SFF case: yay or nay?

[deanx0r]

I was thinking about building a new rig around one of these..
They do look neat, don't take much room at all, and are easy to move around and are as powerful as full sized desktop solution.

I have some people who didn't recommend me those tho for the following reasons:
-harder to build/work with
-not much expandable
-restrictive airflow

What do you guys think?
I am not sure if they are harder to work on or build. But I remember building my current full size tower was a pain in the ass when it came to install the motherboard and make sure everything is wired correctly to the case. As for expandability, I don't see the point adding 8 hdds and tons of expansion cards in most case.

Your take?

 

[imported_Bleh]

Not really a good idea unless you move the computer around a lot. It restricts you to micro atx boards (there arent that many good ones), a sff power supply which doesnt put out much power which also restricts you from getting high end video cards and reduces your chance of ocing your processor. If you arent planning on gaming much on it then its up to you.

 

[w00t]

ya that is sweet

 

[PCHPlayer]

I think a SFF is great for certain applications. Perhaps a college student who does not have a lot of desk space. I would agree with Bleh that SFF's are not great for gaming, but for word processing, internet access, etc. they are great. Many people also use SFF computers for HTPC applications.
I have built one myself and found it relatively easy to work with, though I used all the onboard stuff so I only had to install CPU, memory, HD and DVD.

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: Bleh
Not really a good idea unless you move the computer around a lot. It restricts you to micro atx boards (there arent that many good ones), a sff power supply which doesnt put out much power which also restricts you from getting high end video cards and reduces your chance of ocing your processor. If you arent planning on gaming much on it then its up to you.

when it comes to shuttle sff's, your clames are wrong. shuttle psu's are extremely high quality and a 240W shuttle psu can support an fx-55, 6800 ultra, 2gb ram, a sound card, and 2 raptors. gamepc did a little study on the shuttle 350W psu and found that all those components only peaked around 240ish watts. as for ocing, a LOT of people have had success on very nice oc's on the new xpc's.

 

[LatinJones]

I've got one with a 2.4ghz celeron in it that works great for my wife. All she does is surfs the web and checks e-mail. I wouldn't buy one for my primary system. The power supply is a big setback.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think shuttle PC's use Micro ATX? I think they are ITX or mini-ITX. Not a good case for future upgrades either. Try to find a nice mini-tower solution with a removable motherboard tray and I think you'll be happier.

 

[wisdomtooth]

If all one will do is surf the web, do some word processing and not game at all, why not just get a Mac Mini and be done with it?

Heck, it's smaller than a Shuttle SFF, no worries about heat or noise, and is just as un-expandable. :laugh:

 

[deanx0r]

Well... I am planning to throw these in:
-Athlon 64 3200/3500
-1GB of RAM
-6800GT/X800XL
-2x 250GB HDDs
-DVD burner

As you can see it's nowhere for just light applications like websurf and word processing. Those systems are pretty capable to run anything a full size tower can do, so why not?

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: deanx0r

Well... I am planning to throw these in:
-Athlon 64 3200/3500
-1GB of RAM
-6800GT/X800XL
-2x 250GB HDDs
-DVD burner

As you can see it's nowhere for just light applications like websurf and word processing. Those systems are pretty capable to run anything a full size tower can do, so why not?

the xpc can easily handle the strain of those components. i'm assuming you're waiting for the ST20G5? i know i am.

 

[SynthDude2001]

Originally posted by: Mik3y

Originally posted by: deanx0r

Well... I am planning to throw these in:
-Athlon 64 3200/3500
-1GB of RAM
-6800GT/X800XL
-2x 250GB HDDs
-DVD burner

As you can see it's nowhere for just light applications like websurf and word processing. Those systems are pretty capable to run anything a full size tower can do, so why not?

the xpc can easily handle the strain of those components. i'm assuming you're waiting for the ST20G5? i know i am.

I'd been (sort of) waiting for the ST20G5 too, but I realized that two slots almost certainly isn't going to be enough for me (video card and HDTV tuner is it - but I'd probably want to add either a sound card or DVI card for my HDTV tuner, or both). It's a shame too, because I'd really love a machine that small.

 

[Zepper]

Actually the mobos and PSUs (and sometimes the CPU cooling solutions) in the SFF boxes are PROPRIETARY. For that reason alone I don't recommend them. I recommend rolling your own with a compact mATX case like the Enermax Venus series or the Athenatech A100 series or any of the many others of similar size (about 14x14x6") from Chenbro, etc. You might look at the Antec Aria too but once again you're getting into proprietary territory (PSU)... The only limitation is when you start talking loony level gaming systems. That level of mobo just isn't available in mATX yet. Power isn't a problem any more as you can get up to over 400W for the compact mATX cases now (Athena Power). And the Enermax 270W SFX PSU is a pretty sturdy little box too.

.bh.

:moon:

 

[deanx0r]

Originally posted by: Mik3y
the xpc can easily handle the strain of those components. i'm assuming you're waiting for the ST20G5? i know i am.

Yeah, I am waiting on either the ST20G5 or for the price of the SN25P to drop a tad.

If I have to push my purchase til june or july, I might as well jump on a new gen graphic card, but we'll see.

 

[usernamemax20charact]

Ditto what Mik3y said. Shuttle makes some really kick ass cases and they PSU's are great too. I know someone who has an XPC with a 6800GT, 1GB RAM, Sound Blaster Audigy, etc. and it's one hell of a gaming rig.

You won't be disappointed. Tempted to build one myself.

 

[mhillary]

yay yay.