Installation (continued):
The images below show the first steps where the motherboard, rear I/O plate, power supply, and memory have been installed. Quite simple and just a matter of dropping things in and tightening a few screws. There is a port in the back of the case where the picoPSU's power connector can be installed with a few turns of a nut.
As mentioned, the M300 comes with one fan, and it was a bit loose even when tightened all the way down. I added paper washers that came with another motherboard just to shim things up a bit. I also added a second 40mm fan (as seen in the images below), simply because I could. Without a fan controller, the noise was noticeable, and it turned out that cooling really wasn't a problem, one fan or two. The below right image also shows a short IDE ribbon connecting the CompactFlash slot to the motherboard (not included with the case).
The image below shows an endview of the PCI graphics card installed on the riser. The bracket that holds it to the case is actually more outside the case than in, and this helps keep things compact. The only problem I now realize I will encounter is that the cooling fan on the graphics card is going to be right up against the metal plate holding the hard drive. Additionally, with a PCI card in use, there is no way to use two hard drives, and you will most likely be limited to one 2.5" drive due to space restrictions.
Here are a few more angles of the system with all components but the hard drive installed. Despite the absolutely minimal foot print, there is still plenty of open space inside. This should come in handy for cooling and wire management.
