I’m a MacBook user. My last PC was Celeron 500MHz with 32 GB RAM and Riva TNT2 16MB. Currently, I’m preparing for CompTIA A+ certification so I’ve decided to put to use what I’ve learned so far. I’m a minimalist so Small Form Factor was the way to go.
Below I will describe the experience I’ve had during this project. My main sources were smallformfactor.net/ and r/sffpc.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600:
I like the idea of being able to use different generations within one motherboard. Additionally, AMD processors have a lower TDP than Intel's, which is a very important factor for small form factor (SFF) builds.
Initially, I considered going for the Ryzen 1600, but this would require flashing to the older UEFI. Then, I thought about the legendary Ryzen 3600, but it was only £10 cheaper new or £20 cheaper used than the Ryzen 5600, so I decided to go straight for the Ryzen 5600.
In the future, I plan to get the 5900 once it becomes available in retail, or I may opt for the 5900X and run it in Eco Mode to stay within the 65W TDP limit.
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550I Aorus PRO AX:
Advice: If you are trying to reset CMOS, the power cord has to be connected when shorting pins not disconnected as stated in the manual.
This was a difficult decision. I spent about a month considering my options and analyzing the second-hand market. I ruled out X-series chipsets because there is no way to utilise their potential in mITX fully. The lack of overclocking options in A-series chipsets discouraged me from using them. Therefore, I ultimately chose to go with B-series chipsets.
Initially, I was searching for second-hand motherboards. However, I noticed that there was only a £10-£20 difference between the B450I and B550I models. Additionally, the used B550I motherboards were only £20 cheaper than the retail price. Unfortunately, MSI and Asus motherboards are all sold out and very hard to find on the second-hand market. So, I was left with ASRock's B550I-ATX/AC and B550I Phantom Gaming-ITX/AX, as well as Gigabyte's B550I Aorus PRO AX.
I have ruled out ASRock's B550I PG-ITX/AX motherboard because it uses Intel's I225V NIC, which has a design flaw in both stepping one and stepping two. This flaw causes packet dropping. Although stepping three resolves the issue, it was released after these boards hit the market. The only solution to this problem is a firmware update, which downgrades the NIC from 2.5 Gbps to 1 Gbps to achieve stability. Additionally, this board overclocks the CPU out of the box, leading to increased temperatures, which is not desirable in a small form factor (SFF) build.
I almost purchased ASRock's B550I-ITX/AC motherboard due to its affordable price. It also has low-height VRMs, which aids in heat dissipation within the compact case. The only drawback I found was the limited number of USB Super Speed ports so I hesitated.
The prize for being patient was purchasing Gigabyte's B550I Aorus PRO AX during Black Friday, which was cheaper than the B550I-ITX/AC. I am very happy that I waited. Although I may not be able to fully utilize it in this build, I might use it in other future projects, such as a NAS. The reason for choosing this motherboard was that its VRMs run the coolest compared to other B550I models. It also offers plenty of USB Super Speed ports and has a Realtek RTL8125 2.5 Gbps NIC instead of Intel I225V. The big downside is that it lacks the type-E header to connect the front panel USB-C
Alpenföhn BLACK RIDGE:
There are limited options if it comes down to coolers. I’ve chosen Back Ridge as its cooling performance is the best when using a 120mm fan. And it looks cool. I’ve used Arctic cooler as it has the same performance and loudness as Noctua for a fraction of the cost. Also, I did like the idea of having VLP RAM. I might swap for a Noctua NH-L9 one day to see the temps. Unfortunately, the Asetek 92mm AIO is been discontinued.
Kingston ValueRAM 8 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-2666 CL19:
This was the easiest RAM to buy at the moment with a great price. It’s Nanya F-die, but behaves very closely to Nanya B-die. It runs 3800MHz 16-8-17-14 @ 1.46mV without errors after stress tests in Prime95 + OCCT, and TestMem5 (10 different profiles).
Crucial MX500 1 TB 2.5" SSD:
That's an SSD I had salvaged from my older MacBook Pro. I'm planning to get some NVME soon.
Gigabyte EAGLE GeForce RTX 3070 8 GB:
I bought this card new as a great bargain during Black Friday for the second-hand price. I think it is the biggest 3070 that can fit into A4-SFX. It has three fans and vertical fins (which are considered the best option for this case allowing for heat dissipation up and down).
Unfortunately for me, I wasn't aware of problems with Nvidia and Linux (I refer you to Torvald Linus about the Nvidia YouTube video). I wasn't able to run Davinci Resolve in any container after a few days of trying. Only works for me with bare Rocky Linux installation or MakeDavinciDebian on Debian.
It won’t work with CoreCtrl so no undervolting. Also cannot get to turn off the RGB without having Windows.
Power SW On/Off/Reset Button:
Fits onto the motherboard's power switch (Power SW) headers and features a small momentary-on (SPST) button. I installed it to make resetting CMOS easy. Very useful when running Black Ridge and overclocking.
DAN Cases A4-SFXv4.1 Mini ITX Desktop:
This is a great case. I’ve chosen it because it’s the smallest case that can accommodate full-length GPU. It is very popular so it is easy to find information on how to build it.
Design is very optimal with a lot of ways to assemble it. Materials are solid. Everything fits right in a place. But it is getting a bit outdated as it was designed with the likes of GTX 980Ti in mind and modern GPUs are getting bigger and bigger so it's harder to squeeze stronger GPUs in it. As well as the 92mm AIO is not in production anymore.
Final Thoughts
Small Form Factor is a lot of fun to build. It requires a lot of prior reading and planning and confirming that the parts will fit. It took me a whole month of research before I assembled my PC. The community is very strong and helpful. Haven’t encountered any toxicity.
Sometimes it can be hard as information is scattered in different threads or different websites. There is no One Fit All guide in this matter.
Parts are more expensive as they are being made for a smaller audience, but on the other hand, there are fewer parts to choose from which in my opinion is a blessing as it lessens the impact of choice overload.
If I were doing this again I would opt for AMD instead of Nvidia as it works better in Linux. Also, I would choose a slightly bigger case that has AIO cooling available on the market (probably C4-SFX).
Below I will describe the experience I’ve had during this project. My main sources were smallformfactor.net/ and r/sffpc.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600:
I like the idea of being able to use different generations within one motherboard. Additionally, AMD processors have a lower TDP than Intel's, which is a very important factor for small form factor (SFF) builds.
Initially, I considered going for the Ryzen 1600, but this would require flashing to the older UEFI. Then, I thought about the legendary Ryzen 3600, but it was only £10 cheaper new or £20 cheaper used than the Ryzen 5600, so I decided to go straight for the Ryzen 5600.
In the future, I plan to get the 5900 once it becomes available in retail, or I may opt for the 5900X and run it in Eco Mode to stay within the 65W TDP limit.
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550I Aorus PRO AX:
Advice: If you are trying to reset CMOS, the power cord has to be connected when shorting pins not disconnected as stated in the manual.
This was a difficult decision. I spent about a month considering my options and analyzing the second-hand market. I ruled out X-series chipsets because there is no way to utilise their potential in mITX fully. The lack of overclocking options in A-series chipsets discouraged me from using them. Therefore, I ultimately chose to go with B-series chipsets.
Initially, I was searching for second-hand motherboards. However, I noticed that there was only a £10-£20 difference between the B450I and B550I models. Additionally, the used B550I motherboards were only £20 cheaper than the retail price. Unfortunately, MSI and Asus motherboards are all sold out and very hard to find on the second-hand market. So, I was left with ASRock's B550I-ATX/AC and B550I Phantom Gaming-ITX/AX, as well as Gigabyte's B550I Aorus PRO AX.
I have ruled out ASRock's B550I PG-ITX/AX motherboard because it uses Intel's I225V NIC, which has a design flaw in both stepping one and stepping two. This flaw causes packet dropping. Although stepping three resolves the issue, it was released after these boards hit the market. The only solution to this problem is a firmware update, which downgrades the NIC from 2.5 Gbps to 1 Gbps to achieve stability. Additionally, this board overclocks the CPU out of the box, leading to increased temperatures, which is not desirable in a small form factor (SFF) build.
I almost purchased ASRock's B550I-ITX/AC motherboard due to its affordable price. It also has low-height VRMs, which aids in heat dissipation within the compact case. The only drawback I found was the limited number of USB Super Speed ports so I hesitated.
The prize for being patient was purchasing Gigabyte's B550I Aorus PRO AX during Black Friday, which was cheaper than the B550I-ITX/AC. I am very happy that I waited. Although I may not be able to fully utilize it in this build, I might use it in other future projects, such as a NAS. The reason for choosing this motherboard was that its VRMs run the coolest compared to other B550I models. It also offers plenty of USB Super Speed ports and has a Realtek RTL8125 2.5 Gbps NIC instead of Intel I225V. The big downside is that it lacks the type-E header to connect the front panel USB-C
Alpenföhn BLACK RIDGE:
There are limited options if it comes down to coolers. I’ve chosen Back Ridge as its cooling performance is the best when using a 120mm fan. And it looks cool. I’ve used Arctic cooler as it has the same performance and loudness as Noctua for a fraction of the cost. Also, I did like the idea of having VLP RAM. I might swap for a Noctua NH-L9 one day to see the temps. Unfortunately, the Asetek 92mm AIO is been discontinued.
Kingston ValueRAM 8 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-2666 CL19:
This was the easiest RAM to buy at the moment with a great price. It’s Nanya F-die, but behaves very closely to Nanya B-die. It runs 3800MHz 16-8-17-14 @ 1.46mV without errors after stress tests in Prime95 + OCCT, and TestMem5 (10 different profiles).
Crucial MX500 1 TB 2.5" SSD:
That's an SSD I had salvaged from my older MacBook Pro. I'm planning to get some NVME soon.
Gigabyte EAGLE GeForce RTX 3070 8 GB:
I bought this card new as a great bargain during Black Friday for the second-hand price. I think it is the biggest 3070 that can fit into A4-SFX. It has three fans and vertical fins (which are considered the best option for this case allowing for heat dissipation up and down).
Unfortunately for me, I wasn't aware of problems with Nvidia and Linux (I refer you to Torvald Linus about the Nvidia YouTube video). I wasn't able to run Davinci Resolve in any container after a few days of trying. Only works for me with bare Rocky Linux installation or MakeDavinciDebian on Debian.
It won’t work with CoreCtrl so no undervolting. Also cannot get to turn off the RGB without having Windows.
Power SW On/Off/Reset Button:
Fits onto the motherboard's power switch (Power SW) headers and features a small momentary-on (SPST) button. I installed it to make resetting CMOS easy. Very useful when running Black Ridge and overclocking.
DAN Cases A4-SFXv4.1 Mini ITX Desktop:
This is a great case. I’ve chosen it because it’s the smallest case that can accommodate full-length GPU. It is very popular so it is easy to find information on how to build it.
Design is very optimal with a lot of ways to assemble it. Materials are solid. Everything fits right in a place. But it is getting a bit outdated as it was designed with the likes of GTX 980Ti in mind and modern GPUs are getting bigger and bigger so it's harder to squeeze stronger GPUs in it. As well as the 92mm AIO is not in production anymore.
Final Thoughts
Small Form Factor is a lot of fun to build. It requires a lot of prior reading and planning and confirming that the parts will fit. It took me a whole month of research before I assembled my PC. The community is very strong and helpful. Haven’t encountered any toxicity.
Sometimes it can be hard as information is scattered in different threads or different websites. There is no One Fit All guide in this matter.
Parts are more expensive as they are being made for a smaller audience, but on the other hand, there are fewer parts to choose from which in my opinion is a blessing as it lessens the impact of choice overload.
If I were doing this again I would opt for AMD instead of Nvidia as it works better in Linux. Also, I would choose a slightly bigger case that has AIO cooling available on the market (probably C4-SFX).
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