Video and 3D Rendering/Gaming Mini ITX Build $800-1300

[Saurheledion]

Howdy. I'm an animation student studying abroad whose in need of a computer to work at home from because the hours at my school are often less than friendly. I'm obsessed with making a computer that fits American Airlines's carry on luggage dimensions so that when my studies here are done I know I can simply carry the thing back home on the plane. [22" long x 14" wide x 9" tall or 114cm (56 x 35 x 23 cm)] I know several Micro ATX cases come very close if not exactly under these dimensions, but I just can't shake my fascination with the Mini ITX form. It's become a personal challenge. I am however, of course willing to listen to arguments and read sample builds that try to convince me to go Micro ATX if you feel the benefits or the price point are just too compelling to ignore.


Approximate Purchase Date: Feb. I like to time my builds with Windows beta releases to shave the OS off the initial build price.

Budget Range: $800-1300

System Usage from Most to Least Important: 3d and Video Rendering, Gaming

Parts Not Required: OS, Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: None.

Country: US or South East Asia

Parts Preferences: I'm a fan of AMD, but I've heard that Intel is friendlier to the Mini ITX format. No preference, I'm interested to hear your opinions on either.

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Probably not.

Monitor Resolution: High


Here is the build I cooked up, I'd love to hear your opinions:

Case: Lian Li PC-Q08b

Motherboard: ZOTAC 890GXITX-A-E AM3 AMD 890GX HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard

CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 1100T Black Edition Thuban 3.3GHz, 3.7GHz Turbo Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor HDE00ZFBGRBOX

Graphics: HIS IceQ X Turbo H695QNT2G2M Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity

Memory: G.SKILL Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBSR

Optical Drive: LITE-ON Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 12X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM SATA 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu Ray 3D Feature IHBS112-04 - OEM

Boot Drive: OCZ Vertex 3 VTX3-25SAT3-90G 2.5" 90GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Power Supply: SeaSonic X750 Gold 750W ATX12V V2.3/EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

CPU Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R1 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel 1366/1155 and AMD FM1/AM3+

Pricelist

Thanks for any suggestions or opinions. Let me know if you spot any compatibility or bottleneck issues. This is only my second build after all.

 

[Outlander_04]

In a very small case where heat is going to be an issue you will probably be better off with an intel i5 or i7 processor , and a motherboard with a Z68 chipset


This case includes a 600 watt power supply and may work out cheaper
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163169

http://www.silentpcreview.com/silverstone-sg07

 

[Draven35]

What video application are you using?

 

[Saurheledion]

Ah, the adobe production premium suite of applications mostly. After Effects, largely. Also Maya 3D.

 

[Draven35]

Then get an NVidia GPU. The CUDA acceleration in CS 5/5.5 makes a HUGE speed difference (and does not work on ATI), and iRay (the GPU-based mental ray renderer) is also CUDA-only.

 

[Saurheledion]

Ah just a few moments ago, the possibility of a free one of these puppies has come about and if it comes to fruition, I was thinking about putting it in instead. Since you know...it's free.

EVGA 01G-P3-1561-KR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

Would that work you think?

 

[Draven35]

Should be decent...