Production Velka series cases for ultra compact and portable desktops

rapidshrub

Trash Compacter
Jun 3, 2019
42
48
what motherboard do you have that lets you use the BR with no riser? just curious
Gigabyte Aorus B450i. I briefly commented on the fitment in the HSLP-48 thread. The heatpipes just touch the backplate on the EVGA 2080 which has a lower profile backplate. With my Gigabyte Vega 64 the heatpipes actually push against the backplate so much so that it takes a little force to line up the card so it can be screwed in. I wouldn't install an expansion card without a backplate since the heatpipes could still possibly touch the back of the card.
 

rapidshrub

Trash Compacter
Jun 3, 2019
42
48
Got a little time to play with the case before heading out. The Black Ridge and the Wraith Stealth (shroud removed) both fit the VK-5.


On another note. I bought MX-4 (what I'm currently blaming) to save some money and after 2-3 weeks of light use the CPU was welded to the heatsink and they came off together. 10 years of building PC's and I've never had this happen. It scared the hell out of me when it popped off!

 
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QuantumBraced

Master of Cramming
Mar 9, 2017
507
358
Hm I'm not a fan of the new ventilated bottom. Before you could flip the case over and have a clean top if you didn't want to use the exhaust fans. Now, if you flip the case over you get an ugly view of the PSU bottom. I don't understand why it's needed, it's blocked off by the PSU anyway, it won't improve airflow.
 

VELKASE Michael

King of Cable Management
Original poster
VELKASE
Gold Supporter
Oct 7, 2018
742
913
Hm I'm not a fan of the new ventilated bottom. Before you could flip the case over and have a clean top if you didn't want to use the exhaust fans. Now, if you flip the case over you get an ugly view of the PSU bottom. I don't understand why it's needed, it's blocked off by the PSU anyway, it won't improve airflow.

It reduces the weight of the case, which allows accessories such as the rear single slot cover to be included for free by default. Even without the honeycomb cutouts, there would be gaps in the corners, Flex ATX vent misaligned with the side panel vents, cables visible through said vent, and slots for HDPLEX 400W HiFi DC-ATX if it will be supported in the future.
 

OvoFox11

Case Bender
Aug 11, 2019
2
0
I am using a VK-3 with ASRock X570 ITX/TB3 motherboard. The only NVMe slot is on the back of the motherboard. A M.2 drive mounted there will be sandwiched between the motherboard and the GPU riser cable with no air flow and no room for a heat sink.

If you want to use that slot (I had to since it was my only one), use an M.2 extension cable. I used
NGFF M.2 PCIe M-Key Extension Card with 20 CM Cable, part number M2-1442-EXT
(search for the part number, several places sell them)

I used it and put my M.2 drive and heat sink on top of the PSU. There is also plenty of room for it above the graphics card.

I was considering buying the ASRock Fatal1ty B450 board, which has the same slot setup, with an M.2 MX500 to use in the Velka 5. I haven't bought either of them yet; should I use a 2.5" SSD and deal with the added cables or buy a different more expensive motherboard?
 

sid21177

Cable-Tie Ninja
Mar 19, 2019
170
27
No, it is actually part of the same batch as the current, just shipped in two parts.

1 observation on the manual - if we use a M3 thumbscrew on the 4th M/B standoff then it requires 5 total if the backing plate is used while the case comes with 4
1 M/B + 2 plate + 2 riser = 5

You might want to reword that section to use a standoff mandatory if planning to use the plate
 
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VELKASE Michael

King of Cable Management
Original poster
VELKASE
Gold Supporter
Oct 7, 2018
742
913
1 observation on the manual - if we use a M3 thumbscrew on the 4th M/B standoff then it requires 5 total if the backing plate is used while the case comes with 4
1 M/B + 2 plate + 2 riser = 5

You might want to reword that section to use a standoff mandatory if planning to use the plate

Thanks for catching that!
 

The_Mad_Madman

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Aug 5, 2019
108
18
I am using a VK-3 with ASRock X570 ITX/TB3 motherboard. The only NVMe slot is on the back of the motherboard. A M.2 drive mounted there will be sandwiched between the motherboard and the GPU riser cable with no air flow and no room for a heat sink.

If you want to use that slot (I had to since it was my only one), use an M.2 extension cable. I used
NGFF M.2 PCIe M-Key Extension Card with 20 CM Cable, part number M2-1442-EXT
(search for the part number, several places sell them)

I used it and put my M.2 drive and heat sink on top of the PSU. There is also plenty of room for it above the graphics card.

Do you know if any of these would need that cable? I'd like a mobo that just lets me insert the M.2 ssd without more spending.

Gigabyte B450I Aorus
Asrock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming
ASUS ROG Strix B450-I Gaming
ASUS ROG Strix X470-I Gaming
 

rfarmer

Spatial Philosopher
Jul 7, 2017
2,588
2,701
Do you know if any of these would need that cable? I'd like a mobo that just lets me insert the M.2 ssd without more spending.

Gigabyte B450I Aorus
Asrock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming
ASUS ROG Strix B450-I Gaming
ASUS ROG Strix X470-I Gaming
Both of the Asus boards have front and rear M.2 slots. The front supports both SATA and PCI 3.0 x 4 and the rear slot is PCI 3.0 x 4 only. The rear slot also shares PCI lanes with the graphics card so you only get PCI 3.0 x 8.
 

The_Mad_Madman

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Aug 5, 2019
108
18
Both of the Asus boards have front and rear M.2 slots. The front supports both SATA and PCI 3.0 x 4 and the rear slot is PCI 3.0 x 4 only. The rear slot also shares PCI lanes with the graphics card so you only get PCI 3.0 x 8.
I don't want to sound like an idiot but I don't really know what you just explained. Would I have issues installing an M.2 SSD and a Vega56 on that setup?
 

AlanHolk

Case Bender
New User
Jun 5, 2019
2
3
I don't want to sound like an idiot but I don't really know what you just explained. Would I have issues installing an M.2 SSD and a Vega56 on that setup?
My comment about using a M.2 extension cable was for people wanting to use the VK3 case with a motherboard that has the M.2 slot on the back of the motherboard. You do not need the extension cable to use the M.2 slot on the front of the motherboard.

rfarmer was replying about the motherboards you asked about, letting you know which had front M.2 slots.
 
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The_Mad_Madman

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Aug 5, 2019
108
18
My comment about using a M.2 extension cable was for people wanting to use the VK3 case with a motherboard that has the M.2 slot on the back of the motherboard. You do not need the extension cable to use the M.2 slot on the front of the motherboard.

rfarmer was replying about the motherboards you asked about, letting you know which had front M.2 slots.

Yep - I'm tossing up as to whether I should get the Gigabyte B450 or the MSI, given the MSI B450 has the M2 on the back

Oh well, I'm actually asking considering a VK-5, so there would not be the same issues right?
 

VELKASE Michael

King of Cable Management
Original poster
VELKASE
Gold Supporter
Oct 7, 2018
742
913
Oh well, I'm actually asking considering a VK-5, so there would not be the same issues right?

Rear side M.2 thermals will be largely the same on the VK-5. There is 2 mm extra clearance compared to the VK-3, however this is not enough to mount a heatsink.

The M.2 heat issue can be avoided altogether by using a front mounted M.2 drive on a motherboard that supports it, such as the Gigabyte B450I Aorus, ASUS ROG Strix B450-I Gaming, ASUS ROG Strix X470-I Gaming motherboards you mentioned earlier. It is actually possible to visually tell whether a motherboard has an M.2 slot on the front or not. #14 on this diagram is where the M.2 is mounted on the Gigabyte B450I Aorus.

Also, you probably will not need to worry about M.2 drive temperatures unless if you want to use one that runs at NVME speeds.

 

AZengus

Cable Smoosher
Aug 5, 2019
9
2
Unbelievably frustrated right now - I'm using a FSP400-60FGGBA flex ATX for the PSU and it turns out one of the corner notches on the 8-pin is square instead of notched - it won't connect to my 2060 mini. I was led to believe this unit would be compatible, has anyone encountered this problem?

Edit: Found my answer, this appears to be an EPS connector. I'll have to return this and look for a proper compatible unit; the wait continues...
 
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