As I write this at my office desk, my main work and gaming PC is quietly sitting beside me. Every now and then, I'll glance over and admire its clean lines and stylish front, and be thankful for its quiet but efficient cooling. And it's all down to the PC case I use, a Fractal Design North XL.
It's not perfect, by any means, but for me, it's as close to perfection as I've seen in a PC case in the many decades that I've been building them. At a three cents shy of $140, it's the cheapest it's been too. Well, Amazon has sold it at $139.95 in the past, but what's two cents between chums?
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Now, I admit that such grandiose praise for a mere case is perhaps a bit too much, but I honestly think it's brilliant, despite its flaws. Let's start with the most important aspect: space.
Despite Fractal Design classing this as a mid-tower PC chassis, the sheer length of it (503 mm, 19.8 inches) puts it more into the full tower category, even though it's not super tall. And while that makes it somewhat on the bulky side, it does mean there is a huge amount of space inside for all your gaming PC hardware.
It's big enough to house a 420 mm radiator at the front (though this will limit the maximum graphics card length to 380 mm or 15 inches) and a 360 mm radiator in the top section. The North XL comes with three 140 mm fans pre-installed and they're very quiet.
I've replaced them with a set of Noctua NF-P14s, just to get a bit more air flowing through the case, but you really don't need to.
It would be nicer if the North XL was a tad wider, though, because at 240 mm (9.4 inches), it's a little on the tight side for streamlining cable management. It's not bad, as such, but could be better. The same is true of the top cover—it's a stylish steel mesh panel but it slides off far too easily.
But these are minor complaints when you take the case as a whole, especially when you factor in just how glorious it looks. The front panel is removable, to let you easily clean the filter it houses, and the wooden slats give it an air of class.
The North XL could do with a few more USB Type-C ports up top but that's just a personal preference, and I'd happily lose the audio ports for more USB connectivity. What I don't want Fractal Design to ever change is the power button.
Golden in color, golden in feel—every day starts with a small moment of luxury when I press that beautifully damped button. Okay, that's a bit much, but you get my drift. Anyway, I'll be keeping my Fractal Design North XL until it falls apart from the constant upgrades, or until a newer and better model comes out.
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