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

hi9580 said:
all the major heat source components intake air directly from outside the case, psu exhaust directly out top, open style gpu directly exhaust out top, bottom and back, cpu exhaust indirectly out top through convection, since all fans are intake it creates positive in case pressure hindering dust build up, this is much more efficient then conventional case designs
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Actually judging from the pic in the link below it appears that there may be enough space on the top or bottom of the motherboard tray (where the cut outs are made to thread the extender) to install perhaps at least 80mmx10mm fans, although this would in part depend on how flexible the extender cable is (well the case is 3cm higher than an itx motherboard). Just saying, not that I will probably try this, but it may help out people with heat problems such as with m.2 drives on the rear side of a motherboard.
http://pics.computerbase.de/5/9/7/5/9/17-1080.1149845798.jpg

Also bringing up cooling I noticed someone mentioned that they got better temps with the C7 with the fans mounted vertically as opposed to horizontally, so I wonder if Dan's results would have been even more impressive if he had mounted it vertically. This may have helped to push the hot air out of the top of the case instead of being cramped pushing againat the ram which was really closely located to the fins in the pics on page 87 of this thread.
 
dondan said:
There will be only two tiers.

T1: A4-SFXv1 Black
T2: A4-SFXv1 Silver
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congrats dan! I think this is the right way to go. the only options I would suggest for later runs are: PSU and magnetic dust filters. dust filters especially would be high profit margin! :)

for the kickstarter, I suggest showing mid/high-end and lower-end reference/example systems, with noise measurements, and how much they cost. Example: mid/high end: skylake 6700 (non-k), cryorg C7, gtx 980ti, samsung 950 pro, and a powerful PSU. lower end: i3-6100 (per The Tech Report System Guide: December 2015 edition ), boxed intel cooler, and a R9 380 for the AMD fans (per The Tech Report System Guide: December 2015 edition ).
 
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I also thought about the possibility to add three example configuration (entry, midrage/high-end, enthusiast) of the system to the campaign, to help some bakers with finding the best hardware configuration for it. But the biggest problem is the gpu because we will se a new generation in june/july.
 
dondan said:
I also thought about the possibility to add three example configuration (entry, midrage/high-end, enthusiast) of the system to the campaign, to help some bakers with finding the best hardware configuration for it. But the biggest problem is the gpu because we will se a new generation in june/july.
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True, although the crowdfunding campaign might be over by the time those new GPUs are out.

Also, by any chance do you have a design for bracket mount for a radiator or disk drive behind the PSU in the case of mini-ITX sized GPU use? I remember you saying you were thinking about offering this later–– I'm planning on installing a thin radiator behind the PSU as soon as I've got the case, so I was planning on making such a bracket unless you already have one designed :)
 
I'll be buying this case no matter what. But if my GPU doesn't fit, that just gives me an excuse to go Pascal ;)
 
Glad to see your project coming to fruition. Cannot wait to snag one of these, although I still have one empty ncase and another that needs a gpu. Guess its good to have lots of projects lined up to do ! :)
 
dondan: Can you provide us any estimated price for one piece? I need to make sure that I will have enough money in bank. And also it doesn't hurt if we know it before the crownfunding.
 
The final price is 230€. But I guess I read something about that I will get back 19% tax (german tax) for every non EU based buyer so the price will be 36€ lower (194€ = $220) for them, because they have to pay they own local tax. I will check that. :)
 
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dondan said:
There will be only two tiers.

T1: A4-SFXv1 Black
T2: A4-SFXv1 Silver
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That will be great, Dondan. I'll be looking forward to the campagin. But I still can't decide which color to get, the black or the silver.

Oh, how about adding another tier,
T3: A4-SFXv1 Black and A4-SFXv1 Silver :D
 
And spare parts? I think especially as the 2 side. I wanted to have spare for modding or even better, non pierced side.
 
Great news, dondan! I don't remeber if this had been asked - will there be a case number on the back, as a production number similar to what ncase did? Did you say there is a maximum that will be sold through the kickstarter or is there just a minumum order needed?

With a limited number being sold and the lack of numbers it seems unfair that those that want to order more than one can and since they aren't being prepaid, only paid after the kickstarter is complete.. What happens to those orders that can't be completed due to insufficient funds? Is there a backup plan?
 
For the EU residents can you say from where the kickstarter cases will be shipped (for VAT)? Will shipping be expensive?
 
IIRC, all the cases are being shipped to Dan from the mfgr. Dan will then ship to individual backers directly (from Germany).
 
@RJS2:The cases are limited to 1500 I think that is enough so they everyone will get one or two. If there are incomplete orders at the end, this ones will be unused.
If it comes to the situation that the Count of incomplete orders lower the total count 20 cases under the min. count the project will be canceled and I will refund the money.

Halfdan: Inside the EU there will be no extra VAT. But the price will include the German VAT(19%).

In EU shipping will be 15€ except the small Islands and except Germany = 6€.
 
dondan said:
A small update:

So guys I have great news. On friday DAN Cases will be finally founded. CE testing is in full progress and should be done in 1-2 weeks. Next week I will start creating the Kickstarter campaign. We are in the final steps.

Best regards

Daniel
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So DAN Cases will be founded as of today? Should we be expecting some updates on the site or the 1st page of this thread sometime shortly? Also it would be great if we can know in advance when the kickstarter campaign will go live (once you have a hard date set) so that we can support it from day one.
 
KarateOC said:
So DAN Cases will be founded as of today? Should we be expecting some updates on the site or the 1st page of this thread sometime shortly? Also it would be great if we can know in advance when the kickstarter campaign will go live (once you have a hard date set) so that we can support it from day one.
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I think you can subscribe to his updates/newsletter and you will be emailed new updates
 
Subscribe on dan-cases.com an get informed if the case is on Kickstarter.
 
dondan said:
Subscribe on dan-cases.com an get informed if the case is on Kickstarter.
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Have done . It appears that the site has been updated, and it is making me wonder if the DAN label on the front of the case of the new(?) artwork is an optional sticker or whether it is engraved in the case?
 
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Happy Birthday to Dan Cases! :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

So much hard work is finally coming to fruition. The case is such a simple, elegant, and, to many of us, obvious product. Yet, it's never been done before. And that is the definition of genius. ;) Congrats to Dan and the community for getting here. I cannot wait to get my A4-SFX. Eagerly awaiting the crowd funding campaign.
 
Sorry if this was answered before but I kept browsing the whole thread and didn't find the answer. Is Cryorig C7 the best cooler for this case in terms of performance and noise level?
 
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baonguyen312 said:
Sorry if this was answered before but I kept browsing the whole thread and didn't find the answer. Is Cryorig C7 the best cooler for this case in terms of performance and noise level?
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Maybe you missed dondan's post: DAN A4-SFX: The smallest gaming case in the world

tl;dr: the C7 beats everything else dondan previously tested - by a significant margin - even at 40% fan speed which is "very very silent". AFAIK, the only downside to the C7 is that the fan is not easily replaced if it fails.
 
How about the LP53 with a thin fan? The only problem with that cpu cooling configuration is that it would be quite costly and it is hard to find a thin cpu cooling fan.
 
I want to buy this case for my build. Just some points.

The price is ridiculous high for the amount of material required to build the case. Also there is no airflow engineering or anything like that involved in here. If I'm wrong show me your results then. And I'm not talking about the temperature results you show on this threath.

Just as an example of an expensive ITX case I'll give you EVGA Hadron Air, which at release was unique.

You charge 230€+Tax (I hope you don't mean IVA)!!!!

The case does not include or have fans, I might be wrong here, which should immediately be added at least on top.
That price and PSU no included???? EVGA Hadron Air used to cost $150 but included a Gold efficiency custom form factor 500W PSU.

No filters included with that price? Are you really expecting us to buy them separate after spending that much money on the case?

I'll give you at least +1 on the interior painted black. Keep that.

You know it won't be long before other companies release similar cases, so just as an advise review my points carefully.
 
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Kalaminator said:
I want to buy this case for my build. Just some points.

The price is ridiculous high for the amount of material required to build the case. Also there is no airflow engineering or anything like that involved in here. If I'm wrong show me your results then. And I'm not talking about the temperature results you show on this threath.

Just as an example of an expensive ITX case I'll give you EVGA Hadron Air, which at release was unique.

You charge 230€+Tax (I hope you don't mean IVA)!!!!

The case does not include or have fans, I might be wrong here, which should immediately be added at least on top.
That price and PSU no included???? EVGA Hadron Air used to cost $150 but included a Gold efficiency custom form factor 500W PSU.

No filters included with that price? Are you really expecting us to buy them separate after spending that much money on the case?

I'll give you at least +1 on the interior painted black. Keep that.

You know it won't be long before other companies release similar cases, so just as an advise review my points carefully.
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Then look for another case? Not everyone is going to like it. Dan doesn't have to sell this case, he could of made one for himself and not shared it with us. You're welcome to make your own more efficient and less expensive case.
 
Kalaminator
The difference between me and EVGA is a capital of millions of Euro. So if they develop/build a case they build not 500 they build 5000+. Furthermore they made the Hadron out of 0.8mm thin steel and plastic. This materials are very sheep and does not look really High-End.
The A4-SFX is made out 1.5mm brushed aluminum. So if you look for similar cases from LianLi that have small quantities and a riser e.g. the PCO5 they also cost 200€+.In the crowdfunding campaign I will add a chart so everybody can see what items have an influence on the price.

So you see the price is high because:
  • low quantities
  • premium materials
  • premium manufacturer
  • very expansive riser cable that has the best quality on the market
So you have to decide for yourself if you like to support me to get a very unique product that will not be seen from any other case manufacturer in near future. The reason is simple: Because of the need of high-end risers the profit for them would be too low.

About cooling: Please read the case reviews or the A4-SFX or look at my results. There is no need of case fans because the static air pressure and the physical law the hot air rises is enough. I know it is hard to believe but the concept of the A4-SFX is so unique that you can't map your experience of the cooldesign of classical cases like the Hadron to the A4-SFX.
 
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Kalaminator said:
I'm not sure how old are you. But this is not how things work. If I'm going to spend 230 euros which is more than double the price of a premium case with a lot of engineering involved on it, when this one is just a rearrange of space I have the right to leave my opinion. If he is doing it, is because he wants the money, not because he wants to share. When you want to share you try to charge the least possible.

If you are willing to receive low quality paying premium price, I respect that, but don't tell me what to do with my money please, my opinion is for "Dan" not for you.
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Kalaminator, it seems like you are out of touch with reality. Dondan is not a billion dollar company. He does not have the luxury that big established companies do. Why don't you do your own research and look into how much it would cost to make a custom case and produce it as an indie.

And please be professional, there is no reason to attack anyone while you seem to have the wrong impression on how this works. There are many obstacles and premiums to pay. If that's not for you then there are other cases out there.
 
dondan said:
Kalaminator
The difference between me and EVGA is a capital of millions of Euro. So if they develop/build a case they build not 500 they build 5000+. Furthermore they made the Hadron out of 0.8mm thin steel and plastic. This materials are very sheep and does not look really High-End.
The A4-SFX is made out 1.5mm brushed aluminum. So if you look for similar cases from LianLi that have small quantities and a riser e.g. the PCO5 they also cost 200€+.In the crowdfunding campaign I will add a chart so everybody can see what items have an influence on the price.

So you see the price is high because:
  • low quantities
  • premium materials
  • premium manufacturer
  • very expansive riser cable that has the best quality on the market

About cooling: Please read the case reviews or the A4-SFX or look at my results. There is no need of case fans because the static air pressure and the physical law the hot air rises is enough.
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First of all I want to say thank you for replying. I do understand your points about the high price tag. I'm willing to pay that price, but you should definitely include the filters at least.

Also try sending a "test" case to Linus or someone known on the Internet to review your product, people will definitely come to you after watching their videos. I was watching reviews of ITX cases on Youtube before accidentally finding your case on Google images.

Have a nice one.
 
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Imo filters are not good for this case because the GPU fans are ~10mm and the CPU fans are 12-14mm. Filters will severely restrict the airflow in this case unlike bigger cases which use 25mm high static pressure fans. Besides, the dust problem is usually just a matter of convenience.
 
I am already in talk with Linus. But currently all prototypes are away except nr.1 prototyp that is on my desk. One of the final release sample is in the CE test lab and the other is by an very big gamestudio that plan to buy so many, that they got a higher priority from me. So Linus have to wait until they are done with testing.
 
dondan said:
I am already in talk with Linus. But currently all prototypes are away except nr.1 prototyp that is on my desk. One of the final release sample is in the CE test lab and the other is by an very big gamestudio that plan to buy so many, that they got a higher priority from me. So Linus have to wait until they are done with testing.
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Grats on the deal with the game studio! I hope that when reviewers receive your case for review that they use hardware that take full advantage of. Like using a C7 over stock cooler or the L9i, using a full size dual fan open air graphics card over a itx card or a reference card, a sfx psu with a 92mm+ fan, and perhaps a motherboard layout that does not have a big barrier around the cpu cooler that would impair cooling performance. As is obvious from testing, using these parts provide superior cooling performance and would do better in reviews, so you may want to consider sending hardware like a C7 together with the case to the reviewers if they do not already have such parts available.
 
Kalaminator said:
I want to buy this case for my build. Just some points.

The price is ridiculous high for the amount of material required to build the case. Also there is no airflow engineering or anything like that involved in here. If I'm wrong show me your results then. And I'm not talking about the temperature results you show on this threath.

Just as an example of an expensive ITX case I'll give you EVGA Hadron Air, which at release was unique.

You charge 230€+Tax (I hope you don't mean IVA)!!!!

The case does not include or have fans, I might be wrong here, which should immediately be added at least on top.
That price and PSU no included???? EVGA Hadron Air used to cost $150 but included a Gold efficiency custom form factor 500W PSU.

No filters included with that price? Are you really expecting us to buy them separate after spending that much money on the case?

I'll give you at least +1 on the interior painted black. Keep that.

You know it won't be long before other companies release similar cases, so just as an advise review my points carefully.
Click to expand...
 
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I haven't been following this thread from the beginning but I have for a lot longer than you(join today, 5 posts) and know that your issues have already been covered. you are jumping into a thread that is more than 2 years old and spouting off about shit that has already been constructively discussed and that you can find in this thread, IF YOU HAD READ IT. like it was said before, if this case does not fit your needs, is too expensive to import to where ever the hell you are, BUY SOMETHING ELSE, FFS!
 
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