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

Interlopr said:
Are you sure?

There is someone with the M1 using the C1...

I was dead set on getting this cooler :(

Is this only an Issue with the V3?
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I believe this is all versions of the M1. If you plan on using a graphics card, the Cryorig C1 will only fit in one orientation, which is with the overhang going over the memory slots. Unfortunately, this interferes with the SFX PSU. The only way this cooler will work in the M1 is if you use a short graphics card (e.g. 970 mini) and an ATX PSU, since the ATX bracket orientation is at the front of the case instead of the side. The one thing I'd like to see is if it is possible to securely mount the SFX PSU to the ATX bracket in the front using a couple of screws. This would solve the PSU/cooler clearance issues.
 
The V3 SFX bracket is no different from the earlier version with respect to CPU cooler clearance. You can use the ATX bracket and an SFX PSU with an adapter plate (Silverstone supplies one), which should allow the Cryorig C1 to fit without giving up long GPU support. You do give up one side 120mm fan mount though, and the option to use the 3.5" HDD cage.
 
Got my V3 bracket in today for my v1 case =)

Question to Necere; do you like(mind/care) if I make a .stl for a 3D printer?
It would help people who couldn't order the bracket in time and they can always order an aluminium one later.
A minimum order quantity of 1000 is quiet a lot... don't see that coming anytime soon.
 
I've done some prototyping before, taking into account a sfx psu is ±1,5kg it should work depending on the plastic/fillament being used. Also you'd need to print it solid and it would need to be thicker than the original one. But yeah I feel lucky I got one in time, guess this is the best I could do to help people out. I could easily make brackets here out of steel/aluminium here as I got access to that kind of stuff, but that's something else completely.
 
Half Life said:
Maybe the SX600 but the rev1.1, if you go for the SX500 you will need cut off the connectors or but short connectors.
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Has anyone done this (w/ pics)? I was under the impression that SFX-L would fit in the V3 without any mods, assuming no GPU backplate.
 
This post has some good pics :)
Even with a backplate you can fit the standard silverstone cables but it's really tight.
Please note: This is a v1 bracket so a V3 is 2mm to 3mm less tight.

Have been looking into it and in 3 weeks time I got some time to produce some prototype connectors that are 2 to 3 mm less in height... that would help a lot. This would be the max as the pins may else touch a metal backplate or metal parts from the pcb once cables get damaged. Wasn't really planning to make them for others but if there's a huge demand I might just make some.



Tschus said:
It's been selling for about 3 weeks here in Taiwan. But according to my observation, it's not widely available yet. Only a few small stores listed it and the store I bought from didn't have one in stock so it was back ordered from SilverStone.



I haven't powered anything with the SX500-LG yet. I'll try it on my current desktop in the weekend if I have time because it would be a tedious job to replace all the power cables.
Will update on the SX500-LG thread if I have anything to share. :)



I gave it a few other tries and was able to squeeze in a few connectors.
The wires do push toward the GPU. Here're the pictures I took today:

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The 2mm would definitely help, but it's hard to judge whether the wires would still push towards the GPU.

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The PCI-E power cable connector seems shorter so it's easy to fit in.
The GPU is clearly pushed down by the cords.

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With the 24pin ATX power cable.

I think it's time to order a V3 bracket and try it out! Hope it's sent directly from Taiwan.
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Oh I remember seeing that, but as you pointed out that is a V1 with a GPU backplate. I don't think we've seen anyone post a V3, SFX-L, no-backplate GPU yet. Really looking forward to that.
 
Necere said:
The V3 SFX bracket is no different from the earlier version with respect to CPU cooler clearance. You can use the ATX bracket and an SFX PSU with an adapter plate (Silverstone supplies one), which should allow the Cryorig C1 to fit without giving up long GPU support. You do give up one side 120mm fan mount though, and the option to use the 3.5" HDD cage.
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Thanks, Necere! I didn't even notice the PSU came with an adapter bracket. This is a huge relief. The C1 seems to be producing some decent temps (open air) during idle so far. It has been ranging from 28C to 32C idle and I expect that to drop a bit once the thermal paste settles (or that's what they used to say back in the day). Will post some pics when I get home today. Thanks again.
 
For those with the SX500-G, how is the cable clearance if you mount the PSU to the side bracket using the 120mm fan, with the side bracket at either position?
 
When will the sx500-lg be available to buy in the US? This is one of the last parts I need to buy for my v3 build (which should of shipped today). Debating on just buying the 450w and doing the fan swap mod or waiting to order the new 500 PSU. Why is it taking them so long to start selling them in the US?
 
I wonder if MODDIY could make a cable set with shorter connectors for the SX500-LG. They already sell cable kits for SilverStone PSUs.
 
Man, this is a tight fit with the GTX 980, Cryorig C1 and Silverstone ST45SF-G. I've ordered the short flexible PSU cable kit so hopefully that helps a bit on being able to bend and tuck the wires.. As is, I basically cannot move or hide any of the wires, whatsoever. I know that's not the point of this case as it's not meant to show the internals, but it's impacting airflow a bit. Also wondering if you guys have any suggestions as to where I should place fans. I have two 120mm noiseblocker eloop fans that I'm just not sure where they should go, yet. Also may mount a fan on the back if that would help at all.

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Sorry for the potato quality pics..
 
Good info on the cryorig c1 about the fitment most of us didn't realize it would not fit with the normal sfx mounting bracket. Im still trying to decide on my cooler choice right now.

My current small powerful budget build consist of...

Ncase M1 V3- $250 shipped-still waiting on tracking number. (lol...Yes this is my most expensive part in my entire build and some people might think spending this much on a bare case for a budget build is stupid but the only logical way to look at it is compared to all other components in the system a nice case will not lose much if any value and its is the only part you and everybody else will look at everyday so it would be silly to not get the very best, most high quality case you can. Besides all the other Mini ITX cases look completely lame and non functional in comparison)
Intel 4790k- 115$ (intel retail edge program, hit 25k coins in 1 night and ordered. This program is legit!)
Asus Z97i-Plus- $90- with rakuten.com $50 signup offer and new years 10% off sitewide code
Team Xtreme 2x8GB 2400 Cas 10-$125 newegg sale a few days ago
Samsung 256gb 850 Pro- $145 with 30$ off checkout promo
EVGA slim load optical drive kit- $42 amazon prime

Only things I have left to order is power supply, video card, and cooler. This is my first PC build ever but im planning to do everything legit and have been doing tons of research the past few weeks. Right now im 50/50 on getting the noctua C14 or the new CM Nepton 240M. Either way im going to delid my chip then use CL Pro between the die and IHS. Should safely do 4.7ghz @ 1.30v stable and cool no problem from what iv seen after doing this.

Anyways my questions are will the CM Nepton 240M fit with zero issues mounted to the side bracket? I assume it will since people fit the h100i and its about the same size unless im overlooking something. I want my system as quiet as possible and it looks like the Nepton 240m blows everything out of the water in its class, My other choice would be the c14 air cooler. I really want to keep the inside very clean and simple but worried about the weight and stress the C14 might put on the MB/Processor especially if the case is moved and carried around from time to time. What do you guys think? Price difference isnt much $75-C14 vs $90-Nepton 240m after rebate.
 
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Looks like be quiet! has some new fans that might fit the M1. At least one of them looks.. a lot... like the C14. Nice to have some more options.
 
Been a long time since I've posted in this thread, I feel like I've missed a lot. :(

StoicG19 said:
Man, this is a tight fit with the GTX 980, Cryorig C1 and Silverstone ST45SF-G. I've ordered the short flexible PSU cable kit so hopefully that helps a bit on being able to bend and tuck the wires.. As is, I basically cannot move or hide any of the wires, whatsoever. I know that's not the point of this case as it's not meant to show the internals, but it's impacting airflow a bit. Also wondering if you guys have any suggestions as to where I should place fans. I have two 120mm noiseblocker eloop fans that I'm just not sure where they should go, yet. Also may mount a fan on the back if that would help at all.

Sorry for the potato quality pics..
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I recommend cutting your cables shorter and resleeving them. It'll take a lot of time unless you pay someone else to do it for you, but it's worth it.
 
Just got an email saying 5th of Jan tracking numbers wont be updated until next week, Does this mean they have been shipped and are just slow with tracking numbers? Or are they delaying the shipping until next week?
 
i'm planning to air cool before i set up a wc loop. what's the cheapest thing other than a stock intel hsf that would fit in the ncase m1? unfortunately i've already thrown away the stock hsf long ago as i thought it would never be of use to me.
 
phillai said:
Is the Silverstone SX500-LG PSU, a clearance problem at all, if I go and get a short-PCB 970 such as the upcoming ASUS GeForce® GTX 970 DC Mini?
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That combo will have no issues fitting.

StoicG19 said:
Also wondering if you guys have any suggestions as to where I should place fans. I have two 120mm noiseblocker eloop fans that I'm just not sure where they should go, yet.
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I'd probably put both on the bottom.

NA STI said:
Anyways my questions are will the CM Nepton 240M fit with zero issues mounted to the side bracket? I assume it will since people fit the h100i and its about the same size unless im overlooking something. I want my system as quiet as possible and it looks like the Nepton 240m blows everything out of the water in its class, My other choice would be the c14 air cooler. I really want to keep the inside very clean and simple but worried about the weight and stress the C14 might put on the MB/Processor especially if the case is moved and carried around from time to time. What do you guys think? Price difference isnt much $75-C14 vs $90-Nepton 240m after rebate.
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The Nepton should fit fine.

I don't think the weight of the C14 would be a major concern, but if you're really worried about it you can leave the fan(s) off the cooler and install fans on the side bracket instead, which will keep the weight down. The fans installed that way can also help to support the cooler, IIRC.

phillai said:
Oh yeah, does any one know if I can use the full hard drive bracket, if I get the SX500 PSU as well?
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Yes.

M4rk said:
Been a long time since I've posted in this thread, I feel like I've missed a lot. :(
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Hey M4rk, sure has. How've you been?

flod said:
i'm planning to air cool before i set up a wc loop. what's the cheapest thing other than a stock intel hsf that would fit in the ncase m1? unfortunately i've already thrown away the stock hsf long ago as i thought it would never be of use to me.
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If you go to newegg and look at their CPU coolers, filter by 92mm fan models and sort by price, there are quite a few basic small coolers for ~$10 that will work.
 
Just ordered my final components for my build, A 600w SFX Silverstone and Cryorig C1, All I'm waiting on now is the case to arrive :D
 
just finished up my m1 v3 build! will get pics when i can. love this little case.

final build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For $252.99)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9i 57.5 CFM CPU Cooler (Purchased For $41.99)
Motherboard: Asus H97I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $113.99)
Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Purchased For $139.99)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For $189.99)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $89.99)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card (Purchased For $339.99)
Power Supply: Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply (Purchased For $124.99)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-B9 PWM 37.9 CFM 92mm Fan ($23.99)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-F12 PWM 55.0 CFM 120mm Fan (Purchased For $27.99)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-F12 PWM 55.0 CFM 120mm Fan (Purchased For $27.99)
Other: NCASE M1 V3, Silver (Purchased For $185.00)
Total: $1558.89
 
Necere said:
Hey M4rk, sure has. How've you been?
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Last we talked I got a job as a community manager for a social games studio in California. That didn't last forever (the studio downsized) and now I'm back in Florida. Basically a free agent again. Looks like I missed some new case ideas getting posted here and actually produced. Going to try and read through some of what I missed.

Are you guys still working on the smaller steambox design? I was always interested in that too. :)
 
Hey, been following this thread of a bit and was just wondering something - I see that the current run is expected to run out soonish - is it safe to assume there will be more in the future? I'll be building in 6ish months but wouldn't want to miss out on this case!
 
be Quiet! just announced two new coolers at CES.

The 'Dark Rock topflow' looks rather interesting. According to here it has a height of 130mm w/ the fan and 110mm w/o the fan.
 
goodbyegalaxy said:
Hey, been following this thread of a bit and was just wondering something - I see that the current run is expected to run out soonish - is it safe to assume there will be more in the future? I'll be building in 6ish months but wouldn't want to miss out on this case!
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This comes up quite often, I would recommend to buy it if you are set on building using it. It's a case, the only thing that could go wrong is shipping issues/damage so you aren't exactly running out of warranty time or useful lifespan by buying it early. A bunch of people were bummed when they missed out on previous runs. It's a great case and you can't go wrong with it. Order first, question later :)
 
vpr said:
be Quiet! just announced two new coolers at CES.

The 'Dark Rock topflow' looks rather interesting. According to here it has a height of 130mm w/ the fan and 110mm w/o the fan.
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Yes, this looks like another alternative to the Noctua NH-C14. According to what I read on PC Perspective the Dark Rock Topflow has 135 mm fans so the cooling should still be very good.
 
Just received my set of silver V3 panels (Ottawa, Canada area). They look great on my V1 case.
 
trying to decide on cooling for when my case gets here. i have a brand new h105 that im thinking about selling if there is a better option. my old h105 performed amazing though. im open to air coolers but only if they are as quiet and perform the same or better as the h105. anyone have any thoughts or should i stick with the h105 and get some nice fans for it?

side note: had some issues with my case shipping and its going to be a bit longer than id hoped but my god Ncase has by FAR the best customer service i have ever dealt with. Seriously, every company should strive to be as helpful and kind as these guys! Will be buying the steambox to support you guys if it comes to fruition
 
goodbyegalaxy said:
Hey, been following this thread of a bit and was just wondering something - I see that the current run is expected to run out soonish - is it safe to assume there will be more in the future? I'll be building in 6ish months but wouldn't want to miss out on this case!
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At the current sales rate, I expect our inventory to last into March or April, maybe even later. Six months? I can't say for sure, but four months is a fair bet. I also don't know if there will be another run in the future; it will really depend mostly on whether w360 wants to keep doing it. It is a fair bit of work - dealing with customer issues on a daily basis, organizing shipping and payments, etc., and can be stressful, so we'll see.

No Hands 55 said:
trying to decide on cooling for when my case gets here. i have a brand new h105 that im thinking about selling if there is a better option. my old h105 performed amazing though. im open to air coolers but only if they are as quiet and perform the same or better as the h105. anyone have any thoughts or should i stick with the h105 and get some nice fans for it?
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The H105 is a thicker rad and will be a bit trickier to find room for, so what you might consider doing is just trying it out when you get the case and then go from there - either keep it if it works for you, or replace it with something else.

No Hands 55 said:
side note: had some issues with my case shipping and its going to be a bit longer than id hoped but my god Ncase has by FAR the best customer service i have ever dealt with. Seriously, every company should strive to be as helpful and kind as these guys! Will be buying the steambox to support you guys if it comes to fruition
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Dan/w360 rightly deserves most of the credit for that: when you send a message to our support email, that's who you're talking to. He occasionally consults with me on customer issues, and I've tried to impress my own philosophy of customer service on him, but as far as day-to-day support, it's all him.
 
Hey I recieved a mcp50x for Christmas and planned to use it in the ncase. Other than the fact I wouldn't be able to use a full size gpu with it I was gonna use the EK full water block for the vi impact. I'm having second thoughts though that the apogee xl would be just as good. I like the look and idea of the ek block cooling everything especially with reduced airflow finding smaller and smaller gpus is becoming easier . Has anyone else tried going this way?
 
dnoiz said:
While I'm happy with my current air cooled set up, as it is very silent, it does get quite hot in the small case. Hence I might opt for some additional cooling.
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Watercooling a (stock) CPU will probably result in a louder overall experience because of the pump. The only real reason to go with watercooling (in the Ncase) is because you have overclocks that require >20% extra voltage and/or want to watercool the GPU.
 
I tried installing a Corsair H75 in my M1 in the beginning and couldn't even find a way to "smash" it all in. The tubes were the more flexible, rubber type, but I still had a hard time trying to get it all in. How are people fitting this even larger kits in?
 
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