Smallest *quiet* under $100 micro-atx case?

Enclosures and acoustic damping to help quiet them.

Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Devonavar

Post Reply
theMAGE
Posts: 30
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2005 8:28 am

Smallest *quiet* under $100 micro-atx case?

Post by theMAGE » Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:57 pm

I'm searching for something like Silverstone LC19, except at half price ;)

Most small micro-atx cases come with dingy little fans. I will use it for a small VIA board: http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS5305482907.html

Thanks!

jessekopelman
Posts: 1406
Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2007 7:28 pm
Location: USA

Post by jessekopelman » Sat Nov 10, 2007 9:55 pm

Does it have to be desktop orientation? The Antec 3480 is very small and can be made very very quiet (silent if you replace the PSU), but it's a tower case. Looking at the board in your link, understand that you will probably have to swap out the CPU heatsink if you are serious about making something approaching silent. I'd be more worried about that thing and its dinky fan before I started worrying about dinky case fans.

HueyCobra
Posts: 217
Joined: Tue Feb 14, 2006 12:16 am
Location: Australia

Post by HueyCobra » Sun Nov 11, 2007 4:56 am

I'm very interested in the In Win BK series/Mt. Jade BK623 for a future file server replacement. The BK is a tiny ~12,500cm³ (32.3×14.0×27.6cm), comparing to ~9,250cm³ for the Silverstone LC19, and impressively can fit 4 full-height expansion cards. Availability isn't particularly good but the BK costs under AU$100 (<US$95), compared to AU$250+ for the LC19. Seems like a good, cheap, very compact microATX case to me.

• In Win BK623 Mt. Jade mATX Case with 300W Power Supply
BigBruin wrote:While there may not be much to the BK623 in terms of physical size and bells-and-whistles, the price makes it quite appealing for those looking for a small, quiet, and attractive desktop or HTPC chassis. Considering the unique design, cooling performance, low noise operation, and competitive pricing, I award the In Win BK623 Mt. Jade ...
• In Win Mt. Jade BK623 Case Review
HardwareLogic wrote:Overall, we'd classify the collaboration between In Win and Intel resulting in the Mt. Jade chassis a success ... For under $70 shipped (street), you get a super space saving case that's not only flexible in its orientation (vertical or horizontal), but looks gorgeous to boot ... For those that put spacing efficiency as a priority, particularly HTPC aficionados, the Mt. Jade does a great job at balancing size, cooling, noise, and aesthetics.
• In Win BK623 Mt. Jade Tiny Tower Case Review
Legit Reviews wrote:The BK623 Mt. Jade is by far the smallest case I have ever used ... If you’re looking for your next LAN rig, you might want to look else where, besides only having only a 300w PSU there are no PCIe power connectors for a video card. If you’re looking for a small case for an HTPC or a space conserving desktop then this could be the case for you.
• In Win Mountain Jade HTPC Case Review
ThinkComputers wrote:I must say, though, that the focus on cooling is quite heavy for a case that won't see much overclocking or heavy use, at that ... I really would have liked to see a manual, too, even if it was a single piece of paper with warranty, contact information, or even some product information. Fortunately, the Mountain Jade has a price point of about $57 as of 15 August 2007. At that price, it's definitely a contender.
• IN WIN BK623 MT. JADE DESKTOP MEDIA CASE
Tweak News wrote:Aside from some minor problems, I found the case to be easy to build, with solid construction throughout ... The lack of fans initially left me a little leery of performance, but testing set me straight ... The only other problem I had was the lack of instructions ... All in all, a great case for the money, and one worth checking out.
• In Win Enclosure Roundup - Trio on Trial
TweakTown wrote:With no internal fans and a solid mounting carriage for the drives, there will be no noise from this enclosure beyond what your HSF and drives will produce. With careful selection of your components, you can have a nearly silent system. The price tag of this enclosure will also leave a smile on your face. Even with the included power supply, you can dig this case up for around $44US.

theMAGE
Posts: 30
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2005 8:28 am

Post by theMAGE » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:03 am

jessekopelman wrote:Does it have to be desktop orientation?

Not necessarily, as long as it would function well on a side.
jessekopelman wrote:The Antec 3480 is very small and can be made very very quiet (silent if you replace the PSU), but it's a tower case.
It is similar in size to Antec NSK-2400, which I like enough to have bought two (and both are in current use). I was shooting for something smaller.
jessekopelman wrote: Looking at the board in your link, understand that you will probably have to swap out the CPU heatsink if you are serious about making something approaching silent. I'd be more worried about that thing and its dinky fan before I started worrying about dinky case fans.
The board produces 7.5W. Replacing the heatsink with a PIII one will suffice, when coupled with the 12CM Antec Tri-Cool fan.

The two NSK's that I mentioned contain Intel PIII/1GHz with heatsinks only. The cooling is provided by a single Antec Tri-Cool fan, set at the lowest speed.

theMAGE
Posts: 30
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2005 8:28 am

Post by theMAGE » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:11 am

HueyCobra wrote:I'm very interested in the In Win BK series/Mt. Jade BK623 for a future file server replacement. The BK is a tiny ~12,500cm³ (32.3×14.0×27.6cm), comparing to ~9,250cm³ for the Silverstone LC19, and impressively can fit 4 full-height expansion cards. Availability isn't particularly good but the BK costs under AU$100 (<US$95), compared to AU$250+ for the LC19. Seems like a good, cheap, very compact microATX case to me.
Seems to be available in the US for $50, at eByte.com for example. It certainly has an interesting design, but it relies heavily on the processor fan - which I would like to avoid.

I would be concerned to use it as a file server, unless there is really light use and the HDD is a low-power Samsung or the new Green Powers from WD.

HueyCobra
Posts: 217
Joined: Tue Feb 14, 2006 12:16 am
Location: Australia

Post by HueyCobra » Sun Nov 11, 2007 1:28 pm

I don't envisage any problems with the system I intend to use in that case, although I don't rule anything out either. It will be interesting to finally test 2.5" HDD reliability/longevity in 24/7 use. All other components will be minimalistic and should improve power use/temperatures over my current S754 Sempron 2800+ file server.

I would take a more pessimistic view of cooling in the LC19, which costs three times as much as the BK option.

jessekopelman
Posts: 1406
Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2007 7:28 pm
Location: USA

Post by jessekopelman » Sun Nov 11, 2007 11:21 pm

theMAGE wrote:
jessekopelman wrote:The Antec 3480 is very small and can be made very very quiet (silent if you replace the PSU), but it's a tower case.
It is similar in size to Antec NSK-2400, which I like enough to have bought two (and both are in current use). I was shooting for something smaller.
No way. The NSK2480 is 17.5" wide and 16.3" deep. The NSK3480, if turned sideways, is 13.75" wide by 14" deep. That's a pretty substantial difference in those dimensions (of course the NSK3480 my actually have a larger volume, being nearly twice as big in the third dimension). Indeed, the LC19 is 15.35" wide and 13.7" deep -- a slightly larger footprint than the sideways NSK3480. However, I don't think the the NSK3480 would look very good turned on its side. So if that is the required orientation, I'd keep it off the table.

merlin
Friend of SPCR
Posts: 717
Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2005 6:48 am
Location: San Francisco, CA

Re: Smallest *quiet* under $100 micro-atx case?

Post by merlin » Mon Nov 12, 2007 12:48 am

theMAGE wrote:I'm searching for something like Silverstone LC19, except at half price ;)

Most small micro-atx cases come with dingy little fans. I will use it for a small VIA board: http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS5305482907.html

Thanks!
If you're just using a via board with other low power components, the NSK1300 might be a good choice, pretty small and the psu uses a 120mm fan. Of course there are no other outake fans without doing some work (assuming not using cyclone)

Post Reply