Building a SFF Powerhouse PC. Any Feedback on This Parts List?

trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 15:27

Intention of the build is primarily for UWQHD (3440x1440) gaming, and VR gaming. Due to the VR usage, I opted to go with Nvidia instead of AMD thanks to much better VR support and NVENC.

Already secured (or preordered at least) the 5600X, SSD, and 3080. Have a spare 500gb SSD that I will throw in it too, and a NAS to move things around if need be. Only variables left are motherboard, memory, PSU, and case. Was considering going with the Lian Li TUF-150 case for aesthetics, but seems to be better airflow/water cooling support in the CM NR200P. Will just be using stock cooler for now to see how it performs in my air conditioned office, but also keen to hear suggestions for AIOs for future.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type Item Price
CPU AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 3.7 GHz 6-Core Processor Purchased For $469.00
Motherboard Gigabyte B550I AORUS PRO AX Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard $293.70 @ Newegg Australia
Memory Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory $112.71 @ Amazon Australia
Storage Samsung 970 Evo 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive Purchased For $189.00
Video Card Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3080 10 GB GAMING OC Video Card Purchased For $1499.00
Case Cooler Master MasterBox NR200P Mini ITX Desktop Case $160.60 @ Newegg Australia
Power Supply Corsair SF 750 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply $253.00 @ Skycomp Technology
Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
Total $2977.01
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-11-07 15:20 AEDT+1100

Hoping for some good deals on the remaining bits on Black Friday, however I know that SFF/ITX stuff is harder to come by in general - so not expecting the world. I haven't built a PC in 10+ years, so wouldn't be surprised if I'm missing something. Anyone got any feedback/ideas/tips for getting deals on intended build?

Computing Computer Desktop Computer

Comments

  • Almundo Oz on 07/11/2020 - 15:43

    Pretty nice.
    Not sure if your case has a front panel usb-c but I'm sure the gigabyte b550 itx doesn't have a usb c header to plug into so be aware of that.

    r/sff is a good resource too

    • trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 15:46

      Thanks. The TUF-150 does have a USB-C on it, but the NR200 doesn't. With such a small case size, I figure the single on-board USB-C should be fine as reaching a cable around isn't nearly as difficult as with a mid/full ATX tower. Also ends up saving around $150 this way.

  • jordanlaa on 07/11/2020 - 16:01

    You may want to pick up a couple of these

    AU $6.45 | 2PCS Mini Rubber 3dBi 2.4ghz WIFI Antenna SMA Male Router Bluetooth Antennas Wireless Module 2.4g Antena External Aerial
    https://a.aliexpress.com/_mKWOCRR

    I have the same motherboard (still unbuilt sffpc since I'm waiting for my formd T1 case) and it comes with a massive fin of an antenna which doesn't feel very sff.

    • dcep on 07/11/2020 - 16:16

      that's cute

    • trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 18:18

      Thanks, but I have ethernet in my office, so I'll be using that. The Wifi component will only come into play at LANs, where I won't mind having the huge fin.

      FYI, those components only have an antenna that's good enough for 2.4GHz WiFi, so you're losing out on both 5GHz and WiFi6 with those.

    • RichardL on 09/11/2020 - 12:50

      I ordered those a few weeks ago, still waiting for it.

    • trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 18:25
      +1

      Why the memory suggestion? Slightly lower CAS Latency?

      • mizx on 07/11/2020 - 18:49

        Yeah, for 10% more in cost these are worth it. The next latency down are not marginally worth.

  • Switchblade88 on 07/11/2020 - 17:42

    Does mini ITX count as SFF?

    I thought it only applied to half-height cases like the common Optiplexes…

    • trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 18:21

      I believe anything under 20L counts as SFF. The NR200 slides in at 18L, while the TUF-150 is a little over at 23.7L.

      • Switchblade88 on 07/11/2020 - 18:56

        Gotcha

        …which means I'm an unintentional SFF enthusiast! My last handful of PCs have all been as small as I could squeeze them.

  • TheLurker on 08/11/2020 - 22:54

    I've got that case, psu and mb. Very happy with all, though have been frustrated with bluetooth stability. Cables on the psu barely reach so if you're into pretty cable management it's a lot of work. AMA

    • trankillity on 09/11/2020 - 09:28

      Interesting! I've heard of some people needing PSU extension cables for proper cable management. What kind of extensions would I be needing if I wanted management for that? What are the hardest components to get power to using that case?

      • TheLurker on 09/11/2020 - 10:50

        I put the PSU bracket on the case front due to mess by motherboard. This made lengths a tad tighter. The audio header cable, CPU power and MB power are all a little too short for comfort. Some pics here. https://imgur.com/a/40AZeg9

        The audio header cable isn't shown clearly in pics. It will do a direct run across the bottom rail at lower end of motherboard, but looked untidy. It now runs across the top rail, but has to go diagonally across the motherboard board but is hidden by the Fuma 2 cooler. I opted out of extensions as it would add a lot more cable bulk for a very small extension need.

        • trankillity on 09/11/2020 - 10:57

          Very clean, good job! Take it you're waiting for 30xx stock to complete the build? I'll likely go with the Noctua, as the Scythes are hard to get in AU.

          • TheLurker on 09/11/2020 - 11:43

            @trankillity: Thanks. Far too many hours wasted shaping cable paths so hope it helps. Holding out for higher memory RTX 30xx cards for tensorflow work. On fans, the 25mm stock SickleFlow fans didn't fit with the Fuma 2 cooler. Also, they developed a rattle, so they're being swapped under warranty. I got 4x Noctua NF-A12x15 chromax fans for $33 each from NewEgg, so 2 under the GPU (marginal improvement according to tests so not important). For top fans I would have bought the Scythe RGB 17mm top fans only if there was any stock globally. Have fun with the build!

            • trankillity on 09/11/2020 - 20:33

              @TheLurker: Yeah, I'm very much looking forward to it. High chance I'll eventually get a good CPU cooler and do the deshroud trick on the GPU. Have seen super impressive results deshrouding GPU and using 2x120mm or 140mm fans instead.

              • TheLurker on 09/11/2020 - 22:00

                @trankillity: Nice! I'm very tempted to deshroud a Strix 3080 ti, whenever such a thing exists (or even longer at a sensible price). It would sit right on the 15mm fans in that case as is 58mm stock. Have a full top to bottom airflow setup already.

                If thinking of that approach, check static pressure ratings on fans. Scythe 17mm is 107 <somethingorothers> and the Noctua A12 15mm was 155 <whateverthemetricwas> so better for being placed directly by something for cooling.

                Not sure you can do 140mm in that case without using the side bracket, and then needing an AIO CPU cooler you'd need to find a place for the radiator.

  • trankillity on 09/11/2020 - 20:32

    WOOPS

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