Question Fractal Design Meshify S2 side panel question

[Kalik212]

I'm going to be getting this case for my new build but was wondering about the side panels...I usually don't like clear side panels but the Dark Tint Tempered Glass looks interesting

1. how dark is it?...it's hard to tell from pictures...is it easy to see through the panel inside the case?...like I said I normally prefer solid panels but if the Dark glass is really dark then I might go in that direction
2. are the side panels interchangeable?...meaning if I get the Tempered Side Panel version can I switch the left/right panels?...meaning can I put the solid panel on the left side and the clear panel on the right?

thanks for any help!

 

[Darkbreeze]

It's pretty dark. RGB and other LED lit items will be visible, at reduced levels, but not so much as with a clear panel.

No, the panels are likely not switchable because the TG panels fasten differently than the plain steel or steel wit acrylic panels do. Besides, you wouldn't want to do that anyhow. If you want a solid panel, get one with a solid panel.

This pretty clearly shows how visible things are inside with the Meshify S2 dark tinted TG.

 

[Darkbreeze]

But as I said, if you want that case but WITHOUT the TG side panel, then get THAT.

Welcome to the Fractal Design Website

Fractal Design is a leading designer and manufacturer of premium PC hardware including cases, cooling, power supplies and accessories.

www.fractal-design.com

 

[Kalik212]

No, the panels are likely not switchable because the TG panels fasten differently than the plain steel or steel wit acrylic panels do. Besides, you wouldn't want to do that anyhow. If you want a solid panel, get one with a solid panel.

main reason I was wondering about swapping panels is that way if I get the Dark Tint glass and I find it not dark enough I could always swap the right/left panels...with my desk and positioning only the left side (tinted glass) is visible so I could just swap panels if I don't like it

 

[Darkbreeze]

Well, the ORIGINAL panels on my Define S, the first gen version of that case, are swappable. The acrylic windowed panel can be switched with the solid panel OR you can put TWO acrylic windowed panels on that case, however, I purchased a full TG panel upgrade for it and THAT panel is not swappable with the right side panel, so while I can't say for CERTAIN, I think it's highly probable that they will not be interchangeable.

However, if you don't want to see the stuff inside, and really that is the ONLY reason for having a Windowed panel, then I'd suggest just getting the solid panel model. Or, get the Windowed TG panel model and then BUY a standard side panel through Fractal if it turns out to be not to your liking. I think err on the side of caution though, if you already know you won't like it, and just go with what you WILL like.

 

[Kalik212]

Well, the ORIGINAL panels on my Define S, the first gen version of that case, are swappable. The acrylic windowed panel can be switched with the solid panel OR you can put TWO acrylic windowed panels on that case, however, I purchased a full TG panel upgrade for it and THAT panel is not swappable with the right side panel, so while I can't say for CERTAIN, I think it's highly probable that they will not be interchangeable.

in that YouTube video you linked to earlier he actually does try and swap out the side panels...but he only swapped out the left (solid) panel to see if it would fit in the right slot...it fit fine...but he didn't test out the opposite- the TG panel on the right side

the part where he tries switching out the panels starts at the 3:40 mark...

View: https://youtu.be/t9OPE1_4tFE?t=220

 

[Darkbreeze]

Actually, I revisited this today. Seems my TG left side panel WILL fit on the right (Backside) so if the right panel fits on the left side of that case I would assume the reverse is true as well. I thought so, but I don't know why I was thinking it didn't fit on mine. Oh well, I'll chalk it up to getting old.

And just for the purpose of clarity, the windowed panels on most cases are on the left. The solid panels that cover the backside of the motherboard tray are on the right, not the other way around. There are a few reversed cases that are the opposite, but most are not that way.

I think you would be fine, BUT, if you shoot off an email to support at Fractal design, they should get back to you within a day or two. Maybe a little longer right now because most tech support for a lot of companies are working from home because of 'Rona, but Fractal is very good about customer support and responding to inquiries. I've dealt with them a number of times and in my experience they are among the very best in the industry along with EVGA and Corsair when it comes to support, both before and after the sale.

 

[Kalik212]

Actually, I revisited this today. Seems my TG left side panel WILL fit on the right (Backside) so if the right panel fits on the left side of that case I would assume the reverse is true as well. I thought so, but I don't know why I was thinking it didn't fit on mine. Oh well, I'll chalk it up to getting old.

thanks...so you actually tested it out?...you were able to put the Meshify S2 TG panel on the right side and it fits and locks into place fine?...I thought I read someplace that the screws were different

 

[Darkbreeze]

No, I was able to put the Define S, first generation, tempered glass side panel on the opposite side. As I said in my earlier post, I have the first generation Define S, not the S2. Even so, if it works on this case, AND if on the S2 as you said the solid panel from the right side is able to be installed on the right side where the tempered glass panel normally goes, then it stands to reason that the tempered glass panel should ALSO be able to be installed where the right side panel came from as well.

A solid side panel runs about 17 dollar US, plus shipping, but may also be available through alternate retail sources rather than ordering directly from Fractal design.

https://www.fractal-design-shop.de/Meshify-S2-Left-Side-Panel-Black

 

[Makaveli]

I have the clear window version of this case and its great.

A very clean build.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Well then, you can tell us if the left side panel and right side panel can swap places or not?

 

[Kalik212]

if you shoot off an email to support at Fractal design, they should get back to you within a day or two. Maybe a little longer right now because most tech support for a lot of companies are working from home because of 'Rona, but Fractal is very good about customer support and responding to inquiries. I've dealt with them a number of times and in my experience they are among the very best in the industry along with EVGA and Corsair when it comes to support, both before and after the sale.

I took your advice and e-mailed Fractal...they replied back and stated that for the Meshify S2, both the right and left hand side panels are interchangeable...so good news!

 

[Makaveli]

Well then, you can tell us if the left side panel and right side panel can swap places or not?

isn't that already covered in the video above?

 

[Kalik212]

isn't that already covered in the video above?

the video only shows the right side panel fitting in the left slot...the guy just assumes the left will fit in the right but never actually tries it

 

[Darkbreeze]

I took your advice and e-mailed Fractal...they replied back and stated that for the Meshify S2, both the right and left hand side panels are interchangeable...so good news!

See! I told you they were good about getting back to people and that I thought it WOULD be interchangeable. So that IS good news.

 

[Kalik212]

bumping my thread to ask another question about the Meshify S2 case...I'm using 5 case fans- 3 front intake, 1 rear exhaust and 1 top exhaust...I started building my new system and was wondering about adding a bottom 140mm intake fan...but when I place it inside the PSU shroud it seems to be in a weird position...if I place it in the bottom front position then it's literally right in front of my 3rd front intake fan...won't that block the air from my front fan and divert it up?...if I place it in the 2nd position in the bottom it's right up against my PSU and I'm worried that the PSU wires might get caught in the fans

how are people placing the bottom intake fan?...any worries about it interfering with the front intake fan airflow?

 

[Darkbreeze]

I don't recommend using a bottom intake fan. You already have PLENTY of fans for ANY kind of configuration. The only changes I might suggest would be that if any of your existing fans are 120mm and you can fit 140mm fans in those locations, that is always a good idea because you can in most cases move the same amount of air with less noise or more air at the same noise level. If the new fans are very quiet models like Noctua NF-A14 PWM or NF-A14 PWM chromax.black.swap fans, then you might actually be able to move more air AND reduce noise levels as well.

But most modern cases, and practically all modern tower cases, have no need for bottom fans other than the PSU's fan, which itself should be divorced from the rest of the system drawing it's air in through the bottom of the case and blowing directly out the back. It's generally not recommended to have the power supply grill facing into the case. Probably not relevant to this conversation though.

Three 140mm intake fans is enough for ANY system I have every worked with or known about. In any configuration where it is not enough, then it might be wise to reduce the overclock because surely it has one, or resort to an open air type case. For 99% of configurations there is no situation where you ought to need more than three intake fans and two exhaust fans, which themselves should be located exactly where you have yours now. Keep in mind as well, your exhaust fans provide the majority of the cooling performance. Positive pressure is what you mostly gain from more intake fans and all that provides is dust suppression as well as an influx of ambient air to replace whatever your exhaust fans are getting rid of, but putting more in than your exhaust fans can expel doesn't really add anything to the cooling performance.

 

[Kalik212]

I don't recommend using a bottom intake fan. You already have PLENTY of fans for ANY kind of configuration. The only changes I might suggest would be that if any of your existing fans are 120mm and you can fit 140mm fans in those locations, that is always a good idea because you can in most cases move the same amount of air with less noise or more air at the same noise level. If the new fans are very quiet models like Noctua NF-A14 PWM or NF-A14 PWM chromax.black.swap fans, then you might actually be able to move more air AND reduce noise levels as well.

But most modern cases, and practically all modern tower cases, have no need for bottom fans other than the PSU's fan, which itself should be divorced from the rest of the system drawing it's air in through the bottom of the case and blowing directly out the back. It's generally not recommended to have the power supply grill facing into the case. Probably not relevant to this conversation though.

Three 140mm intake fans is enough for ANY system I have every worked with or known about. In any configuration where it is not enough, then it might be wise to reduce the overclock because surely it has one, or resort to an open air type case. For 99% of configurations there is no situation where you ought to need more than three intake fans and two exhaust fans, which themselves should be located exactly where you have yours now. Keep in mind as well, your exhaust fans provide the majority of the cooling performance. Positive pressure is what you mostly gain from more intake fans and all that provides is dust suppression as well as an influx of ambient air to replace whatever your exhaust fans are getting rid of, but putting more in than your exhaust fans can expel doesn't really add anything to the cooling performance.

thanks for the info...I actually have everything setup exactly as you recommended...all 5 of my case fans are 140mm Noctua NF-A14 PWM...the bottom case fan was tempting me because I was thinking it would provide a direct line from the top exhaust...so the bottom intake and top exhaust would provide a direct airflow lane

as it is now the top exhaust seems like it may be interfering with my current front to back airflow...plus it would almost be directly underneath my GPU and I thought it would provide additional cooling to it

 

[Darkbreeze]

I must be confused because I was under the impression you said you had the rear and the top-rear locations populated with exhaust fans? That is how it SHOULD be anyhow for the majority of air cooled configurations. If you have middle or front fan locations in the top that are populated with exhaust fans you WILL be stealing airflow from the front to rear airpath, and you don't want that. You should really only use the middle or front top fan locations if you are using an AIO or custom loop cooling with a front mounted radiator. Then airflow TO and THROUGH the heatsink isn't a priority because, there isn't one there for it to BE a priority.

If you have a top mounted fan that is not the rear location, plus one other exhaust fan that is in the actual REAR location, that is where you want them to be and you should move your top fan to the top-rear location.

 

[Kalik212]

I must be confused because I was under the impression you said you had the rear and the top-rear locations populated with exhaust fans? That is how it SHOULD be anyhow for the majority of air cooled configurations. If you have middle or front fan locations in the top that are populated with exhaust fans you WILL be stealing airflow from the front to rear airpath, and you don't want that. You should really only use the middle or front top fan locations if you are using an AIO or custom loop cooling with a front mounted radiator. Then airflow TO and THROUGH the heatsink isn't a priority because, there isn't one there for it to BE a priority.

If you have a top mounted fan that is not the rear location, plus one other exhaust fan that is in the actual REAR location, that is where you want them to be and you should move your top fan to the top-rear location.

by top exhaust I was referring to the top blowhole case fan...I have 3 front intake, 1 rear/back exhaust, 1 top exhaust...I thought the top/blowhole exhaust lined up with a bottom exhaust might be better then just having the top exhaust which like you said might be stealing airflow from the front to back directional airflow

in other words the rear exhaust is lined up with the front intake so in the same vein I thought having a top blowhole lined up with a bottom intake might have the same benefits

I heard having a fan in the top rear position perpendicular to the rear/back exhaust is not good because both fans would be fighting for airflow...the top of my case has room for 3 140mm fans and I was thinking the best slot for it would be the middle slot over the CPU cooler

 

[Darkbreeze]

This is what you should have. If you have this, then just stop the whole process of thinking there is a better way, because there's not. It's been tested, and tested, and tested, by companies with millions of research dollars, and every reviewer and enthusiast out there, so finding additional refinements or configurations now that are going to change something are pretty much nonexistent for current case configurations. This is currently THE most efficient way to set up a tower cooler for best performance with an air cooler.

And this is what I'm talking about as far as "stealing" the airflow. The first one is configured as above, the second one is configured with fans in the top fan locations but in FRONT of the air cooler.

While this one has fans in the top middle/front, so that some portion of the incoming ambient air, which is cooler than anything in the case, never reaches the CPU cooler before it gets sucked back out of the case. THAT, is the problem that can happen. Installing a bottom fan would likely just make things worse by further disrupting the air path from intake to cooler to exhaust.

 

[Kalik212]

And this is what I'm talking about as far as "stealing" the airflow. The first one is configured as above, the second one is configured with fans in the top fan locations but in FRONT of the air cooler.

thanks for those pics...so as long as the top blowhole fan is not in front of the CPU cooler then everything should be fine?...I'm in the middle of my build and wasn't sure if I should even bother with the top fan...I attached a pic of my build...my case has slots for 3 140mm fans on top...would it be optimal to place that top fan furthest to the left (closest to the rear exhaust fan) or one slot over (directly on top of the CPU cooler)?...in both case it is still not in front of the CPU cooler

even with the optimal/most efficient pic you attached, isn't the top fan and the rear exhaust still competing for airflow?...both are trying to exhaust air meaning they are stealing it from each other

 

[Darkbreeze]

Yes, closest to the rear exhaust fan. Like my Define S seen here.

 

[Kalik212]

looks like my plan to add a 140mm exhaust on top is not happening...when I went to install it, the CPU power plug is blocking it...so no can do...a 120mm fan will fit so I might just go that route and order a Noctua 120mm...that's why I hate this new trend of mid-tower cases...I always prefer building in full tower because of the extra space but full towers are hard to find nowadays (good ones at least)...I used to always go with Lian Li for that reason

 

[Darkbreeze]

I've built a LOT of systems in mid tower cases over the last ten years (Longer really, but for more modern case designs we'll stick to those from the last ten years) and honestly this is the fan configuration I've used for them ALL, and I've never, not once, had any problem with installing fans in the rear-most top fan location due to the EPS 12v 4pin, 4+4 pin or 4+4+4 pin CPU power connectors. Your Meshify S2 case is actually even BIGGER than my Define S case, so you should have MORE room there than I do.

You may need to route that cable in through one of the small openings from the backside of the motherboard tray and then manually put a 90 degree bend in the cable by, well, bending it so that the wiring doesn't stick up any further than is necessary and then plugging it into the EPS socket along the top edge of the motherboard, but there is absolutely no reason why you should not be able to put a fan there. EVERY person with the Meshify 2, well, maybe not EVERY person, but I'd guess probably 90% of them, has to do that exact thing and nobody has any problems. If there were problems doing that, EVERY tech enthusiast in the world and every reviewer would be screaming at Fractal design about it being a design flaw, and they aren't, so it's not.

Consider, I have personally built a system in that exact case for a client, using a fan in the exact fan location we are talking about, that was a 140mm Fractal design fan (Model doesn't really make any difference. Yes, there are 15mm thick fans, but those are specialty items. Nearly ALL 140mm fans on the market are 25mm thick, so there is a standard across the board and really no room for variation), with a Thermalright Macho rev.C air cooler installed, and there was no problem plugging in the EPS 12v 4+4 CPU power connector.

Of note though is the fact that this probably HAS to be done with the CPU cooler OUT of the case, so that you have room to get in there and do what needs to be done including routing the cable in through one of the two grommeted cable management holes coming from the backside of the motherboard tray, as seen in the image below. You will STILL need to bend the wiring bundle down a little bit though probably, so that the bundle has a lower profile than the body of the fan, or tuck it up between the fan and the motherboard tray itself because there WILL be a small amount of room remaining there when the fan is properly mounted. It will definitely fit, no question, if you take the time to figure it out and do it right. There is plenty of room and this SHOULD be a non-issue. I'm not doubting that it feels like there is interference, or a lack of space, but I'd chalk this up to simply not being tremendously experienced with building and cable management moreso than because it actually doesn't fit.

If it couldn't fit, then the same problem would exist for pretty much ALL mid tower cases, and that just isn't "a thing".