small pc case / need help

[sioux]

I upgraded my pc, little by little, and i want to keep all the old components, for my wife.
She do not play games, only internet browsing, some Photoshop, DreamWave, e-mails, etc
But she want a small PC case.
The components i'm talking about, here :
Gigabyte GA EX58 UD5
Intel I7 920
8 GB DDR3
Gigabyte Windforce GTX 660 OC
Creative SoundBlaster X-FI Xtreme Gamer
PSU : Corsair TX 650W
DVD RW LG
1 SSD
1 HDD

What kind of smaller PC case would you recommend ?
She doesen't want vents / coolers for airflow, etc
Thank you

 

[lehtv]

There are no small PC cases out there that can fit an ATX power supply and ATX motherboard, simply because these components restrict you to normal size cases. Though it would be good to know the make /model of the current case - or at least the rough dimensions - and whether she wants a small case to put on the desk, or under the desk - and whether the case has to be tower or HTPC type desktop case. Also, does color matter?

If she wants a really small case, there's no choice but to buy a new ITX or microATX motherboard and CPU, and possibly new RAM and SFX PSU too. Well, there is another choice - buying a used X58 ITX/microATX board... (good luck with that one)

 

[sioux]

This one would be ok for the motherboard / PSU / 1 SSD and 1 HDD ?
http://www.heise.de/preisvergleich/silverstone-grandia-gd01s-mx-silber-sst-gd01s-mxr-a224990.html

 

[lehtv]

Yes, but at 31 liters, that's not that small. And being a HTPC case, it takes up much more desk space. In volume, it's smaller than your typical ATX case, sure, but not by a huge margin. E.g. Antec NSK4100 is 35 liters

Grandia cases are pretty nice... but the one you linked is a discontinued product and very expensive compared to current Grandia cases. GD09 is just 75-80€ and 27 liters. Make sure you're not using a tall CPU cooler.

 

[sioux]

I will use the stock cpu cooler.
For what she's doing on PC, that's ok, i'd say
She decided for this one :
http://www.inter-tech.de/index.php?...&catid=109:gehaeuse-archiv&Itemid=240&lang=de

Motherboard / PSU / 1 SSD and 1 HDD and GTX 660 aren't to much for this case ??

 

[lehtv]

That's huge for a HTPC case at 39 liters. In no shape or form is that a small case. Oh and it's ancient and discontinued. How much is it? In any case, not recommended... (yes it would fit the components)

I would much rather get the GD09.

 

[lehtv]

Scrap that - I'd much rather start anew and build a properly small case with modern parts.

1) sell X58 mobo and CPU, worth 100€+
2) sell GPU, worth about 70€ - the uses you described don't noticeably benefit from a dedicated GPU
3) sell the audio card, worth 10-20€ - don't need it
4) sell the PSU to someone who needs that much power, worth maybe 20-30€ - it's way over kill for these uses, and pretty old as well, and very hard to fit into a small case with all those fixed cables
5) buy ITX motherboard, i5 (has integrated graphics), new PSU, ITX case with 5.25" slot for the DVD drive
6) reuse RAM assuming it's 2x4GB, if it's not buy new

i5-4460 166€
Gigabyte B85N Phoenix 76€
Seasonic G360 64€
Elite 120 advanced white 50€

Ends up costing a bit over 100€ net, same as buying an expensive discontinued HTPC case for the current parts.

Even more case options open up if she doesn't need a DVD drive, e.g. Cooltek Coolcube and many others. Plus you can always get a USB DVD drive.

 

[anudevid]

1.Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced - Airflow small form factor
2.Silverstone FT03/FT03-Mini - You'll need an SFX power supply for it though
3.BitFenix Prodigy
4.Mini-Box M350 Universal Mini-ITX
5.Fractal Design Node 304

 

[dealcorn]

Sell what you got and buy her a NUC that us appropriate for her applications. Happy wife, happy life.