Update 2020-05-16: We've received feedback from the manufacturers we've contacted and we are currently deciding the next steps such as last-minute tweaks to the design before we go into prototyping. We're super excited about this!
Also, here's a changelog from the original concept so far:
- The big one: We've unfortunately had to increase the length of the case by 5mm (from 365mm to 370mm) in order to accommodate the Noctua DH-D15 cooler and the surprisingly long 280mm rad from corsair properly (this issue popped up during our design for manufacturing phase where we went over the entire case to account for various machining and installation tolerances). This means that the volume increased slightly from 18.6L to 18.9L. I know this will disappoint some of you here, and we're actually a bit bummed out about it as well, but so far we haven't found a way around it. Sorry guys, we hope that's not a total dealbreaker.
- The placement of the IEC C14 power inlet has moved next to the GPU. This makes the installation of the GPU slightly more cumbersome, but eliminates any fitment issues with larger coolers for the CPU.
- The front panel now attaches magnetically instead of using screws.
- SSDs are now mounted directly to the chassis instead of using an extra bracket. This should make general installation and changing out drives much quicker and easier.
- An optional ATX PSU bracket has been added to the design as well. While we recommend using an SFX or SFX-L power supply, you'll now also have the option to use an ATX PSU instead, though, with some restrictions. Using an ATX PSU will limit your graphics card length clearance to roughly 220mm and restrict your CPU cooling to a 120mm radiator or an air cooler.
- We've also come up with a last-minute solution to support 140mm fans at the bottom, though we need to run this change by the manufacturer to confirm if this doesn't negatively impact manufacturing.
We're still working on the option to invert the core, but can't promise this feature will make it into the first run.
Update 2020-05-06: We're currently preparing a slightly tweaked design to send to a manufacturer for evaluation and price quotes. Stay tuned
_
Original Post:
Hey everyone,
after sharing an ATX case design concept for feedback on Instagram and Reddit we've been getting a lot of comments suggesting we should look into SFF cases as well. Well, we're actually very fond of the idea, up to a point where we're currently re-evaluating if we should pursue an SFF case design rather than a mid-tower ATX enclosure.
So we did some research, looked at what the current market has to offer and came up with a design that we wanted to share with you.
To cut right to the chase, we looked at what layouts worked well and which didn't, instead of trying to re-invent the wheel on our first try. At the same time, we wanted to offer something that's at least slightly different from what's already available. In the end, we really liked the layout that the Ncase M1 and Streacom DA2 use as it offers great flexibility for both air- and water cooling while also providing decent space for high-performance GPUs. Now, since we personally use high core count CPU's for image and video rendering tasks that require beefy coolers, and as mentioned before, we also want to offer something that differentiates itself from other cases (and also as not to cut into their market) we designed our case to accommodate air coolers up to 165mm tall and AIO liquid coolers up to 280mm long, while still being slightly under the 20L cutoff (18.6L total volume, not counting the feet). Yes, that is indeed a big SFF case. However, you should be able to cram a ton of performance into it while retaining great cooling and/or lower noise levels. But please let us know what you think of it
DETAILS
Layout: Standard ATX type with PSU moved to the front and bracket for AIO liquid cooler support on the side.
Size: 18.6L (W: 200mm D: 365mm H: 255mm)
Materials: 2mm thick Aluminum for shell and chassis, 5mm Wood plate (Oak/Ash) for the front panel
Finish: Semi-matte powder coating in Black and White
Front I/O: Power button and a USB-C port (thoughts?)
Fits: Mini-ITX motherboards, up to 165mm Air Coolers/280mm AIO liquid coolers, 2.5 (potentially up to 3) slot GPUs (310-320mm depending on the height of the card), SFX PSUs, 2 SSDs, 2 bottom-mounted 120x25mm fans with 2 slot GPUs or 120x15mm fans with 2.5 slot GPUs
Please note: take this list with a grain of salt until we have a working prototype to verify everything
We're very excited to hear your feedback.
Best.
Alessandro & Joshua
Website: mosaikcases.com
Blog post about our SFF design: Mosaik Blog
Instagram: @mosaikcases
Also, here's a changelog from the original concept so far:
- The big one: We've unfortunately had to increase the length of the case by 5mm (from 365mm to 370mm) in order to accommodate the Noctua DH-D15 cooler and the surprisingly long 280mm rad from corsair properly (this issue popped up during our design for manufacturing phase where we went over the entire case to account for various machining and installation tolerances). This means that the volume increased slightly from 18.6L to 18.9L. I know this will disappoint some of you here, and we're actually a bit bummed out about it as well, but so far we haven't found a way around it. Sorry guys, we hope that's not a total dealbreaker.
- The placement of the IEC C14 power inlet has moved next to the GPU. This makes the installation of the GPU slightly more cumbersome, but eliminates any fitment issues with larger coolers for the CPU.
- The front panel now attaches magnetically instead of using screws.
- SSDs are now mounted directly to the chassis instead of using an extra bracket. This should make general installation and changing out drives much quicker and easier.
- An optional ATX PSU bracket has been added to the design as well. While we recommend using an SFX or SFX-L power supply, you'll now also have the option to use an ATX PSU instead, though, with some restrictions. Using an ATX PSU will limit your graphics card length clearance to roughly 220mm and restrict your CPU cooling to a 120mm radiator or an air cooler.
- We've also come up with a last-minute solution to support 140mm fans at the bottom, though we need to run this change by the manufacturer to confirm if this doesn't negatively impact manufacturing.
We're still working on the option to invert the core, but can't promise this feature will make it into the first run.
Update 2020-05-06: We're currently preparing a slightly tweaked design to send to a manufacturer for evaluation and price quotes. Stay tuned
_
Original Post:
Hey everyone,
after sharing an ATX case design concept for feedback on Instagram and Reddit we've been getting a lot of comments suggesting we should look into SFF cases as well. Well, we're actually very fond of the idea, up to a point where we're currently re-evaluating if we should pursue an SFF case design rather than a mid-tower ATX enclosure.
So we did some research, looked at what the current market has to offer and came up with a design that we wanted to share with you.
To cut right to the chase, we looked at what layouts worked well and which didn't, instead of trying to re-invent the wheel on our first try. At the same time, we wanted to offer something that's at least slightly different from what's already available. In the end, we really liked the layout that the Ncase M1 and Streacom DA2 use as it offers great flexibility for both air- and water cooling while also providing decent space for high-performance GPUs. Now, since we personally use high core count CPU's for image and video rendering tasks that require beefy coolers, and as mentioned before, we also want to offer something that differentiates itself from other cases (and also as not to cut into their market) we designed our case to accommodate air coolers up to 165mm tall and AIO liquid coolers up to 280mm long, while still being slightly under the 20L cutoff (18.6L total volume, not counting the feet). Yes, that is indeed a big SFF case. However, you should be able to cram a ton of performance into it while retaining great cooling and/or lower noise levels. But please let us know what you think of it
DETAILS
Layout: Standard ATX type with PSU moved to the front and bracket for AIO liquid cooler support on the side.
Size: 18.6L (W: 200mm D: 365mm H: 255mm)
Materials: 2mm thick Aluminum for shell and chassis, 5mm Wood plate (Oak/Ash) for the front panel
Finish: Semi-matte powder coating in Black and White
Front I/O: Power button and a USB-C port (thoughts?)
Fits: Mini-ITX motherboards, up to 165mm Air Coolers/280mm AIO liquid coolers, 2.5 (potentially up to 3) slot GPUs (310-320mm depending on the height of the card), SFX PSUs, 2 SSDs, 2 bottom-mounted 120x25mm fans with 2 slot GPUs or 120x15mm fans with 2.5 slot GPUs
Please note: take this list with a grain of salt until we have a working prototype to verify everything
We're very excited to hear your feedback.
Best.
Alessandro & Joshua
Website: mosaikcases.com
Blog post about our SFF design: Mosaik Blog
Instagram: @mosaikcases
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