Converting ATX Gaming PC to a Smaller Form Factor

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brownaustin17

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Current System:
Case- Corsair Carbide Series 400R
CPU- i5-3570k (No OC)
CPU Cooler- Hyper 212 Evo
Motherboard- Asus Sabertooth Z77 LGA1155
Ram- G.Skill Aries 1600 16 GB(4x4)
GPU- EVGA GTX 670 FTW 2GB
SSD- Samsung 830 Series 120GB
HDD- Toshiba 1TB 7200 RPM
PSU- Seasonic X-Series 750watt 80Plus Gold

-I am looking at going down to either Micro or Mini.
-I would like it to be very portable.
-I have a budget of around $180 USD
 
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Rammy

Rammy

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I'm assuming you are looking to buy just a case and a motherboard? And that you basically want everything else to transfer over?
The one thing that you will have issues with is the memory if you go to ITX, you are limited to two dimms. It's not a huge issue for gaming though, as 8Gb is plenty for most tasks. If you do something that requires more memory then you'll need to stick to mATX+ or it'll get expensive.

At ITX level there aren't a huge number of cases which will support a Hyper 212. You are looking at any of the three Bitfenix ITX cases (which aren't terribly small), the Antec ISK-600 or Fractal Design Node 304. All of those should be compatible with the PSU too.
On the motherboard side of things you'll need a Z77 if you want to OC but if you aren't bothered about it then A) you can ditch the Hyper 212 for a greater case selection B) look at cheaper chipset motherboards.
If you need Wifi, the cheapest you can go is about $100 for the Gigabyte - H77N-WIFI, though this is unlikely to be Hyper 212 compatible. If you want a board that has a central CPU socket for good cooler clearance, then you are pretty limited, the Asus Z77-I Deluxe is pretty much the best option and it's $150+.

mATX systems are an option, but you aren't going to reduce the portability hugely over your ATX tower as they are still a similar form factor but shorter. Something in the Fractal Design Arc Mini range is going to present a decent size difference though, and might provide a better overall package for you.
 
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Jacob McIntosh

Jacob McIntosh

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You could try this, but be warned- by moving down to mini-ITX, you will only be able to use 8gb of RAM, because you have 4 4gb DIMMs. The motherboard has wifi, so it's great for LAN parties, and working really anywhere, and the case has great ventilation for a mini-ITX case, and handles for easy transportation. And, like Rammy said, you may want to pick up a different CPU cooler, because the 212 EVO will be an interesting, to say the least, fit. The Cooler Master GeminII M4 may be a better option (although i'm not completely sure if the M4 will fit with the GPU) or a 120mm watercooler from NZXT or Corsair.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H77N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: BitFenix Prodigy (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $174.97
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-18 20:10 EDT-0400)
 
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Rammy

Rammy

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My general advice would be to ditch the Hyper 212. It's a great cooler and there's a lot of ITX builds it will work in, but it's likely to be the thing that causes you more drama than it's worth.

You are using socket 1155 which wasn't quite as well supported as 1150 is on the ITX format, so your board selection is a little limited, but if you don't need to worry about CPU cooler compatibility, you can grab any of the decent cheaper boards.
I'd suggest looking at a Gigabyte B75-N or ASRock H77M-ITX. They are between $75 and 90. The B75 is cheaper, but the H77 has a few extra features which might be of interest (more SATA 6GBps, eSATA etc) so it's worth considering.

For value on the case, the Coolermaster Elite 130 is pretty solid. It's $45 so you'd be well within your budget, and it has a standard sized ODD which wasn't mentioned but can be really useful. You won't have a lot of CPU cooler options though, it'll be the Intel stock cooler, or something fairly similar.
If you don't need an ODD, and want to spend a bit more than the Fractal Design Node 304 would be my suggestion. It should be within budget ($80) and would give you enough headroom to fit a compact tower cooler in the vein of the Hyper 101/Hyper TX3. It's got great airflow and a built in fan controller too.
 
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Alec Mowat

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I don't think you are going to get a proper case for that price range. You need to find a case that can hold a full size ATX powersupply and a full size GPU. And that GPU generates a lot of heat, so you are already looking at heat issues.

For a case alone, a minimum of $70, and a maximum of $120.

Changing any one component is going to put you over budget. $100 is not a realistic option IMHO. Your motherboard choices are limited, especially for gaming.
 
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brownaustin17

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I could try to set aside more $ for this. What would be the perfect setup?

 
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Rammy

Rammy

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Motherboard in that is pretty antiquated. Personally I wouldn't go that cheap as it's pretty lacking. I'd stick with the Ivy Bridge chipsets - B75, H77, Z77.
Also that CPU cooler is a bit pointless, it's not going to be easy to install and it's pretty big overkill.
 
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Alec Mowat

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Alec Mowat

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Compared to ITX?
Yes

Compared to your motherboard, which is easily in the top 10 gaming motherboards?
Nothing comes close.

You can put it in a smaller tower, but it's going to weigh more or less the same and run a little hotter.

You should piece together a second system in a Mini ITX form factor for travel, which is what I am doing. A mini ITX system will not compete with your current setup for gaming, performance or features.

Here's a decent build: https://teksyndicate.com/videos/asrock-m8-mini-itx-build-overview
(from scratch)
 
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