I wasn't referring to the choice of fans, but the reviews on case airflow and how the gpu can run out of fresh air. So I apologize if it came off wrong.
Yes, closed front cases can and do impede airflow, but not to the extent many reviewers claim. And most only use just the stock fans while testing/reviewing and don't add additional fans. The problem isn't so much in the case design usually, it's in the approach. It's mITX, you can't build in it and treat it like a miniature version of ATX, it won't work that way. You have to treat it as mITX, which is different. Airflow is a priority, not a secondary consideration. If the case was open front, it'd still be just as important but with just the 2 stock fans, even open front airflow isn't good in many cases.
My main pc is a fractal design R5. It sits inside a cubby in the desk, has 1" of space on each side, 3" behind and 4" of clearance above. Uses 4x 140mm fans total. 2 input, 2exhaust. My i7 at 4.9GHz got 55°C gaming, my gpu @ 124%OC stays in mid 60's. With the door closed. Just needed high static pressure fans as intakes.
Your Silent Wings are great fans, very quiet and do a decent job, but are neither high cfm nor high sp, that was the cost of the silence. They'll work great as exhaust fans, but seriously lack for performance in mITX as intakes.
That case needs high sp 140mm fans up front and mounting from the inside gives enough clearance between the fan and cover to allow for better draw. Mounting from the front/outside takes away 25mm of airspace in front of the fan, effectively choking it.
Same applies to the gpu when using the shroud. The need to leave as much space as possible between the fans and shroud for air. A single slot card would be ideal, but is impractical for gaming, so a dual slot card is needed. But many dual slot cards take up 3 slots with their fancy looking fan shrouds, becoming impractical for mITX use.
With mITX, it's what can I fit inside to get some performance. With ATX it's what performance can I get with what I fit inside. 2 totally different approaches to the build.
Tom's has a member gallery,
Tom's Members Gallery , and I'd love to see some pics of the build with comments on any build issues you may have run into. MITX isn't easy, it's tiny, so when it works out, it's great.