You must not be reading the same reviews I am. I am seeing 120 AIO stay pretty close or surpassing revered air coolers. Also, if you didn't read the thread, I am not fitting any air coolers worth a damn in my mitx case.
1. I don't see any "reference" coolers on that list ... Scythe Fuma / Fuma 2 / Mugen Max all match or beat the Noc D15 (no S)
2. Performance includes cooling AND noise
Who matches the Fuma 2 w/o breaking 40 dbA ?
Corsair 150i Pro has same cooling .... 3dbA Louder
Corsair 100i Pro wind by 1C ... 13 dbA Louder ... dude, that's
2.5 times louder
Corsair 115i Pro wins by 2C ... 10 dbA Louder ...
that's 2.0 times louder
I' want 30 foot cables to put the case in next room
And all of those come in with a free science experiment on galvanic corrosion
As to the case, as others have said, that case and "performance" are mutually exclusive
Switech used to have an all in one H120 but was discontinued for lack of sales. You could by the kit still but its over $250:
Part Number: H2O-BOREAS
Configuration: RAD120-X050-BARB-BLACK-EX
Radiator Size: Single 120mm w/ 1x Helix 120 IRIS fan
Reservoir Size: Maelstrom D5 V2 50mm
Fittings type: Barb Fittings and Clamps
Reservoir Trim Anodizing Color: Black
Thee are 1 x 120mm AIOs like the Silverstone, but again..... much louder and a bit hotter than much cheaper air coolers
Might wanna look at the Shiriken 2
Scythe looks to up their game in the low-profile CPU cooler market with the Shuriken 2. Like its larger siblings, this ultra-compact cooler delivers exceptional performance for its size with no excess noise because of a well-designed slim 92 mm fan.
www.techpowerup.com
"Scythe really did a phenomenal job on the Shuriken 2 as this ultra-compact cooler manages to just barely edge out both the Cryorig C7 and C7 Cu along with the SilverStone AR11. While its margin of victory is so minimal I would consider it within margin of the error, it still held a slight lead of about 1°C. Even so, it managed that level of performance while being 4–5 dBA quieter. In terms of performance and noise levels, the other Mini-ITX coolers just cannot compete. The Shuriken 2 is, without a doubt, one of the best-performing coolers of this size. "
You could pick one of the remote radiator systems but a 120 doesn't cost much less than a 360
Tho , if you want a performance oriented build, you could start w/ a performance oriented ITX case like the black / red Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ITX Tempered Glass and put just about anything you wanted in it .
Max GPU Length Allowance= 330 mm
Max CPU Cooler Height Allowance = 200 mm
Max PSU Length = 200 mm
Fan Options
Front: 2 x 120mm fan or 2 x 140mm fan
Top: 2 x 120mm fan or 2 x 140mm fan
Rear: 1 x 120mm fan or 1 x 140mm fan (1 x 140mm fan included)
Radiator Options:
Front - Up to 240mm/280mm
Rear - Up to 120mm/140mm
Top - Up to 240mm/280mm