First time builder - Bitfenix prodigy, just doublechecking parts

[Douglas_B]

Hey everyone - this will be the first time I'm building a computer from scratch, though I have taken apart and replaced most of the components in my previous desktops.

I live in a small apartment and am going to build a Bitfenix Prodigy with a budget of around $1500. I game a good bit but don't need top of the line components, here's what I've come up with after researching for the past week or so:

Case BitFenix Mini-ITX Tower Case
MB ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe
CPU Intel Core i5-3570K
GPU EVGA GeForce GTX770
PSU SilverStone Strider Plus ST50F-P 500W
RAM G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB
HD1 Samsung Electronics 840 Pro Series 256GB SSD
HD2 WD Blue 1 TB Desktop Hard Drive
CPU cooler Noctua NH-U12 S
Extra1 Silverstone Short Cable Set

The cooler, as far as I can tell, should fit the motherboard without blocking the ram or video card slot. The ram might be a little bit of overkill, but it fits in the budget and certainly wont need to be upgraded again. The motherboard may also be excessive, since I don't overclock, but I keep hearing the CPU placement works well for an ITX when using a large air cooler.

Does this all look reasonable or am I missing something crucial?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Danbuscus25]

well, i think the 16gb ram is a little overkill. other than that, it should work.

 

[Rammy]

It's pretty sensible, there's nothing completely bonkers.

What I would point out is that for the price, it's fairly weak, as $1500 is a very generous budget. It should be pretty easy to fit a GTX780 into a build of that sort of level.

You are right that the motherboard and CPU don't make a lot of sense if you aren't overclocking. You are right also that the Asus boards have excellent CPU socket location, which can be very useful, but if you aren't overclocking then this becomes far less relevant. Additionally, while an Ivy Bridge CPU is very similar in performance to Haswell, it doesn't make a huge amount of sense to build on anything other than socket 1150, unless you are getting things at a nice discount. You can pick up a Wifi enabled motherboard for <$100, and that is the main feature which can dictate a cost-floor.

16Gb of memory is pretty debatable. For gaming it's unlikely to ever be useful, with some multi-box-esque scenarios being a potential exception. You can always go with a single 8Gb stick though, which is slightly slower but not detrimentally so, and will give you room for expansion. It's hard in general to recommend anything other than 2*4Gb though.

The PSU is solid enough, but I dunno how much sense it makes at the price it's at. It's nice to have a fully modular PSU (especially with shorter cables) but despite the Prodigy having near to zero cable management, there's a surprising amount of space to tuck lose cables - I've done three builds in them now and hardly see the point in bothering with modular PSUs at all.

 

[Douglas_B]

Thanks for the thorough answer. I think swapping out the motherboard for a socket 1150 and grabbing a Haswell processor makes good sense, and will shave some money off the build. I'll also drop the ram to 8gb which would free up enough cash to go for the GTX 780.

For the PSU and cables, I agree it's a luxury item but I'm fairly obsessive compulsive about neatness and order.

How have you liked the Prodigy builds you've done so far? They are somewhat chunky cases but from everything I've heard they have quite good airflow and run quiet compared to most other ITX boxes.

 

[Rammy]

The PSU thing is definitely a subjective thing, but I do think that compared to a lot of cases, modular PSUs are of less merit in a Prodigy. In say a Coolermaster Elite 130, where you have a PSU suspended above your motherboard, all the cables are going to dangle down unless secured, so being able to remove as many as possible is really useful. In a Prodigy, you have the PSU "box", as well as channels at either side which run the length of the case. Even in some of the custom double-windowed mods, you can't see into this area, so there is a lot of scope for storing cables, even though there is basically no cable management. One other thing is that if you use an optical drive, it's basically impossible not to have cables running straight down the middle of the case.

I'm a big Prodigy fan, but I'd say this-
Don't get a Prodigy because you think it's small. It's bigger than it looks, and due to the side "front panel" you need more clearance around it too - with headphones plugged into mine it's over 300mm wide versus around 200mm for a conventional ATX tower.
Don't get a Prodigy because you think it's easy to move. My first Prodigy came with broken handles, it seemed to be a common issue in their early batches (probably the man/machine tightening the screws was putting them in too deep and it was cracking them) but seems to have been sorted now. It did however make me very aware of how flimsy the handles are, in both how they attach, and how the respond to an external force.
Also, for a case which will be commonly used on a desk, it's quite annoying on a slippery surface as it's wobbly, and the feet have no purchase, so it slides quite easily. Combine that with the side "front" panel, and it means you might need to use two hands to interact with it. The front panel is a pain in general to be honest.
Oh and using the Bitfenix windowed side panel can have some nasty effects on your graphics card temps.

To balance out the negativity -
If you need 240mm or multiple radiator support, it's great.
If you want a case which can fit basically any air cooler too, it's great.
If you want a small(ish) case which can fit up to 9 storage drives and an ODD, it's great.
And yeah, if you change the front fan to any of the three larger sizes, it becomes an exceptionally good airflow case (not just by ATX standards) as they blow right across the motherboard almost directly.
It's also pretty reasonably priced, looks great, and is really popular for modding, even total novices are doing basic mods on this case.

 

[Douglas_B]

Rammy,
I'm about to put in the order for my system but had one final question. Would you recommend an open or blower style video card in the bitfenix? My guess is an open system would be fine given the roominess compared to other ITX cases (with lower fan noise to boot) but want to make sure.

 

[Rammy]

Yeah if you have a vented side panel version (non-windowed) there is no issue with cooling so you can pick whichever card you like. Generally the axial fan designs (multiple fans usually) will give better cooling performance and noise levels.