DAN A4-SFX: The smallest gaming case in the world

Sad news for those who can't make their own custom cables.
3lqEcuT.png
 
Oh my. I didn't realize how expensive SFF could get for top of the line parts https://pcpartpicker.com/user/husky8/saved/#view=ckwD3C (All prices are what I actually paid. Low prices you see are eBay)

Holy crap man, do you really need to spend $1500 on 3TB of the fastest SSDs? Are you editing 4k video or something? Even then, is 2TB not enough? Especially since you're sacrificing on the graphics card.
 
Portugal here too, and also the same. I guess we have to wait. It would be fun to know how much people bought the case on each country :p I tought i was alone in Portugal, guess we are 3 now
Gents, count me in for nr. 4 to Portugal !
 
My 270I mobo arrived today. All I need now is a cooler and a GPU... and a case to put it all in. And I thought I was being patient in my component buying! ;)

If any caseking or overclocker case owners can test a C7 with a noctua fan vs. the C7 stock fan... that would be sort of the last unknown on my list.
 
$1500 in storage but you opt for a 1070? Com on man

The 1070 was purchased near release to replace a 980 ti that failed and was being RMA'd, and I ended up keeping it instead of the 980 ti. It's now my placeholder for a 1080 ti. I didn't feel the need to purchase a 1080 in the mean time.

Holy crap man, do you really need to spend $1500 on 3TB of the fastest SSDs? Are you editing 4k video or something? Even then, is 2TB not enough? Especially since you're sacrificing on the graphics card.

No. What happened was, I found a 1TB 960 for a great deal on eBay ($500) and I wanted to utilize the second m.2 slot on the z270i. 1TB actually is not enough for me with games and everything included. I thought I could get another sweet deal on a 1TB 960 to put me at $1k total for 2TB super fast storage. About 1.5TB would be just enough, so 2TB would be great. I do video editing, photography, and a ton of gaming. I was able to haggle someone to $1050 on a 2TB 960 Pro with some luck (from $1300). I thought this would be perfect if I can then sell the 1TB 960 Pro for a profit. Here I stand. 1TB 960 Pro with .1TB written is for sale for like $575-$590. I also wouldn't mind keeping it for a while. The idea of having 3TB without using a sata port is kinda cool.

Oh, and I'm not sacrificing on the graphics card. A 1080 right now is within budget. I just don't feel it's necessary with the 1080 ti right around the corner per the above. I'm still trying to be realistic though and purchase things I'll use.
 
do i get to be the first person to have a dan case arrive damaged? almost looks like they ran a forklift into the box, ~120mm gash in the box and gouge in the broad side of the A4-SFX all the way down to the metal. just entered a claim in with DHL but really concerned how they will resolve it, especially since the case can't just be replaced. :(
 
do i get to be the first person to have a dan case arrive damaged? almost looks like they ran a forklift into the box, ~120mm gash in the box and gouge in the broad side of the A4-SFX all the way down to the metal. just entered a claim in with DHL but really concerned how they will resolve it, especially since the case can't just be replaced. :(

Maybe Dan can send you a new side panel if you send the documentation.
 
Maybe Dan can send you a new side panel if you send the documentation.

we'll see how DHL responds to the claim, and whether I have to rope overclockers into this. it was purchased through them so i'm going to try resolving things via DHL and overclockers before bothering dan. thankfully the other one arrived unscathed and with some luck my other one from caseking will also arrive undamaged.
 
we'll see how DHL responds to the claim, and whether I have to rope overclockers into this. it was purchased through them so i'm going to try resolving things via DHL and overclockers before bothering dan. thankfully the other one arrived unscathed and with some luck my other one from caseking will also arrive undamaged.

Why did you purchase 3 cases? Just curious. I was thinking of getting a second for a HTPC build but went with zaber to test it out... mainly because availability was better.
 
Sad news for those who can't make their own custom cables.
3lqEcuT.png

Seriously!? Damnit! So now I'm going to have to make my own sub-par experience? Can they make smaller ones for all the other cables? Maybe I'll just make my own shitty atx one, and buy the rest? (Though, that doesn't really seem like the most economic way)
 
Why did you purchase 3 cases? Just curious. I was thinking of getting a second for a HTPC build but went with zaber to test it out... mainly because availability was better.


two for work and one for home. the zaber is too big to fit inside a pelican 1510 which is the max size i can carry on a plane. so far as i know, the A4-SFX is literally the only machine small enough to fit a pelican 1510 but also use a gtx 1080 / quadro p6000. i posted this earlier in the thread to explain the work use:

haha! i'm actually using them as media servers - i do a lot of experiential installation stuff, projection mapping shows, etc. normally we either truck a server rack road case to the location (often cross country). sometimes for one reason or another we end up having to bring a 4U server case in a checked bag. it's very unpleasant. my goal is to build a pair of A4-SFX boxes with enough hardware to support at least the smaller jobs, and then I can bring one in my regular carry-on (a pelican 1510 or tortuga V2) and one in my 'personal item' bag. may end up stuffing quadro P6000s in a dan case, which would be fun.
 
Regarding maximum power capacity of the riser cable.


I was reading this interesting post that was discussing that the power specs of PCIe riser cables are not the same as those of the PCIe slot specification (12V:5.5A:66W + 3.3V:3.0A:9.9W). On another forum, (I think) the same user stated that the 3M cables can only do 2.0A for the 12V line (i.e. 24W and not 66W).

I did some digging of my own using the spec sheet from the 3M site and it states that the wires used are "30AWG silver plated signal wires". Using the calculator I found here I calculated the following:
  • Select Copper or Aluminum : Copper
  • Select American Wire Gauge (AWG) Size: 30 AWG
  • Select Voltage : 12V (AC)
  • Enter 1-way circuit length in feet: 1ft (300mm)
  • Enter Load in amps: 5.5A
  • Voltage drop: 1.161V
  • Voltage at load end of circuit: 10.839V
  • Per Cent voltage drop: 9.68%
  • Wire cross section in circular mils: 101
  • Resulting power: 59.6W
These calculated values are only approximations, conductance of the 3M wire may be better than the calculator assumes. However, they may impact the stability of your GPU, especially when the GPU has no additional power sources and relies on what the PCIe cable can deliver.

I'm not sure how relevant this all is, curious about your opinions.

[edit]
Looking closer at the spec of 3M I noticed that the three 12V power pins are actually routed through 7 wires (and 7 for the return). This will distribute the load to 0.8A per wire leading to 11.831V at the end of the cable which is only a 1.4% drop.
[/edit]
 
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This question may have been answered before. But what do we do in say 5 years when the pci e extension cable is unable to keep up with the most modern pci version or gets replaced with a new standard?
 
First post and Dan's website stipulate it has enough bandwidth for PCIE4. After that it's anyone's guess.
 
This question may have been answered before. But what do we do in say 5 years when the pci e extension cable is unable to keep up with the most modern pci version or gets replaced with a new standard?

First post and Dan's website stipulate it has enough bandwidth for PCIE4. After that it's anyone's guess.

I was not talking about bandwidth, I know that was treated before. The discussion I wanted to start was about power specifications.

I could be that some GPUs are sensitive to this "small" reduction of the spec while others will do fine. I think it is nice to know if some "problem" cases have already been found. I'm thinking of the rx480 for instance.
 
Does anyone have an idea what 3rd party brand has "short" ATX 24pins cables?
As krcm0209 already asked Cablemod, they only do at least 250mm, which is way to long for the A4-SFX.
 
I'd like to DIY some dust filters for my builds. Does anyone have a link to appropriate filter material?

I don't really want to wait for overclockers to restock, and even if I did the shipping would cost as much or more than the filters itself..
 
Does anyone have an idea what 3rd party brand has "short" ATX 24pins cables?
As krcm0209 already asked Cablemod, they only do at least 250mm, which is way to long for the A4-SFX.

I've found a couple at www.moddiy.com

140mm for Silverstone:
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100mm for Corsair:
b0c06dc598.jpg


I think they can do a custom length cables according to your PSU model
 
Also wondering this, for people who have the case and custom cables what lengths did you end up going with?
 
So I just a got an email from my local transport company (Czech Republic, Prague - PPL company is delivering), that my shipment will be delivered tommorow between 08:00-18:00.

And I am still waiting for Asus z270I motherboard to be released here :-(
 
You don't need to test the NF-B9. I already did that. Horrible results on NH-L9i! For the same cooling performence like the NF-A9x14 it has to run almost at the same speed and therefore it is a lot louder. If I would be you, I would mount the NF-A9x14 or the NF-A9 on the coolers. Don't waste your time on the NF-B9.

I would do that. The time for a i5 will be over very soon.

Have you worked with it? I think it is super hard to apply it. I would recommend the Liquid Ultra, but I haven't tested that Thermal Grizzly paste so far.

Okay I just ordered some A9-PWM and be quiet shadow wings to test too (luckily they aren't expensive).

In that case I am gonna buy the i7, I spent a lot of money on the CPU coolers anyways.

I worked with the Conductonaut liquid metal paste from Thermal Grizzly before and I am gonna do almost everything after work anyways which means I have proper lights, microscopes and tools for everything. So that shouldn't be a problem.
 

Ensourced can do every cable length, cool ! But... 60$ only for the 24 pin ? I'll never pay that. Sorry.

24 pin ATX: 60 $
8 pin CPU: 24 $
8 pin PCIE: 28,5 $
Double SATA: 48,5 $
Single SATA: 24 $

= 185 $ for cables...

I'll go to che chinise little hands, or for cablemod, even if they're longer.
 
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Hackintosh with kabylake cpu and igpu will be fully working in no time, so you can have the best of two worlds, unfortunately without gtx 1080 in mac os
Hackintosh with Kabylake doesn't work "out of the box". You have to use FakeCPUID to let your CPU show up as a Skylake CPUID since no Macs actually use a Kabylake CPU (for some reason).
It apparently works but it is a bit more complicated than usually.
 
Ensourced can do every cable length, cool ! But... 60$ only for the 24 pin ? I'll never pay that. Sorry.

24 pin ATX: 60 $
8 pin CPU: 24 $
8 pin PCIE: 28,5 $
Double SATA: 48,5 $
Single SATA: 24 $

= 185 $ for cables...

I'll go to che chinise little hands, or for cablemod, even if they're longer.

Hahaha I'll just Iive with the cables that come with the sf600.
 
Regarding maximum power capacity of the riser cable.


I was reading this interesting post that was discussing that the power specs of PCIe riser cables are not the same as those of the PCIe slot specification (12V:5.5A:66W + 3.3V:3.0A:9.9W). On another forum, (I think) the same user stated that the 3M cables can only do 2.0A for the 12V line (i.e. 24W and not 66W).

I did some digging of my own using the spec sheet from the 3M site and it states that the wires used are "30AWG silver plated signal wires". Using the calculator I found here I calculated the following:
  • Select Copper or Aluminum : Copper
  • Select American Wire Gauge (AWG) Size: 30 AWG
  • Select Voltage : 12V (AC)
  • Enter 1-way circuit length in feet: 1ft (300mm)
  • Enter Load in amps: 5.5A
  • Voltage drop: 1.161V
  • Voltage at load end of circuit: 10.839V
  • Per Cent voltage drop: 9.68%
  • Wire cross section in circular mils: 101
  • Resulting power: 59.6W
These calculated values are only approximations, conductance of the 3M wire may be better than the calculator assumes. However, they may impact the stability of your GPU, especially when the GPU has no additional power sources and relies on what the PCIe cable can deliver.

I'm not sure how relevant this all is, curious about your opinions.

[edit]
Looking closer at the spec of 3M I noticed that the three 12V power pins are actually routed through 7 wires (and 7 for the return). This will distribute the load to 0.8A per wire leading to 11.831V at the end of the cable which is only a 1.4% drop.
[/edit]

Sure the voltage will drop a bit but I don't think it will threaten the stability of your card. the only thing I can think of that runs directly from the 12V voltage level are the fans. Everything else probably requires voltages smaller than 5V.

I just did a few more calculations for both the 12V ad 3.3V supply and heat is no issue for both of them (meaning that the temperature rise of the cable shouldn't be too high, only some Kelvin; 5K max).

The 3.3V line only has 4 wires as far as I can see which means each wire has to carry 0.75A at the power limit which leads to a voltage drop of about 0.15V (4.5%) which is well inside the ±9% tolerance detailed in the PCI-E specs I have.

So these things won't be a problem either.
To me it looks like the 3M riser cable is build like every other 3M product, with a lot of margin built in.
 
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Got my case (yay!) and ordered the Asus ROG Strix Z270i mobo from B&H (it was on backorder everywhere). Re: GPU.. I'm hearing rumors that the GTX 1080Ti will be announced / released any day now. Can anyone confirm this? I'm very tempted to wait for it, since I plan to go all out with this thing.

P.S. Will the front USB port on the case work with the USB 3.1 header on the mobo?
 
Got my case (yay!) and ordered the Asus ROG Strix Z270i mobo from B&H (it was on backorder everywhere). Re: GPU.. I'm hearing rumors that the GTX 1080Ti will be announced / released any day now. Can anyone confirm this? I'm very tempted to wait for it, since I plan to go all out with this thing.

P.S. Will the front USB port on the case work with the USB 3.1 header on the mobo?
Nobody can confirm a rumor except Nvidia xD
Still, I think it is reasonable to assume Nvidia will announce the 1080Ti in the next month (give or take) which means it will probably be available around April (just assumptions).
 
Looking at the corsair cable kits, it seems RMi/x and SF series use the same connectors? If anyone can confirm, that would greatly help in searching a custom kit.
 
Regarding maximum power capacity of the riser cable.


I was reading this interesting post that was discussing that the power specs of PCIe riser cables are not the same as those of the PCIe slot specification (12V:5.5A:66W + 3.3V:3.0A:9.9W). On another forum, (I think) the same user stated that the 3M cables can only do 2.0A for the 12V line (i.e. 24W and not 66W).

I did some digging of my own using the spec sheet from the 3M site and it states that the wires used are "30AWG silver plated signal wires". Using the calculator I found here I calculated the following:
  • Select Copper or Aluminum : Copper
  • Select American Wire Gauge (AWG) Size: 30 AWG
  • Select Voltage : 12V (AC)
  • Enter 1-way circuit length in feet: 1ft (300mm)
  • Enter Load in amps: 5.5A
  • Voltage drop: 1.161V
  • Voltage at load end of circuit: 10.839V
  • Per Cent voltage drop: 9.68%
  • Wire cross section in circular mils: 101
  • Resulting power: 59.6W
These calculated values are only approximations, conductance of the 3M wire may be better than the calculator assumes. However, they may impact the stability of your GPU, especially when the GPU has no additional power sources and relies on what the PCIe cable can deliver.

I'm not sure how relevant this all is, curious about your opinions.

[edit]
Looking closer at the spec of 3M I noticed that the three 12V power pins are actually routed through 7 wires (and 7 for the return). This will distribute the load to 0.8A per wire leading to 11.831V at the end of the cable which is only a 1.4% drop.
[/edit]
So basically, avoid any cards without 6/8-pin power unless you're feeling lucky.
 
In your calculation you used 12 V alternating and not direct current. Thats a difference. Since almost no one ever had problems with this riser it should fully comply with the spec.
 
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