- Joined
- Sep 2, 2015
- Location
- Virginia, USA
I've been building computers since 1976 and I'd say I have a bit of experience under my belt however as I age, I tend to not stay as up to date on things like I use to so I thought it would be a great opportunity to come here and ask for some advice/pointers on a new system I plan to build one way or another.
My current system is an old i7-950 that I built back in later 2009 and I've got 24GB of RAM (the CPU wouldn't handle the 32GB I purchased, what an idiot I was wasting money). So my system is no slouch however it has a few drawbacks... It's power hungry, the fans are a bit too loud (not terrible at all, just irritating), and I want to build my last computer for the next 5-6 years. I do a lot of VMWare Workstation work so all that RAM does not get wasted. This is not a gaming computer so fancy looking hardware is not a selling point, although I would expect most expensive hardware will look good and be targeted at gamers.
Here are my requirements and lets put money to the side for now. It always plays a factor but at least for the initial design we can just go crazy provided we stay within the expectations of the design.
CPU
RAM
MB
SSD
Case
Cooling
What I desire is a small compact super computer that is ultra quiet. I wish fanless was an option but I know better, you need to have some well thought out air flow to keep things cool. I'm thinking because I want such a small case that water cooled is the only way to go however I have never heard how loud the water pump is. I keep thinking about a fish tank pump which is loud and would irritate the heck out of me. I'd like the ability to OC the CPU as well, it's always fun to play. If the CPU heatsink could be part of the case side to dissipate heat, that would work too but I don't see that kind of stuff in the civilian sector, only military applications/custom equipment.
One thing I also plan to do it install a drive selector switch to kill power to the PCI-E slot. Why you ask, because I need to be able to boot my computer from two different drives and the offline drive to not be exposed because a VM can only isolate you so much, testing using a separate drive makes things very safe. I can do that with the normal 2.5" SATA drives because the power cables are exposed and I can cut the +3.3VDC, +5VDC, and +12VDC with a single TPDT key switch and power on the drives I want. This just makes my current system easier to use than swapping in and out drives. I do have removable drive bays but the switch is much better in the long run. Implementing this on an M2 connected PCI-E interface may be a little more challenging but those SSDs have crazy fast throughput speeds! When I build a new computer, I build an entirely new computer.
I know this may sound like a crazy project but it's one I will be taking on.
So I was looking at the i7 Skylake CPU, not sure it's worth the cost of the upgrade, I thought I'd read another Intel CPU was coming out soon even though Skylake was just released. Intel is crazy I guess. I have yet to see a MB in the Mini-ITX form factor using the Z170 chipset while supporting USB 3.1 at the same time.
The case is probably the most difficult item to select because of clearance issues while trying to keep it small, also I could see moving up to a larger MB if the overall case was still small. And I'd like a solid steel case. My current case I've had for maybe 15+ years (17"H x 19"D x 8"W). Solid construction! I've had at least 4 different systems inside it. But this case is a mid-ATX tower and is a beast to carry around. I just want a challenge to make a fast computer in a small case. If it fails, I still have this great case I can use.
Sorry this was so lengthy, I wanted to try to be clear on what I wanted for this project. Oh, and I will not go out and purchase a single component unless it's a CPU or MB and it's on a great sale. I'd prefer to wait until I know all the parts will fit together or I can modify the case to make it fit. You young kids out there are likely to know it all so asking for some assistance isn't out of my vocabulary.
In the meantime I'm looking for a good keyboard with MX Brown keys and laser etched key caps, the kind that don't wear off like mine at work, I get so many complaints from folks sitting down at my computer to use it for a few minutes because they can't find the right keys. I just laugh. But my keyboard at home is wearing out and my wife and daughter will start complaining too, so this gives me the opportunity to by a new good quality keyboard. NewEgg has a refurbed unit on sale but the reviews were not that positive so I'll have to pass.
Cheers!
-Joe
My current system is an old i7-950 that I built back in later 2009 and I've got 24GB of RAM (the CPU wouldn't handle the 32GB I purchased, what an idiot I was wasting money). So my system is no slouch however it has a few drawbacks... It's power hungry, the fans are a bit too loud (not terrible at all, just irritating), and I want to build my last computer for the next 5-6 years. I do a lot of VMWare Workstation work so all that RAM does not get wasted. This is not a gaming computer so fancy looking hardware is not a selling point, although I would expect most expensive hardware will look good and be targeted at gamers.
Here are my requirements and lets put money to the side for now. It always plays a factor but at least for the initial design we can just go crazy provided we stay within the expectations of the design.
CPU
- The latest & greatest CPU that support 32GB DDR4 RAM
- Graphics should be built in to the CPU to reduce the size of the device
RAM
- 32GB DDR4 Memory (the faster the better that actually runs solid, no burps)
MB
- MB which can support OC'ing
- USB 3.1 interface
- M2 PCI-E SSD interface (two slots would be ideal but not a deal breaker)
SSD
- 500GB or 1TB (whatever is available) PCI-E M2 SSD
Case
- Very small and compact, (Mini-ITX size would be what I'm shooting for but not a deal breaker)
- Ultra quiet (28 dBa or below would be ideal)
Cooling
- Whatever fits into a small case while beating the hell out of the CPU
- A few very quiet case fans
What I desire is a small compact super computer that is ultra quiet. I wish fanless was an option but I know better, you need to have some well thought out air flow to keep things cool. I'm thinking because I want such a small case that water cooled is the only way to go however I have never heard how loud the water pump is. I keep thinking about a fish tank pump which is loud and would irritate the heck out of me. I'd like the ability to OC the CPU as well, it's always fun to play. If the CPU heatsink could be part of the case side to dissipate heat, that would work too but I don't see that kind of stuff in the civilian sector, only military applications/custom equipment.
One thing I also plan to do it install a drive selector switch to kill power to the PCI-E slot. Why you ask, because I need to be able to boot my computer from two different drives and the offline drive to not be exposed because a VM can only isolate you so much, testing using a separate drive makes things very safe. I can do that with the normal 2.5" SATA drives because the power cables are exposed and I can cut the +3.3VDC, +5VDC, and +12VDC with a single TPDT key switch and power on the drives I want. This just makes my current system easier to use than swapping in and out drives. I do have removable drive bays but the switch is much better in the long run. Implementing this on an M2 connected PCI-E interface may be a little more challenging but those SSDs have crazy fast throughput speeds! When I build a new computer, I build an entirely new computer.
I know this may sound like a crazy project but it's one I will be taking on.
So I was looking at the i7 Skylake CPU, not sure it's worth the cost of the upgrade, I thought I'd read another Intel CPU was coming out soon even though Skylake was just released. Intel is crazy I guess. I have yet to see a MB in the Mini-ITX form factor using the Z170 chipset while supporting USB 3.1 at the same time.
The case is probably the most difficult item to select because of clearance issues while trying to keep it small, also I could see moving up to a larger MB if the overall case was still small. And I'd like a solid steel case. My current case I've had for maybe 15+ years (17"H x 19"D x 8"W). Solid construction! I've had at least 4 different systems inside it. But this case is a mid-ATX tower and is a beast to carry around. I just want a challenge to make a fast computer in a small case. If it fails, I still have this great case I can use.
Sorry this was so lengthy, I wanted to try to be clear on what I wanted for this project. Oh, and I will not go out and purchase a single component unless it's a CPU or MB and it's on a great sale. I'd prefer to wait until I know all the parts will fit together or I can modify the case to make it fit. You young kids out there are likely to know it all so asking for some assistance isn't out of my vocabulary.
In the meantime I'm looking for a good keyboard with MX Brown keys and laser etched key caps, the kind that don't wear off like mine at work, I get so many complaints from folks sitting down at my computer to use it for a few minutes because they can't find the right keys. I just laugh. But my keyboard at home is wearing out and my wife and daughter will start complaining too, so this gives me the opportunity to by a new good quality keyboard. NewEgg has a refurbed unit on sale but the reviews were not that positive so I'll have to pass.
Cheers!
-Joe
So the specific case will determine what needs to be done, hopefully nothing but I like to work with fiberglass with my RC Airplanes so this would be fairly easy to accomplish in a professional way.
