Fractal Design Define XL R2 Case Review

The Disk Drive Bays

The Fractal Design Define XL R2 has four external 5.25” bays and eight internal 3.5”/2.5” bays in two cages. The case doesn’t have tool-less installation mechanisms for storage devices.

Figure 18: Default configuration of the disk drive bays

The Define XL R2 provides a very flexible configuration for its hard drive cages. You can remove the top cage to allow the installation of video cards longer than 13” (330 mm) or you can rotate it 90°.

Figure 19: Top hard drive cage rotated 90°

Figure 20: Top hard drive cage removed

The bottom cage can also be removed or moved to the side if the bottom fan is removed. This allows you to install a radiator up to 240 mm on the front panel.

Each 3.5”/2.5” bay is actually a small drawer that comes with rubber rings to reduce the vibration and noise produced by 3.5” hard disk drives.

Figure 21: One of the 3.5”/2.5” bays