Page 4 - Installation and Conclusion
As with all the installations I do, the first thing on my list was to take the power supply and slot it into place. In this build, I used the Cooler Master V1000 1000W. A maximum length of 175mm is stated by Fractal Design for the power supply, though I would recommend even less, especially if you need to move the drive cage to accommodate front cooling options. The other option would be to remove the drive cage entirely, which is an option if you do not have any large 3.5" drives. The V1000 was a bit tight, though there was still ample space to store my extra cables in the bottom chamber. The next thing I did was route the necessary power cables. The rubber grommets do an excellent job in only allowing cables through while blocking the rest of the opening for a cleaner look. Micro ATX layouts are generally pretty standardized across manufacturers, so the routing options provided here are quite adequate.
The next step I took was installing the motherboard. I took my Gigabyte GA-Z170N-Gaming 5 motherboard with an Intel Core i5-6600K at the heart and two sticks of Patriot Viper Elite PC4-24000 2x8GB DDR4 RAM mounted in. Obviously, I could have also installed the larger mATX motherboard, but this was all I had on hand. On the other hand, this meant there were a lot of cables streaming in from the side, making for a less clean cabling job. Cooling the processor was a CRYORIG C7, which was not an intentional choice at all. Despite the mini moniker, the Meshify C Mini has the same height limitations as its bigger brother, the Meshify C. Fractal Design states a clearance of 172mm for the CPU cooler, which is quite a bit. For your reference, heatsinks as large as the Noctua NH-D15 measure 165mm in height. I would have also installed my graphics card at this point, but I did not have one for this build. The manufacturer does state a maximum length of 315mm for your video card, assuming you leave the fan mounted at the front. Finally, I plugged all the power and data connecting cables into their respective slots.
Fractal Design has always delivered in providing an ample amount of space for your cables, and I did not find any issues here. The three Fractal Design labeled Velcro straps were useful in gathering all the excess cables. I routed most of the cables through the lane except for the 8-pin CPU power cable, which was routed up the back side and into the top. In addition, there is quite a bit of wiggle room here to squeeze all your cables in. The extra clearance near the front was much appreciated, allowing cables to sit here without running any interference with securing the right side panel. I also think there were quite a few cable tie points, which really helped in addition to the Velcro straps. I am quite happy with the cabling situation in the back, as everything is situated either in the valley or hidden away under the shroud. Overall, I think Fractal Design has done an excellent job in giving ample room at the back. Otherwise, you can also see the Patriot Ignite 480GB mounted on the triple drive plate.
From here, you can see the finished look of the machine. It may not necessarily be made for a home theater computer, as I had issues completely enclosing it in our television stand. However, its subtle and clean look still is fitting for the environment, at least in my opinion. As you can see from the photo above, the window side panel is completely hidden from my eyes, but I still like the darker tint on the tempered glass. According to the standard APH Networks sound scale, where 0 is silence and 10 is loud, the Fractal Design Meshify C Mini is a 3.5/10 on everyday usage. Once again, clear airflow, and not sound reduction, is the main point of the Meshify C Mini, so the tradeoffs are understandable. Thankfully, none of the other parts, like fans or the window, rattle around, keeping overall noise to a minimum.
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As we noted in the introduction, scaling the size of many things can introduce complexities. However, with the Fractal Design Meshify C Mini, the scaling down process has not changed a whole lot about the case, which is both good and bad. From the top, we still have the same excellent build quality and layout as we have seen from Fractal Design. Its focus on an open airflow design is present and the smaller size did not detract from this goal. The solid glass panel keeps up with the case trends with nice polished additions such as the foam vibration strips and painted border. Otherwise, smart design choices such as captive thumbscrews in all the right places, retail stock fans, and rubber grommets are also great to see. Installation was a painless process, with ample spacing for thick cables, many cable tie points, and smart placement for routing holes. As Fractal Design only shrunk the height for the Meshify C Mini, compatibility of components like CPU cooling, graphic cards, or power supplies has not changed for the most part. In addition, it featured the same drive capacity as its bigger brother. All of these advantages are pretty much the same advantages we saw in the original Meshify C. Similarly, the only disadvantage is the same thing I complained about with the original, which is the lack of USB Type-C on the front panel I/O. I know it is not necessarily a huge deal, but its omission is a bit of a head-scratcher. Otherwise, the Fractal Design Meshify C Mini keeps its airflow-centric design in a slightly smaller package. The MSRP for this case is set at $90 USD, which is also the same cost as the original Meshify C. Thus, the choice is up to you in terms of which case you want to buy, as both the original and minified Meshify C are superb options.
Fractal Design provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH equal.balance Award | APH Review Focus Summary:
8/10 means Definitely a very good product with drawbacks that are not likely going to matter to the end user.
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks; but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Numeric Rating is 7.8/10
Please note that the APH Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other sites.
The Fractal Design Meshify C Mini keeps everything we like about the original without sacrificing anything in this scaled down version.
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Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Installation and Conclusion
