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

IanM said:
fair enough, I thought it would be with 90° connectors
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I guess it might be possible with one of these, depending on exactly how big they are. Actually, there's another issue: because the front panel angles in, the sides are too narrow for the ODD to be oriented that way. In order to fit, it would need to be deeper.
 
The top loading optical drive slot is damn sexy, and pretty important imo for an enthusiast build!
 
I voted no ODD, but I could go for either. The location and design of the ODD looks very nice even if it's there but to be honest I hardly use mine.
 
I too find either okay. But I did vote no ODD slot. I figure the few who do want/need it can buy the option and the modders can take care of that themselves. Best to have a blank canvas to work with than have an unnecessary slot to deal with. I'll be interested to see how the stats work out once poling is complete.
 
Doing the survery through IGG was a good idea for the ODD options, personally... I like having an ODD
 
Did I miss something? The slim optical on the top-front is not staying?

EDIT: Ok, sorry, I see I missed it on the discussion on the last page. I don't see why anyone would really get worked up about a small slit on the top of the case if they aren't using an odd. It's a small slit. Easily overlooked but for those people that WANT an ODD it's a big deal.
 
most of the arguments i've seen against is are b/c of dust concerns. and 'outdated' technology.
 
kuhla said:
...Easily overlooked...
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Only in your opinion, I think it is an ugly and obvious scar on what is a very neat design. It's a pity, and disappointing, but not necessarily a deal breaker (actually the ventilation panel was already a compromise in terms of the looks, but of course it is essential.) I believe a lot of people feel this way, and the argument against the ODD slot is about looks i.e. don't screw up the clean look which is more important as ODD support is available via USB.

Remember that the final iteration of the design prior to Necere's modification had no ODD slot, yet enthusiasm for the case was very intense at that point and there was no great clamour for ODD to be added. It's no surprise that some people are now upset and really want the original version without the slot, but it's also easy to see why others are prioritising functionality and integrated optical.

As for the ODD being necessary vs outdated argument, I think it's a distraction to the discussion. Optical is very old and outdated, but it's going to be around for a long time to come. My own internet is hopeless, so I feel I must have optical support of some kind, although USB is fine and in some ways more convenient (ODD can be on the desktop, PC on a shelf or bookcase) and more power efficient as it can be unplugged.

Re the dust argument: i) it is going to collect dust no matter what, positive pressure won't blow through the drive or blow out of the slot! ii) an awful lot of users are likely to use a fan/heatsink configuration that won't produce airflow or positive pressure that would keep dust out of that area even if the ODD were open.
 
It's not very difficult to keep the dust out of it, and having the option is probably a lot more appealing than not having the option and realizing you may never have the chance to install one later on.
 
IanM said:
Only in your opinion, I think it is an ugly and obvious scar on what is a very neat design. It's a pity, and disappointing, but not necessarily a deal breaker (actually the ventilation panel was already a compromise in terms of the looks, but of course it is essential.) I believe a lot of people feel this way, and the argument against the ODD slot is about looks i.e. don't screw up the clean look which is more important as ODD support is available via USB.

Remember that the final iteration of the design prior to Necere's modification had no ODD slot, yet enthusiasm for the case was very intense at that point and there was no great clamour for ODD to be added. It's no surprise that some people are now upset and really want the original version without the slot, but it's also easy to see why others are prioritising functionality and integrated optical.

As for the ODD being necessary vs outdated argument, I think it's a distraction to the discussion. Optical is very old and outdated, but it's going to be around for a long time to come. My own internet is hopeless, so I feel I must have optical support of some kind, although USB is fine and in some ways more convenient (ODD can be on the desktop, PC on a shelf or bookcase) and more power efficient as it can be unplugged.

Re the dust argument: i) it is going to collect dust no matter what, positive pressure won't blow through the drive or blow out of the slot! ii) an awful lot of users are likely to use a fan/heatsink configuration that won't produce airflow or positive pressure that would keep dust out of that area even if the ODD were open.
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You pretty much nailed it.
 
Necere said:
I guess it might be possible with one of these, depending on exactly how big they are. Actually, there's another issue: because the front panel angles in, the sides are too narrow for the ODD to be oriented that way. In order to fit, it would need to be deeper.
Click to expand...

That's the kind of thing I was thinking of and I figured that some rework of the front skeleton would be be required to make the drive slot line up with the seam between the side & front panel. I wasn't sure about needing to rework the tapered side, how far do slot loaders eject discs? I guess if the eject pushes the disc far enough the ODD could remain in the centre, but the ejected disc would still pass the edge of the case enough to be removed easily. On the other hand maybe the ejected disc doesn't reach far enough and the ODD would need to be mounted toward the edge.

This thinking is moot anyway, the methods I'm visualising would require more operations in the construction, it's probably cheaper just to make extra tops.
 
IanM said:
That's the kind of thing I was thinking of and I figured that some rework of the front skeleton would be be required to make the drive slot line up with the seam between the side & front panel.
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That's an interesting idea, but unfortunately not really feasible without increasing the overall length of the case.

IanM said:
I wasn't sure about needing to rework the tapered side, how far do slot loaders eject discs? I guess if the eject pushes the disc far enough the ODD could remain in the centre, but the ejected disc would still pass the edge of the case enough to be removed easily. On the other hand maybe the ejected disc doesn't reach far enough and the ODD would need to be mounted toward the edge.
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The ODD would need to be mounted close to the edge regardless; the drive is ~130mm, the angled connector is probably 20-25mm, so 150-155mm, plus 3mm for the case panels. So really no room left at all to shift the drive over.
 
IanM said:
Only in your opinion, I think it is an ugly and obvious scar on what is a very neat design. It's a pity, and disappointing, but not necessarily a deal breaker (actually the ventilation panel was already a compromise in terms of the looks, but of course it is essential.) I believe a lot of people feel this way, and the argument against the ODD slot is about looks i.e. don't screw up the clean look which is more important as ODD support is available via USB.

Remember that the final iteration of the design prior to Necere's modification had no ODD slot, yet enthusiasm for the case was very intense at that point and there was no great clamour for ODD to be added. It's no surprise that some people are now upset and really want the original version without the slot, but it's also easy to see why others are prioritising functionality and integrated optical.

As for the ODD being necessary vs outdated argument, I think it's a distraction to the discussion. Optical is very old and outdated, but it's going to be around for a long time to come. My own internet is hopeless, so I feel I must have optical support of some kind, although USB is fine and in some ways more convenient (ODD can be on the desktop, PC on a shelf or bookcase) and more power efficient as it can be unplugged.

Re the dust argument: i) it is going to collect dust no matter what, positive pressure won't blow through the drive or blow out of the slot! ii) an awful lot of users are likely to use a fan/heatsink configuration that won't produce airflow or positive pressure that would keep dust out of that area even if the ODD were open.
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Yep -- spot on. I think the ODD slot really goes against the extremely clean front face of the case, it's right there near the front; eyeballs tracking up the smooth exterior run into it like a wall.

At any rate, it's not like it's going to cause me to not support this case, but I truly hope that the option is out there to get a case top without an ODD slot. I don't see how it would be a big stretch, just fab all of the other cuts, stop half (or some percentage) of the designs and continue with the ODD cut on the remainder. Of course, i'm not in the business, so it might be impressively difficult :p
 
Necere said:
not really feasible without increasing the overall length of the case...
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That's one of the reasons I thought about using the cut out 'vent' to disguise the slot, and then extend it to partially make the real vent that was mentioned earlier in the thread (maybe it would help vent warm air off that end of the graphics card.)

Lian Li do something a little similar to this on a larger scale (and the vent is cut from the side panel rather than the front panel) with their TYR cases:



I'd be the first to admit that this isn't a 100% satisfactory solution either vs the top slot. This could end up looking too busy, and now that you've pointed out the need to move the ODD over toward the edge I suspect that the disguise effect would be limited and the optical drive itself could be too visible.
 
I'm in the NO ODD camp, there will definitely be some sort of option for NO ODD top cover.
 
I can't say I have any use for ODD except for old motherboards that can't boot from usb, and burning a dvd for someone else once in a blue moon, which can be handled with a USB dvd writer. I still believe it's a "I feel safe having it" or "it's easier to sell it later" thing for half of the people wanting it. And a water-cooled HTPC isn't what this case should be.
But at the end of the day, one slit at the top isn't going to stop me from having this. :D
 
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How about a transleucent insert to fit in the slot with some LEDs hooked up to the power light. Might detract from the slot and add to the aethetics. Cheaper than manufacturing a second panel at least.
 
wahaha360 said:
I'm in the NO ODD camp, there will definitely be some sort of option for NO ODD top cover.
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thumbs_up_smiley[1].gif
 
medeyer said:
How about a transleucent insert to fit in the slot with some LEDs hooked up to the power light. Might detract from the slot and add to the aethetics. Cheaper than manufacturing a second panel at least.
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I'm going to go out on a limb here: lighting up the slot probably wouldn't detract from it.

And it won't be cheaper than manufacturing a slot-less panel. You've added a molded part, LED, wiring, plug and a means of securing it to the panel to the bill of materials. The price difference in a panel with the slot and one without won't even come close to the cost of adding the lights.

Cost aside, the crowd this case is attracting and the price range it sits, an arbitrary LED lit slot has no place. :)
 
Perhaps I missed it, there are quite a few pages to read through, but I thought this case was about offering the MOST OPTIONS in the smallest case possible with as little compromise as possible? Not about being the most SLICK case in a small form factor. While I can totally understand how some feel the idea of an ODD slot being is "waste" or even worse a "dust magnet" to those who won't use I still can't grasp how that is a valid argument against the base model including it. Especially when considering it's a VERY minor "mod" (duct tape/glue/whatever) to fix said issue.

Don't get me wrong, I'm willing to pay for a product as long as it offers what I'm looking for (FT-02 owner) but this particular case as far as I've read was never being marketed as a sleek look over functional design product. Quite the opposite in the fact from what I've seen in that the point was to give the mITX world a new case which would increase the options owners had in a smaller form factor, not limit them. That is/was the base design model I read about and have been so intrigued to purchase once available. For those that value LESS options for your money for the sake of looks and quality parts/design you can always choose to pay a little (this base model plus a bit extra) or a LOT more to get it (ABEE).

Necere/Wahah360 am I off base in this assessment? If so please correct me, I try to keep up but 88+ pages is a LOT to remember.
 
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miguksaram said:
Perhaps I missed it, there are quite a few pages to read through, but I thought this case was about offering the MOST OPTIONS in the smallest case possible with as little compromise as possible? Not about being the most SLICK case in a small form factor. While I can totally understand how some feel the idea of an ODD slot being is "waste" or even worse a "dust magnet" to those who won't use I still can't grasp how that is a valid argument against the base model including it. Especially when considering it's a VERY minor "mod" (duct tape/glue/whatever) to fix said issue.

Don't get me wrong, I'm willing to pay for a product as long as it offers what I'm looking for (FT-02 owner) but this particular case as far as I've read was never being marketed as a sleek look over functional design product. Quite the opposite in the fact from what I've seen in that the point was to give the mITX world a new case which would increase the options owners had in a smaller form factor, not limit them. That is/was the base design model I read about and have been so intrigued to purchase once available. For those that value LESS options for your money for the sake of looks and quality parts/design you can always choose to pay a little (this base model plus a bit extra) or a LOT more to get it (ABEE).

Necere/Wahah360 am I off base in this assessment? If so please correct me, I try to keep up but 88+ pages is a LOT to remember.
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As Necere has stated, according to the survey thus far its looking the ODD will be the default and the non-ODD panel will be the option.

And saying this is being marketed as a "sleek look over functional design" is sort of ridiculous. Find me a case that looks this good and has the numerous mounting configurations this one does.

It is hard to keep up with all the posts since this is a very active thread, but it won't take much reading to find that your assumptions are way off base.
 
miguksaram said:
I thought this case was about offering the MOST OPTIONS in the smallest case possible
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The thread was started because wahaha360 wanted an aluminium SG05. Necere designed something nice, and then adjusted it where possible to increase compatibility with various components. So the starting point was a quality small case, and the options are more to broaden the target market, and not a primary consideration.
 
As long as the option to not have the slot doesn't cost more than having the slot I don't mind.
 
.. and according to Hardware.no, Asus says by email that this is merely the first in a series of short graphics cards.
 
If they're going that way on more shorter cards, you can bet they're going to ramp up ITX offerings.
 
YES!, now Zotac finally has some competition on the short card front. Hopefully other manufactures will take the hint and start going smaller as well.
 
illli said:
thats great news. i would never use any zotac products
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Fyi, the zotac 660 cooler fits on any reference short pcb 670. I've been running the 670 twincooler on an evga 4gb SC for a while :)
 
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