Production Nouvolo Steck - SFF 8.7-11.2L ITX PC Case, supports liquid cooling
- Thread starter macbosco
- Start date
A note for future builders, at least using the MSI b450i motherboard where the nvme drive is on the backside of the mobo, you can fit a small nvme heatsink on there without conflicting with anything else. I just got a cheap single sided one on amazon for 8 bucks, dropped temps on the 970 evo+ about 5-6 degrees C.
With no top hat or other system fan (using a sata drive instead of the bottom fan), it was getting a little toasty.
With no top hat or other system fan (using a sata drive instead of the bottom fan), it was getting a little toasty.
My Steck arrived within a week. Which was very fast... Planning to build it after 7/7and my
current SLM1 itx 3.7L system is going to retire as a htpc (Silent gaming isnt possible yet with that size)
Nothing was included in the box as manual. I know the install video's
but still have some questions.
1) How /where am I supposed to install a 2.5 ssd? (In both GPU situations)
2) How/where to install the metal strips?
3) Is there a parts checklist?
Would be nice if this is shown in the instruction video's or on the website.
current SLM1 itx 3.7L system is going to retire as a htpc (Silent gaming isnt possible yet with that size)
Nothing was included in the box as manual. I know the install video's
but still have some questions.
1) How /where am I supposed to install a 2.5 ssd? (In both GPU situations)
2) How/where to install the metal strips?
3) Is there a parts checklist?
Would be nice if this is shown in the instruction video's or on the website.
For the magnet strips (which I am assuming you are meaning), you want them centered vertically between the top and bottom, so maybe 1/8 to 1/4 inch from each end. You also want them right on the vertical edge (long-ways), or maybe 1mm from the edge, no further towards the middle of the
There were extra parts of everything it seemed like (which is fantastic), extra magnet strips, feet, screws.
The SSD install either in a single or dual height bracket below the PSU. If you are putting a fan in the bottom, then that space won't be available. If you are using a short 1-fan video card you can put 1 opposite the PSU on the GPU side. If you are using a longer 2 or 3 fan card, that won't be available. There is some room between the PSU and the spine, but that would get pretty warm. I have a corsair SF600 in there, so the fan only spins under serious load, so the PSU case is pretty damn warm to the touch.
There were extra parts of everything it seemed like (which is fantastic), extra magnet strips, feet, screws.
The SSD install either in a single or dual height bracket below the PSU. If you are putting a fan in the bottom, then that space won't be available. If you are using a short 1-fan video card you can put 1 opposite the PSU on the GPU side. If you are using a longer 2 or 3 fan card, that won't be available. There is some room between the PSU and the spine, but that would get pretty warm. I have a corsair SF600 in there, so the fan only spins under serious load, so the PSU case is pretty damn warm to the touch.
what are your thermals like while on load/gaming?? is it bad that the Noctua is close to the side panel?
Placed order on Monday night, got a shipping notice on Wednesday, just arrived to my office in Sydney. Mighty impressed by the time. ? can't wait to start building this weekend.
Yea sorry about that, guys working in the US are a bit "slower/normal".... or you can praise the speed of those in Hong Kong ? (depending how you see it).
And orders placed starting from this week will be shipped out near end of Jun (instead of next week). We are running low on stock for many models/colors in LA warehouse. Our next bulk shipment for LA is scheduled to arrive around end of Jun. We are trying to restock. But you will start seeing "out of stock" for certain colors/models very soon.
Beautiful build! How is the case without the stock feet in place? Does it affect the structural integrity in any way? Can it be placed on a desk without the feet or use of any aftermarket one like yours? Thanks!
It does not affect the structural integrity because the bottom plate is the only point that connects to the body. The stock feet are just an add on to the bottom plate.
I have an exhaust fan (Noctua 12x15) at the bottom so it needs a little room to breathe. Im using half inch rubber feet, but you can probably get away with something slightly smaller. Overall I like it much better than the stock.
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I don't push my machine too hard and haven't run official tests yet, but so far for idle...
CPU: 45C idle
GPU: 50C idle
The heatsink for the Noctua is next to the side vents so I do not think it causes any airflow issues. When I was using the Big Shuriken 3, the 120mm fan was next to the side panel and it caused noticeable turbulence noise.
Have you guys started production on version2, what kinda of changes can we expect/when?
I really would like to see triple slot gpu support. Or maybe the ability to move the spine like the sidearmd t1 is doing to either support fat gpu/aio or tall CPU cooler. Looking forward to it, cheers.
Finally built my Steck, here are some thoughts for others who may be in a similar situation.
Spec: Base Steck only, Ryzen 1700 no OC, Asus b450-i, Noctua L9a AM4, Gigabyte RTX2070 Windforce auto curve OC, Corsair SF600 Platinum
Cons + nit picking
Pros:
Randoms
Overall I'd give it 4/5 stars, a very nice case to dip your toe in the water for SFF.
Spec: Base Steck only, Ryzen 1700 no OC, Asus b450-i, Noctua L9a AM4, Gigabyte RTX2070 Windforce auto curve OC, Corsair SF600 Platinum
Cons + nit picking
- The case should have a slim fan slot below the motherboard by default so we can fit an exhaust fan without sacrificing the 2.5" bracket. Others could fit two 92mm fan slots at the bottom, can't see why this larger case can't do the same with some design tweaks.
- The single slot 2.5" bracket is clearly big enough to fit two, it should have more screw holes. I stuck an extra SSD on top of the screwed one and it's still has room left. M.2 SSDs are getting cheaper, but they're still pricey compared to the 2.5" ones and there are thermal issues with motherboards that can only mount them on the back.
- Maybe I got a dud, but my power button felt super cheap and would not sit flush, so had to fix it myself.
- Bottom plate needs more air & fan mount holes.
Pros:
- As many have mentioned, the way the case was packed and shipped was stellar. Very little chance of damage during transit. Well done!
- There is a lot of fear about the panels being thin and flexing out there. Uh...no. These panels aren't sheets, they're bloody plates. They're thick, heavy, sturdy.
- Temps are better than expected. Ambient 22, CPU 40/GPU 50 idle, CPU 70/GPU 75 Celsius on load. Toastier than back when it was in my NZXT H500, but acceptable.
- Riser cable feels very premium. No worries here.
- Lots of spare screws, magnetic strips and even a dust filter! Really appreciate the thought.
- Personally positive about the magnet strip side panels. Incredibly easy to pop off to change configurations, clean dust, or just give the CPU/GPU some air during heavy load. That being said I think the sliding method works better for stability.
- I have mixed feelings about the price. At the current sale price the Steck is fantastic value and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone. But at the normal price? That's verging into the more famous premium cases territory where the competition is tough. Steck makes perfect sense now in its current pricing as a mid-range offer, providing a more premium experience than the budget cases while being a more logical choice than the high-end premiums where you can use the money saved to upgrade your parts that matter. It has found its niche with virtually no competitiors, to lose it would be a shame.
Randoms
- Downsizing from ATX, I had four spare noctua/be quiet 120x25mm fans lying around. While I wait for them to get sold in the local classifieds I figured I could experiment. I cut up some of the case packing foam, attached it to the feet to make it 35mm high, and used some double sided foam tape to place two fans as exhaust below the bottom plate. Dropped CPU & GPU temps by around 8 degrees during bench testing, noise was acceptable as the L9a and GPU fans were making a lot more noise than them. Silent during idle and it also passively blows dust off my desk. Looks ugly but I might actually keep this setting. ?
- I think earlier on this thread there was some renders by Nouvolo of different designs of bottom feet/plate with built in fan mounts. If v2.0 could include those it would be fantastic. Either that or a half size 30mm stack to add to the top as fan exhaust/extra drive mounts to preserve the low profile.
Overall I'd give it 4/5 stars, a very nice case to dip your toe in the water for SFF.
I might consider that. I'm still a bit off on his theory mainly because heat rises. I figured that intake would bring in fresh air up in the case and exhaust through aio.
I will test this out when my custom watercool parts arrive.
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Heat rises only in a "natural convection" scenario; such as a hot plate sitting in a cold room. Once you introduce fans, you are in a "force convection" regime and you can get heat (or more precisely the heated air) to flow in what ever direction you point the fan.
In the case shown in the OT Ghost S1 video, having an exhaust fan on the bottom at one of the long edges of an open air GPU is optimal because that's where open air cards exhaust the majority of their heated air. Additionally, regardless of whether you are exhausting from the top or the bottom, in a negative pressure configuration (more fans in exhaust than intake) you are likely drawing more air in through the side panels into the intakes of the CPU and GPU coolers further improving their cooling potential. There are tons of subtle nuances to a case's fluid dynamic operation and optimizations that can be done with things like ducting to improve things further, but you can get entire degrees in that type of HVAC stuff so it can definitely be daunting at a first glance.
What about with glass side panels? I do plan on custom water cooling with only 2 exhaust fans at top pushing air through 240mm rad. Going to use noctua slim 120mm and slim 240rad to fit 180mm res and pump on going side. That will cover bottom while the pump sticks out under the psu. So res and pump will be a bit tall but will fit as long I have slim rad and fans.
I might keep vented panels on GPU side while motherboard side with glass panel.
With glass side panels and a top mounted radiator, the bottom is going to be your only air ingress point. So in that case, you are going to want to go with an intake on the bottom. Are you planning on only cooling the CPU with the custom loop, or GPU too?
If the GPU is going to be air cooled (separate from your loop), I'd suggest using a vented panel on the GPU side, as it will run awfully toasty with only 1 intake on the bottom to feed it cool air.
