First mini-ITX build - Advice for avoiding dumb mistakes.

BillyBowstring

Minimal Tinkerer
Original poster
Jul 25, 2017
4
5
Hi.

I have an ASRock H170M-ITX/DL LGA 1151 Intel H170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard that I'm looking to put into a small sized case that can potentially be hidden (or mounted) behind my desk as opposed to just sitting on the floor. I'm having a hard time finding a case that restricts height... can anyone help me narrow down a decent case that would satisfy my needs?

I'm looking for something that would eventually lean towards a 'slim' type build (think a PS4 or XB1 at most (I'm favoring smaller height at the expense of wider body).

TLDR: fairly easy, can be potentially mounted beteween the wall and the back of the desk.

Thank you!
 

phaelax

Caliper Novice
Jul 7, 2017
23
23
Do you plan on using a dedicated GPU or relying on Intel graphics? That gives us a better idea on the size of case you'll need. If no GPU, then we could possibly look at external power sources which would help keep your case even smaller.

There are very slim cases that can mount on the vesa bracket on the back of your monitor as well, if you wanted to go that route. How many harddrives you plan on using? 2.5", 3.5", or M2 drives?
 

BillyBowstring

Minimal Tinkerer
Original poster
Jul 25, 2017
4
5
Do you plan on using a dedicated GPU or relying on Intel graphics? That gives us a better idea on the size of case you'll need. If no GPU, then we could possibly look at external power sources which would help keep your case even smaller.

There are very slim cases that can mount on the vesa bracket on the back of your monitor as well, if you wanted to go that route. How many harddrives you plan on using? 2.5", 3.5", or M2 drives?

Should have mentioned this in OP - my bad.

For this (my first) build, I am going to run the video straight from the CPU (no dedicated GPU) and plan on using 2.5 SSD if I can find a workable slim case.

This is not going to be a gaming PC, it will be a web browser, email, office general type build. I need to build up my SFF chops (I've built plenty of ATX builds) more before I go all out on a gaming rig with dedicated GPU.
 

stree

Airflow Optimizer
Dec 10, 2016
307
177
I have 2 x cases @ 65mm high by 240x200 and 85mm x 207 x207, Intel graphics and AMD APU......Pico style power with brick, SSDs, LP DDR3 and LP cooler , for each. Cases from IT-Tech site in UK....solid aluminium
Wireless KB and mouse, swap dongle as required.........
 

jtd871

SFF Guru
Jun 22, 2015
1,166
851
I'm kind of surprised you don't pick up a NUC or something similar and save your mobo for a gaming oriented build.
 

Josh | NFC

Not From Concentrate
NFC Systems
Jun 12, 2015
1,869
4,466
www.nfc-systems.com
Best advice especially for SFF is to build your whole system outside your case first and thoroughly test it. It is a pain to rip stuff out to troubleshoot when working with SFF.

:)