When it comes to PC gaming there are a massive amount of aspects to consider. From the components that are running your PC to the overall battlestation theme. One of those aspects that you’ll likely consider early on is the actual case your PC will be built inside. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes though not every case that gets released into the market is a real contender for your money. In this article, we are going to look at the Meshify C from Fractal Design and offer our thoughts on the overall case and the experience we had building inside it.
Recently we covered AMD’s Ryzen 2600x and 2700x which presented a great opportunity to check out the Meshify C by Fractal Design. To be more exact, we were sent the Meshify C White – TG which stands for tempered glass. This case actual stems back to the Define C, another ATX case that is more of the standard black box PC case with no side panel and a front panel that is closed off.
As a result of the Define C, air in-take was likely suffering thus Fractal Design unleashed the Meshify C, tossing away the closed front panel for a mesh-style front, where airflow can easily make its way inside the case and pushed through the back. Furthermore, the standard black box was replaced with a tempered glass side panel, but there is a model in which the case comes with a solid side panel.
While on the subject of the tempered glass, depending on the model selected will determine if the case will come with tinted tempered glass or a more clear panel. This is purely preference, though, with the darker tinted panels, you’ll have a harder time seeing what’s inside the case.
The case comes with four feet stands to help elevate it from the ground. Likewise, if you move to the top you’ll find that you can place a few fans or potentially a radiator. Resting on top is a magnetic dust filter that can be easily removed and cleaned. That’s not the only dust filter at the bottom contains a dust filter that runs the full length of the case and the front mesh panel can easily be removed for cleaning as well.
Likewise, on the top of the panel, you’ll come across the front panel audio jacks, two USB 3.0 ports, a power button along with a reset button.
Opening the case up to build is rather standard. The tempered glass is held in by four thumbscrews while the opposing side is held in by two captive screws. Once inside, you’ll find that the case can hold up to an ATX motherboard with rubber grommets to pass through the various cables. Included already are two 120mm fans with one being placed in the front as an intake and the other located on the rear.
If you’re looking to work with radiators, there is support from a 120mm to a 360mm on the front panel, a 120mm to 240mm on the top with a 120mm within the rear.
Across the bottom is the PSU basement covered in a black shroud with a Fractal Design logo pressed. Flipping it to the other side of this case and you’ll find a 3.5mm HDD cage that can support up to two standard size HDD while a metal plate that connects right behind the motherboard being your SSD mounting option. With this metal brace, gamers can mount three SSD’s right next to each other.
There is a channel with Velcro strips where your front panel cables and PSU cables could be placed. This actually helps tidy up the cable management without having to use the other zip tie points.
Building within the case was seamless. Through the included box filled with screws and standoffs for the motherboard, HDD, SSD, and PSU, it really took no time at all to start and finish the build. In hindsight, I would have taken better note of my SATA ports as they were right next to one of the rubber grommets. As a result, it took a bit of time connecting the cables. With the little room I had at my disposal to connect the cables, I would have likely connected the cables prior to placing down my motherboard.
The front panel connectors were already routed through the Velcro stripes so it was rather easy slipping the cables through and connecting them. Likewise, with the modular power supply, I had ample room to stuff cables between the HDD cage so cable management was surprisingly not a big issue with this compact mid-tower case, though I’m pretty particular in how my case looks so if you can do without the HDD, taking out the cage will give you even more room to really neaten up the cables.
As expected, the mesh front panel greatly helped the airflow with the case since I didn’t get hit with any unexpected numbers temperature wise. However, this also plays with what components your system is running.
All-in-all, if you’re looking for a simplistic case that offers great airflow while also including a tempered glass panel to see your components inside then you can’t go wrong with Fractal Design’s Meshify C. It’s compact enough to not take too much space, cable management is great and it comes in below $100. Currently, through Newegg, the Fractal Design Meshify C can be purchased for just $89.99.
Noteworthy Specifications
- Case: ATX Mid Tower
- Side Panel: Tempered Glass
- Drive Support: 2x 3.5mm, 3x 2.5mm
- Expansion Slots: 7x
- Front Panel: 2x USB 3.0, Audio, Power, Reset
- Fan Support:
- Front – 2x 140mm, 3x 120mm
- Rear – 1x 120mm
- Top – 2x 120mm, 2x 140mm
- Graphics Support: 314mm max
- CPU Cooler Support: 172mm max
Full Disclosure: A unit was provided for purposes of this review.
