Mini ITX build - VR ready? value?

[pinchthings]

Hi,

I'm looking to build a new gaming PC. My current rig is pretty old, so when Fallout 4 came out and I was below minimum specs, I decided it was time to get something new (By the way, it's still playable on medium settings even below min specs).

I'm in a kind of wait-and-see regarding Rift of HTC Vive, but if I decide to buy one of those systems I'd like to be ready. My other preference is to go down to a mini ITX build to get a small case. I'm tired of having a full ATX tower in my dining room

My budget is less than $1700. I prefer Intel CPUs and AMD Radeon GPUs.


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HFF4yc
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HFF4yc/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($216.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z170I PRO GAMING Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 390 8GB Nitro Video Card ($309.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($34.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Cooler Master VSM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($106.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.11 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1277.93

So I checked the R9 390 length and it will fit in this case. I'm a little concerned about heat, so if you have any recommendations on cooling, I'd be open to that. I was just planning to use stock CPU and case fans.

I'm intrigued by the new M.2 eNVM SSDs that are on the market now. I've gotten conflicting views online whether the super high read bandwidth is noticeable in normal gaming use. If Windows booted super fast and some of my load times were decreased noticeably, I think it's worth the price premium (dropping a SATA cord is nice too). If it's un-noticeable, then I'll probably switch to a normal 2.5" SATA SSD.

I'm also not sure if a blue ray drive is worth it. From what I see VLC media player can't even run blurays, and I don't think I'd be watching movies on my computer enough to justify buying blueray playback software.

Finally, I plan to run at stock CPU/GPU speeds. I did choose a Z170 so I could get higher frequency memory. Some reviews I've seen showed a small performance boost from the 2133 standard to 2400 and then diminishing returns. But most of the memory is competitively priced, so why not?

 

[Ken g6]

So I checked the R9 390 length and it will fit in this case. I'm a little concerned about heat, so if you have any recommendations on cooling, I'd be open to that.

Yeah, I'd be concerned about an R9 390 in an ITX case too. I'd recommend a blower cooler, or an Nvidia, or a blower cooler on an Nvidia.

The other thing is an AMD card is likely to be a little better at the Rift's resolution, if you can keep it cool. Or could you wait until the new 16nm cards come out?

 

[Termie]

A few thoughts for you, as I've used many of those components:

(1) You shouldn't even consider installing an M.2 PCIe drive on the rear-mounted slot of an ITX board. It will overheat instantly. I tried installing a SATA SSD on the back of my Z170I Pro in an open case (unlike the Elite 130), and it got very hot, very quickly. PCIe drives run even hotter.

(2) You really don't want to use an R9 390 in a case like this. The airflow just isn't right for a hot open-air model. I'd suggest you consider the equally-fast GTX 970. It's a much better match for that case.

(3) Save some money and go with a 550W PSU, preferably one much better than the CoolerMaster unit you chose. For example: the EVGA 550 G2.

(4) You'll probably want to get a 6600K if you're spending the money to get a Z170 board. You may not want to overclock, but even using DDR4-2400 is considered overclocking, so you might as well get an overclocking CPU as well. It will do a lot more overall than memory overclocking. You'll be able to pay for it with the money you save on the SSD and power supply suggestions above.

 

[pinchthings]

Hmm. I get that space is at a premium on mini ITX boards, but if these M.2 SSDs are so heat sensitive, why put the slot on the back of the motherboard if 90% of people have no airflow there?

 

[Termie]

Hmm. I get that space is at a premium on mini ITX boards, but if these M.2 SSDs are so heat sensitive, why put the slot on the back of the motherboard if 90% of people have no airflow there?

It's for the spec sheet.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Hmm. I get that space is at a premium on mini ITX boards, but if these M.2 SSDs are so heat sensitive, why put the slot on the back of the motherboard if 90% of people have no airflow there?

In a well ventilated case, that's not overclocked, with a midrange, lowend, or IGP graphics solution that's not dumping 200w of heat inside the case... they're fine.

You want to disturb the balance of the force, you're taking responsibility for your actions.

 

[pinchthings]

Yeah, I'm kind of torn. I really want to stick to a small form factor but not compromise on GPU performance. Is the GTX 970 the most powerful card that might be good for a small case? I thought the R9 Nano was intriguing but then started reading about coil whine...

 

[Ken g6]

Yeah, I'm kind of torn. I really want to stick to a small form factor but not compromise on GPU performance.

I know the feeling.

Is the GTX 970 the most powerful card that might be good for a small case? I thought the R9 Nano was intriguing but then started reading about coil whine...

If you're looking at the Nano you might as well look at the 980 too. (Of which the 970 is a cut-down version.) Both tend to be overpriced for most uses, but would probably work well in your case. Coil whine can happen with any powerful GPU. And some PSUs.

Or you can wait for the 16nm GPUs coming this year.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Yeah, I'm kind of torn. I really want to stick to a small form factor but not compromise on GPU performance. Is the GTX 970 the most powerful card that might be good for a small case? I thought the R9 Nano was intriguing but then started reading about coil whine...

Any GPU with a blower cooler will work fine/better in a well-designed small case. But if there's sufficiently meshy-mesh on that side panel, the dual or triple fan blowers (which are quieter) work just as well, since they're just exhausting outside the case anyways.

The CM130 is one of the roomier ones, and should be a good candidate for a high end ITX gaming builds. If you take a look at the pcpartpicker completed builds list:

http://pcpartpicker.com/builds/by_part/cooler-master-case-rc130kkn1

You'll see a few 970 builds and at least one 980. Personally, I think you're worrying too much.

 

[JeffMD]

Going back to the topic, I wouldn't consider it vr ready. You took the minimum suggested specs and shaved them down even more.

 

[nsafreak]

Going back to the topic, I wouldn't consider it vr ready. You took the minimum suggested specs and shaved them down even more.

Agree with JeffMD on this one, that system is barely going to be able to run games in VR at an acceptable framerate and when it comes to VR you want to make darn sure it stays consistent and doesn't drop below 60. I'd recommend upping the budget and/or considering a micro ATX build instead. MicroATX doesn't have the same price premium and the cases are still pretty small but typically have a bit better airflow. Problem is that you'll still need to go above $1200 for a VR ready system even with micro ATX. Might be worth waiting to see what price points the new Pascal GPUs debut at.

 

[JeffMD]

An itx build can still manage an i5/i7 with a 970 or 980 and be vr ready.

 

[topmounter]

Which card are you using now? If it will fit in a small form factor case, then do everything else, use your existing card and wait for the GPU announcements this summer.

 

[pinchthings]

Haha. I'm using a Radeon HD 6950...does not belong in my new computer

Let's say I went all out an got a 6600K. I found a low profile heatsink/fan called the Cooler Master GeminII M4. I'd be adding another ~30W of TDP to the case but a better quality cooler vs stock (or is it true that the K processors don't even include a cooler anymore?) might compensate.

I did notice that the 970s and 980s have much lower TDPs than the 390. Surpisingly lower for an equally powerful card.

 

[Termie]

There's some chance that the GeminII M4 will not fit on the Z170I Pro board. You'll want to find someone who's used this combination before buying it. The GeminII is quite wide and can overlap with the PCIe slot on some boards.

 

[topmounter]

Haha. I'm using a Radeon HD 6950...does not belong in my new computer

Let's say I went all out an got a 6600K. I found a low profile heatsink/fan called the Cooler Master GeminII M4. I'd be adding another ~30W of TDP to the case but a better quality cooler vs stock (or is it true that the K processors don't even include a cooler anymore?) might compensate.

I did notice that the 970s and 980s have much lower TDPs than the 390. Surpisingly lower for an equally powerful card.

Yep, no cooler with the Skylake K procs. I recently built a rig with the 6600k and used a Coolmaster Hyper 212 EVO air cooler. I was going to buy the Asus STRIX 970 (cool and quiet), but I'm trying to hold out for the new cards (I'm still using my Asus R9 270, which is decent since I'm still using a 1080p monitor).

 

[pinchthings]

So I've decided to remake this build as mATX (although my new case could still technically mount mITX, I don't see much point)

I upgraded the CPU from i5 6600 to i7 6700K and went up one tier in GPU from 970 to 980.

From what I've read/watched on this case, airflow can be tricky even with the 2 compartment case. I went with an AIO cooler vs air because this case has CPU cooler height restrictions that limit choices on fan/HS combos. Most of those combinations are very wide, and I'm worried they will overlap the RAM. Also, the price point of low profile heatsinks puts them only 10-20$ less expensive than basic AIO coolers.

My plan is to mount the AIO radiator on the front as most do with this case, and take the stock 120mm that was there and move it next to the GPU as an intake. I may want to rotate this case so that the window faces up. I know that's not ideal from an airflow POV (as the heat probably rises against the window with nowhere to go, but my desk layout kind of needs either the window up or on the right (if you're looking at the front). Of course this case like most has the window on the left side. I suppose i could keep it upright, but what's the point of a window if it's facing the wall?

Anyway, this case seemed like a good compromise on size but still leaving plenty of room for high performance components.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/79zxXL

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($411.88 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H55 57.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z170M-PLUS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($115.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($82.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($82.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card ($493.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1561.53
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-03 08:58 EST-0500