NFC Skyreach 4 Mini for a noob

[SoulTrain]

Hey folks, its been a while since I built up a PC so I humbly ask for your patience. I am looking for some advice and a review of my parts list. Going through the forums and watching the videos, I think here is a conservative build. I like getting 2nd Gen GPU. I know, I know ... boo hiss. :-) The 1070 is fine
for what I need and there will be a big jump next year making the 1080 2nd tier is what I read. I might pick up that first gen then. From what I read, the 300W HDPLEX will have room to run thirstier CPUs and GPUs.

So here is my parts list...

Case: NFC Skyreach 4 Mini
CaseXtras: NFC on/off red switch, NFC mini feet, Skywire Cables, Sky bracket, HDPEX PCIe X16 Riser
Board: ASUS ROG STRIX Z370-F
Power: HDPLEX 400W Hi-Fi DC-ATX Power, no bracket, no brick
Brick: Dell 330W AC Adapter
GPU: ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1070 Mini (8 GB GDDR5)
CPU: Intel Core I7-8700
Fan: Noctua NH-L9I, NF-P12
Memory: G.Skill RipJaws F4-3200C 16GB (probably overkill since I wont be overclocking very much)
Drives:
C:960 EVO 500 GB (Boot)
D:Crucial MX300 1TB SATA M.2 (2280) Internal Solid State Drive


Stupid Questions:
1) For the power solution, do I need an AC adaptor correct? Something like the Dell 330W?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CGA5JQM/?tag=theminutiae-20
2) Does the NFC Skyreach 4 Mini come with a power button?
3) Does it come with feet for vertical configuration? I don't think so, right? So i'll need to order that on the NFC site.
4) Given that I totally stink at custom wiring and I want to maximize open space in the S4 Mini, can a site be recommend for custom cabling?
5) Only customization I might want is a few USB ports in the front near the power button.

Thanks all in advance...

Happy Trails.

 

[Soul_Est]

Those are not stupid questions although some of them have been answered before:
1) Yes.
2) No. (Source)
3) No. (Source)
4) CableMod.
5) You would have to modify the front panel for that.

All for futue questions about the SKYREACH 4 MINI, please ask here: https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/skyreach-4-mini-srm.5715/

 

[SoulTrain]

Those are not stupid questions although some of them have been answered before:
1) Yes.
2) No. (Source)
3) No. (Source)
4) CableMod.
5) You would have to modify the front panel for that.

All for futue questions about the SKYREACH 4 MINI, please ask here: https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/skyreach-4-mini-srm.5715/

Thanks, Sorry to not use the search button enough. I know its annoying. Josh has already cut out a square opening for USB ports, so I just need to machine out the front panel plating.

 

[Soul_Est]

Thanks, Sorry to not use the search button enough. I know its annoying. Josh has already cut out a square opening for USB ports, so I just need to machine out the front panel plating.

Not annoying, really. If my answer seemed terse, it was because I had little time to type it up. I'm glad that you will be able to get those USB cutouts that you need.

 

[SoulTrain]

I altered my build, I was lucky enough to grab a i7 8700. I wanted to go cheaper with an i5 but given what I have read with the small form factor, I didn't want to depend on overclocking. I was concerned with the heat build up. i5 8600 is such a beast for the money. I figure the i7 8700 is overkill even humming along at regular clock speed.

 

[Josh | NFC]

I'm looking forward to this groovy build!

One comment...unless you already own a HDPLEX 300 DC-DC, I really would recommend you go for the new HDPLEX 400, which replaced it. HDPLEX designed the 400 from the ground up based on MINI owner feedback. The cable sockets are in the optimal position for the MINI, it runs ice cold under extreme duty, has less coil whine, and I haven't been able to reset one yet.

As for sleeving, Cablemod is great. There are also other guys like Lutro0 and Joe. I believe Joe from Sanctum Sleeving is a member here...at any rate he is a MINI owner so I like to support him when you want something sleeved.

If you just want something that takes up the least amount of space, and was designed for the MINI, I have the SkyWire cable sets in my shop. These are specifically for the HDPLEX 400 DC-DC. I don't want to take business away from people like Joe, but I did need a quick and easy solution for the MINI. So if you have the time, money, etc etc and don't mind the extra space of sleeved cables, then go with people who pay their rent with sleeving.

I mean, I pay my rent with my cables too but not at the expense of taking someone else's lunch...

 

[SoulTrain]

Hi Josh,

Thanks for the pointers. I had a friend that was going to ditch his 300. He's giving it to me because he lost a bet on a football game and because he plans to upgrade to a 400. So with the i7 (65v) and 1070, I would be pushing it? I hadn't committed yet. ill go with your advice. Let him buy a few rounds instead.

Going to the

https://www.hdplex.com/hdplex-400w-hi-fi-dc-atx-power-supply-16v-24v-wide-range-voltage-input.html

Do I need the bracket?

Ordered Skywire cables through NFC. I figure I would see how everything fit for the other cables first then might use stuff lying around or order custom cables. I don't trust my cable making skills.

 

[Josh | NFC]

The 300 will handle your hardware no problem; it's just that if you had to buy one...you should get the 400. And yeah, I would have him buy a few rounds instead.

You don't need the bracket.

Peace

 

[SoulTrain]

Josh do you trust the Cool Master calculator? The picture from there definitely looks good. Ran the numbers on the power from the above build and it looks very comfortable. The load wattage is 305. With the 400 watt power supply I have room to overclock. Can't wait to put this little beast together. Parts will be slowly trickling in.

http://www.coolermaster.com/power-supply-calculator/

 

[Josh | NFC]

Josh do you trust the Cool Master calculator? The picture from there definitely looks good. Ran the numbers on the power from the above build and it looks very comfortable. The load wattage is 305. With the 400 watt power supply I have room to overclock. Can't wait to put this little beast together. Parts will be slowly trickling in.

http://www.coolermaster.com/power-supply-calculator/

I haven't looked at it in a while, but before I started doing ulv pcs they were wildly off. Nvidia and Intel's TDP produce a very handy number that is almost always spot on, so that is what I would use. You don't even need to add up the motherboard or SSDs really.

Ryzen seems to be OK but the TDP and wattage used is not exactly the same--in some cases power draw is lower than the TDP. AMD GPUs vary too much to use this as a solid rule of thumb.

 

[SoulTrain]

A relative success folks. Minor issues with cable lengths and power attachment but over all, very happy with results.

Elwood PC by Art Sol, on Flickr

 

[SoulTrain]

Elwood PC2 by Art Sol, on Flickr

 

[SoulTrain]

I tried to figure out a way to mount the power supply along the back plate of the bezel but the standard bezel sits right against the plate. Waiting on the designer wooden bezel to perhaps make this possible. Its a bit anal as the HDPLEX 400 isn't going anywhere with the flexible but firm main wiring.

 

[Josh | NFC]

Hey Soul Train, I know I don't have good pictures yet, but the SkyWire cable routing should look like a U for the CPU, and it will look extremely neat.

I'll have pictures up soon for them.

Nice work btw. What games do you play with the Joystick?

 

[dumplinknet]

Hey SoulTrain,
Do you hear any coil whine coming out of that Asus rog motherboard? I hear a lot of people complaining about this and go with the ASRock fatality board instead.

I'm deciding between this board or the fatality.
Thanks!

 

[SoulTrain]

Hey Soul Train, I know I don't have good pictures yet, but the SkyWire cable routing should look like a U for the CPU, and it will look extremely neat.

I'll have pictures up soon for them.

Nice work btw. What games do you play with the Joystick?

The only cables with a bit excess for me is the CPU EPS and the silly Asrock Button Cable. I might scrap that and just plug in the cables directly. I wanted to use that because I got tired of unplugging and plugging it. It took me a while to figure out that I needed to swap the positions of my M.2 drives. Had to put the crucial in the top slot and the Samsung below, then alter the bootup in bios.

I play WarThunder, and Star Citizen. Then turn based, I play Civilization, and the old standby StarCraft. I got a X-box for some first person shooterama. What do you game?

 

[SoulTrain]

Hey SoulTrain,
Do you hear any coil whine coming out of that Asus rog motherboard? I hear a lot of people complaining about this and go with the ASRock fatality board instead.

I'm deciding between this board or the fatality.
Thanks!

This setup is completely silent when not taxing the graphics card. I overclock it and play start citizen then eventually the GPU fans come on and then its barely noticeable. The Noctua is churning quietly. One reason I chose the i7 over the i5, is I think the i7 generates less heat. Perhaps its because I don't feel the need to overclock the i7 much.

Ill upload a video later.

 

[dumplinknet]

Look forward to seeing the video!

 

[Josh | NFC]

Hey SoulTrain,
Do you hear any coil whine coming out of that Asus rog motherboard? I hear a lot of people complaining about this and go with the ASRock fatality board instead.

I'm deciding between this board or the fatality.
Thanks!

As a personal side note I have been using ROG strix boards for a while and I've not heard any whine coming from them. I have two I am unboxing today actually and I will listen hard for any.