Hello everyone, been lurking a while and haven't really partaken in any threads here.
So a little back story, I started out many years ago with huge cases like most. Ended up getting a TJ07 that I loved ( and still do as it serves as my server now ). Then a few years ago I got an FT02, again I loved it. But quickly after decided that my Dual SLI ATX build was a bit much. So I downsized to mATX and a new case, then ended up ditching SLI. Then once again after only a couple of weeks decided to go even smaller. So within the span of 6-8 weeks I had quickly moved from an TJ02 all the way down to an SG05, along with the equipment to fit.
Now, the SG05 wasn't terrible, but the layout was a bit restrictive when it came to cooling. Now, with my old external 3x360 rad box that wasn't much of an issue... but then I decided to get rid of the water as well. That's when things got fun, and not many coolers could fit ( at least, not ones that would make any real dent in the cooling ).
Then the NCASE M1 comes out, grab one up and it really was the perfect case. Pretty close to the SG05 but with much better cooling capabilities.
And while I love the NCASE, I think I'm about ready to go even smaller. ( Yes, I have a problem )
Looking around, I find plenty of cases that would fit the bill but many are no longer made or were only made in small quantities. I particularly like that of the NFC S3 Mini, or the S4.
Now, I have built small systems before in cases like the Habey EMC cases with a PICO PSU. But, that's about as far as my knowledge into such power supplies goes. And while lurking the past couple of months, I've noticed a lot of builds with GPU's being run on a PICO or other DC power supplies. So I started looking into my current rigs TDP and think that going smaller may be possible without much problem.
Current rig being;
i7-2600k @ Stock
ASUS P8Z77i-Deluxe
EVGA GTX1060 3GB
Silverstone SFX 450w
And a few random HDDs for misc storage and an old 32GB SSD for the OS ( Linux ).
Intel claims the TDP of the 2600k as 95w and EVGA puts the TDP of my GPU at 120w. But to save space I figure I would just go ahead and upgrade to a newer CPU/Motherboard. I could drop my K processor in favor of either a i7-7600 or i5-6600 ( both rated at 65w TDP ) since I haven't OC'd in ages and don't see myself doing so anymore really. As well as getting a motherboard with a built on M2 SSD mount. This would allow me to ditch the extra bulk of the 2.5" and 3.5" drives.
Now I know manufacturers tend to rate their TDP's on the high side, or at least used to. So my question for everyone here who is more knowledgeable with this stuff is... what size power supply should I get? Rated TDP on CPU/GPU come to 185 and I know motherboard/ssd won't really add much in comparison so would a PICO 160 be fine or should I just go for something more along the lines of a HDPLEX 250w? I doubt they'll ever see anything close to 100% utilization since most I do anymore is relatively light gaming when I have some spare time, but mostly just browsing.
Pretty much as far as I've gotten with my idea. Being if I can't get a case, I thought I'd make one, but before that I want to try to get an idea on the parts I can get away with. I do have a couple of rough ideas for cases that I haven't seen at all or often, have a few sketches laying around that I'll probably scan and get your opinions on in the coming weeks.
So a little back story, I started out many years ago with huge cases like most. Ended up getting a TJ07 that I loved ( and still do as it serves as my server now ). Then a few years ago I got an FT02, again I loved it. But quickly after decided that my Dual SLI ATX build was a bit much. So I downsized to mATX and a new case, then ended up ditching SLI. Then once again after only a couple of weeks decided to go even smaller. So within the span of 6-8 weeks I had quickly moved from an TJ02 all the way down to an SG05, along with the equipment to fit.
Now, the SG05 wasn't terrible, but the layout was a bit restrictive when it came to cooling. Now, with my old external 3x360 rad box that wasn't much of an issue... but then I decided to get rid of the water as well. That's when things got fun, and not many coolers could fit ( at least, not ones that would make any real dent in the cooling ).
Then the NCASE M1 comes out, grab one up and it really was the perfect case. Pretty close to the SG05 but with much better cooling capabilities.
And while I love the NCASE, I think I'm about ready to go even smaller. ( Yes, I have a problem )
Looking around, I find plenty of cases that would fit the bill but many are no longer made or were only made in small quantities. I particularly like that of the NFC S3 Mini, or the S4.
Now, I have built small systems before in cases like the Habey EMC cases with a PICO PSU. But, that's about as far as my knowledge into such power supplies goes. And while lurking the past couple of months, I've noticed a lot of builds with GPU's being run on a PICO or other DC power supplies. So I started looking into my current rigs TDP and think that going smaller may be possible without much problem.
Current rig being;
i7-2600k @ Stock
ASUS P8Z77i-Deluxe
EVGA GTX1060 3GB
Silverstone SFX 450w
And a few random HDDs for misc storage and an old 32GB SSD for the OS ( Linux ).
Intel claims the TDP of the 2600k as 95w and EVGA puts the TDP of my GPU at 120w. But to save space I figure I would just go ahead and upgrade to a newer CPU/Motherboard. I could drop my K processor in favor of either a i7-7600 or i5-6600 ( both rated at 65w TDP ) since I haven't OC'd in ages and don't see myself doing so anymore really. As well as getting a motherboard with a built on M2 SSD mount. This would allow me to ditch the extra bulk of the 2.5" and 3.5" drives.
Now I know manufacturers tend to rate their TDP's on the high side, or at least used to. So my question for everyone here who is more knowledgeable with this stuff is... what size power supply should I get? Rated TDP on CPU/GPU come to 185 and I know motherboard/ssd won't really add much in comparison so would a PICO 160 be fine or should I just go for something more along the lines of a HDPLEX 250w? I doubt they'll ever see anything close to 100% utilization since most I do anymore is relatively light gaming when I have some spare time, but mostly just browsing.
Pretty much as far as I've gotten with my idea. Being if I can't get a case, I thought I'd make one, but before that I want to try to get an idea on the parts I can get away with. I do have a couple of rough ideas for cases that I haven't seen at all or often, have a few sketches laying around that I'll probably scan and get your opinions on in the coming weeks.