Like the title says, can it be done? I have a friend with the case and we want to move his 240mm radiator to the front while maintaining one-two 3.5" HDDs. I could offset one of the drive cages closer to the power supply, but that isn't exactly ideal. The other option was to get some 5.25" to 3.5" adapters for the drives and put them in place of DVD drives, but that's another $20 we don't really want to spend unless we need to.
terribly long link to the manual
It is physically possible to do it. Is it a good idea, depends on how you execute it, as long as the drive is mounted securely enough to not let it vibrate it is as good as mounting it in the sled. Get a small drill bit, some rubber grommets(to help with anti vibration) and the right sized screw to screw into the bottom of the drive.
You can, but it'll require some ingenuity.
My first idea would be to mount the drive on its side, using the mounting holes for bottom fans. I mounted one in my own R5 just to show the idea. Unfortunately I have PCIE cables ziptied to the bottom, so I can't move the HDD around as much as I'd like. Still, this should give you an idea.
If it weren't for the PCI cables, I would be able to move the HDD back almost all the way to the PSU and use the outermost screw holes to attach it. That would give it a bit more stability. 2 screws is enough if the PC is stable, but not ideal if you plan to move it around. So if you mount the HDD this way, don't shake the case it if you take it outside to remove the dust.
Option 2 would be to lay it on the floor, but the HDD's mounting holes only align with the pattern in the floor if you mount the drive sideways or at a 45° angle. If you want to mount it longitudinally, you'd better be ready to take a file or a dremel to the bottom of the case..
Not only is it not laying perfectly flush due to it overlapping the (elevated) fan mounts, space for the SATA cables is extremely tight. There's maybe an inch between the drive's SATA power connector and the motherboard tray.
The R5 has a full-length filter on the bottom. While you have to pull it a bit to get it over the higher-profile screws (those where you can put a wrench on the head), it'll still slide over the low-profile ones without touching them. With either option you can retain the filter, it does go over even the high-profile screws, as shown here.
Hope this helps
That does help a lot. Thank you.
Option 2 was what I had in my head. Some cases are built for that, others aren't. Looks like the Define R5 is the latter. I think we may need to go with the DVD drive method I mentioned in my original post. I'll try some test fits tonight to see how much of a difference putting the drive cage between the power supply and the radiator make.
