case advice needed

eltebe

n00b
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Messages
3
I plan to make new PC. So far i ordered zotac z68 itx motherboard.

I own atm:
- sg05 300W
- intel atom 330 mobo with 2GB ram.
- 2TB hdd

I think of
- i5 2500k
- 8GB RAM
- use 2TB hdd from current one

In future i want to add gigabyte gtx460 1GB OC from my current desktop(weak sometimes in 2560x1440) and SSD+BD.
Thing is I can't decide on case and format of it. For now my sg05 with 300W should be enough without gpu. It is limiting future plans though(1y at most).

Options I considered so far:
1 SG07
+compact
+/-600W but irreplaceable with anything other than same unit(doubled cost)
- limited options for CPU cooling and cluttered space
- didn't like the finish of sg05 when i compared it with p183 i use for desktop
- price

2 fractal design define mini
+ atx psu fits nicely with modular cables
+ noise dampened
+ cable management is easy
+ no problems with long GPU
+ most cpu coolers should fit in
+ nice design
- size / portability / weight

3 lately HTPC case though I'm limited when it comes to height <140mm

4 TJ08 looks worse then define mini but is also an option.

I don't need portability that much i can always hide it in one room where we keep all the stuff like vacuum cleaner,iron etc(sg07) or put it in saloon below hifi cd/amp(htpc) or next to it(define mini).

My plans on usage are same as they are atm storage\seedbox\proxy\server(http) plus new htpc/oracle db and maybe play some with backtrack. Placement also depends on wifi support in kernel/drivers. This can be solved with placing some intel wifi card that has full support.
I might add dualboot with windows later on but we will see if its needed.
 
I would go for the SG07.
1. The PSU is replaceable with any 140mm long PSU, there are quite a few options for you.
2. Limited CPU cooling? not at all. I think there is room for WC (normal not AIO crap) for both CPU and GPU. Ofc with some modding.
Not to mention that SB is a very cool cpu.
3. I dont know what you mean about the finish. From pictures the aluminum front looks really bright. I recieved mine and the aluminum front is dark-black-ish, looking very nice.
4. Price, yes, if you look at it it seems expensive, but let's do the math comparing it to SG05/06. You pretty much gotta ATX mod these, so ++cost for new PSU. With ATX mod, comes the need to use AIO WC for CPU (being the cheapest solution), so another ++cost.

The second option is mATX, so different league in my opinion.

So far i just have the SG07 and my MSI 560ti. Tomorrow i'm recieving mobo (asrock h67 itx), ram and slim odd. Sadly i recieve the cpu next tuesday.
 
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