Help needed for SFF build

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brutality

n00b
Joined
Nov 6, 2014
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7
Hello,

I decided to move away from gaming laptops, and build a SFF gaming rig, that needs to be transported 2 times a month.Primary objective is heavy gaming, OC if needed.
As i have really no knowledge in SFF type rigs, i came for some information and help choosing parts:

Budget: up to 2000$. Can go more if really needed and well argumented.

Required minimum:
Minimum CPU: i7 4790 (4790K preffered)
GPU: nvidia GTX 980 (i would preffer 970 SLI but due to small form, it really is an option i believe)
DVI Dual link output required (for 120HZ gaming)
WiFi


The Case:
I have narrowed it down to Node 304 or SG08. I am leaning towards the SG08, because it is a bit smaller, but opinions are welcome.

The Mobo:
This is where it gets complicated. i will post the ones, that are available for me. I really can not make heads or tails from them. I have no idea witch ones are good, what is not. What are cons or pros etc. All info is welcome.

Gigabyte GA-Z97N-Gaming 5 Intel Z97 LGA 1150 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128719
MSI Z97I GAMING AC Intel Z97 LGA 1150 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130774
Asus Z97I-PLUS Intel Z97 LGA 1150 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132122

CPU: as mentioned above

RAM: 2x8gb 1600 low CL or 1866. Please suggest manufacturers.

GPU:
Here is the list, that is available for me:
Gigabyte GV-N980G GTX 980 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125682
Asus STRIX-GTX980-DC2OC-4GD5 GTX 980 O.C. DIRECTCU II - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121905
MSI GeForce GTX 980 Twin Frozr V - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127834
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 4096 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125683

PSU:
Need suggestions. Should be about 600W. I have read about modular PSUs. Some say it is good, some say it bad. Can someone explain.

Cooling:
Should i go with watercooling or stay with stock vents. Replace vent. Please suggest and explain. Reading good things about Noctua products.

No HDD needed to purchase.

I am tired changing laptops after every 2 years, so looking something that is upgradable. Also, i am not buying from newegg. Those links are used for quick reference only. Buying in european market.

Anything else i should know about etc.

I know those are noob questions for some, but help me out.
 
Hi Brutality,

I am by no means an expert, but can share my experience as I was in the same boat as you and got some fantastic advice from this forum.

I was laptop gaming for over 10 years due to regular travel, upgrading every couple of years. It's an expensive and underwhelming experience! I recently changed to an SFF PC that fits in my carry-on backpack.

After searching long and hard for right case, the Ncase M1 was a clear winner https://www.ncases.com/ You can find plenty of threads on it around here. It's by far the most versatile case for its size that I came across, and small and light enough to take anywhere. It will be available again in a week or so to preorder.

If you're going with mITX you'll only have 1 PCIE slot, so choose the best single GPU within your budget. 970 or 980 is an obvious choice in this generation. There's a few people getting high temps from open-air non-reference coolers, so you'd be better off with a blower (like the Gigabyte one at the bottom of your list). I believe the Strix won't fit in an M1 case though.

For mobo, I was deciding between the same 3 as well as a few others. I went for the Gigabyte because of the excellent on-board audio and the layout is great. The MSI was also quite expensive where I live at the time. Can't go wrong with any of those though. The Gigabyte doesn't have an M.2 slot though if you planned to use one in future.

4790K would be a good choice for future needs if you're doing more than just gaming, otherwise a 4690K performs the same in gaming.

Depending on the CPU cooler you go with (esp some big air coolers), you may need low profile or very low profile RAM. Lots of people go with Crucial Ballistix Sport LP or VLP CL9 1.35V or Corsair Vengeance LP CL9. Lots of good choices really. Crucial is the only one who make a VLP though I think. The only reason I went with Ballistix Tactical LP CL8 is because I got it cheaper than Sport, I'm sure I wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

Cooling choices depend a lot on the case and whether or not you will be overclocking. I went with a small all-in-one water cooler (Corsair H60) because it's much lighter than most air coolers and mounts to the chassis instead of the motherboard (in case it gets knocked about during travel). It performs about 20C cooler than the stock Intel cooler in my tests. But if weight doesn't bother you, there are plenty of air coolers that perform better and bigger radiators depending on case fit. I'm no expert here though.

If you're going for a compact build in a very small case you'll need an SFX form factor PSU and the Silverstone SX600-G is hard to go past. It's modular so you can remove the cables you don't need to avoid cluttering up your case and air flow.

To answer your question, modular may be an issue in exceptionally small sized cases where the cables need to bend immediately as they come out of the PSU (eg. Silverstone SG05 I believe), and this is where cables moulded onto the PSU are a bit more flexible than modular (which have big plastic removable plugs). If you choose a bigger case, that leaves the door open to lots of ATX choices which will be cheaper but big and heavy (I don't know much about ATX models).

Happy hunting :)
 
Thank you for your reply:

I have done some more researching, and this is where i am heading. All ideas, criticism is welcome. As it will be my first build, there might be some mistakes that i have done.

The case: While the M1 really does look nice, i do not have time to wait and preorder, so i opted to go with SUGO SG08. It is only slightly bigger than M1, has a lot of very good reviews and big userbase with a lot of knowhow.

The mobo: I am actually thinking about going with ASUS Maximust VII impact. Also, lot of good reviews tho it is pricier than others.

CPU: 4790K. Tho i have read there are some issues with overheating in some cases.

GPU: I am still determined to fit ASUS 980STRIX into that case. It measures 5,3 inches in height. Some owners have said, it should fit while there is 50/50 chance that i have to replace top AP181 vent with something smaller. Suggestions if i have to?

PSU: Going to use the PSU Silverstone adds to the case. It is 600W non modular (have to use nonmodular, to fit the long GPU in). From their page it reads: 80 PLUS Bronze certified 600W@50℃ PSU with single +12V rail .

RAM. This is what i came up with. Please suggest if it is waste of money or not.
Kingston HyperX Savage CL9 1866Mhz. It looks relatively low profile. 2x8gb sticks.

Cooling. I am thinking stay with Air in the beginning. I am thinking using Noctua NH-L12 for the CPU. Opinions? is it enough or ..?

HDD: 1x2,5inch SSD and 1x2,5 inch HDD

Please let me know if i have done something wrong, or i am wasting money in some point or there are better options to go with.
 
subspeed6 said:
Maybe this will help....

Here is a list of people's builds using the Node 304:
http://pcpartpicker.com/builds/#e=272,564

Here is a list of people's builds using the SG08:
http://pcpartpicker.com/builds/#e=289,660


I hope this helps.
Click to expand...


Thanks. it helps me a lot. Seeing the recent build in SG08, there was XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card installed in it. According to manuf. page it measures 5.63 in height. Unfortunately he does no specify if he kept his AP181 fan.
 
This is a bit of an old thread but thought I would reply for anyone who ends up here after searching about what will fit in an SG08

I just completed a build with:

Asus Maximus VII Impact
Intel 4790K
16gb Kingston DDR3-1600 (their basic sticks are very low profile)

MSI Geforce GTX980 Gaming 4G (the one with their Twin Frozr cooling)

Silverstone 600W SFX power supply.

So a few notes on this;

The SFX power supply is fully modular and very compact, gives you some extra room for cable routing and clearance between your video card and power supply. All of the modular sockets are accessible and usable.

The MSI GTX 980 does fit into the case, slide it in from the side and carefully juggle it into place. However, the optical drive tray DOES NOT fit back in with the card installed, both the heatpipe on the top of the cooler and the 8pin power connectors are too tall.

If you don't need an optical drive just leave the tray out and you're good to go. I am going to try and trim a channel out of the side of mine so that I can still mount an optical drive. If that doesn't work I'll just leave it out.

Buy the silverstone short modular cable kit, they are a LOT shorter than the ones that come with the power supply, makes cable management much easier, it still took a few hours of fiddling though to find neat routes for things but it ended up with very little clutter.

The 600W SFX seems to power this setup without any issue, runs 3d mark just fine as well as other game play. I haven't left it stress testing and probably won't but it's been fine playing anything that has been thrown at it.

You will need a right angle sata connector for the 2.5" drives, the straight connectors push against the case when the cover is put on. SIlverstone make slim sata cables which again I would heartily recommend as they take a lot less space and are way more flexible than normal sata cables.

I used the NT-06 pro cooler with a single fan mounted above the heatsink, plenty of clearance and seems to work well. I don't have any other fans in the case except those on the graphics card.

I haven't overclocked the system at all and probably won't as it's fast enough as it is for everything I do.

The box is VERY quiet in this setup and barely noticable on the desk next to me while setting up, now with it 2-3m away under the TV I can't hear it at all, even at night with all doors and windows closed and a silent room I can't hear it at all.

Noticed that the fans on the graphics card seem to sit idle whenever I am not gaming which is GREAT as this is built to be used in the lounge room as a combination "steam machine" / HTPC so quiet performance was the goal.

Hope that helps anyone looking at a build like this. I'll take a few pictures of the internals when I pull it apart to try and put the optical drive tray back in and will update on details of the modifications to it and if they work. If they don't though I'll just leave it without the optical drive as I barely use it anyway.

Overall it makes a really nice, small and quiet box.
 
Oh the SG08-lite does not come with the AP181 fan. I have ordered an FW181 slim profile PWM fan that I will try out when it arrives but so far, even in a hot climate (34c average) it seems happy enough without.

I also found that PC Part Picker compatibility guides were a bit out as it will let you choose a modular ATX power supply because it will technically fit, but not with a long video card. Just something to keep in mind.
 
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