New Mini-ITX build

DrJohnZoidberg

DrJohnZoidberg

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I want to build myself a little development machine inside a small footprint case. I'm mainly doing C++ dev work now and my dual core i5 on my Macbook is not cut out for this type of work.

I've been doing a bit of research and come up with this:

Screenshot%202016-02-29%2012.34.23.png


Total is R16,618. I may decide to get a GPU later but as I'm not really a gamer it's not worth me spending on that right now.

I think it's pretty solid but maybe I'm missing a trick here.

Comments welcome.
 
Looks good. Recently I was planning a Mini-ITX build and came up with something similar. Just a few points from my deliberations in case they have any bearing on what you are planning.

- Sooner or later a storage drive becomes a necessity.
- Toms Hardware has a nice ranking system on PSUs. Don't know if that Corsair you picked out has Skylake compatibility.
- I had a good like at the relative case dimensions between Mini-ITX and m-ATX and decided that the former did not result in a significantly smaller system. Abandoned the idea as a result.
 
garyc said:
Looks good. Recently I was planning a Mini-ITX build and came up with something similar. Just a few points from my deliberations in case they have any bearing on what you are planning.

- Sooner or later a storage drive becomes a necessity.
Click to expand...

I've got NAS storage and cloud storage. I've never needed a lot of local storage, my last two laptops have had 128GB SSDs. The 128GB is slightly too small now though so I've gone 250GB.

- Toms Hardware has a nice ranking system on PSUs. Don't know if that Corsair you picked out has Skylake compatibility.
Click to expand...

Skylake compatibility? Never knew that was a thing, I cannot imagine that would be an issue here.

- I had a good like at the relative case dimensions between Mini-ITX and m-ATX and decided that the former did not result in a significantly smaller system. Abandoned the idea as a result.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's not super small but it definitely is still smaller and more compact and I quite like the case design.


Thanks for the input. My comments on your feedback.
 
CamiKaze said:
Image is broken.
Click to expand...

Might be blocked by some company policies.

Here is the list of components:


Corsair CC-9011047-WW Obsidian 250D Top Windowed Panel Cube Mini-ITX Chassis R1,499
MSI Z170I-GAMING-PRO-AC Intel Z170 LGA1151 Skylake Mini-ITX Desktop Motherboard R2,499
Corsair CP-9020060 CX600M 600W (12V: 552W) 80 Plus Bronze Certified Desktop PSU R1,383
Intel i7-6700K 4 GHz Quad Core Unlocked 14nm Skylake Socket LGA1151 Desktop CPU - Cooler Not Included R6,599
G.Skill F4-2400C15D-16GVS Ripjaws 16GB (2 x8GB) DDR4 2400MHz CL15 1.20V Desktop Memory R1,259
Samsung MZ-75E250BW 850 EVO 250GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal Solid State Drive R1,699
LG BH16NS40 Internal SATA 16x Blu-Ray Disc Rewriter 5.25" Optical Drive - OEM Packaging R1,024
Coolermaster RR-212X-20PM-R1 Hyper 212X 120mm Fan CPU Cooler R656
 
Well that's quite powerful for a dev machine only, unless you're working with some heavy numbers.

Ever thought of going the AMD AM1 route? Perfect for an HTPC setup as well.
 
Skylake compatibility? Never knew that was a thing
Click to expand...

The Skylake processors have a new low power sleep state that can cause issues with the PSU. The newer PSUs are compatible with this power state, otherwise it can be disabled in the BIOS.
 
CamiKaze said:
Well that's quite powerful for a dev machine only, unless you're working with some heavy numbers.

Ever thought of going the AMD AM1 route? Perfect for an HTPC setup as well.
Click to expand...

I had trouble sourcing parts for an AM1 build when I did mine...I doubt the situation has improved.
 
CamiKaze said:
Well that's quite powerful for a dev machine only, unless you're working with some heavy numbers.

Ever thought of going the AMD AM1 route? Perfect for an HTPC setup as well.
Click to expand...

The more power the better. Compiling large C++ applications eats CPU for breakfast.

Also, this is in no way an HTPC. I have hardware for that already.
 
garyc said:
The Skylake processors have a new low power sleep state that can cause issues with the PSU. The newer PSUs are compatible with this power state, otherwise it can be disabled in the BIOS.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I never knew this. I'll do a bit of research just to be safe.
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
The more power the better. Compiling large C++ applications eats CPU for breakfast.
Click to expand...

Ahh ok, I spent quite a bit on my setup but I wouldn't really invest too much in a mobo as the resale value will bite you eventually.
You can save quite a bit by cutting down on that.
 
CamiKaze said:
Ahh ok, I spent quite a bit on my setup but I wouldn't really invest too much in a mobo as the resale value will bite you eventually.
You can save quite a bit by cutting down on that.
Click to expand...

That board is actually very well price at the moment.

Anything you can suggest that's cheaper and has wifi and PCIe M.2?
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
That board is actually very well price at the moment.

Anything you can suggest that's cheaper and has wifi and PCIe M.2?
Click to expand...

I can't. :p
I'm just saying that when the time comes to sell then the value would've dropped by so much that it makes you want to cry...

I know that my Maximus Impact 7 dropped by more than half already. :cry:

Edit: Actually, you can buy a cheap mobo and buy this as well: http://www.gigabyte.co.za/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4739#ov
I paid R450 for my bluetooth/wifi card IIRC.
 
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DrJohnZoidberg said:
That board is actually very well price at the moment.

Anything you can suggest that's cheaper and has wifi and PCIe M.2?
Click to expand...

Was just going to ask about that...would your dev work benefit from an m.2 SSD versus the 2.5" SATA drive? Increased IOPS and read \ write?
 
1st, make sure the CPU cooler will fit inside the case.
Mini-ITX is for small size.
You sure the PSU is big enough? 600W will be overkill.

Otherwise, nice to be able to spend that amount of moola on a CPU :D
 
CamiKaze said:
I can't. :p
I'm just saying that when the time comes to sell then the value would've dropped by so much that it makes you want to cry...

I know that my Maximus Impact 7 dropped by more than half already. :cry:

Edit: Actually, you can buy a cheap mobo and buy this as well: http://www.gigabyte.co.za/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4739#ov
I paid R450 for my bluetooth/wifi card IIRC.
Click to expand...

There's not really a lot of expansion space if I decide to put a GPU in later.
 
Neoprod said:
Was just going to ask about that...would your dev work benefit from an m.2 SSD versus the 2.5" SATA drive? Increased IOPS and read \ write?
Click to expand...

I looked at the Samsung NVMe one but I cannot justify the price, using a regular M.2 drive won't see much real world benefit for my workload so I thought I'd save some bucks.
 
Neoprod said:
Was just going to ask about that...would your dev work benefit from an m.2 SSD versus the 2.5" SATA drive? Increased IOPS and read \ write?
Click to expand...

The NVMe is the one that would offer more performance.
The M.2 and SATA have the same limitation I think.
 
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