Looking to buy a new case, around £80 ish. Fractal Design R2?

chrisxuk

chrisxuk

chrisxuk

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Hi there, been looking at getting a new case for my computer and found the Fractal Design R2 for £80.99.

Looks rather decent, nice design, plenty of room etc but just got a few questions. I was reading a review on Bit-tech (http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2010/01/15/fractal-design-r2-case-review/3) and the R2 has the highest temperature in each test. Are the temperatures shown anything to be worried about, or are they fine? At the moment my computer gets very warm and so does my room :(

Another thing i'd like, is for my computer to be quieter. I only have a cheap £20 case at the moment, so would purchasing the R2 reduce the noise at all? It's rather annoying at the moment :(

I've been reading the thread for the R2 and there are plenty of positive comments. Would I be better off buying the R2, or is there a better alternative for around the same price. Don't want to be spending anymore if possible.

Lastly i'm looking at upgrading my PC soon, but unsure how at the moment. Does the R2 have plenty of room for more HDD's, graphics cards etc..?

My computer spec is:
AMD Athlon X2 2.80GHz
4GB DDR2 RAM
ATI HD 4850 512mb
Not sure on my motherboard model
400W Corsair PSU

Thanks, and any advice & comments are appreciated :)
 
The high temps in the Bit-tech review are based on the stock cooling options in the R2, which I think comes with 2 low-rpm 120mm fans. This is great for keeping things nice and quiet, but less than optimal for air flow. A number of people who've bought the R2 in the past have augmented its' cooling with additional 120mm or 140mm fans, check-out Bit-tech addendum here: http://www.bit-tech.net/blog/2010/01/25/fractal-design-define-r2-follow-up/

Compared to a cheapo £20 case most name brand cases should reduce the overall noise of your system, if only due to better build quality. If you have an overly loud CPU/VGA Cooler or HDD you will continue to have one after the upgrade, the R2 should reduce noise significantly but there are limits.

Finally, from what I recall the R2 has plenty of room for additional HDD's, but it is slightly limited in the length of GFX card it can accommodate. It should take 5850's and 5870's, but probably not 5970's. Can't recall off the top of my head exactly where the limitation lies though.

Most people here seem to be very happy with their Define R2, just be aware that buying one or two more low-noise fans could be a good idea. Oh, and before you swap cases clean out the dust from your VGA/CPU cooler. ;)
 
Thanks for the reply. Regards to the CPU cooler, I have this CPU and the cooler that came with it. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-261-AM

Not sure what this are like though compared to others.

Having a look on Overclockers, extra fans don't seem that expensive so I could always purchase more at a later date!

I highly doubt i'd be getting a 5970 so that's not a problem at all, and like you said other GFX card's are fine.

If I don't come across any more problems, or other suggestions then I think I might go purchase tomorrow :)
 
The noise damping in the Fractal is what makes it hot. The noise damping absorbs the heat rather than dissipating it. Its just a drawback from having a quieter system.
 
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