Mini-ITX Gaming System for School

dhammer

Honorable
Jun 23, 2012
5
0
10,510
Approximate Purchase Date: September
Budget: ~$1300
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming and School Work
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg
Country: currently - USA
Parts Preferences: Intel, Nvidia
Overclocking: No. I don't want to risk the heat.
SLI or Crossfire: No.
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080


CPU: Intel Core i5 3550 ($210 @ Newegg)

Motherboard: ASRock Z77E-ITX Z77 Mini-ITX ($150@ Newegg)

Memory: Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 ($45 @ Newegg)

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" ($90 @ Newegg)

Video Card: XFX Core Edition FX-787A-CNFC Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB ($270 @ Newegg)

Case: SilverStone Sugo Series SG05 ($115 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: 450 W SFX PSU included with SG05

Optical Drive: SAMSUNG 8X Slim Internal DVD Burner ($24 @ Newegg)

CPUHS: Scythe BIG Shuriken 2 Rev. B ($48 @ Newegg)

Monitor: ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P ($160 @ Newegg)

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium OEM ($90 @ Newegg)

I've decided to go for a Mini-ITX build for school to save space and make it easier to move it back and forth on vacations. I think everything should work together. I was concerned about the PSU, but I've heard of people overclocking and using a GTX 670 with it, so I'm not worried.

I could still use some input on whether or not it should all be fine. I'm also wondering if I could potentially use the i5-3570K and overclock, or if my instincts about heat are valid.
 

Dantheman1129

Honorable
May 20, 2012
29
0
10,530
I actually just built a mini-itx gaming rig for expressly this purpose. I have not ever been happier with the quality of a build. Ironically enough, my budget was also $1300. Lemme post a list of the parts I used. (inc)
 

Dantheman1129

Honorable
May 20, 2012
29
0
10,530
Intel Core i5 3570k $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

Noctua NH-L12 120mm & 92mm SSO Bearing PWM Fans CPU Cooler $62
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608025

G.SKILL Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-1866C9D-8GAB $57
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231550

EVGA 02G-P4-2678-KR GeForce GTX 670 FTW 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card $408
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130787

ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard with USB BIOS $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131840

SILVERSTONE Sugo Series SST-SG08B Black Aluminum Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case 600W 80+ Bronze Certified / Single +12V rail Power Supply $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163187

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive $110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533

(I had an OCZ Agility 3 128 GB SSD left over from a previous build, which I used but did not factor into the $1300 budget)

All those parts=$1267
 

Dantheman1129

Honorable
May 20, 2012
29
0
10,530
granted that is not including the Monitor or OS. I love this new mini-itx rig. the 3570k/670 combo really destroys my old Core i7 920/560 ti rig. Also, I was able to overclock the CPU (conservatively) to 4.1 Ghz, and my GPU usually runs around 1.2 Ghz. Also, temps on the CPU hover around 32 idle, 55 load

also, price could be cut $50 dollars by using the ASRock motherboard you have listed. I hear it performs admirably, but it doesn't have the Virtu MVP software. Is it worth the 50 bucks? Maybe, maybe not