Product ReviewsFractal Design Define R4 Black Pearl w/ USB 3.0 ATX Mid Tower Silent PC Computer Case
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73%
25%
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 Rating: Review Date: 03/03/15  |
Cons: Rubber feet (I put it in a desk), Top IO (Once again, in a desk with a drawer above it), Rubber Gromets aern't the best things on earth (Better than the R2, but not the best), NO HDD LED!!!!!!!!
Pros: Elegant, Spacious, well ventilated, quiet, decent customization, 3 speed fan controller |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/28/15 |
Cons: Large. I knew this beforehand so really not a con. No HDD LED.
Pros: Very Quiet, high quality, includes 2 decent 140 mm fans, lots of room behind MB for cables= excellent cabling system. Having the removable dust filters is a huge bonus. Comment:
Bought this for a new build and am very satisfied. Regarding the lack of a HDD LED I'll just install one myself. Very satisfied with my purchase. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/26/15 |
Cons: - Only come with 1 case fan (though you do have room to add more)
Pros: - Very nice looking- Very well built Comment:
All round great case! regardless of only having 1 fan come with it I knew in advance and ordered extra. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/12/15 |
Cons: -Not completely Tool-less-Cable pass through gromets are too soft, and prone to slipping out of place, especially the one taking on the PSU cables.-Front fan template cover clips are flimsy and broke the first time I used them. It still stays in place, but sticks out a little bit. Problably my fault for forcing them open too hard.
Pros: -Beautfiul, solid, quiet.-Easy to install complex builds, thoughtful cable management design.-easy to use hard drive mounting, removable cage for increased airflow when using 3 or less drives.-Included fans and fan voltage control are great for balancing sound and performance as needed.-Sharp white and black internal theme. Comment:
5 stars because the small problems were not significant enough to take away from how sturdy, quiet and beautiful this case is.Will definitely buy again for any future build needed, and will recomend to friends. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/11/15 |
Cons: Front-end USB ports don't fit well with USB cables. I have to push/pull hard to plug/unplug my USB cables.
Pros: Solid quality, amazingly quiet, awesome design Comment:
This is the best computer case I have ever |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/10/15 |
Cons: usbs could have been designed on front panel not top panel, because dust could be problems
Pros: nice finish on edgessolid quality Comment:
Been thinking for a while for it to replace my old antec one, which is literally a dust collector. Haven't had the chance to move my whole rig into it, but pretty happy with it by far. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/08/15 |
Cons: -Fan controller is suspect-Top panel slightly bowed in, pops in and out
Pros: -Roomy and well thought out design-Good attention to detail-Quiet Comment:
This was a great case to work with, lots of room for any components. Fits the Gigabyte 970 G1 with the middle HDD rack installed, just got to take it out to get the card in.Fans are nice and seem to have a good air/noise ratio. Good amount of other accessories, like dust covers, etc.Only negatives are issues with the fan controller seeming to trip my PSU's overvolt protection. Likely related to Fractal's design that involves using the 5v gnd and 12v line to make 7 volts. Old trick modders have used for years, doesn't always work the best depending on sensitivity of components. Fans also work great in the PWM headers, so you can control with your motherboard if needed, so it's not an issue for me.Top panel is also slightly bowed in around the fan cutouts, pops up and down by hand, but is pretty slight so it doesn't bother me. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/01/15 |
Cons: -Nothing
Pros: -Large Case for the price, room for upgrades later on-Good Airflow, removable Drive Trays for even more-Comes with two 140mm fans Comment:
I bought this case on sale and I am pleased. As mentioned above, there's plenty of room and good airflow. This is a good buy for those on a budget! |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/01/15 |
Cons: noting worth mentioning.
Pros: Quiet, large, easy install2 x 140mm quiet fansbuilt it fan ctrllots of noise reduction paddingaround 1" behind MB Comment:
This was an upgrade from a raidmax atlas, this case is big but that’s probably one of the reasons to buy it. Cable management is made easy especially with a non-modular PSU due to the large clearance behind MB.Nice clean look and probably one of the best cases r the discounted price.Note: I was unable to apply the savings code and it didn’t apply automatically at checkout but NCIX customer service had refunded me with 30 secs of hanging up the phone, good job! |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/08/14 |
Cons: Size - Its pretty big - but that is my fault for not checking the specs more thoroughly.Fans - two fans are included. One of them wobbles [not balanced] and the other one had a broken fin [which I Gorilla-glued back on].Only one 140mm fan in the back, so only supports small Liquid coolers/radiators.
Pros: Solid builtMany 3.5" slotsScrews and cables includedFans - 2 included, Silent fansAir-filtersFront USB 2 and 3 accessFan Control Comment:
I was taken aback by the size of this case, but size does come with benefits.The case is solidly built to counter vibration and noise, which it does well.Fan control 3v,5v,12v is also nice.The fans are not as qualitative as I would have liked [see cons] and I have ordered a few Be Quiet! Pure Wings 2 140mm to add/replace the stock ones.I am a happy owner, although it does not fit under my table.Star off for rickety fans and not fitting full-sized CPU cooler. |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/03/14 |
Cons: Bulky tower
Pros: Matte lookEasy to build Comment:
Bought this back in august, easy to clean and enough space between the side panel. Wished I bought the windowed version so I could look inside. I hope they sell only the left panel with window. |
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Rating: Review Date: 11/15/14 |
Cons: -No window on this version-It is a bit wide
Pros: -Great design-Insanely quiet with sound dampening foam-Fan filters everywhere-Big power button-Top USB ports-Easy to build in and great cable management w/ grommets-Removable HDD cages-PSU can be mounted upside down-Comes quality fans that are silent Comment:
Very good chassis that I highly recommend. I've dealt with this and the Arc Midi R2 and I rather the R4. The system I built in this is the most silent system I've ever built and it looks good too thanks to the great cable management. This chassis is built really well from the metal HDD cages to the classy brushed metal front panel. I highly recommend this case but if I were to buy it again I'd get the windowed. There are no real complaints I have about this chassis after a few months. |
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Rating: Review Date: 10/02/14 |
Pros: Slick designQuietNice cable managementLots of space
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I really like this case. It's silent but keeps things reasonably cool. Although it arrived with a dead LED, the manufacturer promptly shipped me a replacement. |
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Rating: Review Date: 09/29/14 |
Cons: ?what
Pros: Best looking case,great refine design. Comment:
IF you're not 12 and dont want some stupid looking case with leds or weird extravagant design. Love the mate finish Great for cable management, overall nice update over the R3. |
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Rating: Review Date: 07/14/14 |
Cons: None
Pros: Best quality. Lots of ventilation Comment:
I purchased this case to replace my Sonata III which doesn't fit a new watercolled radiator. This new FD case fits them all and have a lot of ventilation space inside. Buying it on sale makes it the best from the best. Very recommended. |
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Rating: Review Date: 07/06/14 |
Cons: None really
Pros: Quiet. Looks amazing. Fits a ton of stuff Comment:
Love the minimal styling on this case. At the same time it doesn't give up any flexibility or features at all. Theres ton's of space in there. For gamers, its pretty damn quiet too. |
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Rating: Review Date: 06/28/14 |
Cons: Lacking a tainted window on the side for a good view.
Pros: Very smooth and neat finish on the surface of the case. The simplistic look becomes a major selling point for Fractal. Comment:
A very good combination of both stylish and sturdy, which are key aspect to look for in cases. |
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Rating: Review Date: 06/25/14 |
Cons: -Heavier than most cases
Pros: -Spectacular quietness -Build quality is excellent-Abundant USB ports Comment:
Pros/Cons pretty much says everything. Excellent case from fractal design. |
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Rating: Review Date: 06/24/14 |
Cons: none.
Pros: clean, simple design. Comment:
Fractal Design Define case looks great. i like the clean, simple style. this case has good quality too. there are enough hdd trays. the air filters are not strong as others. Cable management is ok. |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/26/14 |
Cons: You might run into some issues with mounting certain radiators like the H100i depending on your mobo and fans.
Pros: Super QuietPlenty of cable management optionsRemovable HDD cageClean DesignToo many Pro's to list Comment:
It looks amazing and it's soooo quiet I can't even tell its on unless my ear is almost touching the case. Lots of Cable management space in the back panel. Removable HDD cage for increased airflow. Lots of included screws and zap straps etc in the accessory box that comes with it. Built in fan controller is a plus. Super happy with this purchase! arrived fast and on time and packaged well. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/20/14 |
Cons: Doesn't have the refinement you find on another cases, like the Define Mini.
Pros: Solid build, easy to work with, very sleek and minimal on the outside. Comment:
Not a bad case. Slim enough to fit on some mounts for work. I prefer corsair cases, but Corsair tends to be too wide for stand/mount applications. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/18/14 |
Cons: Fractal Designs QC needs improving, case had some chipped paint(in parts you cant see when the case is closed) and some dents around the thumb screws that close the side panelthe front audio jack cable didn't reach my mATX port by about 3-4 inches.
Pros: Very quiet, high quality, nice size, moves a decent amount of air for a case with 2 low rpm fans(at 7v) Comment:
Great case especially at the sale price of $89, would buy again for a new build if I had the choice even with the few minor cons. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/15/14 |
Cons: No hdd led or any other led besides the powerPanels slide on an off awkwardlySome may not like the white accentsFront door panel swings only one direction and only about 100 degreesNo tooless optical drive slots and hdd traysAir filters are a bit flimsy
Pros: StylishWell builtPlenty of room insideLots of rubber gromets for cable managementAll screws come in black to match the case Comment:
The case looks great both in style and in quality. Everything feels solid (except maybe the white hdd trays). There is a lot of attention to detail including the black screws that come with the case. The only parts that seem a little less quality built are the air filters (front and bottom). Cable management is fairly easy to manage.One of the main flaws of the case is the front door panel. The hinge is only on the left side and cannot be changed to the right like some other cases. Add to the fact that it only swings about 100 degrees, this may get in the way. The other main flaw is that there is no hdd activity light. It only has a blue power light. This maybe just because of styling, however, they could of implemented another color led along with the blue led so that when the hdd is in use, that color will flash instead of the constant blue. Or make the blue led flash when the hdd is accessing. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/04/14 |
Cons: There are no con's for this product, it's been refined to the point where it is perfect.
Pros: SilenceMinimalisticBlack Comment:
As I mentioned this case is perfect, there are no flaws with it because everything down to the smallest detail has been thought about and discussed through the various revisions to the Define line.With this being the fourth series there are some interesting tweaks when compared to older designs, it's wider by an inch behind the motherboard tray, you can completely remove the bottom HD Bay and it's still priced rather well. |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/27/13 |
Cons: None
Pros: Solid .... Well thought out for routing .... Lots of room Comment:
This will be my second .... first one was taken by my son for his build ..... I had to get another for my next project .... absolutely recommend .... Definitely worth the investment |
ModuVent feature is amazing! Keeps dust out as I don't use the top two slots because it's in a desk, clearing the drawer above it by about 0.5". That's where my first issue comes in, it's slightly bigger than the case it replaces, but much better laid out. The lack of an HDD LED is a killer loss for me! It's been terrible to know if my drives are actually accessing. I've considered using the power LED as a HDD led, but decided against it. The front panel over the fans had one clip broken out of the box, but because I bought it open box, I couldn't complain. Overall: Easy case to build in, everything is simple, elegant, and scandinavian designed?