S4 MINI Classic (S4M-C)

[all-in]

Problem with having an S4Plus is that would require enough people to want to buy that specific one for Josh to even start designing it, atm he makes very little money on the S4 cases and alot of the time makes them at a loss.

Making a bigger one means, redesigning the original, more material during production, having to find enough interested people to buy a variant. All of that costs money out of his pocket.

Of course.
It would be like starting all over and there's no way to gauge the interest of people in such a solution without at least defining a preliminary design.
But somebody, Josh or others, eventually should acknowledge the "DC-DC revolution" and availability of a 300W internal AC-DC.
And acknowledge the existence of the "beastly 170-180mm" gpu class.
At least Josh has all the experience and expertise accumulated while working on the S4.

I wonder if some kind "plexiglass add-on" (like the one he used for the 1080 build) would allow to use most of the already existing metal chassis of the S4 to build an S4plus that's easy to manufacture even for a limited run.

 

[Brandon86]

Just in case anyone wants to start crunching numbers for the new HDPLEX 300W product that's coming out very soon...
I haven't started measuring anything yet for my future build, but thought someone might find this info useful.

I can't wait for S4 pre-orders to open back up!!

 

[Kmpkt]

What do you guys think about this kind of no-brick build?

@all-in I've actually just completed what is essentially this exact build and it works beautifully. You can see my build log here:

https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/nfc-s4-mini-77-orangulan-brickless-s4.812/

I would suggest using a C7 cable and connector like I did here largely due to the fact that there is nowhere on the case to actually place a C13 (this case is very tightly engineered). The C7 mod can be done in less than five minutes and leaves the case more or less intact should you ever want to do something different with it or sell it on.

Also the inner width of the S4 mini is 57mm and the width of the HDPlex 300W AC-DC is 62mm. While OH SO CLOSE, this mod likely won't work unless you're willing to chop up your S4 mini and grind down the cooling fins on the HDPlex. Also as much as I'd love to see this build, I have a feeling heat of the AC-DC unit might be an issue between reduced cooling fin length and requisite covering of the bulk of the remaining fins.

 

[all-in]

Wow, great build, thanks for the heads up!

(dat 1mm gap between the brick and the corner of the mobo...thanks to the SFF gods, that was close!)

So let's spell it loud and clear for everybody casually reading the thread

- HDplex 160W all-internal combo (160W DC-ATX direct plug-in + 160W AC-DC brick)
- C7 connector
- 145mm (L) x 112mm (h) x dual slot GPU (e.g. evga 1050ti)

is entirely possible for a no-brick S4 build!
Ideally with a 35W intel CPU and then every year swap in the best GPU available within the space and power constraints.
The EVGA 1050ti is ~145mm and there's space left, I wonder what would be the absolute max lenght to the mm, with the brick a hair from touching the plastic shroud of the GPU (not necessarily ideal).

As for the 300W being too big, sad.
Let's hope for a smaller middleground 200-220W brick one day. Rock solid 35W i7 CPU + 1060-class GPU would be rad.

 

[Ceros_X]

Also the inner width of the S4 mini is 57mm and the width of the HDPlex 300W AC-DC is 62mm. While OH SO CLOSE, this mod likely won't work unless you're willing to chop up your S4 mini and grind down the cooling fins on the HDPlex. Also as much as I'd love to see this build, I have a feeling heat of the AC-DC unit might be an issue between reduced cooling fin length and requisite covering of the bulk of the remaining fins.

Call me crazy, but I think the S4's frame could be used to act as a heat sink for the HDPLEX 300W AC-DC. The interior width is 57mm, and the HDPlex is 62mm. The fins on each side of the HDPlex are 4.5mm long. Seems like you could grind both sides down (or maybe get Larry to make an alternate case that could fit flush) and then use the aluminum chassis of the S4 to sink the heat into. We're already doing something similar with the 300W HDPLEX DCDC unit.

 

[|||]

The newer S4 Mini's might be able to sink enough heat for it, but the powder coated ones, probably not. I ran the calculations to see how much power the outer surface of the bezel can dissipate and came up with ~4.5W with the source at 60°C and ambient air at 40°C and ~14.1W with the source at 80°C and ambient air at 30°C. Those calculations ignored the sides of the bezel and radiation effects, as well as there being perfect conduction to the bezel. The bare aluminum side panels would be able to convect away considerably more power, however.

 

[all-in]

Not to mention one may need the 300W AC-DC for 160W-190W workloads where even a botched dissipation could be sufficient.

With a medium-high "sub 151mm" next gen GPU even being able to occasionally spike to 190W would be gold.

 

[hat1324]

So, I've been thinking. For a while now I've been using these Wundermax doorstoppers to prop up my PC:

But they also came with some 3M adhesive storage mounts, and I think painting and mounting these plastic mounts under the S4 and inserting the doorstopper might be a really good solution to GPU heat. What do you guys think? Would vinyl paint or plastidip do the trick?

 

[Cohesive Reality]

So, I've been thinking. For a while now I've been using these Wundermax doorstoppers to prop up my PC:

But they also came with some 3M adhesive storage mounts, and I think painting and mounting these plastic mounts under the S4 and inserting the doorstopper might be a really good solution to GPU heat. What do you guys think? Would vinyl paint or plastidip do the trick?

Better than laying it flat but the vertical orientation is best for heat dispersion imo. If the feet are hard plastic prep and paint away. If its rubber you may want to look into what paint to use for it.

 

[Cohesive Reality]

9 days till pre-orders! The NFC shop is locked atm wonder if josh is updating it with some info? Anyone know anything about the Special Editions for batch 4? I saw a Red/Black one on the site but wasnt sure if it was from a previous batch.

 

[Zero]

On the topic of custom heatsinks, it looks like the guy who made the Dan A4 case is getting ready to ship a custom cooler he made in cooperation with Thermalright:

https://hardforum.com/threads/dan-a4-sfx-the-smallest-gaming-case-in-the-world.1799326/page-227

Annoyingly the name of it would indicate it is 48mm high (which is the max height of the Dan A4, and as we know the S4 is 45mm.

Still, neat to see, and I guess it could work on this too if you hit the fins with a belt sander:

 

[Josh | NFC]

On the topic of custom heatsinks, it looks like the guy who made the Dan A4 case is getting ready to ship a custom cooler he made in cooperation with Thermalright:

https://hardforum.com/threads/dan-a4-sfx-the-smallest-gaming-case-in-the-world.1799326/page-227

Annoyingly the name of it would indicate it is 48mm high (which is the max height of the Dan A4, and as we know the S4 is 45mm.

Still, neat to see, and I guess it could work on this too if you hit the fins with a belt sander:

Maybe he could make a last min change? I would if I was making a cooler like that.

 

[Curiosity]

On the topic of custom heatsinks, it looks like the guy who made the Dan A4 case is getting ready to ship a custom cooler he made in cooperation with Thermalright:

https://hardforum.com/threads/dan-a4-sfx-the-smallest-gaming-case-in-the-world.1799326/page-227

Annoyingly the name of it would indicate it is 48mm high (which is the max height of the Dan A4, and as we know the S4 is 45mm.

Still, neat to see, and I guess it could work on this too if you hit the fins with a belt sander:

I don't think " getting ready to ship" is quite accurate, these are the first renders he's released, sounds like it's in the very early stages to me.

I plan to work together with Thermalrigt so I can bundle it with the TY-100 FAN

 

[|||]

On the topic of custom heatsinks, it looks like the guy who made the Dan A4 case is getting ready to ship a custom cooler he made in cooperation with Thermalright:

https://hardforum.com/threads/dan-a4-sfx-the-smallest-gaming-case-in-the-world.1799326/page-227

Annoyingly the name of it would indicate it is 48mm high (which is the max height of the Dan A4, and as we know the S4 is 45mm.

Still, neat to see, and I guess it could work on this too if you hit the fins with a belt sander:

@dondan posted this on the A4-SFX thread. I posted yours and @Josh | NFC comments over there to let him know

 

[all-in]

Maybe it's just me but I'd just use a noctua L9i even if that other style of cooler was available.
So convenient to just screw 4 screws and it's done. Neat, symmetrical and doesn't look like it's weirdly close to the side panel.
I'm not using anything above 35W or 65W tdp, though.

 

[RenG]

Have some ideas for a serial number plate for the mini. Not sure what to go for though.

 

[Josh | NFC]

Great spot for it! That's where I put them in the S3 MINI--over the tab locks.

Looks good too. My manufacturer is buying a laser etcher so I am debating wether to start that...be pretty expensive, or make plates or keep with the cards. I think the serial stickers look nice but I got alot of polarizing feedback.

Nice work!

 

[TheDreamingMonk]

Could always stamp them

An bit more labor intensive, but would last forever even after painting.

 

[Smallform Gaming]

Have some ideas for a serial number plate for the mini. Not sure what to go for though.

Wow! That's a nice touch.
Maybe utilize the the NFC winged logo too?
I want one of these.

 

[RenG]

Wow! That's a nice touch.
Maybe utilize the the NFC winged logo too?
I want one of these.

I thought of that too but I don't want to use it without Josh's approval. Maybe Josh will sell "official serial plates"?