Mechanic Master C25 Plus build — Ryzen 9 5900X + RTX 5060 Ti 16GB
A while ago, I built a Mechanic Master C24 as a compact FHD gaming machine.
C24 build:
https://www.reddit.com/r/sffpc/comments/1t1g4qc/mechanic_master_c24_build_ryzen_7_5700x_rx_9060/
After building the C24, I became curious about another case from the same manufacturer, the Mechanic Master C25 Plus, so I decided to build one as well.
This time, the goal was to build a more powerful compact ITX system with a Ryzen 9 5900X and an RTX 5060 Ti 16GB.
Specs:
- Case: Mechanic Master C25 Plus
- Motherboard: GIGABYTE B550I AORUS PRO AX rev. 1.0
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 5900X
- CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12A
- CPU Cooler Mount: Noctua -7 mm offset position
- Memory: Kingston Fury Renegade DDR4-3200 64GB
- PSU: CORSAIR SF750 Platinum
- GPU: GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 5060 Ti WINDFORCE MAX OC 16G
- Case Fans:
- Front: Noctua NF-A12x15
- Bottom: Noctua NF-A12x15
- Rear: Noctua NF-A12x25
- Top: Noctua NF-A12x25
Storage:
- Acer Predator GM6 1TB NVMe SSD
- Intel 670p 1TB NVMe SSD
- TEAM T2534TB 4TB SATA SSD
Fan layout:
- Front: intake, Noctua NF-A12x15
- Bottom: intake, Noctua NF-A12x15
- Rear: exhaust, Noctua NF-A12x25
- Top: exhaust, Noctua NF-A12x25
- CPU cooler: Noctua NH-U12A dual fan
Current settings:
- PBO Limits: Auto
- Curve Optimizer: per-core negative CO
- Fan control source: CPU temperature
- Fan response intervals:
- CPU fan: 1
- Intake fans: 2
- Exhaust fans: 1
- Rear/top exhaust fan curve: 85°C = 100%
- Above 4G Decoding: Enabled
- Resizable BAR: Auto
- CSM: Disabled
Benchmarks / thermals:
Cinebench R23:
- Multi Core: 20,473 pts
- CPU Tctl/Tdie Max: 74.6°C
- CPU Package Power Max: 145.4 W
- Thermal Throttling: No
3DMark Time Spy:
- Overall: 14,882
- Graphics: 15,877
- CPU: 10,985
- GPU Temperature Max: 66.6°C
- GPU Memory Junction Max: 64.0°C
- GPU Power Max: 166.3 W
- GPU Fan Max: 1,703 RPM
- CPU Tctl/Tdie Max: 78.8°C
- CPU Package Power Max: 139.2 W
- Thermal Throttling: No
OCCT Combined:
- Duration: 15 min
- CPU Tctl/Tdie Max: 74.38°C
- CPU CCD1 Max: 75.25°C
- CPU CCD2 Max: 72.25°C
- CPU Package Power Max: 137.11 W
- CPU Average Effective Clock: 3,711.4 MHz
- CPU Thermal Throttling: No
- GPU Temperature Max: 61.38°C
- GPU Memory Junction Max: 56°C
- GPU Power Max: 181.03 W
- GPU Fan Max: 1,432 RPM
- System Temp Max: 49°C
- Errors: 0
Notes:
Cable management was a little more difficult than my C24 build, even though the C25 Plus is a larger case. There is more space overall, but the cable routing still needs some planning, especially around the PSU, GPU power cable, SATA SSD, and fan cables.
That said, I think the final result came out very clean.
The most satisfying part of this build is that I was able to run a Ryzen 9 5900X in a compact ITX case without thermal throttling. I honestly did not expect it to work this well.
One important detail was the CPU cooler orientation. With this motherboard, I used Noctua’s -7 mm offset mount for Ryzen 5000 CPUs. I also installed the NH-U12A in the reverse front/back orientation to improve rear clearance. This made it possible to fit both a 25 mm thick rear fan and a 25 mm thick top fan.
Originally, I thought I might have to use a slim fan on the top, but with this layout, both the rear and top fans are full-thickness 120x25 mm fans.
For the front and bottom intakes, I used slim 120x15 mm fans because standard 25 mm thick fans would not fit in those positions. I also had a small airflow noise issue with the front intake filter, but it turned out to be turbulence from a specific part of the filter. Covering a small part of the filter with cloth tape solved the noise without noticeably affecting temperatures.
Compared to the C24:
If you want a small and reasonably powerful compact machine, I honestly think the C24 is probably the better choice. It is smaller, very fun to build in, and works well for a compact FHD gaming build.
But if you want to use a higher-TDP CPU like a Ryzen 9, the C25 Plus makes more sense. The extra space helps with CPU cooling, larger fans, and overall airflow.
Another improvement over the C24 is SATA SSD mounting. The C25 Plus is much easier to work with if you want to install a 2.5-inch SATA SSD.
There also seems to be an option to add one more fan, but I decided not to use it because I did not think it would make a meaningful difference for this layout.
Overall, I think this is a very good case. It is more expensive and a bit more complicated than a simple mATX build, but as a compact ITX case for a high-performance system, I am really happy with how it turned out.
The last two photos are comparison shots of the C24 and C25 Plus.
I also added a bonus internal photo of my current C24 build. It has been updated quite a bit since my previous post.