Cooler Master MasterBox Lite 3 and Tall GPUs (EVGA 1080Ti FTW3)

[Caius Filimon]

Hey everyone,

 

I'm in desperate need for some advice. This seems to be one of the very few cases that would make me happy with my setup, while also fitting the tall EVGA FTW3 1080Ti.

 

If I knew it would've been such a headache I wouldn't have gone for the card, but it was massively discounted

 

The side panel doesn't seem to be bumped outward, with the CPU cooler max allowable height being 157cm. Surely, this 143cm tall GPU would fit, right?

 

The case is this:

Cooler Master MasterBox Lite 3

 

 

 

And if it displays compatibility with Mini ITX motherboards, then it should likewise work with a Gigabyte AB350N-GAMING Wi-Fi Motherboard, right? I've also read that the FTW3's backplate is quite thick, but surely it's still compatible with my motherboard?

 

 

If any of you have any suggestions of other such micro ATX cases that can install Mini-ITX (I'm moving from a mini ITX case due to the card height) please do let me know! Ideally ones with fan holes on the side so I can mount or even just ziptie minig rig fans to blow directly on the GPU/CPU.

 

Oh and I should mention, I can't get a case that exceeds the safety flight regulations of 55 x 40 x 20cm!

 

 

Thank you so much for any advice/help you can offer!

[Derrk]

The height should be fine if max allowed is 157. It's gonna be compatible with your motherboard, no need to worry about that. The only thing I'd be concerned about in a mini ITX build is if the card is going to be too long 

[Derrk]

12 minutes ago, Derrk said:

The height should be fine if max allowed is 157. It's gonna be compatible with your motherboard, no need to worry about that. The only thing I'd be concerned about in a mini ITX build is if the card is going to be too long 

another thought i just had about height restrictions was the pcie power cables at the top of the card. That might be an issue with only 14-15mm of wiggle room.

You may want to get some 90 degree angle pcie cables. Something like this. I was going to recommend the EVGA Powerlink, but this adds an extra ~26mm to the top so that wouldn't fit.

[Caius Filimon]

 

35 minutes ago, Derrk said:

another thought i just had about height restrictions was the pcie power cables at the top of the card. That might be an issue with only 14-15mm of wiggle room.

You may want to get some 90 degree angle pcie cables. Something like this. I was going to recommend the EVGA Powerlink, but this adds an extra ~26mm to the top so that wouldn't fit.

 

Thank you so much!

 

Would you say though that as long as I pre-bend them for long enough, it should be fine? They tend to be quite flexible so surely I could just bend them until they become kind of like right angle cables. (Could not find any on Amazon)

 

 

Do you know if it's doable to ziptie 2 120mm mining fans to the outside of the case? In theory it should work, right?

 

Thanks!

[Derrk]

5 minutes ago, Caius Filimon said:

Would you say though that as long as I pre-bend them for long enough, it should be fine? They tend to be quite flexible so surely I could just bend them until they become kind of like right angle cables. (Could not find any on Amazon)

 

Do you know if it's doable to ziptie 2 120mm mining fans to the outside of the case? In theory it should work, right?

1. I can't guarantee that they'll fit if you bend them. Some pcie cables are more flexible than others - i guess it depends on what comes with your psu. Since you already have the psu, maybe play with the cables and see if you can bend them down to a 14mm tall right angle.

 

2. I guess in theory you could mount some fans on the outside. I'm not sure if that grill is large enough to fit 2 120mm fans, i can't find the dimensions of the grill anywhere. Also want to say zip ties aren't the best mounting mechanism - you could get a lot of rattle/vibration from zip ties.

With the 2 fans in the front, and the opening on the side for the gpu to pull cool air, i doubt you'll actually need extra fans there. I will recommend dust filters for a case like that though - magnetic ones will mount the easiest 

Lastly, I don't know how many fan headers you have - mITX boards tend to only have 2 or 3. This is something to consider when you're looking at adding fans - you may need to buy a fan hub or splitter.

[Caius Filimon]

1 minute ago, Derrk said:

1. I can't guarantee that they'll fit if you bend them. Some pcie cables are more flexible than others - i guess it depends on what comes with your psu. Since you already have the psu, maybe play with the cables and see if you can bend them down to a 14mm tall right angle.

 

2. I guess in theory you could mount some fans on the outside. I'm not sure if that grill is large enough to fit 2 120mm fans, i can't find the dimensions of the grill anywhere. Also want to say zip ties aren't the best mounting mechanism - you could get a lot of rattle/vibration from zip ties.

With the 2 fans in the front, and the opening on the side for the gpu to pull cool air, i doubt you'll actually need extra fans there. I will recommend dust filters for a case like that though - magnetic ones will mount the easiest 

Lastly, I don't know how many fan headers you have - mITX boards tend to only have 2 or 3. This is something to consider when you're looking at adding fans - you may need to buy a fan hub or splitter.

Thank you!

 

What I've done with my current RVZ03 Mini ITX is that I mounted a couple mining fans on the outside and bought a cheap MOLEX power brick to run them.

 

Could I ask, if I were to buy a fan hub or splitter, would my motherboard be able to power, and control the speed of, multiple mining rig fans? They tend to be quite power hungry and so I doubt a few pins on the motherboard could power as many, so I'm just plannig on MOLEXing the fans.

[Derrk]

1 minute ago, Caius Filimon said:

Thank you!

 

What I've done with my current RVZ03 Mini ITX is that I mounted a couple mining fans on the outside and bought a cheap MOLEX power brick to run them.

 

Could I ask, if I were to buy a fan hub or splitter, would my motherboard be able to power, and control the speed of, multiple mining rig fans? They tend to be quite power hungry and so I doubt a few pins on the motherboard could power as many, so I'm just plannig on MOLEXing the fans.

Do you know what the amperage of those fans are? I think most fan headers give about ~1A & most 120mm fans pull ~0.3A

[Caius Filimon]

1 minute ago, Derrk said:

Do you know what the amperage of those fans are? I think most fan headers give about ~1A & most 120mm fans pull ~0.3A

These ones are 12V 1.6A : (

 

I guess that's why these fans can drop my gpu temps alone by about 10 degrees

[Derrk]

Just now, Caius Filimon said:

These ones are 12V 1.6A : (

 

I guess that's why these fans can drop my gpu temps alone by about 10 degrees

thats impressive. If you want to mod your case & not too concerned about aesthetics, you could dremel the case to make the side grill larger to accommodate the mining fans. And to mount them, you could drill appropriate holes & use screw / washer / nut combos to secure it