Reviews

Fractal Design Define R2 Titanium Chassis Review

Conclusion

The Define R2 moves away from the cluttered gaming chassis arena and holds itself up as a gaming/enthusiast case that is not only beautifully designed, but one that can perform well with the Moduvent system closed or open. Obviously quite a noticeable drop in temperature can be noted with the Moduvent system open as it allows more air to circulate through the case, but stocking up the Define R2 with multiple fans let’s it use the full potential of the chassis’ design to keep the components cool. The huge benefit of keeping the Moduvent system closed is the extra noise reduction it offers. With the fan bays blanked out the areas at which the case can leak noise are limited.

The case as a whole is very quiet with the noise reduction bitumen doing its job well, and with only two chassis fans the noise output isn’t that high. Compared with the Cosmos it was considerably quieter. With a total of seven fans installed in the Define R2 the noise level was going to rise, but it didn’t reach a level at which it would become annoying for every day use. Obviously if you were to use high RPM fans it would probably sound like a jumbo jet taking off, but low RPM like the Coolermaster fans I used rated at 19dB and 44CFM are more than ample to keep a steady airflow through the chassis.

The matte black interior is a must have nowadays as it’s becoming increasingly popular and improves the internal appearance of the system. The powder coat does however seem a little on the thin side as the paint were the sidepanel slides on and off is already starting to ware off. With due care and attention though the rest of the chassis powder coat can be kept looking as new so long as you don’t slip with a screwdriver and add your own personal touch to the finish. The cable management options are superb. The holes are just big enough allowing all the cables you could need to squeeze through in the appropriate areas. Getting the 8 pin CPU connector through the hole at the top proved to be quite demanding, but some gentle persuasion helped it through.

As we all seem to change our hardware more often than ever the advancement that was the backplate cutaway brought a smile to most of our faces. Now that it was possible to swap over coolers without first removing the motherboard, it has become a huge influencial factor when picking a chassis. Disappointment swept my face when I saw that the cutaway didn’t line up with my p55 motherboard, and probably most if not all p55 and x58 boards. Hopefully this will be revised sooner rather than later as it may cause a few enthusiasts to look elsewhere but on the grand scheme of things, it’s not that big a problem.

Overall the Define R2 is a great chassis that we weren’t expecting, let alone from a company that very few of us had heard of, but this case has paired a sleek and elegant design with silent operation and a range of thermal options to suit the needs of the most demanding enthusiasts. Priced at around £80 the Define R2 from Fractal Design is an affordable, feature packed chassis, that’s sure to be the envy of your friends.

Pros
Sleek, elegant design
Matte black internals
Sleeved/black cables throughout
Noise reduction bitumen
Moduvent System
Price

Cons
No toolless installation
Thin powdercoat

The Fractal Design Define R2 shows that emerging companies with a strong enough product can show the bigger companies how it’s done. For this reason I am awarding the Define R2 the Performance Hardware Newcomer award, as well as the Recommended award!

Many Thanks to the great people at Fractal Design, especially Jens for providing the sample for review.

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Tags: case, Chassis, Define R2, Fractal Design