Prototype [Scratch Build]Project REAL CUBE (Back online, V3.0 soon)

jtd871

SFF Guru
Jun 22, 2015
1,166
851
Not immediately obvious that it's a power button - same color and texture as the rest of that outside face, maybe even flush with the outside surface.
 

Ceros_X

King of Cable Management
Mar 8, 2016
748
660
As it sits on the backside it should be possible to locate it and it should be easy to press.

Just one of those usability vs cool factor things - like a wooden box that has no external lock but is still locked until you move a series of wooden parts around. One of those things you could show people and it would be cool, but I'm sure it might be a pain to mess with it all the time.

I think a different colored (maybe you could get some scrap mahogany or something) wood would be nice.
 

Minefoxi

Cable-Tie Ninja
Original poster
Jul 8, 2015
146
68
www.youtube.com
This is the "old" back design:


Do you think keeping the "alternating edges design" would be a good thing with just small bits glued to the side pannels for better aesthetics (especially when looking from the side)

Here is the new design with the added pieces:


View from the side:


What do you think?
 
  • Like
Reactions: iFreilicht

iFreilicht

FlexATX Authority
Feb 28, 2015
3,243
2,361
freilite.com
Yes, absolutely! It looks much nicer that way, but you really have to make sure to line everything up correctly to make it work. If the small bits protrude a little bit, that would be real shame.
 

jeshikat

Jessica. Wayward SFF.n Founder
Silver Supporter
Feb 22, 2015
4,969
4,780
I think it'll look better if the notches go all the way down to keep things consistent.
 

Lutfij

Chassis Packer
Modworkx Customs
Mar 4, 2016
17
11
www.modworkx.com
^ +1 when dealing with aesthetics it's more powerful if the lines continue along all sides. Besides the concept of a cube would entail that each face has some underlying principle around it. The consistency mentioned my Aibohphobia is right ;) The only conflict in that concept with your build is trying to justify those notches for panels that aren't interlocking with each other whereby you'd find justice on adding a blanking plate to cover the rear I/O panel and hide the cables running off of it.
 

Minefoxi

Cable-Tie Ninja
Original poster
Jul 8, 2015
146
68
www.youtube.com
^ +1 when dealing with aesthetics it's more powerful if the lines continue along all sides. Besides the concept of a cube would entail that each face has some underlying principle around it. The consistency mentioned my Aibohphobia is right ;) The only conflict in that concept with your build is trying to justify those notches for panels that aren't interlocking with each other whereby you'd find justice on adding a blanking plate to cover the rear I/O panel and hide the cables running off of it.
But with a panel covering the bottom part of the back you'd have two panels and a crack between the panels plus its inconvenient to plug something in.
 

Minefoxi

Cable-Tie Ninja
Original poster
Jul 8, 2015
146
68
www.youtube.com
Time to fire up this thread again!

As I recently read through some heated airflow discussions over at Firewolfy's MI-6 Case thread on [H], I thought about my own case and what could be done to improve it's airflow and temperatures (and design).

At the moment the top cover looks like that:


It has vents for the PSU fan that takes air in directly from the top and as it outputs air at the back, it's practically disconnected from the other components (like in other cases).

Top cover off:



My idea now was to mount the PSU upside-down so that it sucks air in from below, from the CPU cooler output, so to speak.

Vents would have to go into the mounting bracket:


I don't know if it improves airflow in the case but I thought it would engage the air flowing throught the case as the PSU fan would act as an exhaust fan, in addition to the two 70mm fans below.

Back shot (old design):


The vents in the top panel obviously could be removed then, which would also have an impact on the overall design:



In comparison:





Tell me what you think ;-)
 
Last edited:

K888D

SFF Guru
Lazer3D
Feb 23, 2016
1,483
2,970
www.lazer3d.com
Whether this would be a benefit to your overall system performance depends on a number of factors.

For example, if you choose a semi-fanless PSU such as the Corsair SF450, the top vents will help to keep the PSU cooler when its fan is off (if it's facing upwards). If the PSU fan is facing into the case then the warm air within the case will make its way into the PSU and likely activate the fan at a lower load.

If you have a PSU that the fan is always running, then having the fan face downwards will indeed assist with system temps to a degree, although depending on how much clearance there is the to the CPU cooler fan you may get opposing direction airflows.

Also pulling heat through the PSU will cause its fan to run at a higher rpm to compensate, so overall you may in fact end up with a louder/noisier overall system even though the system temps are slightly lower. It really depends on which components are your loudest, if your GPU is loud for example then the PSU fan noise might not matter.
 

jeshikat

Jessica. Wayward SFF.n Founder
Silver Supporter
Feb 22, 2015
4,969
4,780
I agree with K888D, SFX power supplies are often the weak point for a low-noise build so isolating it is helpful for sound levels.
 

Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
SFFn Staff
May 9, 2015
5,827
4,902
The counsil has spoken ! And I also agree, heating up a PSU just to have better general airflow is counterproductive when your PSU is often the most constrained in fan size.
 

Minefoxi

Cable-Tie Ninja
Original poster
Jul 8, 2015
146
68
www.youtube.com
So, after over a year, I'm back with my project!

I don't know how many of you still remember it, but I hope that some are still interested in the progress I've made over the last year (during which I also started studying mechanical engineering)

For now, I updated the first post and I'll just leave those fancy KeyShot renderings of Version 3.0 here:

Not much changed on the outside...


...except for half the screws on the back beeing gone or moved somewhere else now


On the Inside however pretty much everything but the general hardware layout changed














Just look at those many screws!