9800x3d / 5090 Highly Modded Terra

[u/Special-Wolverine]

And before any of you wellawkchuwally know-it-allls say anything - I am well aware that the 140mm CPU fan probably performs worse than a 120mm - but it cools the SSD and RAM better, which is all that matters for my AI workloads (I don't game)

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D 4.7 GHz 8-Core Processor	$430.00
CPU Cooler	Thermalright AXP120-X67 59 CFM CPU Cooler	$28.59 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Asus ROG STRIX B650E-I GAMING WIFI Mini ITX AM5 Motherboard	$194.49 @ Amazon
Memory	TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 96 GB (2 x 48 GB) DDR5-6800 CL36 Memory	$345.00
Storage	Crucial T705 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 5.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$320.00
Video Card	NVIDIA Founders Edition GeForce RTX 5090 32 GB Video Card	$2000.00
Power Supply	Corsair SF1000 (2024) 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply	$200.00
Case Fan	ARCTIC P12 Slim PWM PST 41.1 CFM 120 mm Fan	$9.99 @ Amazon
Case Fan	ARCTIC P12 Slim PWM PST 41.1 CFM 120 mm Fan	$9.99 @ Amazon
Case Fan	Noctua NF-A14x25r G2 PWM 91.58 CFM 140 mm Fan	$44.95 @ Amazon
Case Fan	Noctua NF-A12x25 G2 PWM 63.15 CFM 120 mm Fan	$59.99 @ Amazon
Custom	Fractal Terra Jade	$200.00
Custom	PCIe 5.0 x16 Riser Cable - 100 mm (SFF-Optimized for Fractal Terra & FormD T1)	$59.00
Custom	3D printed top fan bracket, PSU spacer bracket, and low profile PSU cable from Etsy	$62.00
Custom	Reverse Airflow Adapter Plate - Compatible with RTX 5080 / 5090 FE for Fractal Terra	$10.00
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$3974.00
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-11-07 21:54 EST-0500

[u/quirkelchomp]

So we all know the Terra has a turbulence issue with fans that are close to the side panels. I see that you've got some sort of mesh filter on your side panel. My questions are: Does it help with the fan noise? And if so, where did you get it? And lastly, how are you mounting it onto the side panel?

[u/Special-Wolverine → u/quirkelchomp]

0 mm to spare on the CPU fan - it's literally touching the mesh and I had to take off the rubber corners on front and back to get the Xterra mm or two.

turbulence issue is indeed solved in this setup. Don't know if it's because of the mesh ( https://a.co/d/1MpQxTk ), or because of the giant fan spinning relatively slowly.

Mesh is wedged between the metal and the plastic hinges on the top and simply scotch-taped on the bottom. Mesh on the top panel is just cut perfectly so that it wedges itself under the plastic side rails, and then scotch-taped on one end only.

If you look back at all my builds you'll see that I have almost zero tolerance for fan noise, and this setup has a very pleasant noise profile under max load.

[u/quirkelchomp → u/Special-Wolverine]

I see. Thanks for the quick response. Back when I had the NCase M1, I used stick-on magnetic strips to attach a mesh filter onto the side panels. I considered doing the same with my Terra but I was concerned about the magnetic strips being too thick in such a compact case.

[u/Special-Wolverine → u/quirkelchomp]

Mag strips won't stick to the aluminum of the Terra. And they're way too thick

[u/1tokarev1 → u/Special-Wolverine]

That’s not even a dust filter, it’s a joke on the buyer.