{"id":175919,"date":"2023-12-08T23:59:08","date_gmt":"2023-12-08T22:59:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hwcooling.net\/?p=175919\/"},"modified":"2023-12-11T16:00:25","modified_gmt":"2023-12-11T15:00:25","slug":"retrotest-8x-pc-case-from-small-to-large","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hwcooling.net\/en\/retrotest-8x-pc-case-from-small-to-large\/","title":{"rendered":"Retrotest: 8\u00d7 PC case. From small to “large”"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the archives we found some remarkable tests that have never been published in English. Although they are heavily out of date ( cases included have not been sold for a long time), it illustrates well the possible impact of cooling across a wide variety of designs. And by those we also mean completely passive solutions that use their own shell to dissipate heat, as well as rather larger midi-towers and also something in between.<\/p>\n

The following tests were published almost ten years ago in three parts on the now defunct ExtraHardware.cz, later we also published them on HWC<\/a>, but only in Slovak. And it would probably be a shame not to have them localized in a global language, even if it’s only for “research purposes” due to the unavailability of the cases.<\/p>\n

The purpose of the test was once to compare several different case design concepts with each other. Each representative was to be sufficiently different from another and in the end it was to be shown which case managed cooling the best or worst. The selection consisted of models with different volumes but also different cooling systems. We pitted active-cooling cases against passive, fanless designs.<\/p>\n

A complete overview of the tested cases can be found in the chart below, some details are then in the individual chapters (2 to 9), where each case has its own one. The wording of the following text (including the conclusion) corresponds in content to the 2018 article<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/div>
<\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Parameters <\/td>Chieftec <\/td>Akasa <\/td>Impactics <\/td>Streacom <\/td>SilverStone <\/td>Cooltek <\/td>Nanoxia <\/td>Zalman <\/td><\/tr>
<\/td>IX-03 <\/td>Crypto <\/td>C3LH <\/td>FC9 <\/td>Raven RVZ01 <\/td>W1 <\/td>DS4 <\/td>ZM-Z1 <\/td><\/tr>
Parametre <\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Support <\/td>Mini-ITX <\/td>Mini-ITX <\/td>Mini-ITX <\/td>microATX <\/td>Mini-ITX <\/td>Mini-ITX <\/td>ATX <\/td>ATX <\/td><\/tr>
Power supply <\/td>AC-DC <\/td>AC-DC <\/td>AC-DC <\/td>Pico-PSU <\/td>SFX <\/td>ATX <\/td>ATX <\/td>ATX <\/td><\/tr>
CPU cooler <\/td>do 25 mm* <\/td>up to 33 mm <\/td>built-in <\/td>built-in <\/td>up to 83 mm <\/td>up to 215 mm <\/td>up to 160 mm <\/td>up to 164 mm <\/td><\/tr>
Graphics card <\/td>not supported <\/td>not supported <\/td>not supported <\/td>not supported <\/td>up to 330 mm <\/td>up to 330 mm <\/td>up to 260 mm <\/td>up to 360 mm <\/td><\/tr>
Fan <\/td>N\/A <\/td>1\u00d7 50mm <\/td>N\/A <\/td>N\/A <\/td>2\u00d7 120mm <\/td>2\u00d7 140mm <\/td>2\u00d7 120mm <\/td>2\u00d7 120mm <\/td><\/tr>
2,5\" positions <\/td>2 <\/td>1 <\/td>1 <\/td>3 <\/td>3 <\/td>2 <\/td>6 + 1 <\/td>1 <\/td><\/tr>
3,5\" positions <\/td>1 <\/td>0 <\/td>0 <\/td>1 <\/td>1 <\/td>4 <\/td>6 <\/td>4 <\/td><\/tr>
DVD\/BR <\/td>po roz\u0161\u00edren\u00ed** <\/td>1\u00d7 12,7mm <\/td>1\u00d7 12,7mm <\/td>1\u00d7 12,7mm <\/td>1\u00d7 12,7mm <\/td>1\u00d7 12,7mm <\/td>2\u00d7 5,25\" <\/td>2\u00d7 5,25\" <\/td><\/tr>
Dimensions [H\/L\/W] (and volume <\/td>63 \u00d7 197 \u00d7 220 mm (2,73 l) <\/td>68 \u00d7 227 \u00d7 245 mm (3,78 l) <\/td>88 \u00d7 240 \u00d7 260 mm (5,49 l) <\/td>100 \u00d7 289 \u00d7 348 mm (10,06 l) <\/td>105 \u00d7 350 \u00d7 382 mm (14 l) <\/td>356 \u00d7 362 \u00d7 242 mm (31,2 l) <\/td>380 \u00d7 480 \u00d7 200 mm (36,5 l) <\/td>432 \u00d7 457 \u00d7 199 mm (39,3 l) <\/td><\/tr>
Weight <\/td>1 kg <\/td>1 kg <\/td>2,7 kg <\/td>4,9 kg <\/td>3,7 kg <\/td>5,8 kg <\/td>7,8 kg <\/td>6 kg <\/td><\/tr>
Materials <\/td>steel + plastic <\/td>steel + plastic <\/td>steel + aluminium <\/td>aluminium <\/td>steel + plastic <\/td>steel + aluminium <\/td>steel + plastic <\/td>steel + plastic <\/td><\/tr>
Connectivity <\/td>2\u00d7 USB 2.0 + 2\u00d7 3.5mm jack <\/td>N\/A <\/td>N\/A <\/td>2\u00d7 USB 3.0 <\/td>2\u00d7 USB 3.0 + 2\u00d7 3.5mm jack <\/td>2\u00d7 USB 3.0 + 2\u00d7 3.5mm jack <\/td>2\u00d7 USB 3.0, 1\u00d7 USB 2.0 + 2\u00d7 3.5mm jack <\/td>1\u00d7 USB 3.0, 2\u00d7 USB 2.0 + 2\u00d7 3.5mm jack <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>Wordpress Table Plugin<\/a>\n
*This distance assumes the use of a supported 3.5″ HDD. With a regular 7mm 2.5″ SSD, the cooler height can reach up to 43mm, and without it (with M.2 SSDs) up to 50mm.
\n**By adding a MK-35DV<\/a> shaft that fits on top of the case, you get a position for a slim 12.7mm optical drive or 3.5\/2.5″ storage.<\/strong><\/h6>\n

Methodology<\/h2>\n

The components for the test build are selected to fit into the smallest of cases and to operate without performance loss even in the worst conditions.<\/p>\n

The base is a motherboard (Mini-ITX), the Gigabyte Z87N-WiFi with the Intel Pentium G3420 processor (TDP 53 W). The latter is handled by the Noctua NH-L9i regulated to 900 rpm. The SSD is the Crucial M500 and the 8GB DDR3 memory module is the Crucial Ballistix (1600 MHz\/CL9\/1.35V) with VLP (very low profile).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Baseline test temperatures are read from four sources. From internal CPU sensors (average of two cores) and the SSD. Externally by thermocouples. One is located on a MOSFET in the CPU power delivery and the other on the chipset casing, below the heatsink.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The noise level of the cases is measured from a distance of approximately one metre, diagonally from the left side. This is done using the Voltfraft SL-100 noise meter. The speed of all fans is controlled by an external controller when the board is not otherwise running, so the results are not distorted by the use of different power supplies (ATX is SilentiumPC Supremo M1-700 and SFX is SilverStone ST45SF).<\/p>\n

Initially, three modes are created in which the cooling performance is then tested. This is first at the maximum speed of the system fans, then regulated to 35 and 32 dBA. The ratios of the intake and exhaust fan airflows as well as their layout are maintained at the factory setups.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

All the cases have the above described in common. For those where a discrete graphics card fits, we’ll add a Radeon HD 5870 (TDP 188 W) with a Thermalright T-Rad2 cooler with 2\u00d7 Noctua NF-A9x14 at the end, after the basic tests are complete. From the graphics card, we take readings of the memory and VRM temperatures (both complemented by the typical Arctic hedgehog heatsinks) in addition to the GPU temperature.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The CPU load is simulated in IntelBurnTest (3.5 GB, 6 cycles), which corresponds to about half an hour. The graphics card runs the same time in Unigine Heaven 4.0. We take “idle” temperatures after 30 minutes of cooling down. The intake air temperature is controlled during testing and ranges between 21\u201321.4 \u00b0C.<\/p>\n

We test cases that allow a choice of positions both horizontally and vertically. In the description in the charts this is distinguished by the additional letters H and V respectively.<\/p>\n

English translation and edit by Jozef Dud\u00e1\u0161<\/em><\/p>\n