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

Nyven said:
@FinnishNerdmare : Hope this helps.

Here is an old post on this problem, I've updated the links...

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Old 01-23-2011, 02:29 PM
musicfan n00bie, 2.9 Years

Problem Solved
Hi, I'm a first time poster. I discovered this thread while I was researching a different DisplayPort problem, having to do with certain Dell monitors such as the 30" U3011 not being able to wake up after the DisplayPort input goes into sleep mode. I still haven't come up with a solution to that problem.

Anyway, I do know why you are having so much trouble with the MonoPrice DisplayPort cables, as well as those from some other vendors. The problem is that these cables don't follow the DisplayPort guidelines, which require that pin 20 be left unconnected. This is essential, because pin 20 supplies power to external devices, and is provided by any device with power, including computers and monitors. If you connect two powered devices via pin 20, all sorts of bad things can happen as both try to control the voltage on the line. If your monitor or computer is off and the other device isn't, the powered device will try to provide power to the unpowered one via your DisplayPort cable! If you check the official cable that comes with your monitor, in the cases where one is provided, pin 20 will not be connected. Pin 20 is easy to identify, as it's the one that's next to the part of the connector with a 45 degree angle.

I ordered a mini DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable from MonoPrice and it did have continuity on pin 20, which caused problems for me. I informed them about the issue, and provided references (see below), but so far they have not pulled the cables from their site, and even tried to replace my cable with another of the incorrectly designed cables. Perhaps if more of us express our opinions to them, they will finally issue a recall. I've wasted lots of time with this issue that I really didn't have to waste, so it irks me that they are dragging their heels about doing something to correct this situation. Up until now, I've been a big fan of their products.

Here are the references that I promised. The first is the official DisplayPort web site's FAQ:

http://www.displayport.org/faq/

Q: Why isn’t there a wire on pin 20 (POWER) on the standard external DisplayPort cables?

A: The reason power isn't included in standard cables is because both source and sink devices are designed to provide power. Captive, attached cables often include the power wire. If it is desired, for example, that a particular source device utilize the power available from the mating sink device, then that Source device could include an attached or dedicated cable that carries the DisplayPort power signal. Same could be applied to a sink device.

The second is a warning notice from NEC:
http://www.necdisplay.com/documents/Miscellaneous/DisplayPort_Notice.pdf

I sincerely hope that this message saves somebody from going through the same trouble that I have.

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Click to expand...

Whoa.... this might be the cause of a gpu not waking from sleep I've had (and given up on) from 2 years ago with on a asus p5gc mx hackintosh I had done... will test it tomorrow- thanks for the pin 20 info..........
 
Necere,

Do you have any suggestions how can I hold a 92mm fan on top of the case pushing hot air outside?
 
I was originally planning to install a fan to the top panel, and as an exhaust, i would have simply used good quality double sided tape to attach it to the panel. One for the back of the motor and depending on how much attachment i want, maybe the corners too.


And regarding the fans, I dont have any 3.5" drives in my planned build.
 
Is there any way to get additional usb 3.0 and audio FP cables, I want to shorten mine, but do not want to have to risk bring left without connectors.
 
Also, what is that connector for the button ribbon cable? I have seen it before buy I cannot remember off the top of my head.

The power connector does not seem to be as big of a problem, you are using a standard c14 socket, just solder the wire and pot the thing with sugru.
 
pointfiveo said:
Here's a WiP pic of my build. Going to make own PSU cables soon.



2 x NF-P12 PWM
1 x NF-F12 PWM
1 x NF-A9x14 PWM
Click to expand...

I'm planning to do almost the same. The 2nd bottom fan isn't hitting audio/usb connector? What cooler is this? L12? last question: are you using a side panel fan too?
 
pointfiveo said:
The fan does press against the USB cable so you need to bend it quite hard; best to bend it carefully beforehand to not damage the connector. I removed the audio connector since I'm using an external USB DAC.

The cooler is NH-C12P. No side panel fan; the NF-F12 PWM gets plenty air and the bottom fans ensure a positive air pressure.
Click to expand...

Thanks! Now I´m in douth. I´ll probably chance 2x120mm fans to 1x120 and 1x92mm
 
pointfiveo said:
Here's a WiP pic of my build. Going to make own PSU cables soon.



2 x NF-P12 PWM
1 x NF-F12 PWM
1 x NF-A9x14 PWM
Click to expand...
Do those bottom fans actually help ? It seems like you're blocking most of it and having fans close to eachother running at different speeds isn't optimal.
 
darxider said:
i need your help to decide which cooling route to go: air or water.

i am planning to buy a ASRock Z87E-ITX (given its price in Canada [as compared to US], and the price difference between that board and ASUS Impact). i will be doing a lot of big-data analysis and some Battlefield 4 gaming on my computer, and i think for the CPU, i'd go with i5-4670K (again, given the price/performance difference between that and i7-4770K) and overclock it (not all the way to 4.6GHz, but perhaps to 4.3GHz or so). which cooling route do you guys suggest, air or water (and i mean only AiO solutions)? if i go with a AiO water cooler, i want something on the smaller side (e.g., radiator size being about that of Corsair H60 rather than that of Corsair H100). i personally am leaning a bit towards a small AiO cooler given that it also makes managing cables in M1 a bit easier. any brand and/or models?

this is my first DIY build in 7 years (the last one was a very old Pentium III-S-based computer which i assembled from used parts i bought off eBay to tinker with FreeBSD), and my knowledge about modern cooling technology is very limited, so i thought i should ask the experts here.

any help is greatly appreciated :)
Click to expand...

oh well. went with a Zalman LQ-310 based on its reviews online and the promotional price i found. hopefully, it can deal with a slightly overclocked i5--4670k.
 
Phuncz said:
Do those bottom fans actually help ? It seems like you're blocking most of it and having fans close to eachother running at different speeds isn't optimal.
Click to expand...
Exactly. They only make more noise and block the graphics cards standard fans...
 
PiT said:
Exactly. They only make more noise and block the graphics cards standard fans...
Click to expand...

Maybe removing standard fan. I´m planning to do something like The_Cheese

http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040325994&postcount=44

Using 2 fans on bottom and removing GPU stock fans.

This image from The_Cheese
fanless.jpg
 
Phuncz said:
having fans close to eachother running at different speeds isn't optimal.
Click to expand...

Says the guy who installed his cooler in the only orientation not recommended by Noctua :D

Just teasing ya! Sometimes not optimal configs still work out okay. Should be good if he can keep the P12 PWM fan profile set to a curve with speeds lower than the EVGA 760 (which should be possible using his Impact's UEFI, Fan Xpert software, or even using the included Noctua low-noise adapter to limit max speed in combo with fan profile). Just enough RPM to pull some fresh air through the bottom and filter, if any, might be okay.. would love to see a test of temps, though (bottom P12s on PWM only vs profiled vs completely off).
 
Hmmm, an NCASE M1-sized package from our Taiwanese friends at Lian-Li... Any guesses on what it is? :D

 
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AFD said:
would love to see a test of temps, though (bottom P12s on PWM only vs profiled vs completely off).
Click to expand...

I am interested in this too. I suppose one direct benefit from having those bottom fans is that the air is pushed up pass the gpu although most of it will hit the gpu. At least with nonblower gpu models the air will be more easily pushed towards and out from the roof. Just speculation.
 
And now for the sad realization; looks like I may have to delay my M1 build because I don't have the appropriate cooler, even though I have everything else sitting here in their boxes begging for me to unpack em and put them together :(

I am seriously considering going to town and picking up a Corsair H100i whilst I wait for the Cooler Master Glacer 240L so I can also put my GPU underwater.
 
Moz316 said:
My first post here at HardOCP. Hello from Australia :)
Click to expand...

Congratz! Welcome to the 2nd level: fit everything inside :D

hydroforge said:
And now for the sad realization; looks like I may have to delay my M1 build because I don't have the appropriate cooler, even though I have everything else sitting here in their boxes begging for me to unpack em and put them together :(

I am seriously considering going to town and picking up a Corsair H100i whilst I wait for the Cooler Master Glacer 240L so I can also put my GPU underwater.
Click to expand...

Start with stock cooler as I :D
 
I tried out my old H80i but it's too uncomfortably tight in the M1 because of the stiffness of the tubing coupled with the thickness of the radiator.
I'll need to get another thinner 120mm CLC or wait for the Noctua NH-D9. Currently running my system with a lousy Samuel 17.
 
hydroforge said:
Hmmm, an NCASE M1-sized package from our Taiwanese friends at Lian-Li... Any guesses on what it is? :D

[EDIT: Removed humongous photo]
Click to expand...

Probably nothing important.. maybe catalogs, or something. I'd just mark it "return to sender" and ship it back without looking.

You can also send it my way, I'll PM you my address, and I'll dispose of it for a small fee :p


EDIT: Damn, you already opened it.. nice even s/n, though!
 
AFD said:
Probably nothing important.. maybe catalogs, or something. I'd just mark it "return to sender" and ship it back without looking.

You can also send it my way, I'll PM you my address, and I'll dispose of it for a small fee :p


EDIT: Damn, you already opened it.. nice even s/n, though!
Click to expand...

Don't worry, I wore gloves when I had a quick looksee. She's back in her original, snug and safe packaging whilst I contemplate my next move :) Yeah, I really wanted No. 0666 or 0777, but I'm very happy with No. 0600 (original IGG production limit right?)
 
Here's a size comparison between my Lian Li PC-Q25 and the M1. (Sorry for crap quality)

0zc0BCU.jpg


h123qZF.jpg
 
AWESOME, its arriving in australia! Which side of australia are you from Moz316, and what number did you get?

I'm excited to receive my case!
 
I'm from Sydney :) I got number 0066.

You should be excited! It's even more beautiful in person. Love it!
 
Just for some more stats for your guys' peace of mind, I have the asus maximus VI impact, intel i5-4670k, and a GTX 780ti with one ssd on the silverstone 450w SFG PSU, and I haven't seen anything over 335w yet, (at the wall) with the card at 85% usage. I imagine it'll go up as I play with it later, but so far, these parts are so damn efficient, I do not see a problem using the 450w model.

Build log's here, and I'll be updating it with more info as I play with the CPU and the GPU, and then when I finally get my M1.
 
Are you loading the CPU too? Regardless, 335 at the wall means 300 out of the PSU for everything. Thats a fairly comfortable. You are using a lower voltage on your CPU, and not yet fully loading your GPU yet, but Depending on how you got your 85% load, a prime and furmark test could be doable. (with care of course, assuming your meter is accurate)
 
AFD said:
Says the guy who installed his cooler in the only orientation not recommended by Noctua :D
Click to expand...
In my defense, that graphic that was going around was not for the NH-L12 but for the cooler with w-bent pipes :p
 
Screw it I'll start my M1 build now. I just hope my CPU with the stock cooler forgives me for the upcoming 45°C Aussie summer days :S
 
hydroforge said:
Screw it I'll start my M1 build now. I just hope my CPU with the stock cooler forgives me for the upcoming 45°C Aussie summer days :S
Click to expand...

That's the spirit! :) Go for it! Just monitor your CPU temps so you can stop using it if you have a major problem - with thermal shutdown it is pretty hard to fry a CPU anyway.

ps. I should be happy for all of the Aussies getting their cases but I am totally jealous an getting impatient!! :mad:

jk - I am happy for you guys - Have fun with your builds!:)
 
It's so kawaii~ compared to my Fractal Design Define Mini :3



Also much MUCH lighter than the all steel Scandinavian beauty.
 
Looks like Australia finally getting theirs. It's gonna be a fight for last place between USA, Germany, and the Netherlands!
 
H220 for $100 at NCIX
I would get one but am still not sure if I want to do a custom loop or not.
 
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