Lian Li PC- Q7 itx case.

It's like 80mm (w/ ATX PSU) nowhere near 110mm. I don't think you'll get 110mm even with an SFX PSU. PICO PSU is an external brick, rarely, if ever, capable of 80W. You probably don't want it, unless you have an Atom and just a couple of disk drives.
 
It's like 80mm (w/ ATX PSU) nowhere near 110mm. I don't think you'll get 110mm even with an SFX PSU. PICO PSU is an external brick, rarely, if ever, capable of 80W. You probably don't want it, unless you have an Atom and just a couple of disk drives.

You dont think a 150w pico would work. With i3, 4gb ram, one ssd, one hdd, and no vid card
 
an 80w Pico would be fine for that.. hell a 65 should be able to do it. Personally though for an i7 build & what your asking of it I would do an AMD build instead. There are less caveats attached. For example you can use the Big Shuriken & a Video card (or sound card depending on the system) and be fine. Cost wise it ends up pretty close to the same for an i3, the giga mITX board & 4gb ddr3 as it does for a amd quad, the asus mITX board & 4gb ddr3 sodimm. Plus the Asus has a few more bells & whistles since expansion is limited (such as wifi).. If cost is not a concearn either you can push for an even cooler system & snag one of the Athalon II x4 610e 45w quads or a Phenom II x6 1035t 95w cpu (amd.com has 1 company that sells it direct)
 
Do you think the 610e would be sufficient for him? I want his PC to be very snappy for him (web browsing, Itunes, and .MKV playback mostly).

I think a $500 budget would be OK (excluding vid card). He has his HDD's already so that cuts down on cost a lot.

How reliable are the Pico PSU's? I am apprehensive to choose one over a modular PSU with a 120mm fan. I am also concerned about keeping this thing cool and quiet. Since the Q07 has no intake fan.
But I guess, if I use a Pico PSU I can use nearly any CPU cooler (and a silent fan).

So I guess it boils down to what will give him enough processing power, with a lowish power draw. I always have felt that Intel hardware feels a little zippier than AMD hardware, but I dont have too much experience with the newest hardware. Will an I3 w/ HT be better than a 610e Quad Core?? I feel like most of the stuff he uses will favor clock speed over core count, but I am not an expert :p

Anyways, advice would be great. If that 150w Pico will be stable, then I may give it a shot. I am very interested in eliminating the PSU, because there arent going to be many components in this build. Only if it is a stable PSU though, I live on the other coast and wont be able to provide him with much hardware tech support (short of him shipping the computer to me).

In my mind, a final config would be something like:
I3 550 73w
Gigabyte H55n
4gb DDR3
SSD, WD Greenpower 1tb, DVD Burner
Asus Xonar Essence or similar - will probably require a 4 pin floppy cable

I feel like at full artificial load, it might come close to overpowering the PSU?
This looks really nice, but do I need a power brick in addition? Or will adding one just "boost" the total power for the system?
http://www.mini-box.com/picoPSU-160-XT

Also, Where can I find an updated version of this case? In the link a few pages back, it looks like they added a 120mm fan to the front (vertical grille's on the sidepanels).
 
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Do you think the 610e would be sufficient for him? I want his PC to be very snappy for him (web browsing, Itunes, and .MKV playback mostly).

I think a $500 budget would be OK (excluding vid card). He has his HDD's already so that cuts down on cost a lot.

I think a 610e would be a better option based on the 1080p video part.. the i3's/Clarksdale graphics have a video problem with the framerate I believe. Where the Amd with the 4250 onboard will not. In the HTPC forum its always an argument about whether to go AMD or Intel based as AMD has the edge on video & Intel his the edge on sound (the onboard intel can output more channels via HDMI then the intel can) when talking about output via HDMI.. Well since your using a stand alone sound card then that eliminates sound from the equation.

For the 500 dollar busget it sounds like its just going to be the CPU, Mobo, Ram, PSU & Case? if so 500 should be doable since the q07 is a fairly cheap case.
 
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The Intel IGP has a problem only with 1080p24 support as far as I know.

That if using video acceleration. Otherwise any clarkdale has enough raw CPU power to handle any video playback task.
 
I think a 610e would be a better option based on the 1080p video part.. the i3's/Clarksdale graphics have a video problem with the framerate I believe. Where the Amd with the 4250 onboard will not. In the HTPC forum its always an argument about whether to go AMD or Intel based as AMD has the edge on video & Intel his the edge on sound (the onboard intel can output more channels via HDMI then the intel can) when talking about output via HDMI.. Well since your using a stand alone sound card then that eliminates sound from the equation.

For the 500 dollar busget it sounds like its just going to be the CPU, Mobo, Ram, PSU & Case? if so 500 should be doable since the q07 is a fairly cheap case.

The Intel IGP has a problem only with 1080p24 support as far as I know.

That if using video acceleration. Otherwise any clarkdale has enough raw CPU power to handle any video playback task.

Doesnt a Pico PSU change this though? Allowing me to run a full-size cooler means no heat issues, but there is that power issue of a faster CPU.
Will this combo give me 250w of max power?? (Pico 150w + a 100w power brick)
http://www.mini-box.com/picoPSU-150-XT-102-power-kit
or only 100w of power? The antec PSU calculator says 200w for my system at 90% load w/ a 610e and the like. Probably 90w during normal use id say.

Can I somehow run 2 in series with something like this:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/5637/cpa-167/Lian_Li_Dual_Power_Supply_Adapter_Cable.html
 
90w my ass with a 610e.. The calculator is probably taking that as being a 95w cpu which most athalon II x4's are.. I just played with it a bit & yea I dont think its very accurate.. Could also be that they like to Sell PSU's though. Think of it like this.. Antec makes several mITX cases with 65w or 150w psu's.. You will be fine with that 150w Pico unit.. Just read through the Pico roundup that came out a while back as apparently the brick has alot to do with how good the overall PSU is.
 
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Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I am concluding that i should be fine with 150w of power.
So does that mean that since the brick is only 100w, that I will only be able to draw 100w (even though the actual pico unit can handle up to 150w)?

Also, I am unable to find an updated version of the case. I might just order off this one on newegg because I cant actually find one with the updated 120mm front intake :(
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112246&cm_re=Q07-_-11-112-246-_-Product

This is the one im looking for (in pretty much any color, red might be preferred)
74b.jpg


Note how the one on Newegg is the old version.

EDIT:
Is it the Q11?? It looks identical to the "updated" q7 above
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112298
 
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Got the Palit 460 from Frys today standby for build. Pretty drunk atm and dont think gin and rebuild mix.
 
Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I am concluding that i should be fine with 150w of power.
So does that mean that since the brick is only 100w, that I will only be able to draw 100w (even though the actual pico unit can handle up to 150w)?

Also, I am unable to find an updated version of the case. I might just order off this one on newegg because I cant actually find one with the updated 120mm front intake :(
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112246&cm_re=Q07-_-11-112-246-_-Product

This is the one im looking for (in pretty much any color, red might be preferred)
74b.jpg


Note how the one on Newegg is the old version.

EDIT:
Is it the Q11?? It looks identical to the "updated" q7 above
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112298

Yes, this is the Q11 and it comes in red. Newegg has them. It is a slightly bigger Q07. The Q11 is the updated Q07
 
Yes, this is the Q11 and it comes in red. Newegg has them. It is a slightly bigger Q07. The Q11 is the updated Q07

Given the starting dimensions I would say its more then slightly bigger.. Its also considerably more expensive.. For a build that is not including a GPU I would use the q07.
 
The only thing I didnt like with the Q7 was the PSU grille on the side panel.
Especially if im using no PSU, you will be able to hear all the noise of the system (and I cant really apply sound deadening to it since its a grille).

The thing I did like about the PSU grille, though, was the possibility of using a huge down-draft CPU cooler (like the Noctua C12P), and have the fan ducted all the way to the side panel. (CPU will always get fresh air, no heat buildup because of positive pressure hopefully).
The Q11 looks cleaner to me than the Q7 though (from the outside), and I am not sure if the extra 2" of depth and 1" of height will matter yet.

Just mocking them up on paper, the Q11 looks definitely bigger, but at the same time the difference is really not that huge (especially if they weren't right next to each other).
If I go with the Q11, I am going to try to duct the front intake fan to a large tower cooler (Venomous-X or the like) for semi passive operation (front fan will probably spin real slow with an i3 or 610e).
The fan being hidden inside the chassis (not a direct sound patch to the user) will be better I think.

EDIT:
OOps, just won a Noctua NH-D14 on ebay for $60. Hopefully it will fit, LOL.
 
I dont think you will have to worry much about sound coming out of the side of a q07.. Especially not with limited fans all running slowly (such as CPU cooler only).. I found it to be a very quiet case when I had it with the stock intel cooler & asus 5750.. The only noise I ever heard was from the 5750 when I turned it up for gaming.
 
Hurrah, my new Q07 case arrived today-finally. Thats the good. The bad...PSU is DOA. Now I gotta RMA and wait some more. Be a month before I see a new one. At least I could start modding the case!
 
One week later.

My first attemp at dremaling. Think I did a decent job?
DSC01492.jpg


Fits pretty good. Took a little strong arming to get the 460 to screw to the case.
DSC01495.jpg


That was my orginal plan with the HDDs but would really like to find a Kama Bay Plus or something similar to mount them in the 5.25 for the sake of the sata cords.

Only thing I need now is a AXP-140 beacuase Im pretty sure the Shuriken Rev. B +H55+460 are not going to fit.
DSC01494.jpg
 
One week later.

My first attemp at dremaling. Think I did a decent job?


Fits pretty good. Took a little strong arming to get the 460 to screw to the case.

That was my orginal plan with the HDDs but would really like to find a Kama Bay Plus or something similar to mount them in the 5.25 for the sake of the sata cords.

Only thing I need now is a AXP-140 beacuase Im pretty sure the Shuriken Rev. B +H55+460 are not going to fit.


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you did very well , what brand of video card is the 460? looks like a good fit to me

Jen
 
Cool. Great job on the mods. I have heard that the Palit fit, but was hoping to see it before I pulled the trigger. Thanks for the preview on how mine is going to look!
 
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FYI the gainward GTX460 also fits for Q07. I had it in my Q07 before i bought the Q11. I also got AXP140 to fit with a SFX + 120mm fan.
 
I have a request for those that have removed the 3.5 HDD mount. Any chance you could send it to me? I need one set for a mod to my case. PM me please. Thanks
 
Thats the way to go! My case is different. I dont have that shelf on the bottom of the PSU opening.
Have you considered putting in one of the suttles PSUs? They would fit nicely with support mount if flipped that way.
 
What's the biggest card that can fit in this case without making any cuts? I'm asking because both the Powercolor 5770 and Palit/Gainward 460 seem to require cutting the back of the case.
 
i recently used this case for a build for my parents as they asked for a computer, they wanted to start learning to use one and i thought it would be cool to do something SFF. They are used to seeing massive towers and think all computers should be that way. they were mind blown when they seen how tiny this thing is, and that a computer could get so small (i explained it could be smaller!)

here are the parts used

intel e8400
scythe shrukien rev b
ZOTAC GeForce GF9300-D-E
mushkin ddr2 1066
Corsair cx 430
WD Green 1.5TB

i had some issues getting the PSU to slide in, it seems that the powder coating was a bit thick and couldnt go in. i ended up flaking away some of the coating from forcing it in, but it got in, and i hope to god i never have to remove it! Also the wifi is pretty trashy on this mobo, i heard it was a bit bad, but didnt think it was that bad. using a wireless bridge i had laying around until i get a usb card or something

sorry for the shitty cell pics, my DSLR was dead when i took these pics

IMG_20110206_152220.jpg

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IMG_20110206_163424.jpg

IMG_20110227_153833.jpg

IMG_20110227_153850.jpg

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IMG_20110227_163614.jpg
 
That's a good question. I just built an i3 2100 on an ASRock ITX board in our PC-Q07 case. I've got a GT 440 nvidia card installed but the only issue was the hard drive (like the other installs on this thread). But, I just flipped the HDD upside down and got creative with the mount. Everything else was a snap. But, I was curious if a USB 3.0 mount could be mounted in place of the 2.0 ports.
 
officermartinez What PSU did you use? Currently the USB 3 option is only avalilable to ASUS boards I guess.

audirs have you checked that the PSU fan grille migh protrude and touch the back panel over rear shield IO while inserting? It was easier for me to hold it while sliding the PSU in.
 
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