mini-ITX in quite a small case; your tips, please

[aaintveld]

Dear all,


planning on ordering these parts (assembled by the seller), to combine into a fine mini-ITX Hackintosh.
Size of the case is essential to me !! (mobility)
Using it as both a video production station, and on-site machine for VJ'ing / (HD, multiple cam) livestreaming.


Any tips on the provisional shopping list below?
Specifically:
- balanced config? (or are certain parts too light/heavy, bottlnecking one another?)
- small case: could this fit?
- small case: would it run (too) hot?
- extra fans needed? (intention: the 760 GPU with the triple Gigabyte fan; cpu with 'just' the boxed Intel fan)


Here goes:


Gigabyte Z87N-WIFI - Moederbord mini-ITX - LGA1150 Socket - Z87 - USB 3.0 - Gigabit Ethernet - 802.11 b/g/n


Gigabyte GV-N760OC-2GD (rev 2.0) - Grafische kaart GeForce GTX 760 - 2 GB GDDR5 - PCI Express 3.0 x16 - 2 x DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort (length 11 inch; MoBO supposedly takes max 12.2 inch)


Intel Core i7 4770 / 3.4 GHz - 8 MB cache LGA1150 Socket - doos
So no overclocking plans.


SilverStone SUGO SG07 - Bureaumodel Mini-DTX - voeding 600 Watt ( ATX12V / EPS12V / PS/2 ) - zwart - USB/Audio
222 mm (w) x 190 mm (h) x 350 mm (d), 14.8 liters
Default: 1 fan 120mm (incl.); 1 fan 180mm (excl.)
PSU 600W @50 degrees C


SanDisk Extreme - Solid state drive 240 GB - intern - 2.5" - SATA-600


Seagate Barracuda ST2000DM001 - Vaste schijf 2 TB - intern - 3.5" - SATA-600 - 7200 tpm -buffer: 64 MB


Corsair Vengeance - Geheugen 16 GB : 2 x 8 GB - DIMM 240-pins - DDR3 - 1600 MHz / PC3-12800 - CL10 - 1.5 V


Will stick with wired LAN initially.
Not interested in an internal DVD/BRD-drive.


About the case/its SFX PSU:
Amperage / this PSU in general: given the single +12 V rail: enough for the GPU ?
PSU is said to support GPU's up to 400W.


About the 2 TB HDD:
I'd like this HDD to be able to function as a back-up boot-drive; 4k block size fix should work!?


Finally, any suggestions for an (even) smaller case, with all this still fitting in, very! welcome.
Should be around under 15 liters.


Thanks2all,
Arie

 

[aaintveld]

OK, changed the build into:

582389
Product : Corsair CX Series Modular CX600M - Voeding ( intern ) - ATX12V 2.3/ EPS12V - 600 Watt - 80 PLUS Bronze - 100-240 V - Active PFC
Stukprijs : 61,99 euro
614052
Product : Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 - Towermodel - micro ATX - geen voeding - zwart - USB/Audio
Stukprijs : 34,99 euro
284791
Product : StarTech.com 3 Port 2b 1a Low Profile 1394 PCI Express FireWire Card Adapter - FireWire-adapter - PCIe low profile - FireWire 80
http://azerty.nl/8-1027-284791/startech-com-3-port-2b-1a-1394.html
Stukprijs : 67,29 euro
7517
[Assembly] Stukprijs : 59,00 euro
624163
Product : Gigabyte Z87MX-D3H - Moederbord - Micro ATX - LGA1150 Socket - Z87 - Gigabit Ethernet - HD Audio
Stukprijs : 124,34 euro
641160
Product : Intel Core i7 4771 / 3.5 GHz - 8 MB cache - LGA1150 Socket - doos
Stukprijs : 272,90 euro
495937
Product : SanDisk Extreme - Solid state drive - 240 GB - intern - 2.5" - SATA-600
Stukprijs : 186,49 euro
452185
Product : Seagate Barracuda ST2000DM001 - Vaste schijf - 2 TB - intern - 3.5" - SATA-600 - 7200 tpm -buffer: 64 MB
Stukprijs : 74,90 euro
508195
Product : Corsair Vengeance - Geheugen - 16 GB : 2 x 8 GB - DIMM 240-pins - DDR3 - 1600 MHz / PC3-12800 - CL10 - 1.5 V - niet-gebufferd -
Stukprijs : 137,99 euro

Conclusion:
I wanted FireWire without giving up the sole PCIe slot on the mini-ITX board. That board does have a MINI pcie slot, but it is only halve length, whereas available FW-cards for a mini slot need full size.

So came a micro-ATX board, and the smallest case I could find (transportability).

Ditched the discrete GPU.
CPU from 4770 to 4771 for that 0.1 GHz increase in fastness ;-)
Still no over-clock CPU.

Next to the FW-card (in PCIEX-4), I have a (second hand) Decklink Studio 2 card in PCIEX-1 (takes one slot, has a second bracket with 2 hdmi-spots, effectively blocking PCIEX-8 now), leaving (only) PCIEX-16 currently available.

The case comes with one fan in the front; has room for two more, side and back.

Had trouble opening the case side panel (to insert the Decklink card). Loosened 2 little clips, which turned out to be the internal HDD-bracket (should have left those clips alone!).
Applied gently pressure on panel sides, wiggled it a mm or so, and was able to slide it off. Hmmm at least that works the same as 10 years ago ;-)

The company (Azerty.nl) did a clean assembly.
Using the boxed fan (non-OC CPU).

Made the Unibeast USB (8 GB Philips) on my MacBookPro.
Was thrown off that it took so long, but now I understand that you basically install a whole OS onto the stick.
Was hesitant to click 'upgrade' in the AppStore when downloading Mavericks 9.1 on my Lion MBP, do not want to upgrade MBP. Nothing to worry, you can click upgrade and still only download.

Installing on the "PC".
Bios already was on XHCI Mode - Smart Auto
Disabled VT-d

AND !!! had to use DVI, not VGA for graphics to my monitor while installing !!

Changed boot order (disk icons in BIOS on right hand side) to USB first.
Will have to make sure to pull out USB at a later stage, when you want the brand new install to boot from the HDD.

That's where I'm at now. Will report if any more news.

++++

Finished the install, so looking at a Mavericks Desktop now.
Will do MultiBeast tomorrow.
Install itself was smooth.

Seems like I needed DNS server IP even though using DHCP; have at least local network up; not sure if Internet is ok yet. Will see tomorrow.

 

[aaintveld]

By the way ... the case turns out to fit precisely into a sturdy plastic bag like this one.

 

[aaintveld]

When shutting down Mavericks via the usual Apple logo, instead of shutting down, the system rebooted, right back into Mavericks.
Solution was: DISable Wake on LAN in the UEFI / BIOS.

VGA output not only doesn't work during OS install, but still doesn't work.
DVI does; will test the other 2, DisplayPort and HDMI.

Found put that it's not easy (at all) to install apps from iLife / iWork. I only use iMovie out of these suites.
Was expecting it to be a standard part of the Mavericks install.
You can buy it in the AppStore, haven't tried yet if the Hackintosh will let you do that.
If you want / need to do it via another route, apparently you must use a different bootloader. Not Chimera, but Clover. Too much work to change it now. Not sure if I will later.

Did get my Time Capsule to back up the Hackintosh, while also still backing up my MBP.

 

[theFrenchMan]

Hi,

Building a portable machine with a mini-ITX or mATX is tricky particularly for VJ work as you should have a good quality discreet GPU this generally means you need a full height case. The best option for this is a short form 19" rack case, these are around 450mm deep and take a mATX or ATX motherboard and full size ATX power supply. The most important thing about the cases is that they can take the longer GPU cards. I have a old machine using a 3U 19" case used for video capture using Blackmagic cards, its large and heavy but solid as a rock for live VJ work.

http://www.xcase.co.uk/rackmount-ca...ort-rackmount-case-aluminium-front-panel.html

Here's a thread about a machine I built for a job where I needed 4 video outputs for multiple screens/projectors and a display for the OS and VJ app. This was based on a short for 2U case which also takes a full size ATX power supply but needed half height GPU cards. This worked well as output resolution was low. I used GeForce 210's which worked well for the 4 x 640x480 low resolution canvas (2560x480) in VDMX as described in this post ...

http://www.tonymacx86.com/graphics/...ds-2-x-nvidia-geforce-210-gpu.html#post671319

I would say you priorities should be GPU first and then find a box to fit in addition to that I would highly recommend you using a very good quality power supply if you intend using the machine for live production work.

To sum up, what VJ's really need is a compact 2U rack mount mini-ITX solution where we can have a long discreet graphics card and full size ATX power suppy. Its possible and there may be a case which fits the brief but I've not found it yet.

theFrenchMan

 

[aaintveld]

Hi FrenchMan,

thanks so much for adding to the post. The case I use supports GPU cards up to 350 mm (provided you don't fill it all up with disks). See here.

I have a 600W modular PSU in it (Corsair, see earlier in this post), which should get one quite far when adding a discrete GPU.
Have to do more testing, how good the Haswell + 4600 on-board graphics is. I use it for 3 LED-screens, 2 of which are clones of each other. This means I 'only' need my control monitor, 1 panel via 1024x768, the other 2 (clones) via 1280x1024.

I am quite confident that this system will manage. Using a bit of GrandVJ 2.0.1, plus Resolume Avenue 4.1.7 with live cam input and some QC stuff. Syphon between the 2 VJ-apps. Since my clips are neither very hi-res, nor very complicated (mostly not generated on-the-fly), I feel confident not needing a discrete GPU.

Also, thanks for the tip about the rackmount case, will definitely check that out, to learn from that.

Best greetings,
Arie

 

[theFrenchMan]

Hi Arie,

If you are just mixing/cross fading between video clips you might be ok with the onboard graphics but personally I would go for a low cost discreet GPU. I do a lot of live mixing with VDMX and tend to use many layers which requires a mid to high power GPU. For basic two channel mixing the GeForce 210's work well and are dirt cheap (around £20 GBP each) so there's little risk in trying 1 or 2 out and you can get silent versions. Also I think a short 2U, 3U or 4U enclosure installed in a wheeled flight case would be best for your rig. It would give you the flexibility you need in install a firewire and Blackmagic card and to have a good air flow for cooling.

theFrenchMan

 

[theFrenchMan]

thanks so much for adding to the post. The case I use supports GPU cards up to 350 mm (provided you don't fill it all up with disks). See here.

Ah yes, the Fractal Design cases are well designed, I looked at the Core 1000 for a studio machine but ended up customising a found case in the end. You could slide the Core 1000 into a flight case with a foam insert to protect it if you are on the road.

theFrenchMan

 

[aaintveld]

Great advice, FrenchMan, thanks for that !
Funny, when considering a GPU you automatically (?) start thinking about the eur 200+ models, the ones that seem to need these larger-than-life coolers ;-)
And indeed, a lower-fire-power model may very well do.
Will do more testing in the new year, see how the on-board intel 4600 under Haswell keeps up.
Next to that, just sold my 2011 MBP and got the latest and 'heaviest' MBP. Should also make some noise ;-)

Yeah, I like the case, it is stylish black, basic, light-weight. As long as you don't throw it around, it should be OK.

As far as tweaking this build:
was surprised I could for free download iMovie etc. via the AppStore;
had a hell of a time testing the Decklink Studio 2 card:
HDMI-input was in a very serious red blur (Composite in was OK).
Fixed it. Probable cause: my HDMI-bracket for the Decklink card has (of course) 2 internal hdmi-cables, that were tie-wrapped together real tight. I cut off the wrap, et voilà (!?), clean picture. Could the tie have messed up the input-signal ?

After getting the Decklink studio 2 hdmi-in to work, tested live streaming (720p) on our Ustream channel, using Wirecast 4. Worked very nicely.
So far, so good, then.

Will test with our cameraman over SDI 720 in the new year.

Lots of happiness 2all in '14 !

All the best,
Arie