
The case is about the 2nd hardest thing to decide...
Click to expand...

You know, your right. CPU, RAM, HDDs... all that stuff, once installed, is basically forgotten in normal use, but you fiddle with the case almost every day (in some instances.) A poorly designed case can be a pain to build in, difficult to work with, and even a chore to properly maintain... and then you have to look at it everyday, too! I'm lucky, I live near a MicroCenter... I can go in and lay hands on most any case I'm curious about before I buy it, that's one of the reasons I settled on the Fractal cases as my #1 choice. This was after dealing with a CoolerMaster HAF922 case for a year... a nice case but a pain to maintain and move around. I was not sorry to see it go.

Hope you are happy with your Fractal! :D
 
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Compman55

Golden Member
Feb 14, 2010
1,241
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Well coming from an antec SX-1040B I bet I will be.

It too was an awsome case for its day. I still have two left, and they are a little dated looking. Evertime I need to blow the dust out, I remeber how heavy and durable they are. That is a time that has come and gone forever. A case will never be that well built.

The one main reason I refuse to use it for future builds, is because of the 80mm fans. Just too noisy.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=antec+sx1040&qs=n&form=QBIR&pq=antec+sx1040&sc=3-11&sp=-1&sk=
 
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aylafan

Member
Jun 30, 2010
55
0
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I have a Corsair Carbide 200R and it's pretty nice for around $50. It has a simple, clean look and none of that flashy stuff. 300R is another good option for a slight increase in price.
 
Carson Dyle

Carson Dyle

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2012
8,173
524
126
Fractal Design has less expensive cases in their Arc and Core lines, without the added front door and the acoustic treatments of the Define line. In any case, they all go on special at times, so you can save anywhere from $20 to $50 if you're patient.
 
lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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Carson Dyle said:
Fractal Design has less expensive cases in their Arc and Core lines, without the added front door and the acoustic treatments of the Define line. In any case, they all go on special at times, so you can save anywhere from $20 to $50 if you're patient.
Click to expand...

Define R4 and Arc Midi R2 are actually priced the same on newegg right now, and I think they have the same MSRP of $110. Where R4 has noise dampening materials, Arc Midi R2 has one extra fan.
 
Seba

Seba

Golden Member
Sep 17, 2000
1,599
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Herkulese said:
QUESTION: What is the purpose of the large hole in the side, above the fan grill?
Click to expand...
It is a window so you can look inside the PC (I do not understand why would you do that, but those case windows spread like plague in the last years).
 
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