Fractal Design (or, simply, Fractal as they shift corporate identity) has long been known in the enthusast community for outstanding enclosure design and performance. Their Define series has received considerable acclaim, and while there are certainly those who prefer the functional and minimalist design of cases like the Define R6 (and eschewing even the tempered glass side panel in favor of a solid, insulated panel), Fractal has moved with the industry into some more aesthetically inspired designs.

When we looked at the Define S2 Vision RGB case earlier this year, a design with no fewer than four tempered glass panels and a lofty $239.99 USD price tag, it was a very different product than previous Fractal enclosures we’d reviewed. Though a well-constructed example of the glass-on-all-sides approach to case design, its thermal performance came at the cost of some pretty high noise levels by Fractal standards.