Discussion Suggestions of small ITX cases that could fit the Noctua NH-L12S?

billabong2606

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Jul 25, 2020
25
6
Hi guys! A recent SG13 builder here (it's my first build, and I built it at the start of last month), and due to temp issues, I decided to buy the Noctua NH-L12S as hands-down they're the best air-cooler for my use case thus far.

However, I'm now in the zone where I keep lurking in the sff community forums in here, reddit, etc and keep seeing other people's builds. Just a few days ago, I somehow fell in love with the SGPC K55 case, and after using a 3D modelling software to visualize the size of that case vs my SG13's, well, let's just say I couldn't fathom how small that case is compared to mine, which made me think that maybe in the next few months I could build in that case...

... Until I realized that my recent (expensive) purchase, the L12S, will not fit into the K55 ?. Which leads me to wonder about my future case upgrade (read: downsize) options. Could you guys suggest any cases that are smaller than the SG13 (11.2L) that could still fit the NH-L12S, or is there any list of SFF ITX cases in this forum which also lists the cooler height as well for me to look into? Or do you guys think I should just resell my cooler in the future and get a smaller one for those really, really small cases?

Thanks in advance for anyone that helps! :D
 

tasen

Caliper Novice
Apr 30, 2020
23
43
Also in the Raijintek Ophion
 
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ermac318

King of Cable Management
Mar 10, 2019
655
510
It fits in the Ghost S1 if you bend the heat pipes a little bit, until the L12 Ghost Edition people had been doing that for years.

It also fits in cases like the Sugo SG13 (with an SFX PSU, not ATX), Sliger Conswole, and it might (with bending) fit in the J-Hack PureXL.
 
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billabong2606

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Jul 25, 2020
25
6
It fits in the Ghost S1 if you bend the heat pipes a little bit, until the L12 Ghost Edition people had been doing that for years.

It also fits in cases like the Sugo SG13 (with an SFX PSU, not ATX), Sliger Conswole, and it might (with bending) fit in the J-Hack PureXL.

Thanks for the reply and the Ghost S1 suggestion! I actually saw a lot of build in that case using the NH-L12S and I know about the requirement to bend it, as well as the new L12S Ghost S1 Edition. However, Ghost S1 is too expensive for me (price + shipping) and I prefer not to bend my L12S simply because I'm a new builder and am paranoid of breaking anything haha.

And about that SG13, I am using it right now actually haha, just that I wanted to see what are my case upgrade/down-size options in the near future (few months, not years).
 

billabong2606

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Jul 25, 2020
25
6
What GPU are you using? Several small APU or LP GPU cases use the L12s as a standard.

I'm currently using the MSI RX 5700 Mech OC GPU. At first I was thinking of going with the K39 simply because of it's really small size, and the Velka 3 case is pretty much a unicorn. But then down-sizing to the K39 requires me to get a new GPU, CPU cooler, and Flex ATX PSU. This is why I decided the K55 to be the next best thing compared to my current SG13 because it's smaller than the SG13 and the Ghost S1, and priced really well for my budget.