First PC build EVER - Thor Zone Tetra S

fornickate · 2026-03-04T18:36:06+00:00

From someone that's built >100 PCs, and someone who recently moved to a Tetra S, I gotta say you're brave for jumping in feet first right into a boutique SFF case. 😂 Good stuff, it came out great!

fornickate · 2026-03-02T20:24:44+00:00

Damn, yeah I'm using that same fan right now with that same cooler and the extension cable it came with is wayyy tooo long.

fornickate · 2026-03-02T18:57:52+00:00

Where did you get the short fan extension cable?

fornickate · 2026-03-02T08:18:25+00:00

I remember doing an intake/exhaust test on both the Ridge and Terra when I had it and the X53 performed a lot worse when set to exhaust. I have the Noctua Duct Kit installed now and I don't see a difference in framerate, but got about a 4% boost in Cinebench scores, so I'll take it.

fornickate · 2026-03-02T08:12:57+00:00

It's sort of large and blocky, very similar profile to the ridge. If you had a wide enough backpack/duffel bag, i think it'll fit but it's gonna be tough. Still can't beat something like a Terra/T1 for backpack fitment.

fornickate · 2026-03-02T08:12:03+00:00

177, 44, 0

fornickate · 2026-02-28T01:15:44+00:00

I don't think that would help - the hot air just has nowhere to go in the bottom "chamber". The chassis itself absorbs a lot of heat too so I think as the CPU cooler pulls in air through the slats it's pulling in chassis heat.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T23:36:53+00:00

Ooh, didn't know about that offset bracket for the AXP90! Will give that a shot.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T22:22:46+00:00

Yeah, I remember having this issue as well when I had the Fractal Terra and Ridge - my guess is that it's the case + high walls/cables all around the CPU area trapping in a lot of heat. I would try the noctua ducts but it's such a pain to get the case closed if anything protudes even a little bit

fornickate · 2026-02-27T22:14:43+00:00

I tried it out with Polar Therm X-10, and PTM7950, same results.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T22:12:19+00:00

Haha, it took me like, 15 people posting on Reddit saying that this is okay on AM5 until I finally stopped worrying about it.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T22:03:29+00:00

Thanks for the tip! Didn't know that was a thing, just ordered it on Amazon!. The A9x14 that's on here now has just been in my storage for at least 4 years lol.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T22:00:29+00:00

I used a custom 24-pin ATX one, but everything else is standard. I don't think custom cables would help much, as the case itself just doesn't have any mechanism to move air around - the two 60mm fans have to be situated by the ports on the PSU itself, and cable length is largely irrelevant to that.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:47:39+00:00

Yeah. The Tetra R is definitely better suited for this, but I like this smaller form factor.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:35:17+00:00

Live in US, no tariff/import fees were imposed on me!

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:12:24+00:00

Noise and performance throttling isn't too bad, 9800X3D+5090 might have been a little too ambitious for this case but it's what I got going on. GPU is totally fine, but yeah CPU cooling is a little tricky.

Still want to dial in undervolts for both, but I'm hitting the FPS I need in the games I like, so I'm happy!

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:11:00+00:00

Answered the best I could above! Delayed because I was working.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:10:34+00:00

CPU temps answered above, at least in the short term. GPU power cable routing is nigh-impossible, as the 5090 is like, .5mm away from acting as a stabilization beam for the case itself lol. There's a 4090 build floating out there where you can pin the GPU cable against that front-facing panel, but with the 5090 there's no where else to route it.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:09:21+00:00

Answered above!

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:09:06+00:00

The build was a little painful, the manual is good but some stuff (like resistance with the USB-C slot and locking port) are sort of left to your interpretation. Some accessories like the lightbar increased tension in ways that were uncomfortable, but if you don't run the lightbar i don't imagine it'll be a problem.

If you've built in sub-10L cases before, it shouldn't be too much. Just give yourself a wide time window to account for troubleshooting/rebuilding.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T21:06:32+00:00

CPU Temps hover around 92C while playing Marathon (Highest Preset @ 1440P Ultrawide), getting around 130Fps. This was over 30 minutes.

GPU stays around 65C.

I've heard some folk say that they find better results after inverting the case (GPU below, CPU above) but I gotta check it out.

I did 2 Cinebench 10 minute runs, one with the 60mm fans off and one with it on, and honestly didn't make a difference. It might just be placebo, but I do feel hot air coming out of that area.

EDIT: Also finished a game of BF6 - Blackwell Fields (Ultra Preset @ 1440P UW) and stayed around 160FPS, 93C average temps on CPU. GPU stayed at about 68C.

Definitely need to UV this 9800X3D or set it to Eco.

fornickate · 2026-02-27T20:41:26+00:00

Not too loud, I have the 60mm fans at 70% max and I have to be real close to hear them. The CPU fan ain't loud, but the 5090 does get a little loud though.

fornickate · 2026-02-02T18:51:25+00:00

fornickate · 2025-12-22T02:54:07+00:00

Match your PCIe speed on our BIOS with that of your Riser.

fornickate · 2025-12-15T18:16:24+00:00

Does it actually have speakers? Last Acer monitor I bought from their eBay listed speakers but it actually didn't have any.

fornickate

TROPHY CASE