LZ7-11

[zhl146]

Hey guys, I've been around for a little bit, but I haven't gotten around to making any build logs.

By most standards, this is not a very comprehensive or well organized build log and most of them here put mine to shame. I just wanted to share a few pics of the LZ7 and get it more exposure. Pardon the picture quality - I was too lazy to break out the DSLR and I just took cell phone pics instead .

I've really enjoyed the case and I hope that it gains some traction. It would be really nice to have the option to get one made out of aluminum (I know it's not realistic at this point )

Components:
I5 6400
Gigabyte Z170 Wifi
EVGA 1060 SC 6GB
16 GB G-Skill RipJaws Ram
1TB Samsung 850 Evo
512 GB Transcend SSD720

Prolimatech 140mm slim fan
Cryorig C7
Corsair SF600


I'll fix the picture organization later >.<

Here are some pictures of my initial build.

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I got really annoyed with the cable management, so I decided to make some custom length cables.

Apparently you need more than 24 pins to make a 24 pin cable...
I ran out of pins halfway and had to order more lol

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Here is a picture of the finished 24 pin.

Spoiler: 24 Pin

I also did the PCI-E, SATA, and CPU but didn't take pictures of those separately.

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Stole the power connector from an old case and thought it looked bad, so I sleeved it.

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Pardon the clutter

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[Ceros_X]

Wow, very nice cabling job! I like it a lot. What cable did you use (or did you separate and repurpose the original cable?)

Very clean inside.

 

[Phuncz]

Nicely done ! Your 24-pin cable looks done better than mine, how was your experience with that ?

 

[K888D]

Awesome job!

You guys are all more committed than me with your custom length cables. It's great to see though and it looks worth it in the end.

 

[Phuncz]

It was about 2 hours of work, but to do it better, next time I'll have to be much more precise. Although I don't know how I'm going to do it without a new stripper that can accurately strip to the millimeter and some way to cut the wire at the exact same length too, perfectly straight. And the radius calculation for the bend.

 

[zhl146]

Wow, very nice cabling job! I like it a lot. What cable did you use (or did you separate and repurpose the original cable?)

Very clean inside.

Thanks! I've been buying my stuff from mod one. They have been really good so far and very prompt with shipping and service. They sell 18 Awg cable that has been pretty good to work with. They also have all-aluminum case feet that I've been eyeing up.

Nicely done ! Your 24-pin cable looks done better than mine, how was your experience with that ?

It's actually my first 24 pin ever. I did accidentally swap two wires on my first try but luckily it didn't irrevocably screw anything up. I also wish that I had a precision stripper, but I made do. If I did it again I would have made the length about 1.5 inches shorter. I actually made this one without actually opening the case and measuring because I was being lazy.

Awesome job!

You guys are all more committed than me with your custom length cables. It's great to see though and it looks worth it in the end.

It was definitely worth it,especially since I'm running 2 sata drives. My friend bought a lz7 with the front panel, adding even more wires to deal with. Since he has a larger cooler, it's actually difficult to close the case without wires getting into fans. I want to transition to m2 soonish, but this works for now.

Thanks for making such a cool case!

PS are the screws for the first prototype different hex head screws? They look like they protrude a lot more but I kind of like the look.

 

[K888D]

Thanks for making such a cool case!

Thank you for being a part of it!

are the screws for the first prototype different hex head screws? They look like they protrude a lot more but I kind of like the look.

Yes they were M3x8mm Hex Head bolts, they had a more industrial look, but the feedback I got was that most people would of preferred countersunk or flush screws.

I experimented with countersinking the panels, but the results were too inconsistent and time consuming to be viable for manufacture.

As a compromise I settled on these M2.5x8mm flat head screws, which aren't quite flush but as close as your going to get without actually countersinking every hole. The reason for dropping down to M2.5 was because M3 screws in this style are difficult to source, especially in black.

There has been some feedback that the screws can be a little difficult to screw in due to their small size. To resolve this I am considering including a PH1 screwdriver bit with each case, when bought in bulk they cost about £0.30 each and shouldn't affect the case price.

My friend bought a lz7 with the front panel, adding even more wires to deal with. Since he has a larger cooler, it's actually difficult to close the case without wires getting into fans.

It gets pretty tight when you have a full system including 2x 2.5" Drives and a non-modular PSU, but it is possible with the aid of some cable ties to compact those excess cables together into a tight bundle.

Cable management is a difficulty that you will face with any case of this size or smaller, especially when it has an internal power supply and the bundle of lengthy cables they come with.

The LZ7 is not the most efficient design in terms of component layout for achieving the smallest possible volume, the layout leaves a void directly in front of the PSU, but the benefit of this free space is it can be used for cable management.

I think this topic will become much discussed throughout the forums in 2017 when all the various SFF indie cases start getting into customer hands.

 

[Phuncz]

Have you considered metal inserts so you could use metal-on-metal for threading ? It would increase the lifetime of the 3D-printed pieces a lot I'd think.

 

[zhl146]

Have you considered metal inserts so you could use metal-on-metal for threading ? It would increase the lifetime of the 3D-printed pieces a lot I'd think.

lol, you can make the customers glue these in too for added DIY

The LZ7 is not the most efficient design in terms of component layout for achieving the smallest possible volume, the layout leaves a void directly in front of the PSU, but the benefit of this free space is it can be used for cable management.

Oh, definitely. What we lose in size efficiency we gain in simple design and lack of riser. We ended up making it work. I told him that he should custom cable but he is too lazy/cheap lol.

I kind of like the industrial design. I may go try to source some of those hex head screws.

 

[XeaLouS]

You posted this just 48 hours ago but all the images are broken ....

 

[zhl146]

You posted this just 48 hours ago but all the images are broken ....

Really? Sad. I'll fix them. I used Amazon prime photo links, but maybe they are transient.

Thanks for letting me know!

 

[MarcParis]

Yup images are broken..

 

[Acalanata]

Hey guys, I've been around for a little bit, but I haven't gotten around to making any build logs.

By most standards, this is not a very comprehensive or well organized build log and most of them here put mine to shame. I just wanted to share a few pics of the LZ7 and get it more exposure. Pardon the picture quality - I was too lazy to break out the DSLR and I just took cell phone pics instead .

I've really enjoyed the case and I hope that it gains some traction. It would be really nice to have the option to get one made out of aluminum (I know it's not realistic at this point )

Components:
I5 6400
Gigabyte Z170 Wifi
EVGA 1060 SC 6GB
16 GB G-Skill RipJaws Ram
1TB Samsung 850 Evo
512 GB Transcend SSD720

Prolimatech 140mm slim fan
Cryorig C7
Corsair SF600


I'll fix the picture organization later >.<

Here are some pictures of my initial build.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

I got really annoyed with the cable management, so I decided to make some custom length cables.

Apparently you need more than 24 pins to make a 24 pin cable...
I ran out of pins halfway and had to order more lol

Spoiler

Here is a picture of the finished 24 pin.

Spoiler: 24 Pin

I also did the PCI-E, SATA, and CPU but didn't take pictures of those separately.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Stole the power connector from an old case and thought it looked bad, so I sleeved it.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Pardon the clutter

Spoiler

What's the size of the cables, in cm?