arbiterhand
Description
For a long time I struggled on how to create a portable PC for my visits at LAN Partys with my friends. My intention was, to keep it small. Unfortunately, at that time, this was my only intention. I did not think about airflow or even weight ... but I'll come to this later.
I started out with a cheap Gigabyte Wifi mITX Board and an i3 4160. The board was okay but lacked good looks since it was orange so when I got the chance I sold it and got a black one. The i3 did a great job at most games but since my favorite game of all times is BF4 which is very CPU hungry - I had some problems with the small 2 core so I upgraded to an i5.
My first case was a Raijintek Metis which was a huge improvement in space but very bad in terms of temperatures. I then switched to the well known Bitfenix Prodigy (a horrible build since I bought it used from ebay and the previous owner was heavily smoking but not cleaning at all). The prodigy was good, temps were good and there were handles to carry it around. Until one of the handles broke. So I sold the broken case and got me a Silverstone Milo ML07. It was very good until I upgraded my videocard from a small ITX card to a full sized GTX770. Temps started to rise.
This is why this build is now retired. It is currently being taken apart and I am waiting for my Fractal Design Nano S to be shipped - a larger case but hopefully nice airflow and a good build quality. I will keep this build log for remembering the Milo!
Part Reviews
CPU
Got it for 90 Eur on Ebay - does a great job in the small PC. Currently there is no need for more performance for my LAN rig!
CPU Cooler
Only four stars because installation was horrible. Does a good job even in the small Milo case!
Motherboard
Bought it for the looks and the wifi. No need for a Z-board but the features are very good.
Storage
Old HDD from my laptop - not the best choice for installing games but I had it laying around. Will upgrade to a WD 1TB Blue 7200 soon... 4 stars here because it is really old but still runs ;)
Video Card
Great performance (even better than my EVGA in my other build) but super loud noises so I sold it...
Case
Here we go - the main part in my LAN build. The case is very optimized in terms of space. Unfortunately in my case the GPU just got too warm which affected the drives being mounted on the opposite side of the GPU bracket. I will use the case for an HTPC soon - but as a full power gaming LAN rig - at least for me - it is too small.
Power Supply
Is a little louder than full sized power supplies but the space factor is very important in small cases. Also cable management and gold certification are very good. A nice piece of hardware!
Keyboard
This keyboard is very very good for typing and gaming. Plus it is light and wireless. I use the same one in my office as my daily driver. Unfortunately the wireless connection could be better - sometimes I get input lag when the case is on the floor and the table is very thick or made with metal.
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