Advice On Which 'Cube' Case To Go For?

[AndyOdish]

Hey everyone,
My sister wants me to build her a PC and because of where she lives I've decided to go for one of those Cube cases.

(The ones that have a custom sized motherboard in, mini-atx size I think) (like this one http://solution.aopen.com.tw/products/XC/)

The budget is £350 max but all I need is

- The Case (with motherboard)
- Processor
- 512mb Ram
- Harddrive (SATA though the motherboard doesnt have to take it as its going in my PC and shes having one of my ide ones!)

I've got a gfx card, sound card, drives and everything else, its just the top lot i need.

What ones would u recommend and whats the best price?

Thanks for your help

Andy

 

[The Terminator]

The kind your looking at the Small Form Factor, not micro-ATX, micro-ATX is a smaller version of mid-ATX. A small form-factor PC is not always the way to go, as only a few components can be added on inside. Enthusiasts are also aware of potential heat problems caused by computing-intensive applications with a small form-factor PC system.

Opting to start out with a MicroATX case represents an alternative solution, although you will still have to tinker around with the system by installing the motherboard, CPU and memory yourself. The MicroATX form factor is not much larger than a small form-factor PC system, although it can accommodate many more components inside. Most MicroATX cases have space for several 5.25" and 3.25" drives. There is also a larger selection of motherboards from which to choose, which typically have three PCI slots and one AGP slot. Its smaller dimensions make MicroATX suitable as a compact multimedia PC that still offers flexibility.

For a micro ATX case you might wanna have a look at a Enermax Venus CS-10068-S3, its a good case micro-ATX case that your sister should be pleased with. Also, there are many micro-ATX mobos out there, just look for ones from MSI, Asus, and Gigabyte. Possibly the MSI MS-6787-060R. Processor and RAM and HDDs can be budgeted at your discresion. Have fun!

 

[AndyOdish]

Thanks for the quick reponse,
To be honest, putting the PC together isn't the issue I just liked the ultra small size.

The PC won't really be upgraded once its built and it will only have one CD Drive (DVD Reader/CD Writer) and a large harddrive.

The case you did show is very nice I have to admit.

What I've kind of decided for is

AOpen EY65 Yuppie Cube (Pearl White), £130 including VAT

- Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 10 NCQ 200GB 6B200MO SATA 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-027-MD) £74 incl VAT

- Intel Pentium 4 "Prescott" 2.4GHz (533FSB) - Retail (CP-078-IN) £82 inlc Vat

- Corsair 512MB DDR Value Select PC3200 CAS2.5 (VS512MB400) (MY-042-CS) £57 inc VAT

What do you think?

 

[The Terminator]

looks pretty good, though Id prolly go with 100GB HDD and put a bit more mmoney into the RAM. Does she really need 200GB?? Rest is good, but Im gonna reccomend a AMD system rather then P4 just because I think you better better bang for your buck with any AMD line.

 

[AndyOdish]

Hehe, well the harddrive is for me... she gets the 80gig drive from my current system.

Memory wise, I've decicded to stick with 512mb ram but go for a better brand with a heatsink built in. Basically not the value!

Was originally going to go for an AMD (Last 3 PCs Ive built for me have been AMDs), however I cant find any UK distributors for the EY18 (the Amd version of the cube I'm getting.)

Cheers

 

[holydeadpenguins]

Shuttle is the way to go, AOpen stinks.

 

[holydeadpenguins]

there are sff cases that use micro atx mobos, such as the antec aria.

 

[AndyOdish]

so would you guys not recommend going for the Aopen EY65?

 

[The Terminator]

I would definitly say that youll get more performance for your money if you go with an AMD system over Intel, its up to you.

 

[holydeadpenguins]

I've seen some pretty harsh reviews of aopen products. I'd say go with the Shuttle