Concept 11 liter ITX airflow simplicity

Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
Hi Guys,

I'm new here, as a user at least, but i have been passing by this forum multiple times the last month while i have been sketching on my ideas for my first self-build desktop.
I am fairly set on using somewhat regular components - So ITX board, SFX PSU and ITX size GPU.
Looking at existing cases, i see that many are depended on side intake of air, which i feel is an annoying limitation to the aesthetics, the orientation of the case and lastly my own ability to make it with common tools.
After testing many many version of internal layout in CAD, i feel fairly confident in the latest iteration with GPU directly into the PCI-e and PSU next to the motherboard. For a long time my PSU was above the CPU heatsink, but i felt the Noctua L9i would be bad for internal airflow.
So as you can see in my sceenshots, i have made lots of room for a proper CPU cooler. But now comes the puzzle. The Noctua NH-U9S would be my logical choice - however the NH-L12s has a higher TDP for some reason. Same goes for the NH-C14s - Somehow that is worse than the L12s?
Which one would you guys recommend?
An as you can see in my capture, i am also playing with the idea of removing the fan from the heat-sink. Does anybody have any experience with performance when blowing air at the heatsink from a distance compared to attached directly to the heat sink?

I dont know if fabric will allow for a suitable airflow, but i am considering it for both aesthetics and to work somewhat like a dust-filter. The front IO i hope to keep minimal with just a headphone jack and a single USB port. The idealist in me calls for a usb-c, but quite frankly the only usb C thing i have is a bluetooth speaker. The last part of the triangle is supposed to be the on/off button. All this requires that i cut into the fan-frame, but it clears the blades easily.

With all the positive pressure from the front fans, i'm not expecting the need for a rear exhaust. However it may be its preferable for less noise (instead of front fans...)
This view also shows why i land all the way up on 11 liters. I have given the case som extra space in the back to route the cables to be less visible from the side. (The internals will most likely be black/metal, but is just white in my render because they do not have a material...)

Internal layout. Front: 2x 140mm fans. GPU: Most likely a RTX 2060, maybe 2070. Depending on which cooling layout i can find which fits the best. CPU: i5 9600K or i7 9700K. RAM: What ever is reasonable, 2x16GB - Most likely Corsair vengeance. PSU: Corsair SF600 or SF450 (depending on the GPU/CPU config). Motherboard: Z390 something. Depending on layout. And to be honest, probably depending on which one has a nice layout on the backside with a nice IO shield.

Just a small extra test with the design in a more traditional enclosure. I cant make up my mind which material to build it from. I think it could be cool in acylic too, but a bit too flashy for my desk in the long run.
Other material suggestions are very welcome!
 
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Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
BTW, i realize my layout resembles this one:
https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/a-12-5l-exercise-on-balance-and-intention.8143/
which i just saw now. However one thing i have had focus on is how the air moves both with the fans on and off. That is why my PSU is on top, to allow for somewhat passive exhaust of hot air.
Also the position of the PSU makes for running the biggest cables the shortest distance. And out of the airflow.
I am currently playing with ideas of fins/wings on the bottom to direct the horizontal airflow into the GPU. It would be much nicer if GPUs had the arrays of heat-sink fins in the opposite direction.
 
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Lone

King of Cable Management
Lone Industries
Feb 25, 2015
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The wood looks amazing. I really like the idea of using a fabric front. This is something I have also considered as a way to hide front case fans. The main issue I see is whether or not airflow would be sufficient with the desired fabric.
 

princess_daphie

Cable-Tie Ninja
Jan 26, 2019
210
193
something that might be interesting with fabric and i'd love to know how it behaves in practice is maybe reduce the sound of fans pulling air through filters/grills often cause so much noise it's unbearable!

love the look!
 

Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
SFFn Staff
May 9, 2015
5,843
4,906
Awesome project and well done on the detail in the 3D model ! The title says it all for this concept. The front is nicely balanced with the front I/O done in a unique way, I love it ! Except at the moment I won't fit with the fan in the way :)
 
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theGryphon

Airflow Optimizer
Jun 15, 2015
299
237

... in turn looks like the Spartan Jr: https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/spartan-jr-the-8-35l-itx-tower-case.1660/

In short, don't worry about it. Two fans in front does not make this case resemble any other case. It's all about execution. Don't forget, devil is in the detail (or, "God is in the detail", whichever you prefer) ;)


Edit: Love the looks and simplicity! I had a smaller case concept posted similar to this one... j/k! XD;)

Speaking of details though, the front is fully covered with fans so there wouldn't be any place for front IO...
 
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Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
Well i do know that the lower fan will need to have a corner cut out to allow for the IO. I i were developing a production model (which could be fun. I do have some ideas to make this case in an easy to manufacturer way...), i would consider making an IO sitting at the bottom lip. That would be quite cool too i think. However for a one of, i think the character the corner-cut gives is quite good. As you can see here, the design quickly becomes a bit bland when the IO moves.
 

Smanci

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Apr 21, 2017
126
160
Needs dual 80mm exhaust in the back. Otherwise a great-looking concept. Bottom I/O looks much better.
 
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Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
M-ATX version? Please? :p Fantastic ideas, I hope to see more!
Well i have not looked into Micro ATX because i was so focused on minimum size, but looking at it again, i see you may have a point. It would not increase much in height. However it would cost a lot in the depth. But in turn that would make it much more interesting for more GPUs and more importantly (to me) it cold finally have four slots of RAM. Thats still my biggest drawback with ITX... But speaking of size, one of the other versions of the design which competed for a while was quite similar to this, but 3x120mm fans instead. If only SFX powersupplies had the fan in the side. The PSU have been the biggest issue for my design process. But going all DC-DC+ brick is just a bit too complex for my taste, not to mention expensive and hard to get hold of. But i would love a slim version of this in wood. Like 3x92mm fans, or maybe even 4x60mm. However so far i have not been able to make a slim version with these internals due to the PSU intake. It may still happen. But that will be if i revert from the current idea and build the computer into an old Beomaster 1000 instead. That is still an option.
 

Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
Needs dual 80mm exhaust in the back. Otherwise a great-looking concept. Bottom I/O looks much better.
Can you elaborate a bit on the need? I bet you are right, since i have little experience in this, and i was wondering what i am missing. But assuming the sides are closed and all front is fans, the air would go out the back anyway? Well, thats how it works in my head. Is the exhaust to avoid stagnate air?
 

Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
The wood looks amazing. I really like the idea of using a fabric front. This is something I have also considered as a way to hide front case fans. The main issue I see is whether or not airflow would be sufficient with the desired fabric.
I share the concern. I may go so far that i bring a fan to a fabric shop to test different versions. My intuition tells me that using fabric meant for speakers would have a decent level of permeability. However that is pure guessing...
 

Smanci

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Apr 21, 2017
126
160
Can you elaborate a bit on the need? I bet you are right, since i have little experience in this, and i was wondering what i am missing. But assuming the sides are closed and all front is fans, the air would go out the back anyway? Well, thats how it works in my head. Is the exhaust to avoid stagnate air?

I think it wouldn't be smart not to include an option to install them as it requires just four additional screw holes.

Fabric is restrictive, the rear mesh is restrictive and everything inside the case also creates more restriction to the flow from the front fans. Most of the hot air would be expelled through the PSU when it turns on, which at least for me isn't desirable. Two exhaust fans make it much easier to have both quiet and cool system. Having only intakes just isn't the best idea in majority of cases from noise/performance perspective.

Upper rear fan would also suck air through the PSU and keep it cooler for a longer period of time.
 

Henrik_N

Chassis Packer
Original poster
Mar 2, 2019
15
77
M-ATX version? Please? :p Fantastic ideas, I hope to see more!
Well, instead of thinking about it, i thought i would give it a go, to see how far of a MicroATX was. Well, it increases to 13,6L and 150X280X325mm. The height annoys me. I had to go for only 92mm fans x 3 to make some sense. I dont know the market well enough, but this layout seems so straigt forward, so surely it must exist almost like for like already? The right side "panel" makes for a nice option to route cables efficiently under the fans. And a good "business" version of this could be with 2 x 120mm fans and then loads of front accesible 2.5" HDDs at the top (othervise there is just wasted space...).


 

smallfartfactor

Efficiency Noob
May 8, 2018
5
3
Ive been planning something extremely similar to these materials for a long time. Unfortunately haven't had enough cash/time to turn it into a reality yet. Curious to see how this goes, especially with the fabric. I've also though that speaker fabric should work. I've tested it with speakers at home and an old case fan and it seemed to provide decent airflow, fwiw.

Especially curious to know how you're planning on creating that unibody wooden shell. I haven't been able to figure that out.
 

Tazpr

Master of Cramming
Aug 7, 2018
553
429
Reminds me a lot of a case I've been designing with Velkase - https://smallformfactor.net/forum/t...igned-12-5-litre-tower-case-by-velkase.10215/

Similar core concept - 2 x 140mm intakes, 2 x 80mm exhaust, space for 220mm GPU's and 130mm Tower coolers and an SFX PSU.

Mine is a little bigger, but I went with additional width to allow for a tower style cooler so the airflow design was all in the same direction to form a wind tunnel. 130mm allows for use of Thermalright Silver Arrow 130 or Noctua U9S.

Love the design though, the curved ply exterior is absolutely stunning and the fabric front gives me high end speaker feels which I think is a mature aesthetic not appreciated enough in the PC world.

Have you looked at doing a design with slightly more CPU tower clearance?
 

tinyitx

Shrink Ray Wielder
Jan 25, 2018
2,279
2,338
Sunmilo has a similar design (T02 Pro).
2x120mm front fans, 2x80mm rear fans, full length reference Nvidia card (if front lower fan is not installed), 135mm CPU cooler clearance, 14L.
 
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Thehack

Spatial Philosopher
Creator
Mar 6, 2016
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I have also been thinking of a more budget design similar to this. It's certain ripe for the taking, since there is no easily available version of this.

However, keep in mind that your renders/concept aren't taking into account how the chassis will be constructed. Bends, cuts, etc. When considering IO design, consider PCB or devices you will use, cause this affects the clearance required, how it will be attached. etc.
 

GuilleAcoustic

Chief Procrastination Officer
SFFn Staff
LOSIAS
Jun 29, 2015
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Awesome project ! I've been toying with the idea of a minimalist chassis made of wood / metal and speaker cloth for quite some time now. I even have a design thread named "Project Simplicity" over here (but most pictures are lost ahaha).

I'll follow that closely ;-)