Small but powerful machine

Cheetah Designs

Cheetah Designs

Cheetah Designs

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10 Jul 2006
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I'm not sure this is even possible but I thought I'd ask anyways. I need a machine which is as small as possible but still has a powerful CPU and is lightning fast.

Requirements:
- As small base unit as possible - so I am looking at miniITX here!
- 60GB SSD only (this is all I need)
- Integrated graphics only (no dedicated graphics card - no gaming/graphics intensive work)
- i7 CPU minimum.
- No more than 8GB RAM (don't need any more)
- No optical drive (will boot and install OS from USB)
- No overclocking needed.
- Quiet as possible.
- No OS needed
- Keyboard/Mouse/Speakers not included.
- Budget: £650 (but could be persuaded to buy more).

Although I'd prefer to have all the bits from OCUK, if I need to source something elsewhere I will, just tell me the model and the rough cost - DO NOT LINK IT!
 
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When you say i7 minimum are you sure?

The reason I ask is the main difference between the 2500K and the 2700K is hyperthreading and a fair chunk of cash. If you're not going to hyperthread then you don't need to go i7.

That aside... how's this for a start?

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i7-2700K 3.50GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - OEM £239.99
1 x Fractal Design Array MiniITX Case - Black (with 300W SFX PSU) £129.98
1 x Zotac H67ITX-C-E Intel H67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 mini ITXMotherboard £129.98
1 x OCZ Vertex 3 60GB 2.5" SATA-3 Solid State Hard Drive (VTX3-25SAT3-60G) £67.99
1 x Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU) £33.59
Total : £613.54 (includes shipping : £10.00).

 
The Halk said:
When you say i7 minimum are you sure?

The reason I ask is the main difference between the 2500K and the 2700K is hyperthreading and a fair chunk of cash. If you're not going to hyperthread then you don't need to go i7.
Click to expand...

It is likely that I would use the extra threads. But lets say I didn't, doesn't the cache size make a big difference also?

With regards to what you posted. It looks good apart from the case, its far to big, there must be something smaller....might have to source the case from somewhere other than OCUK.

I've been looking at whether a build like this could be powered from a DC CPU or not...what do people think?
 
Put that build in a Wesena ITX-1 or 2. Its the smallest you will get a "regular" PC. Also get the Retail processor rather than OEM else you will need a cooler too. Also no point going for the 2700K really you wont miss that 100MHz.

And yes you can get pico PSUs up to 150W so that will be no problem.
 
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Are you sure the case is too big? It's tiny... you could I'm sure find something a little smaller, but not much.

The cache size makes a little difference, but really not very much. The equivalent without multithreading is the 2500K, which costs £170.

I did forget a cooler. The one I've picked is the "go-to" low profile cooler, you could go cheaper, but this is the one most people choose for a high end small build.


YOUR BASKET
1 x Scythe Shuriken Rev.B Quiet Low Profile CPU Cooler (Socket 939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £27.98
Total : £33.96 (includes shipping : £4.98).



At the moment the retail 2700K is 30 quid more expensive than the OEM. I'd go OEM with the Scythe cooler, but pricing might just be an anomoly, normally the difference between retail and OEM isn't so much.
 
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gropingmantis said:
Put that build in a Wesena ITX-1 or 2. Its the smallest you will get a "regular" PC. Also get the Retail processor rather than OEM else you will need a cooler too. Also no point going for the 2700K really you wont miss that 100MHz.

And yes you can get pico PSUs up to 150W so that will be no problem.
Click to expand...

That case is more like it....much smaller.

Is ventilation going to cause me a problem? (in your opinion).

I've been looking at a 160W one, given that the CPU is 95W...you sure it will be enough?

honosuseri said:
With Ivybridge supposedly being released next month and it having a better IGP surely it makes sense to wait...no?
Click to expand...

I've had a look and they look slower if anything....look like they were designed for laptops.
 
Compared to this
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=21189424&postcount=595
that case is huge and poiintlessly massive as it is designed to take 6 3.5" drives but if you are only using 1 2.5" thats not much use.

Also you need to be careful with cooler selection in small cases. The Scythe will be fine in the Fractal case but in the Wesena only the stock cooler is really small enough.

BUT
as honosuseri said IvyBridge will be out very soon and there is an incredible little Z77 ITX board coming from Asus so I would wait for that TBH.

I think you may have been looking at the wrong chips. The i7-3770k is 3.5GHz stock and turbos to 3.9 so they are faster (in clock speed terms) and have a better IGP.
 
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Ivybridge will see an improvement on the IGP.....seeing as you insist on not using a dedicated GPU I would wait for Ivybridge to be released then compare benchmarks and prices then.
 
Cheetah Designs said:
That case is more like it....much smaller.

Is ventilation going to cause me a problem? (in your opinion).

I've been looking at a 160W one, given that the CPU is 95W...you sure it will be enough?



I've had a look and they look slower if anything....look like they were designed for laptops.
Click to expand...

160W will be enough, yes.

Ivy Bridge is faster, clock for clock, than Sandy Bridge.

The i7-2700K you've been looking at is being replaced with the i7-3770K, which shouldn't be greatly more expensive, but will be about 15% faster or so.

Likewise the 2500K will be replaced by the 3570K, again faster.

Ivy Bridge graphics are supposedly 60% faster than Sandy Bridge, that may not matter to you though.

Importantly though the thermal envelope is down, meaning they use less electricity and produce less heat, making it a little quieter.

Thermals of CPUs have come down drastically in the past year since Sandy Bridge arrived, you can do much more in a smaller case with less cooling and less noise than you ever could before.

If you can wait for Ivy Bridge then do so.

I don't know that I'd say the case is huge or massive, it's certainly bigger than the Wesena - it's very small indeed - but I don't think it's fair to describe it as massive! :)
 
gropingmantis said:
Compared to this
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=21189424&postcount=595
that case is huge and poiintlessly massive as it is designed to take 6 3.5" drives but if you are only using 1 2.5" thats not much use.

Also you need to be careful with cooler selection in small cases. The Scythe will be fine in the Fractal case but in the Wesena only the stock cooler is really small enough.
Click to expand...

Do you own that case? What are its actual dimensions? It is possible to remove the feet to make it smaller, if so how much smaller does it make it?
 
The Halk said:
Ivy Bridge is faster, clock for clock, than Sandy Bridge.

The i7-2700K you've been looking at is being replaced with the i7-3770K, which shouldn't be greatly more expensive, but will be about 15% faster or so.

Likewise the 2500K will be replaced by the 3570K, again faster.

Ivy Bridge graphics are supposedly 60% faster than Sandy Bridge, that may not matter to you though.

Importantly though the thermal envelope is down, meaning they use less electricity and produce less heat, making it a little quieter.

Thermals of CPUs have come down drastically in the past year since Sandy Bridge arrived, you can do much more in a smaller case with less cooling and less noise than you ever could before.

If you can wait for Ivy Bridge then do so.
Click to expand...
 
The Antec ISK case is stupidly small. Maybe worth looking into it.

I have a Thermaltake Element Q and it's really small in height, but quite long. Fits in the TV stand perfectly. It's also only 50 quid.
 
olivier renault said:
Why i7 if it's not intensive?
Click to expand...

My tasks may be CPU intensive but don't gpu intensive

Buchanan0204 said:
The Antec ISK case is stupidly small. Maybe worth looking into it.

I have a Thermaltake Element Q and it's really small in height, but quite long. Fits in the TV stand perfectly. It's also only 50 quid.
Click to expand...

I have found a case which is the sort of size I want. 200mm x 200mm x 59mm....problem is that I now need to find a way to cool the CPU with the minimal height I have
 
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