CCD MI-6: Performance in a 6.7L MIcrotower

Boil said:
The inclusion of the Kensington cable lock mount point is a nice little touch…!
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Yeah, I saw it a couple of places, and I finally figured out what the heck it was! Pretty easy to include, and useful for commercial locations I would think.
 
Firewolfy said:
On the mounting holes, I checked all the target sfx psu's and they all fit correctly. The Silverstone (7 models), Corsair (2), FSP (3), Bequiet (2) and Lian-Li (2) mainstream sfx psu's all are ok. About 1/2 of them have only 5 holes on the psu (and all those are non-modular), but their orientations are all the same. They all will mount with the fan down. Like this Silverstone ST30SF (nonmodular with 5 holes):
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Ah, I see you've done your research. Good to know!

Firewolfy said:
The I/O is just a standard board-cable assembly. I had the mfgr revise it for the usb3.0 instead of 2.0. The audio line is just basic standard ATX MB style setup.
I just reviewed your discussions on your Freilite Brevis S thread regarding audio circuits adn it looks like you have a good handle on what is required for a HD line.

The change to single USB 3.0 was because 2 usb3.0 cables got kind of ridiculous to route. I might go back to 2 if there is a lot of interest, but 1 for now.
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Could it be that this is the assembly that LiHeat is offering? It looks quite similar in terms of layout ;) I'll be replying to you PM after this.

Firewolfy said:
Yeah, I saw it a couple of places, and I finally figured out what the heck it was! Pretty easy to include, and useful for commercial locations I would think.
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How thick is the rear material? 1mm it was, right? Because normally, kensington requires 2.5mm or more for the slot and recommends a metal backing plate, but that would of course make the case a little bit more expensive and it's not going to be useful for most users. I also heard that Kensington locks are very easy to break (even if the slot is of proper strength), so commercial users actually use different systems for securing hardware.
 
Yes, the audio/usb3.0 pcb/cable assy on the Li-Heat ebay page (or is it facebook) is the one I worked with them on. Since they are selling it there, hopefully they won't cancel the design before I order some!

On the kensington lock, the rear material is 2mm, so there is a little more meat there. Plus it is all solid, not partly plastic like most laptops, that need a backing plate. I don't know much about them as far as toughness, I have just seen them around over the years.
 
Ah I see, 2mm is of course much sturdier. Yeah let's not go into a discussion about how useful they really are. If people want maximum security, they can also route regular steel cable through the vent holes, so there really are enough options with your case. And of course, it's not like the slot being there will hurt anyone.
 
--Quick update--
Picked up the 3 sets of laser cut prototype case parts. Checked all dimensions and they look good. -- Some holes are a bit undersized, will drill those out after bending. Bending house has them now. Still expecting to get them back by end of next week.
 
Well I haven't checked extensively, but no. I have it with a black cable, but the jack key is still blue. I'm thinking blue isn't a big deal. You think it is?
 
POLL POLL POLL POLL

I'd like to poll you viewers and contributors to this thread to determine interest level in this case. I have created a poll here:

http://www.strawpoll.me/embed_1/10795576

I'd like to check for interest in moving forward with this, now that final prototypes are being made.

Thanks for your help!

I'll end the poll on Monday and post the results.
 
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Firewolfy said:
Well I haven't checked extensively, but no. I have it with a black cable, but the jack key is still blue. I'm thinking blue isn't a big deal. You think it is?
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Well, it's not a deal breaker; but that blue is distracting (to me)…

But the first time I saw a black USB port, I immediately wondered why more manufacturers didn't do the same…
 
Boil said:
I immediately wondered why more manufacturers didn't do the same…
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Because the USB standard requires the connectors to be that exact blue colour. Sourcing black USB3.0 connectors is very hard, you have crazy high MOQs for those things as you need to pay for the specially coloured plastic mixture, the molding and the added work of coordination from the manufacturer. Sure, Razer can get green USB3 ports and Gigabyte can get red ones, but if you are an artisan who's looking to sell less than 5000 cases, you'll be out of luck.

And for regular case manufacturers, you always have the reason that people immediately associate blue ports with USB3. They don't have to read the description of the case to know that they'll get USB3, and that's very important for a retail product.
 
This case looks great, just what I've been looking for. I'm not even in the market for one but will probably pick one up anyway!

The first post mentions front panel customizations. Can you describe that a bit more?
 
klatox said:
This case looks great, just what I've been looking for. I'm not even in the market for one but will probably pick one up anyway!

The first post mentions front panel customizations. Can you describe that a bit more?
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The idea is that the front face plate will have a nice powder coat or anodize, but could also serve as a blank canvas for whatever the owner might want to do. Since the front panel is thick aluminum and easily separated from the case (4 screws), it can be taken off and customized. Any special processes can be done: special powder coat color, anodize color, etched or milled designs or patterns, adhesive skin (tons of laptop skin designs out there), etc.

So the sky is the limit on what the front could look like.

Right now any customization would be up to the owner to do. I have not explored costs for supplying cases with customized front panels.

Hope that helps
 
iFreilicht said:
Because the USB standard requires the connectors to be that exact blue colour. Sourcing black USB3.0 connectors is very hard, you have crazy high MOQs for those things as you need to pay for the specially coloured plastic mixture, the molding and the added work of coordination from the manufacturer. Sure, Razer can get green USB3 ports and Gigabyte can get red ones, but if you are an artisan who's looking to sell less than 5000 cases, you'll be out of luck.

And for regular case manufacturers, you always have the reason that people immediately associate blue ports with USB3. They don't have to read the description of the case to know that they'll get USB3, and that's very important for a retail product.
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I have been seeing more * more non-blue USB ports as of late; blacks & reds on various MBs, and the first black ones I recall are when Ncase switched to black USB ports…

Just thinking about the overall aesthetic of the chassis; maybe I will have to get a wireless mouse with one of those little tiny USB nubbins for the transceiver, that would cover up the blue…

One of the reasons (silly, I know, but it is what it is…) I am looking at the MSI Z170 gaming MB; all the rear I/O is either black or red…! I do not even really mind the PS/2 port as much, as it is all red…

I REALLY hate that we still have the PS/2 ports on modern MBs, and ESPECIALLY hate that split color green/purple a lot of them have…! Do not get me started on the pastel rainbow that is most audio i//o sections…! ;^p

REALLY looking forward to this chassis…!

I am envisioning one of three builds for the near future…

Hutzy XS = i5 non-K series CPU / H170 / GTX 1060 build

MI-6 = i5 6600K (overclockable) CPU / Z170 / GTX 1070 build

Case M1 = i7 6700K (overclockable) CPU / Z170 / GTX 1080 build (water-cooled via dual 120mm AIOs)

But of the three (also keeping in mind I currently have a Corsair SF600 sitting in box waiting to be used), I am definitely leaning towards the MI-6; I just like the idea of a compact micro-tower chassis that packs a goodly bit of modern powerful hardware within…!!!

And I definitely want to do some sort of laser etch on that front panel, it's like a blank canvas…!!!
 
Boil said:
the first black ones I recall are when Ncase switched to black USB ports
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Laptop manufacturers have done black USB3 ports for quite some time now. NCase can only get black USB ports because LianLi has changed that for their front-panel assembly, IIRC.
 
A random thought that I found quite amusing…

As I was thinking of the MI-6, and how it is kind of a micro-tower chassis…

Remember those damnable mini-CDs that some hardware came with, the ones that were totally useless if you had a slot-loading ODD…?

Well, I just imagined a scaled down ODD for the same, in the MI-6 chassis (I know there is not room for such a mini-ODD), and I got a chuckle out of it…

That is all…
 
Boil said:
I have been seeing more * more non-blue USB ports as of late; blacks & reds on various MBs, and the first black ones I recall are when Ncase switched to black USB ports…

Just thinking about the overall aesthetic of the chassis; maybe I will have to get a wireless mouse with one of those little tiny USB nubbins for the transceiver, that would cover up the blue…

One of the reasons (silly, I know, but it is what it is…) I am looking at the MSI Z170 gaming MB; all the rear I/O is either black or red…! I do not even really mind the PS/2 port as much, as it is all red…

I REALLY hate that we still have the PS/2 ports on modern MBs, and ESPECIALLY hate that split color green/purple a lot of them have…! Do not get me started on the pastel rainbow that is most audio i//o sections…! ;^p

REALLY looking forward to this chassis…!

I am envisioning one of three builds for the near future…

Hutzy XS = i5 non-K series CPU / H170 / GTX 1060 build

MI-6 = i5 6600K (overclockable) CPU / Z170 / GTX 1070 build

Case M1 = i7 6700K (overclockable) CPU / Z170 / GTX 1080 build (water-cooled via dual 120mm AIOs)

But of the three (also keeping in mind I currently have a Corsair SF600 sitting in box waiting to be used), I am definitely leaning towards the MI-6; I just like the idea of a compact micro-tower chassis that packs a goodly bit of modern powerful hardware within…!!!

And I definitely want to do some sort of laser etch on that front panel, it's like a blank canvas…!!!
Click to expand...

Obviously the MI-6 is the best solution for you! Especially with that etched design you have planned. Hmm, was it the hackintosh line drawing , or the "Take My Money" graphic you are going to put on it? In all the confusion I lost track......
 
If you haven't voted already, you are welcome to check out the poll a few posts up. It's open thru Sunday night. Feedback is appreciated!
 
This looks very nice! Has any ballpark pricing been mentioned yet? I know it's a low volume case, but it being more affordable than a DAN Case A4 or the Ncase M1 would be an awesome thing. 200+ € is quite a lot, more so for an ITX case.
 
Primoz said:
This looks very nice! Has any ballpark pricing been mentioned yet? I know it's a low volume case, but it being more affordable than a DAN Case A4 or the Ncase M1 would be an awesome thing. 200+ € is quite a lot, more so for an ITX case.
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Primoz,
Well, I made this cost target (back on page 5 I think) --
Well cost target is less than $150, and a stretch goal of under $100. Prelim quotes are in line with this.​

I'm still sticking to that target. Current quotes for part fabrication, riser, usb/audio/pwr, hardware, assembly, packaging are adding up to about $150 for 500pc run. That is about 136€. But I'm only prototyping now, so we will see how quotes change with prototyping experience.
 
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The Straw Poll Results are In

First of all, thanks to all of you for voting. I really appreciate the feedback.

So, here are the results:
Firewolfys%20Mi-6%20Case%20Interest%20Straw%20Poll.jpg

Currently there are 22 votes that show interest in a production run this year. That would be great fun to get cases made in the next few months! I have not shown or discussed this case on any other forums yet, so it's just from our [H]SFF forum.

As far as the folks interested in a different color, and everyone who has an opinion for that matter, feel free to post your thoughts, ideas and suggestions that would make this case epic for you.

Thanks again,
Firewolfy
 
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I honestly have recently become obsessed with SFF cases. I really like your design and had to register here just so I could comment. Once this does go to production and if it is in-line with your current cost estimates I'm going to be in :)

This is incredible work!

Do you have an estimate for when you will order the first production units?
 
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obelisk79 said:
I honestly have recently become obsessed with SFF cases. I really like your design and had to register here just so I could comment. Great work. How much do you suspect a small production run would cost per unit?
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Seriously…?!? You ask this question, when the answer is LITERALLY TWO POSTS UP…?!?
 
Boil said:
Seriously…?!? You ask this question, when the answer is LITERALLY TWO POSTS UP…?!?
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I caught that just a few minutes after I posted it and modified my post as I realized I asked a dumb question.

Edit: I'll be buying 2 (one for myself and spouse) if/when the opportunity presents itself.
 
obelisk79 said:
I caught that just a few minutes after I posted it and modified my post as I realized I asked a dumb question.

Edit: I'll be buying 2 (one for myself and spouse) if/when the opportunity presents itself.
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No problem bro. I'll be sure to post when I am able to offer more concrete timing
Thx
 
Taking the discussion back to HSF related matters…

Looking at two different cooling solutions right now, any feedback or thoughts towards same…?

Either this combination:

ID-COOLING IS-60 TDP 130W Low Profile/Slim ITX/HTPC System CPU Cooler With 6 Heatpipes, 120mm Fan, Compatible with Intel LGA1150/1155/1156/775 & AMD FM2+/FM2/FM1/AM3+/AM3/AM2+/AM2-Newegg.com

Fractal Design Venturi HP Series Black Fluid Dynamic Bearing High Pressure PWM 140mm Radiator/Heatsink Optimized Fan-Newegg.com

OR…

Noctua NH-L9x65 92 x 92 x 14mm, 92 x 92 x 25mm SSO2 Low-profile Quiet CPU Cooler, NF-A9x14 PWM fan - Newegg.com

The former may give more airflow to the entire board; the latter, well, it's Noctua…!

Both come in at 65mm total height…

I wonder about clearance issues with the mix & match combo…

I wonder about cooling to the rest of the MB with the Noctua, but I feel the bottom fan will assist with that…
 
^for the rest of the board I think custom mounting small passive copper heatsinks strategically on the mobo might help manage heat in the restricted airflow conditions.

Also, since I'm not looking at which board you're talking about, it's likely heatsinks are already in place, so in that case a wise move would always be to remove and remount them with your preferred thermal compound.
 
Both heat sinks should be great. The 140mm fan will likely overlap the side panel vent, so some lost efficiency there. --but the wee 92mm Noctua is gonna leave some flow potential on the table.

I think any interferences from mixing and matching will be driven by MB config and memory ht. The PCIe Riser is out of the way, and nothing else is around.
 
IMO I would forget about venting holes in the front of the case. The way you have designed it, being a two-compartment case, a bottom fan will provide enough airflow to properly cool anything that will fit. The good thing, also, is that heat from the cpu will not affect the gpu, nor the drives and, at the same time, a fan filter down below won't ruin the looks of the case nor give you any extra work if you have to wipe the case constantly. Also, front fan gives you less space for hdd's. And... for what? So that you put a 90-92mm fan instead of an 80mm one? Makes no practical difference in the real world. The sheer size of this case makes it impossible to put high-powered gpu's (IE more than 200W), and thus a lot of cooling isn't really needed. But even then a single 80mm on such a small volume case should give plenty airflow.
 
prava said:
IMO I would forget about venting holes in the front of the case. The way you have designed it, being a two-compartment case, a bottom fan will provide enough airflow to properly cool anything that will fit. The good thing, also, is that heat from the cpu will not affect the gpu, nor the drives and, at the same time, a fan filter down below won't ruin the looks of the case nor give you any extra work if you have to wipe the case constantly. Also, front fan gives you less space for hdd's. And... for what? So that you put a 90-92mm fan instead of an 80mm one? Makes no practical difference in the real world. The sheer size of this case makes it impossible to put high-powered gpu's (IE more than 200W), and thus a lot of cooling isn't really needed. But even then a single 80mm on such a small volume case should give plenty airflow.
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Page 7 gives us the dalliance with front venting & fan…

Page 8 puts that notion to bed; it also allows a 92mm slim fan on the bottom AND ample space for up to four SSDs (with fan mounted) or a maximum of SIX SSDs if one forgoes the bottom fan…
 
Current projected build:

MSI H170i Pro AC mITX MB
Intel i5 6500 CPU
ID-Cooling IS-60 HSF
Fractal Design Venturi HP Series 140mm fan (in place of slim fan that comes with the above HSF)
G.Skill NT Series 16GB DDR4 SDRAM (2 @ 8GB 2400 DIMMs)
Intel 750 Series 400GB (15mm x 2.5") NVMe SSD (w/M.2 interface cable)
Gigabyte GTX 1070 mITX GPU
Noctua NF-A9x14 92mm slim chassis fan

With a set of custom cables from ensourced.net & the chassis itself (at the projected $150 mark); I forsee a $1.5k finished box…!

I already have a Corsair SF600 SFX PSU, which did not cost me anything; so it is not on the wishlist nor accounted for in the total dollar amount…
 
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Boil said:
Fractal Design Venturi HP Series Black Fluid Dynamic Bearing High Pressure PWM 140mm Radiator/Heatsink Optimized Fan-Newegg.com
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So Boil, I've been wondering? Why use the 140mm fan? or That specific model, is it the PWM?

I did some poking around and found this one at 120mm with higher airflow and lower dBM noise:
LEPA LP-BOL12R 120mm LEPA BOL.QUIET LP-BOL12R S Blade Case Fan - Newegg.com
Fractal - 78.1 CFM @ 30.1 dBM
Lepa - 81.45 CFM @ 18 dBM

Generally noise doubles/halves with every 3 dBM increase/decrease so the 120mm LEPA would theoretically fit better, flow more air and generate 70% less noise (at max airflow) while doing so? I would imagine with the tight clearances you may expect to have slightly higher noise than the listed rating due to potential irregular flow into the fan.

I think based on this comparison, I could forgo the PWM control for 24/7 better overall performance. Although if you are handy you could convert that to be a PWM fan. A quick google search turned up a guide or two.

Just food for thought.
 
obelisk79 said:
So Boil, I've been wondering? Why use the 140mm fan? or That specific model, is it the PWM?

I did some poking around and found this one at 120mm with higher airflow and lower dBM noise:
LEPA LP-BOL12R 120mm LEPA BOL.QUIET LP-BOL12R S Blade Case Fan - Newegg.com
Fractal - 78.1 CFM @ 30.1 dBM
Lepa - 81.45 CFM @ 18 dBM

Generally noise doubles/halves with every 3 dBM increase/decrease so the 120mm LEPA would theoretically fit better, flow more air and generate 70% less noise (at max airflow) while doing so? I would imagine with the tight clearances you may expect to have slightly higher noise than the listed rating due to potential irregular flow into the fan.

I think based on this comparison, I could forgo the PWM control for 24/7 better overall performance. Although if you are handy you could convert that to be a PWM fan. A quick google search turned up a guide or two.

Just food for thought.
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It IS a PWM fan…!

But it is more that I was looking for a 140mm fan with a 120mm fan mounting hole pattern (which the Fractal model has, once one swaps out the isolation mounts for the shorter included ones)… Just thinking about getting the most overall fan coverage to the CPU side of the chassis… And it's black (as opposed to the two-tone tan & brown of the Noctua models)…

I dunno, maybe I will just stick with the included fan on the IS-60 HSF…?

Or bite the aesthetic bullet & go for a 120mm Noctua…?

Hoping a decent amount of testing with assorted HSFs & fans will been done on this chassis (as was done on the Dan A4-SFX) before any units are produced for shipping… That way we, the end users, can have a better idea of what works best (fit, function, noise, airflow, etc.)…
 
Hey Firewolfy…!

Since the specs have changed somewhat on the MI-6, an chance of some new renders…?

I need to keep my desktop picture current…! ;^p

Thanks…!
 
I signed up on Hardforums so I could post as I have been stalking this thread for a very long time. My current case is an Ncase M1, but I'm jonesing for a case this size and this is exactly what I am looking for in a case. I will be one of the first in line to purchase it when it comes available.

Firewolfy awesome case design! I am not sure why the big case manufacturers have not thought about this layout...their loss, I guess.
 
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Dedaciai said:
I signed up on Hardforums so I could post as I have been stalking this thread for a very long time. My current case is an Ncase M1, but I'm jonesing for a case this size and this is exactly what I am looking for in a case. I will be one of the first in line to purchase it when it comes available.

Firewolfy awesome case design! I am not sure why the big case manufacturers have not thought about this layout...their loss, I guess.
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Dedaciai-- Thx for the feedback bro!
I know what you mean about the volume mfgrs ignoring this size. There are a few nice small cases out there, but the layouts aren't good. Many have poor cooling.

Hey, if you are thinking of customizing/personalizing the front panel, feel free to post your ideas. The more ideas the better I say.
 
Firewolfy said:
Primoz,
Well, I made this cost target (back on page 5 I think) --
Well cost target is less than $150, and a stretch goal of under $100. Prelim quotes are in line with this.​

I'm still sticking to that target. Current quotes for part fabrication, riser, usb/audio/pwr, hardware, assembly, packaging are adding up to about $150 for 500pc run. That is about 136€. But I'm only prototyping now, so we will see how quotes change with prototyping experience.
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Liking that price. I'll be following this topic and by the current plans, i'm in for this case.

As for cooling, i saw that over 60 mm height is OK, that would mean a Big Shuriken 2 would also be an option?
 
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