S4 MINI Classic (S4M-C)

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
Why LP? The ITX version (single fan) should also fit, right?
Been wanting to mount the internal brick to the side of the case, not behind the front panel as I do now. It's snug now cause it's held in place by a piece of foam between it and the gpu, but I'd like a more 'screwed on' position. Can't do that without ruining the bezel.
 

Josh | NFC

Not From Concentrate
Original poster
NFC Systems
Jun 12, 2015
1,869
4,466
www.nfc-systems.com
I know nothing at all about tapping threads, is that possible? Retapping 6-32 to M4?

Ah you mean m4... for some reason my brain was thinking m3... but that means all screw holes on the side panel also needs to be enlarged a bit, no?

While they will need to be enlarged, your tap should be able to do that for you in going from 6-32 to M4. Buy a high quality tap from a hardware store, not some cheap kit tap from a big box store--but you CAN buy the chuck from a cheap kit like this:

 

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
Finally relented to once again pickup sketchup (used it once to plan an event). My RX550 seem to holdup pretty well ^^.
Why? Thinking I'll revisit my lingering project...



15 cells, in 5S3P config. "UPS" is ups-0528-11b module (look it up on Ali). "BMS" can be a common ones on Ali, but lately I'm veering towards this board from slovenia.



I've put a 40x10mm noctua in there to keep the pack cool, thinking to design a 2 part bracket; one to hold the end cells and the fan, one to sit between all the way to the other end and sit the bms.

The white box next to the fan is just a bounding box for C6 inlet.

Was hoping the bms space could house the ups board but alas, too tall. Well, it's closer to the dynamo and the hdplex, where it's needed anyway.

The hdplex is actually gonna have to go if I kick off this project, since 19V's not gonna cut it. I'm going to need at least 22V. So RPS-200-24 it is.

The plan is
22V in -> ups --22V--> dynamo
. . . . . . . . . . . . .|--cc/cv--> bms -> 5S3P batt -> ups
(LiIon 3.2 to 4.2V, *5S = 16 to 21V)
On power failure:
Batt -> ups --16~21V--> dynamo

Further goals would be to develop custom code in the bms, get a V-USB stack running and report battery status to windows via usb (hid ups battery class). Which is why I liked that tindie board, it's open source! Would be better if it's got atmega32u4 instead of 328 though..
 
Last edited:

Josh | NFC

Not From Concentrate
Original poster
NFC Systems
Jun 12, 2015
1,869
4,466
www.nfc-systems.com
Finally relented to once again pickup sketchup (used it once to plan an event). My RX550 seem to holdup pretty well ^^.
Why? Thinking I'll revisit my lingering project...



15 cells, in 5S3P config. "UPS" is ups-0528-11b module (look it up on Ali). "BMS" can be a common ones on Ali, but lately I'm veering towards this board from slovenia.



I've put a 40x10mm noctua in there to keep the pack cool, thinking to design a 2 part bracket; one to hold the end cells and the fan, one to sit between all the way to the other end and sit the bms.

The white box next to the fan is just a bounding box for C6 inlet.

Was hoping the bms space could house the ups board but alas, too tall. Well, it's closer to the dynamo and the hdplex, where it's needed anyway.

The hdplex is actually gonna have to go if I kick off this project, since 19V's not gonna cut it. I'm going to need at least 22V. So RPS-200-24 it is.

The plan is
22V in -> ups --22V--> dynamo
. . . . . . . . . . . . .|--cc/cv--> bms -> 5S3P batt -> ups
(LiIon 3.2 to 4.2V, *5S = 16 to 21V)
On power failure:
Batt -> ups --16~21V--> dynamo

Further goals would be to develop custom code in the bms, get a V-USB stack running and report battery status to windows via usb (hid ups battery class). Which is why I liked that tindie board, it's open source! Would be better if it's got atmega32u4 instead of 328 though..

Wow that is awesome. And bonus points for the TSA loving that. XD

When I used to travel to LAN events across the USA they loved me for stuff like that, but nothing QUITE as unique. :)

<3
 

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
Thanks Josh! I'm going forward with it, for real this time. Slowly, sure, like always.

I'm not sure about TSA - my calculation puts this pack at about 160Whr. Wasn't it limited at 100Whr?
 
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encore2097

Caliper Novice
May 13, 2019
26
10
Happy to see you moving on to the preorder phase, Josh.
And I'm terribly sorry that I totally missed your suggestion at the end of your post back in August:


Maybe it's too late and you have since already tested other CPU coolers <40mm tall in addition to what you had done earlier, and have confimed that every one of them with linear directional air exhaust trail the Zalman CNPS2X with its omini-directional air dispersion in cooling performance. If you still would like to have more data, though, I'm happy to contribute whatever test results I could perform on my own once I decide to purchase your work of art (when that happens I probably try to grab CNPS2X and test it too as a reference). My collection of "low profile" air coolers, though, haven't seen any update for quite a while, and these are all I have now (apart from some GPU coolers repurposed for Thin Mini-ITX boards that aren't in this photo):
(Additional photos with better views and legends)
Among these, Scythe Kozuti (a close call and not 100% sure), Cooldesk Leishen ITX90, Titan TTC-NK52TZ (AMD only), Thermaltake Slim X3, Noctua NH-L9i, Titan DC-155A915Z, Thermaltake CLS0011, Cooljag JAC7L07C, Reeven Vanxie, Thermolab LP53 (with a <12mm fan replacement), and Gelid Slim Silence i-Plus are no taller than 40mm. I think some of them have already gone EOL so not so useful when it comes to recommendations.
I have been interested in Titan TTC-NC25TZ, Thermolab ITX30, and some of the relatively new coolers such as Silverstone AR05, Jonsbo HP-400 (and HP-200), ID-Cooling IS-VC45 and IS-40Pro (the last two will become about 40mm tall once their stock fans are replaced with a 10mm thick fan, forcing the fan size to be 80x80mm or smaller) but haven't purchased any of them. (I know Aiboh gave IS-VC45 a shot.) ID-Cooling also has omini-directional-fin LP coolers a la CNPS2X in their lineup.

Back on topic, I noticed on your preorder page:

Either one of the depth numbers are probably mistyped as they can't be identical?

Also, about the custom powdercoating option... I'm wondering if hairline brush surface + anodizing instead of powdercoating with a durable matte black textured finish on the exterior panels is an available option.

Oh, and I totally forgot to ask this before writing the cooler stuff above: the 40mm cooler height limitation is for the entire cooler including whatever fan on top, and does not exclude the thickness of the Scythe Kaze12-Slim fan you have in a few of your photos, correct?

How's the Cooldesk Leishen ITX90 ? I'm also thinking about MetalFish Z39 both with Noctua 90x14 or 120x15 / 140x15 above them mounted to the chassis.

Gallery:
 

ngriesdo

Cable-Tie Ninja
Feb 15, 2017
193
163
A question for the folks with the S4M-C's. I am considering jumping to the new EVGA 1660ti SC Ultra GPU. I have looked up the spec and it shows the GPU at 202mm and the internal space of the 203mm. So my question would be will it fit? In theory, it would be literally 1mm but I am not sure.
 

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
A question for the folks with the S4M-C's. I am considering jumping to the new EVGA 1660ti SC Ultra GPU. I have looked up the spec and it shows the GPU at 202mm and the internal space of the 203mm. So my question would be will it fit? In theory, it would be literally 1mm but I am not sure.

I like to use image measurement app for this..



HTH.
 

FreezingCode

Chassis Packer
Jun 4, 2016
16
6
It has been confirmed as a fit brickless with the recessed connectors. Thank you, EVGA, for listening and making the perfect SFF card for the MINI! :D

Is the 1660ti the best performing card you can fit in the S4M-C without mods? Looking for a potential upgrade to the GTX 1060 6G version to allow for better gaming on a 4k TV. I'm a little out of the loop on the new cards. I remember in the 10-series that the 1070 and 1080's were slightly too long. Cool to see some of the new cards fittings.

[HD-Plex 300w + Dell 330w brick for powering i5-7600k, 8gb DDR4, NVME drive, and the GTX 1060 6G.]

//edit
Are my eyes and memory deceiving me?
According to spec sheets the EVGA 1060 I have is 172mm in length, and the Gigabyte 2060 and 2070 itx is only 170mm, as was the Gigabyte 1070 and 1080 itx cards. I could have swore the Gigabyte 1070 and 1080's wouldn't fit in the S4M-C without modding the front bezel.

Regardless, I might be pushing it on power requirements with my 300w HD-Plex though. The recommended wattage for the 1060 [on spec sheet] was 400w, and the 2060 and 2070 are 500w and 550w respectively.
 
Last edited:

Haulien

Trash Compacter
Sep 28, 2016
34
39
Is the 1660ti the best performing card you can fit in the S4M-C without mods? Looking for a potential upgrade to the GTX 1060 6G version to allow for better gaming on a 4k TV. I'm a little out of the loop on the new cards. I remember in the 10-series that the 1070 and 1080's were slightly too long. Cool to see some of the new cards fittings.

[HD-Plex 300w + Dell 330w brick for powering i5-7600k, 8gb DDR4, NVME drive, and the GTX 1060 6G.]

//edit
Are my eyes and memory deceiving me?
According to spec sheets the EVGA 1060 I have is 172mm in length, and the Gigabyte 2060 and 2070 itx is only 170mm, as was the Gigabyte 1070 and 1080 itx cards. I could have swore the Gigabyte 1070 and 1080's wouldn't fit in the S4M-C without modding the front bezel.

Regardless, I might be pushing it on power requirements with my 300w HD-Plex though. The recommended wattage for the 1060 [on spec sheet] was 400w, and the 2060 and 2070 are 500w and 550w respectively.

The gigabyte 1070 fit in fine! You just needed to relocate the dc-dc jack on the hdplex 400w unit... though with the newer hdplex units, this shouldn't be an issue either! And works perfectly on the 330w dell brick!
 

threestripevida

Airflow Optimizer
Mar 28, 2017
277
466
Hey guys, this thread has been quiet for sometime now, but I am hoping to reuse my classic mini as an htpc/ LAN computer. I would like to try and make it brickless if possible, but I know the classic has less options in terms of brickless due to the space inside compared to the Skyreach. Any recommendations would be helpful!
 

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
Hey guys, this thread has been quiet for sometime now, but I am hoping to reuse my classic mini as an htpc/ LAN computer. I would like to try and make it brickless if possible, but I know the classic has less options in terms of brickless due to the space inside compared to the Skyreach. Any recommendations would be helpful!
The whole subforum has gone quiet. They went to discord.

What's your build? A ~200W build is certainly possible with hdplex 200W ac-dc. Which I imagine should be enough for htpc use.

Fitting a 400W ac-dc is possible, too, but require sanding the unit to shave 2mm off the width, plus you're stuck with small room for gpu.
 

threestripevida

Airflow Optimizer
Mar 28, 2017
277
466
The whole subforum has gone quiet. They went to discord.

What's your build? A ~200W build is certainly possible with hdplex 200W ac-dc. Which I imagine should be enough for htpc use.

Fitting a 400W ac-dc is possible, too, but require sanding the unit to shave 2mm off the width, plus you're stuck with small room for gpu.

I will be using my 2700, but I’m not sure on the gpu. I don’t need crazy performance on it since I won’t be using it all the time. It would be hooked up to a 4K tv though and when I take it to LANs I’ll be playing on a 1080p monitor.
 

Choidebu

"Banned"
Aug 16, 2017
1,196
1,204
FWIW, 400W AC-DC can be made to fit the classic. Just need to shave 2mm off, just as far in as the flange goes. The GPU must not be overheight though.