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DAN C4-SFX

Oggie

Average Stuffer
Apr 25, 2023
65
54
Speaking of temps and noise, for those of you running modern Ryzen CPUs, I highly recommend checking out Optimum Tech's video on tuning it to lower power and heat output with very little performance loss.

I messed around with it this morning and found I could drop power by around 50%, heat by 30 degrees C, and I'm still getting around 90% of the stock Cinebench score on my 7900X. However, my fans barely spin up and I haven't broken 66C, which is so much more pleasant.
Wonder if this is worth doing on 7800x3d ? Still can't decide on my GPU, 6800xt or 7900xt for 1440p 144hs 😣
 

Albatross1486

SFF Lingo Aficionado
May 9, 2023
100
76
Wonder if this is worth doing on 7800x3d ? Still can't decide on my GPU, 6800xt or 7900xt for 1440p 144hs 😣
I guess it depends on if you're OK with the temps and noise and power you are seeing. I specifically bought the 7900X to put it into 7900 mode, and while it's a bit different than that in actuality, I'm quite happy with where it sits now and it's made it much quieter even when it boosts up. Obviously my GPU fans spin up during gaming, and I can hear those, so I may just use headphones for gaming.
 
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Wolfe1

Trash Compacter
Dec 12, 2019
41
58
Funny thing is he's running the D12L the other way around compared to the manual.
Noticed it as well, he did the same thing for his review and he even explained moving the clips around so that he could place it this way so its definitely deliberate.

Would love to know if there are any thermal differences between the two.
 

Wolfe1

Trash Compacter
Dec 12, 2019
41
58

Finally got a chance to build, plenty of information throughout the album for anyone interested. Hope it helps with anyone's decisions or just helps with waiting on their case.

Sliger SM550: "(Chuckles) I'm in danger." Moving to the Dan C4-SFX (~15L). The (~10L) SM550 was a fun case but parts are just getting bigger and hotter as time goes on. For now I will be using parts from the original build but I am left with a lot of room to upgrade in the future.

For those interested in the original Sliger SM550 Build: https://imgur. com/gallery/48uY6iG

Part List:
  • Asus X570-i Strix: Great board overall but that chipset fan is a bit annoying. Hoping the additional cooling here will keep that cooler and allow the chipset fan to run at a lower RPM.
  • G . SKILL Trident Z Neo 32GB
  • 1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus M . 2 SSD
  • 2TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus M . 2 SSD
  • Corsair SF750 SFX PSU: The G.O.A.T. PSU for SFF
  • AMD 5800x CPU
  • (NEW) Noctua NH-D12L CPU Cooler: The tallest air cooler this case can fit at 145mm tall. Very exciting to move to this from the tiny 92mm AIO in the SM550.
  • EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti XC3 Gaming: One of the smallest AIB 3080Tis at 2 . 2 slots. Really had to hunt here to get one that would fit in the SM550 and also be good for a sandwich layout. While it was snug there, its going to have a lot of breathing room now.
  • (NEW) 3x 140mm Noctua NF-A14 Chromax Fans: All 3 are the full 25mm thickness, 2 up top as intake and 1 on the side as exhaust. The Asus mobo I am using only has 3 fan headers so the top 2 will use a splitter.

Overall very easy build. Not only does the Dan C4-SFX come with great instructions but the case assists you in the build in so many ways. Forgot to put in your back m.2 drive? No issue there is a cutout in the back. Forgot to flip the PSU switch? No worries you can access it from the bottom.

Build quality is what you have come to expect from Dan and Lian-Li. A very solid and well designed product.

Still experimenting with fan curves and such but everything is running so much cooler and quieter. Very happy with the case move.
 

alexlhtam

What's an ITX?
New User
Jun 9, 2023
1
0
@dondan

Hi,

I am new to PC building and I am looking to build a SFF PC for college. I plan on later upgrading to a FE 40-series card but will be using a 1080 Ti Blower style card and was wondering how the airflow would work or be optimized given the inverted layout of the mobo and the heat channel made for 40 series FE cards.
 

SilentKnight

Cable Smoosher
Jun 4, 2023
12
13
Some pictures with my build:
This is clean. I was about to order some shorter custom cables but looking at yours I don't think I need them.

I also have my parts already, not the case though I mistakenly ordered the A4, thinking I already ordered the C4, so when the case arrived I was like wow that fast and realized I got the A4 instead. I had to do the pre-order again and wait for batch 3...

I am still hesitating between doing AIO for CPU, or custom loop for CPU, or custom loop for both GPU and CPU. I have the 4090 FE and i9 13900K.

Parts:
- 2x 280mm Corsair rads.
- Pump/CPU block/res combo from EKWB.
- Bitspower Orion.
- i9 13900K
- ASUST Z790i
- 4090 FE.
- ASUS SFX-L 1000W.
- ZMT tubes.
- 2x25mm fans and 2x15mm fans.

Not sure if 2x280mm rad would be able to tame the i9 (power limited/undervolted), but I need it for coding works, and I love the C4... If it does not work I have to get a 360mm rad and mount it outside on the top of the case.
 

Albatross1486

SFF Lingo Aficionado
May 9, 2023
100
76
Not sure if 2x280mm rad would be able to tame the i9 (power limited/undervolted), but I need it for coding works, and I love the C4... If it does not work I have to get a 360mm rad and mount it outside on the top of the case.
2x280mm, even if one is slim, should give you a good chunk of cooling capacity. I don't know how people are managing to fit a slim rad, slim fans, and a waterblocked GPU on the top side, but if it can be done, you should be ok.
 

SilentKnight

Cable Smoosher
Jun 4, 2023
12
13
2x280mm, even if one is slim, should give you a good chunk of cooling capacity. I don't know how people are managing to fit a slim rad, slim fans, and a waterblocked GPU on the top side, but if it can be done, you should be ok.
Thanks.

The other guy has the 30mm rad, 25mm fans, single slot GPU 20mm, which sums up at 85mm I believe.

My block is like 27mm thick (FE does not have single slot block). I am using either 20mm rad or 30mm rad, and slim fan, which should give me some room to breath.

If 2x280mm can cool well then I don't think I need the 360mm rad then.
 

Baka

Average Stuffer
Aug 5, 2022
57
99
The other guy has the 30mm rad, 25mm fans, single slot GPU 20mm, which sums up at 85mm I believe.
Math is a little off there. Good news is it looks like that Alphacool GPU block is 24mm thick so about 79mm to play with. Personally, I'd go with the thinner rad and thicker fan for noise but that's just me.
 

SilentKnight

Cable Smoosher
Jun 4, 2023
12
13
Oh yeah
Math is a little off there. Good news is it looks like that Alphacool GPU block is 24mm thick so about 79mm to play with. Personally, I'd go with the thinner rad and thicker fan for noise but that's just me.
My bad. So it's like 24mm + 30mm + 25mm = 79mm (plus like 2-3mm, according to his photos) (so 81-82mm)

The Bitspower Orion block installed on my card is 34.2mm thick (measured from the backplate.)

So, I have 3 options:
  • 280mm x 30mm thick rad + 15mm fan => 79mm total
  • 280mm x 20mm thick rad + 25mm fan => 79mm total
  • 280mm x 20mm thick rad + 15mm fan => 69mm total.
I am going to assume it's bad leaving too little space between the fan and the water block, so I am leaning towards the last option.

If 2-3mm between fans and block is fine, then which one between the first two options work better? IMO, 30mm rad is very slim already, and the Artic P14 15mm fan is not a bad fan either.
 

Baka

Average Stuffer
Aug 5, 2022
57
99
Oh yeah

My bad. So it's like 24mm + 30mm + 25mm = 79mm (plus like 2-3mm, according to his photos) (so 81-82mm)

The Bitspower Orion block installed on my card is 34.2mm thick (measured from the backplate.)

So, I have 3 options:
  • 280mm x 30mm thick rad + 15mm fan => 79mm total
  • 280mm x 20mm thick rad + 25mm fan => 79mm total
  • 280mm x 20mm thick rad + 15mm fan => 69mm total.
I am going to assume it's bad leaving too little space between the fan and the water block, so I am leaning towards the last option.

If 2-3mm between fans and block is fine, then which one between the first two options work better? IMO, 30mm rad is very slim already, and the Artic P14 15mm fan is not a bad fan either.
Noise will be the X factor and it's up to you to decide on what you're comfortable with as far as the level. I'd still go with option 2 since the case was made for air cooling so the ventilation should be okay,
 

rodmansff

Case Bender
New User
May 28, 2023
2
0
Question…

I havnt built a pc case in 10+ years and have been out of the pc gaming world for awhile.

If going the air route how are you guys getting 2 intake fans and 1 exhaust fan to connect to most itx boards?

It seems most motherboards just have a cpu header / pump header / and one case fan header…..

Im wanting to build an air cooled route while individually controlling intake vs exhaust to get that positive static air pressure in the case but it looks like that wont be possible, because the only route i see is hooking all the intake and exhaust fans on one fan hub to the header….
 

BRSxIgnition

Master of Cramming
Mar 15, 2020
381
544
Just install the FTW with 3x 180° PCIe 8pin adapter. You do not need the air duct.
Hey, I decided not to cancel my order and built it with the lowest profile adapters I could find and it still ended up like this:



What adapters are you thinking of?
 
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dondan

Shrink Ray Wielder
Original poster
DAN Cases
Feb 23, 2015
1,981
8,392
At first sry for youe bad building experience. Yes the card has a light bend but technical this shouldn't be a big problem.

I looked at your picture and saw that the lower power socket on the 180° sits very close to the edge of the aio bracket. What happen if you push it 1mm. It looks like it will then sit on the radiator what should give you some milimeters.

Another trick could be to unscrew the gpu slot bracket screws. Push the card up and resett the slot bracket screws. This would put the gpu z axes on a light angle but it should be better on x axes (horizontal)