2.5" HDD 7mm vs 15mm (A4-SFXv4.1)

[JohnTinkerer]

Hello Community,

I'm planning to build my first DAN rig within A4-SFXv4.1 and one of the first considerations is storage - I know it can hold "3 x 2.5" HDD/SSD" as per description but it does not say if it can hold only the standard 7mm HDDs (up to 2TB) or even the larger capacity (2TB+) 15mm 2.5" HDDs:

BarraCuda 3.5" Hard Drive | Seagate Singapore

The BarraCuda 3.5-inch Hard Drive is available in a wide range of capacity and price point options to meet any budget and for all desktop computing needs.

www.seagate.com

Anybody had any success with the 15mm/2.5" HDDs?

Any thoughts appreciated.

 

[Tashi]

Just a clarification, the standard 2.5" thickness is 9.5mm not 7mm.

 

[Shaytanya]

it depends on your build - you may be able to get a larger one underneath the PSU if you don't have an AIO. The front panel pace is quite small - I have stuck an internal monitor there. The easiest way for storage (granted no where near the 14TB mark) would be the M.2 drives

 

[JohnTinkerer]

it depends on your build - you may be able to get a larger one underneath the PSU if you don't have an AIO. The front panel pace is quite small - I have stuck an internal monitor there. The easiest way for storage (granted no where near the 14TB mark) would be the M.2 drives

Yes just one drive would be enough if the space below PSU is large enough it would be great.

Btw what's an AIO?

Of course the M.2 drives are the way to go but I'm thinking how to get storage inside for cheap so it means sticking with HDDs and not SSDs

 

[Shaytanya]

AIO = all in one cooler - as it suggestes its a pre build watercooler - pump, tubing and radiator. The cooling it offers is usually a lot better than you average fan set up. The one I have linked below has been designed to work in the Dan A4. However, it takes up ALL the space under the PSU (as you need to put a fan on top of it) - meaning cable clearance is literally 2-3mm.

however, I the drive bay is configured to (as per the DAN website)
2 x 2,5" HDD/SSD in drive bay
Bottom drive: max. height 15 mm
Top drive: max. height 15 mm

Front bay:
1 x 2.5" HDD/SSD in front-area
Max. height 9 mm

As such, you can fit two of the larger ones in place under the PSU at the expense of another fan.

What PSU are you thinking of getting? The hardest thing in both my builds (I have a Dan v1 and a 4.1) was 100% cable management. I though the first was tough, but the second was ridiculous and I still think I only got the PSU in due to sheer luck.

https://www.asetek.com/gamingenthus...gdiy/cpu-cooling/small-form-factor-cpu-cooler

 

[JohnTinkerer]

Oh thx for clarification - as I plan to move the PC from time to time via airplane I have to stay out of the water coling systems, I will stick just to air.

I somehow missed it in the specification thank you for clarification on the 15mm - 1 slot is enough for me I will get the 5TB version (Seagate 2.5" BarraCuda 5TB - ST5000LM000) as the price increase is linear.

I was planning to get the "Corsair SF600 - 600 Watt 80 PLUS Platinum Certified" as it is a more powerful version of the recommended Corsair SF Series SF450 80 PLUS Gold 450W SFX12V (CP-9020104-EU) - I suppose it can fit as well. The one recommended for the High-End machine "Fractal Design Ion SFX Gold 650W SFX12V-L (FD-PSU-ION-SFX-650G-BK)" is difficult to get here in retail.

I guess should be ok for Radeon RX 6800 XL or some lower variant (6700??). I assume it will be similar performance wise as the current 5700XT...

 

[Shaytanya]

I havdn't ever considered the air travel point - very interested as I was considering taking that my build abroad too.

If you are putting in one drive in the drive bay, I would recommend putting two in, only to make use of the space (I would recommend getting a 50GB cheap SDD as well, just to run windows, as this will hugely speed up the entire system) as I do not think you are able to put in one drive and an extra fan. I note that an SDD is much hardier than a HDD in terms of bumps that you may experience on a plane. HDDs are notoriously fragile.

I use the Corsair SF750 and 450 in my builds and I highly recommend the brand, so the SF600 is a good one providing you aren't looking for an intel CPU and an RTC 3090/90 (which from the above it appears that you are not). The 600 will give you flexibility in the future to upgrade.

The link below is the master than lists pretty much every SFF component under the sun and if it fits into certain cases - the Dan A4 is listed, and I found it very helpful when looking at parts (e.g. for the RAM, if I was not sure between the two, I looked at the master list to see the dimensions and any recommendation - obviously in the A4, the smaller the better).

Also for the GPU, it has to be two slots - I have seen a 2.5 slot custom mod, but that looked quite complicated - so two slot is the king.

https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/sff-master-list.12988/

 

[Frenzy]

Hiya. Shaytana gave a complete answer I see. Just fyi, I got a 2.5" 4TB seagate drive 15mm thick under the PSU. I used the drive cage to route cables underneath and used to top to mount the drive. Clearance with the PSU was ok. Heat from the GPU i have a piece of cardboard in there normally to deflect the warm GPU air away from it. I have M.2 as main drive and 5mm SSD on the front.

edit. Used it for air travel a few times now. I used the Tenba tools byob 7 camera bag, the Dan A4 fits exactly and easy to get out for security.

edit2: Just go with the Corsair SF600, I think most have that version here. And internally unmatched components when reading the johnyguru reviews.

Corsair SF600 Platinum Power Supply – JonnyGURU.com

www.jonnyguru.com

 

[JohnTinkerer]

Thank you all for the followup!

edit. Used it for air travel a few times now. I used the Tenba tools byob 7 camera bag, the Dan A4 fits exactly and easy to get out for security.

Btw how does airport security react to the desktop computer? Did you have to open it up (unscrew it)? Which areas did you bring it to?

 

[Frenzy]

Thank you all for the followup!
Btw how does airport security react to the desktop computer? Did you have to open it up (unscrew it)? Which areas did you bring it to?

You're welcome.
Travel is from Amsterdam to Shanghai several times back and forth and inside China.
No problems actually. I do inform them "I have a PC". Normally I leave it in the camera bag (camera bag before in my carry on trollysuitcase) and put it on the x-ray tray.

Sometimes I need to take it out of the camera bag but no further opening etc. In Amsterdam they take it to a seperate x-ray machine as its more automated. In China they're not so chatty (quite busy) but not bothered i bring this hunk of metal (was my concern before). In Amsterdam often not that busy they strike a small conversation, mainly what I do with it then "business or pleasure", 'both' i reply

 

[JohnTinkerer]

not bothered i bring this hunk of metal (was my concern before). In Amsterdam often not that busy they strike a small conversation, mainly what I do with it then "business or pleasure", 'both' i reply

That's valuable info - thanks again. I was also worried how would they look at the large metal box...