Budget Raven RVZ01 / Milo ML07 itx steambox

[Pap]

Hey guys, im not very active on writing but read a lot and constant fan of linus team on YT so this is basically my first big post. hello!

 

I want to have a 'steambox' easy for transportation and the cheapest it can be. i have some decisions already made but not in every aspect.

let me se say what i want and what i decided to go with and let me hear your opinions, feel free to bash me for picking something stupid im a tough guy:P

 

0. Purpose

steambox, it will run windows with NO OTHER software except for gaming stuff (emulators origin and other thingies) so im not worried in performance in corel/adobe streaming or anything else, i dont even plan to surf web on this thing.

gaming will also bo moderate, this is build for party meetings (i got another pc for daily power gaming) so the most we would play would be games like:

- mortal kombat

- street fighters

- other SUPER LOW DEMANDING 2d fighters

- some racing games like grid, nfs, burnout

- indie multicoach coop games

- arcade multicoach coop games

- at MOST borderlands

as you can see it wont be used for heavy gaming like crysis, custom starcraft matches with milions of units or anything like this

 

Bear in mind that i live in central europe and have very limit access to many of the stuff u guys have in us/canada so dont recommend stuff that is only orderd via manufacturer website or some local us/canada store or something that is super new (we are the 3rd world we get stuff months/years later)

 

1. Case

STRONG Pick: Silverstone Milo ML07 or Raven RVZ01

Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I3EKXDE/?tag=pcpapi-20 RAVEN

Link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163256&cm_re=rvz01-_-11-163-256-_-Product MILO

 

I know i said "cheapest possible" and budget in the topic title but the size is a bigger factor for me. and raven rvz01 is pretty damn small, I would prefer to pay more and to have something more compact yet still able to house enough items.

I read (and saw on pics) that ML07 and RVZ01 look the same inside and only outer shell is different? Is that right, are those cases the same when it comes to airflow? RVZ01 looks like it has more vents on the top and bottom than the ML07. obviously i would prefer to go with the ML07 from the price point of view and the looks (i want this case to sit under my tv in an open cabinet

Other pick would be CM Elite 110: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119299

but im not very fond of cubic case, would not look good under the tv in the cabinet, maybe someone can share their experience with those cases?

 

2. CPU

DECIDED Pick: Intel G3258

Link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117374&cm_re=g3258-_-19-117-374-_-Product

 

im decided on this CPU. i plan to do NOTHING but gaming so i dont care much about performance in other software like photoshop/premier or anything other, also i dont plan on streaming from that pc.

I would like to slightly, VERY SLIGHTLY, overclock that pentium but i dont want to go for anything crazy as i am aware of the case limitations.

also i dont want to go with AMD, bad memories with LOTS of amd so i try stay away from this company for the time being, and they generate too much heat imho for that case. also couldn't find anything price interesting that would beat G3258 straight in gaming/heat performance

 

3. Cooler

UNDECIDED Pick: Seidon 120M

Link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=seidon+120m&N=-1&isNodeId=1

 

i said i want to oc the cpu so i am aware of a better-than-stock cooler need. i decided to go for AIO watercooling as it would give great performance and quiet operation i think (when compared to air cooling that would fit in this case

Im not very decided on the Seidon 120M but i saw some RVZ01 builds with it, i was thinking about the 120V version but the cpu block/pump combo looks much much higher and i am not decided on the rad placement. it would go on top over the CPU (like most ppl do) or next to a half sized (in length) gpu if it fits there, im not sure about this thou. maybe some experience or links from anyone?

 

4. Motherboard

TOTALLY UNDECIDED Pick: Asrock Z87E-ITX

Link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157374

 

I want to overclock this bad boy so i think only assus allows on overclockin on anything other than Z boards right? Also i want wireless connectivity so asus board would cost me a ton and this asrock seems fine? but i got no clue aboust itx boards (my first itx build) and no knowledge about overclocking this pentium on anything other tna z97? will z87 do fine?

 

5. GPU

STRONG Pick: GTX750Ti factory OC

Link: www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487024 EVGA Superclocked one

 

not very fond of AMD cards (the same story as with CPUs, i have bad experience even thou im using radeon on one of my computer im not recommending it). i already said no heavy gaming and with even the more demanding games (like some racing games we would play) we can live with lower settings or even 720p. so i think 750ti would be ok? also thinking about this card because of its half length and the possibilty of maybe placing the rad next to it (there are two 120mm spots on the GPU side of the case and if i would use half sized maybe the rad would fit next to it?)

about the factory OCing, will the genereate much more heat in this kind of case?

was also thinking about the 260x or 270x (i think its pricier than 750ti so rather not), but i said i got burned by amd. but if someone would convince me that 260x is far better than 750ti for this build then please do it. also, im not into amd much so i dont know what is the difference between 260 and 260x? is it like Ti or does it mean something else?

 

6. PSU

STRONG Pick: Silverstone SFX 450W 80Plus Gold (full modular)

Link: http://www.ncixus.com/products/?usaffiliateid=1000031504&sku=75786&vpn=ST45SF-G&manufacture=Silverstone%20Technology

 

i dont think i have a much choice here? it has to be SFX (or did anyone managed to fit standard ATX in those silverstone cases?) also would like to have to modularity for more space in case, any other suggestions than this one?

 

7. RAM

Pick: anything low profile 1600 8gig

Link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233385 Corsair XMS

 

I picked ram that wasn't tall got 1600mhz and 8gigs in one stick (airflow/heat issues in mind), think 8gigs is enough for moderate casual gaming for this kind of games i said in the begining so only if u can recommend something ultra cheaper or if you would HIGHLY DON'T RECOMMEND those corsairs please say a word

 

8. Storage

Pick: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 128GB

Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009SX6VLC/?tag=pcpapi-20

 

no HDD in this build, only 1 ssd for os and games (i will not trash the pc with massive gamedownloads like titanfall or watchdoge so i think 128gigs would be enough for small indie games and a couple of more space demanding ones). also not worried about having it ultra fast (we can wait on the couch with our beers for the pc to boot no problem:P)

but if you can suggest something faster for cheaper or the same prace (or 1-3 bucks difference), please do so

 

9. Optical

Strong pick: Silverstone SOD02B

Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004X9PHFC/?tag=pcpapi-20

 

this might look/sound stupid or outdated but we need optical drive for some of our retro games so this is a must, and i always wanted to have slot ODD!!! unless you can recommend anything else that will fit in that case i will go with this? (im not sure if silverstone somehow made the optical slot compatible only with this one drive ?)

 

10. Control?

i have nice micro keyboard with trackball and plan to hook up x360 controllers (wireless, maybe able to hide the little box inside the case)

i have searched for x360 alternatives but nothing that will satisfy me and would operate with 4 controller at once, or maybe u got the solution/past experience?

 

11. no display as it will be permahooked to my tv

 

I think that is all, you can view the parts also here (feel free to comment there):

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/bc96pg

 

 

[brob]

You seem to have thought things through. I am still having trouble believing that an AIO cooler will fit in the RV01 case. Not sure you really need such a cooler. You should be able to get a small oc on the stock cooler. And if that is insufficient a Silverstone or Noctua low profile cooler will give you something.

 

If you include the cost of the Seidon, you might be better off with an H97 motherboard and an i3. No overclocking, but more power.

[Pap]

yeah i did some research.

AIO WC will fit no problem in RVZ01/ML07 there are several spots:

1. On top of the CPU a single 120rad

visible in the picture below, that is what i'm thinking about

 

2. Next to a half length graphics cards single 120rad

like here:

of course this limits me to what GPU i can use, 750ti is a short card with no external power needed i think so it would nice

 

3. 240rad NEXT to a graphics card stripped from air cooling and converted to WC

visible here (without the gpu):

this allows you to thin out the GPU and use a 240rad on both 120mm slots next to it. people have done it, it's not like i'm coming with the ideas right now (although i admit i have thought about it before i found it, that's how i found it anyways:P)

 

- i3 is no go, i dont need a cpu slightly more 'powerful' with more functionality but costing twice as much

- air cooling is cheaper but i want to have low noise (stock cooler will be loud) dont know about those 'higher end' low profile coolers, waiting for actual opinions?

[KPZ211997]

There's a tiny bit of thing to change in your build: You should use this Z97 mobo for future upgrade https://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97eitxac (Asrock Z97E-ITX)

 

For GPU, i would personally prefer 270X, but if you want the 750 ti, it's fine, still a good gpu with low power consumption

[Pap]

There's a tiny bit of thing to change in your build: You should use this Z97 mobo for future upgrade https://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97eitxac (Asrock Z97E-ITX)

 

For GPU, i would personally prefer 270X, but if you want the 750 ti, it's fine, still a good gpu with low power consumption

270x is more expensive and i think it would generate too much heat for this small case

 

thanks with the mobo tip! i dont know how i could not see that z97 is for the same price as z87 and this asrock has m.2 slot exactly what i would need from a z97:)