Fractal Design Core 3000 Case Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. The Fractal Design Core 3000: Exterior4. The Fractal Design Core 3000: Interior and Installation5. Testing Methodology, Temperatures and Noise Level6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

We decided to use the Intel Core i5 2500K processor for testing alongside the mammoth Noctua NH-D14 CPU cooler.  We used the Gigabyte Z68X-UD5 motherboard and an AMD Radeon 6950 (modded to a 6970) graphics card.

Test System

Chassis: Fractal Design Core 3000
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z68X-UD5
CPU: Intel Core i5 2500K
Memory: Kingston HyperX 4GB (2x2GB) 2133MHz
PSU: Corsair HX850W
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon 6950 (modded to a 6970)
Cooler: Noctua NH-D14
Thermal Paste: Arctic Cooling MX-3
Hard Drive: Kingston SSDNow V+ 128GB

Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
Speedfan
Furmark
Prime95

For our temperature tests we loaded our test system for ten minutes using Prime95 and Furmark (V1.9) at the same time and then recorded the CPU temperature using SpeedFan and the GPU temperature using CPUID Hardware Monitor.  Idle temperatures were measured after the system had been left idling at the desktop for 20 minutes.  Room temperature was maintained at 22c for the duration of our tests.

The temperatures we recorded were very reasonable, thanks in part to the awesome cooling power of the Noctua NH-D14 CPU cooler.  We were quite surprised how little the temperatures increased when we knocked the fans down to the lower setting, so we would definably recommend this to anyone buying the Core 3000.

While we wouldn't say the Core 3000 is loud, all the fan vents in the side and roof seem to let noise escape from the inside very readily, especially when we compare it to the fully soundproofed Define XL.  The most noisy component in our system was the Radeon 6950 which was distinctly audible over all the other fans.  Our test system was noticeably quieter when we reduced the fan speed to minimum.

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