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Production Lazer3D LZ7 - Quiet Gaming Cube PC Case
- Thread starter K888D
- Start date
Well I'll be damned, this looks exceptional already! I have no doubt that you'll be able to sell quite a few units of this, especially at that price. I think those angled slots work nicely, even if they are less flashy than the previously explored patterns.
A few questions, though. It looks like you've made a cutout for the GPU mounting flanges which is filled with a small acrylic piece afterwards. Why not just print that part without the hole? Second, I think I asked this already, sorry if I did, but how are you getting the screws to work so nicely? Did you tap the threads yourself, were the threads printed, or are you using self-tapping screws? And finally, where are the standoffs for the motherboard?
A few questions, though. It looks like you've made a cutout for the GPU mounting flanges which is filled with a small acrylic piece afterwards. Why not just print that part without the hole? Second, I think I asked this already, sorry if I did, but how are you getting the screws to work so nicely? Did you tap the threads yourself, were the threads printed, or are you using self-tapping screws? And finally, where are the standoffs for the motherboard?
Here are some shots of the case built up, the first shot shows the layout and the space between the components, you can also sort of see how the airflow will work throughout the case. At the bottom of the photo you can see the hard drive bracket which can hold 2x 2.5" 15mm thick drives:
below is a closeup shot of the CPU clearance with a Noctua NH-L9i.
The motherboard standoffs are to be screwed into pilot holes in the base.
You can see in the photo below that I made a mistake with the standoff hole diameters. The holes were too small for the m3 thread, to the point where the force required to screw them into the panel actually ripped the shaft clean off. So that's annoying as the front end of the board is now unsupported, I managed to get the 2 rear standoffs in though, on the plus side they all line up perfectly with the motherboard:
Here is the first shot of it built up, you can also see the rubber feet fitted, I've fitted a very old Sapphire Radeon HD 7750 as it's all I've got around me at the moment. When fully assembled the smokey grey transparent panels are difficult to see through, but I'm sure they would look good if you wanted to wack a load of RGB lighting inside the case:
Next up is what it looks like switched on, the Gigabyte Pheonix motherboard has orange LED's around its perimeter which glow through the white panel and through all the vents on the base of the case. The white Acrylic panels are slightly transparent which is why you can see the orange glow, for the final product opaque panels should be available as well which won't let the light through.
The LED's can also be deactivated on the motherboard, the B150 Pheonix is actually a great value board, it's jammed with features for its price:
To get an idea of the size of this thing here it is sitting next to one of my Birthday beers (330ml bottle):
Another scaling shot which is also highlighting it would make a great gaming machine, you can also see the power button LED and slow spinning 140mm fan:
A better shot of the side fan, the Prolimatech Vortex 140mm fan is mounted using the 120mm fan hole positions leaving the 140mm hole mounts free for a dust filter:
Dedicated ventilation on the top of the case to remove the PSU from the system heat allowing the PSU to run cooler, with the Corsair SF450 the fan remained off during stress testing of an i5-6500 and GTX 960 pairing:
Here it is from the back:
I'm not 100% sure what you mean, but here is a closeup shot of the small panel which sits above the GPU bracket, you can also see the screws holding the card down:
My plan was to use self tapping screws that just screw directly into blank pilot holes, the pilot holes are 2.6mm diameter. But to be honest the SLS plastic is so good that even non-self tapping screws just bite really well. The black hex bolts you can see are just standard m3 threads. The SLS also holds the thread form when you unscrew and re-screw them in, I would advise to great care not to overtighten the screws/bolts though. But if you do strip te threads the 3D printed parts will be available as spares.
below is a closeup shot of the CPU clearance with a Noctua NH-L9i.
The motherboard standoffs are to be screwed into pilot holes in the base.
You can see in the photo below that I made a mistake with the standoff hole diameters. The holes were too small for the m3 thread, to the point where the force required to screw them into the panel actually ripped the shaft clean off. So that's annoying as the front end of the board is now unsupported, I managed to get the 2 rear standoffs in though, on the plus side they all line up perfectly with the motherboard:
Here is the first shot of it built up, you can also see the rubber feet fitted, I've fitted a very old Sapphire Radeon HD 7750 as it's all I've got around me at the moment. When fully assembled the smokey grey transparent panels are difficult to see through, but I'm sure they would look good if you wanted to wack a load of RGB lighting inside the case:
Next up is what it looks like switched on, the Gigabyte Pheonix motherboard has orange LED's around its perimeter which glow through the white panel and through all the vents on the base of the case. The white Acrylic panels are slightly transparent which is why you can see the orange glow, for the final product opaque panels should be available as well which won't let the light through.
The LED's can also be deactivated on the motherboard, the B150 Pheonix is actually a great value board, it's jammed with features for its price:
To get an idea of the size of this thing here it is sitting next to one of my Birthday beers (330ml bottle):
Another scaling shot which is also highlighting it would make a great gaming machine, you can also see the power button LED and slow spinning 140mm fan:
A better shot of the side fan, the Prolimatech Vortex 140mm fan is mounted using the 120mm fan hole positions leaving the 140mm hole mounts free for a dust filter:
Dedicated ventilation on the top of the case to remove the PSU from the system heat allowing the PSU to run cooler, with the Corsair SF450 the fan remained off during stress testing of an i5-6500 and GTX 960 pairing:
Here it is from the back:
I'm not 100% sure what you mean, but here is a closeup shot of the small panel which sits above the GPU bracket, you can also see the screws holding the card down:
My plan was to use self tapping screws that just screw directly into blank pilot holes, the pilot holes are 2.6mm diameter. But to be honest the SLS plastic is so good that even non-self tapping screws just bite really well. The black hex bolts you can see are just standard m3 threads. The SLS also holds the thread form when you unscrew and re-screw them in, I would advise to great care not to overtighten the screws/bolts though. But if you do strip te threads the 3D printed parts will be available as spares.
I'm not 100% sure what you mean, but here is a closeup shot of the small panel which sits above the GPU bracket, you can also see the screws holding the card down:
I think what iFreilicht meant is why not include the small panel as part of the 3d printed part.
I assume that you put that small panel on after securing the GPU though? Then it cannot be part of the 3d printed part, because that opening is used for ease of installation of the GPU.
Otherwise you could've also included the small panel as part of the bigger panel.
Yes that's right, you screw the small panel on after you have secured the GPU. This is a commonly used method in many cases?
Hey it is coming along great! I think there may be more interest in this case than you imagined. Have you thought about a group buy distribution? Consider massdrop maybe?
Damn, it's looking great! I can't wait to see what the other panel colours look like.
I was wondering if there was a technical reason that the top panel cutouts have a solid space between the two venting areas? Why not connect the PSU cutouts to the GPU cutouts?
And the GPU cutouts not aligning with the PSU cutouts along the bottom edge is triggering my OCD lol
I was wondering if there was a technical reason that the top panel cutouts have a solid space between the two venting areas? Why not connect the PSU cutouts to the GPU cutouts?
And the GPU cutouts not aligning with the PSU cutouts along the bottom edge is triggering my OCD lol
Phoenix Masterrace! I love the underglow, even if it's a bit tacky 
That was my question and it has been answered, thank you both!
That was my question and it has been answered, thank you both!
This is an interesting thought.
In a small-ish run of cases, Massdrop can make sense for North American logistics but it might be a waste for elsewhere. Especially for Europe where K888D would ship to Massdrop in the US who would then ship back to European customers.
However, I'm sure there's a threshold number where it actually might make logistical and financial sense to have Massdrop handle global distribution. Imagine 100+ orders and the time it would take to package, print/fill out shipping slips, negotiating shipping rates, etc. At some point, using Massdrop's established distribution network could save money over individual shipments.
Thank you for all the feedback everyone, I will try to get round to answering your questions.
There is allot to start thinking about now that the concept has been successfully proven with the first prototype, there are a few tweaks I need to make and a second prototype will likely be needed before it can go into production.
Its an exciting day for the ITX world, Gigabyte have just put an ITX GTX 1070 on their website, this could be a game changer:
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5923#kf
Looking at the specs its 131mm, I'm not sure whether this will fit the current case design, in total the LZ7 has 140mm height from the top surface of the bottom panel to the underside of the top panel, so it depends on how Gigabyte have taken that 131mm measurement.
Looking at the top down picture the PCIe power connector is recessed into the PCB, so hopefully the top of the cooler shroud will be the tallest point of the card once its installed:
If it turns out that this card is a few mm too tall then I may consider adding that height onto the case and shaving a few mm off the length of the case to keep it under 7 Litres. The Gigabyte card is 169mm long which is quite a bit smaller than the 196mm that the LZ7 can currently cater for.
Removing length will reduce side intake fan compatibility. Some 140mm fans are actually 140mm x 150mm such as the slim Thermaltake model and slim Silverstone model. If I reduce the case length then these 2 fans won't fit. It will limit your options to true 140mm x 140mm slim fans.
There is allot to start thinking about now that the concept has been successfully proven with the first prototype, there are a few tweaks I need to make and a second prototype will likely be needed before it can go into production.
Its an exciting day for the ITX world, Gigabyte have just put an ITX GTX 1070 on their website, this could be a game changer:
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5923#kf
Looking at the specs its 131mm, I'm not sure whether this will fit the current case design, in total the LZ7 has 140mm height from the top surface of the bottom panel to the underside of the top panel, so it depends on how Gigabyte have taken that 131mm measurement.
Looking at the top down picture the PCIe power connector is recessed into the PCB, so hopefully the top of the cooler shroud will be the tallest point of the card once its installed:
If it turns out that this card is a few mm too tall then I may consider adding that height onto the case and shaving a few mm off the length of the case to keep it under 7 Litres. The Gigabyte card is 169mm long which is quite a bit smaller than the 196mm that the LZ7 can currently cater for.
Removing length will reduce side intake fan compatibility. Some 140mm fans are actually 140mm x 150mm such as the slim Thermaltake model and slim Silverstone model. If I reduce the case length then these 2 fans won't fit. It will limit your options to true 140mm x 140mm slim fans.
That's not something I've seen before, it looks like an interesting option. This would likely mean that customisation or different colours are not possible.
The technical reason the grills do not join up is to retain some strength in the top panel, the cutouts reduce panel rigidity, so this solid section will help maintain some strength.
But, you are right about the grills not lining up long that edge, I will get that sorted out.
I know what you mean, I'm not a fan of tacky lighting either, it does look a little tacky in the photos but not as bad when you see it in real life. The reason I went for this board was the feature set for the price, the LEDs are an unwanted addition (which can be deactivated).
This kind of thing would be suited more for one off production runs where each case is the same design. But ideally I would like to set up some kind of long term system like an online shop so customers can pick and choose a variety of options to customise their case.
If I get that level of interest for 100+ or even 50+ people, then I would almost certainly consider investing in a laser cutting machine so I could offer a much greater level of customisation and quicker turnaround times.
The time it takes to package each order has been accounted for as part of the total assembly time, this cost is included in the previously stated price points. The only thing not included in the final price is the actual cost of shipping, because this varies from region to region.
The target price is still aiming at £120 for the LZ7 and £90 for the LZ5 if that develops further.
Wouldn't it be better to ship it flat-packed? Shipping cost is primarily determined by box size so since most of the case is literally flat panels it would make more sense to not pre-assemble it.
It may be better to flat pack to certain countries, as you say the box size can affect the price.
But across the UK and Europe for popular shipping companies such as UPS they have a bands which include a maximum bounding box and weight to determine the price. So a flat packed item would not be cheaper than a cube box, so long as your package is not above the weight band.
For example the flat rate price across the UK with UPS is £7.67, this includes a maximum weight of 30Kg, a maximum parcel length of 0.8m, and a maximum length + girth of 2.2m.
The UPS Euro service is £16.32, this includes a parcel of the same dimensions above but up to a maximum weight of 20kg.
I would like to see a matte case too, I will try and get a matte black version for the next prototype. The company I had this prototype made with didn't have any matte materials available in 5mm thickness, only 3mm.
I think the next prototype will be with a UK based company who should be able to source or stock some matte materials.
I wouldn't mind selling them flat packed and it would probably shave around £5 - £10 off the price. But, my reservation about doing this is that I will need to put together much more detailed assembly instructions. My other concern is that people will expect this to be as robust as a metal case, those who are heavy handed may lead to parts snapping if care isn't taken during assembly.
I'm sure most people would be more than capable of putting this case together fine, but you will always get the few people who will just try and mash it together. At least if it is already assembled you just have to remove the top and front panel to gain full access inside the case.
It's something to think about though, and maybe an option that you can select on the product page whether it's supplied assembled or flat packed.
It is definitely something to consider if there was enough interest, I'm not sure where to start with it all though!
To give you an idea of costs for me shipping them direct to customers in the USA, it would be £26 for a 3 day service with UPS, or £10 for a 4+ economy service with United States Postal Service.
Massdrop had a nice way to handle keyboard keycaps sets for example. A set is splitted into subsets, each available in different colors with different price according to the interest.
You can get a full black set, full white, white panels with black 3D printed, black panels alone, etc .... Up to you. If an option reached the threshold but didn't have much buyers, then the buyers will pay the high price but they already accepted it.
You can get a full black set, full white, white panels with black 3D printed, black panels alone, etc .... Up to you. If an option reached the threshold but didn't have much buyers, then the buyers will pay the high price but they already accepted it.
You bring up a valid point. You could potentially add some very obvious warning with buying a non-assembled kit that it requires a careful and patient hand, with damage due to assembly is not covered under any warranty. I personally wouldn't need assembly instructions, but I've seen a few people ask for them even on the assembled Ncase M1.
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