DAN A4-SFX v4.1

Mentanoo

Efficiency Noob
Jan 18, 2020
7
9
did you set both of the exhaust noctuas to follow CPU temps?
Yes :)

Please post some detailed pics of your rig.

Happy 2021!
Thank you, same to you!
Here is the updated gallery (with bonus cat pic):

Where was the first?
Under the motherboard, I just bundled all cables under the psu before, and even kept the ssd bracket installed. So I think a lot of heat got trapped between the cables.
 
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rfarmer

Spatial Philosopher
Jul 7, 2017
2,588
2,702
Yes :)


Thank you, same to you!
Here is the updated gallery (with bonus cat pic):


Under the motherboard, I just bundled all cables under the psu before, and even kept the ssd bracket installed. So I think a lot of heat got trapped between the cables.
Nice build. I am usually all for going SFF but I think your cat might prefer a bit bigger. ;)
 

macrooli

Cable Smoosher
Jan 12, 2021
8
2
I didn't really have the chance to do any testing with the cooler in the default orientation because for some reason mine was touching the vrm heatsink(). Since printing custom brackets would solve both that and the air flow problem, I decided to just go for it. Here's an album for my build ().

Happy with my temps atm,
- The 3600 is running at 4.1GHz 1.05V, lightwork load with about 50 chrome tabs and a few applications open -> 45C(silent), gaming -> 60 C (audible), prime 95 -> 78-80 C(loud).

- GPU 3070FE stock, gaming(Metro 2033, haven't had a chance to play many games) -> 75-78C. I haven't tried any of the novel solutions like turning the case upside down or tape mod+fan duct on the GPU side.

The only upgrade I can really foresee is an A9 fan under neat the PSU as I currently have an A9x14.

Any chance you can share the STL file for printing? I would really like to rotate my L9i / L9a (I have both) so that it doesn't blow directly on the ram.

Thanks!
 

macrooli

Cable Smoosher
Jan 12, 2021
8
2
Any chance you can share the STL file for printing? I would really like to rotate my L9i / L9a (I have both) so that it doesn't blow directly on the ram.

Thanks!
Actually scratch that. The L9a wouldn't be able to fit when rotated 90 degrees. At least not for the Asus B550-I motherboard.
 

drmarkuse

Minimal Tinkerer
New User
Nov 13, 2020
4
0
I have a DAN a4 v.1 from 2016. I was wondering is the ryzer cable already gen 4 ready? I don't have any problems connecting a 3070 in the A4, opposite to the ryzer cable of the T1 that is gen3 and needs you to set gen 3 in the bios...
 

nightshift

Airflow Optimizer
Jul 23, 2020
268
168
I have a DAN a4 v.1 from 2016. I was wondering is the ryzer cable already gen 4 ready? I don't have any problems connecting a 3070 in the A4, opposite to the ryzer cable of the T1 that is gen3 and needs you to set gen 3 in the bios...
I red it somewhere that 4.0 risers are compatible with v1, v2 and v4.1. It was a nicely made sheet

with ✔on the v1, 2 and 4.1
and on v3, 4.

Was posted by Dan himself.
 

Collin

Case Bender
New User
Jan 31, 2020
2
0
I’ve been searching with no success so I’ve decided to finally post and ask. I have an A4 v3 that has been sitting in my closet since I moved and I’d like to put it to use as an SFF nas. Has any one seen or designed (or would be willing to design!) a 3D printed GPU side spacer that would allow for mounting 4x 3.5” HDDs in place of the GPU? I don’t have the skills necessary to design this myself but I’m hoping someone might be willing to help out.
 

lvnder

Minimal Tinkerer
New User
Dec 31, 2020
4
0
Does anyone have an A4 v4.1 - MSI B550i Gaming Edge - RTX 30 series combination? I cannot seem to set the PCIe lane to Gen 4 as I get a "Force to reinstall graphics driver" error in Windows with the screen going off every 5 or so seconds.
 

lvnder

Minimal Tinkerer
New User
Dec 31, 2020
4
0
Does anyone have an A4 v4.1 - MSI B550i Gaming Edge - RTX 30 series combination? I cannot seem to set the PCIe lane to Gen 4 as I get a "Force to reinstall graphics driver" error in Windows with the screen going off every 5 or so seconds.
Also adding this - I've tried the same combination without a riser cable in a different case and Gen 4 worked fine
 

nhatminh2h

Cable Smoosher
Dec 23, 2020
12
2
Actually scratch that. The L9a wouldn't be able to fit when rotated 90 degrees. At least not for the Asus B550-I motherboard.
Yeah, I'm fairly sure only the L9i can be rotated since it's roughly square(longer side parallel to fins despite Noctua saying 95x95, or maybe I just got an older model). If you want I can still upload it on thingiverse.

By the end of this month, I should have some more time to test the configuration of the fans. Considering there's a clearer path for the airflow now, I'll test with intake fan under the mobo and exhaust at the CPU, should help with built-up heat inside the case. Saw Dan recommended setting the fan under the PSU as intake for the 30FE cards so I'll try that as well.
 

peacecraft_M

Trash Compacter
May 30, 2019
37
15
Hey Everyone back again seeking advice:

Current setup in Dan A4:
  • L9A(with duct) on a Ryzen 5 2600 (stock)
  • 3060 Ti Founders w/ Undervolt currently 1996 MHz @ 956mV
  • Corsair SF600
  • Two Noctua 92mm x 14mm(exhaust of course)
  • Single M.2 SSD
  • Corsair vengeance 32GB @ 3200 (stock)
My cpu fan is mostly at 40% then curves out and runs higher maybe 60%-70%(whatever the default is for an MSI B450 mobo) and my other two fans are just constant at about 45%.

Max temps when doing the most intensive thing on my computer is APEX legends. GPU has gotten to 78 C a few times but I imagine its brief as it was the max stated on HWinfo( I forgot to save the CSV that day).

Now that I have provided that background, I am looking to OPTIMIZE my air cooled set up the best I can without increasing noise. I really like how 40% sounds and I'd love for my 3060 Ti Founders to ramp up as little as possible. My options I was considering:
  1. Swap for a 25mm fan below PSU. My assumption is that Noctua still makes the best fan in this class as well.
  2. Run some sort of fan curve on the GPU(any ideas?)
  3. Look into getting some Noctua a4x10's
  4. Taller feet mod for possible airflow.
  5. replace 3060 ti fans with Noctua if possible(last resort)
I am looking for recommendations for the list above in what will be the most effective etc.

Thanks,

@nhatminh2h That seemed to be in regards to the 3080FE which has that intake/exhaust fan setup. The 3070 FE and 3060 ti FE have a traditional dual fan set up. So my assumption is that exhaust for the psu fan is still optimal on the latter. Maybe @dondan can confirm?
 
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Bonusround

Cable-Tie Ninja
Jun 26, 2018
219
239
I have a DAN a4 v.1 from 2016. I was wondering is the ryzer cable already gen 4 ready? I don't have any problems connecting a 3070 in the A4, opposite to the ryzer cable of the T1 that is gen3 and needs you to set gen 3 in the bios...
Hi, I have the v2 case. Both of ours included the high-quality 3M riser that is (reportedly) gen4 compatible. I believe that's why Dan began including it again in the latest A4 revisions.
 

Bonusround

Cable-Tie Ninja
Jun 26, 2018
219
239
Has anyone put a 6900xt in this case yet with the side panel extension?
I recall reading about someone doing it, though this may have been speculation about doing so rather than an actual attempt.
IIRC in addition the panel extension this (would) require carving away the lip of the frame since the XT's shroud sits nearly flush with the bracket.
 

dondan

Shrink Ray Wielder
Original poster
DAN Cases
Feb 23, 2015
1,977
8,378
Does anyone have an A4 v4.1 - MSI B550i Gaming Edge - RTX 30 series combination? I cannot seem to set the PCIe lane to Gen 4 as I get a "Force to reinstall graphics driver" error in Windows with the screen going off every 5 or so seconds.
The 3M is able to handle gen4. Maybe your riser has a damaged shield or bad soldering spots.
 

KulaHI

Chassis Packer
Jan 17, 2021
13
14
Request
Yesterday I asked you about what do you think about a new revision of the A4-SFX (named v5) that does have support for 2.5 slot gpus. The response on the forums and reddit was very positive and many customers would love support for 2.5 Slot gpus. Yesterday I read many time "please offer spacer" so I throught around the idea and came up with this. Optional spacer side panels. These panels are some slices every 4mm that are stacked up. So the space you can see in the picture will add 8mm more space. I could be possible to offer these also on the CPU side. The main advantage of this solution is no change required to the original A4 and everyone is able to upgrade.

What do you like the most these optional side panels or a A4-SFX that has 5mm more in width?

I'd buy this in a heartbeat. Just bought my V4.1 case and should arrive later this week. I think you'll have better sales if whatever solution you decide to offer is both backwards compatible, utilizes the stock panels, and is expandable to allow 2.5 and 3.0 cards.
 

Yueyue123

Case Bender
New User
Jan 17, 2021
2
0
I'd buy this in a heartbeat. Just bought my V4.1 case and should arrive later this week. I think you'll have better sales if whatever solution you decide to offer is both backwards compatible, utilizes the stock panels, and is expandable to allow 2.5 and 3.0 cards.
Could you please share where you got it? I don't see them in stock anywhere :(
 

nightshift

Airflow Optimizer
Jul 23, 2020
268
168
I'd buy this in a heartbeat. Just bought my V4.1 case and should arrive later this week. I think you'll have better sales if whatever solution you decide to offer is both backwards compatible, utilizes the stock panels, and is expandable to allow 2.5 and 3.0 cards.

I'm not entirely sure about these spacers, I mean a slight increase might do us good as some new gpu's are just a little more than 2 slots. But a line should be drawn at 2.5 cards, because anything further would only provide us access to gpu's that are never meant to be in a case like this. And they would increase the size considerably to match the Ghost S1 or FormD T1 - which might be better options at that size, them allowing the use of 120mm case fans too (due to wider frames not just panels).
The main selling point of the Dan A4 compared to them is that it is thinner and smaller. This is the option it currently provides for anyone who are fine with 6 core cpu's and 2 slot graphics cards (like some 3070 or 3060ti) - which is realistically about 90% of people. With only increasing the side panels, we just make an inferior S1 or T1 from the A4 that is an overall better case for a humbler config due to it handling them well while being even smaller than them.

What I would not mind though, is increasing the FRAME on the gpu side just by a slight 3mm only, so that those new gen graphics cards that are a little more than 2 slots due to their shroud designs would fit. 3mm only might just be a worthy sacrifice - small enough, but would net the most amount of compatibility for that price. And the increase in frame would look better than a side panel that looks a little off compared to the other. And it would also further expand the usecase for 120mm aio's too (which we might see more of due to the upcoming itx gpu's that are in sight).
 
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