[First build] Glowing Cube

taikiat

Junior Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2010
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
It's my first build and I was looking to have something slightly future proofed mid-level gaming build able to fulfill my 60 fps 1080 gaming needs, and being small enough for my fiancee to not take notice of it, and serve as a part time HTPC. Because I'm crazy about the blue glow, I'm including all I can to make it even bluish :)

Motherboard and processor: Due to my small room size I needed something that could fit in roughly a square foot of space. M-itx was the way to go. Since oc-ing isn't really my thing, I guess the bundle above was more than enough to fill my needs. Integrated wifi also saved me some trouble.

Video card: For all 970s it was down to the Palit or Zotac for me due to budget. Chose the zotac because I preferred fan design to blower design. So far has been doing okay. Plan to oc it when it's reaching EOL or warranty up. Hitting 72 degrees at 80% fan speed. I guess that's normal in SG weather?

PSU: Modular. Meets power needs. Reliable.

RAM: I like the G.skill for the design. 8 Gb is more than enough for now. 1600 Mhz is what my mobo can take and I don't know what's CL 9. So I got this.

SSD: Everyone's going on and on about the EVO. My friend had some first hand experience that it slowed down a lot after awhile, so I'm on the crucial, which seems to be the next best choice. My only regret is not getting the 512 Gb version, but hey, that's about as much cash I can fork out.

HDD: Not gonna go all crazy on this one. Just your average HDD.

Case: This was one of the hardest choices. Either the Cooler Master Elite 110 or the Core V1. Cable management and thus airflow does seem to be slightly better in the Core V1. Never regretted by decision. Now I've got the stock 200mm in front and twin 80mm exhausts at the back just to make things a little cooler. Not the coolest case (temperature wise) in the world, but my parts are still a little away from threshold temps and I doubt things would be better in the 110. Unfprtunately 80mm led fans have gone extinct in Singapore so I'm stuck with the standard cooler master 80mms.

I'm happy with my build so far. tricked it out with a little blue led strip by the side running off my GPU. Gonna enjoy it with my old games and upcoming ones. Hope it lasts for a good 4 - 5 years!

Right now am scouting for a 2.1 speaker system. Would appreciate recommendations and whether I have a need to get additional parts like sound card etc!

My build...
142263.3eca1c2a51efc92ed9b4e7be867d3105.6e74a6b3d7dedd57897e964bc13430a7.1600.jpg

142263.2686e3dee2da1031d12f8b1d49d10fbd.4f7830ec0c622b930acd550cf70b7d7c.1600.jpg

142263.7b2beca7e79dd5398c70337383dc980e.15da675db6229b490ef1a80a3b327723.1600.jpg

142263.c6d4ea0372634e672220cf4ceed6ce4a.473409ac5ab7ad2d8dcf921cf770bf7c.1600.jpg

142263.959f6bde45c899cc2a1448d0358a6ddb.59c695da7cff0ba436514912030263ae.1600.jpg

142263.660b0e4b03bc682fa8a4d0d54d3587d9.751ac2d8784454a384fc76fe6c0a1dc5.1600.jpg

142263.fe87dc427a6fd270df1ec4c4f3e3e6fb.eac16d84680e7ac0b3f29d8c6ad615f4.1600.jpg
 

shadow84

High Supremacy Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2009
Messages
34,286
Reaction score
420
ITX dun even have space for future expansion like soundcard... How to get? Your only choice is getting external DAC.

As for speakers, budget?
 

taikiat

Junior Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2010
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Yea I didn't consider that point when planning out this build. If I could do away with soundcards that would be feasible, just worried it won't do the speakers justice. I'm not really sure how audio works. As for budget wise I'm looking at $200-$300.
 

shadow84

High Supremacy Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2009
Messages
34,286
Reaction score
420
Yea I didn't consider that point when planning out this build. If I could do away with soundcards that would be feasible, just worried it won't do the speakers justice. I'm not really sure how audio works. As for budget wise I'm looking at $200-$300.

At that price, can consider Swans M50W. RRP is $329, but gt some shops that may sell close to $300.
 
Important Forum Advisory Note
This forum is moderated by volunteer moderators who will react only to members' feedback on posts. Moderators are not employees or representatives of HWZ Forums. Forum members and moderators are responsible for their own posts. Please refer to our Community Guidelines and Standards and Terms and Conditions for more information.
Top