Project 009 – Micro
Micro was my very first project that I designed entirely from scratch. While it was loosely inspired by a concept from Optimum, the Nano Rig. I pushed the idea further: making it even smaller, simpler, and built without a dedicated GPU.
The case was a huge milestone for me – 3D-printed in carbon fiber with a custom anodized aluminum front plate I had produced to my own design. Power was another challenge: instead of a standard PSU, Micro runs on an external power supply paired with a Pico-style DC-ATX unit, keeping the internal volume incredibly tight.
For performance, I chose the AMD Ryzen 7 8700G – a powerful APU with strong integrated graphics, ideal for such a compact system. Cooling was solved with a Noctua NH-L9a-AM5 low-profile cooler and two tiny Noctua 40 mm fans in the front, proving that even in ultra-small form factors, airflow and stability can be maintained.
The goal was simple but ambitious: build an ultra-compact PC that still delivers excellent everyday performance. Micro achieved exactly that – and today it has found a new owner who is absolutely thrilled with the result.
Specifications
Case: Custom MAROIS Micro – carbon fiber 3D-printed with anodized aluminum front panel
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 8700G (8C/16T, integrated Radeon graphics, Ryzen AI, up to 5.1 GHz)
CPU Cooling: Noctua NH-L9a-AM5 Low-profile Cooler
GPU: Integrated Radeon Graphics (part of Ryzen 7 8700G)
Motherboard: GIGABYTE B650I AX (Mini-ITX, WiFi 6E, PCIe 4.0, DDR5 support)
RAM: Kingston Fury Beast 64 GB (2×32 GB, DDR5-6000 MHz)
Storage: Crucial T500 1TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe M.2 SSD (with heatsink, up to 7300 MB/s)
PSU / Power Supply:
External 200W PSU (19V, 10.5A, Clevo A11-200P1A)
Upgrade DC 12–25V ATX Switch Mining PSU (Mini-ITX DC-to-ATX board, up to 250W)
Fans:
2× Noctua NF-A4x10 PWM (40 mm, front intake)
Accessories & Cables:
External power button with LED (1.65 m)
Nelawya WLAN antenna
Miscellaneous accessories & small parts
Software: Windows 11 Pro
