DAN Cases - A4-SFX the smallest ITX gaming case in the world

[Ostwind]

 console killer case?

Not when the case costs almost as much as a console.

[That Norwegian Guy]

No it's not:

 

 

 

It may be the smallest with dGPU, but considering iGPU is good enough for low-end gaming, it's not true.

[razor767]

I wonder how it would handle a non-reference GPU.

[dondan]

DAN A4-SFX cooling performance:

 

Introduction:
Below, I want to inform you about the cooling performance of the DAN A4-SFX, because many potential buyers are sceptical that powerful hardware can be cooled in this case.
Also, the test should determine which CPU coolers with a maximum installation height of 48mm is suitable for this case.

 

Many readers are also interested in: How a Top-Blow cooler graphics card will perform in this case. This question is intended to clarify as well.

 

Testsystem:
The following hardware has been used for the results:

 

• CPU: Intel Xeon 1230v2 3,5Ghz TPD 69W (Ivy Bridge)
• GPU1: Nvidia Geforce GTX 780 reference design
• GPU2: MSI Geforce GTX 970 Gaming 4G

 

The hardware was tested in an open build (without case) and inside the case at a room temperature of 21-22°C. The fan speed is the same in both setups.

 

CPU Cooling:
As already mentioned, the maximum installation height incl. fan is only 48mm. This measurement refers from the top of the CPU to the sidepanel.
Therefore the selection of suitable coolers is very limited. For the tests I also used coolers, higher than 48mm, which fit while using a thinner fan.

 

Now I would like to introduce the test candidates.

 

 

Intel Boxed cooler:
The Intel Boxed cooler is probably the most famous cooler at all. Every boxed Intel CPU includes this cooler. With an height of 47mm it fits perfectly in the case.
However this coolers is not very popular, because of his bad cooling performance.

 

Noctua L9i:
The L9i is one of the smallest cooler in this test. With a height of just 37mm incl. fan, it is truly tiny. The cooler includes the Noctua A9x14 fan,
which is also available without the heatsink. But the rotation speed is different for the standalone version. The L9i version offers 2500rpm and the standalone version 2200rpm.
Therefore I use the 2200rpm version in the test. Due to the low height of the cooler, it can also be operated with a 25mm thick fan inside the case.
So the L9i was also tested with the NF A9 PWM.

 

Silverstone Argon  SST-AR05:
The AR05 is the smallest cooler in the test. Directly attached heatpipes to the CPU heatspreader are special for this cooler. This cooler was also tested with the NF A9 PWM.

 

Cooltek LP53:
With the default height of 53mm the LP53 wouldn't fit inside the case. But if you switch the f an with an thinner version like the A9x14 it fits.
However the mounting of at thin 92mm FAN must be performed with cable ties, because the default 92mm fan has mounting points of an 80mm fan.
As a special highlight I'm going to test this cooler with the Thermalright TR-Y100, which is the default fan of the AXP100 Cooler.
Whats special of this fan are the dimensions of 100x100x15mm and the increased air pressure towards to the A9x14.

 

Xigmatek Juno:
Even the Juno does not fit without adjustments on it, because with its 60mm it would actually be too high.
If you unscrew the 120mm top fan and change the lower 80mm fan to the Noctua A9x14, Thermalright TR-Y100 or Scythe SY1012SL12M the cooler fits.
The lower fan was mounting in priming position through the upper heatsink. Mounting it the other way results in 10°C higher temperatures.

 

Phanteks PH-TC12LS:
The last test sample is the PH-TC12LS. With it's 72mm this cooler is too hight as well, but after unscrewing the top fan it fits.
You can mount a Scythe SY1012SL12M (12mm) between the top fins and the lower heatplate.

 

CPU cooler test scenario:
The following tables are showing the test results in idle and under full load.
The fan speed is fixed to 100% with Speedfan for all tests, to show you the best possible values. Of course, under  you can setup the fan speed to 30% for low usageand you will never reach 45°C.

 

For the idle test, the temperatures of all four cores without load were noted after 20 minutes on the desktop. The average value was insert into the table.
In load mode, the system is operating in Prime95 20min in 8K test. The 8K test produced the highest temperatures on the cores.

 

ATTENTION: The temperature values in Prime95 8K are not comparable to those in games or processor-intensive applications,
since Prime achieved a 15% higher CPU temperature as other applications.

 

 

 

 

 

Overvolting and Undervolting:
The next test should demonstrate what is possible by using the Cooltek LP53.
Therefore, Prime has been tested both in undervolted and in overvolted state. A normal Ivybridge could reach the 4,2-4,5Ghz stable with 1,2V voltage.
As you can see normal overclocking could be possible with the right cooler in this case. Or you can lower the noise level under load y undervolting the CPU.

 

 

 

 

Graphics card cooling:

http://abload.de/img/img_2917evs8w.jpg[/img

Another important part of this test are the results of cooling graphic cards in this case. Especially the comparison between radial cooler and top blow cards is important.

 

Info: Radial cooler cards blow the air out through the slot bracket from the housing.
Whereas Top-Blow cards blow the air directly on the heatsink and and the air escapes mostly upper and lower side of the card.
Only a very small part of the air escapes through the slot bracket.

 

For the test I use a Nvidia GTX 780 in the radial cooler design and a MSI GTX 970 Gaming G4 in top-blow design.

 

Graphics card test scenario:
Such as the CPU cooler, the graphics cards were tested in idle and load mode. The fan speed was fixed to 30% under idle and 60% under load for both cards.
The speeds was fixed with the tool MSI Afterburner. In the idle mode, both cards was very silent (subjective value).
At a speed of 60%, the GTX970 was still silent, but you are able to hear the GTX780.

 

For the measurement results, the cards were tested in 3D Mark Test Firestrike demo for 20min and 20min in idle on the desktop.
The 3DMark test ran in continuous loop and the temperatures were recorded with the Tool MSI Afterburner.

 

 

 

 

Case efficiency:
The final test was to prove the housing efficiency. The efficiency is the overall avarage temperature difference between an open body usage and usage inside the case.

 

 

 

 

Noise level:
Finally, I want to say something about the noise level of the components inside the case. Of course, these results are subjective, so everybody will percipience it different.

 

In idle and low usage mode (office, browsing or watching movies) each CPU can be cooled very silent. Under load you will hear the CPU cooler while testing with Prime95.
But under normal load usage in games like GTA5 or high load applications like rendering tools you can set the fan speed to 60%.
In this setup the cooler is far from being realy disturbing. By the time the game is starting with a normal volume, you can't hear nearly all coolers in the test.

 

Under normal usage and with a fan speed of 30% both cards are very silent. Only while playing games or running benchmarks with a fan speed of 60% the MSI card is still quiet,
but the GTX780 is definitely hearable.

 

Final words:
I hope I was able to convince even the last sceptics with this test, that it is possible to cool hardware from the impact of an NVIDIA Titanium X and an i7 4790K / 5775C in the DAN A4 SFX.
However the remarkable thing about this case is the cooling efficiency.  It can accumulate air at any point and every component works cool technically self-sufficient without an the need of case fans.
Hot air rises and can escape directly over the top ventilation holes. All fans of the components blow into the case to provide pressure and promote a faster escape of the heated air over the top.

 

Thank you for reading my test. I will be back soon with many professional made product pictures.

​

[monstercameron]

He should check on o redesigning it for the r9 nano.

[dondan]

But than only mini GPUs will fit. Maybe in the next generation they will not release a mini GPU and then you can't upgrade

[Pyromaniac225]

That's a badass little case.

[Deli]

Wow, love at first sight. I like the clean and elegant design. Unlike some certain Corsxx Bulldog. I'd definitely get one when becomes available. 

 

I suppose the case is made by Lian Li. Top build quality. 

[Mattb6288]

I would love to build a pc in this case. I thought the NCase M1 was small

[Warcony]

@LinusTech 's console killer case?

 

At that price, for most of the world it will cost as much as a console.

[TroubleKlef]

Looks beautiful but it's a bit too long heavy for my taste. Prefer the Ncase m1. 

[dondan]

It is shorter and lighter than the M1

[Mentalguy]

 

 

I have two gripes about this, #1 I would want the ability to lay it on it's side. Maybe have a blanking plate for the (current) bottom and add the ability to add feet to the sides.

 

#2 I think a carrying handle would be very useful for this. Cold mount one on the back so it is out of the way.

[Albatross]

I like it a lot! Very nice!

[ThreePinkApples]

Fantastic case! Although the lack of optical drive might maybe be a dealbreaker (I prefer if my computer can be both media center and blu-ray player), but then it needs a bigger case anyway. 

[vXhanz]

I like the design, very clever. 

 

I don't like the price however, and would immediately look elsewhere for a cheaper case. 

[dondan]

I don't like the price as well, but small series are resulting in higher prices. Also the high quality risercable has a high influence on the price. You will get quality, exclusiveness and a real small case that can be use for many hardware generations for that money.

[TheTiger]

How much will it cost for customers in Germany @dondan ?

 

That is space efficient. I'm floored. 

 

@TheTiger

 

Great case, but the price tho...

[Decon]

personally I;'d rather have an NCASE cause more options

[dondan]

How much will it cost for customers in Germany?

200-230€

[BOT Edward]

7.25L holy balls.

But that cost tho,

 

Im currently in the process of building an SFF ATX case for my scrapyard build (recycling the old case, just chop shopping and bending the hell out of it). Currently looking at <18L with support for an ATX Motherboard, 10.5" GPU, 130mm (height) CPU cooler and XL-ATX PSU (150mm x 86mm x 140mm.).

 

Just slightly larger than a "Phat" PS3

[Davehaslanded]

Fantastic case! Although the lack of optical drive might maybe be a dealbreaker (I prefer if my computer can be both media center and blu-ray player), but then it needs a bigger case anyway.

Im one of the few use cases where I need an optical drive as I'm a photographer and have to burn photo discs for customers, but if I had this case, I would either buy an USB adapter to use my old internal disc drive externally, or just buy a dedicated external disc drive.

I love the idea of this case. But again my main issue is the cost. Can't imagine cable management is easy, and I couldn't use it as my main editing rig until I had a much larger SSD capacity (I use my SSD for windows and programs, 1 HDD for games and all my photography files have their own dedicated HDD. With a larger SSD, I could ditch the games HDD)

[dondan]

You can use up to 3 2,5" HDDs/SSDs plus an msata/m.2 SSD on the board. With the new 4TB 2.5" HDDs you can reach a total capacity of 12TB HDD and 1TB SSD space.

[ShadowCaptain]

Can I fit my willy in it ?

 

No but seriously I love the design and size, definitely on my radar if I decide to upgrade and build something nice and tiny

 

Almost tempted just to buy one for the sake of it and doing a review

[Senzelian]

So where's the pump mount?