Small computer build

[jaslion]

Due to some life changes I had to get rid off well almost all of my stuff and basically have my older "gaming laptop" and a 2012 macbook pro left.

 

I have a tl;dr in case you just want the cliffnotes.

 

My workflow is quite fragmented between the 2 now due to both not really being able to keep up with my demands so I want to make a new desktop computer. The only issue is. I don't have much space and putting it on the ground isn't and option due to well me not having enough space for it and I would constantly bump into a tower as I have tried before.

 

Would I though I could do is get a small case that can be on the side and I put my monitor on top of it but the issue is that it can only be 22 ish cm tall then since that's the hieght I keep my monitor at to be in a comfortable ergonimic posture.

I've seen the fractal design node 202 and that seems like a decently good idea but I'll have to get one of those lower monitor table thingies to put on the desk so it doesn't choke the pc's air intake. I also have some space on my left where my wacom cintiq is but that is only 30cm from the wall to the front so if anything would be there it would have to be tiny too. Width wise I have 40cm to work with

 

tl;dr

Case can max be 22cm high if I want to put it under my monitor or case has to fit in a 30 cm from the wall space with a max width of 40cm

 

Looks wise as long as it doesnt look tacky and is just basically a black, gray or white box (some accent colours are no issue for me) I am happy.

 

Specs will most likely depend on the case choice so that will be my priority as of now to figure that out. My priority is 3D moddeling, rendering and digital drawing but I am on a 800€ budget so I'll have to cut corners where I can.

[brob]

You will have to verify that the motherboard has a BIOS that supports the CPU before purchase.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor  (€209.00 @ Alternate) 
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming-ITX/ac Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard  (€111.99 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  (€86.90 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Storage: Crucial MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (€67.90 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 580 8 GB Gaming 8G Video Card  (€197.89 @ Mindfactory) 
Case: Silverstone SG13 Mini ITX Tower Case  (€44.90 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Gold 450 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  (€64.99 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Total: €783.57
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-01 15:30 CEST+0200

[Levitan]

I tryed something, look:

 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 2600X 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor	$148.89 @ OutletPC
CPU Cooler	Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 33.84 CFM CPU Cooler	$39.90 @ Amazon
Motherboard	ASRock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming-ITX/ac Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard	$99.99 @ Newegg Business
Memory	Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory	$81.99 @ Walmart
Storage	Crucial MX500 1 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$107.40 @ OutletPC
Video Card	MSI Radeon RX 560 - 1024 4 GB AERO ITX Video Card	$149.99 @ Newegg
Case	Fractal Design Node 202 HTPC Case	$69.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA SuperNOVA GM 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply	$105.88 @ OutletPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$844.03
	Mail-in rebates	-$40.00
	Total	$804.03
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-01 09:39 EDT-0400

 

[brob]

A 450W psu is more than enough capacity for the build.

 

The Node 202 has a vent over the cpu area. If the monitor will be set on top of the unit, one needs to make sure that the stand (or anything else) does not block any part of this vent.

 

[Mbowen]

This is actually my specialty area. There are a lot of different designs and options to go with but there are some restrictions. 

ITX builds are purpose built. With that little space most of the time you are aiming at parts that are specifically chosen based on temps or power targets. There are options as small (or smaller) than what you described but you're going to be hard pressed to find anything truly "powerful" at that form factor unless you want to shell out a lot of money. 

Another option you may want to consider is a different placement of the computer itself. Some cases have the option of being mounted on the back of the PC monitor itself. This allows for more desk space and is usually used in retail and would limit your ability to use a gpu large enough to help you with your renders. 

I would suggest first deciding on exactly which case you would like before looking at any of the parts above. You could probably do quite a bit better if you knew exactly which case you wanted. I suggest looking here first: https://smallformfactor.net/forum/category/custom-cases-projects/

That entire link is basically small form factor cases that will fit your needs and the community focuses on high performance in this form factor.

[Levitan]

11 minutes ago, brob said:

A 450W psu is more than enough capacity for the build.

 

The Node 202 has a vent over the cpu area. If the monitor will be set on top of the unit, one needs to make sure that the stand (or anything else) does not block any part of this vent.

 

Well you could upgrade the graphics Card in the future...that is why i chose the bigger psu.

[brob]

1 minute ago, Levitan said:

Well you could upgrade the graphics Card in the future...that is why i chose the bigger psu.

 

Go to your build list and replace the RX 560 with an RTX 2080 Ti. The max draw still does not exceed 410W. 

[jaslion]

1 hour ago, Mbowen said:

This is actually my specialty area. There are a lot of different designs and options to go with but there are some restrictions. 

ITX builds are purpose built. With that little space most of the time you are aiming at parts that are specifically chosen based on temps or power targets. There are options as small (or smaller) than what you described but you're going to be hard pressed to find anything truly "powerful" at that form factor unless you want to shell out a lot of money. 

Another option you may want to consider is a different placement of the computer itself. Some cases have the option of being mounted on the back of the PC monitor itself. This allows for more desk space and is usually used in retail and would limit your ability to use a gpu large enough to help you with your renders. 

I would suggest first deciding on exactly which case you would like before looking at any of the parts above. You could probably do quite a bit better if you knew exactly which case you wanted. I suggest looking here first: https://smallformfactor.net/forum/category/custom-cases-projects/

That entire link is basically small form factor cases that will fit your needs and the community focuses on high performance in this form factor.

Thanks for this great resource. I currently have my eye on someone selling their ryzen gen 2 system and using most of it's parts to build the system for a good bit cheaper than what retail would cost and reselling whatever I cannot use. I'm looking at a 2700x with the gigabyte gtx 1070 mini in it for a total of 450. This would seriously lower the cost of the build and all I would need depending on the case would be a new motherboard and possibly cooler (it has the stock one).

[jaslion]

2 hours ago, Genwyn said:

Youre basically looking for a dead form factor, HTPC media center cases would be ideal for this, but most of them were designed a decade ago and the non ATX ones dont usually have pci slots for any video card.

 

The only somewhat modern case i can think of that could be used that way is something like the ml08b

https://www.amazon.com/SilverStone-Technology-Mini-ITX-Computer-ML08B-H/dp/B0161UXWRA/

 

i would suggest just going with a compact itx cube style build and having it on the side of your monitor or just somewhere nearby, the Rajintek Metis comes to mind as the thing is tiny but from my personal experience, holds about anything you can cram into it

https://builds.gg/builds/g-o-l-d-g-o-l-d-thats-gold-12693

 

That rajintek is a surprisingly amazing of the shelf unit. It's really hard to find but I'll have to do some more digging and with a bit of luck it shows up.

[Sorenson]

I used the node 202 for a while and really liked it. I was running an i5 and a gtx 970 in it. I mounted two 120mm fans under the GPU and everything ran pretty well even with the stock intel cooler. I’m now in the evolv shift with one of the side panels removed until the mesh panels are released in August. I would also recommend looking at the dan case if you’re getting a 1070 mini, the streacom da 2, or the loque ghost s1. Those last options are all more expensive but are pretty much some of the smallest high performance cases you can get.