Advice Downsizing from FormD T1 to Velka advice

[mobb]

Hi all,

I currently have a build in a Formd T1 and am looking to both upgrade and downsize to either a Velka 7 or 5.

I currently have a RTX 2070 super, a Ryzen 3600 (with a Noctua L12s cooler), a Corsair SF600, MSI b550i, RAM etc in the T1 with some additional Noctua fans.

I'm planning on first upgrading to a RTX 4070 Inno3d Twin X2, as this is the cheapest 4070 in my area, but also seems like it would fit in a Velka 5.

If I stop there, I can just get an Alpenfohn Black Ridge Cooler, and the rest of my current build with the SFX PSU should fit in the Velka 7. I can then slowly upgrade my CPU (and motherboard) to a Ryzen 7600, then my RAM, and so on.

But I'm kind of a sucker for size, and am leaning towards the Velka 5. I know it's only a 1 litre difference between the 2, but comparing a Velka 5 vs the T1, and a Velka 7 vs the T1, the Velka 5 is hard to resist. The issue is I'd need the Noctua L9a CPU cooler, and I've read that this isn't sufficient to cool a 3600. Which means I'd then be forced to upgrade my motherboard and CPU to a 7600 before I can move over to a Velka 5 build. I'm not totally against this as the 3600 might bottleneck the 4070 a little, and the Velka 5 is currently out of stock, so I can just use the 4070 in the mean time in my T1, while I source the Velka 5 and the other parts.

What are peoples thoughts on a Velka 5 vs 7 build? Is there anything else I should be aware of when deciding between the two? The end build internals should be exactly the same between the 2 aside from the CPU cooler (black ridge vs l9a), and the PSU (current SF600 vs flex 7660b). I'm not looking to do any overclocking, and I've seen Noctua have said the l9a should be sufficient to cool a 7600, but will it run quite hot?

My main concern is the potential noise with the flex 7660b PSU that I'd have to use with a Velka 5. While I don't need it to be silent, I don't want it to be screeching loud, and overpowering the GPU and CPU fans as I have open back headphones. I've seen mixed things online where people either say it's very quiet or very loud. So I'm not exactly sure who to believe, and what loads they are doing. Does anyone have any experience with the noise of the 7660b with similar power draw to what a 4070 and 7600 might draw during a gaming load?

Thank you!

 

[nightshift]

I have the Enhance 7660b, ordered it together with my Velka 3 and it's it's not just runs quiet - it's actually silent. I remember when I first turned it on expecting some noise and had nothing, I actually thought that something is wrong and maybe the fan is not spinning. Truth be told, my build does consume very little even at load.

For cooling, your 3600 should be fine with the Noctua L9a. Even with such short clearance since the fans reach the side panels, it can cool the cpu properly - yet a certain amount of undervolting is probably a good idea. To my experience, there's little to no difference between the performance of 37 and 47mm coolers when they both have access to fresh air.

Within sandwitch-style cases like this, another good option can be the AXP90-X36 from Thermalright. That has it's fins vertically set, so the air can better exit on top instead of being pushed onto the RAM and the wall-like VRAM housing of most b550 itx mobos. It can also work with a slim 92mm noctua fan. L9a can be utilized better on boards with low VRAM like the ASRock b550m-itx/ac, as it can horizontally push the air out of the case through the opening for the IO shield (if it's not placed).