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Possible new build. SFF

R

Riggd

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 11, 2007
Messages
152
Hey [H]. With Black Friday coming up I was going to look into starting a build over time.

I want to build an mITX/mATX rig, so when DaBox by mattinv comes out I can fit a rig in there. I don't know much about the newer processors i7+, and I haven't ever fooled around with SFF builds so I have no idea where to start.

*edit* I was wrong the case is for mATX however there will be a mITX version as well. I still don't know which would be better so mATX or mITX can be used.

1) What will you be doing with this PC?
Gaming, Web Browsing, Movies, etc.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
No budget would like to keep <2k

3) Where do you live?
Continental US

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
Everything will need to be bought. I am also going to attempt to water cool for this rig. 1 full loop for CPU and 2 Video cards.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
N/A

6) Will you be overclocking?
I would like to overclock, but it is not nessesary.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
28" HannsG LCD Monitor

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
No time restraints over time, when I get cash.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Crossfire pref. as ATI has been producing the best bang for the buck cards recently

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yes. Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit
 
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Anyone know of anything that could help me with a Small Form Factor build?

Here are some parts that I am just not sure would be good or not but what I have in mind.

CPU- if intel then i7, but may go AMD if so no clue
Mobo- Depends on intel/AMD
HDD- 2 SSD 80+gigs each
Case- Da Box by LanGear (not yet released)
Video Card- I would like to go ATI and use crossfire, however I have never been in the market for an ATI card.
Monitor- Have a 28" HannsG
Water Cooling- I would like to water cool this rig, the rad will need to be external and most likely 240mm.
 
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Ok, here's the deal, since you said you have no budget and that you have a pretty generic answer to number 1, that makes it hard for me, at the very least, to recommend a build for you. Can you please provide a more solid budget?

However, CPU wise, for gaming, you're not gonna notice a major enough performance difference between a Core i7, Core i5, Core 2 Quad, or AMD Phenom II CPU at the resolution you're playing at. But then again, you said you have no budget but to keep it under $2000, a Core i7 is doable.
 
Well for question #1 the computer will be used for everything. Mainly gaming, but some web design, as well as just day to day use.

Also for the budget I would say around $2000 and I do not need peripherals.
 
There is no real 'SFF' LGA1136 board avalible.

SFF meaning the actual SFF, not the monstrocity mATX cases can often be, Da Box and a few others excepted.

There is a SFF LGA1156 that can host a i7 860, though.
 
I think I confused a few people. When I was refering to SFF I just meant Small Form Factor, aka mATX/mITX I didn't mean actual SFF. Hopes this clears things up. Also I did notice that there were if not few then no i7 boards, so if I go the intel route i5 would suffice.

*edit* jeremey, is this not a mATX motherboard that supports Crossfire and is i7.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131599
 
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EDIT: I'm sorry, I took way to long creating this post. I didn't see your edit in time!

Riggd said:
I think I confused a few people. When I was refering to SFF I just meant Small Form Factor, aka mATX/mITX I didn't mean actual SFF. Hopes this clears things up. Also I did notice that there were if not few then no i7 boards, so if I go the intel route i5 would suffice.
Click to expand...

also, I think you may be inadventently confusing a few people by accident, here. No worries, it's not your fault.

There is a socket 1156 mITX board from DFI.
Socket 1156 supports the i5 750, and the i7 860 (max)


There are no socket 1366 mITX boards at all.
Socket 1366 supports the i7 920 and above.

To most people:
i5 = 1156
i7 = 1366

but there are i7 1156 CPU, too.


Anyhow, mITX is my idea of SFF. Some mATX cases can qualify, but most mATX cases are about the size of fullblown ATX cases.

Anyhow, that's all I have to say.

Good luck!

EDIT2:
Riggd said:
*edit* Jeremy, is this not a mATX motherboard that supports Crossfire and is i7.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131599
Click to expand...

it's mATX. Micro ATX, and Mini ATX are both mATX. Sadly enough.

I'd like to see more highpower, mITX boards on this market.

But as it stands, we don't even have a true AM3 (AM2+ is compatible, but not really AM3) mITX motherboards, yet.
 
Ok, I now see what your saying and I am going to be going mATX then so I should be able to fine a motherboard.

The problem is I got out of the loop for new CPUs and such right before the i5's were released, and thank you for clarifying the LGA1156 i7 860 vs the LGA1366 i7 960+.

I am not quite sure where to start with this, but Crossfire is a must (Yes I know many will probably disagree). I am wanting to have a nice mATX system that will last me quite a few years.

In the future I also plan on buying a 40"+ TV and I would like to have very clear picture with all settings if I feel the urge to watch movies or game on it.
 
Good to hear they are coming out with another great DFI board.

I am wanting to go mATX just for the fact that I will be using Crossfire. Are there any motherboards that you would recommend for mATX LGA1366 with the ability to use dual gfx cards?
 
Riggd said:
Good to hear they are coming out with another great DFI board.

I am wanting to go mATX just for the fact that I will be using Crossfire. Are there any motherboards that you would recommend for mATX LGA1366 with the ability to use dual gfx cards?
Click to expand...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...131371&cm_re=asus_gene-_-13-131-371-_-Product

seems to be everybodies' favorite.

But as I am not using a LGA1366 setup, I'd recommend waiting for a reply from somebody who has extensive experience with mATX lga 1366 'tiny' setups.

Massive Overkill, is a user who comes to mind.
 
At first glance, nothing that you've said thus far tells me that you need anything more than a Core i5 750, a P55-based microATX board, 4GB of DDR3 1333/1600 RAM, one of the new single-platter 500GB HDDs, a 550-650 watt modular PSU, and the HD4890 or better video card. But please answer the following questions:

- What's the priority of this rig? (Or, what will you be using this system for the most?)
- Which games do you play/plan on playing?
- Do you plan on overclocking within the next 12 months? If so, how far do you wish to overclock the processor and/or the video card(s)?
- For Windows 7, do you really need Windows XP (emulation) mode? BitLocker drive encryption? Support for 35 different languages? (FYI, you can find "freeware" like VirtualPC and TrueCrypt, respectively, with Windows 7 Home Premium to replicate the primary features of Professional or Ultimate.)
 
Yeah I saw that board, just wasn't sure on its performance. Well if Massive Overkill makes his way to this thread and helps me out that would be absolutely great.

Also thanks for the help jeremey. It was greatly appreciated.

Would it possible to fit a Res, 240mm Rad, 1 CPU Block, and 2 GPU Blocks in/outside of this case? Or does it seem possible?
http://www.lan-gear.com/
 
tiraides said:
At first glance, nothing that you've said thus far tells me that you need anything more than a Core i5 750, a P55-based microATX board, 4GB of DDR3 1333/1600 RAM, one of the new single-platter 500GB HDDs, a 550-650 watt modular PSU, and the HD4890 or better video card. But please answer the following questions:
Click to expand...

- What's the priority of this rig? (Or, what will you be using this system for the most?)
High End Gaming
- Which games do you play/plan on playing?
MW2, tf2, cs:s, occasionally Crysis. (mostly FPS) Also play Assassins Creed and Oblivion. I don't know what I plan on playing, but all games I play I would like to play with all settings completely up.
- Do you plan on overclocking within the next 12 months? If so, how far do you wish to overclock the processor and/or the video card(s)?
Overclocking the CPU may/may not happen. The Video cards will be overclocked and near max while still at safe settings.
- For Windows 7, do you really need Windows XP (emulation) mode? BitLocker drive encryption? Support for 35 different languages? (FYI, you can find "freeware" like VirtualPC and TrueCrypt, respectively, with Windows 7 Home Premium to replicate the primary features of Professional or Ultimate.)
I already have Windows 7 Ultimate, so therefore I'm sort of confuse with this question.
 
Massive Overkill modded a MicroFly case for water cooling, and there was an impressive water cooling mod made by Extreme Techinist on a Silverstone SG03 case. That said, setting up a water cooling setup in a microATX case is very difficult, especially for a first-time modder.

I have a concern about your need for a dual-card setup, water-cooled, and overclocked, in a microATX case. The concern that I have is that it will be nearly impossible for you to meet all of your "requirements," but I don't know how much you're willing to compromise.

If you already have Windows 7 Ultimate, then answering the last set of questions about it is essentially pointless. Those questions include features that Windows 7 Ultimate have over the other versions, but most mainstream users wouldn't need them.
 
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Water-cooling isn't a must and would probably be added later, however if it is possible without major mods then I will still attempt to install a water-cooling setup.

-edit-
I have no problems with compromising those are just the things that if at all possible I would like. The only musts I really have are mATX as I do want to use "Da Box" as my case, and dual-cards. Everything else such as overclocking and water-cooling isn't necessary, but I might try it out in the long run.
 
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I'm not an expert on water cooling, but at first glance, setting up water cooling with one CPU block and two GPU blocks in a SFF case like DaBox would be next to impossible. IIRC, both of the "examples" that I've linked to used only one video card to make room for the rest of the water cooling parts. (Additionally, Extreme Techinist created a few custom parts for his water-cooled SG03.) But again, I'm no expert on water cooling, so you may want to ask mattinv, the OP of the thread about DaBox, a few questions before you go that route.

The dual-GPU HD5970 and the HD5870 will probably be in short supply this holiday season, so you may want to look at either the HD4890 or the HD5770 as an alternative card. The X58 microATX boards support both SLI and CF, but most of them require a better (aftermarket) heatsink for their northbridges. That said, the MSI X58M is a good alternative to the Asus Rampage II GENE. IIRC, most of the P55 mATX boards with two PCI-E x16 slots use CF. Gigabyte, Asus and DFI make good boards with plenty of overclocking options.
 
Riggd said:
Water-cooling isn't a must and would probably be added later, however if it is possible without major mods then I will still attempt to install a water-cooling setup.

-edit-
I have no problems with compromising those are just the things that if at all possible I would like. The only musts I really have are mATX as I do want to use "Da Box" as my case, and dual-cards. Everything else such as overclocking and water-cooling isn't necessary, but I might try it out in the long run.
Click to expand...

I am in the exact same situation as you. I haven't built a ATX cased system since I was in High School and have no interest in large unwieldy machines. Coming from the last few years of high end Laptops, there is absolutely no reason why top of the line everything can't be crammed into "Da Box". I'm looking for an in between now - top end power that a Laptop can't provide, and small size and some sense of portability.

At first, I was really more interested in an AMD board, but I may have to look harder for a good one. Otherwise, it must be Quad Core, running 3.8-4ghz. I will either be running 1x 5970 or 2x 5870s. 6GB or 8GB RAM, and I'll toss in an SSD as well.
 
MJZ said:
I am in the exact same situation as you. I haven't built a ATX cased system since I was in High School and have no interest in large unwieldy machines. Coming from the last few years of high end Laptops, there is absolutely no reason why top of the line everything can't be crammed into "Da Box". I'm looking for an in between now - top end power that a Laptop can't provide, and small size and some sense of portability.

At first, I was really more interested in an AMD board, but I may have to look harder for a good one. Otherwise, it must be Quad Core, running 3.8-4ghz. I will either be running 1x 5970 or 2x 5870s. 6GB or 8GB RAM, and I'll toss in an SSD as well.
Click to expand...

If you look at the developmental pictures of DaBox (in the thread that I've linked to earlier), you'd see that, yes, you could place your high-end parts plus a 120mm tower-style CPU cooler there. What the OP wants to do is include a water cooling setup that includes one CPU block and two GPU blocks. Water cooling components take up a lot of space on their own, even in "normal sized" ATX mid-tower cases.
 
tiraides said:
If you look at the developmental pictures of DaBox (in the thread that I've linked to earlier), you'd see that, yes, you could place your high-end parts plus a 120mm tower-style CPU cooler there. What the OP wants to do is include a water cooling setup that includes one CPU block and two GPU blocks. Water cooling components take up a lot of space on their own, even in "normal sized" ATX mid-tower cases.
Click to expand...

I don't intend to watercool. As long as temperatures are reasonable. My laptop for instance maxes the GPU at 86C, and the CPU at close to 70C (Furmark/Intel Burn Test). I am used to toasty, so I assume even the worst case scenario for something with 100-500% the air flow to run at least 50% cooler (CPU) and about the same (GPU, as the power going from a GTX 260M - aka 8800GT to a 5970 is double or triple fold).
 
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