glad night
Finally got the GPU I wanted - I saw another build with an Astral in the M2 and loved the idea of trying to cram as much as possible into the case. My old SFF case could only fit a FE, and I had no luck, so I decided "Go Big or Go Home".
CPU: 9800x3D
CPU Cooler: Corsair Titan 280 AIO (Pump Cap Removed)
GPU: Asus Astral 5090 OC
RAM: 64GB Kingston Fury 6400
Motherboard: Asus Strix x870-I
Storage: WD SN850X 4TB x2
PSU: Loki 1200W SFX-L
Additional Fans: Corsair RX120 MAX & Arctic P14 Slim
Riser: LinkUp 5cm 90D
This is version 0.9 of my build. I have custom cables coming and will possibly lower the card a few mm when I take it apart again. Currently all the cables are stock, except a 90 degree 12V-2x6 from CableMod.
Installing the card and making everything fit was challenging. It's so tight together and the card is very heavy to maneuver around. I 3D printed a bracket for the far end of the card and I'm using stands offs that equal about 14-15mm. The power connector is pressing against the fan grills installed on the radiator.
Everything is set to exhaust. I wasn't able to fit a full sized fan in the rear, underneath the riser cable, so I had to go with a slim Arctic. In the front, under the card, I was able to fit a 30mm thick fan to help exhaust the air coming out of the fourth fan on the GPU.
The PSU is flipped with the intake towards the center of the case, which means the GPU exhausts into it. Otherwise, the cables coming out wouldn't allow placement of the 120mm fan. I don't think its an issue, as I rarely saw the PSU's fan spin when it was in my previous case.
I've never done a build with RGB before, but knowing the Astral had some, I decided to go all in on this one. Honestly, the RGB effect is very minimal because the case is packed so tight together.
If I had to do it again, I would go for a regular SFX PSU and consider a 240mm rad for easier cable/tube management.
3D printed legs.
Will try to come back and post some better lit photos if people want.
unique quarry
white knoll