A good micro-ATX case?

[Sir.Robin]

You are not required to have any windows units for flashing the m1015. Youll need the FW file and something to boot on into dos or maybe onboard uefi if you have that.


Btw...Found this case and suddenly want a mITX setup myself

http://www.lian-li.com/en/dt_portfolio/pc-q35/

 

[Richman]

You are not required to have any windows units for flashing the m1015. Youll need the FW file and something to boot on into dos or maybe onboard uefi if you have that.


Btw...Found this case and suddenly want a mITX setup myself

http://www.lian-li.com/en/dt_portfolio/pc-q35/

Nice case, may be better than the PC-q25 but you can't find the q35 anywhere yet.

 

[Sir.Robin]

I found it here in Norway :)

And now i found the ASRock E3C226D2I too (miniITX, with ECC support, IPMI and 6x SATA) dang!!

 

[Sir.Robin]

The PC-Q35 should be able to hold microATX boards too. It's quite high (because of 5x 5.25 inch drive bays and same dept as "normal" cases.
So... in other words... for a mITX case it's quite large it seems.

 

[JTT0]

I found it here in Norway :)

And now i found the ASRock E3C226D2I too (miniITX, with ECC support, IPMI and 6x SATA) dang!!

There is also the MB I am looking at (ASRock E3C224D2I), which is the cheaper version of the C226. It has 6xSATA, IPMI, ECC and is miniITX as well.

 

[Richman]

The PC-Q35 should be able to hold microATX boards too. It's quite high (because of 5x 5.25 inch drive bays and same dept as "normal" cases.
So... in other words... for a mITX case it's quite large it seems.

Nope, that is in correct. It won't fit m-ATX MB's
Lian Li says
Motherboard
Mini-ITX
Mini-DTX
The width of area they show is 200mm till you hit the HDD cages. An mATX MB needs about 243mm width. Besides that if you look at where the expansion slots are, they are right on the bottom of the case. Most m-ATX have at least 3-4 slots. So even if you choked it up further to the top you would have to seriously modify the mounting screw wholes and not use your upper two slots. I don't know anyone with good sense that would modify a new case and void their warranty that way.

 

[Sir.Robin]

Nope, that is in correct. It won't fit m-ATX MB's
Lian Li says
Motherboard
Mini-ITX
Mini-DTX
The width of area they show is 200mm till you hit the HDD cages. An m-ATX MB needs about 243mm width. Besides that if you look at where the expansion slots are, they are right on the bottom of the case. Most m-ATX have at least 3-4 slots. So even if you choked it up further to the top you would have to seriously modify the mounting screw wholes and not use your upper two slots. I don't know anyone with good sense that would modify a new case and void their warranty that way.

Well maybe i weren't clear. Offcourse you can't fit mATX in it the way it is!!

But judging by the size of the case and all the space that is in it, a mATX seems to fit physically and so lian-li should have made it compatible with mATX instead or have aonther version of it.

Look at the V650.
Same depth (427mm) but 360mm high instead of the pc-q35's 305mm. But the v650 can hold A full ATX board.

So for the physical size of the pc-q35 i don't think miniITX makes sence.

 

[Richman]

I was not arguing the overall length. It is deep enough but they obviously decided to engineer it their certain way. I have a CollerMaster Centurion 5 that is 1 inch shorter in depth for a total 19" as aposed to the 20"+ of the Q35 and accepts mATX and Full ATX MB's so, yes it was deep enough to design it to accept a mATX but they decided for whatever reason to move the HDD cages closer to the MB than was necessary to inject a fan in front of them. I don't know what their reasoning is. Lian Li are generally well designed cases but they cut out potential marketability by doing so.

 

[Sir.Robin]

Hope they make another just like it for mATX and with 6x 5.25 bays. That would fit two of hteir hotswap cages allowing a total of 8x 3.5" drives. I would order it in a second. :(

Happy new year!! :)