Fun little mini ITX build

[termhn]

Just put this together for fun. Not sure if I really need to answer the little questionnaire, I will if you guys want :D

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=24093267

Seems like a nice little PC for $950. I checked to make sure the case could fit all the stuff in it, and that seems like one of the best mITX cases out there. Main advantage is greater portability so if you want to move it that's possible.

[Rbstr]

You could fit a 670GTX in that case
You know you want to.
Dump the CPU cooler and it's only $150 extra....

At least get a 560Ti
(if I hear "but I want to overclock at the expense of a MUCH better graphics card" I'll choke you, I will)

[termhn]

You could fit a 670GTX in that case
You know you want to.
Dump the CPU cooler and it's only $150 extra....

At least get a 560Ti
(if I hear "but I want to overclock at the expense of a MUCH better graphics card" I'll choke you, I will)

Lol, you're not gonna get that response, but I will give you the response that I was trying to keep it under or not too far over $1000

[Ailos]

That's a pretty sweet little build. I think the biggest LOL factor for me is the fact that whatever video card you chose, it'll take up both of the slots in the case.

Also, wise choice on the water cooler. You'd struggle with a traditional heatsink - what with the PSU being right on top of the MB and whatnot.

I commend you for doing this rather than buying a bloody Alienware laptop with "Screaming dual NVidia 580Ms in SLI mode".

[termhn]

That's a pretty sweet little build. I think the biggest LOL factor for me is the fact that whatever video card you chose, it'll take up both of the slots in the case.

Also, wise choice on the water cooler. You'd struggle with a traditional heatsink - what with the PSU being right on top of the MB and whatnot.

I commend you for doing this rather than buying a bloody Alienware laptop with "Screaming dual NVidia 580Ms in SLI mode".

:p I know right? Also, I would never get an Alienware laptop with "Screaming dual NVidia 580Ms in SLI mode." Way to mainstream ;)

Also, I'm thinking about swapping out the 560 for a 7850 (oc'd of course) or a 570, I can still stay below the $1100 with the cooler with either of those cards. Any recommendations on which one?

[Ailos]

The 7850 has Tom's recommendation above the 570.
http://m.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-4.html

[Rbstr]

Also, wise choice on the water cooler. You'd struggle with a traditional heatsink - what with the PSU being right on top of the MB and whatnot.

I don't think so at all, especially without an overclock.
A smaller case with all the airflow that Lian-Li means that overall residence time of air in the case is going to be very low. That means lower air temps in the case.

But if you're really worried, why not go to the cooler Ivy Bridge CPU? It's hardly any more money. Certainly a better buy than extra cooling.

If you bump to $1100 and don't go with the 670 you're crazy:
The 670 runs much cooler than the 570, and only slightly warmer than a 7850.
Besides blowing all of the options out of the water in performance.

Never spend money to mitigate (cool) if you could spend the same money to prevent the problem in the first place and gain performance at the same time.

[termhn]

The 7850 has Tom's recommendation above the 570.
http://m.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-4.html
Yeah, but the 570 has PhysX and the one I'm looking at is the same price as the 7850. I'm gonna go look at some benchmarks and see which one overclocks better...

EDIT: Actually, I think I'll go for the 560 ti 448 cores...

[Vancha]

But if you're really worried, why not go to the cooler Ivy Bridge CPU? It's hardly any more money. Certainly a better buy than extra cooling.
Except Ivy Bridge runs hotter than Sandy Bridge...?

Edit: Though I'd suggest sacrificing something for a better GPU too. Could the mobo not be bumped down to $100 or less?

[Rbstr]

Except Ivy Bridge runs hotter than Sandy Bridge...?

No it doesn't. TDP of a 2500k? 95w. A 3570k? 77w

(If you want to get into specifics, it might not run cooler in temperature but it does put out less heat. and that's the thing you'd want if you're worried about temps in a fixed-dissipation kind of scenario)

[Vancha]

No it doesn't. TDP of a 2500k? 95w. A 3570k? 77w

(If you want to get into specifics, it might not run cooler in temperature but it does put out less heat. and that's the thing you'd want if you're worried about temps in a fixed-dissipation kind of scenario)
Hmm, point taken.

[termhn]

Switched mobo to a H77 which still supports overclocking CPU and high memory speeds and since I don't need smart response there's no point in having a z77. Plus it saves $50!

[Vancha]

You could swap out the 660ti, 2500k and CPU cooler for a 670 and 3570k and nearly hit $1100 exactly, but then you could probably bump down the PSU to a lower wattage and knock $10 of the RAM if you got 1333mhz.

660ti
2500k
Cooler
1600mhz RAM
600w PSU

vs

670
3570k
1333mhz RAM
500-550w PSU

[termhn]

Here's what I've got currently:
500W silencer MK3
2500K
GTX670
no aftermarket cooler

Plus the case has really good airflow from what I've read so with any luck I'll still be able to OC close to 4Ghz.

[Goku]

H77 doesn't allow for overclocking with a 2500K, so that is a bad combo.

Only other thing I see that I dislike is the ram.

[termhn]

H77 doesn't allow for overclocking with a 2500K, so that is a bad combo.

Only other thing I see that I dislike is the ram.

I read that it does... I'm 100% positive that it can overclock Ivy... are you sure that it can't?

About the RAM, I know it's overkill currently but I own software like FCP 7 and CS 3 so I can actually take advantage of faster RAM.

[Ailos]

You genuinely need the water cooler in that one regardless of Sandy or Ivy bridge because the stock and most aftermarket heatsinks use an axial fan that relies entirely on there being an open vent with cool air in front of it. In this case, it's blocked by the PSU (which may or may not also be attempting to suck air in, as most PSU exhaust air out the back, meaning that a stock CPU cooler fan would have to work against a PSU fan). And there simply isn't evenough space there to add in something like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

Yeah, your CPU will still operate at 78 C, but why let it? Also, the water solution will be a fuckton quieter than any fan you could fit in that space.

Also, Ivy is known to be similar to the way that the 600 series nVidia cards are: a pain to over clock because they have built-in overlocking features that mess with your multipliers and voltages. It's not that you can't overlclock them... it's just less straightforward and achieving stability is a lot harder.

That said, the 7850 is more efficient price/performance AND performance/watt wise than the 560 Ti core 448. And if you're allowing yourself $1100, you SHOULD consider the 670...

[Goku]

I read that it does... I'm 100% positive that it can overclock Ivy... are you sure that it can't?

About the RAM, I know it's overkill currently but I own software like FCP 7 and CS 3 so I can actually take advantage of faster RAM.

It doesn't. See here (http://www.anandtech.com/show/5626/ivy-bridge-preview-core-i7-3770k/3).

[Vancha]

You genuinely need the water cooler in that one regardless of Sandy or Ivy bridge because the stock and most aftermarket heatsinks use an axial fan that relies entirely on there being an open vent with cool air in front of it. In this case, it's blocked by the PSU (which may or may not also be attempting to suck air in, as most PSU exhaust air out the back, meaning that a stock CPU cooler fan would have to work against a PSU fan). And there simply isn't evenough space there to add in something like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

Yeah, your CPU will still operate at 78 C, but why let it? Also, the water solution will be a fuckton quieter than any fan you could fit in that space
You put the PSU fan facing outwards, so it pulls in the air from the side vent and pushes it out the back, while the CPU is getting air from the front and the GPU is getting air from the bottom.

It'd probably be a dust nightmare, but I wonder how reversing the airflow would work, with the CPU getting air from the top? If he had temperature issues, that'd certainly solve them.

Edit: Also, I think the PSU is probably far enough away for the stock cooler to get sufficient airflow, considering it's more than a GPUs-width away.

Edit II: In fact, you can see here (http://i.imgur.com/ZJmsq.jpg) how much room it has to draw from.

[Rbstr]

You genuinely need the water cooler in that one regardless of Sandy or Ivy bridge because the stock and most aftermarket heatsinks use an axial fan that relies entirely on there being an open vent with cool air in front of it.

Modern CPU fans do not need open vents right there, what are you talking about? Nearly every mid-tower case on the market draws air front to back/ bottom to top.
Very few have ventilation from the sides either. That is: the fan closest to the CPU in most systems is an exhaust fan.

He'll be absolutely fine unless he's trying to go for a big-ass overclock. But he really doesn't have any reason to, the Ivybridge+670 combo is more than adequate right now.

[termhn]

That's what I was thinking. Also, I actually don't think I'm going to be buying this, just was a fun idea to throw around in my head ;) Gonna post a new thread with what I'm thinking to actually buy. It's pretty damn similar to this just different case and motherboard (size).