A Closer Look - Outside

Right out of the box, you may notice that the Fractal Define R6 is quite a bit longer than it is high. The overall design is clearly based on what we have come to expect from the Define family, with clean, straight edges and a plated brushed aluminum front door. The use of materials is a step up as previous Define cases used plastic instead.

As with all Define cases, the front is completely solid and comes with a little notch at the very top to allow you to see the power LED both while the front panel is closed and open. In the rear, things are arranged in a traditional fashion with the PSU bay at the very bottom.


Looking at the main glass side panel, you may think it is not there at all. Unlike most other brands, Fractal Design has chosen to keep the glass untinted, which has it provide an unobstructed view into the interior of the R6. Due to this, the window becomes invisible with a perfectly clean surface. Another interesting aspect is the fact that the glass panel has been placed on a metal frame so that is secured just like a classic, solid side panel. This allows Fractal Design to offer the chassis both as a windowed and solid variant without having to worry about different tooling elements. The opposing side of our R6 sample is completely solid as this is where you will route all your cables anyways.


Out of the box, the door swings open to the left, which may not be well suited to most due to the fact that the window is on the left side of the chassis. Fractal Design should instruct their factory to install the door to swing open to the right instead. However, you may easily change this aspect yourself, so it is just a small nuisance at most. Behind the door is a large dust filter that covers two completely white 140 mm retail-grade intake fans. You may install up to three 120 mm units here instead if you like. In the very top is a 5.25" drive bay - a sight that has become increasingly rare with mid-tower cases these days. As is customary for the Define series, the R6 also allows for easy removal of this external drive-bay cover for when it has to be filled.


Looking at the rear, the PSU bay is equipped with a mounting frame, as you will have to slide the power supply in through the back of the chassis during assembly. Above that are the seven vertical and two horizontal expansion slots. With the optional Flex VRC-25 PCIe ribbon cable and slot, the two horizontal openings allow you to present your high-end GPU perfectly behind the glass window, for example. In the very top, you will find another completely white retail-grade fan - also a 140 mm unit set to blow air out the back of the chassis. This brings the total count of cooling units to a very respectable three.


The I/O panel is seperate from the front cover, so that you may pull the latter off without having to worry about any wires. Here, you will find two USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0 plugs on one and the usual pair of audio connectors on the other side. In the middle is a small reset button and a much larger power switch. One element that is sorely missed is the embedded fan controller which was still present in the previous R5. Instead, Fractal has chosen to give you a PCB within the chassis, allowing you to power a larger number of fans - a clear move towards the liquid-cooling enthusiast.

With the optional Connect D1 panel, you will get all of these plus a fully fledged USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port. The entire top cover is solid out of the box, but you may pop it off the chassis with a firm push of that round plastic knob in the rear of the case.


This cover consists of two parts: a solid metal panel with sound dampening material on it and a plastic grille with a dust filter on it. This allows you to either go for maximum sound encapsulation while keeping with the metal material or airflow, should you have cooling units or a radiator in the ceiling of the Define R6.


Just like the previous generation of the series, the Fractal Design Define R6 comes with a big dust filter on its underside, which may be pulled out through the front for easy cleaning.