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Mini itx case

B

bytes

Limp Gawd
Joined
Aug 18, 2011
Messages
263
Hi im building a mini itx pc for my dad and iv picked most of the components but im stuck on what case to get him. Im looking for a case that can take a standard atx power supply that does not mount it over the motherboard. So far iv found the Bitfenix Prodigy and that's it. Does anyone know of any other cases that mount it above or below the motherboard?

Thanks
 
any miniITX case will usually mount the PSU over the mobo cause there is no room otherwise.

do you NEED a standard ATX power supply?
 
They could make room by making the case taller :p

Yeah a standard atx psu is required for this build. It doesn't need to be a tower case a htpc type case or a cube is fine just as long as the power buttons and drive bay are on the front of the case.
 
What exactly do you need in case (hdd,ssd,ood,?).
What is budget?
Lian Li and Silverstone come to mind.
 
Heres what he already owns:

psu- CoolerMaster Silent Pro M2 520W
opticlal - standard size dvd drive
ram - corsair vengeance 1866
ssd - crucial m4

Heres what im thinking of getting him:

motherboard - ASRock B75M-ITX
cpu- Intel Core i3-3225

Anything to do with cooling can be decided once i find him a case. Case cost is not important as the total cost of this build is going to be quite small as he already has a lot of the components needed.
 
Based on the component choice, there will not be any overclocking. Thus, why does it need clearance over the CPU area? Just use the stock cooler with a silent fan profile in BIOS. Done!

That PSU is a bit on the deep side, which additionally limits case choice. For instance except for the PSU and seeing that there is no GPU in the parts list, a Lian Li PC-Q07 would be small, inexpensive and IMO look a lot better aesthetically than the Prodigy.
 
I did look at the pc-q07 but with the psu over the motherboard, no front fan and its limit on psu length its got too many bad points. The pc-q11 is almost acceptable but instead of placing the front fan on normally they used a bracket system which again limits psu length and its still hanging over the motherboard area.

EDIT: OK i give in and il get him the pc-q11 case and remove the front fan. Just one more question :) What is the best low profile cooler for this case. Lian li states a maximum cpu height of 80mm but from what iv read its closer to 90mm. Any suggestions ?
 
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I havent had much problem with the psu being above the mobo on my sff system, other than the noise of the stock cooler. 3570k @ 4ghz in a apex MI-008
 
Iv only owned one case with that type of layout and it was a silverstone SG03. I hated that case, every time you wanted/needed in the case you had to move the psu and cable management was non existent.

I really don't like that type of design and i envisage the pc-q11 being a nightmare to build but hopefully its a build it once case and i wont be called on for many, many years to upgrade/fix it.
 
BitFenix prodigy is what I was going to recommend before even entering this thread. So pretty.
 
Alphonze said:
BitFenix prodigy is what I was going to recommend before even entering this thread. So pretty.
Click to expand...

I've got one. They are pretty damn sweet cases really. Full sized ATX PSU, plenty of room. Good cooling etc.
 
It was what i was originally looking at but its just too damn big for an itx case. He doesn't need any of the hard drive bays, room for watercooling etc.

The prodigy is 250 x 404 x 359mm and my micro atx case is the silvertone TJ08-E which is 210mm x 374mm x 385mm. That would mean his itx case is 40mm wider, 30mm taller and only 26mm shorter than mine but he will be using far less powerful components than me. The main reason for choosing itx for him was to get the case smaller so iv pretty much ruled the Bitfenix Prodigy out and settled on the lian li pc-q11 which is only 200mm x 326mm x 260mm.
 
the CPU will run cool enough since it is an i3, heck you could cool it passively if you wanted and there is no issues with the PSU being over the CPU...
 
bytes said:
Im sure the stock intel fan would be OK but they are quite loud and it would be battling against the power supply fan instead of working with it.

Iv found this - http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=368 and at 82mm high it should hopefully fit OK. Is there anything better ?
Click to expand...

The stock Intel fan isn't as bad as you might imagine. I've still got one in the BitFenix Prodigy system and it's fine.
 
I am aware you can run them in silent fan profile but that's no where near silent in my opinion. Id prefer he had a better, quieter cooler. Iv had a look and due to the placement of the cpu on the asrock b75m-itx board it limits the coolers that can be used without blocking the ram slots.

So far if found the prolimatech samuel 17 and the thermalright axp-100. Any others that fit and wouldn't cover the ram slots (it can cover the pci-e slot and the rest of the board) that would provide better cooling than the stock intel ?
 
bytes said:
Im sure the stock intel fan would be OK but they are quite loud and it would be battling against the power supply fan instead of working with it.

Iv found this - http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=368 and at 82mm high it should hopefully fit OK. Is there anything better ?
Click to expand...

I'm sitting beside my computer with an i3 and stock fan and i dont hear it at all. the i3 is not a hot chip.
 
Il give the stock intel fan a try and see how it is. The cooler iv decided on for him is the thermalright axp-100 and its not available in the UK till the end of the month, so he will have at least a few weeks with the stock intel fan.

That's his motherboard, cpu and case ordered so hopefully it will all be here soon and hes happy with it.
 
Here's a review of the stock cooler.

Intel 1155 Stock Cooler Comparison

The all aluminum unit is what comes with dual core CPUs.

In BIOS, the board is set to try keep the processor below 45 degrees C
Click to expand...

That's pretty cold at 113°F. Heck, I used to live in a desert that got hotter than that. Coffee sold at that temperature would get complaints.

Full aluminium cooler: at idle and PWM-controlled load, the fan is barely audible. Idle has a slight whine but further away than 50cm it is not audible.
Click to expand...

50cm is pretty close, and while the reviewer didn't mention how he tested, he may have been using an open test bench. Full load ran the fan 250RPM higher, which at around 1270RPM is not very noisy. That was the BIOS set to try keeping the CPU at 45C while running Prime95. I would personally set the BIOS to whatever is the highest temperature it has. For instance last night I worked with a low end MSI H61 chipset motherboard. Highest was 70°C, which the stock clocked Intel CPU will do all day long for years without problems. That's what I set it for. The other setting was the starting speed, which I set to 12.5% (it has 12.5% increments). The 120mm case fan undervolted to 5v was noisier than the stock cooler, and idle temperatures were under 40°C.
 
Il give it a go and hopefully il be pleasantly surprised by the intel cooler. The last time i used one was on a core2duo and it was crap at cooling and was seriously loud at idle and load, so hopefully the have improved them since then. If not then il get the axp-100 and add a noiseblocker fan to it as i know they are quiet enough.
 
bytes said:
The last time i used one was on a core2duo and it was crap at cooling and was seriously loud at idle and load, so hopefully the have improved them since then.
Click to expand...

The one thing that stays the same with computers is change. :D

A few things to note when using stock coolers.
1) BIOS settings and support. Different motherboards may run stock coolers faster or slower, so they won't always sound the same. What does stay the same is that you NEED to set a fan profile, otherwise it will just run 100%.
2) Proper installation is a must. I see way too many people just slap on stock heatsinks without paying attention that the push pins were in properly, and get terrible temperatures. See this pic. I want to add that you need to push all clips through all 4 holes before pushing down the pins. One last thing is that if it is the first time installing it, the TIM that is pre-applied works just fine.
3) Current Intel CPUs can tolerate extremely high temperatures at stock clocks. Whatever most people "feel comfortable" at running their CPU is just their own fears or OCD. T-Junction is 105°C. Think about that for a moment. Intel's CPUs will protect themselves (and won't die) at 105°C. Not °F, but °C.
 
Zap said:
I see way too many people just slap on stock heatsinks without paying attention that the push pins were in properly
Click to expand...

I have to say that Intel have even improved the pin mounting system. I remember struggling with one pin when installing a Q9400 a few years ago. Had to fiddle quite a bit. But recently installed a new i7-3770K and decided to use the stock cooler for a bit. I was amazed, the pins all pushed in smoothly and only a little pressure needed on each leg before hearing the reassuring click. :)
 
Iv finally finished building it for him and here's how it looks with everything installed except for the power supply-

q11nw.jpg


Case is an absolute nightmare to work in with screws everywhere, a lot of wasted space at the bottom of the case, cables included are way too long, stupid fan mount, nowhere to route cables and it feels quite wobbly so im going to change the feet on the case to something better. Apart from that it looks good and temperatures for motherboard,cpu cores and power supply are all around 30c at idle except for the cpu temp which is 50c so i might still get him the thermalright axp-100. Noise is pretty good and i must admit the stock intel cooler is doing a lot better than i thought it would.

Its a really nice case but i fear having to open it again :)
 
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bytes said:
a lot of wasted space at the bottom of the case
Click to expand...

If you were so allergic to open wasted space, maybe you should have just gotten an Antec ISK 300 or 310?

bytes said:
the cpu temp which is 50c so i might still get him the thermalright axp-100. Noise is pretty good and i must admit the stock intel cooler is doing a lot better than i thought it would.
Click to expand...

What's wrong with a CPU running at 50°C? :confused:

bytes said:
Its a really nice case but i fear having to open it again :)
Click to expand...

Then stop messing with it. :p
 
Zap said:
If you were so allergic to open wasted space, maybe you should have just gotten an Antec ISK 300 or 310?
Click to expand...

Im not allergic to open wasted spaces it just seems like they could have designed it better. For instance that hdd/ssd holder that hes not using should have been at the top of the case instead of the bottom so that all sata and power cables are going in one direction.

Zap said:
What's wrong with a CPU running at 50°C? :confused:
Click to expand...

50c at idle is a bit high and as there is only the psu fan and the cpu fan in the case its easy to tell the intel cpu fan is creating the most noise. The case could be even quieter and cooler if it was replaced with something better.

Zap said:
Then stop messing with it. :p
Click to expand...

LOL i cant. Im only going to have to open it once more to replace the cpu cooler and change the feet. That's really good for me as my own pc is almost like an open test bench the amount of times its opened :D
 
A couple comments.

I have the same CPU and stock fan you have. On my Asus motherboard there is not enough noise to matter - on a bench or in a case. CPU temps are in the 30's at 100% load and low fan speed. Perhaps your install skills are not what they need to be.

What you regard as wasted space others might look at as useful space. I keep my documents and spare parts in the bottom of my cases. I could see fitting several hard drives in the bottom if I had a need. It appears that the space also allows for a larger motherboard with 2 more slots.

If you are unhappy with the noise or temps, buy more components. If oyu are unhappy with the case, buy another case.
 
GeorgeHR said:
I have the same CPU and stock fan you have. On my Asus motherboard there is not enough noise to matter - on a bench or in a case. CPU temps are in the 30's at 100% load and low fan speed. Perhaps your install skills are not what they need to be.
Click to expand...

Noise is subjective. Im really aware of fan noise and it irritates me, if you look at my sig i use passive cpu and gpu coolers to minimize noise. The stock intel coolers OK but it is making the most noise and i know there are better alternatives so why not use them ?

GeorgeHR said:
What you regard as wasted space others might look at as useful space. I keep my documents and spare parts in the bottom of my cases. I could see fitting several hard drives in the bottom if I had a need. It appears that the space also allows for a larger motherboard with 2 more slots.
Click to expand...

Again its subjective. I fully agree with what you say but to me its wasted space and always will be as hes going to keep nothing there :)

GeorgeHR said:
If you are unhappy with the noise or temps, buy more components. If oyu are unhappy with the case, buy another case.
Click to expand...

Im going to. As iv already said im going to get him the Thermalright axp-100 :D
 
Finally got around to installing his cpu cooler -

82915059.jpg


Its an excellent little cooler but very expensive for what it is and total overkill for his cpu but that how i like it :). Pretty chuffed with his build its small, quiet, runs cool and is fast with a reboot time of 21 seconds. His specs are:

psu- CoolerMaster Silent Pro M2 520W
opticlal - some pioneer dvd drive
ram - 8gb corsair vengeance 1866MHz
ssd - 64gb crucial m4
motherboard - ASRock B75M-ITX
cpu- Intel Core i3-3225
mouse- steelseries kinzu
mouse mat- steelseries 3hd

Still to get him a new keyboard as hes using a roughly 10 year old hp-kb0316 keyboard and its crap and he'll get a new monitor as soon as 120hz ips become available.
 
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overkill on the psu? 520 seems a bit much. Nice build though. How are you liking the axp 100? I am considering getting one for my tiny build.
 
Yeah the psu is loads more than he needs but its done now.

The axp-100 is an excellent little cooler that id definitely recommend. Its better than the intel stock cooler in every way except for installation and price. Its hard for me to really test it though as its only cooling an i3-3225 so i suppose it depends on what cpu you were planning on putting it on. You can see a review of it here where they tested it on the far more powerful i7 3770k - http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/15/thermalright_axp100_cpu_air_cooler_review
 
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