willow belfry
CPU: 7950X3D
CPU Cooler: APX90-47 FULL
GPU: Strix 3080ti (for now)
RAM: 64GB Corsair Vengeance CL30
Motherboard: Asus X870-I WiFi Gaming
Storage: Corsair MP700 Elite
PSU: Cooler Master SFX V850 ATX3.1/PCIe 5
The Build:
A great start to my Sunday morning.
Due to using 3080ti I needed to configure as expanded case. First screw on the spine was stuck tight and managed to strip it, doh! But because I am ordinarily clumsy, I had the screw extraction bits on hand and replacement in the box.
Physically, the build was very easy. The PSU bracket and single screw could hardly be simpler. Mobo standoffs already in place. Lots of space for cables in the corner spine. I hadn't found much about air coolers for the X870-i, and hoped to squeeze in the NH-L12s but no dice. It either hits the ram or the I/O heatsink. But the AXP90-X47 FULL fits fine - I'd measure the space at around 105mm from RAM to I/O.
The RAM is 35mm with the daughter card peeking above at about 37mm.
I couldn't get it to boot, not even recognise the Hive to see what the error was, so I flashed the BIOS with only the 21-pin mobo connector. (Note: it says to watch the flash LED and wait for it to do something but I am not even sure where that LED is. But the USB port you use has a green light, which flashed a bit and went off after a few mins, figured I was done). It booted fine on the bench with minimal connectors, but not once I had it in the case until I turned the USBC header connector the right way.
I connected one to the Case Fan header and one to the AIO, then set a curve for the AIO in BIOS, so I have independent control if needed.
Asus and their M2 drive coolers...see bend in pics. Even with the extra rubber for single-sided drives. Backing off the screw on the end opposite the M2 connecter was enough to keep thermal contact with the chips and the M2 board straight.
Other than the above, the actual build was a breeze and far easier than many full tower ATX cases I've built in.
stoic nexus