PC Peripherals Cabinet with high CPU cooler clearance

[sumchamp]

I am planning to buy cabinet with CPU cooler clearance of minimum 175mm as my CPU cooler dimension including fan is 171mm.

A good airy cabinet with budget of around 6-6.5k. Should be easier to install and provide good cable management. Shortlisted Fractal Design Meshify C.

 

[burntwingzZz]

there CM 694 , multiple versions of cm H500 but that you have to extend budget and meshify C has clearance of 170 mm ,metalic gear for even tighter budget

​

​

 

[sumchamp]

Buy Online Fractal Design Meshify C–Dark TG Blackout Tempered Glass Case FD-CA-MESH-C-BKO-TG - in India

Meshify strikes an aggressive pose in the Fractal Design lineup with unparalleled cooling performance and a defiant new look. Like black diamond facets, the angular asymmetry of the Meshify C TG Dark Tint carves a space uniquely its own as a new force in high-airflow design. Tempered glass with...

www.primeabgb.com

It mentions 172mm cpu cooler clearance. Similar on fractal design website.

 

[roofrider]

Which cooler? Meshify C will be a tight fit. I see 170mm as the max clearance on Fractal's site.

 

[sumchamp]

My cooler

Phanteks Innovative Computer Hardware Design

www.phanteks.com

Details on fractal design website

Meshify C – Dark Tempered Glass

www.fractal-design.com

 

[roofrider]

Already have the cooler? I was eyeing that years back.

Which ram do you have/plan on using?

 

[sumchamp]

Already have the cooler? I was eyeing that years back.

Which ram do you have/plan on using?

Purchased this cooler back in 2015 i guess.

Using 16GB corsair vengeance single stick.

 

[roofrider]

Using 16GB corsair vengeance single stick.

If that's the LPX (height of 33.53mm) then you don't have to worry about moving the front fan up. Any case with a clearance of 171mm or over will do.

But if you change your RAM in the future to, for example, Ballistix which is 39.17mm tall (not Ballistix Sport LT - this won't have any issues), your case will need a clearance of 175mm. Needless to say if you go for any 40/42mm+ tall RAM you'll only be safe with a 180mm clearance.
You'll be fine with HyperX (34.1mm) RAM too - falls within the 171mm total height.
With a Trident Z (44mm), this is how much you need to shift the fan up. This requires a clearance of 179-180mm.

Lian Li Lancool 2 Mesh is a great airflow case with a clearance of 176mm.
I have a Corsair 4000d with NH-D15 and Ballistix. If my math is correct this combination requires a clearance of 172mm but it fits fine with just enough breathing room to spare though the official clearance for the 4000d is 170mm.

 

[sumchamp]

Thanks a lot for heads up. Recently Lian li 2 mesh was selling for 7.5k on amazon. I don't mind waiting for sometime and get this beautiful case by extending my budget a little. For my current setup, meshify C is absolutely fine.

 

[roofrider]

Yeah, Meshify C Dark TG looks like it'll just about do it, but might have issues if you change the RAM later. Do note that only Dark Tempered Glass seems to have 172mm while the other Meshify C models have 170mm.
You can also check GN's case reviews, I think they compared Meshify C along with a bunch of other good cases. Yep, go with the one that looks best to you, it's subjective. I initially thought I liked the looks of Meshify, but later not so much. Lol.
I was split between 4000d and Lancool 2 Mesh, but how Lian Li decided to do their front panel USB C was a downer for me. You need to buy a separate USB C cable and connect it to have C functionality in the front panel. I didn't like having a useless placeholder there otherwise and the cable is an added cost. There certainly are some tradeoffs between the 2 cases, but Lian Li has a lot of other things going for it regardless.

 

[Stronk]

Btw I have noticed one thing while researching for (SFF) cases - using CPU coolers on AM4 mobos has slightly more clearance than using Intel ones. This could be due to PGA vs LGA sockets, but whatever the reason it's worth noting. I bought a Silverstone PS15 Pro which officially supports CPU coolers up to 154mm only, however my Deepcool Gammaxx 400 V2 fits just fine, with about 2-3mm to spare - and that has a height of 155mm. This has also been confirmed by several people on r/mff, where people have used CPU coolers even up to 157mm with this 154mm clearance. However, with Intel boards it supports the officially rated 154mm spec only.
So it might be worth it to just google around if a specific case supports CPU cooler above the listed spec.

 

[roofrider]

Possible. I considered 8mm to be the distance from the motherboard to the CPU IHS - seems to be the same for both Intel and AMD? Not sure. Link 1 / Link 2
It's also possible that tolerances are loose in case manufacturing or maybe some manufacturers intentionally leave some headroom.

google around if a specific case supports CPU cooler above the listed spec.

+1 That's how I knew the D15 fit in mine, though it's not supposed to with my RAM. I still had my doubts and only breathed a sigh of relief when I saw it for myself, lol.

 

[JMP]

Don't know where you live, but check if dust filtration is available on the cabinet you buy.
Bought a Fractal Meshify 2 and it filters 90% of dust on the front panel, some fine dust manages to sneak in which I clean via a blower every few days.