Completed Salvo Studios S402: ~9L Steel Console Style Case

[snailonni]

Web host fixed their problem:

This looks great!
While I know many people are hyped about how it is able to fit a 120mm AIO, I was wondering what about the air cooling solution. Will it be able to have extra fans on top/bot like it was in 401? What will the temperature be? (If you do not have time to do the testing right now, it's fine.)
At last, this color looks great! Will this color be available on the production run? maybe just a few?(really wanted one)

 

[grsychckn]

2 screws should be enough.

Just an idea, could you just add a couple mounting holes? Like 1 or 2 sets. they would not be visible due to the external panel, and would provide options for a little more flexibility w/o causing too much flexibility issues with the "bending issue".

Yes, I think I can add two more holes for AIO mounts that would then be covered by the side panel. Looks like most radiators are 6-32 thread size so I could add an option to include an extra 2 x 6-32 wafer head screws.

 

[grsychckn]

This looks great!
While I know many people are hyped about how it is able to fit a 120mm AIO, I was wondering what about the air cooling solution. Will it be able to have extra fans on top/bot like it was in 401? What will the temperature be? (If you do not have time to do the testing right now, it's fine.)
At last, this color looks great! Will this color be available on the production run? maybe just a few?(really wanted one)

First off, thank you! There are 2 fan mounts on the top and 1 fan mount on the bottom. All 3 support either 60mm or 70mm fans at a depth up to 25mm.

I'm thinking of including 3 x 4-pin (70mm x 15mm) fans but reserve the right to make those an add-on. I already purchased a large number of these fans but have yet to test them for noise. I am also going to purchase some rubber fan mounts for these to be included with them at purchase.

As for the color, I'm not going to make any more of these in that "Cardinal" color. The hardware would have to all be silver and I'm working now on obtaining all black hardware to help reduce costs.

I plan on performing some testing using my 3950X with many air coolers but it's going to take time. I only have an hour or so each day for work on this project so patience is key. I'm going to work on fitment, then submit the designs for production, and finally test the various cooling solutions I have. There will be a few temperature tests I will need to run just for sanity sake but I won't have that many numbers for comparison until after I've submitted the design for production.

 

[ignsvn]

I'm thinking of including 3 x 4-pin (70mm x 15mm) fans but reserve the right to make those an add-on. I already purchased a large number of these fans but have yet to test them for noise...

if it can be of any help, I'm currently using Cooler Master's 80x15mm slim fan. I have it running at 800-900 RPM, intake mode. They're reasonably silent quiet, only start to get audible at around 1100 RPM & above.

Edit: my PC is on my desk, approx. 65cm from me.

 

[wolverinelogan]

I'm not sure if this questions has been asked, but if we want to get custom fitting cables what sizes and/or reference case should we use?

 

[grsychckn]

Update: After getting back home, I'm now sick and trying to recover before heading out of town next week for work.

I've decided to have a second prototype made which is going to delay the production run by another 4 weeks. I desperately want to ensure the design is as good as I can make it before I produce a sub-par product. I'm still going to try and get the word out via my newsletter this week but I need to feel better first.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to put in as much time at work as I can in preparation for this trip. More to come in the following days.

 

[grsychckn]

I'm not sure if this questions has been asked, but if we want to get custom fitting cables what sizes and/or reference case should we use?

That question has not been asked, but I'm unsure at this point exactly what lengths should be used. The answer to that question relies heavily on where your connectors are located on the motherboard and GPU. I'll try to see what help I can offer though as the design is finalized.

 

[Allhopeforhumanity]

Update: After getting back home, I'm now sick and trying to recover before heading out of town next week for work.

I've decided to have a second prototype made which is going to delay the production run by another 4 weeks. I desperately want to ensure the design is as good as I can make it before I produce a sub-par product. I'm still going to try and get the word out via my newsletter this week but I need to feel better first.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to put in as much time at work as I can in preparation for this trip. More to come in the following days.

It's all good man, a delayed product is eventually good, a rushed product can be eternally bad. Hopefully you feel better soon and we can get some sweet pics of the new prototype as soon as you can!

 

[grsychckn]

Update: After getting back home, I'm now sick and trying to recover before heading out of town next week for work.

I've decided to have a second prototype made which is going to delay the production run by another 4 weeks. I desperately want to ensure the design is as good as I can make it before I produce a sub-par product. I'm still going to try and get the word out via my newsletter this week but I need to feel better first.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to put in as much time at work as I can in preparation for this trip. More to come in the following days.

Just as an explanation, the following will be the main reasons why I feel it necessary to make a second prototype:

1. Support 120mm AIO and increase GPU length support to ~201mm.
2. Found an interference problem with the GPU tab mounting bracket and the motherboard.
3. Moved USB front panel mounts to the PSU end of the chassis to free up space for the AIO support.
4. Motherboard mounts need to be pushed farther away from the rear IO for clearance of built-in IO shields.
5. Increased vented side panel thickness to help avoid panel gaps along the edges.
6. Halved the solid panel in size and removed the "border" around the vented backside of the main chassis. This change will mean I will have to reconsider horizontal orientation and how to address the different heights. I may have to create a set of horizontal stands that will be an optional add-on.
7. Added rear motherboard IO vents.
8. Added Kensington security mount - although with this one I'm a little worried that the panel will not be thick enough. If so, I will just say it is not supported.
9. Might change the front panel button diameter for a few reasons (I still have a lot of 19mm buttons in stock). Renders to this point have been with 22mm buttons.
10. Cleaned up the SSD/HDD mounting panel to have curved edges and a wider width - will reuse two of the 120mm AIO mounting holes.
11. Going to try and increase the ventilation area on the rear side where the AIO/fans/disks will be mounted.

 

[Jerdz]

1. Support 120mm AIO and increase GPU length support to ~201mm.

good lord you just made my dreams come true

I've decided to have a second prototype made which is going to delay the production run by another 4 weeks. I desperately want to ensure the design is as good as I can make it before I produce a sub-par product.

we can wait, take it easy!

After all those changes-- did the dimension of the case change?

 

[grsychckn]

After all those changes-- did the dimension of the case change?

No, dimensions have not changed - mostly hole locations for different things. I'm going to try and make some new renders after I get all the changes complete.

 

[grsychckn]

Update: Revision 8 has been submitted to the fabricator. Sorry for the lack of updates but between traveling, sickness at home, and working on this revision I've had no time to take more photographs of the prototype. With the new revision submitted, the goal is to have the second prototype completed within 4 weeks and from there I will only need to validate a few things before hopefully submitting the final order.

Bad news though, I reached out to my PCIe riser supplier to order the risers for the S402 and received this reply:

Thank you very much for your order
But very sorry
Because of the Coronavirus problem in China
Chinese government orders all factories to stop working
So we cannot estimate the correct delivery date

My design is specific to this vendor so hopefully in the coming weeks I'll be able to order the risers necessary for the S402. I'm also working with a supplier for the front panel button and if I receive the same response, I will be moving away from a 22mm button to a 19mm button (same as on S401) because I still have a large quantity of those in stock. While at work, I'm going to try and get some renders of the new revision posted here. The newsletter has been written but I still need to take some photographs and update it with this new information. I'm still trying to get that out as soon as possible.

 

[Allhopeforhumanity]

Update: Revision 8 has been submitted to the fabricator. Sorry for the lack of updates but between traveling, sickness at home, and working on this revision I've had no time to take more photographs of the prototype. With the new revision submitted, the goal is to have the second prototype completed within 4 weeks and from there I will only need to validate a few things before hopefully submitting the final order.

Bad news though, I reached out to my PCIe riser supplier to order the risers for the S402 and received this reply:



My design is specific to this vendor so hopefully in the coming weeks I'll be able to order the risers necessary for the S402. I'm also working with a supplier for the front panel button and if I receive the same response, I will be moving away from a 22mm button to a 19mm button (same as on S401) because I still have a large quantity of those in stock. While at work, I'm going to try and get some renders of the new revision posted here. The newsletter has been written but I still need to take some photographs and update it with this new information. I'm still trying to get that out as soon as possible.

Sliger had an update on an identical issue with their PCIe riser and Front panel suppliers and ended up swapping the latter to a Taiwanese manufacturer. Hopefully the corona virus issues calm down soon (for everyone's sake), but until then I think the majority of the SFF community is stuck in the same boat with the majority of suppliers being located in china.

 

[grsychckn]

Sliger had an update on an identical issue with their PCIe riser and Front panel suppliers and ended up swapping the latter to a Taiwanese manufacturer. Hopefully the corona virus issues calm down soon (for everyone's sake), but until then I think the majority of the SFF community is stuck in the same boat with the majority of suppliers being located in china.

Indeed. I guess it worked out that I'm making a second prototype because that gives me another 4-6 weeks at least to either wait out the current situation or find another supplier. I've already purchased a few different riser cables in the event I need to make a last minute swap should I find one that can supply me.

Update: Renders of revision #8

 

[Poblopuablo]

I'm confused by the SSD Mounting plate behind the gpu. Is that removable?

 

[grsychckn]

I'm confused by the SSD Mounting plate behind the gpu. Is that removable?

Yes - it is removable so you can add 2x120mm fans, a radiator, or a triple-slot GPU. Can you say THICC III Ultra?

 

[DSmithBYU]

Excellence!

Hope this project is doing well!!!

 

[wolverinelogan]

Renders look awesome! Do you recommend the small 60mm fans to be positioned as intakes or outtakes when using the standard GPU fans and low profile CPU cooler?

 

[grsychckn]

Renders look awesome! Do you recommend the small 60mm fans to be positioned as intakes or outtakes when using the standard GPU fans and low profile CPU cooler?

I have not done thermal testing yet (as evidenced by the lack of CPU cooler in the photos above), but I would recommend the following based on my S401 testing results:

Vertical Orientation, CPU/PSU on top
1. CPU chassis fans to exhaust
2. GPU fan to intake

Vertical Orientation, GPU on top
1. CPU chassis fans to intake
2. GPU fan to exhaust

Horizontal Orientation
1. All fans to exhaust.

I would like to test these different configurations but I've got a ton of testing to perform with all the various coolers I have so time is going to be the limiting factor. Also, I think individual results will vary based on the cooling solutions used for the installed CPU/GPU coolers as some might like to exhaust in specific directions where others don't.

Also, if you use a 2-slot GPU/PCIe device, you can mount 2x120mm slim fans behind the GPU which should help a lot in keeping the GPU heat away from the rest of the system.

 

[grsychckn]

Update: I spent most of my free time this weekend testing various coolers with the 3950x inside the S402. The only cooler that will work well enough to keep the thing from thermally throttling is the Enermax Aquafusion 120. When I tried running Prime95 on my C7Al, the system shut itself down due to thermal limits.

Once I figured out that none of the air coolers I used would suffice in keeping the 3950x cooled, I turned on Eco-mode and began testing. I haven't yet looked through the results but I've tested with the C7Cu, Thermalright AXP-100 full copper, and the ID Cooling IS-60. All the rest of my AM4 coolers will not work in the Asus X570 ITX board as the rear io cover and the m.2 stack interfere. Plus, I'm betting they cause a massive hot box for the CPU cooler. Edit to add that I also don't understand why the pump PWM interface cannot be configured as a fan PWM connector. Asus won't let you adjust the fan curve for that interface, it keeps it at 100% constantly so now I have to buy some more 4-pin splitter cables to feed my 3 chassis fans from one interface.

I'm probably going to have to acquire both an X470 ITX board as well as a 9-series CPU again so I can test the thermals on the rest of my coolers.

I'll try to get the results in graph form tonight and post them here but I'm going to be quite busy so it may take me a day or two.

Update #2: I just ordered 100+ 22mm push buttons. I'm going to have to solder the power and LED connectors onto each one but they are on their way. I also ordered a sample of a custom shipping box that will be just a little bit larger than the S402 so I can wrap it in 1/8" foam sheet and tape it up. No custom foam end caps or need to design something more complex.

Update #3: After installing the Enermax Aquafusion 120mm, I noticed that I need to add a zip tie mount to the PSU mounting bracket so that the hoses can be held down without pushing against the vented panel. Those will be added to the design for production. Because I had to use an SFF GPU, I installed my Vega 56 Nano and managed to also mount a slim 120mm fan behind it to extract air. I haven't tested yet to see what difference this makes but I'm hoping to get a picture soon of the setup I'm currently running because I think some people would be interested.

Only picture I have of the Enermax Aquafusion installed.


Things to do:

1. Order rear reset buttons and wires. Get wires for power buttons as well.
2. Test and order new PSU cables (will have to wait for next prototype).
3. Order USB front panel parts.
4. Generate a BOM for shipping so I can order all the various hardware (screws, etc.).
5. Set a deadline for possibly acquiring a new source for the PCIe cables. I've already identified compatible units and gotten prices but they are more expensive than my supplier.