• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

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

Anyone with an ASUS z270i know if its possible to shut off the MOBOs LEDs? I only want the corsair strips to be lit in my case.
 
okwchin said:
It was a left-over from my experimentations for my NCase build. I happened to buy 5 of these and had them hanging around as none of them made the cut for my NCase build. I was in the search for a quiet fan to have in the bottom under the GPU of the NCase, slim because it gave more room between the fan and the bottom panel for noise and airflow efficacy reasons, but because they were slim, they didn't pull as much air as a Scythe Gentle Typhoon, and were significantly noisier.

Back to the A4 - the Gelid slim is the only 120mm fan that fits because its slim, so some airflow is better than a 25mm thick not fitting. Compared to the A9-14, this fan does pull more air through the side panel by being a 120 vs a 92mm, but the question remains as to whether this is beneficial as airflow is only helpful when it passes over a surface we are trying to cool, or helps displace/remove hot air.

I am not particularly fond of this fan, its minimum RPM is quite high at 800 rpm, and its motor control circuitry switches on and off power to the coils a bit too hard, so when running, the motor makes a light ticking noise that is audible at idle when everything else is silent (in a dead silent room in a quiet neighbourhood at midnight). What I do like is the slightly shallower blade angle which might? help with static pressure. I am still looking around for a good 120mm slim fan and will jump at any opportunity if I am given one. The Prolimatech looks good with a minimum 400 rpm. Wonder how silent it can be and how well the performs behind a filter.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the extensive breakdown!

The reason why I was asking is because I recently ordered a LP53 CPU cooler and I'm still on the fence whether I should go with the A9-14 Noctua fan which many people seem to have had good results with, or something a bit bigger like the size of your 120mm fan. :)
 
SideSwiped said:
Anyone with an ASUS z270i know if its possible to shut off the MOBOs LEDs? I only want the corsair strips to be lit in my case.
Click to expand...
yep it's possible its in the bios in advanced configuration => advanced => onboard devices configuration
shogou said:
Thanks for the extensive breakdown!

The reason why I was asking is because I recently ordered a LP53 CPU cooler and I'm still on the fence whether I should go with the A9-14 Noctua fan which many people seem to have had good results with, or something a bit bigger like the size of your 120mm fan. :)
Click to expand...
Tried a 120mm fan with it and the noctua and it was the same temps for the lp53, but the noctua was SILENT. the 120mm fan was the one that came with the nexus soo it wasn't the best. if you have a better one try it.
 
zeromyst said:
Been lurking [H]ardForum for years now, figured I'd finally make an account.

Thank you Dan for this awesome case. I do frequent LAN parties here and there so this will definitely make life easier.

I didn't take photos during the build but there is really nothing special in there that hasn't been posted already.

Asus ROG Strix Z270I mini-ITX Motherboard
Intel Core-i5 6600K
Notuca NH-L9i CPU Cooler
16GB G.Skill TridentZ RGB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Founders Edition
Corsair SF450 SFX PSU
Samsung 850 Evo 250GB SSD
Samsung 850 Evo 1TB SSD
SanDisk Ultra II 960GB SSD
SanDisk X400 1TB M.2 SSD (via USB 3.0 external enclosure)
Samsung 950 Pro 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Samsung 960 Evo 1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Replaced the feet with StarTech Rubberfeet (1-1/4" Diameter)
DeepCool RGB LED Strip

Cable management was a bit of a nightmare but I made it work. Will probably get some shorter cables soon from moddiy.com to clean up the insides a bit. I'll take some internal pictures then. :)

Again Dan, thank you.

I'll throw this over in the build thread as well.

zXlHXgT.jpg

wInKVDR.jpg
Click to expand...

Do you mind telling me your temps for idle and load? I have similar build, haven't able to play around with it much yet but I noticed my idle temps are around 40-45.
 
And I've got two of them sitting in a box right next to me, waiting on my final parts to arrive. Torture! :(
 
lapingultah said:
I point of view for this: Pre-ordering from resellers requires to pay the case in advance in most cases as well, but this shouldn't be an issue as the resellers will get their cases in the summer as they were promised (right..?) If the production takes six months it should already be underway as we're four months away from the July date of the next batch. I think the community is more understanding with schedule changes and such when compared to resellers, because they have customers to answer directly to and they are purely doing a business. Concentrate your efforts on v2 and other upcoming products and let the resellers handle the distribution, that's what they are there for :)
Click to expand...
Dear dondan
this is the 3st year i wish to build my first PC,
for some reasons or another one i still not obtain my PC,
I learned A4-SFX only when KS camapaign ends and the first time i saw your case i loved it. i waited so a lot of time to see it available at Caseking. in that period i visited your website almost 2-3 times every day(your website is the first suggestion on chrome landpage now) when finally the case become available i tried to buy it at 12:00am but caseking webserver goes down. i tried for 40 minutes and finally i completed the order but a failure mail arrived, it said the case was not available :(
Next disponibility was on 15.07.17 and i'm still waiting. But now i do not think i will get your case on that date because production does not already started, right? are you saying i will get my PC on 2018? it would be the 4th year without PC :(
 
o_O
build a system on/in the mobo box if you have to. why are you blaming him for YOU not building for 3 years?! that was YOUR choice to wait 3 YEARS and that really makes no sense. go buy some parts, put em together and USE/TEST them while you wait. but it is NOT HIS FAULT you decided to wait.:rolleyes:
 
pedrofan said:
Mcheddadi we are all waiting for prime95 temps!
Click to expand...

well I did a 4.4ghz test on prime 95 and idle after 1 min was 30oC and load after 9 min was stabilised at 75C. I tried with a 120 mm fan in push and it dropped to 70C. i'm going to try to switch the noctua arround to see if it changes anything

looks like meccabolix's lp53 + noctua with no io sheild and 4mm standoffs is still king. i think the strix is also pretty restrictive on the air flow with all the mosfet and vrms heatsinks blocking the way.
 
ok tried the noctua in push behind the heatsink and its was worse, stopped at 80C as it was still climbing. guess 75C is my best with fan at 100% under prime 95
 
mcheddadi said:
well I did a 4.4ghz test on prime 95 and idle after 1 min was 30oC and load after 9 min was stabilised at 75C. I tried with a 120 mm fan in push and it dropped to 70C. i'm going to try to switch the noctua arround to see if it changes anything

looks like meccabolix's lp53 + noctua with no io sheild and 4mm standoffs is still king. i think the strix is also pretty restrictive on the air flow with all the mosfet and vrms heatsinks blocking the way.
Click to expand...

Yeah they are super annoying. I was hoping to get away with leaving them but I am not satisfied with my temps with the LP53 as is. I'm getting higher temps than you all. I have some tiny 3mm heatsinks on the way to replace them with, recommended by Philfreeze. I think he was going to remove them as well. Has anyone else done this?
 
SideSwiped said:
Do you mind telling me your temps for idle and load? I have similar build, haven't able to play around with it much yet but I noticed my idle temps are around 40-45.
Click to expand...

Hey there!

Hmm, I've never done a Prime95 test on this setup yet but looking at my CPU temp history in HWiNFO64 I usually idle at 37°C and my max was 73°C (most likely when gaming of course).
GPU Temp at idle temp hovers around 32°C-35°C and the absolute max temp hit was 78°C but max is usually around 75°C.
Motherboard temps idle at 35°C and max temp hit was 44°C.

There is an AC vent in the corner of the bedroom that blows air in the area where the case is and I usually have the A/C on so maybe that helps my temps. *shrug*

Hope that helped somewhat.
 
asrock x99 itx owners, how did you ziptie heatsink and fan? can post some pics please. it will be very helpful. thanks.
 
elgardo said:
Dear dondan
this is the 3st year i wish to build my first PC,
for some reasons or another one i still not obtain my PC,
I learned A4-SFX only when KS camapaign ends and the first time i saw your case i loved it. i waited so a lot of time to see it available at Caseking. in that period i visited your website almost 2-3 times every day(your website is the first suggestion on chrome landpage now) when finally the case become available i tried to buy it at 12:00am but caseking webserver goes down. i tried for 40 minutes and finally i completed the order but a failure mail arrived, it said the case was not available :(
Click to expand...

It is really difficult for you that you did not get what you want. You can not blame the artist for the concert selling out. Many people who have not been able to get hot cases get a cheap placeholder case, or DIY something to avoid wasting money. If you get a case that uses a full ATX power supply, just get an ATX-to-SFX adapter plate.





elgardo said:
Next disponibility was on 15.07.17 and i'm still waiting. But now i do not think i will get your case on that date because production does not already started, right?
Click to expand...

This part is right. If nothing moves faster in the next production/distribution run, guys like this will be denied the A4-SFX.
 
I do think the restock date on the websites should be changed to unknown or something. I paid for a case but then got an out of stock email. I decided not to get a refund because i figured i could wait till July. Seems to me like it could easily be Christmas before i get a case, maybe even longer... Perhaps I am wrong but i think Dan did it will be 6months just recently which would be September/October....
 
JackGLemmon said:
It is really difficult for you that you did not get what you want. You can not blame the artist for the concert selling out. Many people who have not been able to get hot cases get a cheap placeholder case, or DIY something to avoid wasting money. If you get a case that uses a full ATX power supply, just get an ATX-to-SFX adapter plate.







This part is right. If nothing moves faster in the next production/distribution run, guys like this will be denied the A4-SFX.
Click to expand...

Beware, that Cougar-case seem to be a real piece of ****. Most reviews suggest the components (especially the GPU) are burning up due to lack of ventilation and air flow.
I have to admit, for that price tag it's intriguing to mod it to something useful though!
 
No formal figures yet (on paper, but not in this post yet) but some experimentation comes up with the following observations.

With an LP53 with stock thermal paste, Asus H97I Plus, no IO shield, stock mobo standoffs.

Noctua A9-14 - blowing into the case - Lets call this the reference.


1) Noctua A9-14 - blowing Out of the case - is hotter, maybe 5 degrees hotter. Slightly noisier due to blade interference with fins. Needs to be lifted off the heatsink to be quieter, but needs a 92mm duct to be fabricated.

2) Gelid 120mm - blowing into the case - louder and hotter than the noctua

3) Gelid 120mm - blowing out of the case - even hotter and even louder than the last test.


So the A9-14 is still the superior fan for the LP53 heatsink. My VRM heatsink free H97I Plus motherboard withthe LP53 orientated with the fins horizontal means the airflow is directed toward the back of the case. Without the IO shield, this means there is a relatively clear path for hot air to be driven out of the case, much more so than the top of the case. From an exhaust perspective, this works well as a natural exhaust and should certainly help with temps.

Interestingly, using the 120mm blowing into the case produces a notably reduced exhaust effect through the back IO area. Possibly because the outer diameter of the fan blows air onto the motherboard and disturbs the otherwise directed airflow that would have come from the heatsink fins.

I dont have software measuring motherboard temps, but the PCH heatsink measured by my multimeter, is at 55 degrees with the 120mm, and 65-70 degrees with the Noctua. The overflow airflow from the larger diameter fan does help with motherboard temps though.

I have not yet tried testing temps with the IO panel installed either. Probably not planning to yet, not until I have sorted out my experimentations with the fans first.
 
Last edited:
Last edited:
illram said:
Yeah they are super annoying. I was hoping to get away with leaving them but I am not satisfied with my temps with the LP53 as is. I'm getting higher temps than you all. I have some tiny 3mm heatsinks on the way to replace them with, recommended by Philfreeze. I think he was going to remove them as well. Has anyone else done this?
Click to expand...

I replaced all MOSFET heatsinks to get some better airflow and it does help. If I can trust my thermal camera the maximal MOSFET die temperature should be no more than 120°C (running Furmark and Prime95) without any heatsinks. With heatsink this will probably drop bellow 110°C. This is well bellow Tjmax (150°C) even without the heatsinks, just bare in mind that this is without the side panel because I can't easily measure it with the side panel.

The same goes for the PCH btw. Its temperatures are even better without any heatsink.

Pantera_666 said:
......

I'm done with the main concept, and it's looking freaking awesome... but i'm in the refinement part now...

......

Will keep you guys updated when i'm done, i promise.
Click to expand...


You better be fast! xD
I just visited my friend and gave him the 3D-model. He will print it this week (two parts) and fuse them together with some chemical stuff, I should have the finished thing next weekend.
 
Philfreeze said:
I replaced all MOSFET heatsinks to get some better airflow and it does help. If I can trust my thermal camera the maximal MOSFET die temperature should be no more than 120°C (running Furmark and Prime95) without any heatsinks. With heatsink this will probably drop bellow 110°C. This is well bellow Tjmax (150°C) even without the heatsinks, just bare in mind that this is without the side panel because I can't easily measure it with the side panel.

The same goes for the PCH btw. Its temperatures are even better without any heatsink.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. Curious what heatinks you used to replace it with? I ordered these.
 
question for you guys, I'm thinking of getting this case to replace my Ncase M1, however, the case placement on my desk would mean that the right side (when looking at the front) would be up against a wall, for the Ncase this is ok because the back of the mobo is on the right side. On this case, the back of the mobo is on the left side (and thus the CPU/HS side is on the right). Would it be ok for the right side of this case to be up against a wall?
 
I would worry that cutting off the whole CPU side panel ventilation would negatively affect intake of cold air.
 
pookguy88 said:
question for you guys, I'm thinking of getting this case to replace my Ncase M1, however, the case placement on my desk would mean that the right side (when looking at the front) would be up against a wall, for the Ncase this is ok because the back of the mobo is on the right side. On this case, the back of the mobo is on the left side (and thus the CPU/HS side is on the right). Would it be ok for the right side of this case to be up against a wall?
Click to expand...

I'd take advantage of the smaller footprint to leave a few cm of clearance.
 
This thread has lost a lot of life, anyone have any interesting mods they've done to their build?
 
that was like 4 days ago, im hungry for more! i want to hear what everyone else is trying. Im going for a polar white mod and acrylic extension with green led's and green cablemods.
 
I have installed a case fan behind the PSU. Without this fan my PSU heats up, because my other fans are running at low rpm and therefore the air in the pc case heats up.

I have a ASUS GTX 970 Mini.
 
I dont know if im the only one, but i actually went ahead and kept my setup as an 170i asus pro gaming mobo with the noctua l9i+ 25mm pwm noctua fan...and im either deaf, or im not hearing this air turbulence or whining sound coming from the fan, during heavy load i can hear it push air but its not the end of the world and its silent under normal load, my silverstone psu is still the loudest fan in the setup.
 
Last edited:
dondan said:
What do you think about this for V2?

cover01xvo.jpg
Click to expand...

If the bar between the two expansion slots is not needed structurally, then it should be eliminated. This small piece of metal blocks a lot of vent area on the Nvidia reference cards.

Edit: The removal of this bar would give the GTX 1080 Founders Edition 46% more vent area. (17 of 54 triangular vents blocked)

Perhaps also dip the feet in Plastidip, or other rubberized coating. Please keep the feat small and non-hooked so that they are easy to slide into a bag.
 
Last edited:
dondan said:
What do you think about this for V2?

cover01xvo.jpg
Click to expand...
Honestly I don't see the point, the case is pretty open so it's not going to let much additional dust in. I think it looks fine without it, and it's at the back anyway. Reviewers always feel the need to find some faults, they are just nit-picking, its a really minor thing, I wouldn't go adding a new part increasing costs just because of it....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top