New Silverstone FT02

[M76]

Sadly I've reached end of the line with FT02 as modern graphic cards esp AIB designed are too just to large to fit.

I was in the same boat with my FT05 until I found the ASUS Proart series. Marketed as more of a content creator line instead of gaming so it might go under the radar. But these are the "smallest" AIB cards I could find.

 

[ChineseStunna]

Hey everyone,

Hi CS, I just was going to let you know that (with a little bit of modding and a 25mm thick 540 rad), you can fit up to max length of 13.25". Now I know it's not 13.7" that you need with the 4090 cards. BUT, if you guys decided to water block your 4090 cards, it would be waaaaay shorter than even the current AMD Radeon 6900XT card I have on my system (which is 10.5" / 267mm). I mean look at the 4090 Founder Edition with the EKWB on there (pic included below). That thing can't be more than 8" inches in total length. I can't believe that had to use that MASSIVE fan block on there to keep that thing cool. Knowing this now, eliminates TWO major issues... FIRST; the length issue. SECOND; the gravity liquid cooling issue (if the 4090 w/fan cooler was vertically placed in the FT02 case). I was actually SHOCKED at how short the 4090 GPU is when you take off the fan block. I would totally use the 4090, but NVIDIA hasn't been macOS compatible for about 5 years now. So AMD is the only choice. In fact, even the newer AMD Radeon 7900XT isn't compatible with macOS; only the 6900XT.

So, if you're looking to stay with the FT02 case, then it is TOTALLY doable. Just water cool your entire system. It's not that hard. Actually (with some YouTube vid instruction), you 'd be able to do what I did and then some. Just sayin'...

By the way CS, I like the new case! Hope you like mine. Later...

Great points - I did consider taking the watercooling route but as I tinker and adjust the system quite a bit during the initial build out phase, it may be too much hassle and risk. In fact, I actually watercooled back in the homebrew era circa 1999 with my Pentium 2 building a full custom loop and waterblock with parts only from Home Depot, the pump was a garden pond submerge pump and radiators were transmission coolers pulled from junkyard.
In all consideration, I also felt this was an opportunity to move forward with the progression of case design and different requirements of this era in hardware. 5.25 bays were great because of the vibrant ecosystem of adapters/convertors available but in my current build they really are no longer needed. The FT02 is also one of my all time favorite cases and live out in my stack as era appropriate (2010s) HEDT build around X58 platoform

 

[PunkNugget]

Great points - I did consider taking the watercooling route but as I tinker and adjust the system quite a bit during the initial build out phase, it may be too much hassle and risk. In fact, I actually watercooled back in the homebrew era circa 1999 with my Pentium 2 building a full custom loop and waterblock with parts only from Home Depot, the pump was a garden pond submerge pump and radiators were transmission coolers pulled from junkyard.
In all consideration, I also felt this was an opportunity to move forward with the progression of case design and different requirements of this era in hardware. 5.25 bays were great because of the vibrant ecosystem of adapters/convertors available but in my current build they really are no longer needed. The FT02 is also one of my all time favorite cases and live out in my stack as era appropriate (2010s) HEDT build around X58 platoform

That's cool, I understand. Imagine using that same outdoor water cooled set up back in the day and have looped in your house, directly linked up to your new PC to cool your system. Now THAT would be something!!! You'd go viral!!!

 

[PunkNugget]

I was in the same boat with my FT05 until I found the ASUS Proart series. Marketed as more of a content creator line instead of gaming so it might go under the radar. But these are the "smallest" AIB cards I could find.

Hi M76, same thing that I'll say to you. If you were to water block the 4090 GPU and water cool the entire system, then you'd be able to make this work very easily. So it IS possible.

 

[M76]

Hi M76, same thing that I'll say to you. If you were to water block the 4090 GPU and water cool the entire system, then you'd be able to make this work very easily. So it IS possible.

The 4080 proart already works as it is only 300mm.

 

[PunkNugget]

The 4080 proart already works as it is only 300mm.

That’s great! My point was (to anyone reading this), there’s usually a work around to anything. I’m even more amazed and didn’t realize this (until a couple of days ago), that the newer GPUs (specifically the 4090 cards), are actually SMALLER than previous GPUs and have even MORE performance power. In fact, the 4090 could even fit in a smal factor PC case. Just needs to be water blocked and water cool the entire system, that’s all. Just need to learn how to make it happen, or have a friend help you who has that skill set to help you.

 

[M76]

That’s great! My point was (to anyone reading this), there’s usually a work around to anything. I’m even more amazed and didn’t realize this (until a couple of days ago), that the newer GPUs (specifically the 4090 cards), are actually SMALLER than previous GPUs and have even MORE performance power. In fact, the 4090 could even fit in a smal factor PC case. Just needs to be water blocked and water cool the entire system, that’s all. Just need to learn how to make it happen, or have a friend help you who has that skill set to help you.

Cool, I get it. I knew that the actual PCBs are smaller, but I never wanted to build a custom loop, not because I couldn't figure it out. A 4090 is already way more expensive than what I wanted to spend, add the cost of a custom loop. No thanks, I'm perfectly happy with the performance I Got from the 4080, so a 4090 would've been overkill.