Planning a SFF build soon - some questions on a case

[z28dreams]

Hi all,

I'm looking to build a small, moderately powered desktop soon with a few goals:

1. Keep the form factor as small as possible (details below)
2. Keep the cost as low as possible

The machine would be mostly used for basic web browsing and excel, but it would occasionally need some oomph for compiling code and photo editing. I don't plan on doing too much gaming, but I'd like to hold out for a nice integrated graphics solution (intel hd 5000+) so I'll have power available when I need it.

Right now I'm trying to decide between mini-ITX and mATX, with cost being the main factor.

I'd ideally like mini-ITX, but it seems to drive up the price of the motherboard.

What cases would you look at that meet this criteria?
1. As small as possible, but also:
2. Can accommodate a regular sized PSU. My thought is that the small form factor psu's might not provide enough power for an i5-4xxx cpu
3. Isn't noisy (I don't want to drop down to 40mm-60mm fans if I can avoid it)
4. Has to fit at least (1) 2.5" drive/SSD, and (1) 3.5" drive/HD
5. I'm torn on optical drives. Obviously smaller cases will have no optical drive or a slim drive, but slim drives are also more expensive. ($100 vs $20). With that said, I'm leaning towards no optical drive at all, or a case just big enough to fit a standard drive.

Question 1:
Any suggestions on cases? Am I better off just going with the smallest mATX case possible? That would probably make my motherboard choices more flexible/cheaper and allow for a standard PSU, but it's probably not quite as sexy.

Question 2:
Thoughts on using the small form factor PSU's? Can these really handle the haswell i5's?

 

[dma0991]

1. mATX cases do offer more choice of cheaper mATX motherboards. Ones to consider are Fractal Design Core 1000. But to keep in perspective of as small as possible, mITX cases : Fractal Node 304(ATX), CM Elite 120(ATX) and Silverstone SG05(SFX).

2. Yes they can. Haswell Core i5's are pretty power efficient and would easily be supported if you're only using the IGP.

 

[Aikouka]

but I'd like to hold out for a nice integrated graphics solution (intel hd 5000+) so I'll have power available when I need it.

Don't all the of the LGA desktop processors have the HD 4600 in it? I believe the R-series is the only one with a HD 5000 or better, but that's also the Iris Pro, it's BGA, and it's stupidly expensive ($500+).

 

[z28dreams]

Don't all the of the LGA desktop processors have the HD 4600 in it? I believe the R-series is the only one with a HD 5000 or better, but that's also the Iris Pro, it's BGA, and it's stupidly expensive ($500+).

Unfortunately it looks like you're right. All the socketed options right now offer only HD 4600 at best. Really annoying that they did that. I guess I could start with the 4600 and upgrade to a 6670/7750 or similar if I find I need more power, but I was really hoping to find an inexpensive all in one solution to save money.

I wonder how long I'd have to wait to get a socketed option with a good graphics solution. I suppose I could go with an AMD A10, but then I'd be sacrificing a lot of CPU power for graphics, which I'd rarely use.