Compact mini itx build suggestions

[soundhunter]

Hi everyone
I'd like to get some opinions on a mini itx pc I'm going to build.
The main difficulty here is that it has to be very compact and horizontal. So for the case, I chose Phanteks evolv shift air. From everything I've seen - I guess this one will suit best.
other specs:
-ROG STRIX Z390-I GAMING
-Intel Core i9-9900 or Intel Core i7-9700K
-Noctua NH-L9x65 or Noctua NH-L9i. Yep Air cooling. And if I understand correctly, it has to be a low profile one. But maybe Noctua NH-C14S could fit too.
-old gtx 980ti will do for now
-Samsung MZ-V7S2T0BW (m.2 970 evo plus 2tb) and one more later
-32Gb(16+16) DDR4 3600MHz G.Skill Sniper X
-Seasonic FOCUS SGX 650W

 

[EarthDog]

Hey!

The build looks solid so far... what do you want help of suggestions with? The case specifications tell you how large of an air cooler you can have, and you can widdle down from there. PSU looks good... RAM choice is fine (do you NEED 32GB?), PSU looks good.

CPU will depend on what you are doing with this PC... Can/will you utilize all the cores and threads on the 9900 or are you primarily a gamer and the 8c/8t be sufficient? I say go 9900K, personally, especially if you are keeping this for a while.

 

[bmwbaxter]

I would hold off until the 10th gen intel stuff comes out z390 is end of life. Should at least be able to get better performance per dollar.

 

[soundhunter]

Hey!

The build looks solid so far... what do you want help of suggestions with? The case specifications tell you how large of an air cooler you can have, and you can widdle down from there. PSU looks good... RAM choice is fine (do you NEED 32GB?), PSU looks good.

CPU will depend on what you are doing with this PC... Can/will you utilize all the cores and threads on the 9900 or are you primarily a gamer and the 8c/8t be sufficient? I say go 9900K, personally, especially if you are keeping this for a while.

thanks)
Got it.
Yep, 32gb is the minimum here since it's for 2d/3d graphics and rendering. Also for gaming.
I guess I'm leaning towards Core i7-9700K. The i9 one just has 8 cores and I thought that it could be a good thing for cpu based rendering.

- - - Auto-Merged Double Post - - -

I would hold off until the 10th gen intel stuff comes out z390 is end of life. Should at least be able to get better performance per dollar.

you mean it's too old? But there are no other options from mini itx asus lineup

 

[bmwbaxter]

you mean it's too old? But there are no other options from mini itx asus lineup

As in it will not get any new CPU's moving forward. I believe the new intel chips and motherboards will be available end of May. If you can wait until then you will get more for your money.

 

[EarthDog]

Z490 releases within 2 weeks. With it, there will be ITX options out the door and more cores for the same price or less (motherboards will cost a bit more). The flagship is 10c/20t and less than $500. The non K version is of course less... and there will be 8c/8t CPUs in the lineup...

If you are doing 2d/3d work and rendering, you want the most cores/threads you can I believe.

 

[soundhunter]

As in it will not get any new CPU's moving forward. I believe the new intel chips and motherboards will be available end of May. If you can wait until then you will get more for your money.

I wasn't expecting them to be so soon. Yeah, in that case I can wait. I won't start earlier then that anyway.

Found it)
So it'll be ROG Strix Z490-I Gaming. And it'll be in stores pretty soon. Thanks guys!
Feels like I dodged a bullet here))

 

[bmwbaxter]

Glad we could help. Check back in with your updated list once 10th gen drops.

 

[trents]

In the horizontal position, does the case have good breathing on the top side? The lager of the two Noctua coolers you list will cool better if it has good access to fresh air. But there would be only 17mm of clearance between the fan and the lid. A tad more than the thickness of the fan itself. Also, even that larger Noctua cooler is rated for only 95 watts so be careful what CPU you choose. The 9700k would eat it up under load, I promise you, even though the CPU's TDP does not exceed the rating of the cooler. You can take TDP numbers with a grain of salt except in a rough way when comparing CPU power draws.

 

[soundhunter]

In the horizontal position, does the case have good breathing on the top side? The lager of the two Noctua coolers you list will cool better if it has good access to fresh air. But there would be only 17mm of clearance between the fan and the lid. A tad more than the thickness of the fan itself. Also, even that larger Noctua cooler is rated for only 95 watts so be careful what CPU you choose. The 9700k would eat it up under load, I promise you, even though the CPU's TDP does not exceed the rating of the cooler. You can take TDP numbers with a grain of salt except in a rough way when comparing CPU power draws.

but there are mesh panels
this is the closest I could find. https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/1055708-new-evolv-shift-build-or/
Noctua coolers and SeaSonic 650w. And he used the evolv shift which has solid panels instead of mesh ones(evolv shift air)
Idk if the cpu is the problem here. You think 650 won't be enough?

 

[trents]

The SS 650W will certainly be enough for the old 950Ti and will like cover most any one GPU card solution currently available.

If I were you, I'd limit yourself to a 65W TDP CPU if you insist on going with air cooling.

 

[soundhunter]

The SS 650W will certainly be enough for the old 950Ti and will like cover most any one GPU card solution currently available.

If I were you, I'd limit yourself to a 65W TDP CPU if you insist on going with air cooling.

I see. But gtx 980ti will be there just for some time. After that, there will be something like rtx 2070 or 2080
I'm just still afraid of water cooling) what are the odds that it'll leak?

 

[bmwbaxter]

custom water or an AIO water cooler? AIO are sealed units and are unlikely to leak if handled and installed correctly.

 

[soundhunter]

custom water or an AIO water cooler? AIO are sealed units and are unlikely to leak if handled and installed correctly.

I meant AIO.
It could make everything a bit easier if it's really safe.

 

[bmwbaxter]

AIO no reason to be concerned with leaks IMO.

 

[trents]

I agree with BMWBaxter. I've used any number of AIO water cooling units over the years and never had one leak or the pump fail. Does it ever happen. Sure, but not very often at all as long as you stick to proven brands. They're good for about five years before sludge builds up or water evaporates from the hoses. Then it's time to get another one. They are sealed units so you can't clean them or refill them. Very occasionally, even heat pipe air coolers fail because a pipe gets damaged and the coolant leaks out or the soldered end caps fail.

 

[Woomack]

Hi everyone
I'd like to get some opinions on a mini itx pc I'm going to build.
The main difficulty here is that it has to be very compact and horizontal. So for the case, I chose Phanteks evolv shift air. From everything I've seen - I guess this one will suit best.
other specs:
-ROG STRIX Z390-I GAMING
-Intel Core i9-9900 or Intel Core i7-9700K
-Noctua NH-L9x65 or Noctua NH-L9i. Yep Air cooling. And if I understand correctly, it has to be a low profile one. But maybe Noctua NH-C14S could fit too.
-old gtx 980ti will do for now
-Samsung MZ-V7S2T0BW (m.2 970 evo plus 2tb) and one more later
-32Gb(16+16) DDR4 3600MHz G.Skill Sniper X
-Seasonic FOCUS SGX 650W

This setup has no chance to be good or anywhere close if you put it into the ITX case. Any replacement from 10k series will be probably even worse if it will be rated at 95W TDP+.

1. Intel 9700/9900 heat up too much for ITX builds. You will see constant throttling because of heat and/or fans will run at max speed. Picking something from AMD right now will give you much better temps and better performance in everything but games that base on high CPU clock.

2. Noctua L9x65 or L9i are designed for low power CPUs, up to 65W TDP. There is no way it could handle anything 95W TDP from Intel which is in real 200W+ during load. I will only give you an example. Run 9700K so 95W TDP on Noctua top coolers and you will see 90°C+. Now think what will happen if you install it in a small case with limited airflow.

3. GTX980Ti is not a good idea for ITX build because of the same reason as above. I don't recommend any graphics card above 160W TDP for ITX builds. Think that wattage given by manufacturers is actually max GPU power only so if you take "170W card" then it will give around 200-220W in total under full load.

4. Check how M.2 SSD will be installed. On many motherboards, M.2 sockets on the back of the motherboard with a limited airflow cause SSD to overheat and throttle all the time.

5. Phanteks Evolv Shift Air seems improved but I had a quite bad experience with the non-air version. I assume you want this case because of how it can stand horizontally but something like NZXT H210 would be a much better option for ITX as you can install a much better/larger CPU cooler and provide a better airflow.

Sadly, there are barely any small and good ITX cases that offer reasonable airflow for both, CPU and gfx card. Most ITX gaming cases are not much smaller than a mATX or small ATX towers.

6. I recommend high-quality SFX PSU for small builds. For that, you can get a $2 ATX to SFX bracket which often comes with the PSU. SFX PSUs are smaller, have shorter cables so they are easier to install and won't cause additional problems with the airflow. Something like Corsair SF600 should be enough.


My suggestion is to find some more space for the PC and do it right.

 

[soundhunter]

This setup has no chance to be good or anywhere close if you put it into the ITX case. Any replacement from 10k series will be probably even worse if it will be rated at 95W TDP+.

1. Intel 9700/9900 heat up too much for ITX builds. You will see constant throttling because of heat and/or fans will run at max speed. Picking something from AMD right now will give you much better temps and better performance in everything but games that base on high CPU clock.

2. Noctua L9x65 or L9i are designed for low power CPUs, up to 65W TDP. There is no way it could handle anything 95W TDP from Intel which is in real 200W+ during load. I will only give you an example. Run 9700K so 95W TDP on Noctua top coolers and you will see 90°C+. Now think what will happen if you install it in a small case with limited airflow.

3. GTX980Ti is not a good idea for ITX build because of the same reason as above. I don't recommend any graphics card above 160W TDP for ITX builds. Think that wattage given by manufacturers is actually max GPU power only so if you take "170W card" then it will give around 200-220W in total under full load.

4. Check how M.2 SSD will be installed. On many motherboards, M.2 sockets on the back of the motherboard with a limited airflow cause SSD to overheat and throttle all the time.

5. Phanteks Evolv Shift Air seems improved but I had a quite bad experience with the non-air version. I assume you want this case because of how it can stand horizontally but something like NZXT H210 would be a much better option for ITX as you can install a much better/larger CPU cooler and provide a better airflow.

Sadly, there are barely any small and good ITX cases that offer reasonable airflow for both, CPU and gfx card. Most ITX gaming cases are not much smaller than a mATX or small ATX towers.

6. I recommend high-quality SFX PSU for small builds. For that, you can get a $2 ATX to SFX bracket which often comes with the PSU. SFX PSUs are smaller, have shorter cables so they are easier to install and won't cause additional problems with the airflow. Something like Corsair SF600 should be enough.


My suggestion is to find some more space for the PC and do it right.

thanks for the answer
what if it's something like NZXT H210 or ncase m1 v6 with a liquid cooling for cpu?
other specs are almost the same
upcoming ROG Strix Z490-I Gaming
intel i10 (not sure which one yet)
liquid cooling or something like Noctua NH-D15/Noctua NH-U9S
+ 2 more fans on top and back
gtx 980ti and something like rtx 2070 or 2080 later
Samsung MZ-V7S2T0BW (m.2 970 evo plus 2tb) and one more later
32Gb(16+16) DDR4 3600MHz G.Skill Sniper X
Seasonic PRIME Platinum 750W

 

[Woomack]

In H210 you can install AIO with 240 radiator. Can still install 2x 120mm fans next to the CPU so there shouldn't be any issues with the airflow. However, you have to check if there is a chance to install your GTX980Ti with radiator in front. There should be maybe 250mm space but I'm counting that quickly from memory so I can be wrong. The safe option would be to get something like Noctua U12S (can install 2nd fan) or U12A (comes with 2 fans but is quite expensive) which should perform about the same as 240 AIO.
Again, I don't recommend 8 core+ Intel chips for ITX but I'm not sure how lower chips from the new generation will act. I have only 10900K and can't really share results because of NDA till May 20.

 

[EarthDog]

I have only 10900K and can't really share results because of NDA till May 20.

The NDA changed again? I thought it was the 21st?