Our Smallest Build EVER? - Velkase Velka 3

[jakkuh_t]

We build what might be our SMALLEST custom gaming PC ever, in the new Velkase VK3 / Velka 3.

 

 

 

Buy a Velkase: On their site: https://www.velkase.com/products/velka-3

 

Buy an AMD 3700X CPU: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/KHY4Erm
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV1c

 

Buy an ASUS Strix X570-i Motherboard: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/Y803S1K
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV15

 

Buy a Gigabyte RTX 2060 Mini: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/tQqcI
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV1z

 

Buy a Noctua L9a AM4 Cooler: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/ozdR
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV1P

 

Buy Corsair LPX Memory: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/MINRiBs
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV1m

 

Buy Corsair PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/YeUKfFo
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV11

 

Buy SilverStone Flex ATX PSUs: 
On Amazon: https://geni.us/n5VbBC
On Newegg: https://lmg.gg/8KV1W 

[KSores]

do you post videos early on the forum?

[seon123]

15 minutes ago, KSores said:

do you post videos early on the forum?

Yes...? Not always, but quite often. 

[mynameisjuan]

I would be really curious what cooler could fit in that case with no GPU with a 3950x at stock speeds?

 

I think it would be a baller home server in that form factor (if at all possible)

[pApA^LeGBa]

So a Flex ATX PSU is meant for small builds, right? Why are there no modular ones then? At least i found none, and i assume that LTT didn´t go with the one used for the lulz.

[TheNaitsyrk]

I love it, I want to make my own.

 

Although I'd make it cheaper for myself. Actually considering doing this.

I would use 1700

RTX 2060 still

16GB of 3000 RAM

B350 cheapest motherboard that would fit

One large M.2

Same case and PSU.

[Kilrah]

Now that's exactly my style, so much so that I preordered both the 3 and 5 when this was posted on floatplane, couldn't decide/figure out which would fit my needs.

Since my SFF rig update basically ended up turning more into a new rig than an update I'll have a full PC minus GPU at the end that I can sell, but my current LZ7 is so beaten up after 2 years of travelling that a new case is needed anyway... so I'll see which one works for my rig and build the other to sell with the 2nd.

 

...Except if my custom 3D printed variation of the 3 works out, then I'd cancel that.

 

21 minutes ago, pApA^LeGBa said:

So a Flex ATX PSU is meant for small builds, right? Why are there no modular ones then?

Probably because making actual consumer PC builds with them isn't really popular as of yet, so they're all made for industrial devices - most even don't have a PCIe power connector, think only 2 have some.

When looking for mine I came across a company who made a custom version of one with a modular board added at the end, but not only was it ridiculously expensive, at that scale the PCB and connectors actually start taking noticeably more space than just wires do so modular isn't really a luxury you want to make room for.

 

In my case I cut out the extra wires, and will probably shorten everything I do use. 

[SolarNova]

I think its safe to say that at some point you have to call it quits on trying to shrink SFF builds to even smaller levels.

 

This is cool and all, but its too small. I mean its a nice trick to instead of building into a case you build the case around the parts, much like performance motorbikes are built around the engine, while choppers and more traditional upright bikes have a frame and the engine bolts in.

But being so incredibly compact introduces more and more restrictions. When fans have to be 10mm thick and the PSU has to be so restricted, it really starts to cause issues.

 

IMO whilst this is a nice little build, i think it just takes away to many options. I would rather build in a shoe/boot box sized case that can fit a regular SFX PSU, some normal fans and an AIO. it will be cooler, quieter, and be able to handle more components without being any more difficult to transport. Chances are what ever bag you use to transport that tiny build in from one place to another, would have no problem fitting something slightly bigger either.

[Mikh]

In the outro, Linus talks about another vid where they upgraded his personal rig with a 3900X. Did I miss this video? Can't find it anywhere...

[Kilrah]

That's why I stated designing my own, find it stupid you have to go with those noisy fans when you can add a couple of mm and get Noctua 92x15's in.

But I never knew about Flex ATX before, and that does allow for significant space savings. An SFX PSU makes it hard to pack everything together well.

 

Going with the Velka 3's layout but slightly enlarged will nearly halve my current build's volume but without the compromises of the V3.

[Kilrah]

Just now, Mikh said:

In the outro, Linus talks about another vid where they upgraded his personal rig with a 3900X. Did I miss this video? Can't find it anywhere...

On Floatplane right now, will likely come soon.

[Mikh]

2 minutes ago, Kilrah said:

On Floatplane right now, will likely come soon.

Ah gotcha, thanks!

[EdgeUK]

I like the idea of having a small form factor PC to keep in the living room (couch gaming and VR), but surely you wouldn't need to go that much bigger to keep the size benefits without as much of a sacrifice when it comes to noise/heat. Anyone found a case that is the sweet spot?

[biohazard918]

2 hours ago, SolarNova said:

I think its safe to say that at some point you have to call it quits on trying to shrink SFF builds to even smaller levels.

 

This is cool and all, but its too small. I mean its a nice trick to instead of building into a case you build the case around the parts, much like performance motorbikes are built around the engine, while choppers and more traditional upright bikes have a frame and the engine bolts in.

But being so incredibly compact introduces more and more restrictions. When fans have to be 10mm thick and the PSU has to be so restricted, it really starts to cause issues.

 

IMO whilst this is a nice little build, i think it just takes away to many options. I would rather build in a shoe/boot box sized case that can fit a regular SFX PSU, some normal fans and an AIO. it will be cooler, quieter, and be able to handle more components without being any more difficult to transport. Chances are what ever bag you use to transport that tiny build in from one place to another, would have no problem fitting something slightly bigger either.

It's all a question of compromise once you go much below 20 liters. I would say this is shockingly functional given the size it actually looks very usable if you can tolerate a bit of noise under load. If you want a compact no compromise build the node 304 has been around forever.  It could do with an update but it's pretty hard to beat a case that supports a full size atx psu, largish gpus, large dual tower air coolers and 4 or 5 2.5/3.5 drives in 19.5 liters.

 

I find myself wondering if a dc to dc psu might not make more sense then flex atx for this case. Picobox sells a 490 watt unit that is just a bare pcb with that you could make the case even smaller or support 2.5 inch drives and ditch the 40mm fan.

[biohazard918]

27 minutes ago, EdgeUK said:

I like the idea of having a small form factor PC to keep in the living room (couch gaming and VR), but surely you wouldn't need to go that much bigger to keep the size benefits without as much of a sacrifice when it comes to noise/heat. Anyone found a case that is the sweet spot?

Node 304. It's basically designed to be a media center pc. I'm 90% sure it is what linus has in his living room. If you're willing to use an aio you can go smaller but realistically 20 liters is plenty small for most use cases. Something like this is really about showing off or because you want a super minimalist desk setup. This thing would look great if you built it with that asrock board with the thunderbolt port and used a pair of type c monitors plus a wireless keyboard and mouse.  

[caincha]

Great video BUT how the heck they spend tens of thousands of dollars in cameras and still can't focus properly? So annoying…

[Luscious]

That's a little monster of a PC, but if it comes to carrying it around you forget that you also need to drag a monitor and keyboard/mouse with it. It's diminutive size/weight becomes less of a feature.

 

On the other hand if you need that kind of performance and you are in a confined space (RV, small bedroom, tiny desk) and can only fit a smaller monitor, this thing would be totally awesome. MiniITX definitely is a form factor worth looking into for more case manufacturers and mobo makers.

 

Nice build.

[brandishwar]

4 hours ago, pApA^LeGBa said:

So a Flex ATX PSU is meant for small builds, right? Why are there no modular ones then? At least i found none, and i assume that LTT didn´t go with the one used for the lulz.

They actually went with one of the quietest ones available, as well. Most every other I've tried has been LOUD.

 

They're made for 1U and 2U server chassis, not SFF desktop builds. They also typically have only the bare minimum cable setup to them as well, so there's typically no need for them to be modular since you're likely going to use all of what's attached to it.

[clustr1]

1 hour ago, Luscious said:

That's a little monster of a PC, but if it comes to carrying it around you forget that you also need to drag a monitor and keyboard/mouse with it. It's diminutive size/weight becomes less of a feature.

 

On the other hand if you need that kind of performance and you are in a confined space (RV, small bedroom, tiny desk) and can only fit a smaller monitor, this thing would be totally awesome. MiniITX definitely is a form factor worth looking into for more case manufacturers and mobo makers.

 

Nice build.

Good point.  New video idea... all-in-one PC build.  The case contains everything you would need... maybe use a projector instead of a monitor, some sort of folding keyboard, etc, etc.  Could be interesting.  

[JoostinOnline]

These videos are always frustrating to me, because everyone (I don't just mean LTT) wants to put super high end stuff in a tiny form factor. I'm much more interested in what a practical build would look like. Having it with an R5 3600 and a 1650 that doesn't require external power would be really interesting. A small, relatively affordable, and quiet system would have more use cases IMO.

[justpoet]

I'd love to know what the db meter says for the "loud" portion of this, since it didn't sound very loud there (especially compared to something like the old Mac wind tunnel towers), and at which frequencies the loudness comes from (most likely the harmonics of the PSU fan?).

 

I somewhat agree with the above, I'd more likely put an R5 3600 in it if I were making it as a generic portable rig…but then I'd also be trying to find a better short GPU to put in it to fully support the gaming chops at 1440p.  If, on the other hand, it is more of a portable work station that should also be able to play games decently, then putting the higher core count CPU in with a 2060 makes sense like Linus did.  That'd be a pretty bangin' mini-editing station for on the go to multi-day events like trade shows when paired up with a good external RAID (bonus points for an M.2 SSD RAID for also being small and light).

[Cvint]

I wish mitx wasnt so expenisve does ne one else think that a 350watt psu isnt enough? Also i think the case needs front io...

[JoostinOnline]

29 minutes ago, justpoet said:

I somewhat agree with the above, I'd more likely put an R5 3600 in it if I were making it as a generic portable rig…but then I'd also be trying to find a better short GPU to put in it to fully support the gaming chops at 1440p.

That would be interesting, but I was thinking of a lower powered rig. The 1650 isn't a card I would normally recommend to anyone (especially with the RX 570 being cheaper and better), but lower power draw might mean the PSU fan might not be as noisy.

[Ibanez343]

On 10/12/2019 at 5:22 PM, Mikh said:

In the outro, Linus talks about another vid where they upgraded his personal rig with a 3900X. Did I miss this video? Can't find it anywhere...

On 10/12/2019 at 5:25 PM, Kilrah said:

On Floatplane right now, will likely come soon.

I was trying to find the video Linus alluded to as well, I don't even see it on Floatplane

 

Edit: The video in question is back up on Floatplane, Can't wait for it to hit YouTube so a friend of mine can see it

[Pinot]

I wish they had a modular PSU with that form factor, or something you can run as an external PSU brick with thinner cables That would come in clutch. Something you can have better cable management with and braided cables for smaller sizes.

 

I honestly am going to build this. I have no reason not to and I've been looking for a holiday project. 

Cheers