Portable gaming rig

[orbrit]

I built my current gaming PC just under a year ago and it's been working flawlessly. Not a single issue and it performs fantastically.

I've added an SSD for the Steam folder so games load a little faster - it was unnecessary but I had an itch to spend money!

So I'm on a long term work project out of town and I travel and stay in a hotel 2 nights a week.
I replaced my laptop with an Alienware M11x at Christmas because it was on sale for $500 and it functions great as a work laptop and for some games.

My main game is COD Black Ops which I'm having major issues with on the laptop - huge lagging associated with sound.

I figured it would be fun to do another build, something portable but still good enough to game with.

I have:
Monitor - 24" Dell LED LCD
Hard Drive: - WD Caviar Black 500 Gb
Memory: 2 x 2Gb G.Skill Rip Jaws 1600 MHz (I upgraded my other rig to 8Gb that it doesn't need)
OS: I have MS Action Pack subscription
Optical Drive - Lite on DVD Burner
Peripherals: Mouse, keyboard and gaming headset.

I need:
Case
Motherboard
CPU
GPU
PSU

I'd kinda like to do an AMD build.
I think a 5770 would be a good enough card for the games I play - I already have 2 Sapphire 5770s in Crossfire in my current gaming rig.


Budget - $600 or so.

[glc]

Newegg.com - LIAN LI PC-Q08B Black Aluminum Mini-ITX Tower Computer Case

Newegg.com - ASUS M4A88T-I Deluxe AM3 AMD 880G HDMI USB 3.0 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard

I doubt there is room for a 5770 or other 2 slot card. Pick a good thin short card. Pick a CPU, and a modular ATX PSU is highly recommended for cable management.

Newegg.com - SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

[birddog_61]

I personally wouldn't run a gaming rig in anything so small as a mini ITX, I would probably go more along the lines of this case.
Newegg.com - LIAN LI PC-V354B Black Aluminum MicroATX Mini Tower Computer Case
Board
Newegg.com - ASUS P7H55-M PRO LGA 1156 Intel H55 HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
CPU
Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-650 Clarkdale 3.2GHz 4MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 73W Dual-Core Desktop Processor BX80616I5650
PSU
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Enthusiast Series CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
GPU I am almost positive the case I picked will fit a 5770, but contacting the tech support will let you know for sure.

[glc]

He wants AMD.

You might want to read this article:

Hands-On With Five Mini-ITX Cases : Cases For The Smallest PC Platform

Current Mini-ITX computers can make just as good gaming PCs as they make home theater PCs (HTPCs).

EDIT: It actually looks like the Lian-Li may have room for a 2 slot card. It has a 19cm length limitation.

[birddog_61]

Originally Posted by glc He wants AMD. You might want to read this article: Hands-On With Five Mini-ITX Cases : Cases For The Smallest PC Platform EDIT: It actually looks like the Lian-Li may have room for a 2 slot card. It has a 19cm length limitation.

I read it that's why I said "I personally", I just don't like the idea of that much heat in that small of a package. The mini tower is something I would never choose for myself for a gaming rig, but is the smallest I feel comfortable recommending. As for the AMD, I don't use or build AMD that's why I didn't recommend anything from them, I know he is wanting to go the AMD route but I just wanted to show that a system could be built from intel to do the job he was asking for and be in budget. I am not trying to force him to use my recommendation just giving an alternative suggestion, I will let one of the very knowledgeable AMD builders on this site recommend an AMD build out for him because I wouldn't even know where to start.

[David M]

Are you flying or driving? How portable do you need this? For flying, anything but a laptop is not exactly portable. You can get some laptops that game really well but they are expensive.

[David M]

Woops

[orbrit]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I'm driving so portability isn't really that huge an issue - it's for gaming in the evenings when I'm done working, so in the grand scheme of things, I can walk out to my truck and pick up a tower just as easily.

Cooling is a concern and future expansion with the size of graphics cards etc.

Maybe it's time to just get another tower and figure some cool carry strap system out for it.

[birddog_61]

Scout - Cooler Master
Amazon.com: New Thermaltake V5 Vl70001w2z No Ps Atx Mid Tower Gaming Case Black Flexible Drive Bay: Kitchen & Dining

Handles to add to a case
Anodized Case Handles - FrozenCPU.com
Lamptron Anodized Large Case Handles - Black - FrozenCPU.com
Lamptron Anodized Large Case Handles - Silver - FrozenCPU.com

[David M]

Originally Posted by orbrit Maybe it's time to just get another tower and figure some cool carry strap system out for it.

Or do this....
Google Image Result for http://www.tofslie.com/hey/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/ghetto-blaster.jpg

[Nuclear Krusader]

Are those ones still around? Thought it was all iPods by now?

[birddog_61]

Originally Posted by Nuclear Krusader Are those ones still around? Thought it was all iPods by now?

Amazon.com: Lasonic i931 - Boombox with iPod cradle - radio / SD/MMC digital player / USB flash player - MP3: Electronics

[orbrit]

I've changed direction on this build. Rather than build an occasional use gaming PC with an expensive specialty case (that costs more than the CPU or motherboard!) I decided to just build another tower and get a carry case/strap for it.

I took a trip to Frys Electronics to look around, and found out they price matched newegg.com! The only thing that was cheaper on newegg was the PSU.

Here's what I just came home with:

Case:
Coolermaster Elite 430 - $39.99 Frys Electronics

Motherboard:
MSI 880GM-E43 Micro ATX - $55.00 Frys Electronics (after MIR)

CPU:
AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.2 Ghz - $71.00 Frys Electronics (After 10% Combo discount)

PSU:
Antec Earthwatts Green 430W - $44.99 Frys Electronics (price matched from newegg.com)

Total $211

The parts I already have are:
WD Caviar Blue 250Gb
Lite On DVD Burner
2 x 2Gb G. Skill Rip Jaws DDR 3 1600
Sapphire Radeon HD 5770

Put it all together, just now and installed the OS.
Unlocked the 4th core in the MSI BIOS and turned on their OC Genie for a simple overclock.
The CPU shows up in CPUZ as a Phenom II x4 @ 3.68 GHz

Windows experience index for this CPU is higher than my OC'd Core i5 750.

Not bad for a $71 CPU!

[orbrit]

I think this should work

A1700/A1877 Xaser Bag

[David M]

Man, your a glutton for punishment. Why not a lightweight aluminum mid-tower?

[glc]

A MSI motherboard? Good luck.......

[orbrit]

As far as weight of the case goes - I will move it from my house to my truck on Tuesday morning, from the truck to the hotel Tuesday evening, and then back again on Thursday.
I routinely install 70-90lb servers and 100+ lb UPS's by myself, so I guess a 30 lb PC really isn't that much of an inconvenience.

I enjoy building and tweaking as much as playing games I think - maybe subconsciously I bought the MSI motherboard (and my other build with and ECS!) because I was hoping to have to rebuild new computers more often than every 3 years..

[Nuclear Krusader]

Should be every 3 weeks with an ECS mobo.

[orbrit]

I must be lucky then - I have had this almost a year, overclocked from day 1, Crossfired 5770s with not a single issue - and I have G.Skill RAM too - although I guess I came in before the unreliable batches there.

I also built another PC for a doctor who is a client (for gaming) and his has also been running absolutely error free from day 1.

My brother in law has an Asus 870 board, Phenom II X4, and has had black screen, freezing and crashing issues for the last 6 months.