Hi everyone, I'm here to tell you about an exciting PC case design I am working on. It is called "Inverse". I would very much appreciate any comments or criticisms you may have regarding its design!
My venture into the world of custom-designed cases began when I started building in the tiny Minibox M350 case. Being in a long-distance relationship, I needed something small and powerful so I can take my research with me on a 13-hour train ride every weekend. My pragmatic need for a portable PC soon developed into a full-on obsession as I find myself endlessly tweaking parts and designing mounts to cram as many components as I could into every last bit of space. It is from this obsession that "Inverse" was born.
Shaped by the ethos of fitting the most performance and versatility into the smallest amount of space, Inverse is a sub-10L computer case that can accommodate a full-length graphics card, a 240mm closed-loop liquid cooler, 3.5" and 2.5" hard drives, and a SFX power supply. Its versatile internal layout accommodates hard-core gamers, enthusiasts enamored with water cooling, media hoarders looking to create their own home theater, and anyone in between. Its smooth yet eye-catching exterior will blend into and enhance any desktop or home theater setup.
No exhaust holes on top for a smooth and unobtrusive look.
__________________________________________________________________________
All intake holes on the bottom.
__________________________________________________________________________
Patterned exhaust holes on the front and side gives a unique flair.
__________________________________________________________________________
Internal components are inverted to allow a smooth top panel.
__________________________________________________________________________
Monitors, speakers, and other desktop peripherals may be placed on top to created an integrated entertainment unit with minimal footprint.
__________________________________________________________________________
Available in black, white, and possibly other colors. Let me know what you like!
__________________________________________________________________________
Specifications:
Dimension: 464mm x 308.5mm x 72mm (10.31L)
Material: 2mm aluminum for the exterior, and 1.5mm steel for the interior skeleton.
Inverse is designed with 4 interior configurations in mind, though other configurations are possible.
1) Gaming with air cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate air coolers up to 55mm in height.
v) Accommodate up to 3 x 3.5" drives and 4 x 2.5" drives.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
2) Gaming with 120mm closed-loop liquid cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate closed-loop liquid coolers with 120mm radiator and total thickness (including fan) of no more than 60mm.
v) Accommodate up to 1-3 x 3.5" drives and 2-4 x 2.5" drives, depending on the height of the water block.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
3) Gaming with 240mm closed-loop liquid cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate closed-loop liquid coolers with 240mm radiator and total thickness (including fan) of no more than 60mm.
v) Accommodate up to 0-1 x 3.5" drives and 2-4 x 2.5" drives, depending on the height of the water block.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
4) Media Storage
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodate up to 6 x 3.5" drives and 8 x 2.5" drives.
No ODD supported for any configuration. This is to maintain the smooth look of the exterior, as well as make room to accommodate a 240mm aio cooler.
Project Status:
1) Production of the second prototype is now underway.
2) We are designing a stand for this case.
FAQ:
1)
Q: There are no exhaust holes on the top, only on the sides. Doesn't that go against "hot air rises"? How would that impact temperatures?
A: The effects of hot air rising are negligible compared to the forces produced by fans. Please read this article for reference.
2)
Q: You are drawing cold air in from the bottom only. How tall does the case feet have to be before heating becomes compromised?
A: I did a study on this, and it suggests that the case feet just has to be above 9 mm in height, which is pretty standard. I own the Silverstone ML07, and its feet measure 10 mm in height. Here is the link to the study I did.
Thanks for reading!
My venture into the world of custom-designed cases began when I started building in the tiny Minibox M350 case. Being in a long-distance relationship, I needed something small and powerful so I can take my research with me on a 13-hour train ride every weekend. My pragmatic need for a portable PC soon developed into a full-on obsession as I find myself endlessly tweaking parts and designing mounts to cram as many components as I could into every last bit of space. It is from this obsession that "Inverse" was born.
Shaped by the ethos of fitting the most performance and versatility into the smallest amount of space, Inverse is a sub-10L computer case that can accommodate a full-length graphics card, a 240mm closed-loop liquid cooler, 3.5" and 2.5" hard drives, and a SFX power supply. Its versatile internal layout accommodates hard-core gamers, enthusiasts enamored with water cooling, media hoarders looking to create their own home theater, and anyone in between. Its smooth yet eye-catching exterior will blend into and enhance any desktop or home theater setup.
No exhaust holes on top for a smooth and unobtrusive look.
__________________________________________________________________________
All intake holes on the bottom.
__________________________________________________________________________
Patterned exhaust holes on the front and side gives a unique flair.
__________________________________________________________________________
Internal components are inverted to allow a smooth top panel.
__________________________________________________________________________
Monitors, speakers, and other desktop peripherals may be placed on top to created an integrated entertainment unit with minimal footprint.
__________________________________________________________________________
Available in black, white, and possibly other colors. Let me know what you like!
__________________________________________________________________________
Specifications:
Dimension: 464mm x 308.5mm x 72mm (10.31L)
Material: 2mm aluminum for the exterior, and 1.5mm steel for the interior skeleton.
Inverse is designed with 4 interior configurations in mind, though other configurations are possible.
1) Gaming with air cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate air coolers up to 55mm in height.
v) Accommodate up to 3 x 3.5" drives and 4 x 2.5" drives.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
Interior, angled top view:
Internal components are mounted in an "inverted" fashion to allow for a smooth top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Bottom view, without bottom frame attached:
All fans intake from the bottom.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
Graphics card is separated from the rest of the components for focused cooling. A stabilizer bracket is provided for the graphics card to prevent sagging.
__________________________________________________________________________
Top frame, zoomed-in view:
Cable management loops on the top and bottom frame for ease of building.
Internal components are mounted in an "inverted" fashion to allow for a smooth top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Bottom view, without bottom frame attached:
All fans intake from the bottom.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
Graphics card is separated from the rest of the components for focused cooling. A stabilizer bracket is provided for the graphics card to prevent sagging.
__________________________________________________________________________
Top frame, zoomed-in view:
Cable management loops on the top and bottom frame for ease of building.
2) Gaming with 120mm closed-loop liquid cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate closed-loop liquid coolers with 120mm radiator and total thickness (including fan) of no more than 60mm.
v) Accommodate up to 1-3 x 3.5" drives and 2-4 x 2.5" drives, depending on the height of the water block.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
Bottom view, without bottom frame attached:
120mm case fan with a radiator on top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
3.5" drives and 2.5" drives mounted beside the 120mm radiator and over the motherboard.
120mm case fan with a radiator on top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
3.5" drives and 2.5" drives mounted beside the 120mm radiator and over the motherboard.
3) Gaming with 240mm closed-loop liquid cooling
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodates one graphics card up to 12" (305mm) in length, 5.91" (150mm) in width, and 1.81" (46mm) in thickness.
iv) Accommodate closed-loop liquid coolers with 240mm radiator and total thickness (including fan) of no more than 60mm.
v) Accommodate up to 0-1 x 3.5" drives and 2-4 x 2.5" drives, depending on the height of the water block.
vi) Accommodate up to 2 120mm x 15mm case fans over the graphics card for added cooling.
Bottom view, without bottom frame attached:
Two 120mm case fans with a 240mm radiator on top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
One 3.5" drive and up to two 2.5" drives mounted over the motherboard, depending on the height of the waterblock.
Two 120mm case fans with a 240mm radiator on top.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
One 3.5" drive and up to two 2.5" drives mounted over the motherboard, depending on the height of the waterblock.
4) Media Storage
i) Accommodates Mini-ITX motherboard.
ii) Accommodates SFX or SFX-L power supply.
iii) Accommodate up to 6 x 3.5" drives and 8 x 2.5" drives.
Bottom view, without bottom frame attached:
Four 3.5" drives and four 2.5" drives in the graphics card compartment. Two 3.5" drives and four 2.5" drives around the motherboard. The compartment divider and the graphics card stabilizer is removed.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
Four 3.5" drives and four 2.5" drives in the graphics card compartment. Two 3.5" drives and four 2.5" drives around the motherboard. The compartment divider and the graphics card stabilizer is removed.
__________________________________________________________________________
Low-angle side view, without fans:
No ODD supported for any configuration. This is to maintain the smooth look of the exterior, as well as make room to accommodate a 240mm aio cooler.
Project Status:
1) Production of the second prototype is now underway.
2) We are designing a stand for this case.
FAQ:
1)
Q: There are no exhaust holes on the top, only on the sides. Doesn't that go against "hot air rises"? How would that impact temperatures?
A: The effects of hot air rising are negligible compared to the forces produced by fans. Please read this article for reference.
2)
Q: You are drawing cold air in from the bottom only. How tall does the case feet have to be before heating becomes compromised?
A: I did a study on this, and it suggests that the case feet just has to be above 9 mm in height, which is pretty standard. I own the Silverstone ML07, and its feet measure 10 mm in height. Here is the link to the study I did.
Thanks for reading!
Last edited: