Can I use this PSU in the Node 304?

[bnsfup1]

I am going to be doing a build soon in the fractal node 304, and was wanting to know if this psu will fit in there with a gtx 660 without any troubles: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703035&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[Madn3ss795]

You can't. Sadly, it's caused by your modular PSU. If you want to fit long graphic cards like that GTX660 in your system, your PSU, if modular, needs to be shorter than 160mm to avoid getting in the way of the card, but then that MK III PSU is exact 160mm in length:

http://www.pcpower.com/products/description/Silencer_Mk_III_500W/
"150mm (W) x 86mm (H) x 160mm (L)"

( see the modular headers next to the blue thingy on the PSU? )

In short words: that VGA will fit, but you'll need a non-modular PSU that is shorter than 160mm.

I'd suggest using this XFX ( Seasonic made ) PSU instead, that is still sufficient for your system:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207013&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[bnsfup1]

Thanks. I was trying to find dimensions on the pcpower, buthttp://pcpartpicker.com/p/1b9CH didn't see them the first time. Does this look good as a build with that psu?: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1b9CH

 

[Madn3ss795]

Not bad, but should be better if you can grab an i5 instead, like i5 3350p. How's yur budget on this build?

 

[bnsfup1]

$700. I went with the Z77 board to upgrade to an i5 or an i7 unlocked processor. I am wanting to do light gaming, internet browsing, a tab of video editing, exc. It would be better with an amd chip, but in a SFF build like this, there isn't much to chose from, so I went with the i3 for now.

 

[Madn3ss795]

I see. You'll do just fine with this setup then, just going to change the VGA to another gtx660 with better cooler: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1b9ZU

 

[bnsfup1]

http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/partlist/ How about this one? Sorry, I just am not a fan of the looks of the galaxy card 😛

 

[Madn3ss795]

You're showing the part list... give us the permalink

 

[bnsfup1]

Sorry, got used to doing it this way on another site:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case ($85.53 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Other: Windows 8 Pro ($69.99)
Total: $714.45
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-28 11:21 EDT-0400)

 

[Madn3ss795]

If you like that design more then just stick with this. It might be a bit too loud, thou Other stuffs are good.

 

[bnsfup1]

Woah, the price on the node went up. I guess I'll have to try and find it cheaper elsewhere :/

 

[Madn3ss795]

Yea, with the deals on and off everyday, pricing can change very quick. How's the Bitfenix Prodigy? Too mainstream?

 

[bnsfup1]

No, I like it. I have no problems, except the size. I wanted the SFF for the challenge of working with such a small case. To me, the prodigy is more of a micro-atx case, but it probably is better in every way than this case.

 

[Madn3ss795]

Prodigy is pretty much the lowest you can go for a mid-end SSF system. Cooler Master 120, despite being cheaper, lacks the ability to fit in a big cpu cooler.

 

[bnsfup1]

Prodigy is pretty much the lowest you can go for a mid-end SSF system. Cooler Master 120, despite being cheaper, lacks the ability to fit in a big cpu cooler.

Ok. Another question, which I'll make a thread with the same question in the cpu forums, but should I go i3/Z77 or amd athlon II X4 750K/fm2 for what I am wanting to do?

 

[Madn3ss795]

Don't go 750k + FM2. You won't be able to upgrade your CPU without changing the motherboard also, since 750k is already the strongest CPU of FM2 platform. Just go Z77 + i3 and you'll be able to upgrade to i5 later.

 

[bnsfup1]

Ok, another thing. I came up with this using haswell, since 1155 is now a dead socket (I realize that it is still a good competitor, but this is newest): http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1c0N1 Also keep in mind that I will be using the hard drive out of my old computer to store windows and a few games on, and will get a 1 tb drive a little down the line to add more stuff into. Maybe I will get an ssd as the boot drive around the same time.

 

[Madn3ss795]

You have to make your mind clear first. Haswell = no OC on an ITX system since they're extremelly hot. Stick to Ivy if you want to OC later on. And lga1155 is far from dead. Haswell is closer to being a dead socket because there will be just 1 generation of CPU that uses LGA1150 socket.

Things are easier to get if you drop off the storage device, so if you get over the idea of OC-ing:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($159.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock B85M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($86.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case ($85.53 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Other: Windows 8 Pro ($69.99)
Total: $647.45
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-30 22:25 EDT-0400)

 

[bnsfup1]

Yeah, I want to overclock in the future. So I guess I'll be going with ivy bridge:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3330 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($117.97 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 1GB Video Card ($149.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case ($85.53 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Other: ($69.99)
Total: $687.45
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-30 22:41 EDT-0400)

UGG, I got to get over the habit of just copying the url!

 

[Madn3ss795]

Swapped for a much stronger VGA, the 7870ghz edition, and it's still under 700$

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3330 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($174.97 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1155 Motherboard ($117.97 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair XMS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case ($85.53 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Other: ($69.99)
Total: $693.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-30 22:47 EDT-0400)

 

[bnsfup1]

My game has issues with windows 8 and uefi mobos when using an amd/ati graphics card, so if I were to use the 7870, I would be back to using windows 7 :/

 

[Madn3ss795]

I'm not a fan of Metro UI, so Windows 7 all over 8 for me 😛 Getting an EVGA GTX660 instead should be ok, but gaming performance will be a bit lower, of course.

 

[bnsfup1]

Ok. Last question, the only other expansion I might need is a sound card, as if I get a capture card it will more than likely be an external like an elgato or something. Should I go with a micro atx board for the expansion, or just get an external sound card. I won't be doing any major professional work with it, just some voice recording for the videos I will be editing on this machine.

 

[Madn3ss795]

If a sound card is needed, you'd better go with a mATX system. Most external sound card cost twice as the internal one for the same sound quality.

 

[bnsfup1]

If a sound card is needed, you'd better go with a mATX system. Most external sound card cost twice as the internal one for the same sound quality.

Ok, can you give me ideas on a mATX build?