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Smallest Mac Mini with Kabylake

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Joined
Feb 28, 2016
Messages
159
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA H270N WiFi
CPU
i5-7600
Graphics
HD 630
Mac
  1. iMac
  2. MacBook Air
Mobile Phone
  1. iOS
IMG_9073.jpg


Recently I replaced my Desktop with small form factor PC. It is an excellent experience when customizing a computer. Now I present you my tiny HTPC that runs MacOS Sierra. It doesn't have any Graphics card because my aim is to make it smaller, so I'm using the Intel HD Graphics.

HTPC Build

HTPC Specifications
IMG_9076-copy.jpg

  • Motherboard – Gigabyte GA H270N WIFI
  • Processor– Intel Core i5 7600
  • Graphics– Intel HD Graphics 630 GT2
  • RAM– Corsair Vengence 8GB 2400Mhz
  • WiFi & BT– Apple original BCM94360CS2 Card with M.2 NGFF Adapter
  • Case – Streacom F1C Evo WS
  • SSD– Samsung 850 Evo 250GB
  • HDD- 2 TB Seagate 2.5″ Drive
  • Power Supply- HDPLEX 160W or PicoPSU 160xt with 240W Dell AC Adapter
  • Running Mac OS Sierra 10.12.4
IMG_9103.jpg


Technical Information
The motherboard is Gigabyte's H270N WiFi; I replaced the WiFi card with Apple Broadcom WiFi to get all features like AirDrop, Handoff, etc..

For the chase, I went for the Streacom F1c Evo that only fit the motherboard, 2.5 Inch HDD, and power supply. Here I sacrifice the use of discrete Graphics card and use internal Graphics. Because I didn’t want any graphics card. The Streacom Chasis is made of 3.5 mm aluminum, and it is a polished chase I euphoric with this case.

Two most commonly used power supplies are HDPlex 160w and PicoPSU 160Xt. These are the best power supplies available for the mini ITX build. In this build, I choose the HDPlex 160W, because it is more recent and more reliable than the PicoPSU. For the AC power, I use Dell 230W power brick to power up the computer. To fit the HDPlex, I have to cut the internal Remote Panel so Just Cropped it equally.

Heat is a problem when using stock Intel Cooler, but a 40mm fan is helpful to get rid of the heat. When the PC is idle the temperature at 40C when the PC is Stressed, then the temperature becomes 76C.
I'm going to purchase Noctua Cooler. I heard that it is the best Mini-ITX CPU Cooler, I will update this post after getting the Fan.

Smallest-HTPC-1.jpg

Conclusion
Finally, I've Finished the installation of MacOS Serra, and it is working perfectly.
 
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damn that looks awesome, what monitor is that? looks like asus series?
Nop Bro. It is HP
 
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Excellent work :)

Looks like a great little system

For increased cooling, could you modify the top cover? A grid of holes perhaps, or a louvered grill? That way the CPU cooler is dragging cool air into the case and out through the side and back vents?

Whatever, an inspiring build! :)
 
Similar to Snazzy labs one... congrats.. and How does the Final cut works.. can it edit 4k videos. can u share d Brucex test??
 
im glad i found this post. Can you help me here for a sec trying to figure out how to build one for the first time. here's what i selected from the recommended parts from here. you mention the power supply running 160w with a 240 w dell power brick. Building something similar to yours i shouldnt have a shortage on the power supply correct? im putting two fans inside to keep it cool
 

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