Yo, guys. Gonna post this up real quick. I’m finally making my parts list and have decided to go full ATX for VRM’s and ram expansion with a mid-tower case. Getting a GPU later. Probably an xx60ti or xx70 power graphics card.
Just wrapping this up with a case. I want something sleek and sexy with good airflow. Not edgy and stereotypically ‘gamer-ish’ like early 2010’s Alienware stuff.
I’m going with a monochromatic color scheme. Obviously, I don’t want it to come with a PSU, and it should have at least 1 space for a disc drive as my PC will be an HTPC/Gaming rig.
Looking for a bit of future-proofing on a good platform for not too bad a price. Here’s what I’ve got so far. https://pcpartpicker.com/list/kV4nKB
OH! I’m also on the fence with water cooling. AIO’s aren’t too pricy, nowadays, and the thread I posted a couple months ago gave me a rec for a (now) $55 240mm rad. Should I still go with that, or nah?
Thanks, guys. Pretty much gonna put in the order in the next day or two so I can have the PC before Black Friday/Cyber Monday/Thanksgiving, so a speedy rec would be much appreciated.
He’s starting with an APU and adding GPU later…
Honestly nothing can be said about the build. It’s fine. It’s indigo copy from all other builds - high end Asus or a TaiChi board with Corsair or GSkill 3200 ram, Samsung SSD and Corsair power supply. They are all perfectly fine. Everyone uses those parts. But other than that it’s fine…
I would have liked to see something different, like Adata ram and Kingston SSD, XFX power supply maybe, since they are made by Seasonic… IDK… It’s the same as all other builds. It’s fine…
Yeah. I went with the tried and true, fully reliable stuff.
I remember you recc’d me this stuff in my last thread. As I said, all I need is a case rec, now, and opinions on whether or not I should spring for the AIO.
I haven’t recommended Corsair, I can tell you that…
But other than that the AIO - it entirely depends… OC - you may want to go with AIO for better cooling performance. Non OC - the mew Hyper 212 Black from Cooler Master looks perfectly suitable for the color scheme of the build…
Case: NZXT H700 (non “i” for example…
I still recommend Arc Midi R2 over all new fractal cases…
Phanteks Enthoo Pro M… Is cheaper alternative…
I understand that. It’s just there is nothing that can be commented on those parts. They are fine.
I know. But all my research over the last decade-ish basically says Corsair = Seasonic with a common brand name behind it. At worst, 95% quality of Seasonic.
Thanks for the recs. Any particular stuff or brands I should stay away from? ((Like I said, good airflow, sleek, non-gamery design, clean and smooth. I kinda like the ones with a 3/4 window that doesn’t show the drives. OH, and definitely air filters!))
Well, it’s all on case by case basis.
Can’t really say “this brand is consistently awful”… Although as of late Antec and Bitfenix haven’t done anything impressive…
IDK. It’s a personal thing in general, the case.
As someone that’s looking at a Ryzen system, can I ask what your thought process is for the X470 board? It seems like unless you’re running SLI, or doing VFIO, the B450 are a much better deal.
Upgrade path. If I save up next year and decide I want a 3700x, I’ll have the foundation to run the shit out of it.
Also, SLI and Crossfire are dead. It’s for the VRM’s and 4 ram slots. Running dual channel (2 sticks) ram is quite advantageous. I don’t see the current need for 32gb, but might in the future, which puts ITX off the list because I’ll either be single channel or have to throw away my current kit to put in a new one.
I suppose I COULD save myself a heap of money by going ITX and never upgrading, but why TF do that? I already have a system that I can’t upgrade, and I hate it. It’s 10 years old and proprietary and there’s nothing that can be done about making it run better.
Gotta think about it for yourself, though. Is 50% more on your mobo worth it to be able to go from mild to wild someday or not?
Alright, I’ve decided. I want a tempered glass sided case. With removable drive cages and/or a hidden ‘basement’ to house a couple of drives. Seems just about perfect to me.
And, yes, I actually am too lazy now to look through every case on PC part picker for this. Because each one will require a separate search to find out if it’s TG or not.
4 requirements. Sleek and elegant(not gamer-cringe), has at least 1 disc drive bay, is primarily black and otherwise monochromatic, basement+removable cages above the basement.
Might get flagged for multiple posts, but eff it. I’ve found the perfect case.
Raidmax Alpha Prime. TG side and front. Room for a 360 rad, or just triple fans. Can do a rad on the back, too. Now I’m thinking of an AIO in pull/intake configuration on the back port with exhaust out the top and intake from the front.
EDIT:
Great, now after hearing it’s an Phanteks ripoff, and becoming slightly concerned about airflow, I’m on the fence.
Front Air Intake on the Raidmax Alpha Prime is choked, so I’d go with the Phanteks Enthoo case. That said, here’s some further suggestions:
Fractal Design Define R6 is relatively expensive but extremely good for radiator support, fan support is great if you need extra cooling, and has a lot of drive support. No matter how you want your system setup, the R6 will make it look good.
The be quiet! Pure Base 600 and Masterbox MB600L are cheaper in comparison, with the Pure Base focusing on Silence over thermals, and the Masterbox aesthetically looking the worst of the three, but should still do what you need just fine and dandy (though I’m assuming if you want TG, you are doing this for aesthetics)
Also, if you want to use the 5.25" drive bay, 360mm radiators are off the table for any of these cases. Though honestly, a 240/280mm is more than sufficient
I really like the double TG thing. Don’t much care for the mesh fronts, anymore. Or the brushed metal for that matter. Not sure if I’ll really ever use the 5.25 to be honest. But for something like a bluray… IDK… I seem to be ‘digitally aquiring’ all of my movies more than I’ve ever rented or bought physical copies.
Definitely don’t want it to be choked… I like the white internal contrast of the Pro M. Even the RAP in white is damn good looking… Anything that’s double TG without the i/o on the front panel and is white or white internal black external in a mid tower that isn’t choked for air and preferably sub $150?
The Phanteks Enthoo Pro M TG would have better airflow as mentioned before. Also, I would be willing to bet its built better than the Raidmax. I can’t speak for Raidmax cases, but I know their PSU’s are a fire hazard haha. Also, even if you do upgrade in the future it’s unlikely you will need a 360mm AIO. Using tempered glass on the front of a case will almost always limit airflow significantly as manufacturers don’t space the panels out enough.
Lian Li O11-Dynamic, if you can stand not having the 5.25" drive bay. It’s an amazingly good case for both air and water cooling, and looks fantastic.Honestly, if you need a BluRay player, just get an external player and don’t look back.
For double TG, I’m assuming you mean TG on the side and TG on the front panels, in which case, cool. If you mean TG on both sides of the case, I’d stay away from it unless you’re a cable management god, or you make your own custom cables, as it can be diffcult to get things pretty
Yeah. TG side and front. Much sleeker than mesh or brushed. Those honestly look outdated now.
Hmmmmmm… I guess if I have to cut the 5.25 for aesthetics and airflow, I’ll do it. Haven’t used a disc drive in years, and I’ll be able to use my current PC to get windows onto a flash drive, so eff it.
Got any side and front TG mid towers sub $150 with a “basement” that have white internals and good flow w/UBB3.0 and fit ATX mobos?
EDIT: God dammit, I hate my brain. Now I’m rethinking other things, too. Like, “am I really gonna take advantage of an X470 board?” and “does my mobo really NEED WiFi”
Answer to both is probably no, as aside from a low-mid tier GPU, I likely WON’T be upgrading the tower of this rig before getting a different monitor, some proper cans, and a better desk+cable management setup. And since there are B450 mobos in mATX in my color scheme, that puts me back to wanting a smaller case. Same with the fricken ITX idea. Fuck me…
