Need advice on Mini-ITX gaming build

[Killer_Rubber_Ducky]

I am building a mini-ITX gaming rig for a friend of mine based in Okinawa Japan. I will be shipping it to him with him paying shipping and handling. Hence the Mini-ITX.

This is the current configuration I have for him. He gave me a max price of $1500 which must include a copy of Windows, a BD Drive, Wireless AC, Keyboard, and Mouse. I would like to add a Liquid cooler for the CPU but am having a hard time selecting a good one. Some say an 212 EVO would be fine but the limited clearance over the CPU from the fact the PSU is mounted above the CPU seems to point to Coolermaster intending people to use liquid cooling. I also want to improve the cooling as much as possible. I plan to add the DEMCiflex Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini-ITX Magnetic Dust / Fan Filter Set - 4 Piece kit from FrozenCPU to help keep the dust out of the case.
Another thing I need advice on is which R9 290 to put in the case? I would prefer to have it exhaust out the back of the case but still want a ballin 290 for the money. The original idea was to go with a 770 but the 290 whoops the 770 on most everything according to Anandtech and PCPerspective as well as others.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M-ITX/AC Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($88.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Tri-X Video Card ($389.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($43.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-R8 redux-1800 PWM 31.4 CFM 80mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: Corsair Vengeance K65 Compact Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Wired Gaming Keyboard ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Logitech G500s Laser Gaming Mouse Wired Laser Mouse ($52.48 @ Amazon)
Total: $1358.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[LaytonJnr]

Hello,

That looks like a very solid build. I assume you chose the CM Elite for its size, however you do lose quite a bit of functionality. I personally would be tempted into getting a larger case, but of course that means more shipping costs. Unfortunately the CM Hyper 212 EVO does not fit at all AFAIK, however one of the best low profile CPU coolers if you don't like the stock heatsink is the Zalman CNPS8900 Quiet Edition. It does surprisingly well for its tiny footprint.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118126

Or its older brother, the CNPS8900 Extreme Edition:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118127

Layton


EDIT: Some more websites about low-profile heatsinks:

http://www.frostytech.com/top5_lowprofile_heatsinks.cfm
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/low-profile-heat-sink-mini-itx,review-32826.html

 

[Killer_Rubber_Ducky]

I was planning on putting in a AIO Liquid CPU cooler but cant decide on a 120mm one. Replacing the 120mm front fan with the 120mm AIO liquid cooler radiator is the idea. I also want to find a ballin R9 290 that also exhausts out the back if possible.

 

[Fourstaff]

Reduce the power supply to about 600w, 750w is a bit too high and not optimum. You may consider taking out the extra case fan and using normal instead of mechanical keyboard to save weight, along with the HDD.

 

[Killer_Rubber_Ducky]

That is not an extra case fan. I wanted to replace the stock case 80mm fan with a better one. The keyboard is something that is not something he would know how to pick.