Log [12V] B01T3 ...a 3L Brickless APU Build...

REVOCCASES

Shrink Ray Wielder
REVOCCASES
Silver Supporter
Apr 2, 2020
2,165
3,504
www.revoccases.com
I already explained, it matters. You cannot just use SATA header, fan header, in all situations because they may be directly tied to the 12V rail.

You can trigger it if you use logic triggering from your plugin, but using a fan header is not logic, it is a power rail. You can't use power to trigger power, because then it'll feedback loop itself and latch in the 'on' state.

I don't want to argue, but if you don't understand it's okay. Just don't be surprised that it may not work in all situations.

I have moved this discussion over to the GxR-DIY thread.
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
I have moved this discussion over to the GxR-DIY thread.
It is probably at its right place there, but I gladly share my threads for interesting discussions, no problem at all :)



I just made a little fan duct prototype while waiting for the last parts to arrive.

I was debating whether to only use the case top aperture right above the IS-60 Evo, but I finally went with the full aperture for air intake.
That will make cool air intake from the top and hot air exhaust on the sides and back of the case.

The 92mm fan does not cover all the bottom fins area though, some hot air could be recycled there but I hope it will be marginal.
My only concern is if there will be some air movement next to the PSU in order to help its cooling.


Happy how it turned out, I made good use of the Pythagoras' theorem to get the right measurements!
Now I have to play with Sketchup before getting it 3D printed! :cool:

Or does someone think I should make it differently?
 
  • Like
Reactions: iFreilicht

REVOCCASES

Shrink Ray Wielder
REVOCCASES
Silver Supporter
Apr 2, 2020
2,165
3,504
www.revoccases.com
Fan duct prototype looking great! Think this is a good idea, especially when having an internal PSU which will additionally heat up the inside of the case.

I wouldn't be too concerned about PSU temperature since you're not pushing it to the limits with your build and it can handle up to 90C. If you think it's getting too hot you still can try to add some thermal pads / thermal paste and use the case as additional heatsink. I think that should work just fine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BaK

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
If you think it's getting too hot you still can try to add some thermal pads / thermal paste and use the case as additional heatsink. I think that should work just fine.
Thermal pads are planned yep!
 
  • Like
Reactions: REVOCCASES

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
I finally received my momentary switches for the modded power button.
Calling them SFF is not an understatement I guess!

Wondering now if I will be able to solder cables to one of them, as there zero space left for a PCB...

 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
I was waiting for this white switch to show up in the mail but it doesn't have enough 'force feedback' to my taste.
So I am finally choosing the smaller one (5x5x1.8mm), happy how the soldering turned out:



I also had time to rethink about how to power the 12V CPU 4 pin, having to chose between the two following options:



And I think I am going with the B setup as suggested by @Valantar :
Nice! But doesn't that mean that the CPU VRM is getting 12V supplied to it even when the system is off? That doesn't sound ideal, even if I would hope the entire VRM is shut down at that point and no voltage is passed to the CPU. As such, wouldn't soldering the 4-pin onto the pads for the white connector be a better solution long-term?

It is doable and sounds indeed safer for the health of the system to get the 12V from the PDCB.
What do you think @Thehack ?
 

Thehack

Spatial Philosopher
Creator
Mar 6, 2016
2,811
3,669
J-hackcompany.com
I was waiting for this white switch to show up in the mail but it doesn't have enough 'force feedback' to my taste.
So I am finally choosing the smaller one (5x5x1.8mm), happy how the soldering turned out:



I also had time to rethink about how to power the 12V CPU 4 pin, having to chose between the two following options:



And I think I am going with the B setup as suggested by @Valantar :


It is doable and sounds indeed safer for the health of the system to get the 12V from the PDCB.
What do you think @Thehack ?
It is just better practice to switch the 12V via PDCB for the cpu.

Give the choice I don’t take shortcuts.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BaK

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
I am curious, did you ever successfully finish this build?
Thanks for the push!
This red box in your user's pic looks familiar btw! ;)

The build is not finished yet, I am taking my time, which actually helped me avoid some fireworks!
The CnLinko M12/L12 connector I linked above ended up being for 125V only and not appropriate for the 230V I have in my country. More info here.
One more time a big thanks to @Valantar to have notified me about this!

So I have know to revert back to a C6 connector, and enlarge the opening for it on the back side of the case.
There were also lots of little things to fix here and there, but I will post some pics soon.
 

infoberg

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Mar 23, 2021
89
61
Thanks for the push!
This red box in your user's pic looks familiar btw! ;)

The build is not finished yet, I am taking my time, which actually helped me avoid some fireworks!
The CnLinko M12/L12 connector I linked above ended up being for 125V only and not appropriate for the 230V I have in my country. More info here.
One more time a big thanks to @Valantar to have notified me about this!

So I have know to revert back to a C6 connector, and enlarge the opening for it on the back side of the case.
There were also lots of little things to fix here and there, but I will post some pics soon.
Yeah, I had ordered the little beauty (the case, not the girl) before I found this forum. Finished my build with it last week, it's a great case!

I like the goal you're trying to achieve, not an easy task though. Too bad the power supply didn't fit inside the case ;) I would never be able to try this, when it comes to the electrical components, I am way too scared to tinker with them.
But as I have the case version with the glass top, I was thinking about replacing it with a touch screen, not sure if I am skilled enough for such a case mod though...
 
Last edited:

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
But as I have the case version with the glass top, I was thinking about replacing it with a touch screen, not sure if I am skilled enough for such a case mod though...
I was about to say the touch screen will block your airflow, but realized it's already glass without vent. How are your temps actually?

I also thought of adding a screen panel to the case, but on its bottom! o_O

With the case rotated so that it lays on its side for lower desk footprint, the bottom becomes a side with four feet.
As these feet are screwed on, it should then be easy to add some 3D parts to them and turns them into a screen holder!
Find a way to route some cables and that's it!
Showcasing or airflow on one side, screen on the other!
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
Pics!

1.8mm white Power LED and blue HDD LED have been added, glued to the front side of the case into their respective hole:


Power switch has been attached to the PSU:


And the AC connector has been replaced, this time with a C6 'Mickey Mouse' 230V compatible one:
 

infoberg

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Mar 23, 2021
89
61
I was about to say the touch screen will block your airflow, but realized it's already glass without vent. How are your temps actually?

I also thought of adding a screen panel to the case, but on its bottom! o_O

With the case rotated so that it lays on its side for lower desk footprint, the bottom becomes a side with four feet.
As these feet are screwed on, it should then be easy to add some 3D parts to them and turns them into a screen holder!
Find a way to route some cables and that's it!
Showcasing or airflow on one side, screen on the other!
Actually using the bottom to mount a display sounds great, never thought about that. It would also allow to use the metal top panel for ventilation and still have a display on this thing. Drill a hole or two in the bottom to route the necessary HDMI/USB cables into the case, use a mainboard with HDMI connector and it will look extra smooth. Combine that with your internal PSU and you have an amazing little machine!

I was thinking of using something like this screen, but couldn't find any dimensions for it or better alternatives...
TOSUNY 8 Inch Capacitive Touch Screen
 

infoberg

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Mar 23, 2021
89
61
I was about to say the touch screen will block your airflow, but realized it's already glass without vent. How are your temps actually?
In normal use the CPU/APU stay below 60 degrees without the fan getting noisy, in benchmarks CPU can go up to 95 and APU to abut 70-75. But this is already with the glass lifted up by inserting mainboard standoffs. Without those, the whole case would get so hot, you could fry an egg on the glass top...

 
  • Like
Reactions: ignsvn

infoberg

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Mar 23, 2021
89
61
I was about to say the touch screen will block your airflow, but realized it's already glass without vent. How are your temps actually?

I also thought of adding a screen panel to the case, but on its bottom! o_O

With the case rotated so that it lays on its side for lower desk footprint, the bottom becomes a side with four feet.
As these feet are screwed on, it should then be easy to add some 3D parts to them and turns them into a screen holder!
Find a way to route some cables and that's it!
Showcasing or airflow on one side, screen on the other!

A 4:3 8-inch screen should fit nicely on the bottom/side of the case. But I couldn't find any with speakers (or dimensions given), so I would probably settle for a 7-incher from Waveshare, as found on Amazon. The cables allow removal of the connector (or rather are delivered unassembled), so only a small cut in the bottom of the case would be enough to get them into the case, connecting to one of the USB headsers. The HDMI cable can then be routed back to the outside near the I/O shield. The speakers should fit inside the case, but it might be a close fit with the PSU inside the case. As the legs can be removed from the case, all that needs to magically appear is a housing for the screen and cables/plugs...
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
In normal use the CPU/APU stay below 60 degrees without the fan getting noisy, in benchmarks CPU can go up to 95 and APU to abut 70-75. But this is already with the glass lifted up by inserting mainboard standoffs. Without those, the whole case would get so hot, you could fry an egg on the glass top...
That's indeed kinda hot! You made good use of these standoffs though, good idea!


A 4:3 8-inch screen should fit nicely on the bottom/side of the case. But I couldn't find any with speakers (or dimensions given), so I would probably settle for a 7-incher from Waveshare, as found on Amazon. The cables allow removal of the connector (or rather are delivered unassembled), so only a small cut in the bottom of the case would be enough to get them into the case, connecting to one of the USB headsers. The HDMI cable can then be routed back to the outside near the I/O shield. The speakers should fit inside the case, but it might be a close fit with the PSU inside the case. As the legs can be removed from the case, all that needs to magically appear is a housing for the screen and cables/plugs...
Thanks for the shopping list!
Adding a screen was actually just a thought and I don't think I will go forward with it on that build. But maybe for another one...
Let us know if on your side you make this idea come true!
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
Some goodies have arrived:


PSU heat transfer to the case, thermal pad with a thickness of 1.5mm has been added:


With that thickness, there is no more gap in front of the PSU, which is now pushing on the PSU holding it firmly into place. The PSU should thus have a good contact with the casing for proper passive cooling:

Later I am going to add some support to push the top of the PSU against the case as well, to improve the contact with the case even better.


PDCB modifications, removing the stock wires was a nightmare as they were soldered on both sides of the PCB:

I had planned to apply liquid electrical tape to the PDCB soldering close to the PSU, but the one I have has dried out.
So I've added a temporary plastic (credit) card in between the PDCB and the PSU to prevent short until I get some new liquid tape. But I might keep the plastic card there anyway for extra safety.
 

infoberg

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Mar 23, 2021
89
61
Some goodies have arrived:


PSU heat transfer to the case, thermal pad with a thickness of 1.5mm has been added:


With that thickness, there is no more gap in front of the PSU, which is now pushing on the PSU holding it firmly into place. The PSU should thus have a good contact with the casing for proper passive cooling:

Later I am going to add some support to push the top of the PSU against the case as well, to improve the contact with the case even better.


PDCB modifications, removing the stock wires was a nightmare as they were soldered on both sides of the PCB:

I had planned to apply liquid electrical tape to the PDCB soldering close to the PSU, but the one I have has dried out.
So I've added a temporary plastic (credit) card in between the PDCB and the PSU to prevent short until I get some new liquid tape. But I might keep the plastic card there anyway for extra safety.

Great option for the storage! Which PCIe -> M.2 adapter are you using?

It would have been so great if the Meanwell PSU would have completely fit inside the case. Do you think a modification to the PSU would have been possible, like the mod petricor did for his project? S4MAX: Brickless S4M w/ 3080 FE and R9 5950x - 800W, 5l, water cooled | SFF.Network (smallformfactor.net)
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
964
956
Great option for the storage! Which PCIe -> M.2 adapter are you using?
You will find a lot of such models on Ali, but this is the one I got:
I did not check if it works yet though!


It would have been so great if the Meanwell PSU would have completely fit inside the case. Do you think a modification to the PSU would have been possible, like the mod petricor did for his project? S4MAX: Brickless S4M w/ 3080 FE and R9 5950x - 800W, 5l, water cooled | SFF.Network (smallformfactor.net)
Yeah, fitting the PSU without taking out the Dremel would have been nice.
There is unfortunately no power socket to remove or fan to replace in that PSU.
The only mod I see would have been to get 1mm on each side by removing / filing / sanding a part of the black block under the screws.
But there is some silica gel or something mold into it and I preferred not to touch it for safety purpose, furthermore as the job with the Dremel was not that hard.
 
  • Like
Reactions: morj and infoberg