KVR Audio

seamoss · Post by **seamoss** » Mon Mar 03, 2025 10:32 pm

Been out of the loop as far as PC builds for DAWs go for the last 5 years or so but was curious if Fractal Define cases were still the overall top choice? I see Fractal has a couple of others as well as some other manufacturers.

Just curious peoples thought

BertKoor · Post by **BertKoor** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 8:34 am

They're called "Fractal Design", and a case is just a case (imho).

Shabdahbriah · Post by **Shabdahbriah** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 9:08 am

I've been custom building workstations for 30 years, and fairly recently based my youngest sons build on the excellent Fractal Design Meshify C Black ATX. He's very pleased with it, as are several of his tech-literate friends who took his advice to use them for their builds.

I have two main workstations built on the Fractal Design Define R5 Black Silent ATX cases, which are hands-down at the very top of my favorite cases I have ever used. The component access is fabulous. {2c}

Fractal Design Define R5 Black Silent ATX Midtower.png

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 9:09 am

I like the Define towers, I have a 7XL for my nonDAW, and the Meshify seem to be similarly quiet though a but more fugly of a front panel.

But for sheer unadulterated fugliness, you want the FD Terra.

legendCNCD · Post by **legendCNCD** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 1:51 pm

I also have 7XL on my R7950X DAW/DoItAll machine, CPU has the gigantik Noctua on top. Seems to be very nicely built.

seamoss · Post by **seamoss** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 5:30 pm

BertKoor wrote: Tue Mar 04, 2025 8:34 am They're called "Fractal Design", and a case is just a case (imho).

Actually, I was specifically talking about the "Define" series.

seamoss · Post by **seamoss** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 5:40 pm

So yeah, I currently have a Define 5 & 6 case that I absolutely love and was looking at the 7 for my next build. I see Fractal has a few new ones, like the Meshify listed above, and was curious if there were others people thought were worth looking at for DAW use.

Seems the Define 7 has been out since 2020, not sure if they have discontinued development on the Define series or what.

Either way, it seems so far the people in this thread are still fans of the Define series, so thats good to know.

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 5:55 pm

seamoss wrote: Tue Mar 04, 2025 5:30 pm
BertKoor wrote: Tue Mar 04, 2025 8:34 am They're called "Fractal Design", and a case is just a case (imho).
Actually, I was specifically talking about the "Define" series.

Yeah, but I suspect he's talking about the company name which is 'Fractal Define' ie the series of cases is 'Fractal Design Define'

pljones · Post by **pljones** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 6:40 pm

I'd had a couple of Fractal Design ITX cases before my last upgrade and, despite them being very fiddly, the Define 7 was what I went for and I must say I'm glad I did -- I don't need the space but it's got so much! Plenty of space to expand RAM, disks and fans and, if you want, strip the case down and replace the sides and top with a different design, etc. So I'd support others saying definitely take a good look at the Define range.

Pictus · Post by **Pictus** » Tue Mar 04, 2025 6:49 pm

seamoss wrote: Mon Mar 03, 2025 10:32 pm Been out of the loop as far as PC builds for DAWs go for the last 5 years or so but was curious if Fractal Define cases were still the overall top choice? I see Fractal has a couple of others as well as some other manufacturers.

Just curious peoples thought

They are good silent(airflow restriction) cases, but if you don't have mechanical hard drives, noisy
fans or coil whine, an airflow-optimized case may be quieter since the fans can run at lower RPM.
Look at the

The best 120/140mm fans
https://hwbusters.com/best_picks/best-c ... e-busters/
Best 120mm fans for cases
https://www.hecka.tech/p/the-best-120mm ... erformance

How To Setup & Control ALL PC Fans Speeds On Asus Motherboards Without Armoury Crate.
At works with any brand, not just ASUS.

legendCNCD · Post by **legendCNCD** » Wed Mar 05, 2025 1:05 pm

I think I declined Phanteks or something else also, because they only had glass side available. Unbelievable...

vitocorleone123 · Post by **vitocorleone123** » Wed Mar 05, 2025 4:38 pm

I ended up going with the giant be quiet case. It's definitely spacious.
I did like by Fractal on my last computer and would recommend.

AdvancedFollower · Post by **AdvancedFollower** » Mon Mar 10, 2025 8:45 am

Still using a Define XL R2 that I bought in 2013. One of the front USB A ports is broken but otherwise it has held up well.
I think for a music/audio system, it makes sense to go with an oversized case as mentioned due to the improved airflow. Also avoid cases with glass side panels since they provide worse noise insulation. You don't want a ton of RGB lighting anyway since the LED drivers can introduce noise. My case has big, heavy side panels with insulating foam on the inside.

Fannon · Post by **Fannon** » Mon Mar 10, 2025 7:26 pm

Also still using my Fractal Design Define R3 Midi Tower, which I bought in 2011. I added a little bit of noise isolation panels inside and have low-noise fans installed (some Noctuas). No glass side panels. Still going strong

Are Fractal Define series still the favorite?