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Fractal Design Core 1000

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#1 ·
Fractal Design Core 1000

Description:
Cooling system

1 front mounted Fractal Design 120mm fan @ 1200rpm included
Additional 2 fan slots available for optional fans; one 92mm in rear and one 120mm in side panel

Specifications

2x 3,5 inch HDD trays or 3x 2,5" SSD - You can mount 1x 3,5" HDD tray and 1x 2,5" SSD at the same time
2x 5,25 inch bays, with 1x 5,25>3,5 inch converter included
2x USB 2.0 and Audio I/O - mounted on side of front panel
No PSU included
M/B compatibility: Mini ITX and Micro ATX
4 expansion slots with sleek white painted brackets
Supports graphic card lengths up to 210mm when using both HDD slots in the removable HDD tray
Supports graphic card lengths up to 350mm when using only the top HDD slot in the removable HDD tray
Supports CPU coolers with height of 135mm
Case size (WxHxD): 175x355x420mm with front and top bezel in place
Net weight: 4,1kg
 

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#2 ·
Fractal Design Core 1000 Review

review by kaivorth

First off I must say I was not expecting much when I spent $40 off Newegg. Now with that said...

Pros:
Cheap
Small
Decent airflow
Black Interior
Thumb Screws

Cons:
Cramped
Top Mounted PSU (I prefer bottom)
Hard Drive Tray
92mm rear fan (Would like to see 120mm)

The packaging was pretty standard. Cardboard box styrofoam and plastic wrap. Case came in great condition. The contents were pretty sparse, wasn't too worried about it though. The case itself looks sharp, yet minimalistic which is what I wanted. The fan filters are a nice touch with a front 120mm fan. Thumbscrews instead of that waste of plastic people call "screwless installation"

Installing my motherboard took longer than expected. An extra 1-2mm of clearance on the length of the motherboard would have been a godsend! Finally made it work in the end.
Now this is where I was a little worried. The hard drive tray. It either supports 3 Hard drives, or 1 Hard drive and an SSD, or 2 SSD's. Thankfully it fit my Hard Drive and SSD fine with no issues, and actually allowed more airflow as it took up less space. People with more hard drives are out of luck, which is it's downfall as it doesn't handle as much as a standard hard drive tray.

No holes to hide cables, and the tray does not come out, which is understandable. Coming in at $40 I wasn't expecting much.

I came from an Antec 900 to this and I must say I'm happy. It's so much smaller, a little quieter, and doesn't scream I'm a nerd!

Any questions feel free to ask. If I helped you in anyway in purchasing or avoiding this product let me know!

ProsCons
Cheap Black InteriorMounting Hard Drive Tray Cramped

Ratings
Overall4
 
#3 ·
Fractal Design Core 1000 Review

review by kaivorth
I've read many times by other users that the motherboard installation can be a pain.
How's the build quality of the case?
I've been told it's quiet fragile.
Really considering this case...
 
#7 ·
Nice cheap mATX case, but a little flimsy

review by totally dubbed

I bought this case for a recent mATX build.
I love the low price cost of the case, but there has been quite a few things that have annoyed me about it.

First the positives though:
-The price is obviously great, and good for keeping a low budget build
-The look of the case is nice and discrete - not over the top. Basically a nice simplistic look to the case with a touch of class added to it
-The extras included -> this includes the extra screws provided and more than anything the 120mm fan that came with the case (which is fitted at the front, when you buy it)

Negatives:
-The actual material used for the Core 1000 is really a thin sheet of metal. So thin, that it it very light to pick up my whole build with just a hand, whereas my Fractal R4 case requires quite a lot of effort to pick up.
Now the weight might seem like a good thing, an it is - however due to the HDD rack being VERTICALLY mounted, it causes un-needed vibrations throughout the case. This results in the case being quite loud with HDD's mounted. Almost as if the case was build for SSD's only.
-This makes me move unto my next complaint - the HDD vertical mount.
Quite simply put, I'm not a fan of it - having my HDD's in the "air" whilst in this case not only worries me a little, but also creates quite a lot of vibrations (the HDD's were screwed in properly, so was the HDD mount and they had rubber bits on them too)
Long story short - I can see why Fractal chose to use this design, but in my honest opinion, I don't think that was a good idea. With the HDD's mounted vertically and in mid-air, with a sheet of thin metal frame - there's bound to be problems, and in my case there is.
-Cable management: Due to the design again, and the small form factor - doing cable management for a non-modular PSU was close to impossible. I had to shove all the wires behind the HDD rack - which in turn reduces the air flow of my case as the intake is from the front of the case (the wires end up next to the intake fan at the front)
-The on/off button and the USB buttons are on the RIGHT side of the case. Now this isn't convenient for a few reasons. One being them being less accessible, but the other being if you had to put this alongside a wall, the buttons would be on the RIGHT side, and the INTAKE/OUTAKE side panel fan would be on the other. Why didn't fractal think of putting either the buttons to the RIGHT and/or putting the buttons at the top of the case, making it more accessible? I don't know, but I dislike it
-The fan exhaust at the back is only a 92mm fan slot. Why isn't this 120mm, like with the other two slots on the case?
I don't quite understand the logic behind this. There is room for it to be a 120mm, but Fractal chose (possibly tactically) to put a 92mm fan slot.
If I had to liquid cool my system, I would be in quite a dilemma as to where to put the fan and radiator.

Overall, there's more wrong (in my opinion) than right with this case.
Maybe I'm expecting too much from a ?30 case, but as with every review, one has to judge it evenly and that's what I have done.
For that reason I can't see myself giving this poorly un-finished designed case more than 4/5 stars.

ProsCons
Price, look, extras includedVery thin sheet of metal used, HDD tray, cable management, position of on/off switch, 92mm exhaust fan

Ratings
Overall4
 
#8 ·
Great bang for the buck!

review by mxfreek09

When you think of Fractal Design, you think of elegant designs, sturdy construction, and feature filled computer cases. The Core 1000 manages to include all of these into a budget friendly price of just $40(USD). This compact computer case is an excellent choice when going with a smaller form factor Micro-ATX or Mini-ITX featured build.

Before we take a look inside the box, we look at the box itself. They decided to go with the bare minimum and use a plain cardboard box with the only colors being the light blue and black ink on the box. You?ll notice that Fractal Design decided to take the simple route once again by packing the case inside with a clear plastic bag and two pieces of styrofoam to protect the case. By keeping everything down to the bare minimum, Fractal Design is able to save some money which in turn passes the savings onto the customer.

Taking a look inside the box you?ll find a list of what hardware is included in this box:

9x Motherboard Standoffs
10x FDD Screws
8x Anti vibration HDD Screws
12x SSD Screws
1x Case Speaker
1x 5.25? to 3.25? Mesh Bay adapter

Key features

Simple yet elegant mesh front panel allowing for increased airflow through the case
Optimized for performance in a compact, Micro-ATX form factor with multiple cooling options
NEW: 1 x USB 3.0 with internal connector, 1 x USB 2.0
One Silent Series R2 fan included: 1 x 120mm in front
A total of 3 fan slots (1 x 120mm in front, 1 x 92mm in rear, 1 x 120mm in side panel)
Innovative HDD positioning which mounts the HDD or SSDs vertically on the mounting bracket with anti-vibration silicone grommets
Supports long graphics cards up to 350mm in length
Supports various combinations of drive sets ups: 3 x 2.5? SSD, 2 x 3.5? HDD or 1 x 2.5? SSD + 1 x 3.5? HDD
Dust filter for front fan position

Specifications

Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX, DTX motherboard compatibility
Drive bay capacity: 2 ? 3.5? HDD or 3 ? 2.5? SSD or 1 ? 3.5? HDD + 1 ? 2.5? SSD
2 ? ODD slots
1 ? FDD slot, using convertor in ODD slot (convertor included)
4 expansion slots with sleek white painted brackets
Supports GPUs to 350mm in length with one HDD mounted
Supports GPUs up to 210mm in length with two/three HDD mounted
Supports CPU coolers up to148mm in height
Supports full size ATX PSU, maximum length about 185 mm if an optical drive is mounted
Case dimensions (WxHxD): 175 x 355 x 420mm
Net weight: 4.1 kg
Package dimensions (WxHxD): 225 x 415 x 475mm
Package weight: 5 kg

Cooling system

Front: 1 ? 120mm fan (included is a hydraulic bearing 120mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1200 RPM speed)
Rear: 1 ? 92mm fan (not included)
Side: 1 ? 120mm fan (not included)

After removing the Core 1000 from the box and giving it a once over you start to realize that there is not very much to it, which can be a great feature for those who love the minimalist design. The case has a very nice satin black paint job. It also has a dull plastic front cover frame and a filtered black mesh material allowing for air to intake through the entire front on the case. There are two 5.25? drive bays available in the front of the case which are covered by two inserts that are the same mesh as the rest of the front and includes the same filter material.

The power and reset buttons are located on the side of the front panel along with: USB 2.0 port, USB 3.0 port, 3.5mm headphone port, microphone port, and power and HDD activity lights. The buttons themselves are flush with the side of the case and are easy to distinguish from each other do to size. The HDD activity light is a common red color and the power light is a very bright blue. This may be a slight downside to those who wish to use this case on top of a desk due to its overpowering brightness. This can be solved by not leaving the power LED plugged in if it becomes a problem.

The rest of the case remains nice and simple with the side panels being very plain and only having a cutout for a 120mm fan on one of them. The back of the case includes a cutout for the top mounted power supply, there is a cutout for either a 92mm or 80 mm fan, the standard rear I/O panel cutout, and four expansion slots which all have white-painted removable covers.

Just like the outside of the case, the inside of the Core 1000 remains simple and accessible. You will notice is that the entire chassis is painted black, unlike other budget cases where the inside is a bare grey color. The one thing you will notice about the inside of the case is that it is not tool-less, however the expansion bays and the hard drive mounting plate all have thumb screws. These thumbscrews still make working with the inside of this case a nice experience.

The storage drive mounting plate includes eight anti-vibration rubber washers for mounting two 3.5? hard drives. These rubber washers help to cut the noise that hard drives can make and help to extend the life of the drives. Instead of using two 3.5? hard drives, there is twelve mounting holes for three 2.5? hard drives or 2.5? solid state drives. This mounting plate can be removed simply by unscrewing two thumbscrews and sliding backwards. This will allow for adding larger graphics cards and or adding a 120mm radiator to the front of the case for water cooling. If you decide to remove this mounting plate, Fractal Design has included a 5.25? to 3.25? adapter which is secured by 4 thumbscrews and allows a hard drive to be installed in one of the two available bays.

You will need to remove the front panel of the case to get a better look at the included 120mm Fractal Design fan. The fan is secured by 4 plastic clips that allow for the fan to be easily swapped out if necessary. You will also be able to get a better look at the filter media. While it is not the best material available it is still a nice feature that is not often seen in other cases in this price category. This is where the feature list starts to wind down however. The inside of the case lacks some major features such as a motherboard cutout to aid in the installation of aftermarket CPU coolers and cutouts for wire management, but once again Fractal Design had to cut a few corners to be able to keep the price of this case down. The lack of the wire routing cutouts unfortunately allows for the front I/O cables to stay exposed. The audio connector, internal USB 2.0 connector, and internal USB 3.0 cable are black, but the other I/O cable colors are various colors and stand out in a bad way.

The Core 1000 is very nice to work in for its small size. If the storage drive mounting plate is removed while assembling, the case has a ton of room to be able to reach everything with ease. A suggestion that will make your life easy is to install your motherboard and power supply into the case and then plug all of your front panel connectors in. This will make your life a lot easier because when the graphics card is installed, there will be very little room between the card and the bottom of the case. Another thing that can be suggested for use in this build is a modular power supply. Cable management in this case will need some creativity, but a modular power supply definitely comes in handy by reducing the amount of cables that need to be hidden.

Overall this case is a really great budget case with some nice features. It will also be perfect for those looking to build a compact computer to keep tucked away or who just don?t want a huge tower near their desk. With its minimal looks and fairly sturdy construction, the Core 1000 is hard to pass up at just $40(USD). This particular case will be used in the future as we begin work on our dedicated benchmark rig. With the amount of room available after removing the storage drive panel and the ability to mount an 120mm closed loop water cooler, this case will be a nice alternative to a real test bench. Fractal Design really did a nice job combining a lot of necessary features and their signature elegant designs into this case and for the price, it will be hard to disappointed by choosing this computer case for your next build.

ProsCons
Inexpensive, Front Fan Filter Foam, USB 3.0 port built inTop Mount Power Supply, Slightly Flimsy, Awkward Fan Mounting Positions

Ratings
Overall4
 
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