NCASE M1: a crowdfunded Mini-ITX case

[Subyman]

It's 50% wider than a Dell 660S ITX

The Dell uses a Nvidia GT620... A 680 is ~4.1 inches wide, wider than the entire Dell computer. Obviously this case is for enthusiasts, not a dorm computer.

 

[IlllI]

guys please stop trying to make him understand. it was obvious from his first comment that this case was not for him. if he uses a dell 660s as a comparison, then that should speak for itself.

 

[Throckmorton]

guys please stop trying to make him understand. it was obvious from his first comment that this case was not for him. if he uses a dell 660s as a comparison, then that should speak for itself.

Right, a real compact case. ITX is pointless if you put it in a giant case. I have an mATX cube case that is barely any bigger than this. With one more PCIE slot bay, the M1 would be big enough for mATX. I get it, the "OMGZ OVERCLOCKZ WATERCOOLZ NEONS" crowd doesn't care about size or weight. So why are they bothering with ITX in the first place?

 

[ElFenix]

yeah m3a2 was nice as well, but got discontinued unfortunately. see post http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039981895&postcount=570

Dangit.

 

[ElFenix]

Right, a real compact case. ITX is pointless if you put it in a giant case. I have an mATX cube case that is barely any bigger than this. With one more PCIE slot bay, the M1 would be big enough for mATX. I get it, the "OMGZ OVERCLOCKZ WATERCOOLZ NEONS" crowd doesn't care about size or weight. So why are they bothering with ITX in the first place?

Quit crapping the thread. You've made your point, you don't like cubes.

AT Moderator ElFenix

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Right, a real compact case. ITX is pointless if you put it in a giant case. I have an mATX cube case that is barely any bigger than this. With one more PCIE slot bay, the M1 would be big enough for mATX. I get it, the "OMGZ OVERCLOCKZ WATERCOOLZ NEONS" crowd doesn't care about size or weight. So why are they bothering with ITX in the first place?

People might mod it to fit mATX, kinda like the Prodigy.

You do realize this is a BOUTIQUE case, like the CL's mITX case which is huge.

 

[IlllI]

modding for matx might be a little difficult. there was a question about making it 20mm larger to accommodate them (post #33561) http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1717132&page=179 but from the reply necere gave, even with an extra 20mm it would not be able to fit matx. so that leads me to believe in the current state, internally it would be too small even if you stripped everything out on the inside.

edit: those interested in m3a2, there was mention he might selling the spare parts as kits http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039982842&postcount=579
if that doesn't pan out, there is another person working on a similar design http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156077 here are some pics of the prototype:
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2530291&postcount=72

 

[SithSolo1]

modding for matx might be a little difficult. there was a question about making it 20mm larger to accommodate them (post #33561) http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1717132&page=179 but from the reply necere gave, even with an extra 20mm it would not be able to fit matx. so that leads me to believe in the current state, internally it would be too small even if you stripped everything out on the inside.

edit: those interested in m3a2, there was mention he might selling the spare parts as kits http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039982842&postcount=579
if that doesn't pan out, there is another person working on a similar design http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156077 here are some pics of the prototype:
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2530291&postcount=72

There are several smaller mATX boards(basicly DTX size) that may fit the case. I ran the the numbers by Necere and he said that in theory the boards should fit without modding, ***HOWEVER*** we are talking sub-millimeter tolerances assuming the stated dimensions of the boards are spot on.

The two most recent boards discussed were the MSI H85M-E33 and H85M-P33. The biggest advantage of using one of these boards is the 2nd PCIE x1 slot for an add-in card.

 

[IlllI]

oh yeah i forgot about those 2. i was thinking if someone wanted to squeeze matx in there it would be to run dual gpu setup. and if they wanted that they'd probably also want to o/c as well. those 2 msi boards don't really seem geared towards that. kind of why i didn't really think of dtx as a viable option at the moment either. slipped my mind someone might want to use that other pcie for something other than an extra video card

 

[Wreckem]

People might mod it to fit mATX, kinda like the Prodigy.

You do realize this is a BOUTIQUE case, like the CL's mITX case which is huge.

In its current form theres no possible way to mod it to fit a full size matx board. It is to small to physically fit it. Theres slim chance a narrower non spec matx board could fit but all those are fairly low end.

 

[extide]

Right, a real compact case. ITX is pointless if you put it in a giant case. I have an mATX cube case that is barely any bigger than this. With one more PCIE slot bay, the M1 would be big enough for mATX. I get it, the "OMGZ OVERCLOCKZ WATERCOOLZ NEONS" crowd doesn't care about size or weight. So why are they bothering with ITX in the first place?

What mATX case do you have that is barely any bigger than this case? Does it allow for full size video cards? I think you are just confused by the picture, maybe it looks bigger than it really is...

 

[z28dreams]

This case looks confused to me. Why focus on a small mini-itx form factor and then make room for 6 drive bays?

My dream case for mini-ITX or very small microATX would meet these requirements:

- can fit (1) 2.5" drive and (1) 2.5 or 3.5" drive (flexible)
- no optical drive
- can fit a full sized PSU (saves costs on a fancy one)
- just tall enough to fit an 80mm exhaust fan with a vent to the cpu (40-60mm fans are too noisy)
- USB 3.0 ports on the front
- room for at least one expansion port (for a good video card)

Why is this so hard to come by?

 

[dave_the_nerd]

This case looks confused to me. Why focus on a small mini-itx form factor and then make room for 6 drive bays?

Watercooling capacity, mostly.

My dream case for mini-ITX or very small microATX would meet these requirements:

- can fit (1) 2.5" drive and (1) 2.5 or 3.5" drive (flexible)
- no optical drive
- can fit a full sized PSU (saves costs on a fancy one)
- just tall enough to fit an 80mm exhaust fan with a vent to the cpu (40-60mm fans are too noisy)
- USB 3.0 ports on the front
- room for at least one expansion port (for a good video card)

Why is this so hard to come by?

What you're describing is a Silverstone SG05, if you mod it to accept a full-size ATX PSU. (Which usually precludes installing an ODD.)

 

[Wreckem]

This case looks confused to me. Why focus on a small mini-itx form factor and then make room for 6 drive bays?

My dream case for mini-ITX or very small microATX would meet these requirements:

- can fit (1) 2.5" drive and (1) 2.5 or 3.5" drive (flexible)
- no optical drive
- can fit a full sized PSU (saves costs on a fancy one)
- just tall enough to fit an 80mm exhaust fan with a vent to the cpu (40-60mm fans are too noisy)
- USB 3.0 ports on the front
- room for at least one expansion port (for a good video card)

Why is this so hard to come by?

Its not confused, its just not a one config case.

It can hold up to 3 3.5" and 4 2.5" drives but those configs sacrifice other options. You can have 2 3.5 HDDs or a 2x120mm radiator. You can have 2 SSDs in the front or an optical drive. You can have a 3.5/2.5 in the bottom or a 120mm fan. The case allows for multiple different configs. It also allows for fairly large selection of decently size air coolers or different types of water cooling.

The biggest reason for allowing a wide array of configs is the need to get to the required minimum order of 300. The other big reason is it is a high performance mitx case. Its a niche product. Not everyone likes it but it most certainly has its place and will do quite well so long as they get a few kicks/decisions worked out.

A good looking and small mitx case that can hold 8-10 3.5 hdds(with adequate cooling) has its place as well. But sadly that would be even more niche.

 

[Loafers]

$160-$200

No thanks

 

[Skott]

$160-$200

No thanks

Yep. This isnt your normal itx case. Its a enthusiast supported case and getting it made isnt cheap. Its designed to fill a certain niche market of users. Since its not being massed produced like other cases the cost is higher. Planned to be a single run production although a second isnt entirely out of the question they say. Only serious enthusiasts with some deeper pockets will be interested in this case I'm thinking.

 

[Subyman]

$160-$200 seems fine to me. I dropped ~$300 on a Case Labs Mercury S3, which is also an ITX case although it is rather large (fits 2x240mm coolers, ATX PSU, etc.)

Hope these guys are making progress. I haven't heard much in a month or so since they got the prototype. I'm thinking of moving out of my Case Labs case and into something smaller. I went from an 800D to the Case Labs but after loading it with water cooling the S3 weighs over 30lbs... Kind of defeats the purpose of me building it haha.

 

[SithSolo1]

They are close to starting the production campaign. The 2nd prototype came in about 2 weeks ago and had some issues. They are submitting the files for a 3rd prototype and plan to start the campaign while it is in transit to them.

Last I saw it will be laser cut(NCT cutting on the 2nd proto left panel gaps) and will come in Silver(i.e completely unpainted inside and out), Black w/ unpainted interior, Black(Fully painted in and out) at 3 different price tiers. Now this could change once the campaign goes live.

Edit :Recent Updates

Render next to a Prodigy:
http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040014056&postcount=3666

Cutting issue on 2nd Proto:
http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040043433&postcount=3856

Tentative Price breakdown:
http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040048249&postcount=3928

Slight I/O panel issue:
http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040048568&postcount=3944

External Reservoir adjustment/Mini Update:
http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1040061780&postcount=4044

 

[tviceman]

If the Silverstone SG09 wasn't so ugly in the front, it'd have this case beat hands down in all regards (especially price) except for being slightly larger to fit SLI configurations. I hope Silverstone announces an update or an all new SG09 this fall/winter because it's the perfect size/feature case for me.

 

[SithSolo1]

Umm, they have already released it. Its called the SG10
http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=392

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163237

The SG09/SG10 is not slightly larger, its 82.5% larger by volume(about 10.4L). Its a completely different class of case.

 

[Wreckem]

If the Silverstone SG09 wasn't so ugly in the front, it'd have this case beat hands down in all regards (especially price) except for being slightly larger to fit SLI configurations. I hope Silverstone announces an update or an all new SG09 this fall/winter because it's the perfect size/feature case for me.

The SG09/SG10 are substantially larger. They are almost the size of the Prodigy in terms of internal dimensions. The Ncase M1 is actually SMALLER than the SG07/08 in terms of internal dimensions/volume.

 

[tviceman]

Umm, they have already released it. Its called the SG10
http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=392

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163237

Thanks, my mind has just been blown!

 

[IlllI]

according to Necere preorders will be sometime this month. i'll update the topic once that happens, if anyone is interested. this will be a limited run, and no guarantees they'll ever make any more in the future. i've never read them speak of any future plans after this but maybe if it does better than expected.. who knows

 

[wb182]

I think if it does better than expected, there's the possibility of Lian Li turning it into one of their offered cases. I could be wrong though, so I'm jumping on the Indiegogo production campaign as soon as it opens.

 

[Skott]

Well Necere once said they might if it went well and they (he and wahaa felt like doing it again. So its more of a possible maybe at best.