Mini-ITX Case Suggestions

[xvi]

I have a basically completed mini-ITX build that's been sitting around doing nothing because I stole the case it was in. I'm starting to feel guilty about just letting it sit, so I'm thinking I better pick up a case for it.

Intended hardware (going off of memory):
Intel Pentium G3258 Anniversary Edition
MSI Z87i Gaming
Some random ATX PSU just laying around
Radeon HD7870 GHz Edition (alternative, HD 6450, possibly iGPU)

In a nutshell, I'd like it to tick the following boxes:
Cheap
Tiny
Ideal mounting for 120mm AIO Cooler (current cooler is making poor contact with CPU, so this might be swapped to air)

Nice to have:
Room to mount regular ATX PSU
Toolless mounting/generally good design
One or two 3.5" drive bays (thinking of having it double as little file server)

Not needed:
5.25" Drive Bay/Optical Drive


Poking through some of the threads in this subforum, I've seen the following suggested:
Silverstone ML08 (no watercooling support, surprisingly compact, but a bit too small)

Suggested cases:
Thermaltake Core V1 $49+0 (Large, but good otherwise)
SilverStone SG05B $40+? (Needs ITX PSU, one 3.5", good looks)
Cooler Master Elite 110 $40+9 (Smaller, but fits all things. 3x3.5"? Nice!)
RAIJINTEK Metis $50+0 (Good looking, but only fits 1x3.5")
Thermaltake Suppressor F1 $60+0 (Larger? Looks decent, really.)

Suggested, but pricey:
Thermaltake Core V21 $70
Fractal Design Node 304 $70
Rosewill Legacy W1 $70 (Out of Stock)
SilverStone SG08B-LITE $75
Bitfenix Prodigy $85

Thoughts?

 

[cadaveca]

Bitfenix Prodigy? Might be a bit large for ya though.

 

[Norton]

Thermaltake Core V1

This has my vote

 

[qynqy]

Thermaltake Suppressor F1

 

[T.R.]

Thermaltake Core V1

Or Fractal Design Node 304

 

[peche]

Thermaltake Core V21

this is my option ...

Thermaltake Suppressor F1

OP is looking for almost cube cases or small ones, thats a mid tower.....

 

[cdawall]

SG05B has support for everything, but the full ATX PSU. I even had 2x120m rads in mine.

 

[Moofachuka]

Lian Li PC-O5SX I think it looks pretty nice

 

[sneekypeet]

OP is looking for almost cube cases or small ones, thats a mid tower.....

nope, not at all...http://www.thermaltake.com/products-model.aspx?id=C_00002727

 

[PLAfiller]

The first two tick boxes you said: "cheap, tiny" - > try Cooler Master Elite 110 . For about 30 - 40 bucks and you solve your problem. I wouldn't say Silverstone cases are cheap. On a side note, if you poke around for CM elite 110/ 100 second hand, it will probably cost as much as big mac combo

 

[peche]

nope, not at all...http://www.thermaltake.com/products-model.aspx?id=C_00002727

my bad, got confused and misread F51 which is the mid tower model,
my bad

 

[sneekypeet]

my bad, got confused and misread F51 which is the mid tower model,
my bad

Believe me, I thought similar at first and let google sort it out for me.

 

[peche]

Believe me, I thought similar at first and let google sort it out for me.

i never thought the will make a suppressor cube case...

 

[alucasa]

I believe Rosewill resells some aluminum mini-itx cases. Newegg has some.

Rosewill Legacy W1 is my favorite among their selection. Check Lian Li website also. They've got a bunch.

 

[tabascosauz]

Need 120mm AIO? SG13. Need capable 92mm air cooler? SG08-Lite (needs to have a short PSU, 240mm rad mod done before). Need bigger 120mm air cooler? Node 304 / Core 500. Elite 110 if you don't care about graphics card length, Elite 120 or 130 if you feel like SG13 or SG08 is too SFF for your liking.

Nothing else really meets those requirements.

 

[xvi]

Well, this will certainly take some research. Updated original post with all suggestions (may have missed some). I'll clean it up a bit when I get a chance. I almost reserved the second post here for research, but figured I wouldn't need it. I regret that now.

Note to self, read this some time later.

Bitfenix Prodigy? Might be a bit large for ya though.

The feet and handles seem a bit like wasted space, but the old Mac Pro look is nice. Will have to check layout.

Thermaltake Suppressor F1

Looks like people have crammed a lot of mods in this thing. Looks interesting.

Or Fractal Design Node 304

Looks like it fits a surprising amount of things in not much space (holy drive storage, Batman!). Price is more than I hoped, but less than I feared. Could be worth it.

SG05B has support for everything, but the full ATX PSU. I even had 2x120m rads in mine.

Looks like this is the most compact of them all. Google Image Search comes up with a number of people who have successfully mounted a Corsair H50 in them (I have an Coolit Eco II, basically same thing). Wish the SFX PSU wasn't an extra expense though.

Lian Li PC-O5SX I think it looks pretty nice

Looks nice, but is sadly rather expensive. Also, I'm not the biggest fan of Lian Li. (Sacrilege, I know!)

The first two tick boxes you said: "cheap, tiny" - > try Cooler Master Elite 110

I'm really liking the CM Elite 110. Seems like a good mix of compactness and capacity. Looks like there's mounts for a couple fans to blow directly over the motherboard too, which is a definite bonus. Also, that price is right on. It looks like Newegg usually has it for $30, but has raise the price to $40 with $10 MIR. I've set an alert to tell me when it's back under $30 again. Me likey.

Need 120mm AIO? SG13.

Strong contender to the CM Elite 110 (and smaller too, I think). Honestly leaning towards this over the 110.

SG08-Lite

Little pricier, seems a bit larger. Would certainly be nice for higher powered CPUs though.

Node 304

I like the airflow design on this case, but seems large. Looks like a good solution for 120mm heatpipe coolers though. Google shows lots of people using this case with an Xigmatek S1283, which I happen to have laying around. If I went for air, this would probably be close to ideal.

if you don't care about graphics card length, Elite 120 or 130 if you feel like SG13 or SG08 is too SFF for your liking.

Probably small GPUs only for this rig (with a slight possibility of just using the iGPU). Can't see myself going too crazy with it.

Rosewill Legacy W1 is my favorite among their selection.

Out of stock and among the higher priced of the pack. I'll definitely have to skim through Rosewill's offerings though.

 

[alucasa]

The Rosewill Legacy W1 is just a rebrand of Jonsbo. (Google it). Jonsbo is very similar to Lian Li. All aluminum stuff, very high end.

 

[cdawall]

@xvi I had an h70 with a 38mm fan in mine for years. I eventually added a watercolor gtx470 and dual thin high fpi 120mm rads with a single 38mm fan in between.

 

[tabascosauz]

@xvi true, SFX PSUs are expensive and if you stick with the brand that has experience (SS and not Be Quiet, for example, though you're welcome to try), you really only have two choices: ST45SF-G and ST45SF. Neither are quiet PSUs if you put a lot of wattage on them. However, you get what you pay for, and that's a well built and reliable unit in a very small size (you will only know once you hold one in the palm of your hand).

You will find that cramming a respectable card, 120mm AIO, and ATX PSU into a SG13 will not be an easy task, but it's certainly doable if you choose the right PSU that makes your life easier. I tend not to like AIOs because they make rigs a lot more cramped and messy when SFF is the order of the day, and my SG05 serves to be reliable and easy-to-service above all else.

The issue with the SG05 and SG13 is that you'll need a card that has its PCIe power connectors along the top edge of the card, not at the end. I hope your 7870 meets this requirement. Really short cards that are strictly the length of the PCIe slot or a bit longer can get by, but any longer...well, you get the idea.

 

[Liquid Cool]

xvi...

I think the Lian Li PC-Q33B might be worth a look....

Click Here

I like the fact the power supply is on the bottom and the motherboard is sitting flat on its own tray. I like this design better than the power supply fan facing the motherboard. There is also a 120mm rear fan above the I/O shield area, looks like an AIO would fit. If not...it looks like this case can handle a pretty good size cooler.

Whatever you end up with....the best of luck! ,

Liquid Cool

 

[alucasa]

If you want to look at a build using Lian LI PC-Q33, look at my thread which I built my main rig around PC-Q33.

http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/my-latest-mini-itx-builds.218444/

 

[Norton]

Hey @xvi check out some of these offerings from Raijintek

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...tegory=7&Manufactory=120293&SpeTabStoreType=1

Pretty neat designs/nice colors