Uji Ninja

I live near Kyoto, so I can go to Dospara or PC工房 (or other places). It's more a question of what to choose than where to buy it. There's even a shop in Osaka specialized in second-hand computers. It's called PC Wrap (don't know if you know them) https://www.pcwrap.com/ The good side is that the computers come with a 3-year warranty. Downside is that, obviously, the warranty is gone as soon as you open the case to add more drives -- and you're sometimes paying just as much, or even more, than for a brand new entry level self-built PC. Frankly, if not for the some of the rather scary user reviews, I would have bought something like this a long time ago https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/Logitech-LGB-4BNHEU3-USB3-0-Connection-Supports/dp/B01N7EZ48F/ What good is a HDD bay if it doesn't recognize your drive?

My bad, I should have added : no docking station. Sorry. I really prefer a case for reliability.

Hi, I'm awfully low on storage space and need to invest in new equipment. Sadly my PC case is rather small and don't suit my needs. First thing first, what I don't need : RAID and networking capability. It's just to store data that I don't access very often, on "good old" 3.5 inch HDDs. I'll first start with 2 drives, 6TB or 8TB each, and will add 2 more drives by the end of the year. I thought about the following possibilities, each one coming with its own pros and cons: Transfer to a new PC case with enough room for at least 4x 3.5 inch HDDs. Buy an external HDD bay Buy an external HDD case for each individual drive Build an entirely new PC with entry-level components (I think it's overkill and surely too expensive right now) I'm in Japan and my budget is about ¥20,000 (not including the HDDs). My first idea was to go for a HDD bay (from either Logitech or Orico) but, after checking user reviews on Amazon, I got worried about all the problems reported such as drive incompatibility, drive/bay that stopped working after a few weeks, data loss, drives suddenly not being recognized etc. Any tips or advice? I really don't know what I should do... Thanks!

The Lenovo is actually almost ¥10,000 cheaper than the HP, that's also one of the main source of hesitation. Legion 550Pi ¥91,249 vs HP Envy x360 ¥99,900. Both include tax. The Lenovo has free shipping, while I think it's not included in the HP. I'm also unsure if the extra GPU oomph may or may not be useful in the future. Sure thing : I'd like to try Bluestacks and some Android emulation, which is something I haven't done yet, and I frankly have zero clue if CPU cores/threads or GPU have any impact. There's also the (possible) issues related to graphic drivers. Dolphin, for example, may be quite picky. Some excerpts from their performance guide ( https://dolphin-emu.org/docs/guides/performance-guide/ ) Having used the NUC for quite a while I can confirm that Dolphin works much better under D3D11 or D3D12 with the Intel iGPU. Under Linux and the MESA driver it was quite OK too. I'm wondering how it will go with the AMD iGPU or the NVIDIA discrete GPU, and got many YMMV answers when checking the Dolphin subreddit.

I think the GPU should be enough. We're also currently using a NUC with a i5-1135G7 and it breezes through practically anything (please note that I have a VERY limited sample of PS3 or WiiU games to test it with). So far, whether it's Windows or Linux, there has been no issue with PS2 or Wii apart from occasional emulator crashes.

Hi, I'm currently thinking about replacing my old laptop. There's currently some sales/outlet deals here in Japan and my choice is either 1. a HP Envy x360 13-ay (13 inch display, Ryzen 5800u, 16 GB DDR4 3200MHz, 1TB SSD) or 2. a Lenovo Legion 550Pi (15 inch display, i7-10750H, GTX 1660 Ti 6GB GDDR6, 16 GB DDR4 2933MHz, 512GB SSD) Both are older models but cost under ¥100,000 and my needs are reasonable : mostly web browsing, YouTube/Netflix on either the laptop display or plugged to a 27 inch 1080p monitor, and retogaming with my daughter (up to PS3 and WiiU). Very few PC games: the most recent PC game that my daughter played was "Undertale" and it runs on my old i3 laptop so no worry here. On a personal level I'm tempted by the x360: smaller, more storage, and I like the 360 degrees style. But a dedicated GPU is a big plus for the Lenovo. Any advice or experience with laptops with similar specs? What about the screen hinge on the Lenovo? I had to toss a laptop a few years ago because of badly broken hinges (the whole stuff feel apart) and that's my one main source of worries now. Thanks!

As a follow up. I also tried with Ubuntu 21.04. Even weirder. First, trying from the USB key : sound through HDMI. Then, installed : no sound. Then, while updating the system post installation : sound through HDMI. Reboot : no sound. At that point I think I'll just reinstall Windows...

Hi, No sure if it's the right place to send this message (I also hesitated between the Linux and the Audio sub-forums) but here we go. I now have a NUC11PAHi5 (with 16gb of Crucial ram and a 2TB HDD) and I'm currently doing some testing. First thing first, and I think it's important to precise : I did some testing under Windows 10 Pro and everything works perfectly fine. Zero issue whatsoever. I'm currently doing some testing with Linux and that's when the "fun" begins. I booted Lubuntu 20.04 from a USB key and, once again, no issue whatsoever. Everything worked like a charm. I then installed Lubuntu (I did erase the whole HDD) and... no sound through HDMI This thing drives me nuts. The Pulse Audio control panel shows a whole lot of HDMI out options, a few of them marked as (unplugged) (unavailable). I tried ALL the options, each and every one of the HDMi out in the control panel, no result, no sound. Again, I'm totally lost, really wondering why everything works when using this damn' thing from the USB key, but fail to have sound once the distro is installed. Any help is more than welcome. PS: I did try some other distros from the USB key (Ubuntu, Mate, Zorin...) but had no sound with any of them. That's why I ultimately chose Lubuntu. Again, it did work from the USB key.

Gosh, when checking the comptible products page again, it says "The 2.5-inch drive cage supports 5mm and 7mm drives" Thanks for your help. It was nice you both took time to answer.

Hi, I've noticed that some mini PC top up at 2TB when it comes to storage media (whether it's NVME, SSD or HDD). As I still have a 3TB 2.5" Toshiba HDD lying around, I was wondering if that drive would be OK in a NUC11PAHi5. I haven't found any info on the product page https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/sku/205040/intel-nuc-11-performance-kit-nuc11pahi5/specifications.html When checking the list of compatible products, Intel only validate a 2TB Seagate ST2000VT000 drive. https://compatibleproducts.intel.com/ProductDetails?EPMID=205040 Would anyone know if my 3TB Toshibal drive would work with the NUC11PAHi5 ? Thanks!

You can put a GPU in this case?! I thought it's for APUs only. I'm trying to find a very small and affordable case (it's going to be my daughter's emulation / light gaming rig). Right now I'm torn between the Chopin, the Asrock Deskmini, or just go the safe (but not upgradable) route and catch a NUC with a I5-1135g7. I'm also wondering if I should pull the plug now, while stuff are in stock, or wait for Alder Lake.

Hi, I've checked a few how-to videos on YouTube, and it seems the Inwin Chopin case is indeed a very tight fit. Has anyone built a SFF PC using this case and, if so, how difficult was it to actually install the motherboard? How about cable management? If I end up buying this case, it would be my second build (first one was like 15 years ago) so I'm totally inexperienced. Note : I would use the case with a 2.5" HDD and probably a Noctua low-profile cooler. Still undecided when it comes to other parts. Thanks.

Yeah, difficult to find stuff these days. Eg: ETA Prime reviewed a SFF Lenovo 4650g computer a few weeks ago but, on Lenovo Japan's website, it's 3 months delivery at best, and "gosh we have no idea when you'll get your computer" if you're unlucky. Small NUC-sized 4800U PCs from Asrock and Asus are out of stock everywhere ~~ and I'm not really sure that a 4300U or 4500U would be enough. It's still possible to find 3400G + Asrock X300 computers sometimes with Japan-based BTO manufacturers, but they are becoming rarer and prices tend to go up. Anything based upon the new 5000 series might be too expensive I'm afraid. Eg: a 5700G + Asrock X300 BTO would cost me ¥130,000 https://www.ark-pc.co.jp/bto/customizer/?pc_id=1867 and not that much cheaper if I build myself. Actually, with my budget of about ¥80,000, I would only be able to buy the X300 and the 5700G, and nothing else. Even if I save money by installing Linux/Batocera instead of Windows, I still need storage and ram. I just can't justify putting that much in a small retro gaming rig that would mainly be used during weekends and holidays.

Sorry, I should have mentioned that I'm familiar with ETA Prime's videos. It's often a very good source of info, even though he sometimes has the bad tendency (to my point of view) to overclock CPU/iGPU, which makes it difficult to really know what the processor can do or at base clock. As a matter of fact, I'm really more trying to know what would be the bare minimum for GameCube. I've seen YouTube videos of people testing the same processors, sometimes even the same computer, and get really different results (might be due to how they tweaked Dolphin) so I'm kind of lost. See, for example, I've seen a video in which ETA Prime reviews the Chuwi Larkbox and a few GameCube games seemed to run relatively well (hint: F-Zero GX was not one of them). He even pushed to WII territory with various levels of success. He could also run Dreamcast and Saturn on this tiny box. But I've also seen other reviews where Dreamcast could barely run, Saturn was choppy, and running GameCube was an illusion. So, yeah, I'm actually more than kind of lost...

Nope. The B1 is a tad too big for my taste, and its shape definitely not something I like. I find the Chopin more pleasing https://www.in-win.com/en/gaming-chassis/Chopin/

Hi, I will need to buy/build a new PC for retro gaming with my daughter and, to be honest, I really have no idea what to do. Could you guys give me some tips? I'm mostly in need of help determining what kind of CPU/APU would suit our needs. While the sky is the limit when it comes to raw power (sadly, not when it comes budget, I could go up to about ¥80,000), and I wouldn't mind giving a try to PS3 emulation, I'd be more than happy with a system allowing us to play our GameCube games at full speed and no hiccups (Doubutsu no mori, Mario Kart, Smash Bros etc.) For what I've seen, it seems that most computers, even entry level Celeron-based, can do PS1, sometimes Saturn, maybe even Dreamcast. But GameCube seems to be an entirely different story... On the other end of the spectrum, is there any SBC or Android box that could do GameCube? (no Nvidia Shield, thanks, it's not available in Japan) A precision : I'm not interested in laptops. I'd prefer a SFF desktop, something like NUC, or Asrock X300 / Inwin Chopin if I build the PC myself. Thanks for your help! Christmas is getting nearer and, with global shortage, I may have to act asap before it's too late. Philip

Either BicCamera or Yodobashi, unless I find it in stock in some small computer shop downtown Kyoto, such as Dospara or PC Koubou.

Mostly light multimedia, internet etc. But I would also use it for retrogaming with my daughter (up to PS2 and WII/WIIU), as well as converting a lot of old 1080i MPEG2 footage, from my old video camera, to 1080p h264 or h265 and save space in my archives. Alas, as said above, it seems I'd need another CPU just to be able to update the X300 bios...

The Bios is what will block me, unfortunately. I'd need another processor just to be able to update the bios, and I don't happen to own any

Hi, Could anyone tell me if I may run into issues trying to build a mini pc around an Asrock X300 barebone and an AMD Ryzen 5700G CPU? I'm especially worried about the possibility to efficiently cool the CPU in such a tight case. Or is it better using a 4C/8T or 6C/12T CPU in the X300? Thanks

Hi, I was checking a video about retrogaming emulation on an Asrock BOX 4800u. There are a few optimization tips at the end of the video, about CPU, shared memory and fan speed (see the screenshots). I'm not interested in the Asrock but may end up buying the Asus PN50 R7-4800u. Does anyone know if the Bios settings are fully unlocked in the Asus? Or would I be limited to whatever settings Asus chose? Thanks

Hi, one old laptop I was using just had a hard drive failure. I don't really want to bother (trying to) open the computer and see if I can change the drive. I know the laptop is still working since it can still boot Batocera from a SD card. What Linux distro, if any, would you recommend for boot & use from an external USB hard drive, USB key or SD card? By the way, the laptop comes with a dual core i3, 8GB of ram and a touchscreen (said screen being the main reason I don't want to get rid of it yet) and is mainly used for education, YouTube and some games with my daughter. Thanks

They are nice machines, not denying that. But there are quite a few things (such as using Linux, using old OS/software through Virtual Machines...) that I would not be able to do. And don't get me started on the headache and cold sweat inducing task of checking if my music hardware and software would work.

Not sure Big Boss would allow me to try that tbh.

Yes, I know I'm not the one making the decisions, and we needed a computer asap. I think that HP expect users to mostly rely on the APU. It's actually reasonably good for integrated graphics, but I think we should have upgraded to 32GB of DDR instead of the 16GB it came with.