Fractal Design Node 804 Case - Video Review - Best Cube Case?

[Srgnt_Ballistic]

 

Product Page - http://bit.ly/1lEnBTO
Newegg - http://bit.ly/1sm4xaH
Amazon - http://amzn.to/1xwvVXX (Temp out of stock directly from Amazon as of 11/9/14)

Is this the best Cube Case on the market? It just might be. I'll have to try out the offerings from Corsair and others to judge that in the future.

 

Pros
This cube style case has some amazing customization options for cooling and storage configurations. It's very versatile so whether you're looking to build from a low power NAS/HTPC or an Enthusiast Grade fully custom water cooled rig you're covered, with some caveats...

The dual chamber design adds to the overall great cooling goodness. You can fit a crazy number of fans and radiators in this alternative form factor case. 3 white R2 Fans are included and there's a 3 speed fan controller built in.

 

Oh and filters filters filters... filters! I <3 filters. I'd rather turn off the PC when I'm about to leave, pull out and rinse all of the filters and leave them to sit and dry while I'm away than spend 30min every 2 weeks cleaning a ton of dust from every nook and cranny in my rig. So yay filters!

The compact form factor and minimal design help it fit into almost any decor or setup. The really well thought out user manual has a detailed build guide to help you put together your setup and everything you need to know about what components will fit in your build.

Fractal Design has done a whole lot right with this case.
 

Cons
But not everything. The flexibility of the case does cause some compromise. The vertical hanging HDD Cages is one example of this. 
You also have to really make sure your components are going to work in the configuration you're planning. Particularly radiators and fans. I also really want to see all thumbscrews on every case have a system to keep the screws with whatever item they're securing.

As with all smaller form factor cases it's pretty tight quarters in a lot of areas of the case. This makes it pretty difficult for anyone like me with larger hands (it's one of the reasons I tend to go for really big mid/full tower cases).

Lastly it can be rather difficult to upgrade or hot swap certain components with out having to say, pull out the entire HDD cage.

 

Conclusion

Over all I'm really happy with what Fractal Design has delivered and can recommend this case to anyone that might be looking for a cube case! So long as you realize the crazy amount of flexibility + alternative form factor means you can't do everything at once! So plan plan plan!

 

I haven't really been into the smaller/alternative form factor movement that's been happening recently. I typically like really big cases with plenty of room for my giant hands to easily build in. But I have to say working with this case I can see some of the appeal of not having a giant mid or full tower PC.

Now with mATX and min-ITX mobos getting the enthusiast treatment with a ton of no compromise features, it's good to see some nice flexible alternative form factor cases that can both fit and cool full-size high end components.

Who is this case for?
People who love Minimalist Design
HTPC/NAS builders
People who like alternative form factor cases
Cube heads

People with small hands

Scandinavians

Fractal Design freaks
Modularity freaks
Cooling freaks
Gingers????

I'm going to build out an HTPC/NAS/Media Server in the Node 804. The plan is to use either an AMD APU or Intel G3258 Anniversary CPU and mATX Mobo with a quiet Notcua CPU Cooler. I'm thinking something like a GTX 750ti  or 260x/270 for a GPU. If I can play the occasional platformer/casual game on my TV downstairs I'll be happy.

The primary purpose of the build will be to watch Media in my living room, stream that media to every other device in the house, and possibly back up media from my Editing Rig and captured footage from my Gaming Rig (Build VLog coming soon!!!). So I'll probably be looking at throwing a RAID array in here. Whether I use dedicated RAID card or not I'm not certain. I'd appreciate any tips you guys have as I haven't done a RAID array in years.

[Rekx]

Im Scandinavian and i currently have a fractal case Dammit how did you know!

 

Great review :-)

[EmeraldFlame]

I used this case for a home server build, and honestly it was in many ways one of the nicest cases I have ever worked in. Air filtration is absolutely amazing, layout seems to make the best of the small form factor, and there are plenty of options.

The biggest issues I had with it was its absolute lack of cable management. There are like 4 or 5 tie down points, all along the bottom edge of the MoBo tray, that's it. For the price point of this case, I found that pathetic. Then you basically just have 2 giant cutouts on the leading edge of the tray for cables and that's it, no grommets or anything, no cutouts at the bottom edge, no cutouts at the top-edge. I think that is this cases biggest weakness.

[STRMfrmXMN]

I still feel a little on-the-fence on the looks of it, but I like the way it functions as a case....

I entered a giveaway for one from TimmyTechTV and Matt Schaefer. It'll fit in my desk (thank god) and have much better airflow than Leftovers cheap Lenovo case....

 

That is, IF I win it...

*Crossed fingers* 

[Srgnt_Ballistic]

I used this case for a home server build, and honestly it was in many ways one of the nicest cases I have ever worked in. Air filtration is absolutely amazing, layout seems to make the best of the small form factor, and there are plenty of options.

The biggest issues I had with it was its absolute lack of cable management. There are like 4 or 5 tie down points, all along the bottom edge of the MoBo tray, that's it. For the price point of this case, I found that pathetic. Then you basically just have 2 giant cutouts on the leading edge of the tray for cables and that's it, no grommets or anything, no cutouts at the bottom edge, no cutouts at the top-edge. I think that is this cases biggest weakness.

Yeah most of the builds I looked into seemed to just cram most of the cables on the passive components side to keep the windows/active side looking nice.

[Srgnt_Ballistic]

I still feel a little on-the-fence on the looks of it, but I like the way it functions as a case....

I entered a giveaway for one from TimmyTechTV and Matt Schaefer. It'll fit in my desk (thank god) and have much better airflow than Leftovers cheap Lenovo case....

 

That is, IF I win it...

*Crossed fingers* 

Good look. I didn't like the look of cube style cases. And a lot of small form factor cases in general. But they are growing on me!

[imthewalrus]

I just ordered this case, I have a micro atx motherboard with a core 2 duo e8400 and a gtx 650 ti from my old HTPC that I am going to put in there. 

[Srgnt_Ballistic]

I just ordered this case, I have a micro atx motherboard with a core 2 duo e8400 and a gtx 650 ti from my old HTPC that I am going to put in there. 

Nice you should post pics here on the forum!

[imthewalrus]

Nice you should post pics here on the forum!

 

Should I make a build log?

[Srgnt_Ballistic]

Should I make a build log?

 

Yeah why not? Might help others make decisions and it's always fun to show off and document your build.