A new Mini-ITX review like http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/mini-itx-gaming-radeon-hd-7750,3369.html

[Alain888]

So I was looking for info to build an AMD APU Mini-ITX system. Came across this article. But it is dated now and it only describes an intel system.

Chieftec has now introduced the FLYER SERIES // FI-01W-U3. The AMD A8-6500 is a very popular APU. SSD's have further penetrated the market. The new R7 250 is available right now. AM2+ motherboards are good to be somewhat futureproof. And 4 GB of memory is still enough for most people. Can you do another review involving this components?

I would also be not only interested in the case with this components, but also in making this pc as silent as possible without water cooling. For other people it might be interesting to know if watercooling will work in this case. How do I create a good airflow in this small case? Has Chieftec made it's case better than it's predecessor? What are current alternatives to this case? Which are usable processorcoolers? What dustfilters can I best use? In other words: How can I place a PC like this and make it maintenance friendly towards non-existent maintenance? Another question is which memory best to use without any overclocking? What is the best bang for the buck memory to use in this PC? This is getting more and more complicated as stories are told that you can best use dual rank ram with the AMD APUs. Of course with the A8-6500 without overclocking you can use only up to 1866, but what is the best bang for the buck memory in this category?

 

[allanitomwesh]

That's alot of questions.
Have you decided on anything other than the chieftec case,and an AMD build?
What is your full budget?
How soon are you building this?

 

[Alain888]

Well, this is more of an article request really. But I do want to build a system like this. So thank you for your answer.

I know I want to use the chieftec. It's an extrmely good bang for buck. Especially with the new 85+ psu. I want an SSD, because it matters. I want to start with a system without graphics card, but maybe eventually use one. I want fast memory and at the very least an A8-6500 as APU. I want to use an AM2+ mobo. No need for a disc drive.

Building within 3 months. Absolute max budget without peripherals nor any dust filters and stuff, so purely hardware is 450 euro's. Preferably less. I use the dutch sites http://nl.hardware.info/productgroep and tweakers.net/pricewatch for part selection.

 

[Alain888]

I have just now noticed my topic being moved to systems. That's ok. But it was an article request originally.

 

[allanitomwesh]

It should at least reflect possible pricing in your country
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A8-6500 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (€91.85 @ Alternate)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X-ITX+ Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard (€96.85 @ Alternate)
Memory: Mushkin Redline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (€78.85 @ Alternate)
Storage: Crucial M500 240GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (€116.85 @ Alternate)
Other: Chieftec FLYER SERIES FI-01B-U3 (€54.90)
Total: €439.30
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-11 18:35 CET+0100)

 

[Alain888]

ASRock FM2A88X-ITX+ 83,00
Chieftec Flyer FI-01B-U3 61,75
G.Skill F3-14900CL9D-4GBXM 45,90 or Crucial Ballistix BLE2CP4G3D1869DE1TX0 69,40
AMD A8-6500 Boxed 87,40
Crucial mSata M500 240GB 95,60 or Crucial 2.5" M500 120GB 57,90

Going to use the tv as my monitor as I live in a small student room and I already own a computer mouse.
Keyboard will probably be:
Logitech K120 11,50

I'm actually thinking this might be my best option. Same case, motherboard and processor. The mushkin memory isn't available in The Netherlands. There's actually an mSata option on this motherboard. Leaves the option to add more disk drives for a pretty raid array later. I'm having my doubts as to use an aftermarket CPU cooler or using the stock one. And do I really need 8G of memory. After all, this isn't a beast of a gaming machine, nor will it run several VMware instances flawlessly. What would I need 8G for?

 

[Alain888]

Ok. So I ordered. Went for the Kingston Technology 8GB DDR3 1866MHz Kit KHX1866C9D3K2/8GX. Looked like a very good option, as I am sure this is dual rank memory and has quite a fast profile as far as timings go. Cost me € 82,90.

I also went for the 240GB mSata SSD from crucial. Means I can't use the combo Wi-Fi n + BT 4.0 mSata card that comes with it. But I'm going to connect through a UTP cable, so all I'm ever going to miss is the bluetooth. Cost: € 96,80.

I'm wondering if maybe there's some sort of extension card with which I can use both mini-PCIE cards? Can you guys think of something?

I didn't order a disc drive or a cpu cooler, nor any dust filters or peripherals. I'm going to test it first with the stock cooler and if it's too loud. Eventually I will probably buy some sort of disc drive. Dust filters I will also add later.

 

[allanitomwesh]

Dust filters don't help on a small case,mostly just ruin the temps. 8GB is good because the Graphics side of the APU uses the same RAM,and the more and faster the better.