Quote:
"Why sacrifice appearance and size when choosing a performance rig? The EVGA Hadron Mini ITX chassis was designed to not make any compromises." - Hadron Air manual
The Hadron's appearance and size are the main reasons owners decide on this chassis, however it's not without some compromises. As long as you are aware of what limitations the case has, and plan your parts around it, you shouldn't run into many problems.
Your choice of components is primarily limited by size. It was worth doing the extra research to find the appropriate parts, but it wasn't easy. Hopefully this guide will provide some useful info for others interested in the Hadron.
Things to know:
- CPU cooler clearance is 140mm, with some reporting around ~2mm extra clearance. Your options are mostly low-profile or top-down coolers. See a compiled list of compatible coolers that users have built with in the following section. To ensure maximum clearance compatibility low profile (LP) memory is worth purchasing. Furthermore the chassis has no CPU cut-out, reducing the ease of cooler replacement.
- GPU clearance is 10.5"/267mm long and no longer, unless you're willing to do some modifications. The EVGA 780 reference and ACX will fit, for example, but longer cards are out (see EVGA's list of incompatible cards). For an idea of how longer cards fit see this user's build with an EVGA 780 Classified, which required bending and cutting the case tabs to install. Also SLI isn't an option, although not surprising.
- Aftermarket GPU coolers are generally not recommended for the Hadron. Although unfortunate as this limits the card's cooling (and noise) potential, the advice is sensible as it improves the case's temps by pushing all the hot air out the back. This still hasn't stopped some from choosing aftermarket designs for the Hadron, although an owner of both noted their ACX card ran up to 10c warmer than the reference version with the same settings (see also this benchmark comparison ). It should be noted the Nvidia Kepler series chips will always stay within the max target temp set within the software however.
- It's preferable to buy a mini ITX motherboard that has the 24pin connector on the right side, rather than at the top, as the PSU cabling is sized to fit and it makes for far more suitable cable positioning within the case. The EVGA Z87 Stinger, ASRock Z87E-ITX*, and ASUS Maximus VI Impact are such boards (note that the Stinger lacks in-built Wifi).
- The Hadron Air lacks support for water cooling, although some have still remarkably managed to pull it off using some modifications. See the Hadron Hydro for an officially-supported water cooling chassis.
- There is no dedicated cable management, so it's best to take a look at some of the ways other owners have arranged their cabling to get some inspiration. See this owner's short illustrated post for some ideas. The illustrated Split View photo above shows my own Hadron with the USB 3.0 cable tucked behind the motherboard.
- The included gold-rated PSU can handle up to 500W, and EVGA has stated it can handle up to a GTX 780 Titan. Best to do some calculations for your expected power output nonetheless.
* For users of motherboards with the Foxconn CPU retention bracket it's worth noting the mechanism is rather stiff and will require some force to clamp the CPU in place. Initially I was concerned as it made two surface marks/dents in sides of the CPU where the bracket contacts, but I have read that this is common for the Foxconn 1156 brackets ( source ).
More specifics:
- The stock 120mm case fans are installed as exhausts. If you're planning on flipping the fans to make them intake a tip to easier screw thread creation is to heat the screw using a lighter for a few seconds beforehand (only needed if the plastic is being difficult). Use a larger screwdriver if you see the heads wearing.
- For users intending to use intake case fans it should be noted there is little space between the perforated grill of the chassis and the circular fan cut-outs - they are almost flush. Because of this very thin dust filters will need to be used ( details ).
- If you're planning on only using SSD drives, and won't be installing the internal slimline optical drive, with some modifications a number of owners have removed the drive cage in the upper-right of the case for additional room.
- The headphone jack on the chassis' side panel can have issues with static interference, depending on how the cables are arranged inside. This ground loop noise can be reduced/eliminated by insulating the circuit board with electrical tape ( instructions ). I found it best to position the PSU power cables so they're not touching the board, however using the direct on-board audio out is still typically clearer.
- The included PSU uses the Delta FFB0412VHN fan which is spec'd @ 45db . However EVGA have stated their custom curves have it at around 30db under load. In my build it's the loudest fan in the case, producing a constant whirring sound. I found this personally the only main disappointment of the Hadron Air chassis, although depending on environment it mightn't be audible. Because of this some have taken to lubing the fan with machine oil, modding their PSU with a quieter fan (such as this owner's post with DIY instructions), or even replacing the PSU entirely .
Compatible CPU coolers
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but should cover the most commonly used coolers used with the Hadron.
Seen in builds:
- Arctic Freezer 13 [ 1 ]
- Cooler Master Hyper TX3 [ 1 ] - w/ either single or dual fans attached in a vertical orientation.
- Cryorig M9 [
]- EVGA mITX CPU Cooler [ 1 ] - officially supported.
- Noctua NH-L9i [ 1 ] - specifications state compatibility with all RAM and PCIe cards on mini-ITX boards.
- Noctua NH-U9B SE2 [
] [ 2 ] - w/ both 92mm fans able to be attached in a vertical orientation. Low profile RAM was required in my build to clear the fan's side clips.- Phanteks PH-TC90LS [ 1 ] - see photos, unlisted on parts list. Note: lacks AMD socket support, and is incompatible with Intel 2011 sockets ( reviews source ).
- Thermalrite AXP-100 [ 1 ] - has room to add a larger replacement fan, seen here with a Scythe Gentle Typhoon AP-15.
Also seen in builds, but with caveats:
- Noctua NH-C14 [ 1 ] [
] - only when installed in the low-profile config, and requires one of the Hadron's top 120mm fans to be replaced with a 120x12mm fan ( source 1 , and 2 ). Be aware this is a difficult cooler to work with and may block components depending on the board used.- Cooler Master Hyper N250 [ 1 ] - a decent cooler, but the mounting system is outdated and known to rotate if bumped - just fits at 141mm high. Note: the owner of the linked build has since moved on to a Noctua U9B SE2.
May be compatible based on dimensions:
- Thermolab BADA2010 [ FrostyTech review ] [ site ] - a little known Korean cooler that benchmarks both in heat and noise similarly to the Noctua U9B, almost bought this myself but lacks an international warranty. Unsure of exact clearances.
Links:
- Official site | Product specifications
- Official EVGA Hadron Air Owners Club - general purpose Hadron Air thread, with member list and photos.
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- [ New ] Removing the drive cage - Instructions
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This article is a work in progress, as such any additional comments you have from your build experience would be greatly appreciated.