Looking for smallest Full ATX case

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:18 am

I was wondering if anyone knows of a FULL ATX case that is only the size of the ATX motherboard itself. mabey with like the PSU positioned over the motherboard instead of next to it (above it when positioned virtically) like in a normal ATX case. Or with the PSU mounted somewhere else in the case like the front of the case.

Just somthing that will be the absolute smallest you can make an enclosure that a full size atx motherboard will fit into

IsaacKuo · Post by **IsaacKuo** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:35 am

I don't think anyone makes such a thing. I have a couple mini-tower cases which come close to what you're talking about, but they're both longer than what you want, to give some space for 5.25" drives.

I think the most compact plausible layout would be one like you're thinking about, except taller by the height of a 5.25" drive. The 5.25" drive would fit right above the top edge of the motherboard. Right underneath the 5.25" drive is the motherboard and the PSU--no space for tall CPU heatsink.

This more or less leaves only one place for the 3.5" drive--vertically against the front of the case.

winguy · Post by **winguy** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:04 am

Such cases are rare and expensive.

http://www.abee.co.jp/Product/AS_Enclos ... ture4.html

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:05 am

isaac? you got links to mini-tower cases you have that you mentioned? i just want to look to see if its close enough

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:10 am

winguy: wow, thats awsome. they put the PSU above the last few slots (the ones most people never use anymore now a days) on the motherboard, and reversed the motherboard so that the GPU's face up, and it looks like it uses 120mm fans for intake and exhaust. It even appears they use a duct on the outside of the PSU to block sound from getting out.

that case is awsome. any clue who makes it and if you can get it in the USA?

EDIT:

http://www.akihabaranews.com/en/news-10 ... +case.html

found another site in english with more pictures. even better, IT COMES IN BLACK! this thing looks awsome. It appears it was constructed to be a quiet case. soft rubber feet, baffle on psu exhaust, reversed mobo tray, no direct line of sight for any of the fans to the outside of the case (except the rear exhaust), 2x 120mm fans for intake and exhaust, both right in line with each other.

the only bad thing i can see is it appears the video cards dont get much airflow from the case fans. unless of course those vents on the side panel are for 2x more case fans.

Ackelind · Post by **Ackelind** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:22 am

Lian Li PC-G50 is only 381mm high and positions the PSU above the CPU (which causes a very narrow limit for the height of the CPU cooler).

autoboy · Post by **autoboy** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:45 am

the only bad thing i can see is it appears the video cards dont get much airflow from the case fans. unless of course those vents on the side panel are for 2x more case fans.

The power supply would pull the heat from the video card.

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:50 am

Ackelind wrote:Lian Li PC-G50 is only 381mm high and positions the PSU above the CPU (which causes a very narrow limit for the height of the CPU cooler).

its 100mm deeper than that one from abee, but i cant seem to find anywhere that sells the abee case. so this Lian Li seems to be the best thing so far.

dfrost · Post by **dfrost** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:46 pm

The iCute Coolive is a very small full ATX case (160mm x 485mm x 355 mm) with a cleverly located PSU (lower front) and huge fan. Don't know about it's availaibility, or how quiet that fan will be. Interesting idea, however.

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Thu Aug 03, 2006 7:54 am

dfrost wrote:The iCute Coolive is a very small full ATX case (160mm x 485mm x 355 mm) with a cleverly located PSU (lower front) and huge fan. Don't know about it's availaibility, or how quiet that fan will be. Interesting idea, however.

That actually looks really interesting. Id be interested to see how well that fan would work, and how quiet it is.

i did some searching and couldnt find it anywhere for sale though. Product number is: QH01-5G1-BB

anyone know where i can get one? saw a review on xioxide that said it only costs like $40, so even if it sucks its not that much money to waist.

dfrost · Post by **dfrost** » Thu Aug 03, 2006 2:29 pm

Looks like the iCute QH02 seriesshares that basic chassis with a variety of side cover/fan arrangements (and colors). Maybe looking for more then a specific part number would reveal more about availabililty. Also, that iCute website has a link to their distributors.

KuniD · Post by **KuniD** » Fri Aug 04, 2006 3:56 am

The Silverstone LC04 can hold an ATX mobo, although it uses risers for the graphics/PCI.

420 mm (W) x 115.5 mm (H) x 309.4 mm (D)

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article183-page1.html

http://www.silverstonetek.com/products-lc04.htm

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Fri Aug 04, 2006 4:12 am

dfrost wrote:Looks like the iCute QH02 seriesshares that basic chassis with a variety of side cover/fan arrangements (and colors). Maybe looking for more then a specific part number would reveal more about availabililty. Also, that iCute website has a link to their distributors.

I clicked on the distributors button and all that came up was a picture that says "WANTED: Be our partners? We want you!" it doesnt say anything about who actually sells their products anywhere.

Kunid: i dont want an HTPC or desktop style case.

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 12:42 pm

Hello,

Here's a review that includes the iCute case, that has the ATX PS mounted in the lower front of the case:

http://www.dansdata.com/bigfans.htm

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 2:27 pm

Another review of the Coolive, with good pictures:
http://www.guru3d.com/article/cases/335/2/

edit: another case

This is a very expensive but very small case. You might want to take a close look, for its feature set if not to buy:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811200031

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 5:46 pm

Hello,

That last one does look interesting -- there is even an intake on the bottom under the PS, so if you have a 120mm fanned unit, it would work in a unique way:

The exhaust from the PS would come out the left side through the vent...

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 5:36 am

I actually stumbled across that case myself about a week ago looking for a case for someone else in the thread labeled "P140".

I really like it. Its steel, its small, it has a 120mm exhaust.

I'd probably mod it a bit though. Put a piece of sheet metal over both sides and replace the front bezel with a piece of sheet metal. Then make my own cutouts for ventalation.

I'd change the PSU airflow a little bit. have cool air come in the bottom, and then exit out the front instead of the side. Also id make the top 2 5.25" bays into an intake vent to blow across suspended hard drives in those bays, then straight across to the CPU region and out the rear 120mm fan.

I posted a picture of what i mean in that P140 thread

Lithium0 · Post by **Lithium0** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 9:37 am

I recently came upon this... Asus TT-67

Its a beautiful case, I love it and it would be perfect for my webserver computer. Its very thin (about 5.5"), and claims to be able to house a full ATX board. Only downside for me is that it also only has room for 1x 3.5" drive, but I could work around that.

Problem is, googling it returns next to nothing. Just a few japanese sites and that's it. I don't think I've ever seen google so stumped before

So I guess I'll have to look elsewhere...

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 11:06 am

Lithium0 wrote:I recently came upon this... Asus TT-67

Its a beautiful case, I love it and it would be perfect for my webserver computer. Its very thin (about 5.5"), and claims to be able to house a full ATX board. Only downside for me is that it also only has room for 1x 3.5" drive, but I could work around that.

Problem is, googling it returns next to nothing. Just a few japanese sites and that's it. I don't think I've ever seen google so stumped before

So I guess I'll have to look elsewhere...

i cant really tell if your suggesting that for me, or if your just posting in my thread trying to convince yourself its a good case for you.

first off its too thin. i want to put a ninja in it and i wouldnt be able to in that. Also im not too fond of the "and if you put it on its side its a desktop case" concept.

GamingGod · Post by **GamingGod** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 8:07 pm

Anyone ever have luck finding the Icute QH02 series for sale? I found the JUSTPC r310 at newegg.com, but now that Ive seen the Icute with the 250mm fan I like it better, but I cant find them for sale on the internet anywhere!

[F]bernZ · Post by **[F]bernZ** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 9:15 pm

You might want to look into the Lian Li A05B.

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:55 am

GamingGod wrote:Anyone ever have luck finding the Icute QH02 series for sale? I found the JUSTPC r310 at newegg.com, but now that Ive seen the Icute with the 250mm fan I like it better, but I cant find them for sale on the internet anywhere!

The Icute, with its big fan and odd lower-front PSU location, appears at numerous Brit locations under various names. Only Brit locations, though. Check Maplin for the Mesh ATX Case, made by Icute. Yep, same case, possibly different bezel.

edit: added Maplin case

klankymen · Post by **klankymen** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 9:23 am

I dont know if building from scratch is an option for you, but I too was looking for something real small to fit a ATX board and ninja, with only one 2.5" and one 5.25" drive.

I know you don't want desktop FF, but this is how my thoughts ran:
viewtopic.php?t=36398

I ended up scrapping the whole thing and buying a new ÂµATX motherboard with SI-120 and NSK-2400, but what the heck.

ryboto · Post by **ryboto** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 9:55 am

[F]bernZ wrote:You might want to look into the Lian Li A05B.

i second that! I may be biased..because I own it, but it's a very small atx case, puts the psu up front, very clean stylings too. It's probably much more expensive than the others might be, but if you're having a hard time finding others, why not check it out! Follow the link in my sig if you wanna see more of it.

GamingGod · Post by **GamingGod** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:56 pm

Is there any place that sells specifically the QH02 as seen here http://www.icute.com.tw/english/Article ... icleID=323
It doesnt seem as ugly as the other cases, and lian li's look too bland for me.

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 7:20 pm

GamingGod wrote:Is there any place that sells specifically the QH02 as seen here http://www.icute.com.tw/english/Article ... icleID=323

After 5 minutes, that site still hadn't loaded. But Maplin in the UK sells the same case except (probably) for the bezel. No sources in the US of A that I know of. You know, of course, that the Icute case places the PSU at the front bottom of the case? Repeat, front bottom?

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 2:53 pm

GamingGod wrote:Is there any place that sells specifically the QH02 as seen here http://www.icute.com.tw/english/Article ... icleID=323
It doesnt seem as ugly as the other cases, and lian li's look too bland for me.

It's available in Oz here.

kaange · Post by **kaange** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:48 am

GamingGod wrote:Anyone ever have luck finding the Icute QH02 series for sale?I cant find them for sale on the internet anywhere!

They're easily available down here.

DG · Post by DG » Wed Mar 28, 2007 2:45 am

Lian Li A05. The one and only.

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:20 am

Hello,

It's too bad the Lian Li doesn't have a bottom grill for a 120mm fanned unit.