Daniel Hansen is the German-born designer of the
DAN Cases gaming case for Mini-ITX systems, the development of which he financed with his Flensburg-based one-man company, named after him, via the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter The campaign, which was extremely successful with almost 400,000 Euros, brought international attention to the minimalist SFF case (Small Form Factor) and helped establish its popularity among PC hobbyists, mini-case enthusiasts and gamers. The hype surrounding the unique aluminium case is also easy to explain, as it is nothing less than the smallest gaming case in the world! The A4-SFX V4.1 represents the fourth edition that has now been released to market.
THE DAN CASES A4-SFX V4.1 MINI-CASE AT A GLANCE:
- Extremely compact dimensions with only 7.25 liters volume
- High-grade aluminium with polished finish
- Superb craftsmanship thanks to production by Lian Li
- Space for two 92mm fans and even one 120mm AiO
- Supports full gaming graphics cards (e.g. NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080)
- 3M riser module with full PCI Express 4.0 speed
- Supports Mini-ITX motherboards (all AMD and Intel sockets)
- Place for powerful SFX or SFX-L power supplies and two to three 2.5-inch drives
THE NEW FEATURES OF VERSION 4 (4.1) BRIEFLY SUMMARIZED:
- New front panel USB slot type C (USB 3.1 or USB 3.2 Gen1)
- 3M Riser cable completely in black, certified for PCIE 4.0 (version 4.1)
- New slot for 92mm fan under the mainboard
- The bracket for a 120mm AiO is optional
OPTIMISED SPACE USAGE & INGENIOUS DESIGN
With the extremely compact dimensions of
only 115 x 200 x 317 millimetres (W x H x D) of the chassis, the case has a volume of just 7.25 litres - roughly the size of a shoe box or toaster. The fact that a complete gaming PC can be installed in spite of this size format is achieved by a well thought-out design and one trick: The graphics card is housed parallel behind the
Mini-ITX motherboard in a separate chamber along with the fact that almost every square centimeter inside the
DAN Case A4-SFX V4.1 is used sensibly, while there is usually an unnecessary amount of free space left over in ordinary tower cases. Gaming PCs just don't get any smaller than this!
HIGH QUALITY ALUMINUM CASE PRODUCED BY LIAN LI
Externally, the innovative little case impresses with its minimalist design and the flawless workmanship of the brushed aluminium. The 1.5 millimetre thick metal is produced in cooperation with case specialist Lian Li and, with its chic hairline finish, this all helps contribute to the unique look. Accordingly, the minimalist front of the
A4-SFX V4.1 features a revised power button, an unaccompanied
USB 3.2 port with an internal motherboard connection, and the interior itself is limited to the space required for truly essential hardware. Due to the meticulously planned dimensions of the case, the maximum permissible dimensions of all components must be observed exactly.
A detailed operating manual in German and English clearly illustrates the sequence in which assembly must be performed. The power supply of the mini-gaming system must be
a power supply unit in the compact SFX or slightly longer SFX-L standard, pulling in cold air from the right side and exhausting waste heat upwards. Behind the front
a 15 mm high 2.5 inch drive can be accommodated, while under the power supply one (with PSU in SFX-L format) to two (with PSU in SFX format)
further 2.5 inch SSDs/HDDs can be mounted in a drive frame. Motherboards with M.2 slots expand the drive capacities accordingly.
TWO MORE RADIATOR SLOTS
The clever cooling design of the case is similarly spartan in outlook, as it does completely without the case fan and takes advantage of the integrated cooling of the installed hardware, thus saving valuable space here as well. To ensure that all components can breathe enough fresh air at all times and that their waste heat can be easily removed, the two side panels and the top of the
A4-SFX V4.1 have been provided with round air holes over a large surface area along with elongated holes on the bottom to ensure a continuous supply of fresh air.
Since the V2, there have been holes included that allow a
92 mm fan on the bottom, which can be used instead of one of the three SSDs. In the new V4.1 version, there is an
additional slot for a 92mm fan, which can be placed under the motherboard - without having to do without a drive. The additional V3 mounting bracket for
a 120mm radiator, which is integrated vertically either on the left side, i.e. on the side where the graphics card is installed, or opposite on the side where the mainboard tray is mounted, is now available to purchase separately. With the latter option, the fan-less
400W Hi-Fi DC ATX power supply from HDPLEX is required, which is attached to the side where the GPU is situated. Then the AiO and fan may be up to 52 millimeters deep, which is possible with slimline variants (15 mm) of fans such as those available from Akasa (LUAK-040) or Scythe (LUSY-066). And also
the graphics card may be up to 273 mm in length.
In a reversed setup, where the AiO moves to the GPU side next to a conventional SFX form factor power supply. This reduces the
length of the graphics card to 173 mm and the height of the AiO including fan to 42 millimeters. Those who can do without two SSDs have room for
92 mm AiOs on the ground, such as the 545LC from Asetek. To effectively protect all vents from dust,
DEMCiflex provides optional DAN Cases A4-SFX Dust Filters.
SUPPORTS HIGH-END GRAPHICS CARDS VIA 3M RISER MODULE
Inside, on the right side, a Mini-ITX format motherboard can be accommodated, on which a
CPU with a maximum 48 mm high processor cooler can be installed. Flat top-down blower coolers are completely sufficient for cooling due to the ever decreasing TDP of modern processors. A
riser adapter redirects the PCI-Express x16 slot of the motherboard to the left side of the case, where up to
295 mm long gaming graphics cards can be installed. The riser adapter is from 3M, and both the cable and PCB are black.
GAME CONSOLE SIZE, GAMING PC PERFORMANCE
.PCI Express lanes are normally sensitive to the signal loss associated with the extension, but the Lian Li riser card is a quality product that supports even higher data rates than the PCI Express 3.0 standard, so there is no need to worry about speed reduction. Since the graphics card and the Mini-ITX motherboard are installed back-to-back and could possibly come into contact, a
insulating plastic foil serves as a protective shield between the two components and effectively protects them from short circuits. Daniel Hansen has also given some thought to the installation of the hardware and, unlike many other mini cases, designed it to be surprisingly comfortable, of course providing the appropriate hardware is selected.
Technical Details:
- Dimensions: 115 x 205 x 327 mm (W x H x D - with feet and overhang)
- Dimensions: 112 x 200 x 317 mm (W x H x D - Chassis only)
- Material: Aluminium (anodized, brushed)
- Material thickness: 1.5 mm
- Weight: 1.25 kg
- Volume: 7.25 l
- Colour: Silver
- Form factor: Mini-ITX
- Fans possible in total:
1x 92mm fan
1x 92mm fan instead of one drive
- Radiators possible:
1x 92 mm (bottom)1x 120 mm (laterally/vertical behind the power supply)
- Drive bays:
2x 2.5 inch (drive frame, max. 15 mm height, only 1x possible with SFX-L power supply)
1x 2.5 inch (behind the front, max. 9 mm height)
- Power supply unit: SFX or SFX-L (optional)
- Expansion slots: 2 (Dual slot)
- I/O Panel:
1x USB 3.1 (USB 3.2 Gen1) Type C (internal connection)
- Special feature: 3M PCIe 4.0 riser module for GPU mounting (180 mm)
- Maximum CPU cooler height: 48 mm
- Maximum graphics card length: 295 / 306 mm (without/incl. slot bracket)
- Maximum graphics card height: 144 mm (from the bottom of the PCIe slot)
- Maximum graphics card width: 40 / 45 mm (without/with backplate)
- Maximum memory module height: 52 mm
- Maximum power supply length: 130 mm
Note: Any PCIe power connections on the back or top of the graphics card must also be taken into account!
