Sanity check and a few questions

Morac

n00b
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Nov 28, 2012
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39
So I am starting a new job soon, one with a higher salary, and that means it is finally time to upgrade my old system from 2008.

The are two things I am looking for in this build. First: reasonably portable. I don't own a car, so ideally I would like to be able to take this on the bus with me if I want to get out of town for the weekend or something. Second: bordering on if not entering the territory of overkill, in terms of power. Part of this is an attempt at future-proofing, but I am also a game developer/programmer by trade, so my requirements can often end up being wacky and I would like to optimize as many aspects of this build as possible.

As such, here is my build as planned:

Case: If the Lian Li SG05 Evo takes off, I'll likely get one of those, but otherwise I'll go with the Sugo SG05

CPU: Intel i7 3770K, hopefully clocked up to 4.5-ish GHz

Mobo: Asrock Z77 mITX (considered the Asus Z77 deluxe, but the Asrock has faster POST times and a PS2 port for my old mechanical keyboard)

GPU: Galaxy GTX 680 4GB. Will leave this at stock clocks.

RAM: I'm looking at this 16GB G.SKILL kit, but I am not sold on it. I do want 16GB and as fast as reasonably makes sense, though.

SSD: Samsung 840 Pro 256GB

HHD: Western digital 1TB 2.5" - I've heard that 2.5" drives are significantly lighter than their larger counterparts. Given that I would potentially like to take this on the road, is the weight difference enough to worry about? Also, I'm a little unsure this will be enough storage for me (I'm pushing 1.25TB on my current setup as it is - some of which will not be carried over, but much of which will be).

CPU Cooler: Honestly have no idea about this, maybe an H60?


Are there any glaring mistakes in this build? Will it all fit in a SG05? Any other input on parts? I'll likely be putting this build together over the next few months, so is there anything on the horizon I might be tempted to wait for?

I'll be needing to get a few peripherals, primarily monitors. For my primary monitor, I am looking at a 27" monitor of some kind. Any suggestions? Are the WQHD monitors worth the $3-400 extra? I'll likely supplement the main monitor with some extra cheap monitors, but I care much less about their quality as I will not be gaming on them.

Also in the monitor field, do you guys have any suggestions about travelling with a monitor, or better yet a monitor I could buy specifically for travelling? This seems to be a very uncommon practice, and other than some monitor travel bags and some USB-driven external laptop monitors (which are unsuitable for a primary monitor) almost nothing has turned up in my research.
 
Ah, oops. Knew I missed something.

If I go with the SG05, I'll use the 450W PSU that comes with it. In the case of Lian Li alternative, I'll likely get one of the Silverstone modular SFX 450W PSUs.

One possibility, depending on timing, is that I could get the SG05 and PSU while waiting on the Lian Li, and transplant everything once I get my hands on the latter.
 
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Looks good. You're gonna have trouble getting a good CPU cooler into that case, though.

If you want an H60, you're going to have to drop the front drive tray. That's an instant loss of ODD, 3.5" HDD, and the 2.5" mounts. If you go all-2.5" in the HDD department (as you list), you could pull it off using velcro and a bit of ingenuity.

Regarding mobile monitors...well I'm not sure if that's feasible. Travelling with a monitor is tricky, and although I only find issues because I fly, usually the best (if not only) way to go is to get something small with high pixel density. That means something 1080p or so in the 17" range. Otherwise, I don't see how travelling with a 27" monitor is any easier than travelling with a TV of similar size.
 
ODD isn't a big loss. The velcro method seems reasonably feasible. Would the H60 be the best way to go? Or are there any alternative cooling solutions?

As far as the monitor goes, I guess wasn't being very clear. The 27" would stay at home, and I would have a secondary sub-20" monitor that I would travel with. You are right, travelling with a 27" would be pretty silly.

EDIT: As I've been poking around, I stumbled across this monitor: http://www8.hp.com/uk/en/products/monitors/product-detail.html?oid=5304905 It's a little on the large side, but is super thin and has an easel stand. Thoughts?
 
EDIT: As I've been poking around, I stumbled across this monitor: http://www8.hp.com/uk/en/products/monitors/product-detail.html?oid=5304905 It's a little on the large side, but is super thin and has an easel stand. Thoughts?

You just missed a hot deal.

HP Elite 21.5" UltraSlim LED DisplayPort Monitor 1080p Full HD - L2201X $79.99

I got in on the original sale (just received yesterday - man, 1saleaday is slow to ship :mad: ) but it was available again yesterday. It is similar to what you listed, but even smaller.

21.5"
1920x1080
MVA panel
16ms

Looks as if people who got in on the deal are flipping them on eBay for $100. Tiger Direct has it in stock for $130 shipped. The MVA panel should look great. Some are scared off by the 16ms, but TBH I used to game on a Soyo Topaz 24" with "slow" MVA panel and never noticed. There is only one DisplayPort input and the 12v power input (DisplayPort cable and 36W power brick included) on the SIDE of the monitor. It is very small, but surprisingly heavy for the size due to the back being all aluminum.
 
Even at the regular price, that's a pretty good find. Pretty much on the top of my list for secondary/travel monitors right now. Thanks!
 
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