Fractal Design Define R3 vs Corsair Obsidian 650D

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Ricedaddy

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I'm looking to get a new case as my Cooler Master 590 has seen better days...it has a bunch of mods that never got finished. It is also rather loud due to having so much mesh and so many open holes.

That being said, I'm looking at either the Define R3 or the Obsidian 650D. After rebates and shipping, they are looking to be a similar price. The two cases are on sharp opposite sides of the spectrum too.

I'm looking for impressions of which ones to go with. It will be housing an Intel Core i5-750 at 3.4ghz cooled by a Corsair H50, MSI P55-GD80, 4gb G Skill Ripjaws, three hard drives and a Radeon 4890, all powered by a Corsair AX750 sleeved with MDPC sleeving.

Is the Corsair 650D quite loud? I am looking for quiet if possible. Not usually the biggest fan of windows, but I am obsessive about cable routing and management.

Thanks for the input.
 
Only gripe I have about the 650D is the 200mm fans. If one goes out, it's a costly replacement vs. the R3 using 120mm which are a dime a dozen and go from $2 to $20. ;)

That being said - I love my R3, very very happy with it. I'd put it up there with my PC-V1000BW Plus II as the best case I've ever owned, even though it has it's share of plastic bits here and there. The Moduvent idea is a great one and it works perfectly. The case itself is very quiet. I've been perfectly happy with the cooling performance and have not taken out the Moduvents to put the extra fans in the side and top; just using 2 front intakes, 1 floor, 1 exhaust....all using SFF21E's. Cable management is beautiful. Finish and build quality is excellent.
 
Can't really speak for the 650D cause I have an 800D but I can't emphasize enough how much I love the case, Corsair does wonders for cable management
 
mannyman said:
Well, Its quiet vs performance, What do you perfer?
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Haha, this is true. I'd like a balance. I doubt that either of them will be very loud, certainly not the loudest in the room.

If I end up taking out the vent blockers from the Define R3, I suspect there will probably be similar noise as the two 200mm fans from the 650D.
 
Every think about the Arc midi it offers top notch cooling about to 8 fans. 3x140/120 top
2x140 front , 1 140/120 bottom and 1 in the rear. Along with having that sleek aluminum look even though its actually plastic ;(
 
Arc Midi is out of the picture. It's either the Define R3 or Obsidian 650D.

Leaning towards the Obsidian 650D...
 
R3 is cheaper, the design is amazing and the cable management is great. I was on the fence about getting the Corsair but the fractal's price and features sold me.
 
I would say 650D if the price is close, The main reason is metallic fron panel and the window, though I don't like how those handles on the sidepanels look.

I have R3, it cost me 93€ including shipping while corsair 650d would be ~145€

You don't need to worry about loudness. Every case can be quiet if you regulate fans with speedfan or included corsair fan controller(fractal design fan controller) or molex 5V/7V mode and for the graphic card - MSI afterburner custom fan curve

On my R3 the fans are inaudible once speedfan kicks in, but whats left is the sound of HDD, though I can't tell if the rigg is on/off from few meters. But I am not really sure if the sound insulated case did any wonder on that, if the sound of HDD would be especially louder in normal case. Under load in this heat the GPU fans is what makes the noise actually.

Also I see you have AX corsair, I have seasonic X and I've come to an idea, that I rather mount it in with fan facing upward. Since its passive most of the time, it lets the warm air move freely outside from it up... and since its high quality I don't think that under load it would suffer from helping out sucking warm air from the case... also I don't have to worry one bit about sucking dust from under the case
 
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I have a 650d. I thought about the R3 but went for the Corsair when it was on sale as they have excellent service. Service from Fractal in the US isn't going to be nearly as good. Plus, I'm a fan of Corsair anyway.
 
Ricedaddy said:
Arc Midi is out of the picture. It's either the Define R3 or Obsidian 650D.

Leaning towards the Obsidian 650D...
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I'm also in the market for a mid-tower. I think I have it narrowed between corsair and fractal at this point. May I ask why you are a no go on the midi?
 
I kind of feel like the Midi is a compromise that I don't feel like making. I think that fractal does a lot of things right, but the Midi just doesn't appeal to me. I think there are other cases that are better for the same price, even the Define R3 in the same price bracket.

The Define R3 and Obsidian 650D seem to be at the top of their game in the mid-tower world...in my opinion.
 
Hrmm 650D then Really slick look! Get it from amazon its cheaper than newegg atm.
 
i'd load up the midi with a ton of 140mm fans at low rpm but with high CFM...
 
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