DAN C4-SFX - old
- Thread starter dondan
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Like many others, I have this forum mostly due to interest in that case (as well as the A4-SFX v3). Personally, I prefer the design of the original renders, but wouldn't be too disgruntled if you went with the unibody. Ultimately, it will be nice to have more cooling options for my proposed I7-8700K build. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the clarification, saving 1L and a better shape is still good for me.
Maybe as the prototype is problematic I could save @dondan from further trouble by buying one from him, and take it off his hands!
I tried itMaybe as the prototype is problematic I could save @dondan from further trouble by buying one from him, and take it off his hands!
and it was not posible 
To show you more of the current process here are two pictures that show an idea that I currently working on.
I put the radiator fans on the front of the case. The idea is that these fans suck the air out of the case and push it out over the front. Only under the radiator will be also holes so the complete air must go through the radiator. Thais will also work in the other direction. I tested this concept some days ago on a carton and it works perfectly. The temp was the same as if the fans would be on the radiator.
This design would allow a radiator up to 60mm in the bottom of the case (in the drawing I use a 45mm thick radiator). It will be also possible to add also fans on the radiator if you use a thinner one. The size of this design is 245x130x350 = 11,1L. The cooling performance would be much better because a 60mm thick radiator will perform like 2x 240er 30mm radiator.
Keep in mind this is only a idea.
I put the radiator fans on the front of the case. The idea is that these fans suck the air out of the case and push it out over the front. Only under the radiator will be also holes so the complete air must go through the radiator. Thais will also work in the other direction. I tested this concept some days ago on a carton and it works perfectly. The temp was the same as if the fans would be on the radiator.
This design would allow a radiator up to 60mm in the bottom of the case (in the drawing I use a 45mm thick radiator). It will be also possible to add also fans on the radiator if you use a thinner one. The size of this design is 245x130x350 = 11,1L. The cooling performance would be much better because a 60mm thick radiator will perform like 2x 240er 30mm radiator.
Keep in mind this is only a idea.
While it's a great idea for space utilization, I doubt this would be a great idea for cooling performance as your idea is based on the assumption that what goes out, has to get in by going through the radiator. Unless there is a method to seal the case (and the I/O panel behind), I fear this is not true, so some air that get inside will be probabily from other places not in direct path of the radiator thus, decreasing cooling performance. Static pressure should suffer too!
I personally loved the aestethics of this case, but I don't like the placement of the radiator+fans... My 2 cent
I personally loved the aestethics of this case, but I don't like the placement of the radiator+fans... My 2 cent
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245mm maybe a bit more and you can make C4-mATX case, but with DC-DC power supply.
@SashaLag: You are right a case isn't 100% closed but this doesn't matter, because the 120mm push so much air oit of the case also on lower speed that the air will go through the radiator because there is negative pressure in the case.
@Vlad502 I would only switch to matx if there is space for two gpus. But this will nit work with a width of 130mm
@duke00 Because i love the look of the fans at the front. Furthermore the size increasement is lower with this design.
@Vlad502 I would only switch to matx if there is space for two gpus. But this will nit work with a width of 130mm
@duke00 Because i love the look of the fans at the front. Furthermore the size increasement is lower with this design.
What i love on this design is the relation between length and height of the case. It is very similar to the A4 (3:2). Furthermore i love the vent holes in the front and round corners. For me it is a nice mix of elegant timeless design and workstation/enterprise hardware look.
I know it is different to the C4 design that looks more simple ( i don't mean that in a bad way), but for me this is also a big problem of this design. I have the prototypes for some weeks now and from day to day it looks more boring. I don't have the same feeling with the A4.
I know it is different to the C4 design that looks more simple ( i don't mean that in a bad way), but for me this is also a big problem of this design. I have the prototypes for some weeks now and from day to day it looks more boring. I don't have the same feeling with the A4.
@galletabah: Your comments doesn't help. Since 5 pages I understand that you do not like the unibody design I don't need a reminder evey page.
Yes, this is true but I'm another user, and can do it. A lot of users are saying the same than me and you are "wasting" time posting some random ideas "trying" to convince us. If you dont want do the first trototype, you only need to say that and then we can try find another alternatives.
Well the size has gone past what I'm really up for, but anyway.To show you more of the current process here are two pictures that show an idea that I currently working on.
I put the radiator fans on the front of the case. The idea is that these fans suck the air out of the case and push it out over the front. Only under the radiator will be also holes so the complete air must go through the radiator. Thais will also work in the other direction. I tested this concept some days ago on a carton and it works perfectly. The temp was the same as if the fans would be on the radiator.
This design would allow a radiator up to 60mm in the bottom of the case (in the drawing I use a 45mm thick radiator). It will be also possible to add also fans on the radiator if you use a thinner one. The size of this design is 245x130x350 = 11,1L. The cooling performance would be much better because a 60mm thick radiator will perform like 2x 240er 30mm radiator.
Keep in mind this is only a idea.
How long did you test it for? Because I have a hard time believing the passive cooling would work out. Did you also connect both CPU and GPU into the waterblock? How are you even testing this in a carton case?
Water is pretty dense, much much denser than the vapor in heat pipes, it'll take a while before it heats up. I don't think any stress test can be acceptable below a minimum of 2hr run time, you probably want a bit longer.
Unless you block all other possibilities for intakes I quite doubt there'll be that much air going through the radiator. It's close to the floor, the air path is not direct, and the fins adds a lot of resistance. I wouldn't think much more than 30% of the air cycled through is going to go through the radiator.
Another issue here is that the fans are really close to that mesh front panel, it's going to cause a fair amount of noise. On the mesh panel, I find those quite cheap looking, not a fan of it. It serves some functionality, but it really is not an attractive look.
agree with @Mallot
I understand your point @dondan but I wish I could be optmistic as you in saying "it doesn't matter"... I don't want to be rude, but this was the same answer given to those who fear having a radiator+fan at the bottom pushing air against convention flow didn't matter, as the amount of air moved by fans is vastly superior those moved thanks by convention... Then testing were done and it came out CPU temperatures could be 3-4°C lower with radiator+fans at top pushing air in the same direction of convention flow...
Now I see the same problem arise. It may not matter, as fans push a lot of air... But why do so? Just for the aestethics? Then temperatures and noise would take an hit also because, I see there could be a pressure gradient in the radiator (regions near fans may have a higher static pressure than those far from them, so cooling performance may not be homogeneous)...
I prefer much more an engineer approach than an architect approach to a problem. Work done by @aquelito with his Adibou fits much more my needs for this reasons. Thanks to his design he could ran fans with 5V, have a very low noise and low temperatures...
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I thought it was clear. This is why i post new idears in this thread.
@Mallot: I tested it with an 240mm AIO on an i7 8700. I took an A4 shipping carton make two holes for the fans and one hole for the radiator. I installed the fans and radiator (from the outside) and closed the carton. I stoped the test after 30min (the temp doesnt change the last 15min).
The mesh is only a problem if the intake site of an fan is closed to it. So for push out it will not be an problem. For take in the mesh is 12mm away so if the fan will spin under 1200rpm it is ok.
This has nothing to do with convention flow. The reason for this is the intake area under the bottom radiator. I tested it with rising the case up (case feets height = 20mm) and then the temps was the same.
hmm... not sure how I feel about this change
@dondan
I am completely fine with the unibody design but I do not see the point in making this design change. It seems needlessly large for such a small case. Instead, if I were you, I would simply change to unibody, add a bit more space for rads on the bottom, maybe adding a bit of space on the front panel for a 3.5 inch drive if only a small change is required.
However with a 30mm rad+25mm fan on the bottom AND fans on the front panel, the cooling performance would probably be probably much better for the gpu (non hybrid) because of the actual airflow path in the case, not just relying on negative pressure to feed all of the components. But to be completely honest the ideal setup for this case is 2x 120mm aios which doesn't really benefit from the new fans. In short this change is unnecessary.
Also that mesh on the front is ugly af, maybe if it could be somehow interesting like the fractal design meshify C or a pattern like the inwin-a1 it could be better but it is so bad in its current state I wouldn't buy it.
I just don't really understand. The design is practically complete, why go back and needlessly alter it, just to have to get new prototypes, further delaying the case.
edit: I understand this is only an idea and not an official change. just hoping this doesn't become official.
To show you more of the current process here are two pictures that show an idea that I currently working on.
I put the radiator fans on the front of the case. The idea is that these fans suck the air out of the case and push it out over the front. Only under the radiator will be also holes so the complete air must go through the radiator. Thais will also work in the other direction. I tested this concept some days ago on a carton and it works perfectly. The temp was the same as if the fans would be on the radiator.
This design would allow a radiator up to 60mm in the bottom of the case (in the drawing I use a 45mm thick radiator). It will be also possible to add also fans on the radiator if you use a thinner one. The size of this design is 245x130x350 = 11,1L. The cooling performance would be much better because a 60mm thick radiator will perform like 2x 240er 30mm radiator.
Keep in mind this is only a idea.
@dondan
I am completely fine with the unibody design but I do not see the point in making this design change. It seems needlessly large for such a small case. Instead, if I were you, I would simply change to unibody, add a bit more space for rads on the bottom, maybe adding a bit of space on the front panel for a 3.5 inch drive if only a small change is required.
However with a 30mm rad+25mm fan on the bottom AND fans on the front panel, the cooling performance would probably be probably much better for the gpu (non hybrid) because of the actual airflow path in the case, not just relying on negative pressure to feed all of the components. But to be completely honest the ideal setup for this case is 2x 120mm aios which doesn't really benefit from the new fans. In short this change is unnecessary.
Also that mesh on the front is ugly af, maybe if it could be somehow interesting like the fractal design meshify C or a pattern like the inwin-a1 it could be better but it is so bad in its current state I wouldn't buy it.
I just don't really understand. The design is practically complete, why go back and needlessly alter it, just to have to get new prototypes, further delaying the case.
edit: I understand this is only an idea and not an official change. just hoping this doesn't become official.
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