GD05 For Gaming

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Pikabean

n00b
Joined
Jul 9, 2010
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First off: I just joined, and this is my first time posting. So let me know if I'm... i dunno... doing it wrong.

For whatever reason i've been obsessed with trying to build a gaming PC in a HTPC case. After i had the idea to do it, i looked all over for people who have done the same thing, but couldn't find anything. This makes me think there's a reason, and so i just assume it's because of poor airflow and cooling. Anyways, i'll list all the parts i have picked out:

Case: Silverstone GD05
Mobo: Msi 890GXM-G65
Vga: Msi R5770 Hawk (possibly another in the future)
Cpu: Phenom II x4 955
Ram: G.Skill Eco Series 4GB 1600 (possibly another 4GB later on)
Hdd: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200 RPM 6.0Gb/s 3.5"
I left out Psu, and Cpu Cooler because i'm not entire sure about them, and hoped i could get some help. I originally had the Corsair H50 in mind, but i don't know if it will fit well. And obviously i plan on some better fans. I was thinking some GentleTyphoons, as i want to try to go with something generally quiet.

So there's all that. So, simply put, i think what i'm asking is: What kind of case mods would i need to make this work? Maybe a different case all together? Should i even bother?

One of the things i was thinking of, was taking out the optical drive bracket, and having a build without one or just an external if i ever need one, and then seeing if i could use all the space above the motherboard to put a window and/or big fan. Biggest one i could get really. I was thinking one of the silverstone 180mm's. Of course this depends on the clearance and the Cpu cooler, so i can't be entirely sure this is possible.

So that's everything i've got! I'm hoping to get some good ideas, i'm up for anything, and got a lot of time. Thanks, Bean.
 
welcome to hard.

people generally don't put gaming rigs into htpcs because gaming rigs are hot. heat requires faster fans. faster fans make noise. no one want to hear the "whirrrrrrr" of fans during the quiet and suspenseful parts of their movies. Also, htpcs are generally in smaller cases that have smaller fans that need to run faster. Add on the fact that the htpc is generally in an entertainment center and now you have a certified noise machine running all the time in your living room. This is not optimal.

The real question here is, what does your setup look like? Do you have a living room this is going in or an office? How much gaming vs. media content will you be watching? What type of files will you need to be playing? Do you want to watch netflix/hulu? What type of display/monitor do you have? What type of audio system do you have?

Give us more and we can help better.
 
Well the thing is, i think i'm going to use it primarily as a gaming rig. I watch movies and shows, and anime, and things, a lot actually. File types, typically .avi and .mkv. Now that i think about it, probably a nice balance between both. Monitor and audio is pretty basic right now. I'm focusing on getting the actual computer itself figured out first.

Let me clear this up: the reason i want to have these kind of parts in a HTPC case, is not because i'm going to use it as a HTPC. I just want a compact case like that, without getting a cube, lanbox type thing. I want to take a case that's designed for something else, and mod it, or give it a specific type of cooling, whatever, to make it capable of things it normally isn't. I want to make something unique, and different. That's all.
 
Actualy I was thinking about the same. The same components, except, I have Phenom II X4 905E with 65W. But instead of Grandia 05 case i choose Lian Li CUbe V351 in Red. But its too big to me. Now I will chose Grandia. Why not.

Next nice cases for microATX mobo will be LianLi V354 and Silverstone FT03
 
I'd go with a lian-li v351/352 with a corsair h50 depending on how much you want to spend.
 
Okay i'm really just looking for case mod ideas for the GD05, and Psu and Cpu cooler suggestions. Not really new case suggestions. haha
 
Okay so i've got a little update with my 'planned' build.

New Video Card: Nvidia Asus 460 - because, nvidia made a good card again.
Psu: Silverstone ST75F-P 750W - because i want to make sure i have enough power for future upgrades and builds.
Cpu cooler: Scythe SCSK-1100 - chose this because it's very low, but if i do mod the top panel, and put a window there, this might not be a very good choice. So, still need help on Cpu cooler, but besides that, here you go.

Still need halp D:
 
Since I have this case I can help you out..

First off it WILL work. You can make a pretty decent gaming system in this case. I have a GD04/5 with 3 120 mm fans intaking and the optional 80mm fans x 2 exhausting. Its pretty quiet and I run a i750 and a 5770 - but with no overclock. I want fairly low power usage since its on all the time.

I like gaming on it and am playing ME2 on it right now. Its hard to beat big screen graphics and 5.1 sound so its worthwhile. I also went with a GeminIIS cpu cooler and an external drive because I find I use steam and have less use for a drive. I also have a PS3 for blu-ray so it wasn't essential to have that functionality in my HTPC.

That being said honestly if your have no issues with the wife acceptance factor a tower case is much better. It has a smaller footprint and can fit alot more stuff in it quite easily. While its a hassle to fit 3 drives in the GD04/5 its a piece of cake to fit more then six drives (because of the extra 5'1/4" slots in a tower case). And while the cooling in the GD04/5 is pretty good with the positive pressure/air filters/ and lots of fan slots - tower cases can do better as they take better advantage of thermodynamics (low to high heat movement)..

For the money tower cases > HTPC cases - and I speak as a guy who has one of the best HTPC cases on the market. I think next year after I get my Ceton tuner card and start loading up disk drives I am going to switch to a tower case..

In fact I am going to spend like a year thinking about what kind of tower case I should get.. :p I am thinking something huge as it will just stand up somewhere next to the TV - maybe a FT02 or a X1000. I am lucky cause my g/f is a nerd and I have like zero issues with the WAF.
 
I'm glad somebody finally replied to this. Well my whole plan for all of this changed, after i found out my motherboard didn't support sli. There are also no other good microatx motherboards that do support sli, so i just switched to standardATX again. I switched to the Lian Li PC-A05NA. So this thread is kind of pointless now :/
 
Shucks. I'm going to try my hand at this same build and hopefully have some results for you guys. Difference: I'm planning on this being just a light-gaming build (primarily to store my 1080p movies/tv shows). My HDTV (samsung 52a750) has 8ms lag @1080p so it's not like I'm expecting awesome results -- just enough to pop in counterstrike or sc2 and enjoy it. Will plan to undervolt / no overclocking to reduce heat.

I have slight changes:
- unknown gpu (may throw my 5750 in there)
- HX620W PSU
- 2x2GB XMS3 1600
- Not sure about the drives yet, but planning on something decent in raid-0.
- acer slim laptop optical drive - external, from a netbook combo.

@GuyClinch - -thanks for the tips.
 
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