Seeking opinions on chassis from macase n8b

[impovich]

Want to rebuild my 4u NAS, looking for a cubical chassis that will fit m-atx
fractal Design Node 804 looks good, but I do not like glass wall.
jonsbo N3 looks like a perfect case but unfortunately only for itx

Silverstone CS382 looks like an option, but i can't find it anywhere

fond this, what do you think about it?

 

[Constantin]

I am not a fan...

Specifically, this case has very little ventilation, which is something I care about deeply. I much prefer my current Lian Li A76 over that case because there is room for 3 fans in the front to bathe the drives in and ample room inside to bathe the various MOBO components. The MacCase relies on two 80mm fans to deal with all the system heat. Yes, you can fit performant fans but they will be noisy, and neither will bathe the CPU heat sink with cool air.

The better 4U designs out there (SM847) not only use multiple large, redundant fans but also use plastic covers inside to guide airflow over critical aspects of the motherboard to assure redundant cooling means for the motherboard. A 16-drive 3U series unit is $450 on ebay with redundant power supplies. A similarly-built 4U, 36-bay unit will set you back $550. Note how the 4U model shows the plastic motherboard cover still inside. They also offer smaller 2U and 1U versions that have room for fewer drives but which will be even more restrictive re: PCIe expansion boards.

I used to own a MiniXL from iXsystems (long ago version with the C2758 processor in it) and that thing too had very little in terms of fan power, which in turn was perfect for roasting drives in their own juices during scrubs, etc. For < 10 drives, a mini-ITX board, and a few hot-swap backplanes, likely nothing beats the Lian Li Q26 A or B chassis, which sadly has been out of production for a couple of years now. Used prices are inflated accordingly.

 

[Etorix]

fractal Design Node 804 looks good, but I do not like glass wall.

Neither do I like the acrylic insert (it's not glass), but I don't see it when the NAS is tucked against the wall. Otherwise I would just have glued something opaque to it.

 

[Constantin]

Neither do I like the acrylic insert (it's not glass), but I don't see it when the NAS is tucked against the wall. Otherwise I would just have glued something opaque to it.

Can you install fans in the top of the 804? If this was my file server, I'd leave off the whole front cover and just have the bare intake filters.

I much prefer the hot-swap backplanes in the Lian Li over the multi-drive cage in the 804. Each drive can be pulled individually, and the serial numbers face the user once the side of the case has been removed. But the Lian Li drive tower (that the drives rest in) could have been designed for better airflow than it currently allows. That's where the Fractal design is likely better.

 

[Etorix]

Can you install fans in the top of the 804?

Other than putting fans on top of the mesh, no. There's no room inside.

 

[impovich]

I am not a fan...

Specifically, this case has very little ventilation, which is something I care about deeply. I much prefer my current Lian Li A76 over that case because there is room for 3 fans in the front to bathe the drives in and ample room inside to bathe the various MOBO components. The MacCase relies on two 80mm fans to deal with all the system heat. Yes, you can fit performant fans but they will be noisy, and neither will bathe the CPU heat sink with cool air.

The better 4U designs out there (SM847) not only use multiple large, redundant fans but also use plastic covers inside to guide airflow over critical aspects of the motherboard to assure redundant cooling means for the motherboard. A 16-drive 3U series unit is $450 on ebay with redundant power supplies. A similarly-built 4U, 36-bay unit will set you back $550. Note how the 4U model shows the plastic motherboard cover still inside. They also offer smaller 2U and 1U versions that have room for fewer drives but which will be even more restrictive re: PCIe expansion boards.

I used to own a MiniXL from iXsystems (long ago version with the C2758 processor in it) and that thing too had very little in terms of fan power, which in turn was perfect for roasting drives in their own juices during scrubs, etc. For < 10 drives, a mini-ITX board, and a few hot-swap backplanes, likely nothing beats the Lian Li Q26 A or B chassis, which sadly has been out of production for a couple of years now. Used prices are inflated accordingly.

I want to rid of my rack with 846BE1C and 826BE1C completely. That is why I'm looking for a small chassis, looks like fractal is my option:)

 

[impovich]

Neither do I like the acrylic insert (it's not glass), but I don't see it when the NAS is tucked against the wall. Otherwise I would just have glued something opaque to it.

sounds like a solution :)