Getting ready to build a mITX gaming rig

[StrykerX]

Not only is their performance so far behind, stupid OS makers decide to force the mobile way of doing things on me so I double hate it.

on Windows 8, install Classic Start, makes it into a decent OS again, it's not Windows 7, but it's close.

The only thing that's stopping me from building my own new PC is being afraid of pitting on the CPU cooler. I'm afraid I won't install it right.

Modern systems will shut down before overheating and the coolers are easier than then used to be. It's not like the uncapped AMD days where if you installed it wrong, you cracked the processor.

Last time I built a computer was about 10 years ago. I'm out of the loop with some of the new lingo.

I want to get back into PC gaming. Especially after seeing what Sony and Microsoft have coming down the pipe.

I just wish I had more time for gaming

[Leslieann]

LOL, so ok new task manager, and new file copy transfer screen..  that's totally worth the 5 hours it took me to set it up and install all my programs, a few of which stopped working.

I didn't say it was worth switching to. LOL

As for the laptop vs desktop conversation, those people complaining about using a laptop for work have clearly never tried the Macbook Pro & Thunderbolt Display setup. It basically makes my laptop feel like a desktop. One plug (I love you, Thunderbolt) and my beautiful 27" display, keyboard and mouse automatically are powered up. The laptop is ludicrously fast enough to handle any task I throw at it and has almost as high of a resolution (Retina!) as my 27" Display. Thank god for SSD's. And I can take it on the go when I need, of course.

A Mac for work... Sorry, no.
Do I really need to list all of the reasons why?

[StrykerX]

I would love to hear your reasons why. Clearly you're not in the tech industry, it's 90% Macs.

[alaricljs]

The tech industry is 90% macs?  What tech industry is that?

[IvanIvanovich]

Maybe Mac is still high in graphic design, print, maybe architecture and still pretty high in music production. Other than that Mac has a very low market share in business.

[StrykerX]

The tech industry is 90% macs?  What tech industry is that?

Silicon Valley.

http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1036/5178840073_8aec5f41f8_o.jpg

[Leslieann]

I would love to hear your reasons why. Clearly you're not in the tech industry, it's 90% Macs.

Did you write that with a straight face?
Silicone Valley may be home of the tech industry, but it's not the average business and just because a bunch of geeks, hipsters and college kids use Macs, that means absolutely nothing to the rest of the business world.


As for why...
If you work in I.T. you should know why, lack of compatibility being the primary reason. Going into an office and not knowing if your laptop can even print or even access required websites, is not a good feeling. There is also costs of repairs, upgrades, software, support... Silicone Valley is not small town America, you can't simply throw a rock and hit a Mac "specialist". In fact, in many small towns you would be lucky to even find a Mac at all.

And I do work in the tech industry, I have my own business in I.T. servicing dozens of non-tech businesses.

[StrykerX]

I would love to hear your reasons why. Clearly you're not in the tech industry, it's 90% Macs.

Did you write that with a straight face?
Silicone Valley may be home of the tech industry, but it's not the average business and just because a bunch of geeks, hipsters and college kids use Macs, that means absolutely nothing to the rest of the business world.


As for why...
If you work in I.T. you should know why, lack of compatibility being the primary reason. Going into an office and not knowing if your laptop can even print or even access required websites, is not a good feeling. There is also costs of repairs, upgrades, software, support... Silicone Valley is not small town America, you can't simply throw a rock and hit a Mac "specialist". In fact, in many small towns you would be lucky to even find a Mac at all.

And I do work in the tech industry, I have my own business in I.T. servicing dozens of non-tech businesses.

I should have been more specific. I don't mean the average business. I mean hardcore tech. Silicon Valley, LA tech scene, Austin, New York, Boulder, etc. Macs dominate those. I have zero compatibility problems in my industry. So to say that they are a poor work machine for tech is just ignorant.

I'm all for preference. I use Windows on my desktop, I even have Windows 7 on my Mac via Bootcamp. It's still the best Windows laptop I've ever had. But to say it's bad for a work computer is just senseless.

[alaricljs]

So 5% of the tech industry then?

[StrykerX]

So 5% of the tech industry then?

I don't think you can find the exact numbers out there but you'd be hard pressed to find a Windows computer at most of biggest tech companies in the world. I think that says something about Macs being good work computers. That said, I have nothing against Windows, and prefer it for my gaming PC. But I love my 13" Retina Macbook Pro and Thunderbolt Display combo and I'm incredibly productive on it.

[alaricljs]

So 5% of the tech industry then?

... you'd be hard pressed to find a Windows computer at most of biggest tech companies in the world. ...

Um, yeah... Sorry but I work for one of the largest software companies and have friends in others on the list.  We do not provide Macs to anyone except as a shared development environment.  We have no love for Windows, however.  With over 100k employees in the company we have less than 100 company owned Macs.  On the other hand we do have some users that can't live without their Mac, you have to purchase and support it yourself.  In my organization there are 3 guys that do this.  My org has several hundred members.

[Leslieann]

I should have been more specific. I don't mean the average business. I mean hardcore tech. Silicon Valley, LA tech scene, Austin, New York, Boulder, etc. Macs dominate those. I have zero compatibility problems in my industry. So to say that they are a poor work machine for tech is just ignorant.

I'm all for preference. I use Windows on my desktop, I even have Windows 7 on my Mac via Bootcamp. It's still the best Windows laptop I've ever had. But to say it's bad for a work computer is just senseless.

Sorry, but I'm still not buying it.

Considering how many companies in the tech industry make PC's and PC parts, while doing very little to support Mac, it doesn't support what you are saying. You are looking at the low level geeks, you aren't looking at the business as a whole. IF it was that full of Macs, Mac compatibility wouldn't be an issue. Every wifi adapter and printer would have a Mac driver, every website would support Safari and yet they don't. Printers lack drivers, websites STILL only support I.E... If Macs had truly invaded I.T. in massive numbers, then this wouldn't be a problem and more importantly Macs would have trickled down into average geeks and average businesses and they simply haven't. 

Yes, the latest generation of techs are pushing for change, but it's a long way from taking over. They may own Macs themselves, but they aren't dictating what the company itself uses and what they support. You are looking at what actually amounts to a very small sector of the I.T. industry and making broad generalizations from it. Look at the picture you posted, those are not the guys making purchasing decisions in your company.

You say it's not bad for work, but walk into a common office and try using their networked printers, try scanning a document. You have about a 50/50 chance at best. I even had to replace a few routers because of the whole Iphone 4 & 4s wifi disaster that IOS 5 or 6 brought with it.

[StrykerX]

I should have been more specific. I don't mean the average business. I mean hardcore tech. Silicon Valley, LA tech scene, Austin, New York, Boulder, etc. Macs dominate those. I have zero compatibility problems in my industry. So to say that they are a poor work machine for tech is just ignorant.

I'm all for preference. I use Windows on my desktop, I even have Windows 7 on my Mac via Bootcamp. It's still the best Windows laptop I've ever had. But to say it's bad for a work computer is just senseless.

Sorry, but I'm still not buying it.

Considering how many companies in the tech industry make PC's and PC parts, while doing very little to support Mac, it doesn't support what you are saying. You are looking at the low level geeks, you aren't looking at the business as a whole. IF it was that full of Macs, Mac compatibility wouldn't be an issue. Every wifi adapter and printer would have a Mac driver, every website would support Safari and yet they don't. Printers lack drivers, websites STILL only support I.E... If Macs had truly invaded I.T. in massive numbers, then this wouldn't be a problem and more importantly Macs would have trickled down into average geeks and average businesses and they simply haven't. 

Yes, the latest generation of techs are pushing for change, but it's a long way from taking over. They may own Macs themselves, but they aren't dictating what the company itself uses and what they support. You are looking at what actually amounts to a very small sector of the I.T. industry and making broad generalizations from it. Look at the picture you posted, those are not the guys making purchasing decisions in your company.

You say it's not bad for work, but walk into a common office and try using their networked printers, try scanning a document. You have about a 50/50 chance at best. I even had to replace a few routers because of the whole Iphone 4 & 4s wifi disaster that IOS 5 or 6 brought with it.

Like I said in my above post, you are right and I should have been more specific, I am referring to Silicon Valley, LA tech scene, Austin, New York, Boulder, etc. Macs dominate those. And my picture is from Facebook. And the guys making decisions there use Macs. Facebook is a big company, yes, but I know it's not the biggest. Google is one of the biggest, however, and it's dominated by Mac developers as well. Regardless, I am admitting you are right when it comes to I.T. overall and I was thinking small. My Mac laptop is the best choice for my particular job, and I would argue that 90% of people with my job title in my industry use Macs. So saying it's a bad work computer is still ignorant. Maybe bad for you, but it's the best choice for plenty.

Didn't mean for my thread to become a Mac vs PC thread.

[tp4tissue]

So 5% of the tech industry then?

I don't think you can find the exact numbers out there but you'd be hard pressed to find a Windows computer at most of biggest tech companies in the world. I think that says something about Macs being good work computers. That said, I have nothing against Windows, and prefer it for my gaming PC. But I love my 13" Retina Macbook Pro and Thunderbolt Display combo and I'm incredibly productive on it.

It's surprisingly popular amongst novice coders because of unix stuff.   But all the old guys and 1337 euro-hackers use windows. but they always have another something on the side for unix

[Jocelyn]

Now, the question at hand:

Preferrably, I'd like a mITX motherboard with Thunderbolt (better Hackintosh capabilities, I have a Thunderbolt Display). They don't exist yet, which is one reason I've held off on finishing the build and just buying parts as I see great deals. Should I wait for the next generation of Intel processors to come out? Will there even be affordable mITX motherboards at launch? Will they even have Thunderbolt?

I'm not recommending this, nor do I know if it will actually go live, but here you go StrykerX

[IvanIvanovich]

Looks like another really nice one. I have had 2 Zotac mitx boards. They are really solid and reliable. The biggest downside I experience with Zotac is they are quite poor at releasing update bios, and they seem to be usually very light on options. You can set the date/time, select the boot option... maybe select some very limited speed and timing settings. Very basic stuff but they run and run. I'm using the H67CE for my server. I've had it since near release and never a problem. Old one is with my father still going strong as an HTPC.

[StrykerX]

Now, the question at hand:

Preferrably, I'd like a mITX motherboard with Thunderbolt (better Hackintosh capabilities, I have a Thunderbolt Display). They don't exist yet, which is one reason I've held off on finishing the build and just buying parts as I see great deals. Should I wait for the next generation of Intel processors to come out? Will there even be affordable mITX motherboards at launch? Will they even have Thunderbolt?

I'm not recommending this, nor do I know if it will actually go live, but here you go StrykerX

Show Image

MUST. HAVE.

Really wish you didn't show me that, now I might have to hold out on the ASUS z87 mITX boards until I hear more about these.

[StrykerX]

Good news, everyone!

So my PNY GTX 470 died a couple weeks ago and I RMA'd it (for the second time since I've had it). But this time around, looks like they're sending me a GTX 670 back!! I know it's not quite as good as a GTX 770 but I'm sure it will suffice just fine until I really need to upgrade in which case there will be much better cards on the market for the price.

Got to love that life-time warranty. I wonder, if the 670 breaks, if that is covered too, since it's not the original card.

[StrykerX]

Sorry to bump again, but I have a new development:

I'm dropping the BitFenix Prodigy from my rig. Just heard a lot against it, decided it's more important to have a quiet and cable managed computer than a small one (even though the Prodigy is the largest mITX case around). I am going with the Fractal Design R4, which I got on sale today for $80.

So my current build is this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  (Purchased For $279.99)
Memory:  Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage:  Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  (Purchased For $187.99)
Video Card:  PNY GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card  (Purchased For $0.00)
Case:  Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case  (Purchased For $79.99)
Power Supply:  Silverstone Strider Plus 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  (Purchased For $74.99)
Total: $622.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-13 19:29 EDT-0400)

All I'm missing now is a motherboard, and I'm holding out for a Z87 with Thunderbolt. Thanks to sales, already having memory, OS, and the video card upgrade (courtesy of PNY RMA), the cost is pretty freaking low. I do have to sell my Prodigy, of course.

[tp4tissue]

Sorry to bump again, but I have a new development:

I'm dropping the BitFenix Prodigy from my rig. Just heard a lot against it, decided it's more important to have a quiet and cable managed computer than a small one (even though the Prodigy is the largest mITX case around). I am going with the Fractal Design R4, which I got on sale today for $80.

So my current build is this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  (Purchased For $279.99)
Memory:  Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage:  Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  (Purchased For $187.99)
Video Card:  PNY GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card  (Purchased For $0.00)
Case:  Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case  (Purchased For $79.99)
Power Supply:  Silverstone Strider Plus 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  (Purchased For $74.99)
Total: $622.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-13 19:29 EDT-0400)

All I'm missing now is a motherboard, and I'm holding out for a Z87 with Thunderbolt. Thanks to sales, already having memory, OS, and the video card upgrade (courtesy of PNY RMA), the cost is pretty freaking low. I do have to sell my Prodigy, of course.

Did you see the Mac Pro Can, it's basically everything you want... and has like a bajillion thunderbolt 2 ports.

[StrykerX]

It does look awesome, but it's not out until later this year and it'll be super overpriced. I have no need for Xeon processors or those weird workstation dual graphics cards.

With recycled parts, my build will be about $800 and probably nearly as powerful if not more powerful than their base version (which my guess will be $1800-2400). Their PCI-e based solid state memory speed is pretty insane (roughly 2.5X faster than the Samsung 840 Pro). And Thunderbolt 2, which is nuts, and I assume they're going to eventually release a new 4K Thunderbolt Display in the next year to compliment it.

[StrykerX]

ASUS Z87-EXPERT LGA 1150 Intel Z87 - This mobo would complete my build!

Any reason not to get this mobo (such as a better Thunderbolt Z87 mobo coming out?).

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  (Purchased For $279.99)
Motherboard:  Asus Z87-EXPERT ATX  LGA1150 Motherboard  ($234.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory:  Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage:  Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  (Purchased For $187.99)
Video Card:  PNY GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card  (Purchased For $0.00)
Case:  Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case  (Purchased For $79.99)
Power Supply:  Silverstone Strider Plus 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  (Purchased For $74.99)
Total: $857.94
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-14 14:21 EDT-0400)