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

Here my thoughts:

- Only get PWM. DC controlled 3-pin fans cant go as low rpm as PWM.

- The 92mm exhaust is a waste of money. I am 99% sure there will be no temp difference with it running as the case has plenty of exhaust holes in the top of the case. Save the money!

- I am no AIO expert. I read somewhere pull is better on the NCASE M1 so that you could clean the dust from the other side when required. The side panel dust filter doesn't stop all the dust and having to remove the fans before you can clean the radiator is surely a pain!

- the rest sounds good. I have 1x120mm and 1x140mm at the bottom. One is fixed with double sided foam strips and doesn't move.

I have a rear exhaust fan on my setup, I'll try to do a quick test tonight see if I get a difference in temperature
 
I have a rear exhaust fan on my setup, I'll try to do a quick test tonight see if I get a difference in temperature

I am very interested regarding my bould statement :) Do you have an AIO as well?

For the AIO the fresh air intake is the most important. A small fan exhausting from the case shouldn't affect that. For a fan CPU cooler it would be more important, but with 4 case fans I stand by my first comment.

The only way I see it making sense is with a tower style CPU cooler.
 
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Ahh, I just saw that we have almost the same setup more or less.

How is the cable management since your last pic posted here? https://hardforum.com/threads/ncase...n-first-post.1717132/page-545#post-1042631608

Haven't played with cable management yet, most of it is by the PSU, out of the way from most other components, temperatures are also really good so I'm not in a rush to get it done. I'll probably will do it when I decide to remove the fans from the STRIX or go with the Accelero Extreme III.
 
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/q2hqqs This was how it looked originally, I haven't updated the pics yet. This shows a 92mm bottom fan which was serving no purpose so I removed it and a GTX 970 which has been updated to a GTX 1070 FE with a Aquacomputer block and backplate.

I should mention also that this cools incredibly well. My 6600k is OCed to 4.5 GHz and max temps are 48C, 42C on the 1070 after extended gaming. If I am running benchmarks it only gets to 38C.

Your original work is quality work, so when you update your photographs, let us know.
 
Anyone who runs dual 240mm rads mind posting their temps at idle/load? The temp difference of adding the second rad for me was almost unnoticeable. I know it's a slim rad with slim fans but I thought I would see a bigger drop.
 
For those with open-air GPUs, do you find it necessary to install two 120mm fans on the case bottom, directly below the GPU? Does this have any impact during extended gaming?

I'm just wondering if I need more fans for my configuration:
- Intel i5 6600k
- Noctua NH-U9S (2-fans)
- Noctua NF-F12 Side intake
- Gigabyte 1070 G1 Gaming

So, one intake fan on the side (120mm), two CPU fans (92mm), and passive exhaust. Is this enough to keep GPU temps down, and to build sufficient positive air pressure inside the case?

On a separate note, what's the best orientation for the PSU? Should the PSU fan face inward or outward, given the configuration noted above? I would have thought outward (i.e., no hot air from inside the case), but most pictures I see have it the other way around. Any pointers?
 
On a separate note, what's the best orientation for the PSU? Should the PSU fan face inward or outward, given the configuration noted above?

I have the PSU with the fan outward (not dumping more heat into the case). I believe the only time you have to orient with the fan inward is if you had an SFX-L PSU with a long GPU...this is so the PSU cables clear the backplate on the graphics card.

For bottom fans, I have two slim fans installed to help move air. It doesn't really change my thermals on my CPU/GPU after gaming for a while...it may take them a little longer to get to their normal "operating" temp, not really sure. Reason I use the bottom fans is my GPU dumps the heat out the top, bottom and sides of the card (i.e. toward the sides and front/back of the case). With the side panels so close to the GPU, all the hot air was heating up the side of the case. After gaming for an hour, the sides of the case were uncomfortably hot. Bottom fans, even at minimum rotation, help push the hot air up and bring cool air into the space between the GPU and the side panel. Not required, but I like them :)
 
For those with open-air GPUs, do you find it necessary to install two 120mm fans on the case bottom, directly below the GPU? Does this have any impact during extended gaming?

I'm just wondering if I need more fans for my configuration:
- Intel i5 6600k
- Noctua NH-U9S (2-fans)
- Noctua NF-F12 Side intake
- Gigabyte 1070 G1 Gaming

So, one intake fan on the side (120mm), two CPU fans (92mm), and passive exhaust. Is this enough to keep GPU temps down, and to build sufficient positive air pressure inside the case?

On a separate note, what's the best orientation for the PSU? Should the PSU fan face inward or outward, given the configuration noted above? I would have thought outward (i.e., no hot air from inside the case), but most pictures I see have it the other way around. Any pointers?

I have the PSU with the fan outward (not dumping more heat into the case). I believe the only time you have to orient with the fan inward is if you had an SFX-L PSU with a long GPU...this is so the PSU cables clear the backplate on the graphics card.

For bottom fans, I have two slim fans installed to help move air. It doesn't really change my thermals on my CPU/GPU after gaming for a while...it may take them a little longer to get to their normal "operating" temp, not really sure. Reason I use the bottom fans is my GPU dumps the heat out the top, bottom and sides of the card (i.e. toward the sides and front/back of the case). With the side panels so close to the GPU, all the hot air was heating up the side of the case. After gaming for an hour, the sides of the case were uncomfortably hot. Bottom fans, even at minimum rotation, help push the hot air up and bring cool air into the space between the GPU and the side panel. Not required, but I like them :)

1. PSU, facing inwards is better. It will in any case dump the air upwards into the case. It is only a question where the air intake is coming from.
Reasons:
a) No dust drawn in with this orientation
b) The PSU is cooled via the front case fan on the side bracket. I have heard from many Corsair SF450 users that their fans never spin this way (as does mine).

2. Bottom fans. They are maybe not a must in this system but I would recommend them. It is better to have 3 or 4 low speed fans than 1 high speed fan to create enough positive pressure to push out any hot air and keep out the dust. I gues 2 fans would be a sufficient compromise if you need to watch your budget.
 
What are the best slim 120mm fans to put at the bottom of the case? I have a Gigabyte G1 1080 so I don't think I have the space to put 25MM fan.
 
Anyone who runs dual 240mm rads mind posting their temps at idle/load? The temp difference of adding the second rad for me was almost unnoticeable. I know it's a slim rad with slim fans but I thought I would see a bigger drop.

That sucks...

However, I'm not so surprised given how little airflow there was in my case when I paired the EK Coolstream with a slim fan. I basically couldn't feel any airflow unless the fans were blasting at max.
 
What are the best slim 120mm fans to put at the bottom of the case? I have a Gigabyte G1 1080 so I don't think I have the space to put 25MM fan.

That card is 41 mm thick which is two slots exactly, so 25 mm thick fans will fit, though it's always tight due to card sag. A thin piece of foam between the fans and the card may be helpful.
 
That sucks...

However, I'm not so surprised given how little airflow there was in my case when I paired the EK Coolstream with a slim fan. I basically couldn't feel any airflow unless the fans were blasting at max.

I even switched the both rads to HWL GTS and saw no real change. Swapped out the case feet to be a bit higher and still don't think any real air gets to those fans to push through the rad.
 
Anyone have some first hand knowledge on pcie risers for their M1? Trying to figure out if there are any other "good" options besides a 3M twin axial. Not sure I want to purchase it just yet because the shortest size is 250mm. Would be great for 3M to make some custom sizes like say 150mm.
 
Anyone who runs dual 240mm rads mind posting their temps at idle/load? The temp difference of adding the second rad for me was almost unnoticeable. I know it's a slim rad with slim fans but I thought I would see a bigger drop.

Load (running Prime 95 and Heaven simultaneously), see Post 65, Post 64 and Post 63. I'll try to run a gaming session for more typical load results. I should be able to provide idle results too. IF I'm really motivated, I might detach the bottom radiator and test temperatures with only the top radiator--but I'm guessing that results will be similar to folks that only run a top-side radiator.
 
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Load (running Prime 95 and Heaven simultaneously), see Post 65, Post 64 and Post 63. I'll try to run a gaming session for more typical load results. I should be able to provide idle results too. IF I'm really motivated, I might detach the bottom radiator and test temperatures with only the top radiator--but I'm guessing that results will be similar to folks that only run a top-side radiator.

Those temperatures are really high!! Why is that with a dual 120mm rad system? Have you overclocked the CPU to hell?

My i5 6600K @ 4.5Ghz runs under load at around 50°C with air cooling...

Edit: Here a test of the two CPUs using a Corsair H100i CPU cooler. The i7 with 4.7Ghz reaches 76°C under load.

http://www.kitguru.net/components/cpu/luke-hill/intel-core-i7-6700k-i5-6600k-skylake-cpu-review/9/
 
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1. PSU, facing inwards is better. It will in any case dump the air upwards into the case. It is only a question where the air intake is coming from.
Reasons:
a) No dust drawn in with this orientation
b) The PSU is cooled via the front case fan on the side bracket. I have heard from many Corsair SF450 users that their fans never spin this way (as does mine).

Never thought of it this way, though I've always considered having a separate PSU airflow "loop" was best. I'm almost tempted to try rotating my PSU, but that would mess up all my cable runs...not sure I'm up for redoing those again!
 
Never thought of it this way, though I've always considered having a separate PSU airflow "loop" was best. I'm almost tempted to try rotating my PSU, but that would mess up all my cable runs...not sure I'm up for redoing those again!

Yes, I was also surprised when I was introduced to this trail of thought. But most cases fan PSU fan filters and no case fan flowing directly at the PSU.

Does your PSU fan spin? If not it shouldn't matter which way you orientate it.
 
Just got the tracking number!! Can't wait to get my hands on the beauty!! Now wait for Black Friday for the other parts!! Anyone with me in this?
 
I feel your pain, but it usually goes the other way...I finally find what I want at a good price, but it's a US site that doesn't ship to Canada!

...actually, I ended up contacting them through the website and they gave me a shipping quote to send it to the US!
Here's the link again if anyone is interested
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX34316

Thanks again for posting the link originally a few days ago! I'll have a brand new C14 in a week or so!

edit: My total came to $115 CAD (~$88 USD)
 
1. PSU, facing inwards is better. It will in any case dump the air upwards into the case. It is only a question where the air intake is coming from.
Reasons:
a) No dust drawn in with this orientation
b) The PSU is cooled via the front case fan on the side bracket. I have heard from many Corsair SF450 users that their fans never spin this way (as does mine).

2. Bottom fans. They are maybe not a must in this system but I would recommend them. It is better to have 3 or 4 low speed fans than 1 high speed fan to create enough positive pressure to push out any hot air and keep out the dust. I gues 2 fans would be a sufficient compromise if you need to watch your budget.

This is super helpful, thank you!

I've decided to use two NF-F12 intake fans on the bottom, and one NF-F12 intake fan on the side (would ~600rpm (all) do the trick?). I have two 92mm fans for the CPU cooler, so would it be better to attach both fans to the cooler and exhaust upwards, or should I orient the CPU cooler horizontally and use one of the 92mm fans as an exhaust on the case?

Once I figure out the CPU fan orientation, I'm just about DONE! I've started purchasing the various parts, but will likely wait for Black Friday to pick up the 1070 G1 Gaming and (hopefully) the new Samsung 960 Evo 500GB M.2. Now the waiting game...
 
This is super helpful, thank you!

I've decided to use two NF-F12 intake fans on the bottom, and one NF-F12 intake fan on the side (would ~600rpm (all) do the trick?). I have two 92mm fans for the CPU cooler, so would it be better to attach both fans to the cooler and exhaust upwards, or should I orient the CPU cooler horizontally and use one of the 92mm fans as an exhaust on the case?

Once I figure out the CPU fan orientation, I'm just about DONE! I've started purchasing the various parts, but will likely wait for Black Friday to pick up the 1070 G1 Gaming and (hopefully) the new Samsung 960 Evo 500GB M.2. Now the waiting game...

My case fans all run at about 3-400rpm idle and ramp up from there. The bottom two fans are controlled by software according to the GPU temp using "speedfan" http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php and I removed the plastic shroud of my GPU to help the air flow. But even under load the case fan is at no more than 6-700rpm.

The side fans are controlled via the BIOS and the CPU temp als ramping from 3-400rpm to about 6-700rpm. These speeds get me 50°C CPU under load with my i5 6600K at 4.5Ghz.

I am not sure about the tower orientation but a lot of users face it out the back of the case with one fan on the heat sink and one on the case. I guess this makes sense as the air that is drawn in via the 120mm side fan is directly in one line back out the case.
 
I've decided to use two NF-F12 intake fans on the bottom, and one NF-F12 intake fan on the side (would ~600rpm (all) do the trick?). I have two 92mm fans for the CPU cooler, so would it be better to attach both fans to the cooler and exhaust upwards, or should I orient the CPU cooler horizontally and use one of the 92mm fans as an exhaust on the case?

Here is how I have mine set up. You can't see the rear fan, but it is mounted to the case (not to the D9L). One note on the bottom fans, with the 25mm thick standard fans, you won't have much room between the fan and the GPU. As anak85 mentioned, removing some of the shroud on the GPU would probably help.

IMG_4530.JPG


IMG_4532.JPG


On a completely different topic, I just noticed the Noctua rubber fan mounts look very phallic...and now I can't unsee it.
 
What's your part list look like?

CPU => i7 6700K
MBD => Gigabyte Z170N Gaming 5
RAM => Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB 3000MHz
PSU => Corsair SF450
M.2 => Samsung 950 Pro 512GB
GPU => MSI 1070 Aero
AIO => yet to finalise but a 240mm for sure. Reading about Cooler master liquid pro 240 else Corsair H100i.

Ignoring the case fans as of now. Let me check the system if required will put case fans later.
 
CPU => i7 6700K
MBD => Gigabyte Z170N Gaming 5
RAM => Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB 3000MHz
PSU => Corsair SF450
M.2 => Samsung 950 Pro 512GB
GPU => MSI 1070 Aero
AIO => yet to finalise but a 240mm for sure. Reading about Cooler master liquid pro 240 else Corsair H100i.

Ignoring the case fans as of now. Let me check the system if required will put case fans later.
Just to let you know the Aero is absolute garbage and it will throttle considerably under full load. My card was pretty much stuck running stock clocks with no boost with the stock cooler. I ended up replacing it with a EVGA Hybrid kit and it runs under 45C now and never throttles.

--Oh another note if you have Micron memory you will need to apply the latest bios from the MSI website or you will be unable to OC the memory at all or worst have artifacts at stock speeds.
 
CPU => i7 6700K
MBD => Gigabyte Z170N Gaming 5
RAM => Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB 3000MHz
PSU => Corsair SF450
M.2 => Samsung 950 Pro 512GB
GPU => MSI 1070 Aero
AIO => yet to finalise but a 240mm for sure. Reading about Cooler master liquid pro 240 else Corsair H100i.

Ignoring the case fans as of now. Let me check the system if required will put case fans later.

You might take a look at the new NZXT Kraken X52, the new ones are supposed to be pretty good. https://www.nzxt.com/products/kraken-x52
 
CPU => i7 6700K
MBD => Gigabyte Z170N Gaming 5
RAM => Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB 3000MHz
PSU => Corsair SF450
M.2 => Samsung 950 Pro 512GB
GPU => MSI 1070 Aero
AIO => yet to finalise but a 240mm for sure. Reading about Cooler master liquid pro 240 else Corsair H100i.

Ignoring the case fans as of now. Let me check the system if required will put case fans later.

I have the aero, dont buy it. Get the seahawk....I'm in the process of using corsair HG10 N980 to convert my aero 1070 to liquid cooled.
 
I'm about to upgrade my 970 to Asus Strix 1070, the only problem is I read that the Asus Strix is very big, will my Noctua NH-U9S get in the way ?
P/S :
nvm, look like it will fits well.
 
You have about convinced me to go with a hybrid 1070 gpu when I start my build early next year. Gave my R9 Nano to my daughter - it was pretty loud (and hot) in BF4 anyway, so didn't want to use it in the M1.
 
Just to let you know the Aero is absolute garbage and it will throttle considerably under full load. My card was pretty much stuck running stock clocks with no boost with the stock cooler. I ended up replacing it with a EVGA Hybrid kit and it runs under 45C now and never throttles.

--Oh another note if you have Micron memory you will need to apply the latest bios from the MSI website or you will be unable to OC the memory at all or worst have artifacts at stock speeds.

I have the aero, dont buy it. Get the seahawk....I'm in the process of using corsair HG10 N980 to convert my aero 1070 to liquid cooled.

Thanks guys!! Then paying the few extra bucks make sense. Will do research on the hybrids. So now if I use hybrid then I won't be able to use 240mm AIO I think I have to go for 120mm.
What say?
 
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