Completed DSE Breathe - A 7.3L Vertical Format ITX Tower

[LaboonTheWhale]

That 90 degree adaptor does not work. Lol


My thoughts so far with building in this case.

• Wow this case is light! the aluminium really makes it great for portable builds. But there is ALOT of flex that kind of scares me at times. Especially when I'm holding it in my hands and I can see it bend really far. (perhaps steel is better for the Spine)
  
• DEFINITELY USE CUSTOM OR PREMIUM CABLES. You really need that flexibility. Buy the Corsair Premium SF PSU's coming out or cablemod or your favorite modder.
  
• As was previously mentioned, the PSU 24 pin is way too thick with the SF450/600 cables (non premium) gets in the
  
• I have 4 2.5" drives I want to use. I honestly have no idea how its supposed to be mounted with the available cables from the PSU. It is definitely not possible with the stock SATA power cables. No matter how much you pend and twist, it is not possible with the cables coming out the sides. @DSE what did you use in the photos? I'll probably end up only using 2.
  
• If I have an M.2 on the back of the motherboard, it is covered by the PCI-E riser cable, I am concerned for the temps as there is no active airflow over it.

thats my only concerns so far. I will not be able to complete my build

 

[DSE]

That 90 degree adaptor does not work. Lol


My thoughts so far with building in this case.

• Wow this case is light! the aluminium really makes it great for portable builds. But there is ALOT of flex that kind of scares me at times. Especially when I'm holding it in my hands and I can see it bend really far. (perhaps steel is better for the Spine)
  
• DEFINITELY USE CUSTOM OR PREMIUM CABLES. You really need that flexibility. Buy the Corsair Premium SF PSU's coming out or cablemod or your favorite modder.
  
• As was previously mentioned, the PSU 24 pin is way too thick with the SF450/600 cables (non premium) gets in the
  
• I have 4 2.5" drives I want to use. I honestly have no idea how its supposed to be mounted with the available cables from the PSU. It is definitely not possible with the stock SATA power cables. No matter how much you pend and twist, it is not possible with the cables coming out the sides. @DSE what did you use in the photos? I'll probably end up only using 2.
  
• If I have an M.2 on the back of the motherboard, it is covered by the PCI-E riser cable, I am concerned for the temps as there is no active airflow over it.

thats my only concerns so far. I will not be able to complete my build

Yep, we'll definitely be going back to steel for V3. I already have a change planned that will make the motherboard tray rigid. My apologies about this; I didn't request for the case to be made out of aluminum in this batch.

I highly recommend Ensourced for custom cables. I had a very pleasant time dealing with him. He makes wonderful custom cables with no sleeving, so no unnecessary bulk.

If you watch my video of building the prototype, you can see what I did for the SATA power cables. This is something anyone with a pair of scissors can do. The result is an extremely short, perfectly spaced SATA power cable.

The ribbon cable of the riser should be folded under the slot of the riser like this, so it runs across the GPU side of the motherboard tray, not the motherboard side. You shouldn't have any problems with your M.2 SSD if you do this. I wouldn't be concerned about the temps since M.2 drives don't get active cooling anyways.

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

Yep, we'll definitely be going back to steel for V3. I already have a change planned that will make the motherboard tray rigid. My apologies about this; I didn't request for the case to be made out of aluminum in this batch.

I highly recommend Ensourced for custom cables. I had a very pleasant time dealing with him. He makes wonderful custom cables with no sleeving, so no unnecessary bulk.

If you watch my video of building the prototype, you can see what I did for the SATA power cables. This is something anyone with a pair of scissors can do. The result is an extremely short, perfectly spaced SATA power cable.

The ribbon cable of the riser should be folded under the slot of the riser like this, so it runs across the GPU side of the motherboard tray, not the motherboard side. You shouldn't have any problems with your M.2 SSD if you do this. I wouldn't be concerned about the temps since M.2 drives don't get active cooling anyways.

Could you tell me what length you got for your cables? There's a redditor I go to for cables

 

[DSE]

Could you tell me what length you got for your cables? There's a redditor I go to for cables

I use the following lengths:
24 pin – 8 inches
CPU power – 10.5 inches
PCI-E power 1 – 8 inches
PCI-E power 2 – 8.5 inches

Optimal lengths for your specific hardware will probably be a little different though. Adjust as you see fit.

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

I use the following lengths:
24 pin – 8 inches
CPU power – 10.5 inches
PCI-E power 1 – 8 inches
PCI-E power 2 – 8.5 inches

Optimal lengths for your specific hardware will probably be a little different though. Adjust as you see fit.

I just popped open the SATA power cables and its literally the cable just pressed in there. I did not realize this. this mod will be so easy.

@DSE @KSliger I don't know if potential QA or not, but comparing DSE's photo to what my Case came with, the ribbon cable is set to go over the Motherboard side. Easily fixed by unscrewing and reseating it.

@Damascus any luck with your AXP-100?

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

Woweee that's a pretty snug fit. Got it to fit! Was a little finicky though having to tug up on the GPU to line up the bracket screws on the case.

 

[Damascus]

Woweee that's a pretty snug fit. Got it to fit! Was a little finicky though having to tug up on the GPU to line up the bracket screws on the case.

Wow, looks awesome. I just realized out builds will be very similar (with AXP-100's and FTW3's all around)

 

[Damascus]

@Damascus any luck with your AXP-100?

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

I'm actually testing the Silverstone ar11 right now as I have no idea how to mount the fan on the axp-100RH. Have the cryorig C7 as well

 

[Damascus]

Silverstone ar11

Hmm, looks like a C7 without a coldplate.

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

Hmm, looks like a C7 without a coldplate.

I'm just messing around with different coolers. Have the jonsbo hp400 coming as well.


All done! Only have like 6 cuts on my hands but worth it!

 

[Damascus]

Well, my breathe just arrived. I'll have time to play with it in 18 or so hours

Too bad most of my coolers and x99e-itx aren't here yet

 

[Damascus]

After a cursory glance I have a few thoughts

1. WOW that's light. And this is coming from a guy who's built in an ncase m1

2. As mentioned, there is some flex on both panels. I may test out an internal lip, it could be a very simple solution to the largest flaw in the case

3. Wish the side panels were socket mounted (my ncase and pc-o8 have spoiled me with no screws required) though the current wraparound design (that I really like btw.) would make such a mount very difficult, if not impossible

4. Maaaaybe better foot options? I have a set of extremely nice mnpctech milled aluminum feet for my ncase that transferred to the o8 and could provide a very nice look to the breathe if the could be screwed on

5. Power button - by far my most serious complaint. I think the pc-o8's luxurious, all aluminum switch with about a centimetres travel has spoiled me rotten and I am now seriously considering trying to buy several and putting them on every case I ever use for the rest of time. Maybe I'll try a vandal, or the NFC/MDPCX one

 

[Biowarejak]

Power button - by far my most serious complaint. I think the pc-o8's luxurious, all aluminum switch with about a centimetres travel has spoiled me rotten and I am now seriously considering trying to buy several and putting them on every case I ever use for the rest of time. Maybe I'll try a vandal, or the NFC/MDPCX one

(Anti-)Vandal switches are basically just a category, being vandal-resistant. They're collequally called Bulgin switches, because they are the major manufacturer the one NFC sells is of that type, I believe pre-wired for you.

 

[Damascus]

(Anti-)Vandal switches are basically just a category, being vandal-resistant. They're collequally called Bulgin switches, because they are the major manufacturer the one NFC sells is of that type, I believe pre-wired for you.

Thanks for the info, I hadn't realized how much I FREAKING ADORE that switch until I got the breathe in.

Knowing Lian Li I'll have to sacrifice a baby goat to get one but I'm going to give it a shot

 

[gunpalcyril]

@Damascus Yea I also want to create some sort of back lip to eliminate the panel flex, I have v1 which is steel, so I could do a bit of welding with some thin scrap metal...

But then I have to sand off the finish, which leads me to think I should just sandblast the entire finish off and then find someway to powdercoat it in the red colorway I desire so much. So much work lol.

 

[LaboonTheWhale]

Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle

 

[Biowarejak]

Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle

Not gonna lie that made me cringe does it become more rigid with the sides attached?

 

[blubblob]

To be honest, it looks completely normal - as expected if you hang about 3-4 kg of components on a single sheet of metal without any bracing in the orientation of the applied force.

The side panels are required for structural rigidity. Once they are fixed to the case none of the shown wobbling would be possible.

 

[veganzombiez]

Not gonna lie that made me cringe does it become more rigid with the sides attached?

Yah, with the sides on, I've moved it around a bunch and had no wibbly wobbly spine.