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

Today I received my DAN Case ;-)
It's a really nice piece of work! Unfortunately I have to wait for the Asus Z270I =(

By the way - I got No. 10 =)

THANK YOU dondan for this amazing work over years!
 

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Probably most of the German backers will receive there case today. My tracking code status: "in Zustellung"="in delivery" !
 
Planning an X99 build with Asrock mobo and i7 6950X, wondering what kind temp would I get with Dynatron T318 and Noctua 92mm slim fan, without the fan running like plane taking off of course :p
 
So I would just like to write a few words about the last component I bought for this case. The SF600/SF450 power supply (I have both at the moment).
I tested them yesterday at the place I made my apprenticeship with their professional test equipment and I have to say I am amazed by both power supplies.
For my two units I was able to get the following results:
The SF450 minimum efficiency (20-100% load) was at 20% with an efficiency of 88.5%. At max load (510W) it had an efficiency of 89.8% and the maximum efficiency of 93.2% was reached at 280W.
The ripple of the 12V rail on the SF450 was always bellow 28.7mV and at peak efficiency (280W) it was 23.1mV.
The maximum temperature delta of the heated air to ambient (exactly 21°C) was 9K.

The SF600 minimum efficiency (20-100% load) was at 20% with an efficiency of 88.2%. At max load (640W) it had an efficiency of 88.6% and the maximum efficiency of 92.8% was reached at 330W.
The ripple of the 12V rail on the SF600 was always bellow 27.5mV and at peak efficiency (330W) it was 21.3mV.
The maximum temperature delta of the heated air to ambient (exactly 21°C) was 4K.

I sadly didn't have any good equipment to test noise. The problem was not that I didn't have a sonometer, I had one, I just didn't manage to get the PSU into the small anechoic chamber without disconnecting the electronic load.
Just from listening I would say at 300W (average of their peak efficiency) the SF450 was just a tad quieter than the SF600 but not by a lot.
Bellow 200W both of them were almost silent (meaning that I had a hard time isolating the noise of the test equipment to only hear the PSU).

In conclusion efficiency wise these PSUs are insanely good. The ripple voltage is also pretty good (not quite high-end but definitely higher midrange) and noise wise they are both very quiet. the SF450 being a bit more quiet but also running about 5K hotter.
I personally will keep the SF600 but there isn't really a clear winner.
 
I received mine today. Such a beautiful thing. Congratulations Dan, what an achievement!

Been following this project since it's inception and backing the Kickstarter was a no-brainer for me. Alas, I currently have no use for the A4, as I will be embarking on a long travel in February. That's why I had contacted Dan about selling my order at the end of the last year, and he gave me the green light. Then I received the update that the case would really ship in January and I decided I want to hold it in my hands just once after all these years.
And it was totally worth it! It's insane how small and light it is.

If anybody is interested in a SILVER A4, send me a pm.

*** CASE IS SOLD ***

EDIT: Okay, I don't wanna enable addiction, but here are some pics. I am a) not a photographer and b) not in possession of a smartphone with a great camera. Here ya go...

IMG_20170127_124637.jpgIMG_20170127_124742.jpg IMG_20170127_124654.jpgIMG_20170127_124706.jpgIMG_20170127_124717.jpg
 
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babadook said:
I received mine today. Such a beautiful thing. Congratulations Dan, what an achievement!

Been following this project since it's inception and backing the Kickstarter was a no-brainer for me. Alas, I currently have no use for the A4, as I will be embarking on a long travel in February. That's why I had contacted Dan about selling my order at the end of the last year, and he gave me the green light. Then I received the update that the case would really ship in January and I decided I want to hold it in my hands just once after all these years.
And it was totally worth it! It's insane how small and light it is.

If anybody is interested in a SILVER A4, send me a pm.
Click to expand...

Give us a picture! I don't want to buy it, I just need my fix!
 
Philfreeze said:
So I would just like to write a few words about the last component I bought for this case. The SF600/SF450 power supply (I have both at the moment).
I tested them yesterday at the place I made my apprenticeship with their professional test equipment and I have to say I am amazed by both power supplies.
For my two units I was able to get the following results:
The SF450 minimum efficiency (20-100% load) was at 20% with an efficiency of 88.5%. At max load (510W) it had an efficiency of 89.8% and the maximum efficiency of 93.2% was reached at 280W.
The ripple of the 12V rail on the SF450 was always bellow 28.7mV and at peak efficiency (280W) it was 23.1mV.
The maximum temperature delta of the heated air to ambient (exactly 21°C) was 9K.

The SF600 minimum efficiency (20-100% load) was at 20% with an efficiency of 88.2%. At max load (640W) it had an efficiency of 88.6% and the maximum efficiency of 92.8% was reached at 330W.
The ripple of the 12V rail on the SF600 was always bellow 27.5mV and at peak efficiency (330W) it was 21.3mV.
The maximum temperature delta of the heated air to ambient (exactly 21°C) was 4K.

I sadly didn't have any good equipment to test noise. The problem was not that I didn't have a sonometer, I had one, I just didn't manage to get the PSU into the small anechoic chamber without disconnecting the electronic load.
Just from listening I would say at 300W (average of their peak efficiency) the SF450 was just a tad quieter than the SF600 but not by a lot.
Bellow 200W both of them were almost silent (meaning that I had a hard time isolating the noise of the test equipment to only hear the PSU).

In conclusion efficiency wise these PSUs are insanely good. The ripple voltage is also pretty good (not quite high-end but definitely higher midrange) and noise wise they are both very quiet. the SF450 being a bit more quiet but also running about 5K hotter.
I personally will keep the SF600 but there isn't really a clear winner.
Click to expand...

Great work, this information is gold :) I got my recently bought SF450 at home, waiting for the A4. Did the SF450 make it all the way up to 510W on the secondary side? That's good to know (Even though it will be close to impossible to be able to draw that amount of power with the A4 :))

Did you check to see how much draw was needed before the fan started spinning?
 
pellen said:
Great work, this information is gold :) I got my recently bought SF450 at home, waiting for the A4. Did the SF450 make it all the way up to 510W on the secondary side? That's good to know (Even though it will be close to impossible to be able to draw that amount of power with the A4 :))

Did you check to see how much draw was needed before the fan started spinning?
Click to expand...

Yes the 510W is on the secondary side. I tested both PSUs in 10W steps beginning at their 20% load mark (90W and 120W), every step was hold for 2min to get rid of fluctuations.
At 520W the safe shutdown kicked in after about 5s and the PSU just safely shut down. I wouldn't recommend running the PSU at 500W as this is technically out of spec but it just shows that it can easily deal with 500W peaks and probably even a bit more if you consider that it can hold 500W for 2min.

What I should also mention is that the maximum temperature delta was of course measured inside the specs (450W and 600W) and not at absolute maximum load.

I didn't check that but I will do a second test in the next two weeks, i have to wait until I get a free time slot to use the equipment. I would like to test some different response behaviors of the psu (load peaks, load jumps etc.), I am gonna see when the fan starts spinning in this second test.

I will also test different cpu coolers in the anechoic chamber as soon as I get the case and the motherboard (Asus Z270I).
 
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Kreyyr said:
Today I received my DAN Case ;-)
It's a really nice piece of work! Unfortunately I have to wait for the Asus Z270I =(

By the way - I got No. 10 =)

THANK YOU dondan for this amazing work over years!
Click to expand...
Could you post a few more pics with Strix box, just for reference? :)
 
Hi Kreyyr and babadook - can you advise: What kind of mounting hardware comes with the case? Does the case include motherboard standoffs?

I've bought my SSDs and don't seem to have the screws to mount them with.
 
Found this Google Doc spreadsheet on Anandtech listing all the recent Z270 mini ITX boards and their features - figured it may help some people.



I ordered the Asrock Fatal1ty being it was the only one with TB3 on the rear IO.
 
First impressions on the case,

Well builded ! Looks awesome and its cazy how small it is.
All temperature risen a little bit (testing it at the moment how much) and the noctua with a 25mm isnt as quite as in a normal ATX case. the small gap between the sidepanel and the fan causes a noise
 
I don't think it will help in reducing the temps but a 10-12mm thin 80mm or 92mm can fit.
 
Is there any ETA for when the deliveries following the german backers are to be shipped? I understand it as the goal was to have shipped to atleast Sweden and UK this week but I've not seen any updates regarding this (or I have just missed them ni that case my bad shame on me!!)?
 
dondan said:
I don't think it will help in reducing the temps but a 10-12mm thin 80mm or 92mm can fit.
Click to expand...

I think 2 fans on the top will definitely help, hot air rises, and having 2 output fans to combat 4 input fans should help regulate temps, I'll try it at least.
 
I dont think its possible to mount one at the top.
1. a 92mm fan doesnt fit there
2. the riser cable will touch the fan doenst matter how thin he is
 
Just leaving this here for those anxious about GPU fits.

Stole this from one of the German forums, but appears to be a Powercolor RX480 which is 310mm or 12.2''....pretty big card, I think the longest I've seen fit in the A4? Goes well over the recommended 295mm and even beyond the 303mm maximum Dan himself mentioned.
 

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mirgus said:
I dont think its possible to mount one at the top.
1. a 92mm fan doesnt fit there
2. the riser cable will touch the fan doenst matter how thin he is
Click to expand...
What about one above the psu, and one below where the SSD would go?
 
U cant mount a fan about the PSU. If u dont use the SSD bracket u could use a fan there, but there arent any ventilation holes
 
You guys aren't going to get much performance out of those thin fans in the dan case. Just give that pipe dream up. Delliding/better thermal compound is probably your best bet for reducing temps in combination with underclocking/voltage
 
So here are my results. CPU Temps increased in Games ~ 8°C. GPU about ~5-8°C

The CPU temps didnt really increase in CPU Stress tests, gues the back of the Graphiccard heats the CPU while playing games
 
mirgus said:
So here are my results. CPU Temps increased in Games ~ 8°C. GPU about ~5-8°C

The CPU temps didnt really increase in CPU Stress tests, gues the back of the Graphiccard heats the CPU while playing games
Click to expand...
what gpu cooling type are you using?
 
mirgus said:
First impressions on the case,

Well builded ! Looks awesome and its cazy how small it is.
All temperature risen a little bit (testing it at the moment how much) and the noctua with a 25mm isnt as quite as in a normal ATX case. the small gap between the sidepanel and the fan causes a noise
Click to expand...
What's difference in temperature between the Noctua NH-L9i with A9x14 and the one with the 25mm fan?
 
I think a blower style cooling solution is the only option I would consider in this case.. Open air blows hot air in the case and of course it will increase the overall system temperature. I honestly don't see the point of bothering with custom cards..
 
I don't think there's been a shipping update for a week now. Dan, are you still on track to ship you next 500 cases?
 
mirgus said:
First impressions on the case,

Well builded ! Looks awesome and its cazy how small it is.
All temperature risen a little bit (testing it at the moment how much) and the noctua with a 25mm isnt as quite as in a normal ATX case. the small gap between the sidepanel and the fan causes a noise
Click to expand...

How large is the gap between the case and the 25mm fan? I was thinking about making my own custom shroud for the fan so the air intake meets the case directly or stacking something like this up until it meets the case http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6506/fss-23/92mm_Black_Rubber_Fan_Silencer.html?tl=g47c111s199
 
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