Wanting to build gaming rig in Mini-Case.

[HeadRusch]

I know...SLI...with a MicroATX motherboard..in a mini case.

Is it possible?

I'm probably looking at some dual core AMD chip that I can overclock a bit, and a MB with SLI slots on it for an Nvidia solution.

Ideally I'm looking for a mini case...HOWEVER...I'd be willing to step up to a HTPC-style case (larger, roomer desktop configuration) but I'm not entirely sure what to look for.

Suggestions?

 

[Tyreal]

Indeed it is!
Look for the EVGA MATX SLI board.

 

[HeadRusch]

Indeed it is!
Look for the EVGA MATX SLI board.

Sadly, it looks like this board has 2 slots that only support 8x each.

With my eye on the future, I was hoping for dual x16 slots to allow me to go Quad-SLI at some point.

Right now I am actually kinda *****ed*. You see I have a perfectly good chip (P4 Northwood running at 3.4Ghz), 2 gigs of ram, but its all Socket 478 and AGP. I can't really go any higher with my AGP part, nothing dramatic anyhow, and I can't find a MB that supports SLI that would allow me to run my chip, ram, etc.

ITS IRRITATING.

The gripe is that I just picked up a 1080p monitor on the cheap, and the 6800GT o/c'ed is struggling to drive it at that resolution on several games without compromising the video quality settings. I can settle for a lower resolution played in a window, but that feels like cheating (the monitor is 37" wide).

I was hoping to put together a decent chip/mb/ram combo that would hold me for awhile, and throw in one of those new SLI-on-a-card solutions for the video, but chip wise...I feel like I'm just buying the same thing I already have. Yes, dual cores and whatnot (running at a slower overall clockspeed than what I have now)....so its a little depressing.

And these aren't DX10 cards either, another looming issue.

*sigh*

What are you guys doing now for upgrades and overclocks....where are the bang-for-the-buck buys these days?

 

[russ_da_bus]

Check my sig. I have a Biostar TForce 6100-939 mobo, its not SLi but its a great overclocker, its like the little brother of the DFI Ultra-D in terms of bios options. Managed to clock my opty 146 to 2.8 no probs. I have a Sugo Evolution case which does the job and looks nice.