Mini-ITX gaming build, shopping at Microcenter

[VirtualLarry]

Usage: Some slight gaming (possibly). Distributed computing (sometimes, probably during the winter months), desktop apps like web browsing, listening to internet radio.

Resolution: 26" LCD, 1920x1200, VGA/DVI/HDMI

Budget: Trying to save money wherever possible. Form-factor more important than budget. Let's say $400-500

May or may not opt for discrete GPU at first, since gaming is not a high priority.

Parts that can be re-used:
SATA DVD burner
various SATA2 SSDs (I have a SATA6G Mushkin Chronos Deluxe 240GB that needs to be RMAed, that would likely be a perfect match up for these parts.)
Already have lots of 4GB sticks of DDR3 RAM, however motherboard chosen only has two slots, and I would like to have 16GB of RAM for distributed computing projects.
Have a couple of Nvidia Gigabyte WindForce GTX460 1GB OC cards. Getting a little old, one out of the two fans on each card is starting to go bad. Temps are still manageable though.

No brand loyalty, although the rig that I have picked out is an Intel 1155 Ivy Bridge rig, primarily for the low power consumption.

Was thinking of going with an internal Blu-Ray burner, primarily for backup, and having access to Blu-Ray media if need be. I also have an external eSATA and USB2.0 Blu-Ray burner, so I could use that one and leave off the optical drive altogether, or just throw in a cheap $20 DVD burner (already have) for OS installation. I still use optical media for various things occasionally.

Here's my list of parts:

$189.99
Intel Core i5 3570K 3.4GHz LGA 1155 Processor
http://www.microcenter.com/product/388577/Core_i5_3570K_34GHz_LGA_1155_Processor

$94.99
Asrock H77M-ITX LGA1155 H77 mini ITX Intel Motherboard
http://www.microcenter.com/product/392374/H77M-ITX_LGA1155_H77_mini_ITX_Intel_Motherboard

-$50.00 for combo with CPU and mobo, mobo shows up as $44.99 in shopping cart when both are added

$62.38 ($20 rebate too, but I don't do rebates)
ThermalTake Element Q Small Form Factor mini-ITX Computer Case
http://www.microcenter.com/product/321759/Element_Q_Small_Form_Factor_mini-ITX_Computer_Case

$109.99
Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) CL9 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 8GB Memory Modules)
http://www.microcenter.com/product/...l_Desktop_Memory_Kit_(Two_8GB_Memory_Modules)

Total without Blu-Ray drive:
$408 + $25 tax

$94.99
LG Blu-ray Disc Rewriter BH14NS40
http://www.microcenter.com/product/385569/Blu-ray_Disc_Rewriter

The case comes with a 200W SFX PSU. Would that be enough to power the 3570K (no overclocking due to H77 chipset, right?) and a GTX460 1GB card? I think that the card takes 100-120W by itself.

If not, then I'll just do without the discrete GPU.

Also, I am assuming that the H77 doesn't allow overclocking the K CPUs, but will it allow it to be overclocked to its maximum turbo multiplier, even if it cannot exceed that? Or is that blocked too on an H77? It would be nice if I could boost it to 3.8Ghz, probably wouldn't need much more than that. If I can't, no big deal, 3.4Ghz is still good. Primarily purchasing the K CPU for resale value in the future, rather than the locked 3450, AND the fact that I get $50 off of a motherboard with the K CPU, makes it seem like it's worth shelling out the extra $30 for it.

I wanted front-panel USB3.0, but there doesn't seem to be too many mini-ITX cases, especially cheaper plastic/steel ones, that have USB3.0. It seems that the only ones that do, are expensive Lian-Li aluminum cases.

However, I have a solution. I previously purchased an Asrock 990FX Extreme4 AM3+ mobo, which came with a USB3.0 front bracket that fits into a 3.5" external drive bay. Since the selected case comes with a front bay like that, I figured I could just throw it in, and have front-panel USB3.0 as well as 2.0.

Edit: I guess my GTX460 1GB card wouldn't even fit, even if the PSU could handle it, because that mini-ITX case only has one slot. Either I would need to move to a SilverStone or Lian-Li case with a double-wide expansion slot, or get a single-slot GPU.

What about this one?

$119.99
XFX FX-775A-ZNP4 Radeon HD 7750 Core Edition 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150612

Hmm, actually, I have a 512MB HD4850 VisionTek single-slot card, that I loaned to a friend for testing, because he was having issues with his card, if I got that card back, I could maybe use it. Except I think it takes 120W, and requires one PCI-E 6-pin connector. Might well be too much for the PSU.

Would the 7750 work on a 200W PSU?

Edit: I forgot the mention, the timeframe for this build, is probably a few months away. I still have to get the money together. (By then, MC may have moved on to a different monthly combo discount offer, I don't know.) If I can get just the CPU+mobo and perhaps the RAM in the next month, I will.

 

[ShintaiDK]

See my signature for how it can be done.

 

[PCTC2]

I don't recommend the Element Q at all. I have it... and it leaves a lot to be desired. The power supply is weak and the case isn't that great. The Silverstone SG05-450 and SG08 are better cases.

With the Sugo cases, you'll need a slim optical drive (with slim SATA converter cable).
Like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812270183

You can also fit dual-slot GPUs. With the SG05 you can fit most mid-range GPUs and with the SG08 you can fit anything but the most power hungry.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Interesting, I hadn't really looked at the SUGO cases much before.
I really didn't want to bother with a slim optical though. Seemed like a hassle to assemble.

$129.99
SilverStone Sugo Series SG05BB-450-USB3.0 ALL Black Plastic / SECC Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case with SFX 450W 80+ Bronze Certified / Single +12V rail Power Supply with 2 x USB3.0 ports (Black)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163208

It already has the USB3.0 ports on the front, which I like. Also, it comes with a 450W Bronze certified PSU, which is like $80 by itself.

I was contemplating buying the SilverStone 450W Gold SFX PSU for $99 and putting in into the Element Q.

But it does make a certain amount of sense to go with a SUGO that can accommodate double-wide graphics cards. Then I could get a 7850 or something. That would really help for gaming at 1200P, and for distributed computing.

Unfortunately, that turns a $400-500 build, into a $600-700 build.

Edit: Slim SATA DVD burner, $23 FS
SAMSUNG 8X Slim Internal DVD Burner, OEM Package Without Software 8X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 8X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 8X DVD-ROM 24X CD-R 4X CD-RW 24X CD-ROM Black SATA Model SN-208BB - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827151242

I guess I would need one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812530001

One of the reviews said that they ordered this cable, and got a molex-to-SATA instead?

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=25166

 

[Gigantopithecus]

Another vote against the Thermaltake Q. Its PSU is borderline junk and it's unpleasant to work with IME. I like the Sugos but as you noted the slimline optical adds unnecessary cost. Look into the PC-Q08. It's my preferred SFF box, and you can easily turn it into a gaming rig. It's been on sale at Newegg for ~$80 shipped recently.

 

[Zap]

I don't recommend the Element Q at all.

I third the "no" to the Element Q. It is a rebadge of the Apex MI008/etc cases. If you REALLY want one, get the actual Apex case from Amazon for $40 shipped. But don't.

$129.99
SilverStone Sugo Series SG05BB-450-USB3.0 ALL Black Plastic / SECC Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case with SFX 450W 80+ Bronze Certified / Single +12V rail Power Supply with 2 x USB3.0 ports (Black)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163208

It already has the USB3.0 ports on the front, which I like. Also, it comes with a 450W Bronze certified PSU, which is like $80 by itself.

I was contemplating buying the SilverStone 450W Gold SFX PSU for $99 and putting in into the Element Q.

Yeah, buying the case with 450W PSU for $130 is a better idea than a crappy $60 case plus $80 PSU.

Expert tip: Check on Amazon for the case. IF it is in stock, you will save money especially after factoring in shipping.

Amazon link

I guess I would need one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812530001

cheaper?

 

[PCTC2]

Another vote against the Thermaltake Q. Its PSU is borderline junk and it's unpleasant to work with IME. I like the Sugos but as you noted the slimline optical adds unnecessary cost. Look into the PC-Q08. It's my preferred SFF box, and you can easily turn it into a gaming rig. It's been on sale at Newegg for ~$80 shipped recently.

TBH, the PC-Q08 is much larger than a SG05-450. I have the PC-Q25 (the no-optical version of the PC08) and it is LARGE for a miniITX case. the SG05-450 is much smaller.

(For reference, my PC-Q25 against a Canon MX860 and a Netgear 3500L)

 

[T_Yamamoto]

TBH, the PC-Q08 is much larger than a SG05-450. I have the PC-Q25 (the no-optical version of the PC08) and it is LARGE for a miniITX case. the SG05-450 is much smaller.

(For reference, my PC-Q25 against a Canon MX860 and a Netgear 3500L)

SUGO series is amazing.

 

[mfenn]

Thread Title: Mini-ITX gaming build, shopping at Microcenter

Usage: Some slight gaming (possibly).

Huh?

I'm also somewhat curious as to what distributed computing projects require 16GB of RAM. It seems like they would be excluding an awful lot of potential donors that way. If you cut back to 8GB, you can reuse some modules that you have and free up a good $80 in the budget.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I'm also somewhat curious as to what distributed computing projects require 16GB of RAM. It seems like they would be excluding an awful lot of potential donors that way. If you cut back to 8GB, you can reuse some modules that you have and free up a good $80 in the budget.

Neurona@Home, it was/is an invite-only BOINC project, and one of the requirements is to have a lot of RAM. Some of the WUs in the past have used 8GB or more of RAM per WU.

Current WUs aren't that bad (4GB or so), sometimes I can run two at once on my 8GB Q9300 rig (current main rig).

But I would like to have the 16GB available, in case the WUs ever get that large again.

Edit: What's worse, is projects that require a certain minimum number of CPU cores. Folding@Home "Bigadv" WUs, now require 16 core or better computers to run. Even a shiny new LGA2011 system with a six-core CPU with hyperthreading can't handle, or rather, isn't allowed to handle them.

Some people have been tricking the client by running it in a VM, with a higher number of CPU cores, than are physically present in the box.

 

[mfenn]

Edit: What's worse, is projects that require a certain minimum number of CPU cores. Folding@Home "Bigadv" WUs, now require 16 core or better computers to run. Even a shiny new LGA2011 system with a six-core CPU with hyperthreading can't handle, or rather, isn't allowed to handle them.

Interesting! Seems like they're targeting people running actual compute servers in data centers. 16 cores is two Sandy Bridge-EP processors, which is nothing to sneeze at in terms of cost. (Other possible 16 core machines exist of course.)

 

[lehtv]

VirtualLarry, I'm building a miniITX gaming / architectural modelling rig in the coming days (as soon as parts start shipping in from Germany). I will make a new thread about it with pictures and thoughts about the case and the fact that it's my first ITX build. Here's the parts list:

CPU - Xeon E3-1230 V2
Mobo - Asus P8H77-I
RAM - Kingston 2x8GB 1600
GPU - HIS 7850 IceQ X Turbo X 2GB
SSD - Samsung 830 256GB
DVD - Sony Slim DVD-RW
Case - Silverstone SG05BB mini-ITX with 450W 80+ Bronze SFX PSU