I got cooler and NVMe this weekend. I picked ID-Cooling IS-60 EVO: removed original fans and put only one Arctic P12 in pull mode, replaced backplate with one from "be quiet!" (since low pressure is the issue with original mount). This is how "weaponized" motherboard looks like - I might remove M2 cover in future. Time for more cutting - rough cut for IO. After filling hole, threading in standoffs and cleaning aluminum dust. Motherboard fixed in place for the time, this time without cardboard I had to remove IO shield. It extends beyond motherboard on one side. I didn't want to cut it for warranty reasons.
Almost too perfect, hence I got rid off IO shield, because I'm missing few millimeters. On the bright side access to IO is way better than I thought it will be. Next thing to do will be drilling holes for top fans - you can see how they will look like more or less. One thing I didn't take in consideration is alignment of IO shield. "The shelf" isn't running at 90 degrees, hence motherboard is touching it on bottom and on top you can spot the gap. Maybe I'll make cover for it. Other than that I think I figured out how to mount GPU.
They used to take imperial measurements into account when making standard sizes, so you find stuff fits like this a lot. I bet it will fit CD's or video tapes perfectly too. You still have a problem. I spy an 8 pin ATX outlet that will have a retaining clip on the outside. Easy fix, though. Chop the clip. Leave the gap, you need the airflow.
EPS cable in non-issue as you mentioned, especially since I have extender, so PSU will stay original. You can spot few more cables and some fans on photo bellow: PCIE extender, mini-PWM cable for GPU fans, two 70mm fans from Fander (couldn't get anything else at that size and they are DC only), two 80mm Arctic P8 (I don't like quality of the F-series) and PCIE riser cable. I'm not that worried about airflow, it should work. The thing I'm concerned is riser cable, guess time will tell.
I screwed big time when it comes to holes for top fans. I borrowed used angle drill, because there was too little space for anything else. It wasn't good, first I had to fix it to start it running, then chuck on this thing turned out to be bad. When I started drilling first hole, hole saw become loose in chuck, rotated, made bad hole and damaged saw in the process. Guess I will have to live with it. Tapping holes for mount screws was tricky, but doable. Still this won't fix oversized holes. Holes for bottom fans turned out way better - working with normal drill and undamaged hole saw made the difference. Cleaning back compartment for fans took a lot of time: drilling, filling, cutting in place, where there isn't much space. I assembled the box without GPU, just APU for time being. Cable management is not existent, but it is running. Nintendo Switch for size reference. Dust isn't for reference, but I was too tired to clean it up after putting it together. I had to assemble it twice, because I lost screw - to be specific last motherboard screw, when almost everything else was connected. There is a lot of work to be done, especially in cable department. Right now all fans are connected to motherboard, where in the end front fans will be handled by GPU.
New CPU is in the box. Using this occasion I can give fulls specs (another M2 drive could be installed, but SSD is boring part anyway). M/B: Gigabyte B550I AORUS PRO AX CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750G RAM: Patriot Viper Steel Series 32GB 3200MHz CL16 GPU: Gigabyte Radeon RX 5700 Gaming OC 8GB GDDR6 SSD: Adata XPG SX8200 PRO 2TB M.2 NVMe PSU: Enhance ENP-7660B 600W Flex-ATX CPU cooler: ID-COOLING IS-60 EVO with only top fan, replaced with Artic P12 and mounted on backplate from be quiet! CASE fans: 2 x Lamptron Rigel+ 120mm PWM fans, 2 x Artic P8 80mm PWM fans, 2 x Fander Roxo 7025H 70mm DC fans I finally made mount for GPU. Bottom part: Made out of bent polycarbonate. I reused original screw holes. Top mount: I know cables are still mess, but I should have some free time to fix this. GPU isn't running yet, just tested riser. This is how front looks like - pretty much the same way I teased before. I ordered feet for the case. They are perfect fit and I even used provided screws.
