Prototype 15.9l ATX Work Case

[Schmit01]

So my work pc case is really outdated and I needed an upgrade.
I wanted something that had the following;

1. Small as possible housing an ATX motherboard.
2. Has a handle.
3. Single SDD housing.
4. All PCI-E slotes available.
5. And most importantly used standard components available locally as down time needs to be kept to a minimum. So riser cards, and pico PSUs where no longer an option after a few previous prototypes.

So that brought me to this work in progress. A simple 15.9l 3 panel Aluminum case with a front 280mm radiator forming part of the case. Here below next to my current case, measuring 355mm High x 328mm Long x 145mm Deep.

A 3mm frame bent from a single piece of laser cut aluminium with the 280mm radiator holding the front together.
I had to wait for this piece first to measure for the side panel dimension exactly. These are being cut at the moment with the smaller components.

The ATX PSU sits above the CPU area with the fan facing down helping ventilate the motherboard components. This leaves +- 45mm of space between the PSU and the CPU, plenty for the Corsair H115i Pro RGB pump to sit under.

This is not meant to be a show off PC as the PSU hides a lot of the motherboard and I don't plan on having a side window anyway. Once complete will be taken apart and anodized. I will be keeping the fans exposed as I like the look.

Will update once I have the side panels and some better pics.

 

[confusis]

Nice work thus far. We need moar pics though!

 

[rfarmer]

Very interesting design with the AIO incorporated into the frame and it does look cool with the exposed fans. I am curious to see it with the side panels and as a completed build.

 

[theGryphon]

I love it!

You said you like the fans in the front, and I understand that it has a certain appeal, but it might look even better with the rad exposed instead of the fans. It would also make the dust cleaning easier. Just a thought

 

[Schmit01]

I had thought of that, but If something had to knock the front I would rather replace a fan than the whole AIO because of a damaged radiator.
The extra 25mm spacing causes a bit more strain on the piping than I would like due to the configuration to work with the PSU and the distance of the CPU from the radiator.

Though I could use the 4 central unused fan holes to mount a grille and filter, I will look into that.

 

[Schmit01]

So up and running. Not perfect but not bad.
Have a few items to be resolved and part quality to be rectified.

1. Not happy with my side side panel mounting system (so not on yet). Might go magnetic or a mechanical press lock.
2. PCI-E mount plate and hole positions didn't come out correctly. Have to improvise.
3. Need to do custom wiring and sleeve, particularity with the SDD as I cant mount it flush at the moment.
4. Design Flaw with PCI-E Card bracket depth. Honestly I just trimmed the bottom of the GPU & Wireless card by 1.5mm for now.
5. Add small Rubber feet.
6. Try and find a nice push button locally. If not Ill wait for something internationally. Temporary button at back.
7. Finnish making the PCIe slot grilles.
8. Anodize Black

 

[CC Ricers]

Nice custom case. While I gravitate more towards mini ITX and other smaller components it's still nice to have SFF cases that cater towards more budget friendly builds which often involve going a bit bigger and a bit older for parts.

 

[Schmit01]

Well I love Mini ITX and was actually considering the Skyreach 4 at one point, reality had to kick in with regards to components and cooling.

I have burned myself in the past where a component, like a memory slot or the on board LAN port fails, you have no redundancy but to buy a new motherboard with a Mini ITX. My current 1.5 Year old Gigabyte ATX motherboard, has just had the LAN port fail on me and I had to get a PCI-E card.

But what affects me most can be local supply. After 1 year and a new CPU comes out the chances of finding a previous model matching Mini ITX board are slim, there is just not enough demand. But ATX I can still find for the I7 2600k. Just remember down time it a biggy for me.

I'm not one for wasting money, even if my company is paying for it. The case only cost me $50 to make excluding the AIO.
With that said the program I use is mostly CPU intensive and thus the I7 700K I and 32GB of corsair RAM in this pc.
The GPU rarely hits above 30% and GTX 760 still does just fine. No need for a GTX 1080 unfortunately.

For me clean looks nice but sometimes rugged can look better.

Cheers

 

[OliverRH]

Nice build idea!

 

[myfirstpcyay]

This looks great! Nice and simple. You might even consider skipping the I/O shield IF it helps with lowering temps - just a more direct outflow across the mobo.