Ultimate OSMI

[fminus]

I have vacation this week, so I decided to give myself a project to work on. I purchased an Osmi last week, so it should be arriving some time this week. A major problem that people had were issues with heat and poor air circulation. I hope to remedy this in my build by omitting the SFX Psu and replacing it with an HDPLEX 250W. This will clear up space, allow me to use a larger CPU cooler if necessary.

My current parts are:

• Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor - Disabled IGP
• Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard
  
• Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory
  
• Samsung 850 EVO 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive

Current TDP: 115W

I am undecided on which CPU cooler to use. Currently I have a Noctua NH-L9i w./ a 92x92x25mm fan w./ LNA attached. I also have a NH-DNL. i do not know which would be better for air flow. I think a top down cooler would work better as the air would be pushed down and out through the sides with the top fan working as an exhaust.

ToDo:

• Cable management is crucial. Since the HDPlex is not a standard PSU I was having trouble finding a vendor sell me a custom length cable. I did find a guy who will sell me the wires pre crimped so I will build one myself. Same with the 8 pin to 4pin eps connector.
• Threading all cables with MDPC-X "Italian Red"
  
• Keeping cables organized along the edges with MDPC cable management clips. Pretty nifty things. Didn't know they existed
• Location of PSU. It's 15cm in length, so it will run horizontal along the side where the 3.5 drive would have gone
• Replace top 140mm with Noctua + LNA. Would like a black one to match color scheme, and my only options are the Linus Tech Tip fan :/ If someone has an alternative to this that is 19dB or less please chime in.
• GPU! I have a few options here. I can get a 970 and underclock it to 105w..but I get an ugly pin connector sticking out. My other option is to wait for the 75W RX460 4GB to come out end of July. Or get the GTX950 2GB.
• Figure out what to do with that gaping hole where the SFX would have gone. Was thinking of getting a vented 3D rectangle to fill the spot.
• HDPlex doesn't really match the color scheme..would like to color it..don't know if it's possible.
• Where to route the Power supply cable to? Maybe have it stick out one of the vents in the back.
• Contemplating wiring the wifi/bluetooth antennas internally...but that's purely cosmetic and low priority.

Pics coming this week or so! Just wanted to hear everyones thoughts and opinions before I started.

 

[Phuncz]

I'm looking forward to an Osmi-case build, it's an interesting case !

For the GPU, I would wait, if possible, to see what AMD and Nvidia have in store for us. July is probably going to be an important month for the 75W TDP GPUs.

 

[fminus]

Thanks Phuncz! What would you reccomend as a cooler? A top down one, that pushes air down and around or a tower one...which will just push air straight out to the exhaust fan...at the expense of taking up more room?

 

[Phuncz]

Cooler-wise, I'd probably not have the best advice for you, I hope someone else can chime in on that.

 

[Soul_Est]

Given that no current tower-style heatsink can fit in that space, your only options are the Noctua NH-C14S (fan mounted below), the Phanteks PH-TC14CS (fan mounted below), and either the Thermalright AXP-100 Muscle or AXP-200 Muscle (with either a Noctua or Phanteks fan). Those options should give you the best cooling capacity and hopefully help cool the HDPLEX as well.

 

[fminus]

Why can't the NH-D9L fit? It's only 110mm high

 

[Soul_Est]

Why can't the NH-D9L fit? It's only 110mm high

Yes it does. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[Josh | NFC]

fminus, get back to work so we can see your project!!!


Hey Soul_Est, don't forget my favorite PSU name...SPARKLE

 

[fminus]

fminus, get back to work so we can see your project!!!

Just waiting on parts. Everything was ordered on the same day last week..shipped to Sweden.

HDPLEX. Shipped from USA ....arrived
DELL 240W Brick. Shipepd from UK...arrived
Osmi Case....yeah still waiting on that one. Should arrive tomorrow or Friday.

Side note, they did some updates on their case which will save me some modding. They moved the Power Button and improved clearance from the motherboard to the top fan.

 

[Soul_Est]

fminus, get back to work so we can see your project!!!


Hey Soul_Est, don't forget my favorite PSU name...SPARKLE

Yeah, don't need no 'spark'ling PSU.

 

[fminus]

And here are some updated pics!

Now let me just say...this case was a nightmare to build with. If you enjoy building sffpc, stay away from this case! Any hopes or dreams you might have had for a build, toss them out the window. Simply replacing the bequiet fan on the top (Was Pure wings...wanted Silent Wings with PWM) took well over an hour with how they screwed the fan in. Also, the case is so precise with measurement, that only the BeQuiet fans will fit.

So as you can see, I screwed an HDPLex onto the side. The case is made of a thin aluminum inner shell that is easy to drill through. On that note, since it is so slim screw holes get warped after a few uses. Yay for that.

Originally the cooler was supposed to be a Noctual DH-9L, which does it...without the HDplex. The PSU cables were getting in the way of properly aligning the cooler on. I was going to take more photos, but realized I needed to disassemble the entire thing AGAIN. Ended up throwing a Noctua L9I instead.

As for graphics card..I used a passive Nvidia 710ti until the RX 460 comes out. This machine is used as a hackintosh for work and light gaming.

Things to do:
- Fill the space where the SFX Psu went. The guys at thelaserhive will be making me a honeycombed mesh to cover this spot with a mounting hole for the DC Power supply.
- Add a 2.5 drive for windows. At this point in the build...48hrs later...I just wanted it done. Ill prolly take a crack at it again when I have the new video card/SFXplate

Nice looking case! Dead silent at the moment. Side note, the company I ordered it from HG Computers is HORRIBLE with customer service, answering emails and shipping the product. I was told it was shipped one day and after a week when it should have arrived i gave them a call asking for the tracking number. I was told the shipping department was on holiday and they didnt have access to that. The following week, I was told there was an error and it would be shipped. Never got an email confirming. Called and was told it was shipped. Gave me a tracking number...didn't end up being shipped till a few days after. Just a bad bad company ...I could go on forevor. Nice case...bad people working there.

If anyone has any questions regarding the build feel free to ask!

 

[Josh | NFC]

Cool project...more photos please ;D

 

[tomternal]

I was going back and forth about a build in the Osmi or the NFC S4 Mini. I sent HG an email asking about estimated shipping/lead times on the Osmi. I never got a response from them about my questions. Its a cool case but I was leaning towards the S4 anyways andthat really sealed the deal. So now im waiting for S4 mini stock to be available. Sorry you had to deal with their poor service but thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[Phuncz]

It seems to have been designed to "specifically" for its intended hardware, making future-proofing very difficult. I hope this turns out OK, I wouldn't personally like this amount of millimeter Tetris'ing.

 

[iFreilicht]

Very nice, but it's a real shame that you can't fit the DH-9L.

Side note, the company I ordered it from HG Computers is HORRIBLE with customer service

Yes, I've seen that, too. A lot of people on [H] were coming to the thread the OSMI was discussed on after not getting any answers from the mails, and their "community manager" sometimes replied afterwards, apologising and clearing things up, but even that took time.

Now let me just say...this case was a nightmare to build with

Yeah the single-sheet design of the frame doesn't lend itself well to a normal builder or modder.

Also, the case is so precise with measurement, that only the BeQuiet fans will fit.

Not only that, most GPUs won't fit properly either with the sliding mount they designed for the case. It saves cost, but so many people had to file the case down or bend the PCIe tab, it's very clear that it has only been tested with a small amount of hardware.

It seems to have been designed to "specifically" for its intended hardware, making future-proofing very difficult. I hope this turns out OK, I wouldn't personally like this amount of millimeter Tetris'ing.

Which isn't surprising, as HG sells those cases with pre-built systems, and only started selling the cases on their own after the community asked them to. Those cases were clearly designed by a designer, not an engineer.

I don't think they really make a lot of money, though. It seems like it's a side-project from a few people that maybe gets a larger order from some company now and then, maybe not even that. It's really a shame as the OSMI had potential and people put up with all those shenanigans just because they wanted the case so much, but apparently the folks at HG have enough money already.

 

[EdZ]

It very much seems that HG designed the case purely for their own pre-builds, and put the absolute minimum effort into providing the case separately (literally "we will build extra cases and shop them to you, but that's it, you're on your own"). To be fair, that is exactly what they said they would do, and people's demand for the case (on the HardOCP forums at least, I don't know it it was discussed elsewhere too) was 'we don't care about support, we just want that case without components in it'.

 

[fminus]

Not only that, most GPUs won't fit properly either with the sliding mount they designed for the case. It saves cost, but so many people had to file the case down or bend the PCIe tab, it's very clear that it has only been tested with a small amount of hardware.

According to HG, they did a few changes on the case, here is a direct copy/paste from the email:

2. Changes: - fixed (hopefully) graphics card compatibility (I/O bracket problem)
- repositioned power button to improve CPU cooler clearance (not above
the PSU)
- Motherboard -> system fan clearance increased by 3mm
- redesigned back of the 'shell' to lock graphics card in place
- SSD holder improved/added.
- and few minute improvements not worth mentioning.

Now in regards to the I/O Brack problem, I am still having trouble loading in the GPU. No instructions were included..so I am just going to wait till I have time to look at it again. It seems tailored towards dual slot GPU's..and the one I am using at the moment is a single slot...which I think could be giving me some trouble.

Not only that, most GPUs won't fit properly either with the sliding mount they designed for the case. It saves cost, but so many people had to file the case down or bend the PCIe tab, it's very clear that it has only been tested with a small amount of hardware.

I wanted to add on to what I said before, by only allowing Bequiet fans. If you look at one of their fans...you can see that it's not completely square..around the corners where the screws are it angles in at 45degrees. That small angle is where the tabs are where the sides screw into the top. When you throw a Noctua fan on instead...it blocks the screw mounts and you cant get the sides on. Now, if you try to be smart and have the sides screwed on FIRST then put the fans on, good luck. The screw lengths are precise in length and diameter.

Very nice, but it's a real shame that you can't fit the DH-9L.

Yah, I am a bit bummed about that. I could have repositioned the HDPlex a third time, but I am too burned out from this case. Plus I would have to order yet some more custom atx psu cables, which I can't be bothered. If you look at the hardware, it's running at a very low TDP for the overall system. The gpu I end up throwing in there (RX 460) won't be over 75W...so oveheating wont happen, (I hope!). I also like how the inside looks cleaner with the L9i. With the BeQuiet Silent Wings + Noctua LNA this thing is dead silent. I would like to upgrade to the Silent Wings 3 when they come out next month or so...but I refuse to take this machine apart again.

a) Because it's too much work
b) I don't want to strip any more holes.

Ill post some more photos sometime later when I get the SFX backplate and new GPU. On a parting final note, the guy working at @hdplex is AMAZING with great customer service, and shipped out my parts super quick. I can't reccomend them enough. i ordered everything the same day...and with shipping from the USA to Sweden ...the hdplex came first in the mail...followed by the Osmi (Germany to Sweden) three weeks later.

 

[iFreilicht]

2. Changes: - fixed (hopefully) graphics card compatibility (I/O bracket problem)
- repositioned power button to improve CPU cooler clearance (not above
the PSU)
- Motherboard -> system fan clearance increased by 3mm
- redesigned back of the 'shell' to lock graphics card in place
- SSD holder improved/added.
- and few minute improvements not worth mentioning.

Ah, now that you say it, yours has the power button above the PSU. I'm glad they listened to the feedback they got on [H], maybe GPUs fit a bit more consistently now.

What does the mounting tab on your GPU look like? does it have a screw hole or and open ended slot? This case is designed for dual-slot GPUs as you said, and those normally have a slot instead of a hole on the right tab (left in this picture).

 

[OnlyOnly0613]

that only the BeQuiet fans will fit

I got Noctua fans to fit only if the rubber corners are taken off. Otherwise, only 3 of the 4 corners can be screwed on. Try take off all or just two of them, like mine... By the way, those Corsair ML140 is noisy even at lowest speed. FYI.

the company I ordered it from HG Computers is HORRIBLE with customer service

I agree but I would blame it on the manufacturer. As far as I know and probably for anyone who wants to deal with HG Computers...

Peter H is the owner, by assuming the payment address on his PayPal address when I purchase this case. He is responsive when I actually use FB Messenger as our communication channel. He usually replies within a day, and sometimes within minutes. No attitude. Good guy. He is located in Scotland. On the other hand, he chose the manufacture somewhere in Berlin, not local to him. To me, I felt like the Berlin personnel doesn't want to work with me when I have a situation that needs to be resolved. I have to jump through hoops, back to Peter, before I can get a reply from this "manufacturer" personnel. ARGH!!! It was frustruating...

most GPUs won't fit properly either with the sliding mount they designed for the case

I hope that's not the case. They revised the cutout by a good margin from the original design. I'm waiting for my 1070. They've also included a blank plate for anyone who doesn't plan to use a graphics card.

----

Anyways, this is mine...

 

[iFreilicht]

Looks good, was the base and shell made as a one-off for you by HGs manufacturer or did you get them someplace else?