Fractal Design Core 2500 Case Review

Outside the Fractal Design Core 2500
One of the down sides of the Fractal Design is the slight swirl type variations in the overall color of the front plastic of the case but it’s just a notable discrepancy and not a big concern since the case is very beautiful as you can plainly see from this picture. The side has a 140mm x 140mm fan vent instead of a window, but this makes this case more breezy in the inside keeping the contents with a nice movement of air from front to back; bottom to top; and from this one side if one chooses to add an additional cooling fan to blow on the video card assembly. This vent also allows for an M.2 SSD to be cooled as some motherboard choose to locate the M.2 placement under the primary graphic card.

Feature 2

The front of the Fractal Design CORE 2500 has a great look in purest Fractal Fashion with the filtered air intake on the sides. This makes it easy to brush away with a wipe of a clean terrycloth towel and the front is tremendously easy to clean with just a spritz of a water and dawn dish washing mixture but if you don’t know this trick of cleaning then anything that is not too abrasive or destructive to black plastic finish can work wonders. Actually just a lightly damp cloth can clean most of the case except for the oily messes that usually need a little more attention.

On the back of the case you see one of many little Quality Control stickers that you will find all over the case. Fractal Design is very conscience of a fragile reputation they have built for superior built case manufacturing and they want it to stay that way, so you may find two or three of these little green spots stuck to the case as you build. It tells you that they have checked it and checked it again. The exhaust fan is a 1200 RPM 120mm Fan that runs silent and keeps things cool by expelling air from the top of the case. The 7 PCI slot covers are ventilated for added cooling and the adjacent holes also allow the flow of fresh air or the escape of heat to happen easier. Lastly the power supply can be configured Bottoms up or top up depending on your personal taste but the bottom filter can be tricky getting back into place so top up is recommended so you can expel more heat from the system and not have to worry about periodic cleaning of the bottom filter.

front and back

The side panel here is the usual window side but instead of the window there is the 140mm fan access hole. The overall look of the panel is clean and the steel is not paper thin like some of the Econo-Boxes that are being sold now but the fan hole is not filtered so an internal filter on the back side of the fan inside the panel is recommended for maximum dust control.

fan side view

The other side paneled view is straight clean and colorfast. The handles for pulling the covers off have lots of room for all but the fattest fingers and these panels close more like a door than the usual fight for your life slide on versions that seem to take forever to fasten correctly. These panels are super easy to clean remove and attach with metal thumbscrews that are tapped for ease of removal and affixing.

side view

In this picture the front panel has been removed to get the best shot of the Control Panel assembly. From Left to Right you find the non lighted Power button with the Reset switch close by next to it. The hard drive activation light is next then the Audio Out and In and the Two USB 3.0 receptacles next to them. The controls are easily accessed from the top front of the case and are very durably made into one removable control housing.

Control Panel

The bottom feet are made more for lifting the case off the floor and not for sound proofing since the feet are made of hard plastic but still has a cushion in the center to give the case a softer stance. The bottom is very well ventilated but as you can see the filter element is held in place with 10 tabs. This keeps the filter element in place but is really difficult to replace unless you turn the case over to the side. There is room for a 120 intake fan from the bottom forward of the power supply if you have a shorter style power supply unit. The opening at the bottom of the front panel is more for removing the front panel assembly but it can also double as a non-filtered air intake from the floor.

bottom view

The ventilated area at the top is made for All-in-One or Custom looped radiator placement with your choice of 120mm x 240mm or 140mm x 280mm radiators. There is a reason for the Bee hive holes at the top. It has been proven that the Bees created the best aerodynamic holes for cooling long ago so since they didn’t patent the idea we humans use their technology for the same purpose. They allow for the best intake of air with the least amount of wind resistance keeping the air flowing easier and less noisy.

top radiator mount view

Below is a top down look at the side ventilation intake vents. These have a cushion type filter material under the mesh to allow the owner to just wipe the dust off with a lightly damp towel for over all dusting as the system is used.

side ventilation view

Here at the back top of the case is the LOW MEDIUM and HIGH fan controller made to control up to 3 different fans. The wires are well made and great surround type clips. The mini controller is powered by a SATA Power plug.

back fan controller

Overall the outside of the case is “A” number one for strength, durability and looks. The airflow is excellent and the materials are what you would expect from any Fractal Design case that I have tested in the past.

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