Watch our Fractal Torrent (original) review here: th-cam.com/video/HBxo2_lwKps/w-d-xo.html And our Fractal Torrent fan hub validation here: th-cam.com/video/R1EcppuGxCY/w-d-xo.html GN 3D Coaster Packs are now on back-order! store.gamersnexus.net/products/3d-coaster-pack-4-component-coasters (This amazing 4-pack of fully custom coasters that we designed and made uses high-quality materials and vibrant, PC-centric designs that you won't get anywhere else. It also supports the weeks of testing we do on content like this! Last time, stock sold out in about 36 hours. Make sure you back-order soon!)
Hi, wanted to ask in regards to dust build-up for the front fans, is there a filter there or could you recommend a video on a case with one? Currently looking at the Meshify 2 Compact due to it. Have a bit of an issue with dust build-up over time due to being near city center when there's a wind in summer, it's also not really possible to take a case outside for spring cleaning like I used to it when I used to live in a house, so just being able to take dust filters would be a huge plus. The 30 EUR difference between the two is not enough to really matter since it seems based on your tests that the Torrent Compact should be a bit quieter with the larger fans, so would be worth the extra cost to me. And thanks for the videos, they've generally been quite interesting over the last few years.
Wow, you are super late on that case's Review image Lian Li Lancool III comes out, and you need that much time then the review is for ass because most of the people did buy at this point then the Lancool III Case... I hope you are faster on Lian Li Lancool III Review before it comes out...
If any of you guys were too lazy to watch through the whole video, Steve’s main critiques of the Compact Fractal Torrent was mostly price point, cable management (which is the main problem as the width was scaled down proportional to the height, and the back glass panel is smooshed right up against the cables.), and decreased clearance for gpus and cpu coolers (174 mm of cpu cooler clearance, which is still pretty good, but not as good as the regular torrents 188mm.) Other than that it’s a good case by a great brand. Thank you GN for the video!
@@regwatson2017 for sure, cable management is what sets it back, but what makes it worse is the glass being compressed against the cables, which is not generally what you would want.
@@Fly_By_Gaming I had an Anidees AI Crystal that had its back glass panel shatter from cable clutter a couple years ago. The pressure on the glass was pretty gentle, I was able to thumb screw it down without stressing it, but I guess after a couple of years, it just blew apart.
The cable management would certainly be annoying but he did say the dual 180mm fans were a big value ad that makes it more comparable to cases that were slightly less expensive, plus fans.
One note about tempered glass. One of my hobbies is fish keeping. Aquariums use tempered glass for the bottom sheet because of how strong it is. A 50 gallon aquarium puts 0.59 PSI of pressure on the glass due to the weight of the water. Larger tanks put even more pressure. What tempered glass really doesn't like is ununiform pressure. That's why you can smack it with a hammer and it'll be fine, but an icepick with a half as much force will cause it to shatter. A bulge in your panel won't necessarily lead to it shattering. When you fill aquariums, the glass literally bulges out from the weight of the water a quarter of an inch or more depending on the capacity of the tank. People build frameless tempered glass tanks. All depends on the thickness of the glass.
Sorry to be the pedantic one, but pressure on the bottom of the tank only depends on the height of the water in the tank, not the volume of water. pressure (psi) = fluid height (ft) x fluid density (pounds per gallon) x 0.052. fresh water has a density of approx. 8.34ppg.
if you have pebbles on the bottom, the same principle applies. the easiest way is to calculate 2 pressures, one for height of pebbles, and one for the height of water above the pebbles, then add both together. Very roughly, you could expect pebbles in water to have a density in the order of 16.7ppg to 19ppg
The white version of this case has glass on one side only. I bought this case when it came out in Australia a few weeks ago - Got the compact white. I don't think I would have bought it if it was glass on both sides, but it appears the compact white version is glass on one side only. When building in it, a significant amount of effort went into cable management so that side would not bulge/pop out - but still needs the screw.
I would have ordered the white version of the nano if I had known, seeing the tempered glass on both sides when I got mine out of the box was a legitimate shock
I got the Torrent Compact GN is reviewing here, as you said, a significant amount of time did go into cable management. I was able to close the back glass without bulging. But I still screwed down the glass to feel safe.
Instead of adding "compact" and "nano" to the end, I think Fractal Design should have named the cases (in decreasing size): Torrent, Stream, and Trickle.
I guess those would detract from the whole point of calling it Torrent though - it sounds like air is washing powerfully over the system. Stream and Trickle sound like the performance took a big hit.
I've always found tempered glass on the cable management side panel to be completely unnecessary and annoying. Just put steel there - no one cares that much about cable management that they want to see it through glass
@@EverythingisFire One the older meshify the solid panel version costed $10 less than the glass ones (I actually bought the steel one because of that) but they have stopped that starting with the meshify 2.
@@EverythingisFire That'd be Newegg being Newegg. Canada Computers (which seems to be the only reputable online source left to Canadians) has the steel compact at $220 and the glass at $245 - about the price hike one would expect. (Note that as this is a Canadian retailer, these are Canadian prices, so that $150 price is $190 on the exchange rate alone, and the other $55 comes from the Canada markup - most tech stuff we get lands in American ports and then is trucked up across the border, which substantially alters the price of things. Plus probably some duties that apply.
@@Aleph-Noll well Linus made a video over it because was becoming increasingly prevalent on his channel and other tech channels recently , we just need a algorithm that tracks bots that spam the same thing, it’s technically supposed to be TH-cam’s job, but I guess there is worse problems.
Really wish case manufacturers would stop putting tempered glass on the cable management side as it's pointless, increases costs, and now there's 2 panels to worry about potentially shattering at some point (very unlikely of course but still). Also it's worth noting besides having a modular power supply, keep in mind the length of your power supply. I have a Meshify C Mini that I originally put in a longer length power supply and it made cable management quite difficult, but now I've got a shorter length PSU and it's much more manageable. If you want to make it really easy and plan to use cable extensions you could use a SFX PSU, many of them come with a ATX mounting bracket
@@mrovi789 Interesting, just a shame the right side panel isn't metal by default on the TG version (there is an all metal version). If you want the white Torrent though then it comes with a metal right side panel by default
Yeah at least the evolv x had nice covers for the wires. Same reason i dont like the last revision lian li showed for the v3000 plus. They took away a side mount rad location and made the back panel glass. Idk who thought that was a good idea.
Yeah that pretty much rules this case out for me forever even with its obvious performance benefits. I don't mind glass panels on my cases but one is enough. Two of them is, I think, completely unnecessary.
Just completed a build in this case. Cable managing took about 2 hours (I only do this every year or so so I'm not an expert). I was exceptionally glad I went with the steel panels instead of glass after coming back to this review.
Always look forward to your content. I've built 6 PC's for friends and family and all used Corsairs Carbide Air 540. Many will not want/use the 2 optical drive bays, but the dual chamber form factor is easy to work in and cable manage. One caveat: The Arctic LFII 280 does fit on top, but a tight fit for the board power cable connection.
I have this case and everything Steve says is true. I didn't want RGB or glass, I wanted a solid good airflow case for work and not show, and this case is excellent in the solid side panel version with the exception of the cable management. I had trouble with the side entry style SATA power connectors for the SSD trays not letting the side panel close so have ordered a new corsair RMi power supply with individually sleeved cables , alternatively you can just get a set of cablemod cables which have the end entry, doubled up SATA power connectors. In the mean time I had to slice off one side of he SATA power connections to make it fit and only run one SSD.
As soon as they released nano version, I bought it and did an mITX build (3080 & 12600k). Love the design and airflow of this case. Btw had no problem with managing cables, yeah it took long but they're completely fine
@@Joze10 I have a cpu fan (arctic freezer 34 esports duo) and no problems with temps, runs quietly and without any problems. Exact temps dunno, never did a test cause it wasn't needed, runs flawlessly
I bought the Torrent Compact the day it came out. I did have to take my time on cable management, but made it work without having to squish the glass side panel against the cables. I am using CableMod replacement cables for an EVGA 850w G5 Supernova. I can see how it could be more of a problem if you were using a non-modular PSU, or factory sleeved cables like what comes on the EVGA modular PSU's. Aftermarket cables or flat cables would be best. I've recommended to people to remove the factory mesh sleeves from the cable groups to make routing easier. I am using an MSI X570 Tomahawk MB, Noctua NH-D15 cooler, Reference 6800 XT Midnight, two Noctua NF-A12x15's in the bottom for intake and a Noctua NF-S12A in the rear for some exhaust and everything fit great. Its a beautiful case, and has great air flow.
I had the same issue closing the back side of a meshify 2 compact. Had to spend a while cable managing it. Very unfortunate. But still a fantastic case. Seems like they didn't learn from that case, unfortunately.
Same issue with Define 7 C. Why cant they just make the compact case identical to the large case with less height/depth and probably fans. Why do they cut all these other things?
I'm looking for a quiet and good cooling performance. Must fit ATX motherboard, going to use my current setup which is old hardare (2013) but i want be able to run a really good cpu heatsink. Might opt for Meshify 2 XL Dark Tempered Glass. No need for tempered glass but have no other option. For now im running my Zalman HD160 HTPC case :D runs quite hot under load but super quiet in idling speeds. Any inputs on the XL one?
I love my full size grey torrent, coming from a Meshify C. I initially wanted the white version (like my C), but it was sold out for weeks and I got impatient, though I do not regret getting the grey. I really like FD's design cues. I moved the 180s to the bottom and opted for a 420mm AIO and 140s in push/pull with future plans of a custom loop. And yes, I know the torrent was designed as an airflow-focused case, but it's a damn gorgeous case and I couldn't pass it up. I agree with all the points Steve made, particularly cable management and the second TG panel. TG on the back side was not needed IMO, but at least with the full size cable management is totally doable if a bit tedious.
As soon as I heard of the release of the compact and nano I was looking forward to what you had to say. I wish I had these other options when I purchased the define 7 lol.
My personal favorites #1. Lian Li Lancool-II Mesh #2. Corsair 4000D Airflow #3. Lian Li Lancool-215 I also got a Rosewill Thor v2 recently for my server box, and going back and looking at the old GN review of it was very fun to see. You don’t see Steve much in it, but you do catch glimpses of that shorter haired Tech Jesus.
Picked up this case last week. Cable management is indeed annoying, but as I stuck with only using m.2 drives and only added a single rear fan, while using a modular power supply, it worked out fine. I would not recommend adding sata drives or anything else that will increase the number of cables.
I wish Fractal would have included an Aluminum plate for the bottom of the case. I assume it would improve temps by a bit because the air coming from the intake fans won't be able to escape to the bottom.
I would probably buy this as my next case, it just looks and performs good. And I would be already placing quite a bit of money on looks so I would buy custom look and length cables from something like cablemod. That said I do think tempered glass panel on other side should be optional purchase.
My chair mat is literally a piece of tempered glass (4'x6'). It handles loads really well. It just doesn't like to be hit on the edges. You would be surprised how far tempered glass can bow before it shatters. It is truly impressive!
I haven't really understood glass panels on the backside of the motherboard. That's where I want to hide things. I would hate a SKU split but I wish metal side panels were standard on a lot of cases. I don't care about seeing what is inside my case, much less the nest of wires. I hide my case away anyways.
They already do have that SKU split as you call it - the white Torrent Compact case has a metal side panel. Also some colors on the original Torrent have metal, but mine is Grey and it has glass. I was surprised to see that since I'm pretty sure that wasn't the case for Steve's black model.
Bought this and transferred my build from the old Meshify C as soon as it released (from NewEgg of all places. All it was available on). I had to get a little creative with the cable management on the backside, but managed to get it looking decent while allowing the back TG to lay flush. Don't even have to use the retention screw. I have no RGB on the inside, but there are cable extensions. I love this case.
It looks nice but that cable management looks like a nightmare compared to the P500a which I have. Its good to see that case still high up on the charts and its great to use, with plenty of space on the back and it's SSD mounts behind the motherboard
I love my P500A, I have a 420mm radiator in the front, and a 360mm radiator at the top, with plenty of room to route the hoses. However I'm thinking about changing the top one to a 280 mm, and then drilling a fill port on the top, and installing a square acrylic pump res combo where the cable management slides are at. I have a monoblock on the motherboard and a GPU vertically mounted with a water block, so I'm going to have like this RGB all acrylic look inside the P500A. This case is the tinkerer's dream, glad you have one too!
For those who do not need a window, this case is ideal - as there is a solid version without glasses. In addition, in white version, in this case there is only one window, there is a solid panel on the side of the cable.
Both the Compact and the Nano are 222 mm wide rather than the 242 mm of the "standard" Torrent. I guess those 20 mm (4/5ths of an inch) make quite a difference for cable management. A pity Fractal felt the need to "shrink" the case in that dimension as well. :/
Fractal has made some strange decisions here. It is actually pretty substantial for a case with "Compact" in the name. They wanted to minimise the size while keeping the two front 180 fans, so the height is justified. But it can only fit one 180 fan on the bottom, so the length is kinda pointless. And they shaved off a little bit of width at a considerable expense of cable management. The glass panel on the right, the curved top, the feet obstructing bottom fan mounts. I mean the case is overall really well made and a solid performer, so it's a real shame about the flaws.
Honestly kinda wish I had gotten this one instead of the full size. If I knew they were making this I might have waited. Definitely still happy with the full size, but I did kinda underestimate how big it is. With a standard ATX air cooled build there ends up being a lot of empty space in there. Also with a modular power supply and just nvme storage, I don't think I'd have any issues with the cables.
I can't wait for people to stop overusing the Lian Li PC-O11 and start using these. I dont understand tg panels on the back side where the cables and etc reside. Nonetheless, It's a very sexy case, but I personally prefer my Phanteks P600s still.
Thanks for the awesome reviews, just recently got this case based of your very helpfull and extensive reviews (and because imo it's the best looking case I've ever seen) and am very happy with it, although as mentioned cable management was quiet difficult (even with just 3 drives and no RGB) and it took me over 2 hours for a simple air-cooled build (would definitely recommend a modular PSU with this as me not having one of those greatly increased the time it took me) One extra thing to watch out for is that even without bottom fans it's hard to find a place for a GPU support that sits on the bottom of the case as it's mostly mesh
Been running the Torrent for 3 months now, flawless performance, whisper quiet, best air cooling case on the market. Period. L.E: looks small compared to my former 760t.
Really like this case. I already have an old Meshify C with NF-A12x25's all around and i'm STILL considering getting this just for the top mounted PSU.
The biggest issue for me was the Drive Cage. If you have the impertinence to actually wish to install a 3.5 inch spinning drive there has been no consideration for proper clearance for the SATA cable connectors. I tried both straight and 90 degree types, (you also are forced to attach the cables before screwing the drive into the cage to avoid damage) and neither cage position will allow it to fit period - the cage retaining screw will not align. I can only think I will have to secure the cage at an angle with a cable tie if I want to use the drive at all!
I'm not convinced this isn't just Steve being the contrarian for the sake of making a snappy video. Like he's really playing up what looks to be a pretty small "problem". I don't know. Just the vibe I got from the video.
I don't know man, he only really talked about it in the build section and the summary/final thoughts. Also this was an overall positive review, just happens to be that was the only real con of the case, and for some it may be a deal breaker so I get why they spent some time getting specific. I have to admit I think double glass panels are kind of unnecessary, I don't have bad cable management, but I also don't care if I can see them or not.
HEY GN!! I plead again for you to share a buying/tear down experience from a pre built PC via Costco. I have looked at options from Costco, the description and specs alone are a hot mess. Love to see what someone might actually receive! You’d have to get a membership- but “if you’re not 100% satisfied, we’ll return your membership fee”
What were fractal thinking! The only reason I won't buy this is due to the space at the back, I'm thinking this was intentional as to not take sales away from the standard Torrent, either that or they can make more money from improving it on the next iteration. I just can't understand why case manufacturers always get something wrong, I'm starting to think it's deliberate.
Good timing, I had just picked one up in white (which I believe does have a steel back panel) for an all air-cooled build, so we'll see how it fares. I'm coming from a Meshify C (original) so from reviews I can already see ways it's more convenient to work with comparatively but also now I can see how cable management may be a challenge...maybe not as bad as some old school cases but I bet it'll be fine with some planning. Cheers!
Keep in mind, in this review the powersupply had cables connected that they were not needing. So removing a few of the modules from the PSU and perhaps being pragmatic about RGB cabling and such can keep it within reason.
I’m currently rebuilding my pc in a torrent nano case, it looks fantastic and has great airflow, but I’m considering ditching my aio cooler as it doesn’t fit WITH my gpu (it’s 1cm too long). Either that, or I change the gpu. Despite that, I love the look of that case and really excited to get my pc up and running again
@@anonymouszillouette8404 I’ve got a corsair H100i platinum rgb se, it’s got two 120 fans and a thick radiator. My gpu is quite old, evga gtx 1080ti and it’s unusually long for a gpu. Pretty sure most 30 series gpus are shorter than mine, so if you’re using something more up to date, you shouldn’t have a problem 🤞
@@TheSjuris true, I think it depends a lot on the number of fans on the gpu, mine has three, so it’s quite long. But you can get more modern gpus that only have two fans, making them shorter. I highly recommended people do their research better than me 😅 though I was only a cm off so not too bad haha
I have the Torrent Nano, which I actually like a lot. I am/was are water cooling junky. I sort of had a rough few months with everything breaking (2 pumps, multiple fittings, 1 radiator, 1 psu). Because of this I decided to go air cooling. I do free lance work from home so every day I'm not working, I'm losing money. Replacing a fan takes 5mins vs 2 hours pulling out cables and dealing with the loop. To make things worse I also have a ITX MB, which always means a weird AF case. Now I have a problem... all the ITX cases are WEIRD AF. Super small, super tall, super skinny, super flat... where are the normal desktop itx cases? So I went on a search, and came across the Torrent Nano! Finally a itx case that support desktop hardware! If you are used to ITX, the cable management is pretty good. If you are coming form ATX, things get a little tight. That being said, I would recommend going with air cooling because it helps reduce the cables. Although it is possible to do water cooling. It is hotter than water cooling, but not by much. However, this is the coolest running case I've had for air cooling. I had the s2 and r5... those get a little toasty. Maybe its my hardware, but this performs pretty well with my set up. So far I have actually be pretty happy with it. Its cool, quiet, and easy to work in (compared to most itx cases). If you want and ITX case but still want the desktop hardware and experience this is the case for you.
Just finished a build in this case when i found this video. Yes cable management is a thing... Problem is more in diffrent powersupply cables that companies use. The ones from Corsair are a bit more difficult to work with. Used a Seasonic powersuply which uses flat cables for everything exept the 24 pin cable. Also the white case doesnt have a glass panel on the back side. This is made out of metal. A bit more easy to get it close.
I think a lot of people are making builds that don't have as many cables as people used to do 5 years ago. Using m.2 drives removes 2 cables (per drive) and if you don't use a video card, since they are still expensive, that's at least 1 more cable you can leave out.
I had this case for a few days and for my uses I needed to bottom mount the 2x180. In the intake config, the fan hubs touch the metal on the bottom and cause a terrible noise. Only configuration I found without noise was flipping them to exhaust, which ruined thermals. Pretty disappointed by this lack of attention to detail by Fractal and not sure how it was missed in this review.
Picked the Compact White up from Newegg today for $119 and only plan to use it in a simple Zen 4 air cooled build with no RGBs and strictly NVMe and one HDD for storage. Hopefully that means it won't be a complete nightmare for me.
Any chance of a motherboard review coming up? The case reviews you and your team do are amazing, but I would love to see more information on other components.
@Gamers Nexus, the first fans you should consider testing would be what I consider the best 120mm fans on the market at the moment, namely the Phanteks T30.
Good review as always. Cable management is a huge consideration for me. For that price point, bad cable management is a deal breaker. Considering how long cases have been around and how long cable management options have been around, it just doesn't make sense to me when they don't do better with it.
Considering even the original Torrent wasn't super generous with cable space (I use cable extensions), it's surprising to see from both Steve & Leo that the space between board and panel got even smaller.
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I was put off by the low cable management space initially, but after pulling the trigger and building my set up I had 0 issues of anything pressing down on anything. Didn’t need to spend hour on cable management either, so I don’t really understand where the criticism is coming from. Yes it is not 011 dynamic space where u can just throw things in and close it, but the whole no space for cables is a bit overplayed.
They must've had a lot of shit plugged in. My current & next build won't be using a lot of additional cables so I'm sure it would be a breeze for me too.
I am not that much of a gamer (I do play a couple of online games) I do some photo editing so I do like the air-cooling stats for this case. I like the size and the way the front panel seems to funnel the air into those fans and I don't need RGB fans so the cheaper one would work for me. My only negative for this case is having the glass over the back as I really don't need to se all the wires, glass on the front solid metal on the back please. Thanks for this review Steve and Nexus crew.
@@EverythingisFire for some reason I wasn't able to get into Fractal's website when I posted this to see other options. Thanks for the info, I'll look into that.
I like this case, but the only issue that I have with most cases is found here. Ease of access to the intake airfilter. Fractals R series made that stupidly easy to take out the filter to clean, but there are cases like this that look like you need to take off the whole front panel. My Meshify C has this and I worry at times that I might damage the cables for the front IO for it. As for the issue of cable management doesn't look like that'd be a problem for me, considering my current machine runs the stock power to the MB, GPU, and not much else really. The HD is a m.2 drive, so minimal cables.
You can remove the mesh also on the old meshify c. But it needs a lot of force and is kinda sketchy but made for it. Just pull up and out. It helps pushing from inside the case
I've heard that you can't use the 180 fans in the bottom if you have a full size atx board and want to use the front of the case to mount an AIO cooler instead. Shame, because the ARGB case looks like the ideal size I had in mind for an upcoming build and those fans alone are about $45 each, which is a bit of a waste if you can't use them without going for a smaller motherboard if you are using AIO cooling.
I have the OG Meshify Mini. Managed to fit two 5” spinning rust drives and an old 3.5 SATA into the backside. Cable management was challenging but doable with some light mods using snippers.
I have an odd relationship with fractal, every time i ordered something from them something was wrong (hearing from other people i'm sure i'm just extremely unlucky) but they have always been super responsive and super quick to correct the issue while being very apologetic covering shipping for everything and not just telling me to contact the distributor i got it from like a lot of other people do.
So if you're doing a build without a lot of cables, or get the version with the steel panel, this is a great case for the price. Thanks, Steve. Definitely was interested in the original Torrent, so a smaller, cheaper one with about the same performance just might grace my next build.
0:15 Maybe I'm just a cheap bastard, but IMO the best case review you guys had in the last years has been the Lian Li 215X. That thing is a beast for cooling, and it's at the best price you could ask for! :P
I just got this case and I'm just running with the back panel off. It's against a wall so it's never seen anyway. It was very annoying to try to manage it all and then force glass onto it.
I’m split between my love of the Meshify 2 Compact and the Torrent Compact. Probably will end up with the Meshify 2 though since it can be a sleeper with the metal side panel.
How is the grounding between the case frame and motherboard tray? The company I work for used to build PC's with the R4 case and found bad grounding which caused our National Instrument PCI cards to give bad readings. We had to connect a wire between the tray and the case frame. It was caused by the coating they give the metal and was curious if they ever fixed the problem.
Honestly they could have shortened it a bit more and used sfx power supply and cable length wouldn't be an issue and case would be even smaller which is a bonus.
Watch our Fractal Torrent (original) review here: th-cam.com/video/HBxo2_lwKps/w-d-xo.html
And our Fractal Torrent fan hub validation here: th-cam.com/video/R1EcppuGxCY/w-d-xo.html
GN 3D Coaster Packs are now on back-order! store.gamersnexus.net/products/3d-coaster-pack-4-component-coasters (This amazing 4-pack of fully custom coasters that we designed and made uses high-quality materials and vibrant, PC-centric designs that you won't get anywhere else. It also supports the weeks of testing we do on content like this! Last time, stock sold out in about 36 hours. Make sure you back-order soon!)
Why are case manufacturers even making opaque glass side panels? isn't a metal side panel both lighter and cheaper?
Hi, wanted to ask in regards to dust build-up for the front fans, is there a filter there or could you recommend a video on a case with one?
Currently looking at the Meshify 2 Compact due to it. Have a bit of an issue with dust build-up over time due to being near city center when there's a wind in summer, it's also not really possible to take a case outside for spring cleaning like I used to it when I used to live in a house, so just being able to take dust filters would be a huge plus.
The 30 EUR difference between the two is not enough to really matter since it seems based on your tests that the Torrent Compact should be a bit quieter with the larger fans, so would be worth the extra cost to me.
And thanks for the videos, they've generally been quite interesting over the last few years.
th-cam.com/video/LHF_46PFaUQ/w-d-xo.html..
Wow, you are super late on that case's Review image Lian Li Lancool III comes out, and you need that much time then the review is for ass because most of the people did buy at this point then the Lancool III Case... I hope you are faster on Lian Li Lancool III Review before it comes out...
Here is some crazy Air-flow mod~
th-cam.com/video/iIBArk3R9RE/w-d-xo.html
If any of you guys were too lazy to watch through the whole video, Steve’s main critiques of the Compact Fractal Torrent was mostly price point, cable management (which is the main problem as the width was scaled down proportional to the height, and the back glass panel is smooshed right up against the cables.), and decreased clearance for gpus and cpu coolers (174 mm of cpu cooler clearance, which is still pretty good, but not as good as the regular torrents 188mm.)
Other than that it’s a good case by a great brand.
Thank you GN for the video!
Tq
That's enough to say no deal to me. Those things are important not minor details.
@@regwatson2017 for sure, cable management is what sets it back, but what makes it worse is the glass being compressed against the cables, which is not generally what you would want.
@@Fly_By_Gaming I had an Anidees AI Crystal that had its back glass panel shatter from cable clutter a couple years ago. The pressure on the glass was pretty gentle, I was able to thumb screw it down without stressing it, but I guess after a couple of years, it just blew apart.
The cable management would certainly be annoying but he did say the dual 180mm fans were a big value ad that makes it more comparable to cases that were slightly less expensive, plus fans.
One note about tempered glass. One of my hobbies is fish keeping. Aquariums use tempered glass for the bottom sheet because of how strong it is. A 50 gallon aquarium puts 0.59 PSI of pressure on the glass due to the weight of the water. Larger tanks put even more pressure. What tempered glass really doesn't like is ununiform pressure. That's why you can smack it with a hammer and it'll be fine, but an icepick with a half as much force will cause it to shatter. A bulge in your panel won't necessarily lead to it shattering. When you fill aquariums, the glass literally bulges out from the weight of the water a quarter of an inch or more depending on the capacity of the tank. People build frameless tempered glass tanks. All depends on the thickness of the glass.
Sorry to be the pedantic one, but pressure on the bottom of the tank only depends on the height of the water in the tank, not the volume of water.
pressure (psi) = fluid height (ft) x fluid density (pounds per gallon) x 0.052. fresh water has a density of approx. 8.34ppg.
if you have pebbles on the bottom, the same principle applies. the easiest way is to calculate 2 pressures, one for height of pebbles, and one for the height of water above the pebbles, then add both together. Very roughly, you could expect pebbles in water to have a density in the order of 16.7ppg to 19ppg
Now I know why goldfish only have a memory of 10 seconds.....
@@buggerlugz6753 Huh! That's an interesting thought.... What did you say about goldfish?
@@cerealport2726 height is generally increased the larger you go up in aquarium size. So yes, larger tanks put even more pressure on the bottom panel.
The white version of this case has glass on one side only. I bought this case when it came out in Australia a few weeks ago - Got the compact white.
I don't think I would have bought it if it was glass on both sides, but it appears the compact white version is glass on one side only.
When building in it, a significant amount of effort went into cable management so that side would not bulge/pop out - but still needs the screw.
th-cam.com/video/LHF_46PFaUQ/w-d-xo.html..
I would have ordered the white version of the nano if I had known, seeing the tempered glass on both sides when I got mine out of the box was a legitimate shock
I wanted to get the black, non-rgb version of the case but I have no interest in glass on the right side of the case.
The problem with glass panels is sounds of the fans travel’s in such a way that it’s not worth the overpriced costs
I got the Torrent Compact GN is reviewing here, as you said, a significant amount of time did go into cable management. I was able to close the back glass without bulging. But I still screwed down the glass to feel safe.
Instead of adding "compact" and "nano" to the end, I think Fractal Design should have named the cases (in decreasing size): Torrent, Stream, and Trickle.
Could also be “Spring”
Dribble 💦
I guess those would detract from the whole point of calling it Torrent though - it sounds like air is washing powerfully over the system. Stream and Trickle sound like the performance took a big hit.
@@libertyprime9307 That's what makes them funny.
Balls
I've always found tempered glass on the cable management side panel to be completely unnecessary and annoying. Just put steel there - no one cares that much about cable management that they want to see it through glass
I don't understand it either. I'm pretty much forced to get the white version of the case because of that.
It’s the manufacturer justification of a higher price tag…
@@christophervanzetta I just checked Newegg. It's weird that the steel panel version costs the same as the TG one's.
@@EverythingisFire One the older meshify the solid panel version costed $10 less than the glass ones (I actually bought the steel one because of that) but they have stopped that starting with the meshify 2.
@@EverythingisFire That'd be Newegg being Newegg. Canada Computers (which seems to be the only reputable online source left to Canadians) has the steel compact at $220 and the glass at $245 - about the price hike one would expect. (Note that as this is a Canadian retailer, these are Canadian prices, so that $150 price is $190 on the exchange rate alone, and the other $55 comes from the Canada markup - most tech stuff we get lands in American ports and then is trucked up across the border, which substantially alters the price of things. Plus probably some duties that apply.
Fractal knows how to make their cases look nice for sure
@🍎apple🍎 bruh, why are bots the most prevalent among big tech TH-camrs?
@@Fly_By_Gaming the people who control the bots things nerds are the easiest target for this sort of thing maybe? no idea
@@Aleph-Noll well Linus made a video over it because was becoming increasingly prevalent on his channel and other tech channels recently , we just need a algorithm that tracks bots that spam the same thing, it’s technically supposed to be TH-cam’s job, but I guess there is worse problems.
@@Fly_By_Gaming Its better than the ones that post videos of verses from the Quran, that trash can go right the fuck away
@@Fly_By_Gaming It's almost as if youtube allows it
Really wish case manufacturers would stop putting tempered glass on the cable management side as it's pointless, increases costs, and now there's 2 panels to worry about potentially shattering at some point (very unlikely of course but still). Also it's worth noting besides having a modular power supply, keep in mind the length of your power supply. I have a Meshify C Mini that I originally put in a longer length power supply and it made cable management quite difficult, but now I've got a shorter length PSU and it's much more manageable. If you want to make it really easy and plan to use cable extensions you could use a SFX PSU, many of them come with a ATX mounting bracket
You can buy metal ones from them separately. I have ordered one with metal but was sent with glass..
@@mrovi789 Interesting, just a shame the right side panel isn't metal by default on the TG version (there is an all metal version).
If you want the white Torrent though then it comes with a metal right side panel by default
Yes it is annoying. I have left the protective film on the right side.
Yeah at least the evolv x had nice covers for the wires. Same reason i dont like the last revision lian li showed for the v3000 plus.
They took away a side mount rad location and made the back panel glass. Idk who thought that was a good idea.
Yeah that pretty much rules this case out for me forever even with its obvious performance benefits. I don't mind glass panels on my cases but one is enough. Two of them is, I think, completely unnecessary.
Just completed a build in this case. Cable managing took about 2 hours (I only do this every year or so so I'm not an expert). I was exceptionally glad I went with the steel panels instead of glass after coming back to this review.
Always look forward to your content. I've built 6 PC's for friends and family and all used Corsairs Carbide Air 540. Many will not want/use the 2 optical drive bays, but the dual chamber form factor is easy to work in and cable manage. One caveat: The Arctic LFII 280 does fit on top, but a tight fit for the board power cable connection.
Just forget the glass panels and get the solid steel side panel version and all mentioned problems negated.
I have this case and everything Steve says is true. I didn't want RGB or glass, I wanted a solid good airflow case for work and not show, and this case is excellent in the solid side panel version with the exception of the cable management. I had trouble with the side entry style SATA power connectors for the SSD trays not letting the side panel close so have ordered a new corsair RMi power supply with individually sleeved cables , alternatively you can just get a set of cablemod cables which have the end entry, doubled up SATA power connectors. In the mean time I had to slice off one side of he SATA power connections to make it fit and only run one SSD.
As soon as they released nano version, I bought it and did an mITX build (3080 & 12600k). Love the design and airflow of this case. Btw had no problem with managing cables, yeah it took long but they're completely fine
what are temps? do u have a aio or cpu fan?
@@Joze10 I have a cpu fan (arctic freezer 34 esports duo) and no problems with temps, runs quietly and without any problems. Exact temps dunno, never did a test cause it wasn't needed, runs flawlessly
I bought the Torrent Compact the day it came out. I did have to take my time on cable management, but made it work without having to squish the glass side panel against the cables. I am using CableMod replacement cables for an EVGA 850w G5 Supernova. I can see how it could be more of a problem if you were using a non-modular PSU, or factory sleeved cables like what comes on the EVGA modular PSU's. Aftermarket cables or flat cables would be best. I've recommended to people to remove the factory mesh sleeves from the cable groups to make routing easier. I am using an MSI X570 Tomahawk MB, Noctua NH-D15 cooler, Reference 6800 XT Midnight, two Noctua NF-A12x15's in the bottom for intake and a Noctua NF-S12A in the rear for some exhaust and everything fit great. Its a beautiful case, and has great air flow.
I had the same issue closing the back side of a meshify 2 compact. Had to spend a while cable managing it. Very unfortunate. But still a fantastic case. Seems like they didn't learn from that case, unfortunately.
The Meshify 2 Compact is also great, yeah. As long as you can stomach the extra time to manage it, it's great!
I had to be more minimal on my last build and try to keep the cabling simpler. It worked out, but more space back there would have been nice.
Same issue with Define 7 C. Why cant they just make the compact case identical to the large case with less height/depth and probably fans. Why do they cut all these other things?
th-cam.com/video/LHF_46PFaUQ/w-d-xo.html..
I'm looking for a quiet and good cooling performance. Must fit ATX motherboard, going to use my current setup which is old hardare (2013) but i want be able to run a really good cpu heatsink. Might opt for Meshify 2 XL Dark Tempered Glass. No need for tempered glass but have no other option.
For now im running my Zalman HD160 HTPC case :D runs quite hot under load but super quiet in idling speeds.
Any inputs on the XL one?
I love my full size grey torrent, coming from a Meshify C. I initially wanted the white version (like my C), but it was sold out for weeks and I got impatient, though I do not regret getting the grey. I really like FD's design cues. I moved the 180s to the bottom and opted for a 420mm AIO and 140s in push/pull with future plans of a custom loop. And yes, I know the torrent was designed as an airflow-focused case, but it's a damn gorgeous case and I couldn't pass it up. I agree with all the points Steve made, particularly cable management and the second TG panel. TG on the back side was not needed IMO, but at least with the full size cable management is totally doable if a bit tedious.
As soon as I heard of the release of the compact and nano I was looking forward to what you had to say. I wish I had these other options when I purchased the define 7 lol.
Very curious to know how adding 2x140 mm fans to the bottom would affect the GPU temps.
My personal favorites
#1. Lian Li Lancool-II Mesh
#2. Corsair 4000D Airflow
#3. Lian Li Lancool-215
I also got a Rosewill Thor v2 recently for my server box, and going back and looking at the old GN review of it was very fun to see. You don’t see Steve much in it, but you do catch glimpses of that shorter haired Tech Jesus.
Picked up this case last week. Cable management is indeed annoying, but as I stuck with only using m.2 drives and only added a single rear fan, while using a modular power supply, it worked out fine. I would not recommend adding sata drives or anything else that will increase the number of cables.
I wish Fractal would have included an Aluminum plate for the bottom of the case. I assume it would improve temps by a bit because the air coming from the intake fans won't be able to escape to the bottom.
Fractal is just an awsome company! I love my Meshify C and I will get a Torrent Compact.
I would probably buy this as my next case, it just looks and performs good. And I would be already placing quite a bit of money on looks so I would buy custom look and length cables from something like cablemod. That said I do think tempered glass panel on other side should be optional purchase.
My chair mat is literally a piece of tempered glass (4'x6'). It handles loads really well. It just doesn't like to be hit on the edges. You would be surprised how far tempered glass can bow before it shatters. It is truly impressive!
I haven't really understood glass panels on the backside of the motherboard. That's where I want to hide things. I would hate a SKU split but I wish metal side panels were standard on a lot of cases. I don't care about seeing what is inside my case, much less the nest of wires. I hide my case away anyways.
They already do have that SKU split as you call it - the white Torrent Compact case has a metal side panel. Also some colors on the original Torrent have metal, but mine is Grey and it has glass. I was surprised to see that since I'm pretty sure that wasn't the case for Steve's black model.
Bought this and transferred my build from the old Meshify C as soon as it released (from NewEgg of all places. All it was available on). I had to get a little creative with the cable management on the backside, but managed to get it looking decent while allowing the back TG to lay flush. Don't even have to use the retention screw. I have no RGB on the inside, but there are cable extensions.
I love this case.
It looks nice but that cable management looks like a nightmare compared to the P500a which I have. Its good to see that case still high up on the charts and its great to use, with plenty of space on the back and it's SSD mounts behind the motherboard
isnt the p500a eatx?
@@Victicat kind of, only up to 280mm as its not really a standard size
Bro I have that one. It’s a fucking chunker. Absolutely massive
I love my P500A, I have a 420mm radiator in the front, and a 360mm radiator at the top, with plenty of room to route the hoses. However I'm thinking about changing the top one to a 280 mm, and then drilling a fill port on the top, and installing a square acrylic pump res combo where the cable management slides are at. I have a monoblock on the motherboard and a GPU vertically mounted with a water block, so I'm going to have like this RGB all acrylic look inside the P500A. This case is the tinkerer's dream, glad you have one too!
Here is some crazy Air-flow mod~~
th-cam.com/video/iIBArk3R9RE/w-d-xo.html
For those who do not need a window, this case is ideal - as there is a solid version without glasses. In addition, in white version, in this case there is only one window, there is a solid panel on the side of the cable.
Brrrooooooo best comment!
Both the Compact and the Nano are 222 mm wide rather than the 242 mm of the "standard" Torrent. I guess those 20 mm (4/5ths of an inch) make quite a difference for cable management. A pity Fractal felt the need to "shrink" the case in that dimension as well. :/
Fractal has made some strange decisions here. It is actually pretty substantial for a case with "Compact" in the name. They wanted to minimise the size while keeping the two front 180 fans, so the height is justified. But it can only fit one 180 fan on the bottom, so the length is kinda pointless. And they shaved off a little bit of width at a considerable expense of cable management. The glass panel on the right, the curved top, the feet obstructing bottom fan mounts. I mean the case is overall really well made and a solid performer, so it's a real shame about the flaws.
Very glad to see the standardized fan testing!!
That catch was flawless as the top fell over. Eye contact maintained and all
Honestly kinda wish I had gotten this one instead of the full size. If I knew they were making this I might have waited. Definitely still happy with the full size, but I did kinda underestimate how big it is. With a standard ATX air cooled build there ends up being a lot of empty space in there. Also with a modular power supply and just nvme storage, I don't think I'd have any issues with the cables.
I ordered One ! (biggest investment i ever did for a computer case.) My PS5 Mirrorsystem is complete 5700xt/3700x/m2ssd BIG AS VENTIIL-LATORS
I can't wait for people to stop overusing the Lian Li PC-O11 and start using these. I dont understand tg panels on the back side where the cables and etc reside. Nonetheless, It's a very sexy case, but I personally prefer my Phanteks P600s still.
I've always hated that look. It's uninteresting and overly boxy.
But hard drives space?
Lian Li 011 is beautiful with hard tubed watercooling.
Lianli is god tier tho
@@cj7073 literally lol...I have over 3 hard drives and 4 ssds
Thanks for the awesome reviews, just recently got this case based of your very helpfull and extensive reviews (and because imo it's the best looking case I've ever seen) and am very happy with it, although as mentioned cable management was quiet difficult (even with just 3 drives and no RGB) and it took me over 2 hours for a simple air-cooled build (would definitely recommend a modular PSU with this as me not having one of those greatly increased the time it took me)
One extra thing to watch out for is that even without bottom fans it's hard to find a place for a GPU support that sits on the bottom of the case as it's mostly mesh
Could we go back to having top mounted PSUs again? For me that is the best feature of Fractal's Torrent family.
Been running the Torrent for 3 months now, flawless performance, whisper quiet, best air cooling case on the market. Period.
L.E: looks small compared to my former 760t.
Really like this case. I already have an old Meshify C with NF-A12x25's all around and i'm STILL considering getting this just for the top mounted PSU.
The biggest issue for me was the Drive Cage. If you have the impertinence to actually wish to install a 3.5 inch spinning drive there has been no consideration for proper clearance for the SATA cable connectors. I tried both straight and 90 degree types, (you also are forced to attach the cables before screwing the drive into the cage to avoid damage) and neither cage position will allow it to fit period - the cage retaining screw will not align. I can only think I will have to secure the cage at an angle with a cable tie if I want to use the drive at all!
Imagine having no place to hide your cables because BOTH side panels are tempered glass...
I really wish this had one space for a fan at the top... Would make things so much easier with the AIO!
YES!! FINALLY! I'VE BEEN WAITING EVER SINCE I SAW THIS OUT!
I'm not convinced this isn't just Steve being the contrarian for the sake of making a snappy video. Like he's really playing up what looks to be a pretty small "problem". I don't know. Just the vibe I got from the video.
I don't know man, he only really talked about it in the build section and the summary/final thoughts. Also this was an overall positive review, just happens to be that was the only real con of the case, and for some it may be a deal breaker so I get why they spent some time getting specific. I have to admit I think double glass panels are kind of unnecessary, I don't have bad cable management, but I also don't care if I can see them or not.
@@kylemiller2920 It's the title of the video...
The TG back panel is a real head-scratcher.
HEY GN!! I plead again for you to share a buying/tear down experience from a pre built PC via Costco. I have looked at options from Costco, the description and specs alone are a hot mess. Love to see what someone might actually receive! You’d have to get a membership- but “if you’re not 100% satisfied, we’ll return your membership fee”
What were fractal thinking! The only reason I won't buy this is due to the space at the back, I'm thinking this was intentional as to not take sales away from the standard Torrent, either that or they can make more money from improving it on the next iteration.
I just can't understand why case manufacturers always get something wrong, I'm starting to think it's deliberate.
Good timing, I had just picked one up in white (which I believe does have a steel back panel) for an all air-cooled build, so we'll see how it fares. I'm coming from a Meshify C (original) so from reviews I can already see ways it's more convenient to work with comparatively but also now I can see how cable management may be a challenge...maybe not as bad as some old school cases but I bet it'll be fine with some planning. Cheers!
Keep in mind, in this review the powersupply had cables connected that they were not needing. So removing a few of the modules from the PSU and perhaps being pragmatic about RGB cabling and such can keep it within reason.
@@wishusknight3009 easiest way to cable manage a case like this is not use RGB fans.
I’m currently rebuilding my pc in a torrent nano case, it looks fantastic and has great airflow, but I’m considering ditching my aio cooler as it doesn’t fit WITH my gpu (it’s 1cm too long). Either that, or I change the gpu. Despite that, I love the look of that case and really excited to get my pc up and running again
Bruh 1 cm, that is just depressing xD
Thinking on the Nano for my next PC, what AIO did you use?
@@anonymouszillouette8404 I’ve got a corsair H100i platinum rgb se, it’s got two 120 fans and a thick radiator. My gpu is quite old, evga gtx 1080ti and it’s unusually long for a gpu. Pretty sure most 30 series gpus are shorter than mine, so if you’re using something more up to date, you shouldn’t have a problem 🤞
@@catattac9975 not necessarily the case. My GPU is much more modern and 10cm too big for this case.
@nomasporfavor lucky! 😁 need an update just haven’t got the cash rn
@@TheSjuris true, I think it depends a lot on the number of fans on the gpu, mine has three, so it’s quite long. But you can get more modern gpus that only have two fans, making them shorter. I highly recommended people do their research better than me 😅 though I was only a cm off so not too bad haha
I have the Torrent Nano, which I actually like a lot.
I am/was are water cooling junky. I sort of had a rough few months with everything breaking (2 pumps, multiple fittings, 1 radiator, 1 psu). Because of this I decided to go air cooling. I do free lance work from home so every day I'm not working, I'm losing money. Replacing a fan takes 5mins vs 2 hours pulling out cables and dealing with the loop.
To make things worse I also have a ITX MB, which always means a weird AF case. Now I have a problem... all the ITX cases are WEIRD AF. Super small, super tall, super skinny, super flat... where are the normal desktop itx cases? So I went on a search, and came across the Torrent Nano! Finally a itx case that support desktop hardware!
If you are used to ITX, the cable management is pretty good. If you are coming form ATX, things get a little tight.
That being said, I would recommend going with air cooling because it helps reduce the cables. Although it is possible to do water cooling. It is hotter than water cooling, but not by much. However, this is the coolest running case I've had for air cooling. I had the s2 and r5... those get a little toasty. Maybe its my hardware, but this performs pretty well with my set up.
So far I have actually be pretty happy with it. Its cool, quiet, and easy to work in (compared to most itx cases).
If you want and ITX case but still want the desktop hardware and experience this is the case for you.
Just finished a build in this case when i found this video. Yes cable management is a thing... Problem is more in diffrent powersupply cables that companies use. The ones from Corsair are a bit more difficult to work with. Used a Seasonic powersuply which uses flat cables for everything exept the 24 pin cable. Also the white case doesnt have a glass panel on the back side. This is made out of metal. A bit more easy to get it close.
About the back glass panel:
The white version of this case has a solid metal panel at the back with a front glass panel instead of both.
Will you review Fractal North non-mesh version? I'd love to see the comparison with Torrent.
I think a lot of people are making builds that don't have as many cables as people used to do 5 years ago. Using m.2 drives removes 2 cables (per drive) and if you don't use a video card, since they are still expensive, that's at least 1 more cable you can leave out.
LOOKS LIKE CASE REVIEWS ARE BACK ON THE MENU BOYS
Can you review cases from less known brands for budget builds? I suggest Gamemax, Aeroccol and Cougar.
GN Steve: There's just one problem...
Fractal: Oh shit, oh fuck!
I had this case for a few days and for my uses I needed to bottom mount the 2x180. In the intake config, the fan hubs touch the metal on the bottom and cause a terrible noise. Only configuration I found without noise was flipping them to exhaust, which ruined thermals. Pretty disappointed by this lack of attention to detail by Fractal and not sure how it was missed in this review.
This is the one case I would give up my Phanteks P600s for.. I really love it and would love a white one even more!
Picked the Compact White up from Newegg today for $119 and only plan to use it in a simple Zen 4 air cooled build with no RGBs and strictly NVMe and one HDD for storage. Hopefully that means it won't be a complete nightmare for me.
Always a great review from Gamer Nexus!
Thanks for including the define C in the review for us older generation case holders.
Any chance of a motherboard review coming up? The case reviews you and your team do are amazing, but I would love to see more information on other components.
@Gamers Nexus, the first fans you should consider testing would be what I consider the best 120mm fans on the market at the moment, namely the Phanteks T30.
Good review as always. Cable management is a huge consideration for me. For that price point, bad cable management is a deal breaker. Considering how long cases have been around and how long cable management options have been around, it just doesn't make sense to me when they don't do better with it.
Considering even the original Torrent wasn't super generous with cable space (I use cable extensions), it's surprising to see from both Steve & Leo that the space between board and panel got even smaller.
once again a reminder how nice the lian li 011 air mini is.
Awesome! I've been waiting for this!!!
and here i am, still with my thermaltake core x9 that i got for 150bux... tempted to buy the torrent though. those thermals look great
Power, size and thickness??!!! That's a great fan!
And of course, it allows great air moving capacity
What would REALLY be of an interest is to know the CPU and GPU thermals comparison while under the noise normalised setup ;)
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That's a weird effect on the fans at 8:00, as if they are skipping/lagging but the footage is not.
I was put off by the low cable management space initially, but after pulling the trigger and building my set up I had 0 issues of anything pressing down on anything. Didn’t need to spend hour on cable management either, so I don’t really understand where the criticism is coming from. Yes it is not 011 dynamic space where u can just throw things in and close it, but the whole no space for cables is a bit overplayed.
They must've had a lot of shit plugged in. My current & next build won't be using a lot of additional cables so I'm sure it would be a breeze for me too.
I am not that much of a gamer (I do play a couple of online games) I do some photo editing so I do like the air-cooling stats for this case. I like the size and the way the front panel seems to funnel the air into those fans and I don't need RGB fans so the cheaper one would work for me. My only negative for this case is having the glass over the back as I really don't need to se all the wires, glass on the front solid metal on the back please.
Thanks for this review Steve and Nexus crew.
They do offer a black version with no tempered glasses & a white one (clear glass) with a steel panel on the cable side.
@@EverythingisFire for some reason I wasn't able to get into Fractal's website when I posted this to see other options. Thanks for the info, I'll look into that.
I like this case, but the only issue that I have with most cases is found here. Ease of access to the intake airfilter. Fractals R series made that stupidly easy to take out the filter to clean, but there are cases like this that look like you need to take off the whole front panel. My Meshify C has this and I worry at times that I might damage the cables for the front IO for it.
As for the issue of cable management doesn't look like that'd be a problem for me, considering my current machine runs the stock power to the MB, GPU, and not much else really. The HD is a m.2 drive, so minimal cables.
You can remove the mesh also on the old meshify c. But it needs a lot of force and is kinda sketchy but made for it. Just pull up and out. It helps pushing from inside the case
Very useful, thanks a lot for the thorough review !
Nice catch in the wrap up! Eyes still focused on the camera!
Put as much cable as possible above in the case , then the rest fits well on the side
Great review! Are you going to review the Torrent Nano soon?
I've heard that you can't use the 180 fans in the bottom if you have a full size atx board and want to use the front of the case to mount an AIO cooler instead. Shame, because the ARGB case looks like the ideal size I had in mind for an upcoming build and those fans alone are about $45 each, which is a bit of a waste if you can't use them without going for a smaller motherboard if you are using AIO cooling.
It's insane that a ~470mm tall case is called a 'Compact' version. Just insane
I have the OG Meshify Mini. Managed to fit two 5” spinning rust drives and an old 3.5 SATA into the backside. Cable management was challenging but doable with some light mods using snippers.
I have the Black Torrent. Impressive, to say the least.
It looks like a fancy space heater when looking at it from the front
this was going to be my next case until i found out the back was glass
I have an odd relationship with fractal, every time i ordered something from them something was wrong (hearing from other people i'm sure i'm just extremely unlucky) but they have always been super responsive and super quick to correct the issue while being very apologetic covering shipping for everything and not just telling me to contact the distributor i got it from like a lot of other people do.
The case seems to be more barebone, than old Meshify C or Meshify 2 compact. You are basically paying premium for those 2 fans in $80 case.
Fans do that. Especially RGB fans and then a RGB controller.
Been waiting for this review before purchasing
Nice to see even pros forget the i/o shield sometimes :)
So if you're doing a build without a lot of cables, or get the version with the steel panel, this is a great case for the price.
Thanks, Steve. Definitely was interested in the original Torrent, so a smaller, cheaper one with about the same performance just might grace my next build.
I bought an nzxt case for my new build. On the plus side I like swapping out things so getting another case later isn’t a turnoff for me lol.
I dont like PSUs at the top, it makes the case more wobbly and prone to being knocked over.
0:15 Maybe I'm just a cheap bastard, but IMO the best case review you guys had in the last years has been the Lian Li 215X.
That thing is a beast for cooling, and it's at the best price you could ask for! :P
Any chance that we'll get to see a review of the nano?
I just got this case and I'm just running with the back panel off. It's against a wall so it's never seen anyway. It was very annoying to try to manage it all and then force glass onto it.
I got the Fractal Torrent..... yes, everything runs soooo cool in it.
Glass is glass, and glass breaks.
I’m split between my love of the Meshify 2 Compact and the Torrent Compact. Probably will end up with the Meshify 2 though since it can be a sleeper with the metal side panel.
How is the grounding between the case frame and motherboard tray? The company I work for used to build PC's with the R4 case and found bad grounding which caused our National Instrument PCI cards to give bad readings. We had to connect a wire between the tray and the case frame. It was caused by the coating they give the metal and was curious if they ever fixed the problem.
Honestly they could have shortened it a bit more and used sfx power supply and cable length wouldn't be an issue and case would be even smaller which is a bonus.
You would think the metal panel model would put a bump in the panel to help with the cable issue, but they don't.
Love my full size fractal torrent case