Recommendations for a compact gaming rig?

[Gymrat76]

Hi, I’m toying with replacing my current 6-year old desktop at some point and just wanted to see what are the options for small form factor (the smaller the better) that is still decent for gaming that would support a discrete GPU. Budget around $2k (plus or minus), just the CPU no need peripherals like monitors, keyboards etc.

I game a bit less nowadays so I don’t need a high spec GPU, but what is the current sweet spot between price/performance and future proofing? I was looking at something like the 3060Ti or 3070, or maybe that’s overkill for what I need? Would such cards be hampered by heat load in small form factor cases? Would liquid cooling solutions be feasible (can they fit into micro/tiny form factor cases?)

Have been out of the hardware game so long and spent 2-3 hours last night looking at different builds, and some even recommending PCs from AliExpress!

Appreciate if you guys can point me in the right direction so I can research more. Thanks

 

[gremioo8]

I am looking at velka 3/5 to build, something like

Looks so good in pictures here and there, still debating how practical it is for me, idk
r/sffpc , https://smallformfactor.net/
or something more normal, https://lian-li.com/product/a4h2o/

although my recommendations are both kinda hyped and overpriced i believe

 

[Koenig168]

For SFF, you can consider the popular NR200. S$109 for the White version. You can pay a bit more for tempered glass but I prefer the steel panel for the ventilation holes.

https://www.amazon.sg/Cooler-Master...26d-9b9c-4a66f71cb838&pd_rd_i=B08BFJ8V8C&th=1
As for the GPU, you might wish to hold off for the time being until the 4000 series launches sometime this year.

 

[Gymrat76]

Thanks guys, I’ll look into these. I guess with the SFF cooling would be key. I saw that NZXT has a mini-ITX (NZXT H1 V2) that comes with a 750W SFX and liquid cooling built in for CPU though a bit more ex. Wondering if there are any liquid cooled 3060Ti/3070 cards or good blower type cards that would go well there?

Noted on the 4000 series coming out, which should hopefully drop prices of the 3000 series. Not in a hurry, just starting to toy with the idea since my current rig still works with what I’m doing/playing (now only Diablo Immortal haha), mostly just light work and surfing/watching videos. But I do wanna get back into a bit of gaming at some point

 

[Gymrat76]

Thanks guys, I’ll look into these. I guess with the SFF cooling would be key. I saw that NZXT has a mini-ITX (NZXT H1 V2) that comes with a 750W SFX and liquid cooling built in for CPU though a bit more ex. Wondering if there are any liquid cooled 3060Ti/3070 cards or good blower type cards that would go well there?

Noted on the 4000 series coming out, which should hopefully drop prices of the 3000 series. Not in a hurry, just starting to toy with the idea since my current rig still works with what I’m doing/playing (now only Diablo Immortal haha), mostly just light work and surfing/watching videos. But I do wanna get back into a bit of gaming at some point

Also to add, not intending to change my monitor (Asus Predator 1st Gen).. so mostly will be gaMing at 1440p, no need 4K cards/specs for now?

 

[NightRaven49]

For SFF, you can consider the popular NR200. S$109 for the White version. You can pay a bit more for tempered glass but I prefer the steel panel for the ventilation holes.

nr200 is a poor choice for sff when the tecware fusion exists. nr200 is right on the edge of being considered sff (<20l), and for the same money or less u could get a much smaller case like the sg13. u wont be able to tell the difference in size between nr200 and fusion without putting them side by side, but the fusion offers native support for matx boards and atx psus, which also tend to be cheaper than itx and sfx psus respectively that u will be forced to use in the nr200. the fusion with the tg panel costs less than the nr200 without tg, and if u know where to look on taobao, u can get it direct from the oem for half the price shipped.

Wondering if there are any liquid cooled 3060Ti/3070 cards or good blower type cards that would go well there?

short of looking for cards pulled from oem systems like thinkcentres, it will be difficult to source blower cards for those models since the regular diy cards from aibs have moved on from blower designs for a while now. there will almost certainly be no liquid cooled models either as these are cheaper and lower power cards that dont require such exotic cooling; these are usually reserved for the flagship gpus where the margins are higher.

Also to add, not intending to change my monitor (Asus Predator 1st Gen).. so mostly will be gaMing at 1440p, no need 4K cards/specs for now?

well u did say u will be sticking to ur monitor, so i dont see any reason to spend more on a faster card that delivers the same experience as a slower cheaper card would.

 

[KYZT2021]

Can consider this

https://www.carousell.sg/p/grey-gam...er_request_id=LnkIDm4LGNvq5c0C&t-tap_index=26

 

[NightRaven49]

since i was kinda bored and already specced out a 3060ti build here, i tried to see if i could do the same in the smallest case possible. however, this does also mean that u will have to resort to buying from taobao, since it will be very difficult to source the case and psu elsewhere.

from more familiar sources:
i5 12400f + gigabyte b660i aorus pro ddr4 = $557 tradepac
corsair vengeance OR klevv bolt x 2x 8gb 3600mhz ddr4 ram = ~$90 amazon sg
samsung 970 evo plus 1tb = $145 amazon sg
evga 3060 ti = $780 dynacore

from taobao:
enhance 7660b 600w 80+ plat = $160 with direct cainiao air shipping. very overkill for the hardware, but should be the least headache given that most other flex atx psus tend to be quite noisy and necessitate replacement of the fan.
the case is the finicky part, since u should ship these by sea for the cheapest rates. cainiao sea shipping is quite expensive, so i would recommend 3rd party forwarders like ezship. this also means that shipping costs are unknown until the case actually reaches the warehouse, so for now just allocate about $100 budget for the case. i will still list the prices of the cases i recommend below, which are around the 6l mark and can fit the 3060ti.
stupid cow (literal translation ) u20 + riser = $55
dream d21 + riser = $40
sirius t10 + riser = $65

total: ~$1850, though should be closer to 1.8, depending on shipping fee. u can also opt for other low profile coolers to replace the intel stock cooler, like the noctua l9i 17xx for $60 off carousell (nvx) brand new.