NFC S4 #126 (Updated on March 4)

[1461748123]

After tonnes of waiting, I finally gather most of the components required for my build This will be a work log recording what I'm working on currently (and what I have failed miserably).

Specs:​

• Intel i7 6700 CPU​
• G.Skill TridentZ DDR4 8Gx2 3200 Mhz Memory​
• Asus ROG Strix Z270i Motherboard​
• Zotac 1070 mini GPU w/ Scythe KAZE-JYUNI Slip Stream Slim 120mm PWM fan​
• Samsung 1TB 850 EVO x2 SSD​
• Samsung 256G 960 EVO M.2 SSD​
• Noctua NH-L9i Cooler w/ Noctua NF-B9 redux-1600 PWM fan​
• G-Unique Slim 400w DC-ATX​
• NFC-Systems S4 Mini​

First of all, almost all the parts that gonna involved in this build:

The motherboard, Asus Strix Z270i. A sexy board that really will fit my build theme:

The logo have a rainbow reflection under the light

The Strix logo, you just gotta love the color scheme:

The black capacitors and power delivery units:

SupremeFX audio unit:

I/O:

My CPU, an intel delided i7 7700K with a full copper heat spreader:

G-Skill TridentZ 3200 Mhz. Man the color!

Moving on to system storage, my boot drive, Samsung 960 EVO 256G:

Storage drives, two Samsung 850 EVO 1TB:

GPU, the Zotac 1070 mini. I bought this the day before they announced the 1080 mini sad..

Due to the length limitation, I have to remove the stock shroud and fans. In order to do so, I have to remove the whole heatsink first.

The heatsink, one of the reasons I choose Zotac instead of Gigabytes Mini 1070:

Now for the custom back plate I made for it!

Assemble them all back together:

GPU riser from Josh, I put some gaffers tape on it to give it the matte black look:

Moving on to the CPU cooler, I choose to use the Noctua Nh-L9i, the best performing low profile cooler on the market:

But wait! We gotta swap out the fans to fit our color scheme!

Looks muuuch better now!

I shorten the cable on the fan to make it fit nicely in the chassis

The PSU I'm using, G-Unique 400w Silm:

The golden G logo:

The 16mm power button:

Ah, you might remember we removed the fan on the GPU. For its cooling, we are using the Scythe KAZE-JYUNI Slim 120mm fan:

Modded the connector so I can directly plug it into the GPU:

Now starting to put things together, first, the motherboard assembly:

Now we have to take apart the S4 Mini to fit everything into it:

The cooling fan gotta go in first otherwise it will be a mess when we install the GPU:

Now the DC power jack, I'm using GX-16 here:

Time to put in the GPU:

Then the SSDs:

We are almost done! Next the motherboard:

Then.. tada!

I will continue to update the thread with more images. Remember the VFD screen in the start? It wasn't in yet

Thanks for watching!
​

 

[Kmpkt]

I literally have the exact same setup for my next S4 build. Same RAM, same fan and heatsink. Excellent taste if I do say so myself.

 

[GGF6T]

Do the G.Skill TridentZ fit in the mini ok? Im thinking about using them but worried they might not fit because of their height.

 

[1461748123]

Updated a lot of images and work log

 

[Kmpkt]

Nice to see such a tidy and well thought out build. Out of curiosity where did you get the copper spreader, how did you attach it, and how do the thermals compare to the typical IHS? Will be keen to see how this cools compared to a stock chip.

 

[HeroXLazer]

What heatsink are you using?

 

[Kmpkt]

Pretty sure it's the Noctua L9i

 

[HeroXLazer]

Pretty sure it's the Noctua L9i

Oh, no I meant for the GPU. Now I understand, he just took the shroud off.

 

[1461748123]

Nice to see such a tidy and well thought out build. Out of curiosity where did you get the copper spreader, how did you attach it, and how do the thermals compare to the typical IHS? Will be keen to see how this cools compared to a stock chip.

Its from a Chinese vendor. Honestly I don't know how much the copper heat spreader will lower the temp because I replaced the thermal paste already..

 

[Kmpkt]

I was reading up on the matter and apparently the stock IHS is actually copper, just plated in a thin layer of matte nickel. This probably means the difference will be negligible unless of course with lapping etc. you actually get a better finish and interface with the heatsink. That being said the TIM swap alone will probably net you a delta of like 10 celsius. When you see the de-lid/re-lid temperature difference people are getting on the 7700K it's hard to believe Intel insist on using such shit poor TIM. It boggles my mind, especially since Ryzen is using a soldered IHS (presumably copper) and will likely have much better thermals as a result.

 

[CubanLegend]

Very nice! I wish we had benchmarks from before and after the copper heatspreader on the CPU... if it could be proven to give a temperature improvement, I'd buy one for my 7700k, once I do my delid.
I REALLY Like you cable management btw. And all the custom cables you made for the fan and the NF-B9 fan.. so cool!

Two questions:
Also something I noticed, you mounted your NH-L9i the wrong way? The fins on the heat-sink should be parallel to the RAM, to allow the hot air to vent off the PC more easily, instead of it getting stuck on the RAM.
Also, doesn't the NF-B9 Redux just barely fit in the S4 mini? I tested it against the stock NH-L9i's fan and the stock one outperformed it by 4c with both the side panel open and closed, because it sits flush against the side panel and the fan then has no room for proper unrestricted air intake.

 

[Kmpkt]

4 celcius is negligible to get the perfectly matching redux fan (and to get the brown out) IMO

 

[fminus]

Lookos great! Can you explain how you modded the fan to use the gpu fan header? was any crimping involved?

 

[1461748123]

Lookos great! Can you explain how you modded the fan to use the gpu fan header? was any crimping involved?

I just cut the header on the GPU fan off and solder it on to the 120mm fan

 

[Ceros_X]

That build looks clean AF.

 

[VaporGB]

Good Job man, I hope I can get my machine looking that pretty when all the parts come in!

 

[spintje]

Damn, that is a nice build. Will be doing a complete copycat of this when i get my S4 mini. How are your GPU temps with shroud and fans removed and how loud is the Scythe fan?

 

[VaporGB]

Which power button is that?

 

[Kmpkt]

Wouldn't the system run cooler with the heatsink fins parallel to the RAM? You've got the Great Wall around the other three sides which makes me wonder where the air is allowed to go?

 

[Josh | NFC]

Beautiful build. Totally makes my day when I see a customer build. Thank you for all the care you put into this. This is one I will be using on my social sites!

I would echo Kmpkt in that rotating your heatsink would be beneficial if you get a chance.

Thanks again!