New Build / Advice Welcomed

[DwnTwn817]

Hello everyone! I've been lurking around here for a few months now and I finally decided to dive into the world of SFF.

I'm building a new PC for my home office for every day use and some budget workstation things when I work from home (software engineer by trade). I also like to mess around with Blender from time-to-time. The only other requirement I have is that whatever GPU I go with must support 2-3 monitors (preferably via display ports). I have no plans to do any gaming on this machine.

In an effort to keep the total build as low cost as possible, I came up with the following components:

Case: Dan A4
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 ($145)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9a ($40)
Mobo: Asus ROG Strix B450-I ($150)
RAM: Ballistix Sport LT 16GB ($75)
SSD: WD Blue M2.2288 500GB ($60)
GPU: Sapphire Pulse RX570 ($140)
PSU: Corsair SF Series SF450 ($98)

Total price: ~$725 USD

Does all this make sense within a DAN case? Every thing fits? Enough cooling? I read the 65W TDP processors are best when using an air cooled system. Also, if possible, I'd like to get the price down a little more, but unsure where to make changes. The GPU may be overkill since I don't plan on gaming, so I'm willing to hear what ideas others have.

Thanks in advance!


EDIT: I totally forgot to mention I received my DAN A4 case last week from SFF Labs. That is the whole reason I posted here and not the build forum. Sorry if this is incorrect.

 

[DwnTwn817]

Could I save money on the GPU by getting one that only has a single DP slot then daisy chain monitors together?

 

[dondan]

I cant help you on the second question but the configuration looks good. Maybe you should wait for the new Ryzen 3 generation that will be available 7th July. Furthermore i recommend the Corsair SF450 psu.

 

[DwnTwn817]

I cant help you on the second question but the configuration looks good. Maybe you should wait for the new Ryzen 3 generation that will be available 7th July. Furthermore i recommend the Corsair SF450 psu.

Thanks for the advice. Will the Ryzen 3 processors be along the same pricelines? I really like the price of the 2600 right now. As for the PSU choice, why Corsair SF450 over the current one? I went with Seasonic because I've never had issues with their products (and its a little cheaper?

Thanks again.

 

[rfarmer]

Corsair SF 450 is SFX the Seasonic is SFX-L. The extra space really helps, especially since you plan on an exhaust fan below the PSU. With the SFX-L the cables will be very close to the fan.

 

[DwnTwn817]

Whoa, that's an eye opener. Thanks for sharing...I'll make that change on my parts list now.

 

[91Mackmr2]

I noticed that you didn't say anything about using a M-2 NVME, is that because the M-2 is mounted on the back of the mobo you are using? Using a M-2 will give you more clearance not having to use a sata and power cable for a storage drive.

 

[Tashi]

Please note that there are two versions of the Corsair SF450, a Gold rated one and a Platinum rated one. Since you are interested in reducing costs you should get the Gold rated one.

I second Dan's opinion on waiting for Ryzen 3000 series, but the newer CPUs and motherboards will raise the cost quite a bit. I still find them worthwhile despite the raise in price personally.

You can get away without an extra fan, as your components will not generate a lot of heat.

You can save money by going for the WD Blue 3D SSD, it costs less and performs almost identically to the 850/860 Evo from Samsung.

 

[DwnTwn817]

I noticed that you didn't say anything about using a M-2 NVME, is that because the M-2 is mounted on the back of the mobo you are using? Using a M-2 will give you more clearance not having to use a sata and power cable for a storage drive.

I looked at M.2 drives, but worried about the heat generated under the motherboard. Is this not as much of a problem as I think?

 

[DwnTwn817]

Please note that there are two versions of the Corsair SF450, a Gold rated one and a Platinum rated one. Since you are interested in reducing costs you should get the Gold rated one.

I second Dan's opinion on waiting for Ryzen 3000 series, but the newer CPUs and motherboards will raise the cost quite a bit. I still find them worthwhile despite the raise in price personally.

You can get away without an extra fan, as your components will not generate a lot of heat.

You can save money by going for the WD Blue 3D SSD, it costs less and performs almost identically to the 850/860 Evo from Samsung.

I have the Gold rated one saved to my list I wrote on paper. As for waiting on the Ryzen 3000 series, I looked into this, but like you allude to, I'd really like to keep cost down to please the wife . My hope is when the new processors are released, the 2000 series will drop in price to let me save even more money. Thanks for the advice on the WD Blue SSD, I noticed it will save me ~$25.

I opted to go with an extra fan to help keep the overall system cool and quiet. I use Noctua fans in my gaming computer and they always amaze me how well they cool while staying quiet.

 

[91Mackmr2]

I looked at M.2 drives, but worried about the heat generated under the motherboard. Is this not as much of a problem as I think?

I too was going to use a MSI B450i, just because my first mobo was a MSI and I gotten use to the bios screen layout, but since the M-2 is located on the back I changed my mind. I read from this forum people saying it get too hot on the back of the mobo. I considering getting the Asus B450i instead.

 

[91Mackmr2]

I looked at M.2 drives, but worried about the heat generated under the motherboard. Is this not as much of a problem as I think?

I haven't heard of any problems with M-2 located in the front of the mobo, I heard it gets too hot on the back. I'm definitely going to use a M-2 for Windows 10 for fast boot up.

 

[DwnTwn817]

I too was going to use a MSI B450i, just because my first mobo was a MSI and I gotten use to the bios screen layout, but since the M-2 is located on the back I changed my mind. I read from this forum people saying it get too hot on the back of the mobo. I considering getting the Asus B450i instead.

Based on your input and some research, I decided to go with the Asus B450I and the WD Blue M2 drive. Helped that my wife lifted my budget . Also, it allows me to put an SSD in the front later down the line. I feel like the Asus B450I is overkill for a non-gaming PC, but I've never had a problem w/ Asus boards and I love the layout of this one. Thanks for the input.

I update the OP with new details. The only thing I'm worried about it noise, but I think I'll be okay.

 

[91Mackmr2]

Based on your input and some research, I decided to go with the Asus B450I and the WD Blue M2 drive. Helped that my wife lifted my budget . Also, it allows me to put an SSD in the front later down the line. I feel like the Asus B450I is overkill for a non-gaming PC, but I've never had a problem w/ Asus boards and I love the layout of this one. Thanks for the input.

I update the OP with new details. The only thing I'm worried about it noise, but I think I'll be okay.

I decided on that board too, where did you get it from?

 

[Hellow]

Why Asus B450I and not the Gigabyte Aorus one?

 

[91Mackmr2]

Why Asus B450I and not the Gigabyte Aorus one?

I see a lot of people using it and it seems to have some great reviews, I kind of like the way it looks, and it's an Asus, thinking I should be safe.

 

[DwnTwn817]

I decided on that board too, where did you get it from?

Amazon US has them for $149.99 (USD)

Why Asus B450I and not the Gigabyte Aorus one?

I've never had problems w/ Asus components before while I have had problems with Gigabyte GPUs I know it's not the same, but why go away from something that hasn't let me down previously?

 

[DwnTwn817]

I'm thinking about saving some money and getting a RX 560 instead since I won't do any gaming on this PC.

 

[DwnTwn817]

I just wanted to stop by one more time and thank everyone for the help. I finished my build and got every thing setup a few days ago. I'm amazed by how quiet and cool the system is. It's inaudible even when compiling thousands of lines of source code.

Thanks again!