Help with $1200 Mini ITX Gaming Rig

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
S

Steally

Honorable
Aug 17, 2013
6
0
10,510
This will be my first build in 10+ years so please let me know if I messed anything up.
I want to build a mini itx rig for the portability aspect. I am in the army and move around/visit a lot of places. I've been using a laptop but its 5 or 6 years old and wont cut it anymore.

I was able to boost my budget by $200 to a total of $1200 by putting a portion of my tax return on amazon so unless there is a crazy good deal try to stick with amazon.

Useful information:
Approximate Purchase Date: 2 weeks
Budget Range: $1000-$1200
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, work, videos, family computing
Are you buying a monitor: No
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon
Overclocking: maybe
Your Monitor Resolution: 1920 x 1080 I plan on having two monitors for work but only use one when gaming

Here is what I have so far. http://pcpartpicker.com/user/Steally/saved/4gZ1
I would like to stick with the case and mobo but I am always up for advise. Everything else is easily negotiable.

Now for my questions.
1. What is the difference between manufacturers on the 770? Anyone I should stay away from?

2. Is it worth the ~$90 price jump to go from the 760 to the 770 or should I save it and take my kids out for icecream a few extra times, or pick up a 240gb ssd?

3. I do not plan on overclocking right off the bat. Should I drop the liquid cooler and pick it up later? I figured if I needed to get a cooler might as well get what I will eventually need.

4. I know nothing about power supplies but pcpartpicker said the estimated wattage was 393 so I figured 500 would give me room to add another ssd and overclock. Am I correct in this statement? Or is 500 not enough/overkill. Also on the subject of power supplies should I splurge for the semi-modular to make cable management easier? The extra $20 or so wouldn't break the bank.

Thank you in advance for your help and sorry it is so lengthy,
Keith
 
Solution
Rammy

Yeah stuff like the motherboard is great, but its insanely expensive. If you want/need features, then go for it, but it's definitely poor in terms of bang/buck. The same thing applies to the 4670K, to a point, but that's fairly easy to justify.
A $1200+ gaming focused machine should probably have a GTX780 or so, just because you get much more of a return...
Sort by date Sort by votes
sunder25

sunder25

Distinguished
Jan 22, 2014
1,607
1
20,365
Hello, i'm affraid i don't have experience with mini itx builds, however ill answer what i can.
For gtx 770 i'd pick between asus and msi.-i have the msi oc gaming variant which i'm very happy with. Nvidia recommends a 600w psu for a 770, though a quality 550 xfx psu should do the job.
Performance wise the 760 will run most games on high 1080p, the 770 on ultra. This being a playable ~40 fps.
As for the cooling you have to make sure it fits into the case, so i'd start with a case in mind.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Rammy

Rammy

Honorable
Sep 3, 2012
2,492
0
12,960
1. Not a lot, often they share manufacturing facilities and designs and it comes down to a rebranding type exercise. The one you picked is a really good pick but it is pretty expensive. The MSI version is $320 on amazon so it'd probably be better value as it's very similar.

2. They are the same chip (more or less) run at different speeds and with a variety of changes, but it does make a fairly significant performance difference. It really depends on the types of games you want to play and how long you want to play them. Right now a GTX760 is absolutely fine for 1080P gaming in any game, but if you want more longevity on demanding titles then the GTX770 is probably worth going for if you an afford it. In fact, I'd suggest trimming your budget in other places rather than downgrading the graphics card, as there is a certain "wastage" level as it stands.

3. If you can afford it, get it straight away. An Elite130 isn't the easiest case to fit things into, and you might as well do the work in one go. The Elite130 doesn't give you many options for CPU coolers, so it's not like waiting gives you more choice, you'll always end up with a 120mm rad based AIO.

4. 500W is plenty but the Corsair CX are a bit rubbish. Also due to the position of the PSU a modular or semi modular PSU is beneficial or else you will probably find yourself tucking cables into the ODD bay, which you might want to use. Amazon's selection/prices aren't great but the Antec HCG-520M/620M would be suitable as would the Seasonic G-series 550
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
187Flatliner

187Flatliner

Honorable
Jan 28, 2014
387
0
10,810
Honestly your build looks great, I wouldn't change a thing.....also doing some research on the cooler I found this page......

http://benchmarkreviews.com/9943/cooler-master-elite-130-mini-itx-computer-case-review/

you may want to bookmark this for installing your build as I've found it quite interesting.


 
Upvote 0 Downvote
A

Aspire77360

Honorable
Oct 10, 2013
566
0
11,160
You don't need to spend that much on the motherboard. You could downgrade to a Asus Z87I Deluxe and then upgrade the RAM to 1866MHZ instead of 1600. Also, best get the EVGA 02G-P4-2770-KR as it is more rear exhaust orientated, so it should be cooler. Only other thing is the rad placement. As it is at the front, it'll draw air in and warm it up, so case temperatures will be higher. Just a thought
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

Steally

Honorable
Aug 17, 2013
6
0
10,510
I am definitely wanting this computer to last me as long as possible so I'll most likely stay with the 770. What "wastage" areas are you talking about? I know the mobo is on the steep side but I like the extras that come with it. Especially since my wife will be able to plug her music into it to listen to while she is cleaning without having to turn on/mess up my computer :p

and question on the ram? I know the case is tight but will the heatsinks on the ram get in the way of the power supply?

Also updated the power supply to the antec 620m
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
A

Aspire77360

Honorable
Oct 10, 2013
566
0
11,160
That GPU is 770, but has a blower design, which will exhaust the hot air better. i see what you mean about the motherboard, also it's probably better to get a modular PSU, probably a Corsair CX600M, considering OCing
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Rammy

Rammy

Honorable
Sep 3, 2012
2,492
0
12,960

Yeah stuff like the motherboard is great, but its insanely expensive. If you want/need features, then go for it, but it's definitely poor in terms of bang/buck. The same thing applies to the 4670K, to a point, but that's fairly easy to justify.
A $1200+ gaming focused machine should probably have a GTX780 or so, just because you get much more of a return from "over" spending on graphics than you do on any other component.


They shouldn't get in the way. If you were running an air cooler, or in an alternative case, then it might be a concern. In this instance, they shouldn't block anything, the only minor concern would be them getting in the way of the pipes for the cooler, but this image suggests that's not going to be an issue.


@ some of the points others have raised -


centrifugal (reference/blower) cooler vs axial fan design
In some cases, this will make a huge difference, especially any case without decent venting around the card, but in the Elite 130 there is a lot of venting which should enable cool air in, and heat to escape. In say a Bitfenix Prodigy (window) EVGA Hadron, or a Silverstone FT03-Mini you can definitely make an argument for a blower-style cooler, but in something like a Bitfenix Prodigy (mesh), Elite 130 or Corsair 250D, you can really go either way.

HDD type
Doesn't matter. The Barracuda competes against the Caviar Blue (not the Caviar Black) at 1TB level, and there's not likely to be any huge differences between them. Fail-rate reports are notoriously subjective and unreliable. The main difference between a Caviar Blue and Caviar Black is that you get a really long warranty (5years) but a significant increase in cost without a performance advantage.
 
Upvote 1 Downvote
Solution
S

Steally

Honorable
Aug 17, 2013
6
0
10,510
Thanks for the link to the elite 130 build 187Flatliner that will deff get bookmarked.

Aspire77360, how do I tell if the gpu is a blower or not? the one you suggested is a $30 jump on amazon.

Rammy, do you have a suggested build to incorporate a 780? a $500 video card seems steep to me though I understand that its the most likely thing to bottleneck a machine.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Rammy

Rammy

Honorable
Sep 3, 2012
2,492
0
12,960
Nah my point was that if you wanted to trim the budget, you could, as you have a good $200-300 that could be chopped out without crippling performance, as it's always going to be the graphics card that is "the" performance component. If I knocked up a "$1200 gaming build" then I'd probably try and squeeze in a GTX780, as that'd be the best performing bang/buck build.

A lot of the saving comes from the motherboard, and if you want to keep it, then that's cool, it's up to you, but it's hard to escape the fact that it's at least double the cost you "need" to spend in this area. Similarly, picking this case+motherboard ties you into using a 120mm rad cooler, which isn't necessarily cheap.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
187Flatliner

187Flatliner

Honorable
Jan 28, 2014
387
0
10,810
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Seidon 120M 86.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus Maximus VI Impact Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($75.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($56.79 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($103.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1366.72
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-06 14:42 EDT-0400)


this is the build im working on for my parents. but i would change the motherboard for a cheaper one myself and i wouldnt get a k series chip.

heres a quick change, i like this board as it has 6 sata, supports a raid if you want it......didnt check yet into usb ports tho.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Seidon 120M 86.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($75.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($56.79 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($103.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1266.72
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-06 14:46 EDT-0400)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Rammy

Rammy

Honorable
Sep 3, 2012
2,492
0
12,960
Yeah, that's roughly what I was getting at Steally (though you could go for a cheaper i5, and a non-overclocking motherboard, meaning you don't need the cooler either - total saving $100-150+, on some tasks it will perform near to identically).
Just for the record, I'm not suggesting you need a GTX780. For a single 1080P display, it's probably overkill unless you want to keep a really good longevity for playing AAA games with all the details on, but that if you want to push closer to your $1000 lower budget target, it's very achievable if that's something you want.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
sunder25

sunder25

Distinguished
Jan 22, 2014
1,607
1
20,365


You should also get a better PSU, 450w for a 780 is pushing it.
Also, maybe a HDD?
Who knows, maybe your parents OC:p
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
187Flatliner

187Flatliner

Honorable
Jan 28, 2014
387
0
10,810



yes 450 is pushing it a bit but, it would work, besides the 550 is a few more so more than likely i would, i through this together really quickly based on a loose build im working on for them with a mini itx case......i liked this case after reading the link i posted.

they already have the hhd so ssd is for the boot.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Rammy

Rammy

Honorable
Sep 3, 2012
2,492
0
12,960

I wouldn't recommend either of these builds, as there's quite a few issues with them.
Poor value in general - expensive memory and cheapest SSD
Expensive medium quality PSU of low(ish) capacity. You can do this system on 450W, but why would you when you can get decent 500-600W PSU for significantly less.
Also the non OC build is at least $150 over where it needs to be on the budget.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
zemiak

zemiak

Distinguished
Nov 19, 2013
524
0
19,310
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H55 57.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($346.99 @ Amazon)
Case: BitFenix Prodigy (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($85.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($22.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $1178.87
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-06 15:32 EDT-0400)

For playing at 1080p the GTX 770 will max every game at 60fps, you can save $100 there and get more quality parts all around your build. This one is overclockable. This gives you a more balanced build.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
187Flatliner

187Flatliner

Honorable
Jan 28, 2014
387
0
10,810


Well he did say he wanted the case and board.....yes the ssd isn't the best but it does perform what he needs it to do.....
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
4cloud

4cloud

Distinguished
Nov 18, 2013
611
2
19,065
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3o51x

SSDs are extremely vulnerable to damage, corrosion, shocks...etc. A backdoor free flow GPU would tend to get the insides of your cabinet like a monster I suggest going with a single flow GPU and a more powerful one. Since the cabinet is a mini itx after all. The motherboard is way too overkill you could still do the same things with the z87 itx mobo from asrock.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom