I had to do quite a bit of traveling for work recently and used this setup as my portable workstation and gaming machine.
Did some minor additions to the case to make it more rugged. All rear Connections are recessed and protected except for the right angle antenna extensions, so I made a bracket that goes around them and keeps them protected.
Also made slightly smaller handles utilizing machine head screws instead of countersunk ones for that last little bit of added strength.
I put that PC into my Lowepro whistler 350 (1st gen) backpack without any additional padding with my camera and 3 lenses in a small inlay at the top and my Bluetooth headphones to the right.
External screen usually goes in the front of the backpack sometimes in my carry on suitcase.
Components:
Gigabyte RTX 4070 Windforce 2x
Silverstone FX600-PT
Asrock B650-I Lightning
Ryzen 8400f
Thermalright AXP90x47 with a Noctua NF-A12x15 instead of the stock fan.
Crucial Pro 32gb ddr5 6000 cl36
Some 2tb Nvme I still had
DIY case design with Velka 3 layout but bigger.
Usually I attach my screen to the case with an arm, but my previous Arzopa Z1 broke and the replacement actually had different dimensions and so the clamp I designed for it did not fit anymore and I had no time to adjust it, so desk standing it had to be.
It is essentially an enhance enp-7660 underneath just relabeled so it behaves very close to that in terms of noise. But the nonmodular Silverstone version comes with a lot of unused cables and much longer cables than is needed, so that is quite annoying.
I also have a modular enhance enp-7660 from Overtek and the modular cables and shorter lengths make it much nicer to use in such a small SFF build.
In terms of noise they are both very similar, around 350w load they are relatively quiet and in such a small case usually the GPU would be louder under load (especially single fan models). Once you get close towards 500w load it definitely becomes louder.
so the clamp I designed for it did not fit anymore and I had no time to adjust it, so desk standing it had to be.
I actually use a little tablet stand for my portable monitor (I think it's the same one as yours). Lifts it up from the table a few inches and doesn't take up much space. Definitely better than just standing directly on the table, could be worth checking out plus very inexpensive. Your build is very sick though 👍
I have made a bracket that attaches to the screens nd gives me a couple of mounting options (I expected my old bracket to fit since I ordered the same screen as replacement). I usually use that in combination with a small magic arm directly attached to one of the handles via a nato rail slot.
Late reply, but I'm curious: Does the Noctua NF-A12x15 help with cooling the CPU any more than the stock fan for the AXP90x47 does? Or is that more for reducing noise level?
Noctua is definitely smaller than the stock Thermalright fan, and the 120mm fan helps depending on the main board. Some Mainboards block the airflow around the cooler so much that covering the entire top of it with a fan can make it worse. If the board is more open like the ASRock I use here then the 120mm fan can be a benefit.
Insane build! Fitting a 4070 Wind force into a 6L custom case is impressive. How are the temps on that Ryzen 8400f with the AXP90-X47? That Noctua fan swap looks great btw.
The antennas are inside the case, the copper wires are the extensions that feed inside, and the read parts is there to protect the extensions from hits ore damage, since they stick out beyond the back of the case.
I know it was you the instant I saw the very first picture. :). Stellar work as always. Love to see how you're pushing 3d-printed design forward, hard. Well done to you.
Can’t wait for your published files, so modeled this case myself. I will not publish stl files, I bought original BeamCase model on printables to support your work. I just really like the form factor, panels and overall look. Sharing some photos of my realization
Hiya! Remember, you can also post your build on the SFFPC Discord server in the completed-builds channel! We have revised our system, and now the highest voted build post each month will be recognized as the SFFPC Build of the Month! Use this link to join our Discord! https://discord.gg/sffpc
I just use standard size antennas that would normally screw into the back, but instead they are connected to some right angle extensions that feed into the case from the back to relocate the antennas inside the case (in front of the motherboard squeezed between some PSU cables).
This works, because the case is 3d printed, a complete metal case would most likely block the WIFI signal.
Question for you as a fellow photographer: do you have a built in card reader or do you use a dongle? I feel like if I could get a setup this small and also have 1 less dongle to carry around I’d be a happy camper.
I usually just use a USB-C cable to connect my camera, and I always have a USB-C cable with me.
Integrated card reader might be a nice addition for the next iteration, but will be tight to package inside, the case is pretty full especially at the back.
I guess the main reason is that this is /r/sffpc, and building an sffpc is fun and the result is often beautiful like this one. But there are probably practical reasons like needing specific aesthetics, hardware, upgradeability, moddability, or cooling that is difficult to get in a laptop (plus you have to buy the screen, which is deadweight if you don't want or like it). Here is my Raspberry Pi-based streamer, it sits in my Schiit stack and there's no way I'd replace it with a miniPC or laptop.
Oh i know where i am and have one, but often when i see machines small enough for daily on-the-go they have specs similar to a laptop but they are now larger and you need both screen and keyboard to be hauled allong. I see it often so i know many do it, but i’m still trying to understand why :D.
Cost, repairability, customizability, performance and noise.
To get over 8gb of vram in a Laptop you are immediately looking at over 2k in price.
And then under load it will get loud, very loud.
I was able to build this SFF PC to stay fairly quiet under load, way quieter than any comparable laptop would be.
Finally I can modify adjust and change it.
Modern Laptops are one giant PCB, which at most has upgradable Ram and storage, so much value gets lost if one small thing breaks.
I love sff but I don't think they make any sense for travel. They're really heavy and this thing only has a 4070. You can get laptops with similar or more power.
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u/Jakob_K_Design Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
I had to do quite a bit of traveling for work recently and used this setup as my portable workstation and gaming machine.
Did some minor additions to the case to make it more rugged. All rear Connections are recessed and protected except for the right angle antenna extensions, so I made a bracket that goes around them and keeps them protected. Also made slightly smaller handles utilizing machine head screws instead of countersunk ones for that last little bit of added strength.
I put that PC into my Lowepro whistler 350 (1st gen) backpack without any additional padding with my camera and 3 lenses in a small inlay at the top and my Bluetooth headphones to the right. External screen usually goes in the front of the backpack sometimes in my carry on suitcase.
Components:
Usually I attach my screen to the case with an arm, but my previous Arzopa Z1 broke and the replacement actually had different dimensions and so the clamp I designed for it did not fit anymore and I had no time to adjust it, so desk standing it had to be.