At the beginning of this decade, Swedish premium case manufacturer Fractal Design launched a global product refresh with the introduction of the new Terra, North, Torrent, Pop and Ridge product lines. Most of them continued the traditions laid down in the days of Node (note: rigor, minimalism, quality), but some still managed to surprise. In particular, in the case of the Ridge series, the company has achieved an extremely serious and modern implementation of Desktop cases.


The original Ridge is an unconventional horizontal case with a fabric front panel, which is perfect as a multimedia center in the living room or a fashionable monitor stand. Thanks to a neat stand, the case can be placed in a more familiar vertical position, placing it on a table or under a table. The manufacturer has made most of the internal elements modular, simplifying the assembly process and increasing component compatibility. So, a gaming video card and a compact liquid cooling system (LCS) can theoretically fit inside the Ridge.

Immediately after the announcement of the original Ridge case, Fractal Design announced that this would be a separate line of SFF cases. At the launch, the manufacturer presented 2 almost identical variations in black and white with a mesh front panel and perforated walls. Both options support the installation of Mini-ITX motherboards, massive video cards up to 335 mm long, low-profile tower coolers and four 2.5-inch drives. At the same time, two Aspect 14 PWM fans are installed inside the Ridge, so the potential user will not have to worry about additional case cooling. Overall, Fractal Design has created an excellent and modern alternative to compact Node cases.