Looking for Mini-ITX Build Advice

[fmbailey]

First off I would like to thank anyone that has some good advice for this. I know that some people are not fond of ITX sized sytems but I don't have space for a larger sized computer in the area I am wanting to use this particular build.

Approximate Purchase Date: ~ 3 months or sooner
Budget Range: $500-$650 USD
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Watching Blu-ray movies, DVDs, Netflix, Playing games on the Television
Are you buying a monitor: N/A
Parts to Upgrade: Motherboard, CPU, RAM, Blu-ray player, Video Card, possibly PSU
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: NewEgg, Amazon, open to others if prices are better
Location: TN, USA
Parts Preferences: Intel CPU
Overclocking: Maybe
I already have a 1TB WD Blue SATA6 HDD, a Winsis WI02 w/200W PSU [case and PSU combo], and Win7 Pro

Other Information:
Mainly this pc will be for watching Netflix or Blu-Ray movies with the occasional video games from Steam. Most of the games I would be looking to play would be Darksiders, Darksiders 2, Hoard, Beat Hazard, and other controller based games. It doesn't have to be anything overly powerful but it would be nice to run Darksiders 2 at medium settings or higher if possible.

 

[SamGriffiths]

That PSU isn't going to cut it, throw it in the bin, that's all it's good for.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2125 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($130.26 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-I Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.39 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $591.61
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-08 13:06 EDT-0400)

 

[fmbailey]

That PSU isn't going to cut it, throw it in the bin, that's all it's good for.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2125 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($130.26 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-I Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.39 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $591.61
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-08 13:06 EDT-0400)

Not a bad selection of parts however space inside the case is at a premium and the dual slot video card you picked out for that build won't fit inside the case. The case is rather tight and would work with a single slot low profile card and will also affect the CPU cooling aparatus as well. I am well aware that this severely limits my options. I'll take some pictures of the case itself and post them up this evening.

CPU wise, was there a particular reason for choosing a 2nd gen i3 core over a 3rd Gen or was it just because it was a value priced CPU?

 

[AMD Radeon]

is the cpu replaceable? if not, you are stuck with 200W power limit
and the most you can get is AMD APU

 

[SamGriffiths]

That PSU isn't going to cut it, throw it in the bin, that's all it's good for.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2125 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($130.26 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-I Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.39 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($44.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $591.61
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-08 13:06 EDT-0400)

Not a bad selection of parts however space inside the case is at a premium and the dual slot video card you picked out for that build won't fit inside the case. The case is rather tight and would work with a single slot low profile card and will also affect the CPU cooling aparatus as well. I am well aware that this severely limits my options. I'll take some pictures of the case itself and post them up this evening.

CPU wise, was there a particular reason for choosing a 2nd gen i3 core over a 3rd Gen or was it just because it was a value priced CPU?

At your budget getting an Intel CPU isn't very easy, even more so when you have to spend big to get a itx motherboard. That CPU is powerful enough to run some games and to watch movies and stuffs.

 

[AMD Radeon]

this is what you need
the psu for your mini-itx case is TFX form factor, and the highest available is only 300W (thanks to FSP quality build, certified 80+)
not the original 200W (peak, not certified)

i3 and 7750 plus SSD, thats the best you can get.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($120.58 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B75M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Sandisk 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7750 1GB Video Card ($72.48 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: FSP Group 300W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified TFX12V Power Supply ($39.98 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $520.14
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-09 09:06 EDT-0400)

 

[fmbailey]

At your budget getting an Intel CPU isn't very easy, even more so when you have to spend big to get a itx motherboard. That CPU is powerful enough to run some games and to watch movies and stuffs.

this is what you need
the psu for your mini-itx case is TFX form factor, and the highest available is only 300W (thanks to FSP quality build, certified 80+)
not the original 200W (peak, not certified)

i3 and 7750 plus SSD, thats the best you can get.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($120.58 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B75M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Sandisk 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7750 1GB Video Card ($72.48 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: FSP Group 300W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified TFX12V Power Supply ($39.98 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $520.14
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-09 09:06 EDT-0400)

Mini ITX Winsis WI02 photos

Above is a link to the pictures that I took of the Winsis chassis. I don't think that the blu ray players that were selected will fit into that chassis either as it says it has a "Slim Optical Drive Bay". I've done some number crunching as well and should be able to push my budget up to $800 if I can grab some of the parts as I go along instead of all at once. In this instance it would most likely be the PSU, video card, and blu-ray drive OR the CPU and Motherboard within the next month. If more pictures of the case are required from different angles just let me know. I'm also sorry if they're a bit blurry as I took them with my cell phone and my hand has a tendency to shake a little. So far you guys have been great help and I'm sorry that the case I had sitting around is a little tough to work with. I really do appreciate it.

 

[fmbailey]

Here is a current parts list that I have made from the reccomendations that were listed and based upon what will fit inside my case:

CPU: Intel Core i3-3225 Ivy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 55W
CPU Cooler: GELID Solutions CC-Shero-01-A 120mm Hydro CPU Cooler
Motherboard: ASUS P8H77-I LGA 1155 Intel H77
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3
Video Card: SAPPHIRE 100357LP Radeon HD 7750 1GB 128-bit Low Profile
Blu-Ray: LG Super-Multi Slim Blu-ray Burner BT30N

If anyone has any other suggestions it would be great to hear them.