First Actual SFF build

[ZandoBob]

Howdy y'all, first time actually posting here, I've lightly lurked for a bit. Managed to get my hands on a very, very cool old case, from some random Dell prebuilt made in the Vista era:

Properly opened up:

Fits a full size mATX mobo, TFX PSU (but I should be able to fit a Flex-ATX one in here given they're just shorter), 2 3.5" drives, has a 5.25" and 3.5" hot swap bay, actually decent ventilation, and the case fan at the top rear is a standard 80x15 fan inside a frame, meaning I can replace that easily. It's Also big enough to clear my L12S, which I've used to keep my 5820K under control just fine.

I've since taken it home and stripped it out, my 2.5" hot swap drive thingie does fit in perfectly:

And I still have the option of a 5.25" disc drive or one of the 2.5/3.5" to 5.25" drive adapters.

Plans so far are to make a smol sleeper, transplanting my 5820K on an X99 Micro2 in here, along with my 1660 Ti. Need to cut out the back I/O panel (it's integrated, sole mark against this case IMO) with my dremel, and will need to remove the 3.5" HDD bays for GPU clearance.

Hoping to use one of these to mount the GPU: . Will probably require a bit of jank, but unlike most other vertical GPU mounts, this one does not use the full length of a normal PCIe slot. I have a few 80x25mm fans I'll probably put were the HDD bays are now, to pull air past the front I/O and to the GPU (it actually does have a pretty well ventilated portion around the front I/O). GPU is an EVGA XC Ultra 1660 Ti btw, low power draw and it runs really, really cool. In the meshify C it's in right now, I can keep temps in the 40s, up to 51C under full load with a decent OC, it should manage to stay cool in this case if I can get air to it.

Main question I have right now is what Flex ATX PSU would be the best for this case? I should be able to make do with a 400W unit easily, IDK much about them and which are the good ones though. I would prefer to stay on the cheaper side, bit tight on money right now.

 

[CottonTexas]

I know somebody that has a SFF Dell case that bought the SilverStone FX350-G, but they're running an i5 & a 1050Ti, so I can't say for sure if that's enough juice to run your i7/1660Ti combo, but they love theirs. I seem to remember something like only 2 of the 4 mounting screws actually lined up though - I don't remember for certain, just thought it was worth mentioning. This looks like it's going to be quite an interesting build so keep us updated, and good luck! Cotton

 

[ZandoBob]

I know somebody that has a SFF Dell case that bought the SilverStone FX350-G, but they're running an i5 & a 1050Ti, so I can't say for sure if that's enough juice to run your i7/1660Ti combo, but they love theirs. I seem to remember something like only 2 of the 4 mounting screws actually lined up though - I don't remember for certain, just thought it was worth mentioning. This looks like it's going to be quite an interesting build so keep us updated, and good luck! Cotton

According to HWMonitor my CPU pulls around 160W under CB20 load (4.2Ghz at 1.2v), which is an AVX workload. This is in line with other testing I've seen, which was 183W under load (full system though, with just the CPU under stress and a 780 Ti/mobo/etc all idling). The 1660 Ti can pull a max of around 130W, usually closer to 120W. That'd make for a total of 280-300W or so for the CPU/GPU combo. Could probably make do with 350W, but that's cutting it really close once you add in fans, RAM, HDDs, and possibly a disc drive.

As for the mounting screws, the case was probably (like this one) made for TFX PSUs, they're basically a taller Flex-ATX. Those max out at 350W or so from what I've seen, whereas Flex-ATX goes up to 500W with some models. A 400W is probably closer to what I need for this rig, just trying to get a feel for which models are quality ones.

EDIT (to avoid double posting):

How's this look:
400W 80+ Gold unit, does have the 6+2 pin PCIe that I need (my 1660 Ti takes an 8 pin).

 

[ZandoBob]

All parts are ordered or I already have them:

PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/tQBxgJ

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3 GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L12S 55.44 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: EVGA Micro 2 Micro ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard
Memory: EVGA SSC 16 GB (4 x 4 GB) DDR4-2800 Memory
Storage: Samsung 960 EVO 250 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive
Storage: Crucial MX500 1 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Seagate FireCuda 2 TB 2.5" 5400RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti 6 GB XC ULTRA BLACK GAMING Video Card
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A8 FLX 29.67 CFM 80 mm Fan
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A8 FLX 29.67 CFM 80 mm Fan
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A8 FLX 29.67 CFM 80 mm Fan
Custom: "ICY DOCK MB290SP-B 2 x 2.5"" to 3.5"" Drive Bay SATA/IDE SSD/HDD Mounting Kit / Bracket / Adapter"
Custom: SilverStone SST-FP59B Black External Enclosure
Custom: IBest ImPetus Vertical Graphics Card Holder Bracket,GPU Mount ,Video Card Support Kit with Riser Cable
Custom: Enhance 600W Flex ATX


Going to be cutting the I/O shield out of the case tonight and test-fitting the hardware I have so far, basically everything but the 2.5"/3.5" drive devices, PSU, and Noctua fans - I do have some other random 80mms I can use instead for test-fitting though.

 

[aromachi]

watching. looks interesting

 

[ZandoBob]

watching. looks interesting

Hopefully it will be! Has already gotten interesting on my end, I need to finish cutting out the I/O shield but I'm a doofus and forgot yeah, apartments have neighbors. I made 3 of the 4 cuts I need to before work today, but it took longer and made more noise than I'd like. Will probably wait till the weekend and head out to my parent's house to do all the cutting/grinding I need to have the case properly finished and not a cutting hazard lol.

Everything else seems to be coming in on time, the PSU will probably be the last thing to come in. Has a lead/shipping time of 15-30 days, so I guess it'll get here when it gets here.

 

[aromachi]

Hopefully it will be! Has already gotten interesting on my end, I need to finish cutting out the I/O shield but I'm a doofus and forgot yeah, apartments have neighbors. I made 3 of the 4 cuts I need to before work today, but it took longer and made more noise than I'd like. Will probably wait till the weekend and head out to my parent's house to do all the cutting/grinding I need to have the case properly finished and not a cutting hazard lol.

Everything else seems to be coming in on time, the PSU will probably be the last thing to come in. Has a lead/shipping time of 15-30 days, so I guess it'll get here when it gets here.

It's a VERY bad time of the year to be waiting for shipments haha

 

[ZandoBob]

It's a VERY bad time of the year to be waiting for shipments haha

Exactly, lol. Should be able to run everything with just an ATX PSU sitting on my desk till it gets here though, assuming I can actually fit all my hardware in the case without needing to order more stuff (mounting the GPU is going to be the trickiest part).

 

[CaptainBigleux]

not exactly SFF, but like the idea of a mini sleeper

 

[CottonTexas]

not exactly SFF, but like the idea of a mini sleeper

Oh I dunno, I always kinda considered the old-school slim-line Dells to be the first SFF machines. The "pioneer models" of the SFF world, if you will. I know I like them a lot more now than when they first came out, because nobody made graphics cards that fit them for some time as I recall.

 

[ZandoBob]

not exactly SFF, but like the idea of a mini sleeper

I thought SFF was generally accepted as 20L or less? Going off the pure external dimensions, the Inspiron 530S/531S case is about 15.6L (953.7 cubic inches) in volume.

 

[ZandoBob]

Well after a badly thought out I/O shield fuckup, the mobo is in:

80mm Noctuas also fit. Bad news is my 1660 Ti can't really fit even with some wacky PCIe riser-ifying stuff, and my RAM is too tall to fit under the L12S with the fan on the bottom (where it needs to be to clear the case). Meaning I need new RAM (this is my special EVGA kit so I can't just rip the heatsinks off), and a low profile 1650 (best LP GPU you can get AFAIK).?

 

[CottonTexas]

https://ru.aliexpress.com/item/4000176512953.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.55a83c00kQt0kL&mp=1

buy a raiser and put a card lying down. Radiators can be removed from memory, they don’t cool anything much

Getting rid of the heat-spreaders on the RAM will likely give you the clearance you need fr the cpu cooler, and after measuring if you decide that you can fit a full-size card in there, then that's the way to go, but the GTX1650 is still better than the 1050ti that preceded it.

 

[ZandoBob]

@sancho @CottonTexas Like I said in the post, this is my EVGA RAM. Got it off a guy on Reddit, it's not sold anywhere, has been limited, Microcenter exclusive runs in the past (AFAIK). I'm a bit of an EVGA fanboy, reaaaally don't wanna rip the heatsinks off. Friend did point out that I can just use a 92mm fan though, that'll clear the RAM.

As for the GPU, I'll have to confirm for sure whether it can fit or not once the PSU gets here. If I remove the I/O shield on the card to get rid of the tabs on the bottom, it might be able to barely squeeze in next to said PSU (Flex ATX unit, smaller than the TFX that was in here). Also yee, already got a PCIe riser. Will probably need a 90 degree PCIe connector though, and/or get a different, more flexible one.

And ye, if it can't fit at all then the 1650 is the next best option. Seems like nobody bothers to make like a 1650 Super LP or something. Probably because the use case for an LP card is already rare, and the use case for an LP card that still uses a PCIe power cable from the PSU is even rarer.

 

[ZandoBob]

Ah well, some goodish news, bad news, change of plans. Not really able to fit my 1660 Ti in the case without compromising somewhere I'd rather not (like modding the CPU cooler, cutting parts of the card, etc). Decided I'm going to move the X99 based rig back inside my Meshify C Mini, and build a Linux box in this. Haven't mucked around with Linux in a while, so it should be fun.

Currently have a WX 2100 on the way, single slot half height card so it will easily fit. Will be pairing it with my EVGA X58 Micro and a stock X5670 or W3670 on an LGA1366 stock cooler (these Xeons aren't that hot), along with probably 6GB or so DDR3. Bad news is the PSU is now delayed until March due to supply issues, so if all the other parts come together I may end up running this with just an ATX PSU sitting outside the case for a bit lol.

 

[aromachi]

Ah well, some goodish news, bad news, change of plans. Not really able to fit my 1660 Ti in the case without compromising somewhere I'd rather not (like modding the CPU cooler, cutting parts of the card, etc). Decided I'm going to move the X99 based rig back inside my Meshify C Mini, and build a Linux box in this. Haven't mucked around with Linux in a while, so it should be fun.

Currently have a WX 2100 on the way, single slot half height card so it will easily fit. Will be pairing it with my EVGA X58 Micro and a stock X5670 or W3670 on an LGA1366 stock cooler (these Xeons aren't that hot), along with probably 6GB or so DDR3. Bad news is the PSU is now delayed until March due to supply issues, so if all the other parts come together I may end up running this with just an ATX PSU sitting outside the case for a bit lol.

What about a riser and mounting in vertically below the mobo?

 

[ZandoBob]

What about a riser and mounting in vertically below the mobo?

Below the mobo? There's like 3-4mm space under there lol. Tis an mATX slim chassis.

 

[aromachi]

Below the mobo? There's like 3-4mm space under there lol. Tis an mATX slim chassis.

Next to. Sancho had the right idea. Riser on the graphics card so you can lay it down.

 

[ZandoBob]

Next to. Sancho had the right idea. Riser on the graphics card so you can lay it down.

Yeah, I already have a riser and a 90 degree PCIe adapter. The GPU can't fit very well without needing to remove/cut something I don't want to remove or cut. PSU still has to fit in after all. We'll see for 100% sure when the PSU gets here, but that's a bit out due to delays.

 

[ZandoBob]

Smol GPU is here, is indeed heccin smol. PSU is still delayed, but my motivation has been meh lately (have a couple rigs I need to put together but I just can't be arsed lately) so that's not too bad.