DAN A4-SFX v4.1

Shochan

Cable Smoosher
Feb 10, 2018
11
2
Hi everyone,

It looks like the new Alpenfön Black Ridge has some manufacturing problems. Some heatpipes are not soldered correctly with the base. Maybe you know I can’t give support by myself because it is not my product. My name is only printed on the carton because I helped EKL Alpenfön in the development process. However I forward the manufacturing problems to EKL and they ask me if I can post the following statement (I translate it from German to English):


“Dear customers, the first review samples were not affected by the problem, so we start producing the first batch with a rush order. This first batch is affected by the problem and is a result from quick manufacturing. We are very sorry about it. All already ready new batches and future batches will not have this problem. We informed all resellers. The resellers will contact you for a replacement process. We guarantee an easy replacement of the product. We feel very sorry that this happened due to quick manufacturing and we ask your forgiveness. - EKL”


Furthermore they confirmed that the current version with bad soldering will not perform as good as the flawless version. So everyone will get a new flawless version.

With best regards
Daniel Hansen

Ive ordered one and mine doesnt perform better than a Noctua l9i. I dont see a defect on the base plate though. Is mine also defective or is this normal?
 

Busy

What's an ITX?
Nov 28, 2018
1
0
Hello Daniel,

is there some date when the Windows Kit and the USB 3.1 Gen2 Kit will be available for order?

Great case btw. Thanks
 

dondan

Shrink Ray Wielder
Original poster
DAN Cases
Feb 23, 2015
1,977
8,378
It will be available together with v4 release.

Here are my current changes for v4.

  • New riser with 185mm short cable (like this https://www.sfflab.com/collections/parts/products/pcie-extender-adt) will drop retail price $10-$25
  • Adding 92mm fan mountpoint + ventholes under the motherboard
  • Lifting the PSU 5mm up to have more space for 92mm AIO
  • removing 120mm AIO bracket from included to optional (orderable over SFFLabs parts section)
  • USB 3.1 gen2 Typ-C at the front
  • adding mointpoints over the motherboard for 120mm AIO bracket to be able to mount a 120mm fan above motherboard
  • making the PWSW cable longer for better access on cheap MSI AM4 boards
  • changing HDD bracket to support for 15mm thick drives
If you have more ideas please let me know.
 

thelaughingman

SFF Guru
Jul 14, 2018
1,413
1,566
Just to confirm, with the v4 out of the box I can have 2x92mm fans, and if I buy the 120mm AIO bracket, I can populate a 120mm fan there as a 3rd fan? Do you have a drawing of how that would look that you could share please? Thanks!
 

dondan

Shrink Ray Wielder
Original poster
DAN Cases
Feb 23, 2015
1,977
8,378
On v4 you can install 2x 92x92x15 (Noctua A9x14) at the bottom. One under the PSU the other under the motherboard. Furthermore you can mount the 120mm AIO bracket also above the motherboard. This allows you ro install a heatsink without a fan and add a 120mm fan above it on the bracket.
 

fabio

Shrink Ray Wielder
Apr 6, 2016
1,885
4,325
This is AMAZING! That's funny, Yesterday I've changed my config adding a 9900K, waiting for the 92mm AIO or the Black Ridge revision 2.
Here you are the V3 with 2 fans! I will buy for sure the V4!!





 

fabio

Shrink Ray Wielder
Apr 6, 2016
1,885
4,325
It will be available together with v4 release.

Here are my current changes for v4.

  • New riser with 185mm short cable (like this https://www.sfflab.com/collections/parts/products/pcie-extender-adt) will drop retail price $10-$25
  • Adding 92mm fan mountpoint + ventholes under the motherboard
  • Lifting the PSU 5mm up to have more space for 92mm AIO
  • removing 120mm AIO bracket from included to optional (orderable over SFFLabs parts section)
  • USB 3.1 gen2 Typ-C at the front
  • adding mointpoints over the motherboard for 120mm AIO bracket to be able to mount a 120mm fan above motherboard
  • making the PWSW cable longer for better access on cheap MSI AM4 boards
  • changing HDD bracket to support for 15mm thick drives
If you have more ideas please let me know.

Maybe, if the PCIe riser will be shorter, it will be great to have, don't know how, a top 92mm fan to pull air outside! There is space, is missing a smart way to attach it...

AH! I was checking yesterday... actually, you can try to integrate under the GPU as well the HDplex power Brick 400W. I guess now it's doesn't fit for few mm because of the PCIe riser depth.
But Imagine, 120mm AIO, HDplex DC and Power brick everything inside... Should be amazing!!
 

dondan

Shrink Ray Wielder
Original poster
DAN Cases
Feb 23, 2015
1,977
8,378
Currently (v3) we have 12,9mm below and 12,9mm above the board if you screw the board 100% centered.
So my plan is for v4 to lift up the board 2mm. Then we will have 14,9mm under the board and 10,9mm above the board. So you see above the board there is not enough space for an 92mm fan. Increasing the case isn't a option to be compatible with all parts from older revisions. So you have to decide 92mm mountpoint above or below the board.

BTW I love your QUADRO M5000
 
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fabio

Shrink Ray Wielder
Apr 6, 2016
1,885
4,325
Currently (v3) we have 12,9mm under and 12,9mm above the board if you screw the board 100% centered.
So my plan is for v4 to lift up the board 2mm. Then we will have 14,9mm under the board and 10,9mm above the board. So you see above the board there is not enough space for an 92mm fan. Increasing the case isn't a option to be compatible with all parts from older revisions.
Oh, ok ok, I totally agree! Let us know the ETA for the V4!
 

fabio

Shrink Ray Wielder
Apr 6, 2016
1,885
4,325
Currently (v3) we have 12,9mm below and 12,9mm above the board if you screw the board 100% centered.
So my plan is for v4 to lift up the board 2mm. Then we will have 14,9mm under the board and 10,9mm above the board. So you see above the board there is not enough space for an 92mm fan. Increasing the case isn't a option to be compatible with all parts from older revisions. So you have to decide 92mm mountpoint above or below the board.

BTW I love your QUADRO M5000
So, I guess below is better to push air in for the most of the people. But it is also true that in these type of case, the exhaust is problem, and often with a proper exhaust fan the temp degrees can go down also of 8 degrees C!!
BTW, one thing for the bottom fan, Yesterday I had 2 issue:

I don't know where do you want to put exactly the mounting point for the bottom fan, BUT

The PSU cable connector is a bit too long and goes against the FAN, so take care of that,

The Z390i, because of the I/O shroud, has the EPS CPU connector more centered, going against the fan.

Of course if you rise up 2mm everything should be ok, was just to share some thought had yesterday late night.

AH! About increasing the size, I agree about the height for compatibility, but if you can just consider expanding GPU side 5mm (I guess) for the HD plex bricks! I think all the accessories stay the same! But I haven't measure perfectly...

PS: is a P5000, and thank you!!. With all this hype for the RTX, I bought it new for half of the price.
 
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blno

Efficiency Noob
Nov 27, 2018
6
2
If you have more ideas please let me know.

Maybe put a better power button? I have a v2 and this is one of the bad aspects of the case, the button doesn't feel nice. It's wobbly in particular.
Or maybe that was improved in the v3 already?
 

ladyalchemist

Cable Smoosher
Nov 29, 2018
10
1
Hello Daniel,
Your A4-SFX v3 case is awesome :)

When can we expect the v4?
Will Window Kit 4 be compatible with A4-SFX v3? Or if not, could I ask someone to 3d print such a window?
 
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JAugust

Trash Compacter
Jun 3, 2018
53
8
Hey Dondan, I got a V3, and I was curious if the new riser cable is compatible with the V3? or is this only for the A4 V4? imo the 300mm riser cable is a bit long. and blocks a bit of the airflow in my case.
According to the pictures, the riser cable doesn't go underneath the motherboard anymore, but it goes over the GPU side, right?

and what about the PSU bracket? so we can have a bit more room for a 92mm aio? can we order that one for the V3 as well?

And I think there is a small error in the SFF post, it says the cable has been shortened to 185mm, however in the specifications it says 300mm length wise.
 
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vwynn

What's an ITX?
Nov 30, 2018
1
2
Made an account just to post to this.

I just built my v3 build and I think the fan under the motherboard is a great idea. I've seen some motherboard components reach high temps with my AiO and it was no airflow to change that. Also, if there were optional ducts for the CPU cooler or GPU that allowed the fans on them to focus on bringing in outside cool air, that would be cool. I saw a guy on reddit use makeshift ducts and it reduced his GPU temps by 10c and CPU temps by 8c. With heat being the biggest downfall of the case, that would make a huge difference. Especially with the Ghost S1 offer those multiple top hats which allow 2x top fans for exhaust or a 240mm AiO.

Aside from that, great job with the case man! I don't see myself ever going back to a regular sized case after using this. It's just too convenient to have a full gaming PC in such a small form factor.
 
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HottestVapes

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Oct 13, 2018
135
131
My only suggestion beyond the new changes would be to extend the side panel ventilation on the GPU side for longer triple fan cards.

It might not make any difference in practice, but it seems to me that the un-vented part of the panel partially covers the first fan on my Gigabyte Windforce card.


All the other stated changes seem to be great additions and I’ll likely upgrade from my V2 for them.


Edit: Also I think it’s definitely best to have the 92mm fan mount under the motherboard rather than above.
The main area on the motherboard that requires airflow is the VRMs, and they’re pretty much always at the bottom end of the motherboard.
On top of that, I’ve noticed that on the GPU side, right where that fan would go is a bit of a hot spot. Having a fan there to exhaust that area of the case will surely alleviate that.
 
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wallysimmonds

Caliper Novice
Nov 30, 2018
24
11
Have ordered a V3 case and all the components that will be going into it (doing a Ryzen 1700+1080TIFE build). First SFF attempt here, should be interesting.

Dondan, will the 3.1 IO module be compatible with V3?