Fractal's Excellent Era 2 Case: Review, Thermal Benchmarks, Cable Management, & Quality
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Date: 2024-09-18
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Comments and reviews: 20
maskharat
Hah, if you want to stop the wood from traveling you insert a piece of metal in traverse direction to the grain. The wood stretches and shrinks along the grain. A metal frame under it will help with bowing and general warping, but the wood will still move, breathe, along the grain. With fine cuts or pieces like this it's easy to break, and kinda to be expected. There's two methods to stop that. A metal bar inserted against the grain or stabilizing (i. e. dunking the wood in epoxy, throwing that into a vacuum chamber and let epoxy exchange the air inside) the wood. Stabilized will have that plasticy, epoxy sheen and is a hazard to get rid of. It won't rot anymore and you can't burn it because of the toxic fumes.
So a fix for them should be to add a bump onto the stabilizing layer underneath. But wood being wood, it still can break. Parallel grains do not bond well. BUT with the layer underneath, this is simply an optical problem and not a stability issue. A drop of glue mixed with wood dust (preferably from the same type of wood) inserted into the break will fix it.
Hm, the intake fan blowing the heat back into the PSU is a bit annoying, but reversing that fan as an output shouldn't be too hard.
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Hah, if you want to stop the wood from traveling you insert a piece of metal in traverse direction to the grain. The wood stretches and shrinks along the grain. A metal frame under it will help with bowing and general warping, but the wood will still move, breathe, along the grain. With fine cuts or pieces like this it's easy to break, and kinda to be expected. There's two methods to stop that. A metal bar inserted against the grain or stabilizing (i. e. dunking the wood in epoxy, throwing that into a vacuum chamber and let epoxy exchange the air inside) the wood. Stabilized will have that plasticy, epoxy sheen and is a hazard to get rid of. It won't rot anymore and you can't burn it because of the toxic fumes.
So a fix for them should be to add a bump onto the stabilizing layer underneath. But wood being wood, it still can break. Parallel grains do not bond well. BUT with the layer underneath, this is simply an optical problem and not a stability issue. A drop of glue mixed with wood dust (preferably from the same type of wood) inserted into the break will fix it.
Hm, the intake fan blowing the heat back into the PSU is a bit annoying, but reversing that fan as an output shouldn't be too hard.
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kaaona123
If the fastening of a wooden part to a rigid, non-organic material does not have room for wood movement it will be the chief cause of cracking/splitting. The wood will want to expand and contract but it will not have the room or flexibility to do so. Are the holes used to fasten the wood to the metal ovals (instead of circles) that are also perpendicular to the grain direction
If it's some kind of adhesive, it should be the kind that has high 'gumminess' after curing to maybe let the wood move on its own a bit. That would be borderline but mostly fine.
But, I'm guessing what happened here happened because the wood is thin and fixed in-place at the same time. I would hazard a guess that a 20% thicker wood panel would have less of a chance of cracking. Since PC cases heat up and cool down regularly and rapidly, and the wood is fixed to what is a very thermally conductive and rigid material, I would prefer slightly thicker wood, and maybe mechanical fasteners that have room for movement.
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If the fastening of a wooden part to a rigid, non-organic material does not have room for wood movement it will be the chief cause of cracking/splitting. The wood will want to expand and contract but it will not have the room or flexibility to do so. Are the holes used to fasten the wood to the metal ovals (instead of circles) that are also perpendicular to the grain direction
If it's some kind of adhesive, it should be the kind that has high 'gumminess' after curing to maybe let the wood move on its own a bit. That would be borderline but mostly fine.
But, I'm guessing what happened here happened because the wood is thin and fixed in-place at the same time. I would hazard a guess that a 20% thicker wood panel would have less of a chance of cracking. Since PC cases heat up and cool down regularly and rapidly, and the wood is fixed to what is a very thermally conductive and rigid material, I would prefer slightly thicker wood, and maybe mechanical fasteners that have room for movement.
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MrNside
The wood likely split because of the metal backing plate, not despite it. Metal and wood expand and contract at different rates and for different reasons (metal: temperature, wood: humidity).
Fully adhering metal to wood in this fashion will run such a risk, especially if the production process doesn't monitor the wood moisture levels, or if any part of the processing after the wood and metal are affixed has extreme temperatures or humidity levels. That includes shipping.
Looking at that split, what likely happened was just a localized moist spot in the wood when it was adhered to the metal. Then as the wood shrank as water dissipated and normalized, the metal held it in place when it was slightly expanded like a sponge. The crack is a split along the grain in an obvious weak spot.
The metal would help protect against impacts, flexing, etc. But the glue or even the metal itself isn't strong enough to keep wood from expanding or contracting with water/humidity.
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The wood likely split because of the metal backing plate, not despite it. Metal and wood expand and contract at different rates and for different reasons (metal: temperature, wood: humidity).
Fully adhering metal to wood in this fashion will run such a risk, especially if the production process doesn't monitor the wood moisture levels, or if any part of the processing after the wood and metal are affixed has extreme temperatures or humidity levels. That includes shipping.
Looking at that split, what likely happened was just a localized moist spot in the wood when it was adhered to the metal. Then as the wood shrank as water dissipated and normalized, the metal held it in place when it was slightly expanded like a sponge. The crack is a split along the grain in an obvious weak spot.
The metal would help protect against impacts, flexing, etc. But the glue or even the metal itself isn't strong enough to keep wood from expanding or contracting with water/humidity.
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kyleolson8977
If that's real wood, that frame will not prevent the wood from cracking. Instead, it is more likely to cause the wood to crack.
Wood moves; it expands and contracts, particularly with seasonal or locational changes in heat and moisture. You cannot lock it into place to keep it from cracking. If the wood expands, something has to move or break.
This is a common problem woodworkers face when attaching tabletops. You must attach it in a way so that it can move. You can screw the wood into the frame, but not directly. It should be done so on pivoting pieces. Or you can put it in slots that allow movement.
With such a small piece you might not usually worry as much about movement, but the strips so little movement will matter. The right answer might be You can't ventilate through a piece of wood with such thin strips and expect it not to break so stop trying and put a veneer on instead.
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If that's real wood, that frame will not prevent the wood from cracking. Instead, it is more likely to cause the wood to crack.
Wood moves; it expands and contracts, particularly with seasonal or locational changes in heat and moisture. You cannot lock it into place to keep it from cracking. If the wood expands, something has to move or break.
This is a common problem woodworkers face when attaching tabletops. You must attach it in a way so that it can move. You can screw the wood into the frame, but not directly. It should be done so on pivoting pieces. Or you can put it in slots that allow movement.
With such a small piece you might not usually worry as much about movement, but the strips so little movement will matter. The right answer might be You can't ventilate through a piece of wood with such thin strips and expect it not to break so stop trying and put a veneer on instead.
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azn4ssassin
What if - we still tried to compare case-to-case by trying to illustrate some 'composite' scoring between cases which may include some combination/average of all the multi-configuration scores per case, and perhaps also including some uncertainty (like some fatter error bars) to try to strike a balance between showing what users may end up experiencing between cases vs accepting the uncertainty. Comparing ITX cases head-to-head I understand it's very variable, but I think there's still a lot of value in how we as the end consumers evaluate your ITX recommendations. I think it's safe to say everyone will still try to distill all of these factors into some fuzzy case-vs-case decision, it might just be helpful just to illustrate an attempt to give a condensed starting place for people to compare for a buying decision. Thank you for all you do!
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What if - we still tried to compare case-to-case by trying to illustrate some 'composite' scoring between cases which may include some combination/average of all the multi-configuration scores per case, and perhaps also including some uncertainty (like some fatter error bars) to try to strike a balance between showing what users may end up experiencing between cases vs accepting the uncertainty. Comparing ITX cases head-to-head I understand it's very variable, but I think there's still a lot of value in how we as the end consumers evaluate your ITX recommendations. I think it's safe to say everyone will still try to distill all of these factors into some fuzzy case-vs-case decision, it might just be helpful just to illustrate an attempt to give a condensed starting place for people to compare for a buying decision. Thank you for all you do!
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chadhowell1328
14:09 wood doesn’t expand across the grain but does along the grain (basically opposite of the way it did break). Unfortunately that is just an inherent weakness with wood, especially when it’s machined to that very small dimension. They will have to have crazy good QC on those panels alone to ensure none ship cracked and any amount of pressure along those small areas will cause them to break more often than not.
Now if that back support piece had been wood then it would make sense that the piece expanded from climate change and caused the top panel to crack. The metal backplate may need to be stronger to keep from any pressure being exerted on the wood part. I do think it was a micro crack more than likely and it just got worse as soon as it was used the first time.
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14:09 wood doesn’t expand across the grain but does along the grain (basically opposite of the way it did break). Unfortunately that is just an inherent weakness with wood, especially when it’s machined to that very small dimension. They will have to have crazy good QC on those panels alone to ensure none ship cracked and any amount of pressure along those small areas will cause them to break more often than not.
Now if that back support piece had been wood then it would make sense that the piece expanded from climate change and caused the top panel to crack. The metal backplate may need to be stronger to keep from any pressure being exerted on the wood part. I do think it was a micro crack more than likely and it just got worse as soon as it was used the first time.
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monk3synuts
You could have measured the current being drawn by the PSU whilst under load in situ, then remove the PSU from the case and re-test the current with a clip on ammeter to prove the increased resistance and therefore inefficiencies of the config. No thermisters inside the PSU reporting temps and therefore no other way to asses the impact of the heat soak on the PSU over time other than increased resistance resulting in more current being drawn.
I really do not like the case because of this, it will shorten the life of the PSU undoubtedly, not to mention the back pressure of the intake fan putting extra load on the fan bearings.
Just an engineers point of view!
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You could have measured the current being drawn by the PSU whilst under load in situ, then remove the PSU from the case and re-test the current with a clip on ammeter to prove the increased resistance and therefore inefficiencies of the config. No thermisters inside the PSU reporting temps and therefore no other way to asses the impact of the heat soak on the PSU over time other than increased resistance resulting in more current being drawn.
I really do not like the case because of this, it will shorten the life of the PSU undoubtedly, not to mention the back pressure of the intake fan putting extra load on the fan bearings.
Just an engineers point of view!
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FrenziedManbeast
$200 for a lunchbox with broken wood. I feel so strongly that ITX builds are just psychologically divorced from the economic realities for many people in 2024. Thanks for the review!
Edit: f'cking Greg, man. Also the re-inforcement of the wood with metal backing would avoid wood warping/cupping. However if enough binding energy is in a portion of wood, eventually it will split in multiple places as the imperfect material finds a natural weak point. It's probably inevitable over the course of several years with changes in ambient temperature and humidity. Especially on such a thin/narrow panel of wood.
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$200 for a lunchbox with broken wood. I feel so strongly that ITX builds are just psychologically divorced from the economic realities for many people in 2024. Thanks for the review!
Edit: f'cking Greg, man. Also the re-inforcement of the wood with metal backing would avoid wood warping/cupping. However if enough binding energy is in a portion of wood, eventually it will split in multiple places as the imperfect material finds a natural weak point. It's probably inevitable over the course of several years with changes in ambient temperature and humidity. Especially on such a thin/narrow panel of wood.
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andreaslegomovies
I'd like to see some comparison charts to the other mentioned cases, for the thermals.
While the comparison will never be truly fair for this form-factor, it's good to know how much performance one might sacrifice for looks or space-savings with going with one over the other. And manually switching between videos to compare and extract individual numbers is not convenient.
Although, I'm not really into AIO style liquid cooling (and it doesn't look like I could fit an external pump for a custom loop), so I'm not the target audience for these cases.
(I prefer passive cooling, or custom liquid)
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I'd like to see some comparison charts to the other mentioned cases, for the thermals.
While the comparison will never be truly fair for this form-factor, it's good to know how much performance one might sacrifice for looks or space-savings with going with one over the other. And manually switching between videos to compare and extract individual numbers is not convenient.
Although, I'm not really into AIO style liquid cooling (and it doesn't look like I could fit an external pump for a custom loop), so I'm not the target audience for these cases.
(I prefer passive cooling, or custom liquid)
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Visionary4787
The Fractal AA 2 ITX case is an engineering marvel, blending sleek design with a unique mechanical approach. The top panel acting as a lever That’s a brilliant, user-friendly touch. And the back dust filter doubling as a lock Genius. However, there’s a glaring issue: the power supply and bottom intake fan battling for airflow. It’s a design flaw that could easily sabotage your thermals, especially in a compact build like this. At $200, I expect better airflow solutions, but the solid build quality and innovative features still give it plenty of appeal for enthusiasts craving efficiency and style.
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The Fractal AA 2 ITX case is an engineering marvel, blending sleek design with a unique mechanical approach. The top panel acting as a lever That’s a brilliant, user-friendly touch. And the back dust filter doubling as a lock Genius. However, there’s a glaring issue: the power supply and bottom intake fan battling for airflow. It’s a design flaw that could easily sabotage your thermals, especially in a compact build like this. At $200, I expect better airflow solutions, but the solid build quality and innovative features still give it plenty of appeal for enthusiasts craving efficiency and style.
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Oceanborn712
Fractal Design makes such great beautiful cases, it's insane. I right now have a system in a Fractal North, one in an old Node 202, two in the Ridge and one in a Terra. And I wasn't looking for Fractal specifically, it just ended up like that. I did want the sfftime N-ATX instead of the Ridges but those are much less available so the Ridge was the next best solution and I don't really regret it (although I had to get a new RX 7900 XTX because my Hellhound had heat issues after having to remove the fans in the GPU compartment to fit the card into the case).
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Fractal Design makes such great beautiful cases, it's insane. I right now have a system in a Fractal North, one in an old Node 202, two in the Ridge and one in a Terra. And I wasn't looking for Fractal specifically, it just ended up like that. I did want the sfftime N-ATX instead of the Ridges but those are much less available so the Ridge was the next best solution and I don't really regret it (although I had to get a new RX 7900 XTX because my Hellhound had heat issues after having to remove the fans in the GPU compartment to fit the card into the case).
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shawnduffy279
I think the wood panel has a design flaw.
They are cutting the slots along the grain. This creates weak points, as your panel shows, along edges. Especially with such a thin cross section.
They can simply cut the slots horizontally vs vertically. This would also allow them to virtually remove the point where your sample broke by allowing them to keep that cross section at the same thickness as the rest of the panel. Also increasing some rigidity.
Just a thought.
Cheers!
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I think the wood panel has a design flaw.
They are cutting the slots along the grain. This creates weak points, as your panel shows, along edges. Especially with such a thin cross section.
They can simply cut the slots horizontally vs vertically. This would also allow them to virtually remove the point where your sample broke by allowing them to keep that cross section at the same thickness as the rest of the panel. Also increasing some rigidity.
Just a thought.
Cheers!
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lgolem09l
Ports at the bottom, genius idea for cases on top of desktops. But would even work in my use case, which is the case sitting on the floor in the living room besides by TV stand. The Torrent is currently perfect for that, as it is even the same height as my stand.
Ports at the bottom would allow for cable connected controllers like the dual sense to have less force on the cable.
But I really hope fractal makes a case especially designed for the living room next.
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Ports at the bottom, genius idea for cases on top of desktops. But would even work in my use case, which is the case sitting on the floor in the living room besides by TV stand. The Torrent is currently perfect for that, as it is even the same height as my stand.
Ports at the bottom would allow for cable connected controllers like the dual sense to have less force on the cable.
But I really hope fractal makes a case especially designed for the living room next.
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ryandraj
Hey Steve, thank you for all the information and work you do. I have a question. I RMA my 13700kf, and I am now awaiting a refund.
When I get this refund, what will be your recommended processor for the MSI z690 ACE Meg. I can do 14700kf or 12900kf. I am not sure if the 0x129 microcode fixed everything. What are your thoughts Can you please help me with this All blessings man, keep up the outstanding work.
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Hey Steve, thank you for all the information and work you do. I have a question. I RMA my 13700kf, and I am now awaiting a refund.
When I get this refund, what will be your recommended processor for the MSI z690 ACE Meg. I can do 14700kf or 12900kf. I am not sure if the 0x129 microcode fixed everything. What are your thoughts Can you please help me with this All blessings man, keep up the outstanding work.
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dil6969
It would be cool if there was a manufacturer that made an SFX PSU with an easily reversible cooling fan. Since PSUs in these small cases are rarely mounted conventionally, I'd see it actually being helpful in certain configurations, especially this case. Obviously someone savvy and brave enough could just tear the PSU open and flip the fan, but that definitely isn't a great end user experience.
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It would be cool if there was a manufacturer that made an SFX PSU with an easily reversible cooling fan. Since PSUs in these small cases are rarely mounted conventionally, I'd see it actually being helpful in certain configurations, especially this case. Obviously someone savvy and brave enough could just tear the PSU open and flip the fan, but that definitely isn't a great end user experience.
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darkkingastos4369
Fun fact if wood absorbs water it expands and nothing can prevent this. The metal backing will help keep it from bowing and give it a frame to help prevent damage from outside forces but it will not stop it from expanding if it absorbs water it may in fact cause it to break if it expands and is glued to the metal...NHLA certified hardwood lumber grader here.
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Fun fact if wood absorbs water it expands and nothing can prevent this. The metal backing will help keep it from bowing and give it a frame to help prevent damage from outside forces but it will not stop it from expanding if it absorbs water it may in fact cause it to break if it expands and is glued to the metal...NHLA certified hardwood lumber grader here.
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Danthrax66
Wood moves, putting it on a wooden frame is just going to make the cracking worse, if you look at any solid wood table top it has wide screw holes to allow for expansion. On real wood doors the large flat panels in the middle of the door aren't glued in place they are floating (but tightly fit) so they can move with humidity. Wood needs to be able to move.
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Wood moves, putting it on a wooden frame is just going to make the cracking worse, if you look at any solid wood table top it has wide screw holes to allow for expansion. On real wood doors the large flat panels in the middle of the door aren't glued in place they are floating (but tightly fit) so they can move with humidity. Wood needs to be able to move.
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Snakesht172
That metal frame keeping the wood from wrapping is the reason the wood cracked. Wood will still want to move and react to temp and humidity, regardless. So trying to lock the wood down will force that stress to go somewhere; in this case cracking at the weakest point. They would have better luck using a wood veneer with a uv treated finish.
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That metal frame keeping the wood from wrapping is the reason the wood cracked. Wood will still want to move and react to temp and humidity, regardless. So trying to lock the wood down will force that stress to go somewhere; in this case cracking at the weakest point. They would have better luck using a wood veneer with a uv treated finish.
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SHINYREDBULLETS
Nice to see manufacturers coming out with some decent gear recently!! :) Also, I'd love to see GN build a PC based off surveys ('pick from these cases,' 'pick from these processors & mobos,' etc) and see how that system would hold up to standard tests in comparison to expectations/costs/whats available from SIs, etc!
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Nice to see manufacturers coming out with some decent gear recently!! :) Also, I'd love to see GN build a PC based off surveys ('pick from these cases,' 'pick from these processors & mobos,' etc) and see how that system would hold up to standard tests in comparison to expectations/costs/whats available from SIs, etc!
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FrancisFjordCupola
Got the Era 1. Love the case. It was simply never meant for insanely hot hardware. I wanted (and did) put electrically frugal hardware in it and it's never a problem. I can see several improvements #2 made. It doesn't look a lot bigger, but I hope we don't get the eternal size/feature creep of ever bigger stuff.
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Got the Era 1. Love the case. It was simply never meant for insanely hot hardware. I wanted (and did) put electrically frugal hardware in it and it's never a problem. I can see several improvements #2 made. It doesn't look a lot bigger, but I hope we don't get the eternal size/feature creep of ever bigger stuff.
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