I
nsidetheFractalDesignVectorRS’
packagingisthelargestaccessory
boxwe’veeverseenwitha case.It
housesthiscase’spartytrick:it canconvert
itselffroma rathersealeddesignwitha
closed,see-throughroof,toa venteddesign,
withitsroofequippedwithfanandradiator
mounts,aswellasa dustfilter.
It’saninterestinginclusion,asit suggests
FractalDesignwasworriedaboutitsnew
caselackingairflow,inthesamewayasthe
CorsairCarbideSeries678C.
TheVectorRShasRGBlighting,butit’sdone
subtlywitha lineofdiffusedigitalRGBLEDs
bisectingthecentreoftheVectorRS’sexterior.
Thelightscanbetweakedusinganincluded
controllerorviayourmotherboard’ssoftware
usingtheincludedcable.Thelightingis punchy
andhelpstobreakuptheotherwisebulky
exteriorthatstretchestoa depthof55cmand
heightof50cm.
FractalDesignVectorRS/£170incVAT
SUPPLIER overclockers.co.ukWhile the case is all but
sealed out of the box,
there are top-to-bottom
vents running down the
sides of the case, feeding
the front fan mounts that
are equipped with two
140mm fans as standard
and support an additional
fan. You can also fit three
120mm fans, and there’s
space for 360mm and
280mm radiators too.
The roof, meanwhile,
can house a 360mm or
420mm radiator thanks to
the cooling bracket
included in the box, with
space for a 240mm or
280mm radiator in the base too. The case
offersyetmoreflexibilitythankstosix
removableharddisktrays,andif that’snot
enoughforyou,there’sspaceforfivemore
usingoptionalbrackets.Eachofthesecanalso
housea 2.5inSSD,buttherearetwodedicated
2.5intraysbehindthemotherboard,which
maybeenoughformanyusers.
Thisareaalsohousesa pairoflargeVelcro
tiesforstowingcables,butatthisprice,we’d
havelikedtoseemoreoftheseandfewer
plasticcabletiesintheaccessorybox.
However,cableroutingwasstilleasythanks
tonumerouslargeroutingholes.
A 9-portPWMfanhubis includedtoo,but
sixoftheseportsonlycaterfor3-pinfans,
threeofwhichareincludedwiththecase.This
meansthatif youusethehub,youwon’tbe
abletocontroltheirspeed,whichis settoan
admittedlylow1,000rpm.Thisshouldmean
they’reveryquietasstandard,butalsowon’t
beparticularlypowerful.Thehub’sotherthree
portsare4-pinPWM-compatiblethough.
TheVectorRShada decentleadoverthe
Corsair Carbide Series 678C in the CPU delta
T results and was only 2°C behind the Cooler
Master MasterCase SL600M while being
exceptionally quiet too. However, the GPU
delta T was poor at 60°C, making it worsethan a couple of fanless cases on test,
undoubtedlythankstothemassofharddisk
strayssuffocatingtheGPU.Sureenough,
removingthesesawa 4°Cdrop,matchingthe
Corsaircase.Conclusion
TheVectorRSis super-quiet,wellequipped,
stylishandultimatelyfeelslikeit’sworththe
cash.It’salsoa greatchoiceofyouneedto
housemassesofharddrives.Coolingisn’t
exceptionalbutit canbeimprovedby
tweakingtheinternallayout.However,both
thePhanteksEnthooLux2 andNZXTH700i
areslightlymoreappealingthanthe Fractal
DesignVectorRSforbothair-cooledand
water-cooledPCs.VERDICT
A great effort from Fractal Design, the Vector
RS is flexible and up to the task of housing
high-end air or water-cooled PCsSUMMER BREEZE
+ Excellent water-
cooling support
+ Plenty of space
for hard disks
+ Attractive RGB-
equipped exteriorTORNADO- Fans locked at
slow speed - Average GPU cooling
- The competition is
slightly more effective
SPEC
Dimensions (mm) 233 x 552 x 498 (W x D x H)
Material Steel, tempered glass, plastic
Available colours Black
Weight 12.64kg
Front panel Power, reset, 2 x USB 3,
1 x USB 3.1 Type-C, audio jacks
Drive bays 6 x 2.5in/3.5in, 2 x 2.5in
Form factor(s) Micro-ATX, ATX, E-ATX
Cooling 3 x 120/140mm front fan mounts (2 x
140mm fans included), 3 x 120/140mm roof fan
mounts (fans not included), 2 x 120/140mm base
fan mounts (fans not included), 1 x 120/140mm
rear fan mount (1 x 140mm fan included)
CPU cooler clearance 185mm
Maximum graphics card length 440mmCOOLING
23 / 30
DESIGN
23 / 30FEATURES
18 / 20
VALUE
16 / 20OVERALLSCORE
80
s mPPCC
A
P
PR
OVE
D