mini itx Looking for a Mini ITX Case that fits my needs!

[IncantiaWolf]

Hello ladies and gents! I am requiring assistance on finding a Mini ITX Case that will fit my needs, if it doesn't fit them all, oh well. PC Building is about making compromises, at least that's from my experience of pc part research. So, onto explanation, my mom and dad are divorced, so I live with my mom and periodically visit my dad, so an ITX Build really appeals to me so I can bring it when I go to his house. I also want to take it out into the living room from time to time to share my gaming spoils with my siblings and my moms. So without further ado, I am looking for a case with:

 

(Parts list if you are inclined to have a look: http://pcpartpicker.com/user/IncantiaWolf/saved/8HLCmG)

 

*Portability: The ability to transport it from my room to the living room without breaking my back, so preferably pretty small ITX cases. Also to take it from my room, to the *shudder* ... outside world and into my dad's car.

 

*Durability: It will need to be durable as it will, at times, be in a car when I drive to my dads, but it will of course have some form of protection and I won't just through it in the backseat, I'm at least smart enough to know that.

 

*Cable Management: This will be my FIRST build and I want, no, need good cable management as I don't know if I could correctly manage the cables all by my lonesome.

 

*Space: At least enough room for a dedicated graphics card, I think I'm for sure going with a MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card, which is 10.59" (269mm) in length according to pcpartpicker, and I don't know if I'll ever get a longer card but I can't tell the future (unfortunately).

 

*Color and Shape: This doesn't matter to me as much as the above mentioned needs, however I wasn't thinking of a case that had a color or shape that's an eyesore.

 

If you wouldn't be so kind as to give any suggestions that meet most, if not all of my needs, and, as a bonus, to give your personal opinion on the case you suggest. Thank you very much, and have a good day!

[Energycore]

How about an EVOLV ITX? It's a bit on the big side but it's sturdy and very good looking.

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/bpbkcf/phanteks-case-phes215pcbk

[Zyndo]

5 minutes ago, IncantiaWolf said:

snip

Fair warning, cable management and ITX don't often go together.

 

My 2 favorite ITX cases out there are the Define Nano S and the Corsair 380T

[007agentHP]

Bitfenix Prodigy is a ITX Case made for LAN (even has handles)

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811345016

 

not the smallest but supports full gpus and supports tons of watercooling (a 240 mm rad in the front, a 240 mm rad on top, and a 120 mm rad it the back)

But with all ITX cases, cable management is nonexistent

[aisle9]

I'm a bit of a Thermaltake whore, and I think the V1 looks absolutely spectacular.

 

But yes, cable management in ITX builds is...fun.

[OddsCrazyStuff]

" Bullet was designed from the ground up to provide optimum air flow and excellent cable management in a smaller format case. If you air-cool or use AIO coolers, this case was built for you."  http://www.caselabs-store.com/bullet-bh2-mitx-case/

Thats the case I would have gone for, with an ITX build. It might be on the expensive side, but a good case will last you several builds.

[aisle9]

Something else to consider if you can get your hands on spare parts and don't mind a "Dell" or "HP" logo on your machine: you can get salvaged cases off of retired workstations on the cheap if you know where to look. The PC that I had the most fun planning out and putting together came about because I stumbled across a $25 HP workstation in a thrift shop, saw that it had an interesting small, slim ITX case and decided to bring it home and build a Skylake sleeper rig in it.

[succ]

The bitfenix phenom is an extremely sleek mItx case. You can find it here https://www.bitfenix.com/global/en/products/chassis/phenom-mini-itx/ it seems to be quite easy to work in but I have personally never worked with one.

[IncantiaWolf]

21 minutes ago, Energycore said:

How about an EVOLV ITX?,

Yes, that seems very intriguing, i will look up some reviews, thank you very much.

 

19 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

Fair warning, cable management and ITX don't often go together.

Would ITX be too difficult for a first time PX builder?

 

18 minutes ago, 007agentHP said:

Bitfenix Prodigy is a ITX Case made for LAN (even has handles)

Ooooo, I really like the handles for being able to carry it easier, thank you for the suggestion, I will look into it.

 

14 minutes ago, aisle9 said:

I think the V1 looks absolutely spectacular.

 

But yes, cable management in ITX builds is...fun.

I have seen the V1 and it does indeed look pretty, thank you for the suggestion. Also, would cable management in an ITX Case be too much for a first timer like me?

13 minutes ago, OddsCrazyStuff said:

Bullet was designed from the ground up to...

 

Thats the case I would have gone for, with an ITX build. It might be on the expensive side, but a good case will last you several builds.

That's a nice sleek case, thanks a lot!

 

5 minutes ago, aisle9 said:

Something else to consider if you can get your hands on spare parts and don't mind a "Dell" or "HP" logo on your machine: you can get salvaged cases off of retired workstations on the cheap if you know where to look....

Oh that is very true, I could indeed look at thrift shops and or places where they have salvaged parts, thank you for the idea

 

4 minutes ago, succ said:

The bitfenix phenom is an extremely sleek mItx case.

It does seem to be very sleek, I'm keeping my eye on the bitfenix. Thank you!

[IncantiaWolf]

Also if there have been any spelling errors that's autocorrect being a poohead

[Energycore]

Just now, IncantiaWolf said:

Also if there have been any spelling errors that's autocorrect being a poohead

Atucorrect is the worst

I desabled it in my phone

[007agentHP]

Just now, IncantiaWolf said:

Yes, that seems very intriguing, i will look up some reviews, thank you very much.

 

Would ITX be too difficult for a first time PX builder?

 

Ooooo, I really like the handles for being able to carry it easier, thank you for the suggestion, I will look into it.

 

I have seen the V1 and it does indeed look pretty, thank you for the suggestion. Also, would cable management in an ITX Case be too much for a first timer like me?

That's a nice sleek case, thanks a lot!

 

Oh that is very true, I could indeed look at thrift shops and or places where they have salvaged parts, thank you for the idea

 

It does seem to be very sleek, I'm keeping my eye on the bitfenix. Thank you!

for the cable management in an itx case, i recommend a fully modular PSU so you can have only the cables you need and nothing else. 

speaking from experience with the bitfenix prodigy:

 

you want to take out the top drive bay and Optical drive bay

put in your HDD and SSD into the bottom tray, and use the bottom of the case as your rat's nest of cables. 

where the PSU is mounted has wholes, run the cables you need there and tie them down at said floor next to the bottom drive bay

[pyr0]

Hello.

I would recommend the Silverstone Raven rvz01-e. This would require you to change your hdd to something like this: 2.5" 3TB HDD

(Sorry for UK website)

However, in return you would get a case almost as small as a next gen console, making it extremely easy to move around.

 

I would suggest that you get a 4690 instead of a 4690k if you are getting a non OC motherboard. Also, have you considered skylake?

 

Additionally, a RX 480 is a similar card for a lot less money, and with the extra VRAM, it is better suited to more games. It isn't too power hungry or hot running on an aftermarket card either. Alternatively, a used GTX 1070 or a used 980ti wouldn't be too much of a stretch, at least it isn't over here (£300 for a 980ti? Ooh, lovely)

 

Is there any reason you are going with windows 7 as it seems you are paying more for it. Windows 10 is slightly more lightweight, and I am curious why you have chosen windows 7. Sorry to nitpick.

 

Hopefully I could provide some insight, or maybe I have just listed things you have already thought about. Either way, I've asked way too many questions on this forum, so I might as well start to pay back my intellectual debt/.

 

[Zyndo]

1 minute ago, IncantiaWolf said:

Would ITX be too difficult for a first time PX builder?

There is nothing particularly difficult about building ITX, other than its cramped (you should buy a mini screwdriver or hire a small asainchild to help you with those tight areas). Get a modular PSU and you will have no issues with cable management.

[IncantiaWolf]

Just now, Energycore said:

Atucorrect is the worst

I desabled it in my phone

 

Yeah but if I do that then I actually have to correct it myself, and NO ONE can remember how to spell Wendsday... woops

[Energycore]

Just now, IncantiaWolf said:

 

Yeah but if I do that then I actually have to correct it myself, and NO ONE can remember how to spell Wendsday... woops

LOL Wed NES day

 

Think about the day you will marry an NES

[aisle9]

2 minutes ago, IncantiaWolf said:

I have seen the V1 and it does indeed look pretty, thank you for the suggestion. Also, would cable management in an ITX Case be too much for a first timer like me?

Honestly, I've done a couple of mini ITX builds now, including the one in a salvaged workstation box, and I still don't think either of them were as bad as the ancient, crappy mATX case that had literally nowhere to put cables aside from tying them to a drive bay. Invest in a fully modular PSU would be my advice for ITX cable management.

 

That said, the salvaged workstation build doesn't have a modular PSU in it thanks to its wacky size requirements (flex ATX), and even though the case is tiny there's more than enough room to organize the cables.

[IncantiaWolf]

2 minutes ago, 007agentHP said:

for the cable management in an itx case, i recommend a fully modular PSU so you can have only the cables you need and nothing else. 

speaking from experience with the bitfenix prodigy:

 

you want to take out the top drive bay and Optical drive bay

put in your HDD and SSD into the bottom tray, and use the bottom of the case as your rat's nest of cables. 

where the PSU is mounted has wholes, run the cables you need there and tie them down at said floor next to the bottom drive bay

Oh great! This will help me if I do indeed pick up Prodigy, thank you kindly for the information

[IncantiaWolf]

4 minutes ago, pyr0 said:

Hello.

I would recommend the Silverstone Raven rvz01-e. This would require you to change your hdd to something like this: 2.5" 3TB HDD

(Sorry for UK website)

However, in return you would get a case almost as small as a next gen console, making it extremely easy to move around.

 

I would suggest that you get a 4690 instead of a 4690k if you are getting a non OC motherboard. Also, have you considered skylake?

 

Additionally, a RX 480 is a similar card for a lot less money, and with the extra VRAM, it is better suited to more games. It isn't too power hungry or hot running on an aftermarket card either. Alternatively, a used GTX 1070 or a used 980ti wouldn't be too much of a stretch, at least it isn't over here (£300 for a 980ti? Ooh, lovely)

 

Is there any reason you are going with windows 7 as it seems you are paying more for it. Windows 10 is slightly more lightweight, and I am curious why you have chosen windows 7. Sorry to nitpick.

 

Hopefully I could provide some insight, or maybe I have just listed things you have already thought about. Either way, I've asked way too many questions on this forum, so I might as well start to pay back my intellectual debt/.

 

 

Thank you very very much for the case, GPU and CPU suggestions, and to answer you questions, I have done pretty much no research into skylake as I just heard of it a few days ago, and I thought windows 10 was crap? I may be thinking of 8 being crap, I'm a Linux user so I haven't been keeping track of which versions are good and which are bad.

[IncantiaWolf]

8 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

There is nothing particularly difficult about building ITX, other than its cramped (you should buy a mini screwdriver or hire a small asainchild to help you with those tight areas). Get a modular PSU and you will have no issues with cable management.

I am buying a small Asian child from amazon as we speak. Ooooo! FREE SHIPPING!

 

But seriously thank you for the suggestions, also, I will indeed be needing to get tools for this, would any hardware store (Lowe's, Home Depot etc) have what I need?

[pyr0]

Just now, IncantiaWolf said:

 

Thank you very very much for the case, GPU and CPU suggestions, and to answer you questions, I have done pretty much no research into skylake as I just heard of it a few days ago, and I thought windows 10 was crap? I may be thinking of 8 being crap, I'm a Linux user so I haven't been keeping track of which versions are good and which are bad.

As a windows 10 user, I honestly don't see why there are a group of people that don't like it. It runs a little faster than 7, and supports DX12 (Not that windows 7 and 8 shouldn't support it). If you are gaming, windows 10 kinda is the way to go. Even if vulkan becomes dominant. Additionally, is there a reason you need 3TB of storage? I've had 1.25TB Since 2012, and I still haven't used it all up. That said, I'm not much of a AAA Kind of guy.

 

With regards to skylake, it is about 10-15% faster, so it is your call as to whether you think it is worth it. You would need to get DDR4 RAM instead of DDR3, so skylake is a tad pricier.

 

If you do go for an RX 480, Don't get a reference model. Make sure to get a custom board partner card, as they run a overclock, and the power connectors are more reasonable. Alternatively, if you bat for the green team (Unlikely if you are a linux user, as Linus Torvalds said NVidia was the least unhelpful company towards linux, before flipping off nvidia on TV) The GTX 1060 costs a little more, and performs better in DirectX11 games, (Except Hitman), and is generally matched by the 480 in DirectX12. You would be paying a little more and getting 2GB less VRAM, so again, your call. If you are gaming at 1080p, then either VRAM amount is fine and the same at 1440p. It is only relevant for surround gaming or 4K. 

 

With that said, Here I am, a R9 390 user (A card notorious for using too much power and running too hot) with a cooler master cosmos 1000 (A gargantuan case), advising on low power, small form factor PCs! The more you know, I guess...

[Zyndo]

5 minutes ago, IncantiaWolf said:

I am buying a small Asian child from amazon as we speak. Ooooo! FREE SHIPPING!

 

But seriously thank you for the suggestions, also, I will indeed be needing to get tools for this, would any hardware store (Lowe's, Home Depot etc) have what I need?

You could always buy a toolkit online from ifixit. LTT always recommends them. Not sure how much you're looking to spend, but it would have everything you could need and more. It would probably be overpriced and overkill for what you're looking for though.

 

Realistically you're just going to need a phillips screwdriver, maybe some zip ties to help with cable management.. Very few computer components really need anything special beyond that to hook them up. If you're buying new, just get a multi-head screwdriver and that will probably be all you need to set up a computer of any size. Maybe an adjustable wrench too if you have to install motherboard standoffs (some cases come preinstalled, some don't), although those can just be hand tightened if you're worried about stripping them.

[pyr0]

12 minutes ago, IncantiaWolf said:

I am buying a small Asian child from amazon as we speak. Ooooo! FREE SHIPPING!

 

But seriously thank you for the suggestions, also, I will indeed be needing to get tools for this, would any hardware store (Lowe's, Home Depot etc) have what I need?

Hey. I have built my gargantuan PC, and a Retail PC for my half sister in this bloody thing, and all I used was a Phillips head screwdriver and some zip ties I got from china for 50p. The screwdriver wasn't even magnetic.

[IncantiaWolf]

12 minutes ago, pyr0 said:

As a windows 10 user, I honestly don't see why there are a group of people that don't like it. It runs a little faster than 7, and supports DX12 (Not that windows 7 and 8 shouldn't support it). If you are gaming, windows 10 kinda is the way to go. Even if vulkan becomes dominant. Additionally, is there a reason you need 3TB of storage? I've had 1.25TB Since 2012, and I still haven't used it all up. That said, I'm not much of a AAA Kind of guy.

 

With regards to skylake, it is about 10-15% faster, so it is your call as to whether you think it is worth it. You would need to get DDR4 RAM instead of DDR3, so skylake is a tad pricier.

 

If you do go for an RX 480, Don't get a reference model. Make sure to get a custom board partner card, as they run a overclock, and the power connectors are more reasonable. Alternatively, if you bat for the green team (Unlikely if you are a linux user, as Linus Torvalds said NVidia was the least unhelpful company towards linux, before flipping off nvidia on TV) The GTX 1060 costs a little more, and performs better in DirectX11 games, (Except Hitman), and is generally matched by the 480 in DirectX12. You would be paying a little more and getting 2GB less VRAM, so again, your call. If you are gaming at 1080p, then either VRAM amount is fine and the same at 1440p. It is only relevant for surround gaming or 4K. 

 

With that said, Here I am, a R9 390 user (A card notorious for using too much power and running too hot) with a cooler master cosmos 1000 (A gargantuan case), advising on low power, small form factor PCs! The more you know, I guess...

Well idk if ill be a big AAA player, i thought three terabytes would be enough, guess its more than enough. I will definitly look into 1-1.5tbs instead.

 

Skylake seems interesting, bet it isn't cheap though as (if I recall) its an i7 sorta thing.

 

Well since my old 2006 preowned laptop that I've had for numerous years has integrated graphics, I don't bat for either side, though i think I know a bit more about NVidia then AMD but that doesnt mean i like one more than the other. Side question, does AMD support VR? The reason I wanted a 970 was cause of the possibility of saving up for a Vive after getting a computer as me and my sibs would play that to death.

 

 

 

[pyr0]

2 minutes ago, IncantiaWolf said:

Well idk if ill be a big AAA player, i thought three terabytes would be enough, guess its more than enough. I will definitly look into 1-1.5tbs instead.

 

Skylake seems interesting, bet it isn't cheap though as (if I recall) its an i7 sorta thing.

 

Well since my old 2006 preowned laptop that I've had for numerous years has integrated graphics, I don't bat for either side, though i think I know a bit more about NVidia then AMD but that doesnt mean i like one more than the other. Side question, does AMD support VR? The reason I wanted a 970 was cause of the possibility of saving up for a Vive after getting a computer as me and my sibs would play that to death.

 

 

 

970, 1070, 980ti, 480, 1060. They are all above the VR spec, it's just that some are higher than others

The 980ti and 1070 are far faster than the other 3, but they will use more power, and would be used.

 

The i5 6600 would be a bit more. As I said, it's your call