Fractal Design Terra mITX SFF Case Review

TweakTown's Rating: 93%

The Bottom Line

Fractal's Terra makes a big impact on the SFF market, making it a great value for those wanting big performance in a small package.

Pros

• + Unique sandwich design can accommodate larger GPUs
• + Movable motherboard tray to allow additional hardware flexibility
• + The stylish front panel features walnut wood
• + Includes a PCIe 4.0 riser cable & eco-friendly packaging
• + Very premium durable construction made with 8mm thick anodized aluminum

Cons

• - Must use short GPU if using a 120mm CPU AIO

Should you buy it?

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Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

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Fractal Design, primarily known for its line of Define cases, has introduced a new mITX case, the Terra. Usually supporting water cooling radiators, the Terra trades that in for a space-saving design rivaling the Dan case and others in the sub-15-liter mITX case market. The Terra demands a premium for such a small chassis, priced at $179.99 for three different color models - silver, graphite, and jade.

Fractal Design Node 804

	Today	Yesterday	7 days ago	30 days ago
	$141.99	$141.99	$143.37	$139.99	Buy
	-	-	$124.99	$124.99	Buy
* Prices last scanned on 9/28/2023 at 6:09 pm CDT - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission.

Packaging

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The Fractal Terra mITX case comes in the traditional brown cardboard box with some branding and the name on the sides of the package.

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Opening the box reveals a note in an envelope, thanking you for choosing Terra from the Fractal team. Also, a detailed blueprint is on the right-hand side. This addition adds a lovely welcoming touch.

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Fractal has packaged the Terra in two pieces of corrugated cardboard on the ends with a fabric cover to protect the Terra during shipping.

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Fractal has always been known for having a comprehensive user guide. Also, Fractal wants you to contact them first if you have any issues per the red leaflet.

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For accessories, Fractal has included a few velcro ties, zip ties, an SSD/2.5" HDD mount, various screws, and, lastly, a microfiber cleaning cloth.

Outside the Fractal Design Terra mITX Case

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The front of the Terra is subdued with a flat front graphite fascia with a walnut wood section on the bottom, containing the show I/O. The front I/O has a power button with the Fractal logo in the center, a USB 3.0 Type-C port, and a USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port with fast charging and speeds up to 10Gbps.

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The right side panel, the same on the left side, has ventilation slots cut into the panels to allow the components to pull in outside air.

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The rear of the Terra shows the compactness that can be achieved. The motherboard section on the left and the GPU section on the right can be moved in seven positions to allow for more clearance. The top section is also removable, with the leather pull tab on the top. The power cable is also relocated to the rear via an extension.

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The bottom of the Terra shows two points where the motherboard can be unscrewed and tightened down. Two more points are located on the spine of the Terra right under the top panel. The Terra does support 120mm fans in two locations, but you will need help to fit one in. Using a short GPU might be an option if that is your mission. An SSD can be mounted on the floor in these locations as well.

Inside the Fractal Design Terra mITX Case

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Lifting both sides of the Terra shows how the gull-wing panels open up; this shows how exposed everything is but is engineered with meticulous care.

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Here is the hinge mechanism on one of the side panels. Push the lever to the front of the Terra, and the panel is released.

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With both sides and the top panels removed, Terra's bones are exposed, showing the spine.

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The included PCIe 4.0 riser cable is of excellent quality and is pre-routed to make the initial build easier.

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The PCIe mount also can be removed for easier installation of larger GPUs like the NVIDIA RTX 3090 FE used here. Two thumb screws and a small Phillips head screw hold the PCIe mount in place.

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As you can see, the NVIDIA RTX 3090 FE barely fits in place.

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The front section of the Terra is reserved for routing the power cable neatly and functionally. In front are a few velcro cable ties to stow some of the PSU cables away. An SSD/2.5" HDD could also be mounted here with the included bracket.

Test System, Installation, and Finished Product

• Motherboard: B650I AORUS Ultra(AMD B650) - Buy from Amazon
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900 - Buy from Amazon
• Cooler: AMD Wraith Stealth - Buy from Amazon
• Memory: Patriot Viper Venom RGB DDR5-5600 32GB - Buy from Amazon
• Graphics Card: NVIDIA RTX 3090 Founders Edition - Buy from Amazon
• Storage: Corsair MP600 PRO XT Gen4 PCIe x4 NVMe M.2 SSD - Buy from Amazon
• Case: Fractal Design Terra - Buy from Amazon
• Software: AIDA64 Engineer 6.32.5600, and CPU-z 1.94.0 x64
• Power Supply: Corsair SF850L 850w ATX 3.0 PSU Buy from Amazon
• OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 64-bit Build 22621 - Buy from Amazon
• Software: AIDA64 Engineer 6.8.6300, and CPU-z 2.03.0 x64

Final Thoughts

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Testing the Terra once all the testing hardware was installed, this time going with an AMD Ryzen 9 7900, a 65-watt CPU, on a B650I AORUS Ultra mITX motherboard. Cooling it is the AMD Wraith Stealth CPU cooler, which to my surprise, kept the Ryzen 9 7900 under the 95C threshold at 93C. The Ryzen 9 7900 did boost to over 4GHz most of the time, pulling over 90 watts. The NVIDIA RTX 3090 FE did what it usually does: pulled about 368 watts, with a max temp of 72C. The ambient temperature was 20C.

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Moving over to cable management, and well for an mITX system, the Terra is middle of the pack here. It's almost tough not to bunch all the cables up in one space; this time, it's right next to the motherboard and PSU, but there are a few places to route the necessary cabling. The 12VHPWR cable snaked past the PSU and was a straight shot to the RTX 3090 FE. The 8-pin CPU EPS just ran the length of the Terra and plugged right in.

So is the Terra from Fractal Design your next mITX case? It may be. The build quality is top-notch, down to the 8mm thick aluminum construction, the ability to move its spine to accommodate larger GPUs or taller CPU coolers, and the overall presentation. Priced at $179.99 is a lot to ask for in an mITX case, but other cases like the Dan Case A4-SFX and the Ghost S1, both of which want about a $100 premium over the Terra, make the price for the Terra seem like a much better value.

Now there are some things that the Terra does not support; yeah, I am talking about water cooling, though technically the Terra could support a 120mm AIO, I wouldn't bother and would use a low-profile CPU cooler instead. Another thing that Terra is lacking is fans; the Terra solely relies on the internal hardware to draw air in via the ventilation.