Silverstone SST-FT03-Mini (Mini-Itx)

Just me or does anyone else start cursing after a few minutes working on this case? Getting the video card out is an exercise in patience ... upgrading my 670 to a 780 and will be doing the case floor cutout to fit, will see how it goes.

Thought I'd change out my PSU fan as well, it's a Gold SFX 1.0 and man is it noisy at idle! Noticed this:
WiSK said:
Gokie, you can cut off the original fan connector and solder to the NB-PCP red and black wires. The PSU is able to control it with voltage. I did just that some months ago, see pic

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd1/wisk23/WiSKBuildPC/ll-psu-noiseblocker-7_zpseb4220a1.jpg

If you don't fancy soldering, Moddiy.com sells the 2-pin connector and crimp pins.
Click to expand...
WiSK, what pin set did you use? Was looking at pics on moddiy.com and wasn't sure.
 
matt9669 said:
WiSK, what pin set did you use? Was looking at pics on moddiy.com and wasn't sure.
Click to expand...

I ordered pins but later also found pre-made 2-pin (2mm pitch) to 3-pin male fan header http://www.moddiy.com/products/3%2d...-Mini-2%2dPin-GPU-Fan-Connector-(Female).html (I got them with HD sleeved option.)

st45sfg-fan-adapter_zps313f18f8.jpg
 
Indeed, 80mm x 20mm does not fit.

I can't find a proper data sheet on that Nidec, but my suspicion is that the start up voltage will be too low; and even if it does start, the max airflow is too low to keep the PSU cool at load.

The Noiseblocker PC-P is recommended because it has a wide range of operation and a low start up voltage. At low loads it will be spinning at half the rpms that the Silverstone stock fan does, therefore quieter at idle. At 12V it pushes almost as much air as the stock fan does. It's a little bit cheaper from Aquatuning http://www.aquatuning.us/product_in...ker-NB-BlacksilentPRO-PCP---80x80x15mm--.html ($16+$6)
 
I was looking at fan specs at Mouser and Newark and found a few similar, but not saving enough $$ to try, NB has the right RPM range so might as well. And yeah, I couldn't find the datasheet on the Nidec either. Best I can tell it's rated about 2/3 the wattage at 12V, might be enough but why take the chance. Just one of those things, when you have to have a very specific model price goes up.

Thanks for saving me a few bones at least ;)
 
Just wrapped up a quick build moving my two and a half year old Sandy Bridge i5-2500K over to an Asus P8Z77-i Deluxe into a Silverstone FT03-mini (black). Using a Thermalright AXP-100 for cpu heatsink, Silverstone SFX Gold PSU, and migrated my GTX460-SE over. It went well other than my Corsair Dominator memory heatspreaders kept me from installing both 4 GB Dimms. Need low profile Dimms w/ the AXP-100. Running on one 4GB Dimm for now.

Running at 4.4 Ghz without much effort and Win7 WE Index of 7.4. It was tight getting all the cabling in place, but other than the Dimm height issue with the AXP-100, everything is fine.
 
WiSK said:
There are a lot of reviewers out there who seem to have no idea that the Titan throttles itself at 70C.

Here's a chart showing power and temps of a Titan, a 780 and two overclocked 780s in a system which is also running an i7-3770K @ 4.8GHz.
http://hardocp.com/article/2013/08/14/galaxy_geforce_gtx_780_hof_edition_review/7

As you can see the load temperatures of Titan/780 stock air cooling is 80C, and that's in an open case. When you put it in a FT03-mini it will likely run even hotter than that. So I suspect in the Vortez review the GPU was seriously crippled, which explains the low wattage.
Click to expand...



Is there any way to predict throttling at all? Or just estimate based on benchmark noise/temp testing?


I'm considering this case potentially - was going to go after the Sugo SG08 but I kind of like this one's look better (or maybe trying to get my hands on an nCase M1...but that isn't certain at this point)

The hardware will probably be an i7-4770 stock, with an eVGA GTX 670 FTW, everything else will be relatively standard. I'm assuming since this is much less thermally challenging than what some of the other builds in this thread are, it should be fine with regards to throttling, but I suppose always good to be sure. (typical uses would be gaming - SWTOR, Tomb Raider, Dishonored, bioshock, etc, and some light computation/linux VM work)

Was thinking to put in a Noctua NH-L12 cooler in there, but would intel stock cooler work as well?
 
Haven't been around for a while but WiSK you're new configuration looks absolutely amazing. Excellent work. Can I ask what you do for work? Also, see more detailed pictures of that beautiful lid you made?
 
Thanks mate :)

I work in IT, kind of an all-rounder. Doing what's needed that other people won't do, don't understand how to do, or charge to much to get done ;)

Sorry no more pictures of the lid. When I next top-up my loop, I'll try to remember to take some snaps.
 
The only AIOs that fit without modding or losing some/all of the drive cages are the H60 and 620.
 
Chaps,

Many thanks for everyone's contributions here, especially those that take the time to give out words of wisdom - which incidentally is what I'm after.

I've read the posts that stress the importance of using a blower GPU card, and I've read the manual for the case that says the same thing but...

The 750Ti card seems to run at a very low TDP (60W vs 140W on a GTX660, for instance) and very cool, see this guy's numbers here http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=181053

The thing is because it runs so cool no-one is making a blower card for it, and who knows if they will. I'd like to use it because I think it would minimise noise. What does anyone think? If the card is relatively cool can I get away with the less efficient airflow? And if so should I go for a dual fan (e.g. MSI twin frozr) which barely seems to get above room temperature in tests, or a single fan board? Has anyone got a setup with a similar TDP card? I think that would have to be a mid range card from the 4-series or so.

The rest of my setup (just arrived in a series of cardboard boxes...) is:

i7-4770
Kingston HyperX Genesis 16GB
MSI Z87I Gaming AC Intel Z87 (Socket 1150)
Samsung 250GB SSD 840 EVO
No HDD
Silverstone SST-ST45SF SFX 450 Watt
Corsair Hydro H60 V2
Slot Loading Slim DVD Combo

Should be cool and lots of airflow, I reckon, as long as I can sort out the cables.

Many thanks for reading this
 
beacs said:
I've read the posts that stress the importance of using a blower GPU card, and I've read the manual for the case that says the same thing but...

The 750Ti card seems to run at a very low TDP (60W vs 140W on a GTX660, for instance) and very cool, see this guy's numbers here http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=181053
Click to expand...

Yep, could be acceptable. I do remember reading of people who have low TDP cards in this case, like the 650 or something.

One thing I do suggest is getting a version of the card that is short, like the reference version. Part of the issue with overheating GPU is not just about the openness of the shroud, but also that a long PCB effectively compartmentalises the hot air around the card. A card with shorter PCB will get more of the fresh air from the case fan, even despite it maybe having a simpler heatsink/cooling solution on the card itself.
 
WiSK, many thanks, you're a hero. The system is up and living and the temperatures are all good. I used a small size Zotac 750 Ti and it works well, runs cool.

Had a slight hiccup with the slot load DVD drive - didn't realise it would use a slimline SATA connection so am waiting for an adapter - otherwise all went well.

Thanks again
 
Hi All,

Just placed my order for this case and a gtx760 reference card. Hoping to replace my tiny media center (Wesena HTPC-ITX2-v1) with this and I don't want to give up the ability to use my mce remote (for power on/off as well as control in windows and xbmc). I was thinking of using the Wesena IR receiver because I know how to reprogram it and already have the remote because it came with my Wesena case. Does anyone have any ideas about the best way to mount it? I was thinking of trying to get the pcb as low as possible and soldering a short extension to the IR receiver to mount it next to one of the feet. The case will be on top of my media center cabinet, so it will be at about the same level as the IR receiver for my TV if I go with this placement. I have read through this thread a couple times now and didn't notice any mentions of IR receivers. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!
 
Does that little circular thing in the second picture need to be out in the open for the remote to work?
 
Yes, that's the sensor. It looks like it's not terribly hard to replace, just 3 small solder points.
 
If I were you, I wouldn't bother to solder it. Just tape it up with electrical tape to make it black, and stick it to the bottom brace of the frame. The front panel has a cut-out, the IR sensor could poke out just enough to be seen.
 
Thanks for the quick responses, WiSK. I should start getting parts in the mail in about 2 days. Looking at the dimensions and the size of the wires, I may have to make/buy some extensions to get it to reach. I'll post some photos of the build once it starts to take shape.
 
The case came today! It looks like there's a circle cut out of the front aluminum panel right behind the logo. Not sure what the logo is made out of but light will not shine thru it at all. If I were to put the IR sensor behind this hole does anyone have any good ideas of what to replace the soon-to-be-missing spot in the logo with? I was thinking very thin black foam but I'm not sure if that would let enough IR through.
 
Can you drill through the centre of the logo using a bit that's exactly the same diameter as the IR sensor? And then nothing covering it?

Or otherwise a circular piece of black smoked plexiglas?
 
I could probably drill thru without an issue, but I don't know if the mounting would make the sensor fill the gap. It looks like the aluminum is thicker than the sensor and I'd have to make sure the pcb is taped up enough that nothing will poke thru on either side (the gap is really small there between the panel and the structure of the case), so I'm doubtful that it would fit flush. According to the tracking info, I should get most everything else today, but I may not get the IR receiver until tomorrow. Do you know of a place to get such a tiny piece of plexi? I'm in NYC, but most of the specialty stores around here I find... less than helpful.
 
Maybe there's a craft store near you that could help?

If I were you I'd just get any size piece of cast acrylic, a cheap metal hacksaw, a cheap fine-tooth metal file and shape it by hand. Satisfaction of having done it yourself :)
 
The build was a lot less complicated than I had anticipated! Electrical tape for the win. Here's a gallery.

I got my drill out and got ready to drill out the back of the Silverstone logo for the IR port since the panel already had a hole in the aluminum. I was surprised to find that the logo popped right off before I could even start drilling.


Here you can see the hole in the case panel right next to the plastic nub that snaps into the case frame. The hole is in a recessed part of the panel so that makes this fit possible.


After taping the PCB up with electrical tape and putting a small spacer under the bottom part of the PCB to match the height of the sensor, I tested the fit. It's right against everything. A couple millimeters higher and one of the pieces on the board wouldn't have fit between the panel and the frame and I would have had to cut.


View from the top. There is literally no room.


This is the front view. The sensor isn't as visible if it's not catching the light, which it rarely is in my living room.


The H77N-wifi motherboard, i3 processor, SSD, and h60 cpu cooler (I had the hoses all twisted like this because it looked like they would push on the graphics card. After running it for a day and seeing unusually high idle temps in the high 40's to low 50's, I unscrewed the radiator, untwisted it and reattached it to the case. It now runs in the 30's at idle with a less restricted flow). The cable length for the IR receiver was just barely enough to make it to the headers on the other side of the motherboard, but it is really perfect with just enough slack that you won't break or bend anything taking the panel off.


View from the side with the GTX 760 installed. Almost all of the system wires wind up by this loop on the side of the case. The IR receiver's wire runs between the video card and the motherboard PCB and winds up flat against the motherboard until it plugs in to the header.


There's a lot of empty space in here, and you can tell when you feel the fan pushing air up and out.


Here's the final taped position of the IR receiver and a good view of where I ran the cable. Getting that video card in there was a pain, and I'm really hoping I don't have to take it out.


All closed up with the top on I noticed that the front panel is slightly pushed out from the top because the sensor keeps it from sitting completely flush. It's not a big deal for me because you can't really see it from my couch, but this may be something to consider if you're planing on displaying the computer more prominently.


Here's a view of it on my media center. The IR sensor is barely noticeable, especially when the lights are dim for movies.
 
So.... anyone managed to get a GTX 970 in this case (unmodded) yet? The ST45SF Bronze should manage, not sure about the size of the card though :D
 
I'd also be interested in that. I'd like to know which of the new cards fit in the FT-03 Mini without modding — I am thinking about upgrading my GTX 670 FTW (at the time it was the most powerful card available that would fit inside the Mini).
 
I got the EVGA 970 GTX SC (Part Number: 04G-P4-1972-KR, Length: 9.5in - 241.3mm) with closed shroud cooler and it fits, though somewhat tight to get in. Have to give credit to Silverstone, as much of a pain it was for me to build this machine the first time, it only took me about 10 mins to replace the graphics card.

ST45SF is holding up fine with 3770K, two SSD, one 3,5" HDD, Slim slot DVD, Corsair H60 and 14mm fan in the bottom (I mean did plenty of hours of stress testing, no funny values anywhere). The 970 gets warm (tops at 75C at 25C ambient) but within boundaries (it's not clocking itself down). Seems a little more quiet also then the GTX 670 I had before, but that could have been the cooler making more noise after 2 yrs of use.
 
Reviving this thread.
Just received my ft03 mini for a z170 build but I'm not sure which PS to go with. I want to do the silver stone 450 modular but the complaints about the fan / noise are getting to me, so...
1. does the 600w Sfx fair any better for noise? I assume it's marginal and I will not need that much power with an i5 and 960 or 970.

2. Has anyone tried one of the SFX-L boxes in the mini? I don't see an issue with fit if the optical tray is not used but I would like to keep that as an option. I assume noise is better because of fan size but not as many reviews as the other Sfx PS.

I guess I will probably be looking at fitting a Sfx-l with the optical tray (aka have the PS stick out the top a bit but still be covered by the top part of the case) but wanted to check in case anyone else has gone down this road or has gotten creative with PS mounting.

Thanks!
 
Parts slowly coming in for this build. Any recommendations on a low noise air cooler for this case? I'll be using a 6600k but probably won't be overclocking full time, just for fun or if I find the need for a little extra grunt.

Thanks!
 
Had a request for a couple of pictures. Ft03 Mini build

minibuild.jpg



Marking up for the cut, using the SFX-L so need extra space. Using a right angle power cord everything still fits under the top cover.
minibuild2.jpg


Cut and filed a little
minibuild3.jpg


USB header height vs the C1
minibuild4.jpg


Cut off the bulk, in hindsight I probably could have just done the very top
minibuild5.jpg


Test fit and showing the C1 overhang. I wanted to have it pointing towards the top of the case so it would be more in line with the power supply. Just poked out a little too much past the IO so I could not install the board. I could have modified the case as it is pretty flexy in that section but this works and temps are fine.
minibuild6.jpg


Sorry for the red tint, had a red shirt on :p
Final, front
minibuild7.jpg


Final Side
minibuild9.jpg


Final Back
minibuild8.jpg
 
Couple of questions for anyone really, but Tony if he is around particularly:

Can the FT03-mini take a Silverstone SFX-L PSU without modification?

Is there any sign of an update to this case from SST (it's too good to be left forever)?
 
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