Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX

[killxzero]

I am planning on building a computer with the Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119286, and I had a couple of questions regarding the mobo and space constraints.
First off I have an i7-4770k and a Cooler Master Seidon 120m that I plan on using in this case. From what I have heard about the Mini ITX mobos it looks like between ASRock or Gigabyte for the best one for z87 mini ITX. Any input? (Trying to stay as low and price for the performance as possible)
Also I was curious as to the space in the case - I have a 1tb 3.5" platter drive and a 128g SSD and I was wanting to put both of these AND an optical drive in there. From the specifications Cooler Master places on this thing it looks doable but I know that in reality it can vary from what they claim. Does anyone have any input this subject?
Other hardware:
GPU: Sapphire 7970
RAM: 8gb 1600mhz Ripjaws
PSU: Cooler Master i700
Thanks for all the help!

 

[Rammy]

You should have no issues with an SSD, a HDD and an ODD. There's two places to mount 3.5" drives that aren't the ODD bay, so you should have options for how you position things if you are having issues routing cables etc.

If you are using an AIO cooler, then you don't need to worry so much about cooler clearances, which means the MSI Z87I and Gigabyte GA-Z87N-WIFI are pretty great value for money. The ASRock Z87E-ITX is definitely worth a look too.
Assuming you are in the states, the Asus boards are very expensive, both the Deluxe and the Maximus Impact. Both are great, but if you are trying to keep the costs down they probably aren't the best option.

I don't know if the hardware you listed is things you are buying, or things you are transferring from another build, but I'd slightly raise an eyebrow at the HD7970 (as they are pretty much phased out now). I'd also suggest you reconsider the PSU. The i700 is a pretty mediocre PSU, plus it's not modular and way more wattage than you can use. Given the PSU position in the case, you'll end up with an awful lot of cables to tie up in creative ways.

 

[killxzero]

Yeah that is hardware I already have. The 7970 I bought for Super cheap right before the r9s came out and the i700 was on a sale at the same time point. I know another PSU would be better but I don't want to buy another since this one is already paid for.
I had the same thought about Asus mobos. They are great but over what I would like to spend. I was thinking about the GA-z87n board so thanks for the reassurance. 😀

 

[Rammy]

If you want cooler compatibility, features, performance etc, then the Asus boards are excellent but it's pretty hard to ignore the fact that in a lot of places the Impact is double the price of the Gigabyte/MSI, and the Z87I-Deluxe isn't an awful lot better.

As for the PSU - good luck. There isn't really an obvious place to put any spare cables, and a 700W PSU has an awful lot of cables you won't be using. I guess it's something you can look at in the future though, depending on how bad it actually is.

 

[killxzero]

True. If it turns out cable management is a horrendous pain I will look into a) a modular one and b) a more efficient one.

 

[killxzero]

Do you think cable management for this will bad enough to step up to MicroATX? Like ASRock's z87m Extreme4 and a Cooler Master n200?

 

[killxzero]

Just so anyone who reads this can be in the know. There I plenty of space for a Optical drive, SSD and HDD. I would definitely recommend using a modular PSU if you try this because the temps got a tad ugly with my PSU. I removed the ODD and placed the SSD in that spot then routed all the cables into the open space in the tray to leave lots of airflow across the MOBO and temps look a lot better. So Basically pick either Modular PSU and an ODD or with unmodular PSU just forego the ODD for better airflow.

 

[Buren22]

Just so anyone who reads this can be in the know. There I plenty of space for a Optical drive, SSD and HDD. I would definitely recommend using a modular PSU if you try this because the temps got a tad ugly with my PSU. I removed the ODD and placed the SSD in that spot then routed all the cables into the open space in the tray to leave lots of airflow across the MOBO and temps look a lot better. So Basically pick either Modular PSU and an ODD or with unmodular PSU just forego the ODD for better airflow.

What are your temps, exactly? I'm planning almost this same build, possibly with a seidon cooler and modular PSU. Did you replace the stock fan on the cooler? Did you remove the side 80mm fan? PSU facing up or down?

Thanks!

 

[killxzero]

My CPU temps are 42C under load, Mobo temps and GPU temps stay around 48-49C under load. And I used the stock 120M Seidon fan with the setup. Only that one fan. I did remove the side fan, I didn't have to but I used that space for some cable management so I took it out for ease, probably could've left it in and routed the cables around it. The PSU is facing down so it sucks the interior air out.