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

thanks for the advice, just ordered the 2 Noctua 120s. Do they screw directly into the bottom plate of the M1?
Sorry for the late reply: I used rubber fan mounts as I found that the heads of the normal fan screws were too narrow to sit nicely in the slots in my M1 (v2). I prefer the rubber mounts in any event, but I did have to trim them down so that they didn't foul the GPU.

Edit: worth noting that I have raised my M1 off the desk slightly (by about 8mm) by fitting some rubber "acoustic feet" onto the existing case feet. Not only do these give a bit more clearance for airflow but they also dampen vibrations from the case onto the desk.
 
Same here, I would like a comparison showing non-blower are better and more silent.
FWIW I went from a blower-style 660Ti to a non-blower 2070, and whilst to a large extent that's not a fair comparison, I have to say that the blower was really very noisy at full bore whereas the 2070 is extremely quiet until the fans get up to maybe 60%. But they very rarely need to do that, and even more so now I've added two intakes on the case floor. Sure, at 100% it's damn loud but I've never, ever seen even close to that unless I manually set the fans to do it for a laugh.

I know that modern blowers are much better than my old card, but at the same time you'd have to think that having two decent sized fans versus one for a blower could well be more advantageous than a single radial fan dumping heat out of the case. Two fans should be able to spin much more slowly than a solitary fan, so should be a lot quieter, but I guess the caveat is that you might well need additional case fans to deal with the additional heat being retained inside the case. Again, though, I'd say that being able to employ one or more 120mm+ fans for this purpose shouldn't be too noisy even in aggregate.

FWIW when comparing CPU temperatures between my two setups, I found that the blower gave marginally better results but only by a couple of degrees. That's with a 6700K under a U9S. But I'd be interested to see a true comparison between, say, a 2070 blower and a 2070 open cooler.
 
FWIW I went from a blower-style 660Ti to a non-blower 2070, and whilst to a large extent that's not a fair comparison, I have to say that the blower was really very noisy at full bore whereas the 2070 is extremely quiet until the fans get up to maybe 60%.
I have a 660 Ti blower in one PC and a 1080 Ti blower in the other one. I don't hear any as I control the fans speed with a curve, it's a must or you'll end up with noise. I guess the same need to be done with dual/triple fans cards to better manage noise but like everyone know, at least with blower no worry about heat.
 
I have a 660 Ti blower in one PC and a 1080 Ti blower in the other one. I don't hear any as I control the fans speed with a curve, it's a must or you'll end up with noise. I guess the same need to be done with dual/triple fans cards to better manage noise but like everyone know, at least with blower no worry about heat.
Indeed, but my point was that two fans should be able to run slower, and thus quieter, than a single fan in order to move the same amount of air.

And I didn't find that the blower was 100% effective in getting rid of all of the heat - temperatures elsewhere in the case would increase notably when the GPU was running under load.
 
Indeed, but my point was that two fans should be able to run slower, and thus quieter, than a single fan in order to move the same amount of air.
Depends of configuration, the blower push air in a closed space with heatsink in it way, no escape. While 2 fans blows air on a large surface but I know what you mean.

And I didn't find that the blower was 100% effective in getting rid of all of the heat - temperatures elsewhere in the case would increase notably when the GPU was running under load.
One possibility is that when blower revs fast, it's like a vaccum, sucking surrounding air and can interefere with case air flow. I wish it would be possible to add a duct to the blower intake so all fresh air in and all hot air hot without interfering with case airflow at all.
 
Depends of configuration, the blower push air in a closed space with heatsink in it way, no escape. While 2 fans blows air on a large surface but I know what you mean.

One possibility is that when blower revs fast, it's like a vaccum, sucking surrounding air and can interefere with case air flow. I wish it would be possible to add a duct to the blower intake so all fresh air in and all hot air hot without interfering with case airflow at all.
I experimented with a duct between the case floor and the blower fan, to see if it made any difference, but it did not. I think that's in part because the ventilation on the floor of the M1 isn't great and the stock feet don't give much clearance which again hampers airflow. It does feel like you really need some sort of intake on the case floor to actively draw cool air into the case but I tried that with my blower and didn't find that effective either.
 
I experimented with a duct between the case floor and the blower fan, to see if it made any difference, but it did not. I think that's in part because the ventilation on the floor of the M1 isn't great and the stock feet don't give much clearance which again hampers airflow. It does feel like you really need some sort of intake on the case floor to actively draw cool air into the case but I tried that with my blower and didn't find that effective either.
Interesting, do you have a picture how you made it? I wanted to do the same initially when I was planning my build but in the end I only ducted the exit of U9S to outside of case. I wasn't sure how to properly fit/attach a duct on blower hole and on bottom of case.
 
Also of note, a lot of blowers actually have vents that exhaust a fair amount of heat back into the case. For every blower I've had, it was always the vent opening for the CF/SLI/NVlink fingers.
 
Also of note, a lot of blowers actually have vents that exhaust a fair amount of heat back into the case. For every blower I've had, it was always the vent opening for the CF/SLI/NVlink fingers.
True, some have a blower but are not sealed on the sides... kinda stupid design if you ask me.
 
Interesting, do you have a picture how you made it? I wanted to do the same initially when I was planning my build but in the end I only ducted the exit of U9S to outside of case. I wasn't sure how to properly fit/attach a duct on blower hole and on bottom of case.
I don't have a picture, I'm afraid. But rest assured it was as ghetto as it comes - I cut a circular section out of a plastic drinks bottle, cut it down to the required height and used tape to seal it at each end!
 
Is somebody interested in a build with an Asus Rog Strix 5700 XT O8G or has experience with the installation? (v5)
 
Hi, bit excited here it's been dispatch!

Yep, that's my NCASE M1 on it's way to the UK. My new pastime will be tracking my M1, sad but true!
 
Lucky me, sometimes my post ist usles, they had it and should have been here yesterday but no, now its on the way to customs..... And I have to pick it up myself..... It's okay but sometimes they bring it to me and I have to pay the fees at the door
 
Collected myself just now, if your in the UK the import tax was 20.50 pounds and Parcel Force charged 12 pound handling.

Just waiting on the rest of my components, should be tomorrow at the lastest and then the build!

Thanks for the manual appreciated.
 
Import tax in Germany where the usually 19%.... Had to pay 40 Euro,

Anyway i transferred my build from v3 to v6 and there are some points

- more space for my aio, movement left to right is cool so I could move the aio far left and have more space for 2ssd back to back

- the bracket for the sfx psu feels a little flimsy compared to the v3, a screw to the front of the case would have made it a lot more stable

-I mounted a odd on the front bracket had to left out the screw on the low left side because it would have hinder the mounting of the adapter for power and sata cabel

Will upload some pictures later
 
I agree on the PSU mount. I don't particularly like it.

The ODD mount, I think, uses only 4(?) screws, two on one side, two on the back. I don't have a spare slotted cover, nor do I want to cut a slit for one, so I just have an ODD drive sitting pretty.
 
had to remove the realy small screw at the bottom so the plug would go a bit deeper maybe it would have worked with the screw in it , the plug would be at an angle and not realy deep


IMG_20191004_124351.jpg
 
had to remove the realy small screw at the bottom so the plug would go a bit deeper maybe it would have worked with the screw in it , the plug would be at an angle and not realy deep


View attachment 191916

Pre-V6, the ODD tray attached to the optical drive with 4 screws, 2 on the left and 2 on the right. In the V6 the ODD tray uses 3 screws, 1 on the left and 2 on the bottom.

The V6 tray has a small piece of metal plate on the lower left side where the pre-V6 ODD tray had a hole for a screw. Maybe you could carefully measure and mark where the hole needs to be so that you could use a second screw on the left side, like the pre-V6 ODD tray.

However, it may be that the small piece of metal doesn't cover the threaded hole in that area so my idea won't work. Can you post a photo of the left edge of the ODD tray with the drive installed?
 
hi , thanks for the idea , i just wanted to menttion it for maybe a future v6.5 or so and maybe its only my odd becuase its needs a adapter and no one else will have this "problem" what it is not because the 2 screws left hold it realy well

anyway some picturtes

IMG_20191010_164239.jpg





IMG_20191010_164303.jpg


anyway its not that i have ocd or somethink like that but i will take my build apart again , got myself a asus z390 with onboard header for the usbc front header ;D
 
hi , thanks for the idea , i just wanted to menttion it for maybe a future v6.5 or so and maybe its only my odd becuase its needs a adapter and no one else will have this "problem" what it is not because the 2 screws left hold it realy well

In the first photo the drives threaded hole is visible so it's not covered by the ODD tray's small black metal fold. Oh well. At least it's being held tight enough.
 
Import tax in Germany where the usually 19%.... Had to pay 40 Euro,

Anyway i transferred my build from v3 to v6 and there are some points

- more space for my aio, movement left to right is cool so I could move the aio far left and have more space for 2ssd back to back

- the bracket for the sfx psu feels a little flimsy compared to the v3, a screw to the front of the case would have made it a lot more stable

-I mounted a odd on the front bracket had to left out the screw on the low left side because it would have hinder the mounting of the adapter for power and sata cabel

Will upload some pictures later
I have some tweaks in mind for the SFX bracket in the next minor revision that should keep the PSU in place better. Won't be adding a screw at the front of the case, though.

had to remove the realy small screw at the bottom so the plug would go a bit deeper maybe it would have worked with the screw in it , the plug would be at an angle and not realy deep

View attachment 191916
I see, seems like the slim SATA adapter is the culprit. Not sure what else I could do about that. As you've observed though it does still work fine with only two screws holding the drive.

In the first photo the drives threaded hole is visible so it's not covered by the ODD tray's small black metal fold. Oh well. At least it's being held tight enough.
Yeah, I would've added another screw hole there but I needed that part of the flange for the screw that secures the ODD bracket to the chassis.
 
is there any 3d print stl or mod available for a front IOless panel? want to try and make my own instead of waiting for the official kit.
 
so I swaped the asrock z370 gaming itx against a Asus z390i gaming just for the usbc front panel

It seems the Asus bios hath some limitations active every time I run Cinebench r20 after around 50% it drops from 4.7 to 4.1

No temp problems in fact they are great, what I found out till now if everything is on auto within the bios it limits itself to 95watt tdp

Will upload some pictures later of this v6 build.... I like it
 
Hi everyone,

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but I'm struggling to find an answer.

I'm trying to find the GPU compatibility list for the M1 V5. I assume there was a change in the compatible dimensions between V5 and V6, based off the change log:

  • Enlarged chassis front GPU passthrough to facilitate GPU installation and provide more room for oversized GPUs
  • Removed four panel mounting clips from side flanges to reduce incidence of oversized GPU conflicts

Was there a change in the supported dimensions and if so, can anyone point me to where the supported GPU's list is?

I've searched for a while and haven't found clear answers.

Thanks heaps
 
Hi everyone,

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but I'm struggling to find an answer.

I'm trying to find the GPU compatibility list for the M1 V5. I assume there was a change in the compatible dimensions between V5 and V6, based off the change log:

  • Enlarged chassis front GPU passthrough to facilitate GPU installation and provide more room for oversized GPUs
  • Removed four panel mounting clips from side flanges to reduce incidence of oversized GPU conflicts

Was there a change in the supported dimensions and if so, can anyone point me to where the supported GPU's list is?

I've searched for a while and haven't found clear answers.

Thanks heaps

In addition to the changes you listed the V6 has a more compact Front I/O and I believe a lower cable connection to allow slightly more room for large cards. The best references for graphics card compatibility are listed in the opening post of this thread by the M1's designer:

The second link has two drawings that show the dimensional limits at the bottom of the case for large cards.
 
Yeah, that hole at the front would have made installing my STRIX 970 a bit easier. One side clip had to go on my V5 and the GPU HSF had to be disassembled to even fit (then reassembled after somewhat moving into place).

Also, the only AM4 board with an USB-C header is still the ASUS C8I? I just wish it wasn't so expensive for what it offered.
 
Looks like a very tidy build. Are you using the original power supply cables or custom cables? Also, what are the components of the system?

Thanks! After rebuilding my v5 dozens of times over the past year, I feel like I was well prepared for my v6 rebuild, haha. PSU cables are unsleeved custom lengths. Main specs are 9900k + 2080 Ti.
 
Thanks! After rebuilding my v5 dozens of times over the past year, I feel like I was well prepared for my v6 rebuild, haha. PSU cables are unsleeved custom lengths. Main specs are 9900k + 2080 Ti.

Unsleeved custom lengths? I hadn't seen that before. Sleeved cables look bulkier than original cables, but make up for that by being the exact length needed with no excess to fold or tuck away somewhere. Plus, they can be coloured. Still, I think your cables have a sleek appearance that I may consider copying in the future. Plus, no reason the wires themselves can't be coloured.
 
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It's really cool that there is now a premium 2-slot MicroATX board that fits in the M1, the ASUS Maximus XI Gene. It would have been great if they'd given it 4 DIMMs though. ASRock should make a TR4 board in that form factor.
 
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It's really cool that there is now a premium 2-slot MicroATX board that fits in the M1, the ASUS Maximus XI Gene. It would have been great if they'd given it 4 DIMMs though. ASRock should make a TR4 board in that form factor.
While the board itself fits in the case, it's 244mm deep, and even with the PSU mounted flush to the front, there's only 241mm available. So there's going to be 3mm of overlap. The PSU is offset to the left a bit so it'll clear the board's PCB, but the 24 pin ATX connector is right on the edge and will very likely be a problem.
 
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