Discussion Smallest mATX case w/o drives

[juztme]

Hello all,

I've looked over the spreadsheet here, but I can't seem to find anything like what I'm trying to find.
I currently have two Dell Optiplex 9020s mounted in a in-wall mounted Leviton Media Cabinet- 47605-42N for my management ESXi cluster.

I'd like to replace both with custom builds that include full size mATX motherboards.
I know mATX isn't that popular here, but I'd like to have the additional PCIe slots for 10GB NICs, NVMe adapters, etc.
I'd use all NVMe, so there is no need for storage.

Is anyone aware of any mATX case that is just slighter larger than a standard 9.6" x 9.6" mATX motherboard while being no taller than around 4"?
One dimension could be no longer than 13" with the other being more flexible up to around 15".
Obviously, the PCIe slots would be half-height, but that's completely fine.

I was planning on building something myself out of plexiglass, but I'm very impressed what folks have found for mITX builds on here.

I've attached a photo of the media cabinet; the networking / cabling will be moving to a smaller Leviton cabinet to make additional room.
The machines don't create a lot of heat, as they're just serving up VCSA, AD, DNS, DHCP and storage.

Thanks in advance!

 

[ermac318]

Your issue finding something that size is where would you put the power supply? If your case isn't any larger than the motherboard itself, it would have to be tall enough to fit a PSU above it, which then makes the case thicker than you can accommodate. I think you would need to build something yourself utilizing maybe a FlexATX PSU.

Have you looked for any 1u or 2u rackmount chassis ? That might fit mounted to the wall. Sliger actually makes wall-mount chassis: http://www.sliger.com/products/wallmount/

 

[juztme]

Yes, my assumption would be to use a non-standard power supply, like FlexATX or an external one.
Thank you for the link - but it appears all of the mAXT cases are much deeper than 4" inches.

 

[Bubba]

How about this?

79.98US $ |Computer Case Tower Pc Gamer Mini Itx Safe Cabinet Htpc Case Desktop Gaming All-aluminum Slim Chassis Supports Gpu Knife Card - Computer Cases & Towers - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[ermac318]

How about this?

79.98US $ |Computer Case Tower Pc Gamer Mini Itx Safe Cabinet Htpc Case Desktop Gaming All-aluminum Slim Chassis Supports Gpu Knife Card - Computer Cases & Towers - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Support motherboard size: 19*24.5cm within

That doesn't actually support full mATX motherboards.

 

[Bubba]

That doesn't actually support full mATX motherboards.

I know. But does it not satisfy all your other requirements?

 

[chx]

Small Compact Mini-ITX Micro-ATX uATX Chassis HTPC Case Enclosure w/ 150W PSU | eBay

(Supplied) with Power Cord Included. 12 X 10.37" Slim Profile Case -. Internal USB Flash Boot Device with Optional USB Header Cable. With Living Room Form Factor. For Living Room. Material: Light weight aluminum alloy and CRS.

www.ebay.com

Dimensions: (w x H x D) 12" x 2.5" x 10.375" It would seem it indeed fits micro ATX: https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/0RgAAOSwi8VZP4fo/s-l1600.jpg and this is quite possibly the smallest case you could find esp with an internal PSU.

Sibling: http://www.minicase.net/product_E-2007.html available at https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32945420179.html this one however seems to only support a shorter type of mini ATX -- maybe the one on eBay too?

Finally:

 

[VegetableStu]

I know. But does it not satisfy all your other requirements?

what would be the point if the motherboard wouldn't even seat in the case?

I'd like to replace both with custom builds that include full size mATX motherboards.

 

[Bubba]

what would be the point if the motherboard wouldn't even seat in the case?

Buy a mATX that fits inside the case. Problem solved.
There are plenty of mATX boards that are less than full size.
There is no need for a full size mATX if a reduced size mATX satisfies all requirements.

 

[juztme]

I already have 2x Asrock Rack x470d4u motherboards - I don't believe I've seen a small mATX motherboards that support IPMI or has multiple NVME slots.
That's part of one of the issues I'm trying to resolve - when a hardware issue occurs, I don't want to drag a monitor out just to get to the console / bios.
I'd rather not use vPRO either.

 

[juztme]

Small Compact Mini-ITX Micro-ATX uATX Chassis HTPC Case Enclosure w/ 150W PSU | eBay

(Supplied) with Power Cord Included. 12 X 10.37" Slim Profile Case -. Internal USB Flash Boot Device with Optional USB Header Cable. With Living Room Form Factor. For Living Room. Material: Light weight aluminum alloy and CRS.

www.ebay.com

Dimensions: (w x H x D) 12" x 2.5" x 10.375" It would seem it indeed fits micro ATX: https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/0RgAAOSwi8VZP4fo/s-l1600.jpg and this is quite possibly the smallest case you could find esp with an internal PSU.

Sibling: http://www.minicase.net/product_E-2007.html available at https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32945420179.html this one however seems to only support a shorter type of mini ATX -- maybe the one on eBay too?

Finally:

Nice - two of these suggestions are very close, but they don't have half-height PCIe slots. I was very excited until I noticed that.

 

[Bubba]

I already have 2x Asrock Rack x470d4u motherboards - I don't believe I've seen a small mATX motherboards that support IPMI or has multiple NVME slots.
That's part of one of the issues I'm trying to resolve - when a hardware issue occurs, I don't want to drag a monitor out just to get to the console / bios.
I'd rather not use vPRO either.

If you leave the case open (with exterior panels off), it appears your motherboard will fit.
As in these photos.

https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1BdrzbjzuK1Rjy0Fpq6yEpFXak.jpg

https://www.asrockrack.com/photo/X470D4U-2(L).jpg

There is another problem.
The three rear slots on the case, they do not line up with the three pci-e slots on the motherboard.
The bottom pci-e x16 slot might be un-usable.
If you are willing to do some metal work, you could cut the exterior front panel to allow the motherboard to stick out,
and cut a hole for the bottom pci-e x16 slot.