Review on 🖥️ Antec VSK2000 U3 Slim Desktop Micro by Dhoal Black

I like the slim cases (about 4 inches wide) for their ease of use and the space they take up on the equipment shelf. I recently used an Antec VSK2000-U3 chassis to recycle an AMD Ryzen 2700x 8-core CPU with a gigabyte AB350M-DS3H-CF, 32GB RAM and Samsung NVMe storage from a previous build from a larger chassis. I added the Gigabyte GTX 1650 low profile graphics card that I chose for the case. First, the stock AMD Wraith CPU cooler doesn't fit in by about 10mm, so I installed a low-profile Noctua NH-L12S CPU cooler. This is an amazing and very flexible cooler that fits snugly into the case and runs 1-2 degrees cooler than the larger stock cooler when the case is open! With a TDP of 105W, the 2700x is a fairly fast chip that reaches 82°C under load with the NH-L12S when the housing is open. (All temperatures given here refer to Tctl, which differs from Tdie by 2700x +10°C). And here's the problem with the case, at least when high-end processors are built in: ventilation. All sides, including the detachable panel, are unventilated, airflow is front-to-back only, thanks to a 92mm fan in the front of the case. With the case closed with air cooler, the peak temperature under load reaches 94-95 degrees, which is too hot to work. To be fair, I'm pretty sure the case wasn't designed to hold a 2700x or similar. However, this 92mm front fan configuration can be used to advantage. Most thin cases have 80mm fans. The VSK2000-U3 92mm fan bracket allows the installation of an Asetek 645LT AIO water cooling system. A "normal" 645LT setup with a 92 x 14mm fan pushing air through the heatsink will still run on the hot side at 2700x (92C under load), but the addition of a second 92 x 25mm push fan brings the temperatures under load back to peak values of 82-85 °C. Installation is accomplished using the case fan brackets and 4 x 1-1/4" 6-32 screws. To make room for the thicker heatsink and push-pull fans, you will need to remove the drop-down drive tray that is easy to do, especially if you're using NVMe storage on a motherboard instead of 2.5" or 3.5" SATA drives. The only permanent change to the case was opening the plastic front panel. The 645LT and push-pull fans require a deeper breath, which is achieved through the careful application of a 90mm hole saw and mesh cover for a compact (and very light) chassis built around a water-cooled 8-core processor is.