Looking to downsize/upgrade.

[AnthonyA85]

Hello folks. So...

After several years of using a full size Cooler Master Cosmos 2 tower, i've finally decided it might be time to downsize a fair bit. (seriously this thing is very big and very heavy, i struggle to move it even on the desk)

I'm currently running the following system:

CPU: I7 6700K stock speed
COOLER: Noctua NHD-15 air cooler
RAM: 32 GB Corsair memory, two 16 GB dims.
GPU: RTX 2070 S, the XFX 7950 listed in my signature died a few months ago.
PSU: Cooler Master (I think) 850W ATX modular.
HDD1: Samsung EVO SATA 3 1TB SSD
HDD2: Toshiba 2TB Mech Drive
CD/DVD-RW: Toshiba DVD/CD-RW drive (don't really use it anymore though.)

I'm thinking of finally going Ryzen, for a 3900X 12 core. I want to try and keep as many components as I can, but some I won't be needing as i don't use them much anymore, if at all, like the disc drive. The amount of times i've used my current CD/DVD drive, i'm starting to wonder why i bothered with one.

This is the case i've been looking at:
Cooler Master Masterbox 300l mATX as it's fairly cheap, fits a full size GPU and it'll fit the cooler, though i will take any recommendations for an AIO water cooler, though i've not used those before. It's half the height and half the length of the Cosmos 2, but the same width (roughly).

Does this case have any cooling issues i should be wary of? I don't want this thing over-heating.

I also plan to keep the GPU (spent 600£ on that, so i won't replace that until it dies), and i want to keep the cooler, RAM and PSU if i can.

I thought about going ITX, and looked at a few cases, but i think cable routing in those is going to be a nightmare.

Any advice on boards? I was also thinking of going NVME for the boot/OS drive, or will that bottleneck the PCIE speeds any?

 

[jsbombjack]

I managed to put an i7 9700k, gigabyte 2080 ti windforce, 2 nvme drives, 1 ssd, 1 mechanical drive, a 240mm aio, 1 extra 120mm fan and 2x140mm fans into a Fractal Define Nano S. Along with 2 light strips and a corsair commander pro to manage the lights / fans. An sfx power supply of course, to help the gpu breathe.

The only cables on show are the gpu cables, all the rest fits behind the mobo tray quite nicely.

I guess the point is that if you want to make the case smaller, with the right itx you can still fit a lot of kit into a smaller case if you need to.

But definitely ditch the optical drive, it is a waste of good case space mostly.

Nvme won't bottleneck anything you would notice if at all

 

[AnthonyA85]

Thanks, i'm thinking of going for an mATX board (assuming i can find any), though clearance on the NH-D15 is going to be tight as hell, i'll probably have to use one (or two) of my current case fans instead of the stock fan that came fitted to it, just ordered an AM4 upgrade kit from amazon for the D15 (bought it before AM4 was a thing). i've also got a few fans in my current case i can salvage too.

 

[jsbombjack]

Not sure of the clearance of air coolers, personally I prefer the look of an aio.

But all the rest I would get into my case with space to spare for sure. So any mATX case you get would be the same I'm sure.

I would have gone mATX when I did my last upgrade, but itx seems to get more love from the board manufacturers, and case as well. Not saying that is a good thing as itx does have limitations for sure.

Personally I would pick a case you like and do the research on what it can take. Once you know what the case can hold, pick the right parts for it

 

[McPhee]

Main problem with micro ATX is it's unloved. ITX has both a better selection of cases and a better selection of motherboards. And it's more popular, so much easier to find advice. Large ITX cases like the NZXT H210 or Fractal Design Nano S offer decent cooling, good cable management space, and your entire build (sans ATX board, obviously) could transfer straight over.

As for the Q300L, I've seen some builds pop up on Reddit. Temps haven't been brilliant. If you want to go mATX, the Meshify C Mini has a similar footprint and a good reputation. But it's worth bearing in mind that you're only saving on vertical space vs a regular Meshify C. If you bought the full-size case, you wouldn't even need a new motherboard. The difference in height is 3 PCI slots...

 

[jrwagh333]

You can fit the Noctua NH-D15s in the Phanteks Evolv ITX.