Fractal Design North XL Charcoal Black
Fractal Design North XL Charcoal Black
| Weight: | 11.6 kg |
| Dimensions: | 50.29 x 23.88 x 50.8 cm; 11.62 kg |
| Brand: | Fractal Design |
| Model: | FD-C-NOR1X-01 |
| Colour: | Charcoal Black |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Manufacture: | Fractal Design |
| Dimensions: | 50.29 x 23.88 x 50.8 cm; 11.62 kg |
It’s not just a pc case! However, in the guidance document, it seems to have a fan hub. But, I could not find it the box. Not sure if it’s missing from the box I received. :/
Purchased for larger radiator compatibility. A 520 fits but it’s tight. You can only install 2 of the three fans in the case. I put the 3rd outside and cooling has improved. This is a thermaltake air so results may vary. Case is white and looks great but my eat motherboard was a very tight fit.
Its a very nice looking case and amazing for themed builds but most importantly Its easy to build in, easy to manage, great airflow and easy to clean. The build quality is great and there no sharp edges. This case is really unique in my opinion because of the clean wood finish, beautiful aesthetics and great performance. I’ve paired this case with Noctua fans and the noise levels are very low with great airflow. I’ll be looking forward to building in this case again in the future.
Acres of room inside. Dwarfes a RTX 4090. Pity it’s not the same price as the non XL, but the looks make up for that. Alot quieter than my previous case.
I love this product as a whole implementing the whole modernist/minimalist design. The flare of timber in mone it was an oak colour which goes great with whe white. Overall the athletics are pleasing other than when you turn on ARGB fans which makes a circle pattern on front of case.
The material quality is great full metal case with some plastic parts but it’s sound.
The case is easy to build in just take the panels off by unscrewing and then sliding them off and start building. Plenty of space for AIO cooling. The front hosts enough space for 3*120mm fans or 2* 140mm fans, the top has enough space for either 2*140mm or 2*120mm. The rear holds space for 1*120mm. Enough space for a custom water cooling loop but I don’t have the money for that RN.
The case is what you should expect for the price and would fit in whith a modern home and ikea furnature due to the nature of the desig
This case is amazing, absolutely, without a doubt, it is worth the price.
Firstly, the case looks absolutely amazing with the real wood on the front, and because I got the Mesh Front Panel option, I didn’t have to worry about having a sufficient airflow too much at all!
Secondly, the case comes in really good shape, for example, the screws are all nicely in place, there are great quality dust filters preinstalled, it comes shipped in a very protective box, and the case’s cables are all Velcro-Tied together really neatly.
Lastly, the case looks amazing no matter what you put in it, RGB or Non-RGB lighting, Micro ATX or ATX motherboard, everything looks amazing!
I honestly don’t think I encountered any cons with this case. Would 200% recommend!
My one and only complaint is that in SOME areas there seemed to be a lack of care during assembly. The screws have been overtightened and threaded on the side panels upon manufacture. The PSU casing paint chipped off slightly around my PSU. Now, these are only minor issues, but it did feel like it let the case down somewhat. I sent my feedback to Fractal and was pleased with their response. Hopefully these issues have been fixed now (I was an early adopter), but it would definitely not stop me from buying this case again.
Absolutely gorgeous, looks more like a piece of furniture, kudos to the designer, so easy to install parts, and really good quality, I bought this as a start to upgrade from my old Lian Li alloy full tower circa 20 something. Case and a new PSU to start, has a GTX1060 card and a Asus 990FX board with a over clocked FX8320 inside with only the two intake fans running at 650 ish rpm, nice and quit.
Was a bit tired of my Legion 5 pro laptop sounding like a hair dryer when doing a little gaming, this was the first time I have ever gone for a white case and wow so nice with the grey interior and the black contrast.
I can highly recommend this case without a doubt.
My only complaint was that the two intake fans are quite audible even when running slowly. I’m new to PC building, so after a bit of programming in the BIOS, I changed the fan curve and they are now quieter, becoming more of an ambient noise rather than an annoyance. I can always upgrade these later with quieter fans. The airflow in the case is excellent. I upgraded from an Acer Nitro pc to this and the difference is night and day.
I love this case, it looks gorgeous and I 100% intend to continue to use this, however, why there is no dust filter on the top is beyond me. I imagine the mesh on top is intended to act as a dust filter of sorts, but I can promise you it does not.
It is a somewhat small case, in that I had a fright trying to install my XFX 7800xt 319, because the card itself was longer than the width of the glass pane so I had to twist the card a bit to fit it. I would not be comfortable putting a front radiator in this case, but top radiators are better anyway.
I’d recommend 2x140mm fans in the front, not the included ones, I find the Aspect 140mm fans to be very loud for 140mm fans, as intake, a rear 120mm exhaust, and a 280mm AIO on top as exhaust.
The position the stock fans came in was great, it is almost like my cpu and gpu have their own intake fans because of this, but I find the CPU 8/16pin slot to be too small and not in a great position.
It is amazing to build in otherwise though, nice deep cable channel towards the front of the right side panel with 3 preinstalled velcro cable ties, it comes with a few(4 I think) standard zip-ties in the accessory box, the mesh model comes with a fan hub too, though the TG one does not.
It has some nice quality of life stuff with it, the middle MOBO stand-off isn’t a screw one rather a positioning one that makes installation easier, all panels are easily removable, and the HDD & SSD brackets are great, though with a Corsair SATA power cable, I had to bend the cable to plug this in.
If you are buying this case, it won’t be for price, or anything like that, it will be purely for the looks of it, and it is damned gorgeous
If I’m going to pick… I’d of loved to still have a HDD activity light on the case simply because it’s so quiet, I hardly notice it’s on.
I was very drawn by the walnut front panel and I’m happy to say it’s solid and very good looking with the satin charcoal powder paint body. The front if the case is mostly open with two included fans mounted pulling air in. This is great for airflow as there’s not much stopping air coming in the front.
I offered to transfer his system from his old case to his new one and I’m happy to say the Fractal case is great to build a system in and is made quite easy. There is two dedicated SSD mounts and two HDD mounts in the back but I only had access to one HDD space as the PSU was too large. He has three SSDs so one had to float on some cables which is fine.
The back of the case where the wires go is quite tight even with good cable tied cables and neatly routed PSU cables; it was somewhat tricky getting the back panel to latch and slide but eventually I got it and there’s no panel buldge.
The GPU is an ASUS 3070ti, a big card and this case has plenty of space to take it. I myself have a high end Corsair smart case which is triple the price of this case and I have a similar sized card and it only barely fits so props to Fractal for ensuring we can fit our new big cards in these normal sized cases.
I really like the golden metal accents like the power button and the feet. It pairs very well and uniquely with the charcoal and walnut. The airflow was great after testing and I gave the case a positive airflow to help with dust.
In summary: The North case is a great case slightly above budget range. If you want a nice subtle case with good quality paint and building options/space but only have a small budget, I recommend putting this case at the top end of your budget as it’s worth springing for.
I’ve just finished new build using an i9 14900k and a 4070 GPU – and air cooled with Noctua fans throughout.
I got the mesh version because, as a photographer, I need to keep the light in my room constant and free from distraction and therefore won’t benefit from RGB — this also means I didn’t need to worry so much about super-neat cable management, although it’s still pretty tidy.
Besides, I don’t want my workspace to look like a teenage gamer’s bedroom.
It is very nicely made, feels solid although somewhat heavy.
I also think it looks better in real life than it does in photos.
The only negative is that the USB-c connector wasn’t working — this was quickly remedied by dropping an email to Fractal Design, who shipped me a new i/o unit; a pain to fit but now it works fine.
Overall I’m happy.
This computer case looks beautiful.
The wood finish on the front really makes the design.
The case is well sized, just big enough to fit an RTX 4090.
Very easy to install the parts as it’s very modular, if you need extra space or find that you don’t need the drive bays you can simply unscrew them and they can be taken out.
I think this is a very good value product as it appears to be a full metal construction, comes with decent quiet fans and removable dust filters to make cleaning easy.
The airflow in the case is more than adequate and works very well at removing the heat output of my components.
There are so many components to choose from including where you house all those components.
A case is a very subjective piece of the puzzle and for me having a ‘mullet’ case is what I wanted. Work in the front play in the back so to speak.
Other considerations for me were airflow to keep the components cool and whether it meets the size for everything I want to put into the case. On top of that I did not want a HUGE case sitting on my desk, i needed something average sized.
Pros:
– This case is beautiful to look at. I have the white version and the Oak colour scheme matches the rest of my desk and room.
– The case is very easy to work in. yes it is a little compact and needs some planning of components but not a very difficult case to work in.
– Case provides very good airflow due to the front panel being fairly open and mesh on the top and back. Using quiet fans or setting fans to low noise still keeps the PC very cool.
Cons:
– Only one con for me really and that is the window panel version does not come with the fan controller. This is a little disappointing when I was building I thought it came with it (should have read more about whats included so my own fault) so had to use a bunch of fan splitter cables to get them all connected. In the end not a huge deal but something to keep in mind – you may need another fan controller or some splitters if you don’t have any to spare
Overall I would recommend this case if you like the design of it.
There are some considerations that you need to think about, like using the mesh version side fans doesnt work with alot of GPU’s or CPU coolers. You can only use a 240mm radiator on top if you are doing watercooling (I went with a 240 and its perfectly fine for my use case) – you do need to consider memory height if using 240 on top.. You can use a 360mm in the front but then are limited to what size GPU fits. so some considerations before buying components but overall a great case so far. No real complaints.
This is a very nice looking case.
Nice clicky power button which feels it will stand the riggers of use.
Separate jacks for headphone and mic.
Easy cable management and an easy case to work in.
Can hardly hear the case fans.
Side panel is easily scratched so be careful.
Top panel is only held on by a magnet so be careful when picking the case up.
Thumb screws feel cheap and are not that great to use.
Its a while since I have built a new PC and a few things were missing from the case that would have been standard the last time I bought one. Such as No Reset switch and No HDD activity LED.
Over all though I am very happy with the case.
But it’s not just about looks. This case is designed with functionality in mind. It is compatible with ATX, mATX, and ITX motherboards, giving you the flexibility to choose the right one for your gaming needs. The open front and integrated mesh panels provide natural ventilation, ensuring optimal airflow to keep your components cool during intense gaming sessions.
One of the standout features of this case is its versatility. It can accommodate a GPU up to 355mm in length, or up to 300mm with a 360mm front radiator. This means you have plenty of room to install even the most powerful graphics cards, allowing you to enjoy smooth and immersive gaming experiences. Additionally, the two included 140mm Aspect PWM fans give you a head start on your build, providing efficient cooling right out of the box.
The interior layout of the Fractal Design North Chalk White case is thoughtfully designed to make your building experience a breeze. The intuitive layout allows for easy installation of components, and the generous compatibility ensures that you can fit all your desired hardware without any hassle. The case also features easy access to the interior, thanks to the removable side panels and the integrated tab that allows for quick removal of the top panel.
In terms of build quality, the Fractal Design North Chalk White case is top-notch. The alloy steel material used in its construction ensures durability and sturdiness, while the fine craftsmanship and attention to detail are evident in every aspect of the case. From the precision-cut wood front panels to the sleek steel details, this case exudes quality and craftsmanship.
While the Fractal Design North Chalk White case has numerous strengths, it’s important to consider a few potential drawbacks. Some users have reported that the case is a bit small, particularly for larger graphics cards and AIO cooling solutions. The limited space can pose challenges when it comes to cable management and fitting certain components. Additionally, the price of the case can be a bit high compared to other options on the market, but the exceptional design and quality justify the investment for those seeking a premium gaming case.
In summary, the Fractal Design North Chalk White gaming case is a standout option for gamers looking to elevate their gaming experience. With its sleek wood and alloy details, versatile compatibility, and excellent build quality, this case strikes the perfect balance between style and functionality. While it may have a few limitations in terms of size and price, its overall performance and aesthetic appeal make it a worthy choice for discerning gamers.
Pros:
– Sleek wood and alloy details enhance the look of any gaming station
– Compatible with ATX, mATX, and ITX motherboards for versatile compatibility
– Natural ventilation through open front and integrated mesh panels for optimal airflow
– Accommodates powerful GPUs and AIO cooling solutions for high-performance builds
– Intuitive interior layout and easy access for a hassle-free building experience
– Two 140mm Aspect PWM fans included for efficient cooling
Cons:
– Limited space may pose challenges for larger graphics cards and AIO cooling solutions
– Higher price compared to some other gaming cases on the marke
Loved the look of this case and had a hard time finding one in stock until recently.
Relatively easy to build in with the only exception of installing the fans which can be quite tricky (if not mounting to a RAD). To mount them on the outside behind the mesh filter you have to screw them in from the inside and it’s particularly difficult to install the last two screws of the bottom fan (if using 3 X 120mm) as the power supply shroud restricts access. Thread the fans first or it’ll be impossible.
Only other gripe would be potential clearance issues when using an AIO with a beefy GPU – May make this case unsuitable in certain configurations if graphics cards keep getting larger.
I switched to air cooling with the Thermalright PS120SE (~40) and after adjusting fan curves it’s significantly quieter than the 280mm AIO that I had previously. It also leaves me a significant amount extra space that would have been otherwise occupied by the RAD.
It’s a beautiful case and well worth the investment IMO.