A few weeks back, I got a good deal on a Gigabyte BRIX Pro: the i7 4770R one. I wondered whether it could be made into a capable PC for work and casual gaming. That is, without the CPU turning into a fiery chip of thermal throttlling doom. Simply installing a 120mm on the original heat sink brought thermals and noise down to acceptable levels. Since the BRIX doesn't have a full size PCIe-slot, I had to use a eGPU adapter (EXP GDC 8.4d) going through the mPCIe-slot to connect a graphics card.
After a surprisingly no-fuzz installation of a Gigabyte 1050 Ti LP with the EXP GDC, it was quite ready to game (and work). As you'd expect from cutting away PCIe-lanes, the in game performance dropped around 15-20% fps-wise. However, tweaking settings got me back around original fps, without sacrificing much visual detail. So for a total cost around €300, I'd say this is a nice n' small budget build.
Here is the setup installed in a temporary case made from wooden trays:
Once I get some time to spare, I would like to make a proper case for this. Here is my idea for a design using two brushed black anodized aluminium plates:
Here's a link to the Imgur album.
If you're interested in modding a BRIX Pro yourself, here are some excellent ressources:
WyWyWyWy's custom cooling solutions and case build
watts_happening's BRIX recasing (details on wiring fan, power SW and LED)
After a surprisingly no-fuzz installation of a Gigabyte 1050 Ti LP with the EXP GDC, it was quite ready to game (and work). As you'd expect from cutting away PCIe-lanes, the in game performance dropped around 15-20% fps-wise. However, tweaking settings got me back around original fps, without sacrificing much visual detail. So for a total cost around €300, I'd say this is a nice n' small budget build.
Here is the setup installed in a temporary case made from wooden trays:
Once I get some time to spare, I would like to make a proper case for this. Here is my idea for a design using two brushed black anodized aluminium plates:
Here's a link to the Imgur album.
If you're interested in modding a BRIX Pro yourself, here are some excellent ressources:
WyWyWyWy's custom cooling solutions and case build
watts_happening's BRIX recasing (details on wiring fan, power SW and LED)
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