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Update Your Shipping Addresses!
In the next few days I will lock in shipping addresses. Please make sure your shipping address is correct in Kickstarter! (then come back and read the update!)
How to Update Your Shipping Address:
Navigate to your account by clicking on your profile image in the top right corner of the homepage. If using the Kickstarter app, head to your profile section.
Select Winter One in the 'Successful pledges' section of your Backed Projects page.
Click on "View Pledge"
Click on "Survey" that is located between the "Reward" tab and the "Messages” tab.
View/Change your address/phone number.
General Updates
Okay, with that out of the way, it's time to talk updates, and there is some really good news to share :)
Batch 1 (Black) should begin shipping to backers during the week of March 15th!
Batch 2 (Silver) Orders will open shortly after that, with deliveries in April
Part production is ⅔ of the way done, and final part deliveries have been scheduled.
Packaging looks great, production is nearing completion, and packaging deliveries have been scheduled.
Build Video (click here)
Q&A #3:
Q1:
How will cooling capacity differ between solid (chimney) vs perforated side panel cases given a dual 280mm rad set up with liquid cooling on both CPU and GPU? The solid will have warmer air flowing through the upper rad but perhaps better airflow overall? Can you quantify? Would the solid be noticeably quieter as sound trapped within the case?
A1:
Solid Panels are quieter with noise levels in the 31dBA range rather than 35dBA range at idle with fans running at ~700 RPM. At load and with fans in the 1350 RPM range, noise levels are ~49 dBA with perforated panels and ~45 dBa with solid panels.
Yes, having the radiators sharing airflow does affect cooling efficiency, but the noise tradeoffs are worthwhile for some, and cooling is still incredibly good. This is partially offset by having higher airflow through the case. As a general rule, you will get about 15% higher temperatures in your loop as a result.
Here is some data from early testing (3900X + 2080Ti) with dual 240mm radiators and fans at 1200 RPM.
Solid (Bottom Intake / Top Exhaust)
CPU: 76ºC
GPU: 54ºC
Noise: 43dBa
Perforated (Side Intake / B+T Exhaust)
CPU: 60ºC
GPU: 45ºC
Noise: 47dBa
Difference (∆)
CPU ∆: 16ºC
GPU ∆: 9ºC
Noise ∆: 4dBa
This comes out to approximately a 9-15ºC difference between the two configurations. However, what you get for that temperature difference is the difference between a whisper and a quiet conversation. Both are still incredibly quiet, but there’s a clear tradeoff between the two, for thermal performance or noise, and they both look distinctive. This test was done with slim 27mm radiators (not 30mm), and ambient air was 26ºC (78ºF). Performance in v1.2 should be even better.
Q2:
Were you able to install the WD heatsink on the m.2 installed on the back of the motherboard? Do you have before and after temps? Also, what is the clearance back there for a m.2 heatsink? Curious to know, so that I can search for aftermarket ones that will fit.
A2:
The clearance for a rear m.2 heatsink is:
6mm (total height from the top surface of the SSD's PCB to the top of the heatsink)
8.2mm for the TOTAL SSD + heatsink thickness (including the backplate on the SSD for a 2 part heatsink)
Take care that the M.2 drive heatsink does not push the riser cable against the GPU backplate, as that could affect cooling of the GPU Backplate! If you follow the guidelines above, that should not be an issue. Total clearance will depend on how tall your motherboard's rear m.2 slot is. (if they are lower profile, you may have more room)
Q3:
Also was a shorter air only version of winter one modeled without the space for rads and how did/would this affect airflow?
A3:
Internally, we modeled many different configurations and geometries. The short answer is that it would have a pretty significant effect, because the fans would be pressed up against the components mounted to the central spine. In the case of watercooling, the effect is negligible because water blocks do not restrict the fan / radiator inlets nearly as much as fully air cooled components would (because they tend to be thicker / wider). In air cooled mode, fans close to components can create more noise, and causes the fans to be somewhat starved for flow.
Q4:
In your build, did you use the standard Corsair SFX cables? Are there cable lengths that you recommend for the case? Could be a nice resource to include in the manual.
A4:
I did use the standard Corsair SFX cables for my build, mainly to demonstrate that it could be done and how the spine allows for cable management. Regarding the user’s manual, I think that’s a fantastic idea, and I’ll be sure to add a section for recommended cable lengths, as part of the next update post! :)
Q5:
What limits the pump/reservior size to 154mm when the Mainboard on the other side has a hight of 170mm?
A5:
The pump bracket itself has about 7-8mm of thickness (on the mounting side), and there’s a gap above and below to prevent the part from blocking airflow to radiators and fans. Beyond that, there’s about 2mm of padding in all reported dimensions (what’s on the chart is 1mm smaller than the true dimension) to account for the combined tolerances of your pump / res and a vibration-dampening cork adhesive pad (this 2.5 x 2.5 cm pad comes with the pump bracket and can be clamped between the pump and bracket).
Q6:
you seem to have a 3090 FE running - could you maybe give an estimate in mm of the ideal length for a 12-pin cable in the WinterOne? Generally I'm in need of a 24 Pin ATX (150mm?), 8 Pin EPS (250mm?) and a single SATA Power (150mm?) for the Pump - do you think those are reasonable values? (I'm pretty much guessing at this point) Maybe this is something for the FAQ. I'd rather play it save and have a bit extra length instead of min/maxing this.
A6:
For standard cables, I'll try and inlclude a reasonable range in the user's manual. For some of the more non-standard cables, like the 3090FE 12-pin connector, I'll likely add it to the compatibility spreadsheet or FAQ. If there is information about cabling from other Sandwich Cases, it should be a good estimate in the meantime.
Q7:
I'm getting confused regarding dual GTS 280mm and D5 pump/res combo compatibility. Maximum width for pump/res combo is 63.5mm (post #321) when almost all D5 tops are around 80x80mm. Smallest, widely available D5 Top/Res - Alphacool Esidecke is 80x80 so it looks like there is not enough clearance sideways for any D5 Top at the height of PSU, right?
A7:
This is a very good question. The 63.5 mm clearance comes from the small beam of the central spine that attaches to the front panel of Winter One. However, above and below this area, you have the full clearance between the Side Panel and Power Supply to mount a pump. Here's a handy visual that user Nikfloyd made on the SFF net Forums. The 63.3mm comes from that tab you see above the D5 pump. Above and below that area, it is possible to mount a D5 pump / reservoir.
To see all images from this post, visit the Kickstarter.