280mm radiator in Fractal Design Arc Mini R2

[Lee Neighoff]

The top of the Fractal Arc Mini R2 has space for either two 120mm or 140mm fans, yet the spec sheet only lists 240mm radiator compatibility. I'd like to mount an H110i GTX in the case (I have two 140mm fans in the spot right now), but I'd like to know why Fractal is not listing 280mm radiators as compatible.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

Fractal Design Arc Mini R2

http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/cases/arc-series/arc-mini-r2

Cooling system

Front: 2 - 120mm fans (included is one hydraulic bearing 120mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1200 RPM speed)
Rear: 1 - 120mm fan (included is a hydraulic bearing 120mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1200 RPM speed)
Top: 2 - 120/140mm fans (included is one hydraulic bearing 140mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1000 RPM speed) 1 - 120mm fan (not included)
Bottom: 1 - 120mm fan (not included)
Fan controller: 1 - integrated fan controller for up to 3 fans (included)
Water cooling compatibility:
Front – 240mm radiator (thick and slim) when HDD cages are removed, radiator cannot exceed 275mm in total length with the ODD bay in place.
Top – 240mm or 360mm radiators (thick and slim); the use of 360mm radiators requires removal of the ODD cage.
Bottom – 120mm radiators
Rear – 120mm radiators

 

[Lee Neighoff]

Fractal Design Arc Mini R2

http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/cases/arc-series/arc-mini-r2

Cooling system

Front: 2 - 120mm fans (included is one hydraulic bearing 120mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1200 RPM speed)
Rear: 1 - 120mm fan (included is a hydraulic bearing 120mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1200 RPM speed)
Top: 2 - 120/140mm fans (included is one hydraulic bearing 140mm Silent Series R2 fan, 1000 RPM speed) 1 - 120mm fan (not included)
Bottom: 1 - 120mm fan (not included)
Fan controller: 1 - integrated fan controller for up to 3 fans (included)
Water cooling compatibility:
Front – 240mm radiator (thick and slim) when HDD cages are removed, radiator cannot exceed 275mm in total length with the ODD bay in place.
Top – 240mm or 360mm radiators (thick and slim); the use of 360mm radiators requires removal of the ODD cage.
Bottom – 120mm radiators
Rear – 120mm radiators

That's what I referred to, yes.

Could you please answer my question, though?

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/cases_cooling/fractal_design_arc_mini_r2_review/7

And so to water cooling. Fractal say you can fit a "thick or thin" rad in the roof of either 280 or 360, but let's look at exactly what will and what won't fit and why. The first critical measurement to look at is the distance from the edge of the motherboard to the roof. In the case of the Mini R2 this is 50mm. At first view this isn't enough to fit in any of the decent 240 or 280mm based AIOs on the market as both the Kraken X60 and the H100i both come in a few millimetres over this minimal distance. Ok you could say that few millimetres won't make any difference and you may well be right but as it happens you're not going to have to worry because as we observed earlier the roof mounting holes are actually off-set to bring the Rad and fan assembly away from the motherboard, and as such the X60, H100i should fi just fine.

 

[Lee Neighoff]

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/cases_cooling/fractal_design_arc_mini_r2_review/7

And so to water cooling. Fractal say you can fit a "thick or thin" rad in the roof of either 280 or 360, but let's look at exactly what will and what won't fit and why. The first critical measurement to look at is the distance from the edge of the motherboard to the roof. In the case of the Mini R2 this is 50mm. At first view this isn't enough to fit in any of the decent 240 or 280mm based AIOs on the market as both the Kraken X60 and the H100i both come in a few millimetres over this minimal distance. Ok you could say that few millimetres won't make any difference and you may well be right but as it happens you're not going to have to worry because as we observed earlier the roof mounting holes are actually off-set to bring the Rad and fan assembly away from the motherboard, and as such the X60, H100i should fi just fine.

That article talks about 120mm radiators fitting in just fine despite what it appears, but they did not test-fit a 280mm radiator.

I just stacked two 140mm fans and put them in the top area, and it appears that an H110i will fit, but I would like some confirmation.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

All the info I can locate has no definitive answer.

 

[Attren]

I have the arc midi r2, and a h110i i was not able to fit it on the front no matter what i did, removed the HDD cages and still nope. I did get it to fit on the top with the optical drive bay still in but it was not at all pretty... I also have the Asus Maximus viii hero, i had to remove my ESD Guard as well in order to fit it. But once i removed my optical drive cage and my ESD guard it fit perfectly. If i were to do it i would get a 140 rad instead. But i am pleased with how it turned out none the less. I would recommend if you do go my route to get an external optical drive so you don't have to have on rest on top of your case if you need to use one. I had to rest one on top of my case for the longest time until obtaining an external optical drive.