John Childermass
Dabbler
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2016
- Messages
- 34
I'm looking for a better and more future-proof case to replace the cheap and basic one that came with my system. My wishlist is:
From reading previous threads, it sounds like the Fractal Design Define 7 might be my best bet, as various people have said it's quiet, and it accommodates lots of drives. However, @PhiloEpisteme's great build report for the Define R6 mentions the drive trays sagging as they are only supported at three corners. Also, @ChrisRJ noted that the Define R6 drive trays mean that you don't get much airflow once you fill the case up with drives, and that to get sufficient cooling you need high-power fans, making it noisy. Does anyone know if these R6 downsides are the same in the Define 7 (the drive tray design seems to be the same)? And, since compactness is not important for me, would the Define 7 XL be any better?
I looked at the Fractal Design Node cases but it seems that these are generally noisier. I'm not opposed to using a rackmount case, but from what I've read these are also going to be noisier.
Another alternative I'm considering is the older Define R5 case. It does at least have 8 3.5" bays, and these seem to have support on all sides, rather than in three corners.
I realise that my wishlist might not be realistic(!), but does anyone have other suggestions?
- As quiet as possible
- Good cooling (I've noticed the drives getting warm in my current case)
- Solidly built (I've noticed vibrations in the drive cage in my current case)
- At least 8 spaces for 3.5" HDDs, and ideally 10 if possible
- Space for 2 x 2.5" SSDs for mirrored boot drives
- Tower, not rackmount, as I don't have a rack
- Fits a micro-ATX motherboard
- It doesn't need to be compact
- I'm not worried about hotswapping the drives
From reading previous threads, it sounds like the Fractal Design Define 7 might be my best bet, as various people have said it's quiet, and it accommodates lots of drives. However, @PhiloEpisteme's great build report for the Define R6 mentions the drive trays sagging as they are only supported at three corners. Also, @ChrisRJ noted that the Define R6 drive trays mean that you don't get much airflow once you fill the case up with drives, and that to get sufficient cooling you need high-power fans, making it noisy. Does anyone know if these R6 downsides are the same in the Define 7 (the drive tray design seems to be the same)? And, since compactness is not important for me, would the Define 7 XL be any better?
I looked at the Fractal Design Node cases but it seems that these are generally noisier. I'm not opposed to using a rackmount case, but from what I've read these are also going to be noisier.
Another alternative I'm considering is the older Define R5 case. It does at least have 8 3.5" bays, and these seem to have support on all sides, rather than in three corners.
I realise that my wishlist might not be realistic(!), but does anyone have other suggestions?