SPCR

After some research, I have assembled the following:

CASE - cooler master elite 100 - 262 x 69.6 x 318 mm
PSU - stock case 150W PSU with fan replaced with Scythe Mini-Kaze Ultra 40mm
MOTHERBOARD - Asus Maximus V Gene 1155 uATX
CPU - i5-3570K overclocked
RAM - 8Gb 2400Mhz GSkill Trident with all cooling plates removed
CPU FAN - Scythe Big Shuriken 2 Rev. B CPU Cooler 58mm high - smashed lower

Modifications to Fit into Case:
RAM - removed red aluminium cooling fins and then used hair-dryer and screwdriver to pry off the black aluminium heat-sink
CPU FAN - used hammer to squash the 58mm cooler down to 48mm
PSU - replaced noisy stock fan with Scythe Mini-Kaze Ultra fitted externally to PSU

Noise = I dont have any measuring equipment, however I cannot hear the PC with the unit open on the desk 2 feet away.

sml wrote:CPU FAN - used hammer to squash the 58mm cooler down to 48mm[/img]

That just made my day

frenchie wrote:

sml wrote:CPU FAN - used hammer to squash the 58mm cooler down to 48mm[/img]

That just made my day

it worked really easily. here is the process:

a) remove fan
b) place clean cardboard on each side ... ie over the CPU heatsink and the cooling fins
c) over the cardboard, place small piece of timber on each side to distribute the force
d) place down on a bench with the CPU heatsink pointing upwards
e) smash CPU heatsink with hammer one side at a time - the copper pipes are quite thick so it took about 40 taps with a reasonably firm hit with a heavy hammer - just tap each corner until it is level and down to the desired height

btw .. here are a few measurements for anyone googling in years to come ...

stock intel i5-3570k CPU cooler = 45mm (found another forum and someone said 47mm but i measured 45mm - either way pretty close).

cooler master elite 100 clearance for fan cooler with maximus v gene (probably same as many other motherboards) = 45mm stock cooler + 9mm clearance on top = 54mm in total ... ie from top of CPU to case lid = 54mm (so I squashed the scythe from 58mm down to fit).