Silverstone SST-FT03-Mini (Mini-Itx)

SalemSwift said:
I understand, but I'm not certain it's enough to make a difference in this instance.
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My assertion is based on an experience last year. I was folding on the 560Ti and quite happy with 60C, but it was pulling in a lot of dust - folding 24/7 is merciless with dust. Had to clean it every week. So I bought Demciflex filters, custom sized for the SG05 side vents. Suddenly the temps are 70C and the 560Ti fans are over 2000rpm instead of the previous 1300rpm. Well no problem, I thought, I have 2 case fans in push-pull which are only doing 900rpm. I turned those up to 1500rpm, which should be now moving 4x the air volume of the case every second. Didn't make any real difference to any temps, not GPU nor CPU. I was confused but after a while I thought to reduce the GPU fans. Temps went down (but not much, 3C maybe). The only explanation can be that the Phantom fans were just as strong pushing one way as the case fans pushing the other way.

But at least the SG05 has side vents, even when restricted with filters. The FT03mini has none. So where is the cool air coming from except the AP141 underneath? Any fans fighting against the flow and you'll just get a warm air eddy or backflow.

Also check page 26 of the FT03-mini manual. "When choosing a graphics card, we recommend models that have fan blowing exhaust air to the rear slot, this will ensure smooth and efficient airflow within the FT03-MINI for maximum cooling performance."
 
I think that's a sound and excellent comment. In my case, my primary concern is noise, which will end up guiding my build in the end. I may be in pursuit of near-silence more so than most, but that's my quirk.
 
WiSK said:
My assertion is based on an experience last year. I was folding on the 560Ti and quite happy with 60C, but it was pulling in a lot of dust - folding 24/7 is merciless with dust. Had to clean it every week. So I bought Demciflex filters, custom sized for the SG05 side vents. Suddenly the temps are 70C and the 560Ti fans are over 2000rpm instead of the previous 1300rpm. Well no problem, I thought, I have 2 case fans in push-pull which are only doing 900rpm. I turned those up to 1500rpm, which should be now moving 4x the air volume of the case every second. Didn't make any real difference to any temps, not GPU nor CPU. I was confused but after a while I thought to reduce the GPU fans. Temps went down (but not much, 3C maybe). The only explanation can be that the Phantom fans were just as strong pushing one way as the case fans pushing the other way.

But at least the SG05 has side vents, even when restricted with filters. The FT03mini has none. So where is the cool air coming from except the AP141 underneath? Any fans fighting against the flow and you'll just get a warm air eddy or backflow.

Also check page 26 of the FT03-mini manual. "When choosing a graphics card, we recommend models that have fan blowing exhaust air to the rear slot, this will ensure smooth and efficient airflow within the FT03-MINI for maximum cooling performance."
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In the SG05 from my experience front fan has virtually no effect on overall GPU cooling. I tried many configurations and none made more that +/- 3c difference. Maybe GPU PCB temps but not the core temps.
 
fr500 said:
In the SG05 from my experience front fan has virtually no effect on overall GPU cooling. I tried many configurations and none made more that +/- 3c difference. Maybe GPU PCB temps but not the core temps.
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I'm not sure what GPUs you tried but I should explain that the 560Ti Phantom I mentioned above has an extremely short PCB and even push-pull fans are blowing some air there.
 
nameBrandon said:
Nice! Post-flange, you should easily be clear by ~10-15mm, even with the 120mm fan on top.. I'm doing to the same thing, so I'd love to see some photos when you get it all in!
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Will do, it should arrive around wed.

SalemSwift said:
http://imgur.com/a/kLR22#3

You have 90 mm to play with, depending on the motherboard's memory location. They should all be very similar, though.

Of course, like nameBrandon said, you'll have to cut off the flange or simply not use the DVD bracket.
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Not sure exactly on what you're talking about since I don't have the case on hand now, but it should start to make sense once it arrives. I don't intend on using the DVD slot so I could perhaps mod some HDD brackets there and use it for HDDs.
 
Agenesis said:
Will do, it should arrive around wed.



Not sure exactly on what you're talking about since I don't have the case on hand now, but it should start to make sense once it arrives. I don't intend on using the DVD slot so I could perhaps mod some HDD brackets there and use it for HDDs.
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If you look at the photos Salem posted (the imgur link) you'll see where the DVD bracket has a flange that gets in the way. That needs to be cut off in order to fit anything more than an H60-sized radiator (with no fans) there. Even if you don't use the 2.5"/3.5"/optical trays / slots, that main DVD bracket is the main "holder" for all of that other stuff, and still needs to have the flange removed.. You can just not use the bracket at all, but then you'll have to get very creative in your drive mounting if you plan on using more than a single 2.5" in drive.

If you cut the flange off and use the DVD bracket, you can mount the second 2.5" drive there, either by drilling holes for the drive or a new drive tray, or velcro / zip-ties, etc.

I had originally planned to drill holes myself, but after looking at it, I'm just taking the easy way out and mounting my SSD on the DVD bracket with 3M command velcro strips. My mechanical 2.5" drive will mount in the tray at the bottom, as intended by Silverstone.
 
Couldn't you just elevate the bracket by drilling new holes? Or would it obstruct the PSU?

Also from the videos it shows a good amount of space in the DVD compartment, although I'm not sure if it'll fit a 3.5 HDD in there. Maybe it'll fit if you screw the dvd/hdd bracket from the inside instead of outside.

If not then it looks like I'm going to have to make use of the free space from the Silverstone logo side panel. It should be enough for two 3.5hdds since I'm using a closed loop.
 
Agenesis said:
Couldn't you just elevate the bracket by drilling new holes? Or would it obstruct the PSU?

Also from the videos it shows a good amount of space in the DVD compartment, although I'm not sure if it'll fit a 3.5 HDD in there. Maybe it'll fit if you screw the dvd/hdd bracket from the inside instead of outside.

If not then it looks like I'm going to have to make use of the free space from the Silverstone logo side panel. It should be enough for two 3.5hdds since I'm using a closed loop.
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I don't know how you're going to fit one 3.5" HDD in there with a H80 + fan, let alone two. You may want to download the manual and look at the photos that have been posted in this thread some more.

73_450x338.jpg


That is the only spot originally designed for 3.5", and if you use it, you can only fit a small sized radiator and no fan. This is why most of us are using 2.5" HDD for everything (not to mention the heat / airflow blocking that comes with a 3.5").
 
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HoseHead said:
I got the case in the mail today, here are a couple of pictures with measurements and comments...
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Hoseheads pictures show it best. The flange is a part of the assembly. Why Silverstone didn't make it more modular:confused:. Although you can't see the top of the drive bay offsetting it would mean the optical drive doesn't line up with the slot in the front cover anymore. So if you are going in that direction it seems you'd better leave the drive bay out or, as shown in this thread, remove the flange.
 
So as a bit of a side discussion here.. I'm now wavering on the Asus P8Z77-I as opposed the ASRock (Z77E) board.. both have everything I need, and it looks like ASRock has 7.1 sound (might go with a true 7.1 headset down the line) and much faster cold boot times, and is ~$50 cheaper.

What I don't like about the ASRock is those wifi antenna cables running around the board (I will be using WiFi exclusively for this build).. and it looks like the ASUS bios is much cleaner (not a huge deal..).

Any particular reasons all of you went with one vs the other?

Not sure if it makes a difference, but I've already purchased the 3570k and plan to use a daily OC ~4.3 / 4.4 (with H80 push/pull). No optical drive or 3.5", but two 2.5" (one ssd / one mechanical) and a GTX 670, 16gb ram (2x8gb). No real need for bluetooth at this time. I will have one drive in an e-sata dock that I move between computers.
 
nameBrandon said:
So as a bit of a side discussion here.. I'm now wavering on the Asus P8Z77-I as opposed the ASRock (Z77E) board.. both have everything I need, and it looks like ASRock has 7.1 sound (might go with a true 7.1 headset down the line) and much faster cold boot times, and is ~$50 cheaper.

What I don't like about the ASRock is those wifi antenna cables running around the board (I will be using WiFi exclusively for this build).. and it looks like the ASUS bios is much cleaner (not a huge deal..).

Any particular reasons all of you went with one vs the other?

Not sure if it makes a difference, but I've already purchased the 3570k and plan to use a daily OC ~4.3 / 4.4 (with H80 push/pull). No optical drive or 3.5", but two 2.5" (one ssd / one mechanical) and a GTX 670, 16gb ram (2x8gb). No real need for bluetooth at this time. I will have one drive in an e-sata dock that I move between computers.
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For me aesthetics is equally important as performance, and Asus has a blue board that doesn't really match anything.
 
ASRock has won me over during the past few years. They've really stepped up their game and act like a company that's hungry. I was initially pulled in for the same reason, significant savings. I bought an Extreme3 Gen3 when it came out, now the H77M-itx. UEFI bios on all the current boards just makes things stupid simple compared to years past, regardless of the mfc, imo. I believe you can't go wrong with ASRock at this time, hopefully they stay hungry.

BTW, my Amazon order page says they expect to ship the new SilverStone SFX PSU between August 23, 2012 - September 5, 2012. In my experience, estimates like this are usually too safe and the product winds up shipping sooner.
 
SalemSwift said:
ASRock has won me over during the past few years. They've really stepped up their game and act like a company that's hungry. I was initially pulled in for the same reason, significant savings. I bought an Extreme3 Gen3 when it came out, now the H77M-itx. UEFI bios on all the current boards just makes things stupid simple compared to years past, regardless of the mfc, imo. I believe you can't go wrong with ASRock at this time, hopefully they stay hungry.

BTW, my Amazon order page says they expect to ship the new SilverStone SFX PSU between August 23, 2012 - September 5, 2012. In my experience, estimates like this are usually too safe and the product winds up shipping sooner.
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Thanks! I'm still going back and forth, but I really can't see any real benefit to using the ASUS over the ASRock at this point, seeing as how I don't use bluetooth.. Guess I'll read some more reviews before deciding..

Thanks for the info on the PSU! Please post when that sucker ships!! :)
 
Wow! I wasn't expecting a user experience like that, haha.

I've used their PSUs for years, though admittedly have never tried that fanless model. It just came to mind because there's a user in the Sugo thread that stuffed one into his case, which is similar to the FT03-mini.
 
Just got all the parts in a few hours ago. The H80 fits in perfectly without the bracket, and if you bend the flange you can add in another fan for push/pull.

The gap between the radiator and the front side panel has enough room to fit 2 3.5'' drives, so you can possibly fit up to 4 ~ 6 3.5'' drives if you crate a custom bracket in the form of the dvd bracket. The hard part is just creating the bracket itself lol.

But out of the box if you just bend the flange and if you have a drill on hand you can 99% fit in at least one 3.5'' drive and with a thick radiator such as the one on the H80. If you have some free hdd brackets on hand then you possibly fit up to two. I have hdd brackets from lian li, corsair, and fractal and it looks like fractal and corsair may be the best candidate for hdd brackets to mod in.

Also on a side note, does anyone know if the Corsair face plate / badge / controller panel thing is removable? I want to reorient it because due to the placement of the radiator it is upside down right now. Serious OCD kicking in lol.

 
Agenesis said:
Just got all the parts in a few hours ago. The H80 fits in perfectly without the bracket, and if you bend the flange you can add in another fan for push/pull.

The gap between the radiator and the front side panel has enough room to fit 2 3.5'' drives, so you can possibly fit up to 4 ~ 6 3.5'' drives if you crate a custom bracket in the form of the dvd bracket. The hard part is just creating the bracket itself lol.

But out of the box if you just bend the flange and if you have a drill on hand you can 99% fit in at least one 3.5'' drive and with a thick radiator such as the one on the H80. If you have some free hdd brackets on hand then you possibly fit up to two. I have hdd brackets from lian li, corsair, and fractal and it looks like fractal and corsair may be the best candidate for hdd brackets to mod in.

Also on a side note, does anyone know if the Corsair face plate / badge / controller panel thing is removable? I want to reorient it because due to the placement of the radiator it is upside down right now. Serious OCD kicking in lol.

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Nice job! More pics! :)
 
SalemSwift said:
Wow! I wasn't expecting a user experience like that, haha.

I've used their PSUs for years, though admittedly have never tried that fanless model. It just came to mind because there's a user in the Sugo thread that stuffed one into his case, which is similar to the FT03-mini.
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Yeah it's just one of them things sadly. Nice kit still.

Agenesis said:
Also on a side note, does anyone know if the Corsair face plate / badge / controller panel thing is removable? I want to reorient it because due to the placement of the radiator it is upside down right now. Serious OCD kicking in lol.
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Nice build and mod there. I shall play my self.

Yes the unit open up as you have to change bracket for the AMD socket so it can rotate, least one i had did.
 
Having seen josephclemente wrangle a normal ATX PSU into the SUGO 05, I've cancelled my SFX PSU order and have opted for a modular ATX unit (Seasonic X-560) that will be here Monday.

I was further motivated to try it by this:

Machupo said:
Salem, putting an atx into a sugo is easy as pie.
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I'm expecting to have to just ditch the DVD bracket and place my 2.5" drive elsewhere. I'll see how it goes.
 
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Free weekend for me this week so finally got the build completed:

http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039052862&postcount=661

The 680 wasn't playing well with mountain lion so I replaced it with my trusty 470. I also mounted a small fan controller on the front so I can control the fan speed on both of my fans. Cable management is somewhat hard but it is doable. I intend on sleeving the cables soon so I don't have to deal with the bulky cables.

For any future owners just be aware that the internal of the case is very easily scratched so be careful while putting in the psu or the gpu as the pci brackets can scrape against the top, causing paint chippings. I put the GPU in last so it wasn't a very smart choice, as I had to remove the psu and work the thing in there. For tidying cables you can hide most of the io cables into the power button/usb hub thing. And lastly, the way I have it setup now it can support an extra 3.5'' HDD and about two more 2.5'''s.
 
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SalemSwift said:
Wow! I wasn't expecting a user experience like that, haha.

I've used their PSUs for years, though admittedly have never tried that fanless model. It just came to mind because there's a user in the Sugo thread that stuffed one into his case, which is similar to the FT03-mini.
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I've used many PSUs from Seasonic and my X460FL has been up to their standards.
Ive run the following system on it with no issues:

2500K @ 4500mhz 1.4v
2x MSI GTX460 Hawk in SLI (stock)
all in a Fractal R3
makes for a very quiet system

I sidegraded from a X650 which was really just as quiet, but the 460 should give me better low load efficiency.

I'm currently running a single GTX460 on the system now, but its an excellent PSU that can hold its own
 
Agenesis said:
Free weekend for me this week so finally got the build completed:

http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039052862&postcount=661

The 680 wasn't playing well with mountain lion so I replaced it with my trusty 470. I also mounted a small fan controller on the front so I can control the fan speed on both of my fans. Cable management is somewhat hard but it is doable. I intend on sleeving the cables soon so I don't have to deal with the bulky cables.

For any future owners just be aware that the internal of the case is very easily scratched so be careful while putting in the psu or the gpu as the pci brackets can scrape against the top, causing paint chippings. I put the GPU in last so it wasn't a very smart choice, as I had to remove the psu and work the thing in there. For tidying cables you can hide most of the io cables into the power button/usb hub thing. And lastly, the way I have it setup now it can support an extra 3.5'' HDD and about two more 2.5'''s.
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Wow, great job! What is that fan on the H80? That's not the stock corsair one is it?

I've never sleeved the PSU cables before.. are those a specific set, or just generic sleeves? Do they wrap around the side of the cables and then close up, or do you have to take the connectors off of the ends of the power cables, sleeve them, the put the connectors back on?
 
nameBrandon said:
Wow, great job! What is that fan on the H80? That's not the stock corsair one is it?

I've never sleeved the PSU cables before.. are those a specific set, or just generic sleeves? Do they wrap around the side of the cables and then close up, or do you have to take the connectors off of the ends of the power cables, sleeve them, the put the connectors back on?
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They're SP120s. It can be found here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181027

The stock Corsair fans were very loud at max speed so I took one of these from my radiator and put it there...also mainly because it has a red accent to match the ram and ssd :p

I should also add that I replaced the stock AP141 with a kama flex 135MM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185165 They're very good fans and are almost as hard to find as Gentle Typhoons.
It puts out tremendously more air on the same noise level as the AP141, but on max speed it gets pretty loud so its really only suitable if you have a fan controller. I would've loved to kept the signature silverstone air penetrators but having a radiator in front of it doesn't really benefit the direct airflow.

And

do you have to take the connectors off of the ends of the power cables, sleeve them, the put the connectors back on?
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Yep that would be it. I haven't sleeved mine yet but it'll probably look something like this after sleeving: http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg802/scaled.php?server=802&filename=1201113.jpg&res=landing
 
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Thanks to one day shipping, my Seasonic X-560 arrived this morning and I promptly placed it in the case during lunch. As you can see by the photos, there won't be any serious problems with this particular ATX PSU. I will have to ditch the DVD bracket and mount the SSD in a new position, but as many have stated, disk-based media serves no purpose in my life for the past several years and I never intended to add a DVD drive.

There's much more room between the PSU and motherboard than I expected. I don't have a video card on hand, and while I expect it to be close fit, I don't expect them to interfere with each other. Simply spinning the PSU around so that the fan faces the motherboard allows me to use the power cord without cutting anything on the top.

Pics: http://imgur.com/a/AE2in
 
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SalemSwift said:
Thanks to one day shipping, my Seasonic X-560 arrived this morning and I promptly placed it in the case during lunch. As you can see by the photos, there won't be any serious problems with this particular ATX PSU. I will have to ditch the DVD bracket and mount the SSD in a new position, but as many have stated, disk-based media serves no purpose in my life for the past several years and I never intended to add a DVD drive.

There's much more room between the PSU and motherboard than I expected. I don't have a video card on hand, and while I expect it to be close fit, I don't expect them to interfere with each other.

Pics: http://imgur.com/a/t1ot0

Update: Simply spinning the PSU around so that the fan faces the motherboard allows me to use the power cord without cutting anything on the top. I don't think temps or fans fighting each other will be enough of a concern to face the PSU toward the panel.

http://i.imgur.com/ckufK.jpg
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Nice work!

Just a few questions:
How many screws are holding up that PSU? I see a thumbscrew and maybe just one other at the opposite corner (picture 3). Are they sufficient?

I haven't built a pc before so this may sound dumb but does the frame hold up under the weight of the ATX psu?

Can't wait to see the GPU fitting next to the PSU :D. Waiting for the silverstone sfx gold unit is tough...

edit: did you have to drill some holes? :(
 
SalemSwift said:
Thanks to one day shipping, my Seasonic X-560 arrived this morning and I promptly placed it in the case during lunch. As you can see by the photos, there won't be any serious problems with this particular ATX PSU. I will have to ditch the DVD bracket and mount the SSD in a new position, but as many have stated, disk-based media serves no purpose in my life for the past several years and I never intended to add a DVD drive.

There's much more room between the PSU and motherboard than I expected. I don't have a video card on hand, and while I expect it to be close fit, I don't expect them to interfere with each other.

Pics: http://imgur.com/a/t1ot0

Update: Simply spinning the PSU around so that the fan faces the motherboard allows me to use the power cord without cutting anything on the top. I don't think temps or fans fighting each other will be enough of a concern to face the PSU toward the panel.

http://i.imgur.com/ckufK.jpg
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What CPU cooler are you going to use? Looks like some serious clearance issues even if you're opting for a closed loop.
 
bnbn said:
Nice work!

Just a few questions:
How many screws are holding up that PSU? I see a thumbscrew and maybe just one other at the opposite corner (picture 3). Are they sufficient?

I haven't built a pc before so this may sound dumb but does the frame hold up under the weight of the ATX psu?

edit: did you have to drill some holes? :(
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I've updated my original post and added a new gallery link showing how I've repositioned the PSU. Now I don't have to cut anything.

There's only 1 screw holding it up while I snapped a quick pick. I was just anxious to test fit it (why the cables are in disarray), I'll have to drill a few holes to properly mount it. Weight is not an issue whatsoever, there is no flexion of the frame.

http://imgur.com/a/AE2in

Agenesis said:
What CPU cooler are you going to use? Looks like some serious clearance issues even if you're opting for a closed loop.
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There's already an Antec 620 closed loop in there with a push/pull radiator setup at the bottom. You can see it in the photo gallery.
 
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Thanks for the answers. I'm adding the X-460 Fanless to my back up list. That sfx gold psu better come out soon in the uk *shakes fist*
 
Well, this keeps getting better.

I didn't have to drill a single hole. Spin the PSU around, screw into the available holes, no cutting involved. I'm glad I gambled on this. 560W, gold rated, and I'm able to keep using these silent/reliable power supplies. I'm officially excited to turn this thing on in a little while.

SJhVB.jpg
 
SalemSwift said:
Well, this keeps getting better.

I didn't have to drill a single hole. Spin the PSU around, screw into the available holes, no cutting involved. I'm glad I gambled on this. 560W, gold rated, and I'm able to keep using these silent/reliable power supplies. I'm officially excited to turn this thing on in a little while.
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thats awesome! so you didnt use tapped holes right? just screwed into the vent holes? sounds kina risky like that would be easy to strip if you tighten them at all. does it feel pretty tight or is it a little loose?
 
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