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

Anyone know how do you properly test a SX600 without it having a standby switch to turn it on/off? Would the standard black/green wire paperclip method work for this PSU? I built my Ncase M1 and the motherboard would not boot. I have an ASUS Impact VII motherboard and when trying to power on, only the 'Power' button on the motherboard would light up and the motherboard's IO panel's reset button lights up too. No peripherals would start or anything.

I tried hooking up a PSU tester to the 24pin connector and got nothing (hence the question of how to properly test this PSU since it gave no readings but yet some basic lights and etc were lit on the mobo). Want to verify if it is a bad power supply or bad mobo
 
Anyone know how do you properly test a SX600 without it having a standby switch to turn it on/off? Would the standard black/green wire paperclip method work for this PSU? I built my Ncase M1 and the motherboard would not boot. I have an ASUS Impact VII motherboard and when trying to power on, only the 'Power' button on the motherboard would light up and the motherboard's IO panel's reset button lights up too. No peripherals would start or anything.

I tried hooking up a PSU tester to the 24pin connector and got nothing (hence the question of how to properly test this PSU since it gave no readings but yet some basic lights and etc were lit on the mobo). Want to verify if it is a bad power supply or bad mobo

Do you have another PSU to test the motherboard? And yes, using a metal paperclip or such, you can short out the PSU. As far as I'm concerned that method works with all PSUs...
 
Do you have another PSU to test the motherboard? And yes, using a metal paperclip or such, you can short out the PSU. As far as I'm concerned that method works with all PSUs...

I have a PSU for my current PC but that would be a major PITA trying to disconnect it to test. I will try the jumper method and connect a basic fan first, then if it works, I'll have to man-up and dissemble my current PC to test the ASUS motherboard (and be frustrated doing it).
 
My v4 was delivered today, just over 2 weeks from ordering to my front door. Had it shipped by air, I live in Las Vegas.

No motherboard, cpu, ram, or psu yet, waiting for skylake and maybe the corsair sfx psu.
 
got my steel fan bracket and filter today and installed! looks and feels quality, box was destroyed though. hopefully itll keep my build cleaner! now just need to find a way to silence it!
 
What are the noisiest components?

my gpu mainly, ref nvidia blower. psu is quiet other than the chirp whine noise when the fan spins up, but after it starts spinning its silent.

might try and sell the h105 and get two h75s with an hg10
 
I can say that with the fans on ULNA's the old Noctua U9B-SE2 is as close to silent as you can probably get, so 92mm doesn't always mean noisy.

I idle around 45C, and top out playing games around 65C, which is just fine IMO.

Edit: 3570K @ Stock

Do you have that oriented exhausting out the top, or the back? I think I'm going to plug in a NH-U9S; I was thinking 1 side intake fan on the PSU side of the bracket (since the U9S takes up the other spot), and then having it exhaust out the back, and maybe adding an exhaust fan to help. The alternative would be to have a fan on back as an intake, and try to exhaust out the top.
 
I've got it exhausting out the back, I have yet to try top exhaust.

Might be worth trying tonight. :)
 
Hey guys. I recently got my case and put my rig together. So far i am loving it, except it was the biggest pain in the ass to put together.

i5 4690k
980ti - evga acx2.0+
h100i

I have a question regarding the GPU temps. CPU seem great to me as it tops out at 70C @ 4.6ghz - 1.23V. However the GPU idles at around 65C constantly. Under load it hovers in the low 80C. My question is what type of 2x120mm fans would you recommend to mount on the bottom of the case blowing air towards the GPU fans? Should i get pressure optimized fans or just high CFM fans? I prefer to stick with Noctua because im a bit of a fan boy. Noise it not really a concern so long as i can watch netflix from 10 feet away. Thoughts?
 
However the GPU idles at around 65C constantly. Under load it hovers in the low 80C.
The GTX 980 dynamically adjusts its clock speed to keep the temperature at ~83C, so there's nothing abnormal there.

If you want fans on the bottom (e.g. for dust control), go with pressure-optimized fans.
 
Many of you have really nice builds. Let me share my build with you guys! I call this "Too poor for a PSU"

e6SGD4z.jpg


3OFEp5t.jpg


nKHCRrB.jpg


Specs:
GPU: 980ti Reference
HDD: Toshiba 1tb that has been rattling for 3 years
SSD: crucial m4 128gb
MEMORY: gskills ripjaw 4gbx2
MOBO: ASRock Z68M-ITX
CPU: Intel Core i5 3470
PSU: M12ii 520w


Alittle story about why I did this. I wanted this case ever since I saw hardwarecanucks do a video on it. When I saw it, it was still on sale but i decided that is was too expensive. fast forward 1month later it was out of stock. So when the recent pre orders came up i bought it in a heartbeat. However Im did not think it though as I didnt have enough money to buy new part to transfer my old rig into this case so i decided to cheap out for now and just get a new motherboard(the z68) and force fit everything into this case. I still have a 500gb HDD but it's impossible to fit in with all the thich wiring from the ATX psu.
 
You might be able to trade your PSU with someone, or else sell it and buy one that'd work for you. Check the FS/T forum. ;)
 
Hey, you got a working system on a shoestring; you are on your way... the PSU is the only thing holding it back on the appearance side of things. :)
 
Anyone know how do you properly test a SX600 without it having a standby switch to turn it on/off? Would the standard black/green wire paperclip method work for this PSU? I built my Ncase M1 and the motherboard would not boot. I have an ASUS Impact VII motherboard and when trying to power on, only the 'Power' button on the motherboard would light up and the motherboard's IO panel's reset button lights up too. No peripherals would start or anything.

I tried hooking up a PSU tester to the 24pin connector and got nothing (hence the question of how to properly test this PSU since it gave no readings but yet some basic lights and etc were lit on the mobo). Want to verify if it is a bad power supply or bad mobo

I have the same PSU and I was unable to "jump" it with a paper clip. It would basically just "hummm" real quick like the night vision goggles from CS 1.6 and then do nothing, no fans or anything. This is only with the motherboard cable connected and the power cable. I don't know if I was doing it wrong or not but the PSU turned out to work fine after I got everything connected.

When I first started my build I had the same problem where the mobo lights would turn on but the power button did nothing. Turns out I was powering the CPU through the PCI cable, big no no. I know it sounds silly but make sure you are powering the CPU through the correct jack because even though the connectors are keyed, I still managed to fit it in the wrong place. The blue thing is for the GPU, black is for the CPU. Hopefully your issue is that simple.

The GTX 980 dynamically adjusts its clock speed to keep the temperature at ~83C, so there's nothing abnormal there.

If you want fans on the bottom (e.g. for dust control), go with pressure-optimized fans.

Thank you for your advice. I figured that 83C is acceptable. Kind of sucks when they feature a "no rpm" settings for temps below 60C when you constantly idle at 65C lol. Ironically the solution to that is to add more fans amiright?! Going to purchase more industrial Noctuas!
 
Has anyone been able to fit a Asus STRIX 980 Ti in the NCASE M1?

I've been told mixed things, some say it won't fit, others say you can remove the plastic panel pin bracket and it'll fit?

Also what 980 Ti cards are recommended for this case? I've heard people recommend the reference card and the EVGA Hybrid but are there any custom PCB models that'll fit in the NCASE M1?
 
Has anyone been able to fit a Asus STRIX 980 Ti in the NCASE M1?

I've been told mixed things, some say it won't fit, others say you can remove the plastic panel pin bracket and it'll fit?

Also what 980 Ti cards are recommended for this case? I've heard people recommend the reference card and the EVGA Hybrid but are there any custom PCB models that'll fit in the NCASE M1?

If you care about temperatures inside your case then the reference cooler is recommended due to its blower. I own a GTX980ti SC ACX2.0+ and I may be wrong but it is on the smaller side of the 980ti's and fit just fine. I can imagine that with the wide PCB cards you'll struggle trying to connect the PCI power cables but I can't give a solid answer.

The temperatures are 83C during benchmarks but my idle is 65C. Keep in mind that I have an h100i with 2 x 120mm fans. In short, the GPU cycles the hot air because I have no fans on the bottom of my case. I know its not the answer you are looking for but hey, more food for you.
 
Isn't that assuming that the space underneath will be utilised by a HDD or a fan?
No, that has nothing to do with it. You're probably misunderstanding the dimensions: traditionally, "height" refers to the distance from the top of the PCI card's PCB to the face of the motherboard. Picture an older style of desktop case where the PCI cards are vertically oriented. These days of course most cases have the motherboard oriented vertically, so calling it "width" would be more accurate. Nevertheless, height is the traditional term, and unfortunately due to this you're bound to confuse some number of people, regardless of which one you go with. edit: ninja-edited :p Well, I'll leave the explanation here.

Where is that spec?
Under "dimensions."

Also, the maximum height is actually listed in inches on our site, not mm. But the dimensions on ASUS's site are in both inches and cm, so it's still easy to compare them.
 
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Edit: I was wrong, this is why I prefer IRC

In which case what are the best 980 Ti cards suited to this case other than the EVGA Hybrid (as it's sold out everywhere at the moment)?

Most people seem to recommend the reference card with the blower cooler design.

Is it OK to have a card with an open cooler design or will it heat the case up to much? (even with a fan underneath it to assist with venting the hot air under the case?)
 
I think this is right. I just finished my build using a C14 and put in a 25mm thick NF-F12 Noctua fan in the lower part of the cooler. The nice thing is that the clips that hold the provided 140mm fans work for the 120mm fans.

Here are my pics.
E17kxZ8l.jpg

G5rx2F2l.jpg

I know this is random but i'm not liking the noise level of my h100i. Does anyone know if the Noctua NH C14 would fit with high profile RAM (Trident X)? I know the third fan pulling wont fit.
 
Does anyone know if the Noctua NH C14 would fit with high profile RAM (Trident X)? I know the third fan pulling wont fit.
That RAM is 54mm tall according to G.SKILL's site. The NH-C14 provides 65mm of clearance without the bottom fan. So I'm going to say it should be fine.
 
That RAM is 54mm tall according to G.SKILL's site. The NH-C14 provides 65mm of clearance without the bottom fan. So I'm going to say it should be fine.

Well that was easy. I do apologize for not checking that myself. Lesson learned. Many Thanks!
 
No, I'm going by the published specs of the card, which put the height at 152mm. The M1 only supports cards up to 140mm tall.

That's what I meant. Cut/hack/etc the case to make it happen. I never said it would be clean. But if it's not humanly possible because of other reasons, sorry in advance. :)
 
Since people keep asking about these cards, I'm going to give a definitive rundown based on what people have reported and/or the manufacturer's specs.


M1 GPU height (AKA width) restriction: 5.5" (140mm)


GTX 980 STRIX: DOES NOT FIT
Listed height: 5.3" (134.4mm), but see below
The listed height does not include the heatpipe, which will extend outside of the case and prevent the side panel from closing. Nothing short of removing the heatpipe/replacing the cooler will allow it to fit.


GTX 970 STRIX: DOES NOT FIT (but can be modded to fit)
Listed height: 5.5" (140mm)
Technically within the height limit, but the card has an unusual tall PCB that extends out to the corners. It's the backmost corner of the PCB that presents a problem in the M1, and requires either modding the case or the card to fit.


GTX 980 Ti STRIX: DOES NOT FIT
Listed height: 6" (152mm)
Simply too tall, and will extend outside of the case.
 
What about the Gigabyte G1 Gaming GTX 980 Ti?

(...)

I'm guessing not.
Actually it should fit fine. The PCB is reference height (111mm) going by the pics, so the PCIe power connectors aren't a problem, and the overall height is within the limit. If you look through the gallery, there's a couple of builds with Windforce cards as well.
 
I'm pretty sure the G1 has wider heatsinks, but you're saying it uses a reference PCB?

G1 GAMING


WINDFORCE 3X GAMING
Going by this pic, yes, the PCB appears to be reference height. Note I'm not saying it's a reference PCB - only that it's the same height as a reference PCB (which is what matters as far as fitment is concerned).

The PCB can actually be taller than reference and still fit, the important thing is where the PCIe power connectors are, because they need about 20mm total for the connectors and room for the wires to bend. The M1 has about 29mm from the edge of a reference-height PCB (111mm) to the side panel, which gives us the 140mm overall height limit. The 29mm clearance means that the PCIe power connectors can be a little further out and still fit, as is the case with the short "ITX" ASUS cards, which have a PCB that measures 122mm tall.
 
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Going by this pic, yes, the PCB appears to be reference height. Note I'm not saying it's a reference PCB - only that it's the same height as a reference PCB (which is what matters as far as fitment is concerned).

The PCB can actually be taller than reference and still fit, the important thing is where the PCIe power connectors are, because they need about 20mm total for the connectors and room for the wires to bend. The M1 has about 29mm from the edge of a reference-height PCB (111mm) to the side panel, which gives us the 140mm overall height limit. The 29mm clearance means that the PCIe power connectors can be a little further out and still fit, as is the case with the short "ITX" ASUS cards, which have a PCB that measures 122mm tall.

Thanks I did a couple mock-ups in my case with a reference card and a stick of cardboard with a length of 135mm. I'm thinking it'll fit is there anywhere they list the dimensions of the PCBs?
 
I'm thinking it'll fit is there anywhere they list the dimensions of the PCBs?
Not that I'm aware of. It's fairly easy to eyeball it though, once you know what to look for. Basically, a reference height PCB will be only a little past the end of the PCI bracket (about 5mm or 1/4"), and the bottom of the SLI goldfingers will line up with the top of the bracket. See for example two of the cards we've been talking about:



(Click to enlarge)

These are approximately at the same scale, and it's obvious how much taller the STRIX card is. Also note that even though PCIe power connectors are recessed on the STRIX card, they're still higher than on the Gigabyte.
 
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