need some help choosing a shuttle sff

[hugekebab]

Hi there,

To date ive built two of my own gaming rigs with great success. however I have had to sell these as im moving to south korea.

i was thinking originally of getting a laptop to take there, however it seems they just dont cut the mustard for gaming.

this has lead me to SFF. I'm totally new to SFF, I have noticed the new shuttle seems to have good specs 400 watt psu 775 mobo built in; this saves me a lot of the build hassle too.

this rig will be for high performance gaming.

2 main questions; whats the latest and best shuttle sff; do shuttle make the best ones??

am i going to have any difficulty taking a shuttle on a plane in my hand luggage?

i am open to recommendations etc

thanks

 

[TheStu]

Well, if you are looking for high performance gaming, then the 400W PSU is just not going to work at all. What kind of games do you play, it may be possible that a high-end notebook will do the job just fine, plus is a wee bit more versatile than your average desktop (can be unplugged, but still work, easier to transport, easier to explain to the TSA why you have a box that when x-rayed has an awful lot of wires )

So come back with a short list of the games you like to play, and what your budget is, and that will determine some things.

 

[hugekebab]

hi mate,

well the 400 watt psu should be fine for an 8800 gts and dual core processor most people go overkill on their psu choice; correct me if im wrong but the next gen cards are going to be more energy efficient, no?

whats the highest rated psu that can go in a small form factor?

i want to play the latest high end dx10 games that are due out; theres simply nothing in the laptop world that can cope with this. the current high end dx10 card is the paltry 8700m which has a 128 memory bus. the highest end laptops currently out are all 7950gtx's which is a bit ofa step backwards imo.

its also going to be much cheaper to build a decent sff than a high end laptop.

the point about airport security is slightly worrying, although ill have thumbscrews on the pc so i spose i could show them quite easily the inside?

 

[hugekebab]

budget is 800 - 1000, but preferably on the 800 end which is immensly doable i think.

 

[TheStu]

The reason I said the PSU was underpowered is because while 400W could be considered sufficent (I would use a 450 or 500 for to be safe) bear in mind that most PSU makers say 400W, but you may only get 350W efficiently, or even less. At least that was my understanding back when I was still big into desktops.

Depending on the SFF case, you could fit all but the longest PSUs in there. I think that Shuttle uses desktop sized PSUs, so that shouldnt be an issue.

And for your price... you should be able to build a decent system, especially if you are migrating existing things (monitor, keyboard, maybe hard drives)

 

[hugekebab]

i did this spec below.
not sure if the new 1333 fsb core 2 will work in the sff motherboard?

so if i used say a corsair 520w would that fit in there even with the 8800 gts and a soundcard?

oh i have to add a hdd for that too but that will only be 60 quid on top.





Shuttle XPC SD37P2 Barebone System Socket 775 115838 13 in stock £250.19 £250.19
Innovision 3D 8800GTS 320MB GDDR3 DVI PCI-E Graphics Card 125114 25 in stock £159.10 £159.10
Corsair 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5(5-5-5-12) Heat Spreader Lifetime Warranty 098710 97 in stock £58.71 £58.71
Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 2.66GHz 1333FSB Socket 775 4MB Cache Retail Boxed Processor 130484 87 in stock £101.05 £101.05
Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Soundcard - Retail Boxed 127553 201 in stock £47.98 £47.98
Cart Total: £617.03

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£627.22
£109.80
£737.02

 

[hugekebab]

the psu in this shuttle is a mini version btw.

 

[hugekebab]

ach just realised theres no room for a soundcard, have to use the realtek audio which ive found to cuse stuttering in games and random noises.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: TheStuDepending on the SFF case, you could fit all but the longest PSUs in there. I think that Shuttle uses desktop sized PSUs, so that shouldnt be an issue.

Uh, no. A desktop PSU would be about half the size of the chassis. They most certainly use miniature PSUs, made by SilenX, IIRC.

 

[TheStu]

Fairly certain that the XQ-Pack2 and a couple others can utilize desktop PSUs. Sort of stretches the definition of SFF, but it is still fairly small

 

[wwswimming]

i carried a Shuttle in carry-on luggage a few times, no problem.

 

[roguerower]

Hey OP, I'm in the market for a SFF too but I am looking to build mine since it will probably be cheaper and I have all the software and a monitor. Here's my post on my rig.

My SFF Rig

Since I posted that I have changed the case and added a power supply which has upped the price to $850. But considering the performace I think that's a pretty good price to pay.

 

[hugekebab]

has anyone here seen this before: Thermaltake LANBOX Lite SFF Case?

I just saw a review on 3dgameman; looks sweet, but is mini atx compatible and also full atx psu compatible, which leads me to beleive its a lot bigger than the shuttle!

 

[amish]

you should check out the forums at sudian.com. the 400w PSU that comes in a shuttle is vastly different than a normal run-of-the-mill ATX PSU. my current shuttle is rated at 210w but has no problems running two hard drives, 6600GT, x-fi card, and a dvd burner. my biggest problem is that i've now run out of room.

find out what the amps are on the 12v rail(s). you should be able to look at the draw on the video cards you want.

 

[Trevante]

Don't get a shuttle, they're not future proof IMO.

I have the Thermaltake Lanbox and while it's not the smallest, it's definitely portable and the handle makes it very easy to carry. The only thing I don't like about it is that it's kinda heavy. If you want a lighter case, get the silver version, which is made of Aluminum, as opposed to the steel in the black version. If you don't like the look of the regular lanbox, go with the Lanbox Lite or Silverstone SG01 or SG03. They're all pretty good cases. There's also the X-Qpack 2 and Ultra Microfly (basically the same case), but I think they're ugly and have crappy handles....

Be sure and get a case that accepts a standard PSU (any of the ones I mentioned will do), and get a modular PSU. I recommend the Antec NeoHE 500 or the Corsair 520HX.

Here's a start:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128053

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...tix&name=2GB+(2+x+1GB) (take your pic, don't know if you like bling or not)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16835118115

or http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16835118017 if you like bling

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...11133035&Tpk=VF1000BWS

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...E16819115029&Tpk=E6750

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...E16817139001&Tpk=520hx

Total so far is $780 plus s&h...add your choice of optical drives, hard drive(s) and a video card. If you can't go above $1000 and want high end gaming, then get the Lanbox Lite ($100) and the Antec NeoHE ($100) which will give you a little more for the video card.

 

[RaiderJ]

I just purchased an XQPack-2 for my file server, but I think it would make a great setup for a semi-portable gaming machine. Not sure if it could be taken as carry-on, but I think so. It takes a micro-ATX board, ATX PSU, two external, 5.25" drives, one external 3.5" drive, and two internal 3.5 drives. You can't really ask for more than that. It comes with a 500 watt PSU, and costs $90 shipped from Newegg.

What I like about it for a file server, is that I can mod the front part of the case to hold 3 5.25" drives, which will work perfect for my 5 drive SATA enclosure

 

[hugekebab]

thanks for the very informative reply trevante.

i like all the things you specced; i would spec similarly myself, even down to the psu. however, im sceptical as to how easily that lanbox is gonna fit in my handluggage on an airliner; what do you think? if theres a backpack that youknow will fit that box then its probably ok; also i would need to check the likely weight of it.

oh another possible issue is i dont think the lanbox is available in the UK at the moment.

i was looking at this case on 3dgameman which looked excellent due to its modularity: http://www.3dgameman.com/content/view/9434/103/

thanks again.

sam

 

[RaiderJ]

The X-QPACK2 is 9"x11"x15", while the LANBOX is 9"x12"x17.0", the QPACK is actualy bigger oddly enough (weighs less too).

Downside is unless you want a black XQPACK with no windows, they're around $100 not including shipping.

 

[Trevante]

Originally posted by: hugekebab
thanks for the very informative reply trevante.

i like all the things you specced; i would spec similarly myself, even down to the psu. however, im sceptical as to how easily that lanbox is gonna fit in my handluggage on an airliner; what do you think? if theres a backpack that youknow will fit that box then its probably ok; also i would need to check the likely weight of it.

oh another possible issue is i dont think the lanbox is available in the UK at the moment.

i was looking at this case on 3dgameman which looked excellent due to its modularity: http://www.3dgameman.com/content/view/9434/103/

thanks again.

sam

http://www.sundialmicro.com/si...ugo_pack_1791_644.html

That should fit the Lanbox, but I'm not 100% sure. It fits the SG01, and from what I've seen, the Lanbox and SG01 are about the same size so I imagine the Lanbox should fit. If not, the Lanbox Lite should fit too. Technically, you could probably get away with using some cheap duffle bag as opposed to paying $50 USD for a fancy computer bag.

The Lanbox should be available in the UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/THERMA...ube-Case/dp/B000N79HZ4

 

[hugekebab]

ok couple of questions.

is there a better cooler that will fit in this case other than the cnps7700? or is this the best i can hope for in this sff.

ive been told that this will fit a 8800 gts?

 

[Trevante]

The Zalman CNPS-8700 should fit, although I'm not sure where it' available currently...

There's also the Thermalright XP-120 and Silverstone NT06, but I'm not sure how much better or worse they perform than the CNPS-7700 or 8700...

And yes, an 8800GTS should fit with no problems, but with a GTX or an Ultra, you have to remove the harddrive cage or mod the case to make the HDD cage fit.

 

[aveegun]

I was looking to build another SFF computer but with 8800 GTX card (currently own a shuttle sn25p/x800 ati/amd 4200+).

Thanks, Trevante for pointing out that a GTX or Ultra won't fit in the thermaltake lan case. Do you know any SFF case that would fit an 8800 GTX card (without mod to the case)?

Or do I have to wait until the 65nm 2nd gen DX10.1 cards to come out and preying that they're much smaller?