NCASE M1: a crowdfunded Mini-ITX case (updates in first post)

[AFD]

Maybe Necere will wake up one morning and give W360 a call about this awesome case he designed in his dream, one that makes heads explodes just thinking about it.

Intel NUC replacement case that fits a standard GPU? Not sure how you would actually connect it, but that might actually be kinda neat.

I highly, highly doubt that. Who in their right mind would spend $800 on a case (aside from the Level 10?). Maybe 1, maaaaybe 1 person.

I wouldn't even sell mine for $800.. it would have to either be some insanely crazy number, or something that I could actually replace.

 

[Skott]

I dunno... if someone waived $800 in my face for my second unused case I'd be mighty tempted.

PS: No not taking offers.

 

[slabhatnik]

How thick can the radiator be while still having room for a 25 mm thick 120 mm fan between the rad and the psu?

I've been wondering the same thing- on the cpu side... With fan(s) + radiator how much space is there on each side? A lot of the pics show the swiftech h220 which has a 29mm thick rad and 25mm fans, so I assume there's at least 54mm to work with (on the psu side as well), but would these thicknesses work over the cpu with the apogee drive II, which is 62mm tall, making the total "cooler" height 116mm? Let me know if you find a number for these areas!

 

[slabhatnik]

What's up with the ncase site? I knew wahaha has been updating it for login and status checking, hopefully more pics and specs too etc, but now ncases.com is some generic French site?

 

[commander_]

Did anyone notice that the site is now a French generic site?

It would be nice to know what's going on

Maybe they're moving the site to ncase.com rather than ncases?

Could be anything...

EDIT: slabhatnik got to it first we worded it in the same way too...

 

[slabhatnik]

I've been checkin the site a lot hoping I'll get more specs on the case. I'm finding deals on parts all over the place and wanna start buying guts for my build... Can't do that until I know what I can fit tho! Also, the prospect of just being able to see my case on a list with some sort of date or serial number next to it, even an order number.... ahhh!

 

[slabhatnik]

Vero- check this out- you're looking at 85mm I think

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?p=1039869925&highlight=rad+thick#post1039869925

 

[Skott]

While I assume because of the success of the M1 and it's awesomeness and the fact that outside of not realizing the actual time periods of the project as a first time attempt (step 1 ignore all "estimates" they are always if everything is perfect, the moon is full, and they have a virgin on hand to sacrifice), its been a clean and trouble free project. That there will eventually be a M2 (or whatever they call it, in fact early suggestion, N7).

What I would not assume is that the M2 (or N7) will be a low-medium liter ITX case. Remember this case was made because W360 wanted a certain type of case (Aluminum SG05) and it later became the M1. If they create another case it may very well be some other design and niche that W360, Necere, or someone brings to their attention that they think they could pull off. The M1 is the end result of one single focused goal and honestly for these niche small run cases, I personally like the idea of these two tackling different markets and ideas whenever they want to start another project.

Maybe a water cooled HTPC machine. Maybe an ITX Node/small server option. Maybe a true small footprint mATX case. Maybe even a Quad SLI/CFX box setup perfectly for 3 rad water cooling. Maybe bring sexy back to the "desktop" desktop cases. Maybe a gamers box with handles. Maybe Necere will wake up one morning and give W360 a call about this awesome case he designed in his dream, one that makes heads explodes just thinking about it.

I'd be interested in a small matx box that allowed for sli/cf because next year (late spring or early summer) I need to build such a rig to replace my V354 rig for my new man cave and would like to try something different case wise.

 

[slabhatnik]

Any reason the H220 couldn't have its radiator and fans swapped out- replaced with a 120 single rad and say a noctua 25mm fan? How rare are 120 single radiators with an integrated res? (Essentially buying the H220 for the pump/waterblock combo....)

 

[rajeeves]

If you did that you'd be spending $150 on a pump/water block. The Apogee Drive II is also $150ish and it's a much better pump. That's the only reason I see why not.

 

[slabhatnik]

If you did that you'd be spending $150 on a pump/water block. The Apogee Drive II is also $150ish and it's a much better pump. That's the only reason I see why not.

I realize this- but I think the 62mm height of the apogee drive II may not fit with a 25mm fan plus a 30+/- mm radiator in front of the cpu... I've been thinking of going with the Apogee and putting the fan/rad in front of the psu, the hdd rack in front of the cpu (maybe even with a 12mm fan if it'd fit). I need a 120 single rad because I've got hdd needs too, but I really don't want to settle on a sealed kit like a corsair or something. I want to use a really nice radiator, noctua fan, and have the ability to drain and reconfigure things (like tubing length) in the future. Like I said in a previous post- if Swiftech only made a single 120 version of the h220 I'd have it sitting in front of me right now (with a noctua fan ready to install on it of course- its a brand loyalty thing I've got with them)

Looking at this rad for use with the apogee or h220 pump should I go that way- but am totally unsure if it will fit with the hdd rack, plus am not crazy about the barbs:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6..._Reservoir_-_MCR120-QP_Res.html?tl=g30c95s159

 

[Air tree]

I'm really hoping someone will sell a Ncase on ebay or on the forum because i'm never going to get a case like this unless i build one my self.

 

[AFD]

(with a noctua fan ready to install on it of course- its a brand loyalty thing I've got with them)

Fanboy in the most literal sense?

They are a pretty cool company (no pun intended).. I was surprised that the CEO himself was responding to a couple questions I had.

 

[drklu]

Fanboy in the most literal sense?

They are a pretty cool company (no pun intended).. I was surprised that the CEO himself was responding to a couple questions I had.

That's pretty impressive in itself. Also, if anyone is looking for Noctua fans they are releasing there "industrial grade" 1Q of 2014.
I'm defiantly going to pick up a few of these for the H220 rad.

 

[slabhatnik]

Noctua makes outstanding products IMO, and the customer service is great- not just generous but very knowledgeable.

I'm holding out for the new industrial fans too- curious to see the noise/cfm ratings they'll have. Funny that they are taking the plunge into black; I've always admired them holding onto their commonly hated pink/brown thing.

 

[slabhatnik]

Did anyone notice that the site is now a French generic site?

It would be nice to know what's going on

Maybe they're moving the site to ncase.com rather than ncases?

Could be anything...

EDIT: slabhatnik got to it first we worded it in the same way too...

Site is up again...

 

[AFD]

That's pretty impressive in itself. Also, if anyone is looking for Noctua fans they are releasing there "industrial grade" 1Q of 2014.

Damn, I didn't think the blacks would be coming so soon. Unfortunately, I already picked up my brown & tans for my M1, which actually match my mobo.. a little. Oh well.

Thanks for the info anyway Drklu!

 

[drklu]

Damn, I didn't think the blacks would be coming so soon. Unfortunately, I already picked up my brown & tans for my M1, which actually match my mobo.. a little. Oh well.

Thanks for the info anyway Drklu!

No problem I was also a little surprised to see them go to black. They must have realized the large amount of sales lost just to a color scheme. I didn't buy them for that very reason for my sig rig.

 

[milkcow]

No problem I was also a little surprised to see them go to black. They must have realized the large amount of sales lost just to a color scheme. I didn't buy them for that very reason for my sig rig.

they are for industrial use ... they probIably will never be seen in idustrial use cases.
Their color scheme is their trademark, I don't think they will change that.

 

[drklu]

I don't think they will change that.

Did you see the picture on the last page? They are changing there color scheme on those models. Though if you look at the corners they are still brown. Looks good IMO.

 

[Phuncz]

"Industrial" doesn't mean the marketing "pro" or "quality". It means this:

Not this:

Let me enlarge the valuable information:

Seriously, try to read the info the next time.

 

[drklu]

Seriously, try to read the info the next time.

I was just saying they are releasing some sweet looking black fans that could be used in applications other than industrial use.
Wasn't my intention to start some pissing match. I said "on those models", I didn't mean all the Noctua fans will be black. Sorry for any confusion.

 

[Machupo]

Website appears to be back to normal

 

[drklu]

Website appears to be back to normal

That's good, I wonder when Wahaha is going to implement the order checking/verification he was talking about a few pages back.

 

[Necere]

I would want it 5mm wider so that I could run dual H80i's. the way it stands now (and I tried to make a point of this a while back, but I guess the dimensions were already finalized), you can't run an H80i with dual 25mm fans. The front fan bracket with a H80i mounted would run into a SFX PSU (technically, it would be 3mm INSIDE the PSU). So by widening it by 5mm, you'll be able to fit in a stock H80i with dual 25mm fans (the way it supposed to be used).

I would not expect to be able to fit dual H80is - 5mm wider or not. Or any two CLCs. There just isn't enough space available to route the tubing IMO.

 

[wahaha360]

That's good, I wonder when Wahaha is going to implement the order checking/verification he was talking about a few pages back.

Uploading backer data from Excel into database tonight (will take a few tries to get it right).

I have to do some testing and etc.

Unlikely to be ready until next weekend.

 

[Phuncz]

No pressure guys !

I'm going to use the Cooler Master Elite 130 as an interim case, mainly because my current Lian-Li doesn't support 97% of the high-end GPU's. I can practice stuffing hardware in a small case

 

[AFD]

"Industrial" doesn't mean the marketing "pro" or "quality". It means this:

Seriously, try to read the info the next time.

Seriously? If you actually read the blown-up photo you posted, you can clearly see "professional use" listed.

Still looks like a black NF-F12 to me. Until they actually hit market, it's hard to say if they'll be much worse or better than their standard consumer counterparts. Probably a good chance they're nearly identical. Might not even be made readily available to the public.

They are supposed to be releasing a cheaper "redux" consumer line-up in a grey color scheme at the end of this year. I'm guessing that one will be a lesser quality.

 

[drklu]

Seriously? If you actually read the blown-up photo you posted, you can clearly see "professional use" listed.

Still looks like a black NF-F12 to me. Until they actually hit market, it's hard to say if they'll be much worse or better than their standard consumer counterparts. Probably a good chance they're nearly identical. Might not even be made readily available to the public.

They are supposed to be releasing a cheaper "redux" consumer line-up in a grey color scheme at the end of this year. I'm guessing that one will be a lesser quality.

Looks wise they seem very similar, from there Computex 2013 page they say these are the improvements. I guess the only thing that would really improve its performance for our M1 builds is the new motor design possibly reducing fan noise. Not sure if reinforced polyamide will help us much in our little computers

Another new addition to Noctua's line-up of premium quality quiet fans will be a range of ruggedised industrial models that feature a fiber-glass reinforced polyamide construction and IP52 class water- and dust protection for heavy-duty applications as well as a new 3-phase motor design with six poles that provides further improvements in running smoothness, even lower vibrations and further reduced power consumption.

 

[slabhatnik]

So does anyone have the answer to whether or not the Apogee Drive II will fit with a 30mm rad and 25mm fan on the CPU side of the case? If so, AWESOME, and is there any room for a thicker radiator?

 

[crazjayz]

I would not expect to be able to fit dual H80is - 5mm wider or not. Or any two CLCs. There just isn't enough space available to route the tubing IMO.

I'll be damned if I didn't try. But coming from you of all people, I'm pretty sure it won't.

Really wanted to have 1 CLC for the CPU and the other for the GPU. I suppose I could go all custom 240 rad and separate pump, rad, and blocks. I just didn't want to go through that again.

Ah, we'll see. I've crammed a lot of things into something small before... (that's what she said!). Current rig is a LL Q11 packed to the brim, so I'm hoping for the best with the N1.

 

[Necere]

So does anyone have the answer to whether or not the Apogee Drive II will fit with a 30mm rad and 25mm fan on the CPU side of the case? If so, AWESOME, and is there any room for a thicker radiator?

I actually had an AD2 in the model prior to the H220 being announced, which you can see in some of the earlier screenshots (scroll to the bottom) and renders. In theory it should fit, but you'd almost certainly need to use angle fittings like I show, and it'll likely be trickier than an H220. There's some question as to whether in certain orientations the fittings on the AD2 will interfere with RAM or other parts of the motherboard (e.g., the VRM riser on the ASUS boards), since they don't fit neatly within the socket footprint like on the H220 pump. So, maybe. But in terms of height, there's enough room.

 

[slabhatnik]

I actually had an AD2 in the model prior to the H220 being announced, which you can see in some of the earlier screenshots (scroll to the bottom) and renders. In theory it should fit, but you'd almost certainly need to use angle fittings like I show, and it'll likely be trickier than an H220. There's some question as to whether in certain orientations the fittings on the AD2 will interfere with RAM or other parts of the motherboard (e.g., the VRM riser on the ASUS boards), since they don't fit neatly within the socket footprint like on the H220 pump. So, maybe. But in terms of height, there's enough room.

Thanks Necere! I looked at those renders weeks ago before starting my parts quest and totally missed the fact that you had ones with the Apogee Drive II in them (well before I knew what the AD2 even was actually). I also noticed a Gigabyte z77 board in some of the renders with the AD2- exactly the board I'll be using. Very happy to hear it will fit. So for my cooler I'll probably buy the AD2, good swivel fittings, 30mm Koolance (or equivalent) single 120 rad, adamantium's res, and a Noctua PWM fan. I'll have the AD2 on my i7, and someday when I sell a few paintings and have extra dough I'll upgrade my SSD to a 1TB, toss the 3.5 drives, and get a titan/waterblock/220 rad setup to plug into it all... by then all those upgrades will be a lot less money I'm sure.... For now, I have to keep the 3.5" drives tho.

Seems like the 120 radiator with reservoir combo really limits the choices on radiators, and that the swiftech 120 might not even fit with the hd cage- although the H220 is this way and does.... dunno. For 60 bucks, I think I'd rather use an external res and have more options on the radiator.

 

[slabhatnik]

Is this screen accurate of the final design- in that there are two SSDs stacked, two 3.5" drives stacked, the Koolance rad, a 25mm fan, the AD2? If so, this gets me way ahead on parts purchases.

 

[commander_]

Is this screen accurate of the final design- in that there are two SSDs stacked, two 3.5" drives stacked, the Koolance rad, a 25mm fan, the AD2? If so, this gets me way ahead on parts purchases.

Did you make this render? If so, my goodness it's good. Where did you get the M1 model?

 

[Necere]

Is this screen accurate of the final design- in that there are two SSDs stacked, two 3.5" drives stacked, the Koolance rad, a 25mm fan, the AD2?

Yes.

You might also consider the Alphacool ST30 - it's a good performer and doesn't have the high (restrictive) fin density of the Koolance rads.

Did you make this render? If so, my goodness it's good. Where did you get the M1 model?

Check the first link in my previous post.

 

[1o57]

I'm so glad I got an order in- I'm still planning my build, and have never gone full custom water (used several of the pre-fab closed loop water coolers though)-

Are the pre-done closed water systems just the wrong choice for the M1 in anyone's opinion?

 

[Phuncz]

I'm going way off-topic here but in my opinion it's better than crying about how you wished you ordered a different color or more cases for the next two months.

Seriously? If you actually read the blown-up photo you posted, you can clearly see "professional use" listed.

"Professional use" is not "amateur use" or "enthusiast use". Professional use means rack servers and network appliances, it means people need it to be up to a certain standard for work-related use. I'm not talking about a off-the-shelf frying pan fits into that, but I'm talking about a frying pan designed to withstand the professional use of chefs without falling apart. The difference between a cheap drill at the DIY store and a Hilti or Makita.

Many companies have diluted the meaning of the word "Pro" and "Professional" for products clearly not marketed for professional use. Some recent examples:
- Samsung SSD 840 Pro (consumer/enthusiast drive)
- Asrock PRO motherboards (nothing "pro" about low-end consumer boards)
- XFX Pro PSU line (not remotely "pro")

Noctua actually was using the correct context for "Professional use" here, as it says clearly for industrial use. Industrial use means more than "is better quality", it usually means that noise is no factor, color and design is of no importance and it is all developed for heavy duty use. If you've ever been inside a decent rack server and have ever witnessed a few servers blowing at 67% or higher fan speed, you'd not want these fans at all.

Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMuwKqDc6WA

 

[AFD]

I'm so glad I got an order in- I'm still planning my build, and have never gone full custom water (used several of the pre-fab closed loop water coolers though)-

Are the pre-done closed water systems just the wrong choice for the M1 in anyone's opinion?

All-in-one seems like a good choice if you're not comfortable going custom. It is recommended, and to the best of my knowledge, the only water setup tested so far..

Thermal Testing #1 w/Corsair H60i..

http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039852611&postcount=2579​

Watercooling:

• Sealed liquid coolers or integrated pump/block and radiator/res recommended.

I've never tried water cooling, and have never done a SFF build before either.. but I'm positive that trying both for the 1st time would've been a recipe for disaster (at least custom water - I'm almost pretty sure I could manage a closed-loop without issue).

Just depends on how adventurous you are, I guess

 

[AFD]

I'm going way off-topic here but in my opinion it's better than crying about how you wished you ordered a different color or more cases for the next two months.

Wasn't crying, just talking (providing a response to others' posts in a friendly, non-combative fashion).

Anyway yeah, I get that Noctua's Industrial fans are designed for industrial use, and it's not just marketing misuse of buzzwords. I highly doubt their IP-certified water protection is intended to save us from some water cooling mishaps.

You seem like a smart guy/gal. Figure out a way to cheer up a little