Help on getting a mini-ITX config

[alinescoo]

I've been struggling for the past weeks on deciding what to get. One thing is certain, I am not going to get a big desktop as I currently have. Initially I wanted a Intel Skull Canyon but gave up after seeing it has some issues/noisy under load and a price a bit too big. Then I wanted a DeskMini 110 which is quite compact and nice but I also want a dedicated GPU.
Basically my machine is used only about 20% for gaming, rest for development/browsing.

Doing a bit of research I found these components which should fit my needs

- CPU i5 7500 (or maybe a Ryzen if has better price/performance)
- MB MSI B250I GAMING PRO AC mini-ITX (or a AMD mini-ITX motherboard)
- CASE ???
- RAM Kingston HyperX FURY Black Series DDR4, 2x8GB, 2133 MHz, CL 14, Single Rank
- SSD Samsung 960 EVO 250 M2 NVME
- GPU Zotak Geforce 1050Ti Mini 4 GB RAM
- PSU Corsair ECX450M, 450W, 80 PLUS Bronz or whatever you may recommend for semi/modular case.

I've looked through a lot of cases but all are pretty big. The ones I liked are:
- Silverstone SG13: having the PSU vent against the CPU cooler makes me worry about temperatures. Also most of the builds I saw were based on AIO CPU cooling and I don't really like to have water inside my case. Saying that, I am afraid that temperatures would go on the high side and so would noise.

-Raijintek Metis Plus: the original Metis had issues with high temeratures (from what I've read) and the new revision seems to have improved to top ventilation making it a bit better. Even so, it seems that the PSU is struggling with exhaust case fan to take the air from the cpu cooler.

And I've ran out of ideas. I want a case as small as possible but not slim and tall. A cube would better fit my desk. Since I'll be using only a M2 drive and 1050ti not requiring additional power, the only cables I'll use are for CPU/MB power. This makes the case a bit more cable free.

The DeskMini GTX I think will be too expensive. One alternative for me is Asus VivoPC X but I don't like the fact it has a laptop CPU and not really a fan of builtin systems but that 5 liters case is quite interesting not to mention it has custom cooling system which should be optimal.

So, is it possible to get good temperature, silent system with my components while having a case ~10liters?

Thanks all for your time.

 

[IntoxicatedPuma]

With the parts you mentioned, yes.

The fan on the PSU is the intake not exhaust so don't worry about the temps on that. I had a similar setup with a Silverstone Ft03 mini - same as SG13 just turned on its back. Have you checked out the Coolermaster Elite 110? Both it and the SG13 would be great cases.

If you want good quiet cooling you could check out Noctuas low profile coolers. Could easily handle an i5 that wasn't over clocked and stay quiet doing so.

 

[alinescoo]

Well, the PSU intake from Metis case takes the air from the cooler, being inside the case.
Ft03 is too big for my tastes and also Elite 110 has that awful extension for PSU in the back...

Thank you for your input.

 

[jtd871]

@alinescoo , don't confuse the ft03 with the ft03 mini. As @IntoxicatedPuma said, the ft03 mini is basically a sg13/06/05 with feet and with the IO shield on top. The advantage it enjoys is a smaller footprint than the sg13/05/06.
There are a few of logs on OCN or [H] of sg13/05/06 builds. You can (and several people have) run air-cooled with the PSU set up as an exhaust, although this work better having a SFX PSU. Just make sure that the PSU fan spins often enough if you do this or your airflow and temps may suffer.
Bonus: there's a SG05 review on Anandtech, which appears to document the meeting of @Necere and @wahaha360 prior to joining forces to create the M1 in the comments.

 

[alinescoo]

@jtd871 sg13 has a depth of around 29cm while the ft03 has a height of almost 40cm. So really it's not like a sg13 turned up...
I'll check to see some reviews or build logs.

I took a look at some GPU benchmarks and I think I'll need to go with 1060 3gb which does require additional power cable.

 

[IntoxicatedPuma]

The size is a bit different but the layout is the same, just stretched to accommodate longer cards. The reason for bringing it up was not to suggest you buy it but to say that I can personally guarantee that this layout can properly cool the build you suggested. The build I had was with an Ivy Bridge i5 and GTX750ti, so it would have been very similar in terms of heat produced.

 

[alinescoo]

@IntoxicatedPuma thank you very much for your help. The ft03 is quite expensive versus sg13 in my country is more than double so I'll take a good look to see how it looks.
However, the more I dive into this, to more I am curious to see Asus VivoPC X which is 5 liters versus any mini-ITX case which seems to be over 10 liters.

 

[Necere]

Bonus: there's a SG05 review on Anandtech, which appears to document the meeting of @Necere and @wahaha360 prior to joining forces to create the M1 in the comments.

I wasn't involved in those comments on anandtech, if that's what you mean. My involvement started on hardforum, at post #10 in the thread w360 started (now the M1 thread). So it's all documented there.

OP, for your build I wouldn't worry too much about temperatures in a case like the SG13. Main thing I would try to do if you're intent on an air cooler in it would be to get one that lets you flip the fan, so it works with the PSU airflow rather than against it. I believe Silverstone sells a cooler that's intended for use in the SG05 and SG13.

 

[jtd871]

I wasn't involved in those comments on anandtech, if that's what you mean. My involvement started on hardforum, at post #10 in the thread w360 started (now the M1 thread). So it's all documented there..

Well, guess I'll stop spreading that FUD, then. Good thing I qualified my comment with "appears to".

 

[alinescoo]

I'm back again... I've been waiting for CoffeeLake and now I am ready to upgrade.
The parts will be:
- i7 8700
-Some mITX board, probably Asrock Fatal1ty
- A GeForce 1060 or AMD equivalent
- 16 GB RAM
- only one nvme drive, 960EVO
- SFX PSU, probably Corsair

Now the case... still unclear what to get. The top choice remains Raijintek Metis Plus because I haven't found any other cases to compete with it. One possible choice would be Sharkoon CA-I but I am a bit worried that the PSU is parallel to the CPU cooler and there doesn't seem to be much room for cooling. Any thoughts on Sharkoon? Are there any awesome case that appeared? I really like Lazer3d but that is way too expensive with shipping and VAT for me, it's like the price of 4 metis

 

[alinescoo]

I gave up on Metis after reading more about it...

So, any suggestions for small cases?

 

[Thehack]

Top choice would be a Node 202. Solid features, decent build quality, good availability in EU.

 

[alinescoo]

Thank you very much, what cooler choice would it be better if I go with this case: Cryorig C7 or Noctua NHl9 ? Or other one?

 

[alinescoo]

Silverstone FT-03 tower also looks quite interesting... any thoughts on it?

 

[Thehack]

Big Shuriken 2.

 

[alinescoo]

I see that 202 has a model with integrated SFX... is that a good PSU?

 

[AleksandarK]

I see that 202 has a model with integrated SFX... is that a good PSU?

It is a good quality PSU that will be more than enough for your needs.

 

[alinescoo]

Thank you, the only downside from what I've read is that's only Bronze certified and it's not modular.. vs let's say a Corsair which is fully modular.

 

[SeñorDonut]

Just be aware, coming from a Node 202, owner. cable management is a pain. If you go with a Corsair SFX PSU, you'll have trouble squeezing all the wires in there.

 

[jtd871]

@jtd871 sg13 has a depth of around 29cm while the ft03 has a height of almost 40cm. So really it's not like a sg13 turned up...

The suggestion was a FT03 MINI (mITX), not a FT03 (uATX). And the Mini is like a SG05/06/13, only oriented differently.