A Closer Look - Outside

Out of the box, the Fractal Design Torrent Compact has the same feel to it as the original, but in the far more classic mid-tower size. You can still fit a massive air cooler of up to 174 mm in height within, which is more than the 165 mm of the Torrent Nano, but less than the 188 mm of the original Torrent. The plastic parts have a matte but smooth surface feel, which is nice but certainly prone to fingerprints. It looks like Fractal Design is now covering the Torrent cases in a plastic layer to keep that grime away during manufacturing and packing.


Looking at the front, the design is asymmetrical with straight lines that are about an inch deep. You may easily pull off the cover to reveal a removable, fine dust filter of the same design as the front cover. This means airflow is not further compromised in the process of keeping dirt and grime out of the chassis. Taking a first look at the rear, it becomes apparent quite quickly that the Fractal Design Torrent Compact is by no means a traditional case and follows the layout of the original Torrent quite closely.

Those in the know will notice that there is far less space between the motherboard tray at a mere 20 mm. That can and will most likely become rather annoyingly tight to work with. For comparison, the original Torrent has 34 mm while the Nano still offers 29 mm.


Both sides of the Torrent Compact are made out of glass, and Fractal added black stripes to the top and bottom of each panel as those are what the metal mounting rails are glued to. This results in clean windows devoid of any visible mounting hardware. While the main glass panel is tinted lightly in this variant, Fractal Design has employed a heavier tint on the one behind the motherboard tray to better hide any cable mess there.


Looking at the rear, the very bottom is where you will find your seven expansion slots. Each is protected by a removable, reusable cover. To reduce the overall size, the Torrent Compact has less room between these slots and the feet of the case, which will reduce the flexibility of using AIOs or fans on the floor without compromising other elements within the chassis. Next to it is a large air vent that seamlessly flows into the 120 mm fan-mounting position at mid-height. These large openings purposefully do not have any dust filters as air is meant to exit through this area as freely as possible. In the very top is a centered ATX power supply bay. It comes with a single set of mounting screws and is topped by the plastic top panel. Look closely and you will find several Velcro strips on the left edge of the rear. These are meant to tidily hold your external cables once your system is up and running.


The top panel of the Fractal Design is completely solid, but may be removed by unscrewing two thumb screws in the back. This reveals the PSU bay, which actually sits on top of the case frame. Fractal has also placed the same 2.5/3.5" hard-drive tray we have seen in the Nano, as the Torrent Compact also only has this one area for larger spinning rust to be installed. The I/O consists of the usual audio ports, two USB 3.0, and a single USB 3.2 Type-C. The power and reset buttons are on top of that.


Taking a quick look at the underside of the chassis, you will find a dust filter covering all three intake fans. To remove it for cleaning, one does not have to tip the chassis over—simply pull the front cover off and slide it out from under the Torrent. Unlike the original Torrent, there are no rails to install LED strips here as the Compact version just is not deep enough for them anyway.