proposing i7 SFF build

[zchen]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming, Photoshop, web browsing, encoding blu-ray/hddvd

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
500 or slightly over excluding tax

3) Where do you live?
California

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
RAM, Case, PSU, quiet fans, hsf(maybe?)

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

Have:
i7 920 CPU $200
BFGtech GTX295
already made my mind up on mobo (Asus Rampage II Gene), just haven't bought it yet, thus not part of the $500 budget mentioned above.
Silverstone NT-06 Lite HSF
WD 640GB AAKS (although if enough budget left over I'd like to get a AALS drive)
Coolermaster CM341 matx case(only if I have to use it, currently it houses a rig that I use to test things)
Lite-on or Samsung burner


6) Will you be overclocking?
Moderate, I don't need to get to 3.99~4ghz, but 3.6ghz or above is nice

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
HP W2408, Westinghouse L2410NM

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
within 2~6 week

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.

Already made my mind up on Rampage II Gene, unless some one want to sway me to DFI Lanpary Jr. Those 2 being the only mATX option for X58 mobo.


10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yes, Via MSDN have acess to all MS OS.....


Small, Quiet, Powerful and semi-future proof is what I'm aiming for.

Right now I have two 5% off on single item coupons for Microcenter that expires 4/15/09

Case options I thought about: Silverstone Sugo SG-01BF, SG-02BF (I'm leaning more towards SF01 because I don't like the flimsy door on the SG02), Lian-Li V350, Antec P180 mini(really not SFF enough). Coolermaster CM341 (but I really want a cube case instead of tower). Some small ATX format case?

RAM options I thought about:
Corsair Memory XMS3 6GB DDR3-1600, which is $98 at Microcenter.
Corsair XMS 6GB DDR3-1333 (PC-10666), $89 ($69 after $20 mir) at microcenter.
OCZ Technology Gold XTC 6GB DDR3-1600, $124.99 ($104.99 after $20 mir) at microcenter.

both of the corsair kits are CL9, but the 1333 kit is lower cost and is rated v1.5 instead of v1.65....does that make the 1333 kit a better option? I can't seem to find reviews on these corsair kits, most sites has reviews of the Dominator kit instead. And of course I'm open to suggestions other than the 3 I listed.

PSU: I believe I need to aim for 600w~700w and modular. I really don't want to pay over $160 for psu though.

HSF: don't know if the NT-06 lite is good enough for i7 oc, I also have a spare Xigmatek S1283, but that would be problematic fit for most SFF cases..

edit*-have Turniq TX-2 for thermal compound

 

[tiraides]

If you want to overclock, avoid all of the SUGO series cases. I've owned two of them, and the limited vertical space between the NT06-LITE and the PSU fan made keeping things cool under stock speeds difficult. Unless you plan on modding the cases, you should decide upon either getting a small cube case or getting a case that allows for some overclocking (like the Elite 341).

If a RAM kit runs at a lower voltage, it gives you a bit more headroom which you could use to push your overclock further. YMMV of course, but lower voltage is more important than tighter timings on RAM. Look for DDR3 1600 RAM, if you could afford it.

 

[Dangman]

PSU wise, I recommend these modular PSUs for your setup:
$110 - BFG Tech MX 680 680W Modular PSU
$150 - Corsair 620HX 620W Modular PSU
$160 - Enermax Modu82+ 625W Modular PSU
$160 - Antec Truepower New TP750 750W PSU

 

[zchen]

Question : would you guys recommend the Antec Signature 650w at $178.63 shipped over the others? (despite my earlier writing of not wanting to pay more than $160 for psu....)

 

[Dangman]

Question : would you guys recommend the Antec Signature 650w at $169.97 shipped over the others?

No. The Trupower New performs pretty close to the Signature but offers significantly more power.

 

[PC_User]

The good thing about the Antec Signature is that it stays at 85% efficiency when between about 300-500W. http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story2&reid=113

 

[lowteckh]

Seems like someone needs to hit up the SFF section for way many posts and threads documenting the pros and cons of the mentioned cases, and for ideas of what's out there.