mITX?

[wonderpig]

Hi. I have a 4yo laptop that I want to retire. That said, I want a small PC for htpc/gaming purposes. I'm planning on putting it on a desk beside my bed so ideally, it would be small and relatively quiet. Maybe mITX? I've never built a PC before either so I was thinking of getting NCIX to build it for me. Good idea?

1. It will be used for movies, tv shows, netflix, gaming (Mostly Sims 3, Torchlight 2. Maybe SimCity when they fix the server issues, Tomb Raider and Mass Effect 3).

2. Budget is around $600-700 CAD. The cheaper the better. Is this possible?

3. I will be buying from Canada.

4. No particular brand preference.

5. I already have a 24" 1080p monitor (1920x1080 I believe), keyboard, mouse and an unused copy of Win7.

6. I've read a couple of threads and I generally understand what parts fit with each other. I just don't know what components are enough for my needs without going overboard. The threads I've read generally have budgets of $1000++ too.

7. The system will run at default speeds.

8. It isn't urgent. Maybe in a month or two. I haven't bought anything either since I'm planning on having NCIX build it for me. I can wait longer for sales as well.

9. I have a 24" 1080p 1920x1080 monitor. I've always had a laptop so I was never able to max out graphics setting for my games. Max settings would be nice but I'll be happy with medium-high too as long as it runs well.

10. I need wifi support and a DVD reader/writer (I don't have any blurays). It would be great if I get an SSD for programs and games. I also want as much HDD space as possible to store my shows.

I really want to try building it by myself but I've read that its generally not a good idea to have your first build be in a small form factor. I don't have the space for a full tower, unfortunately. Any suggestions?

[ZZLEE]

With Mitx builds the case itself can dictate a decisions on hardware.

Look at a Black Prodigy. it has the most options in the form factor mitx that I have seen.

Bitfenix Prodigy mITX Mini-ITX Tower Case Midnight Black 1X5.25EXT 5X3.5INT No PS Top USB3.0 Audio

If you want other colors you should buy a mesh front panel witch is a 30 $ extra. The black case comes with it.

Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe board. 180.00 $

3570K 225.00 $

The other parts will be influenced by case selection.

[moocow]

Well here's my pick but it's already $600 before case, storage, PSU. So you probably going to downgrade the video card to meet that budget.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3240 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($144.99 @ Memory Express)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H77N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Memory Express)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($47.76 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Memory Express)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Memory Express)
Total: $597.72
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-09 16:49 EST-0500)

System Build - PCPartPicker Canada

[Fudd Rucker]

CPU - i5 3570k
Mobo - MSI Z77IA-E5 (ive got this board and its been great, has wifi/bluetooth/sata 3/usb 3/ and overclocks like a champ for 50$-70$ less than the asus ITX mobo)
Mem - 8-16gb of whatever you would like
GPU - GTX 660 Ti
Case - Coolermaster elite 120 advanced , its a true mITX that you can cram any psu you want in it . (ive got one with a corsair hx1050)
PSU - Decent 550w corsair would do
Optical -??? havent used one in many many years so I cant make a suggestion on that.

[moocow]

Optical drive wise, just stay away from LG. I had 2 that died within 2 years and I hardy use them. Is Lite-On still good?

[enaberif]

Prodigy? Please.. Better cases than that.

Node 304 - Fractal Design

[moocow]

Originally Posted by enaberif

Prodigy? Please.. Better cases than that.

Node 304 - Fractal Design

No optical drive unless you use an external slim drive. How about Lian Li or SilverStone? The only problem with SilverStone is that you're limited by either SFX PSU format or their custom 600W PSU for ITX case.

[Fudd Rucker]

Not sure whats wrong with the CM 120 mITX case. 50$ and you can jam everything high end into it and still keep it cool. No PSU restrictions either.

[GT7R]

Originally Posted by enaberif

Prodigy? Please.. Better cases than that.

Node 304 - Fractal Design

A big fan of that case.

[1V4N]

+1 Bitfenix Prodigy Mini ITX

Look at all the various sites with users building their SFF based off the Prodigy.

I personally have 1x Black and 1x White. The Black is waiting for a CPU before I build it, the white is custom loop both CPU & GPU water cooled. Great solid cases, not flimsy and highly recommended.