[Solved] Fractal Define S SSI CEB possible?

Hardware Hub Cases / Chassis
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And so it comes that I have actually something to say here :)

Following your work since forever, and I love what you guys are doing here! Thank you so much for having a voice of reason amongst the chaos of wanna be marketers out there....

Now, to my question.

Trying to build a workstation build for graphic design ( I can expand here, but it's safe to say I will be using Illustrator/Photoshop/InDesign etc, as well as going for 3D via Maya/Blender...you get the idea)

My parts list is this.

CPU: Xeon 1650v3
Ram: Kingnston 2x16GB ECC (will add to that later on)
Mobo: Asus X99-WS 3.1usb
VGA: EVGA 980Ti SC with backplate (x1 for now, possibility of adding one more later this year)
Storage:Intel 535 SSD 480GB (Have also 3-4 WD drives hanging around here, gonna use some of those for files etc.)
PSU: Corsair 860i AX series.

Going to watercool this via softline atm and hardline it when I get second vga. Climate where I am is HOT, hence the idea for going water not air this time.

I welcome your thoughts about the build ofc, but I am mostly trying to get a case that will fit this.
I have 2 Antec cases here, P180s (no way to fit a SSI CEB there, unless I use the wheel and cut through the PSU cover section of them, also once I go SLI mode I seriously doubt I will have any space for the VGAs.

So I am thinking of getting a new case.

Thing is, I am way over budget as it is, and I cannot go to a Caselabs solution, which would be my first choice. So here goes.
Need a SILENT case ( it's sitting right next to my ear...no way to change that, and yesh, I am an Audio Freak like Logan.:P)
Need a solid, serious look to the case and not something that looks like a pinball table.
Build quality is something I prefer, as well as being dust proof (yeah lol I know the statement is somewhat hilarious but you get where I am coming from by it).

So I was thinking of the Define S. Thing is, this is an ATX form factor case, and I cannot help by wondering if the less than 3cm of the SSI CEB factor will be an issue being this is after all a mid tower case.

Can you help? I am open to suggestions. Maybe something I have missed.

Thank you for your time to go through my wall of text and keep up with the great work people :)

Love ya all, Dennis.

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I'm not 100% sure, but I believe the Define S has an indentation on the right where the side of the motherboard aligns. Due to that it prevents larger motherboard compatibility however allows for greater cable management.

That is of course if the S uses a design similar to the R5

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Thank you for your response buddy, and I get where you are coming from with this.

I had the same issue myself earlier on. But it's not EEB form factor, but CEB. On an EEB you are right, it wouldn't fit because of the recess of the case.

Magic pic to make it clear is here. :)

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Even then my motherboard in my R5 hits the psu by nearly half a centimeter. I wouldn't risk it.

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I get that it isn't optimized for silence, but have you considered the Enthoo Pro? It makes me wonder if I should have gone with it sometimes. My case silences my cpu cooler by maybe 15db which to me is a huge difference but then again I have a heightened sense of hearing due to my visual disorder. Most of the silencing is done by the front panel. I sometimes wish I would have went for the one with the dampened panel instead of the window. Maybe then it'd be 25-30db quieter.

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That's insane man, I was just looking at the Enthoo Pro & Primo....like this very minute. lol

Yeah, the difference in price is there, but in all honesty, if their build quality is solid, I am really thinking about them.
As for the silent part, soundproof panel install would be a one way street if I choose any of those two cases.

The side window though...any thoughts?

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The side window at the end of day is just aesthetics. Like I said, I kinda retreat getting the windowed version. The only useful thing is I can see bios errors and I admit it looks pretty epic with LEDs, but get the non window enthoo pro, some sound dampening foam, and you have a case that is better than the R5/S.

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*regret not retreat :)

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What about the Define XL?

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Yeah, define R2 XL was in my list as well initially bud.

Thing is, I am not too keen on the front fan/filter mount option it has, since it feels flimsy to me, having seen the case in a friend. Also, what's with the low quality sound dampening square part in the left side panel? Felt like if you mess with it a bit, it will fall off...
Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to find errors in it, just saying it felt rather bad to me.

Other than that, if you are not nit-picky as unfortunately I am, it's a great case.

thank you for the comment :)

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I have the original XL, I don't like the new one as they traded hard drive bays for water cooling compatibility. I'm not sure what the dust filters are like on the new one but on the original they're crap, you have to remove the fans to clean the filters, unless I'm missing something. But the sound dampening is pretty good and the square on the side panel looks flimsy but it's actually pretty solid, you can remove it to add a side panel fan which I did because my network card gets really hot.

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yeah that's exactly what I meant about the front fan system. Thank you.

As for the side panel square, I am glad I was wrong. Fractal makes wonderful cases, and it would be a shame if I was right about that. Happy to hear its solid.

No, in all honesty, I am reconsidering as we speak, thanks to Zippy I am actually thinking of paying the extra 150 bucks and getting the Primo, and adding to it sound dampening on my own. Still considering what to do with the window though. I wish there was an option to get it without a windowed panel.

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Yeah that is a nice looking case. Not sure what to do about the window, I suppose you could just cover it with sound dampening material but that probably won't look very nice. I put sound dampening in my HTPC, not sure if it really worked or not, it's pretty much totally silent anyway. If you've got the space for it try getting some egg carton shaped foam as I think that would do a much better job than just flat foam.

The sound dampening they use in the Define cases is really nice, but it makes the case super heavy. I can barley lift my XL, the 12 hard drives packed in there don't help but it's still a heavy case :P

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I agree. Egg cartons ftw man!! :) I have used them and spray painted them in the basement for sound testing way back.

As for the window, one can remove it, spray paint it and put it back on. Or can go even further and cut an aluminum panel, spray paint it black and replace it. Sound dampening-wise, I was thinking something like http://www.dynamat.com/architectural-home/architectural-home-dynamat-xtreme/ but that's overkill for a pc that's going to be watercooled eventually. :P

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Ok, thanks to some wonderful input from all you lovely people here, I was able to see the error of my ways... :)

Enthoo Primo will be my option, and I am ordering tomorrow morning.

Will make a new thread and post some pics too, once I have all the hardware in.

As to the title, and to answer to future queries...

Fractal Design Define S is one wonderful case, and if you are a true shenanigan you will probably make it work with some mod on the motherboard headers and a few sacrifices on the cable management in the back, but I wouldn't recommend it personally. A wiser man than me is always free to take the challenge to prove me wrong :)

That being said, keep in mind one thing. This is an ATX form factor case that has limitations added being a midd tower.
Airflow can be made outstanding with some tweaking, but me personally wouldn't feel that good about cranking too many stuff in that case, being this is a workstation PC that will most definitely never switch off (Unless the power company has other plans :P).

Thank you all once more and I will be seeing you more in here, love this forum! And I am ashamed I didn't spent enough time before to explore it as I should have. :D

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Nice that you got your answer.
Anyway, cant wait to see a nice build log of your new upcomming build.
You can create your own build log topic in the the build log section on the Forum.

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Most kind of you! Thank you :)

Will take about 2-3 weeks to get all the parts in house. As soon as I have all here, will start logging the process and make one thread to show to the people here. About time I got a decent upgrade. :D