Description
Initially I was planning on a windowless ITX case, but decided now was my opportunity to build in the Node 202! I built this PC strictly for gaming and web browsing at my 50" TV. Several months from now when I see my uncle, he will be transferring his enormous library of TV shows and movies to my future external HDD (which I also plan to download my entire Steam library to... RIP free time). So, this computer will ultimately be a great living room/portable media experience.
The great thing about this case as well, is that I can fit it into my ASUS laptop backpack and bring it with me to friends houses. It is quite a feat considering this case is about the size of an XBOX One. If I didn't have a gaming laptop I would consider taking this with me when I fly (like what Awesomesauce Network did!).
I only ran into one snag when putting this build together. I didn't check the compatibility of M.2 drives with my motherboard and ended up purchasing one that was not compatible, setting me back by 4 days on completing this build. I ended up going with this Kingston drive because it was the cheapest available and it was compatible.
One thing I definitely plan to change is the power supply. This one is just... loud. I don't want my HTPC to be loud. All other fans in my system are quieter combined than this PSU. I will eventually upgrade it to the 600w Corsair SFX PSU that has gotten a lot of great reviews.
My goal was not to build an overpowered HTPC. I just wanted something in the mid-range that would play my games on medium/high at ~60FPS. I use my main rig to play my games in 2560x1440 resolution, so I didn't need anything like that for this build.
I was initially running this rig with the stock CPU cooler and no additional case fans. These results are reflective of that. My GPU temps were reaching the high 70's. Please note that any benchmark results below are on a 1080p TV that caps my fps at 60:
With the GPU at stock - Core1455mhz Mem 3505mhz
Firestrike Score: 6205
The Division Benchmark (medium) Avg FPS - 57.9
Heaven Benchmark - High, 2xAA, Moderate Tesselation Avg FPS - 51.6
With the GPU OC'd - Core 1586mhz Mem 3824mhz
Heaven Benchmark - High, 2xAA, Moderate Tesselation Avg FPS - 56.6
These are my benchmark results with the Cryorig C7 cpu cooler and two Fractal Design Venturi fans cooling my GPU. I haven't seen my GPU exceed 67C with these two fans cooling it. In the Heaven Benchmark it did not exceed 62C (even while OC'd!). That is an over 10C improvement to relying solely on the GPU cooler:
With the GPU at stock - Core1455mhz Mem 3505mhz
Heaven Benchmark - High, 2xAA, Moderate Tesselation Avg FPS - 53.2
With the GPU OC'd - Core 1586mhz Mem 3824mhz
Firestrike Score: 6704
Heaven Benchmark - High, 2xAA, Moderate Tesselation Avg FPS - 58.2
I used MSI Afterburner to overclock this card.
Overall I'm quite satisfied with this build!
Part Reviews
CPU
I admit that I was incredibly skeptical about using this CPU in a gaming PC. I'd seen reviews and heard people talk up a storm about this chips capabilities.
I'm pleased to say I was very wrong. This game runs The Divison in 1080p (medium) paired with a GTX 960 4GB without a hitch. I've also done several Heaven/Firestrike benchmarks and it performs very well, not to mention it doesn't get very hot. It rarely exceeds 60C.
If you're looking to build a budget Skylake gaming PC, either because you don't need anything super powerful or you would like to upgrade down the line, but just don't have the funds, this is a great option. I would recommend this over quad core AMD builds.
CPU Cooler
Easiest instillation of an aftermarket air cooler I've done. After opening the box I felt like I spent more than $30 on a cooler. It comes with a nice little tool for tightening the nuts on the backplate. The included thermal paste tube is huge compared to what you get with cooler master coolers.
This thing is virtually silent and does a great job of cooling my CPU. Definite improvement over the stock Intel cooler. Very happy with this product so far. I will definitely consider Cryorig in future builds I do for my CPU cooling needs.
Motherboard
Not much to say. Sweet board so far. Nothing flashy in the looks department, but it's in my HTPC anyway, so that doesn't bother me. I like the BIOS. Wifi seems to work very well, especially considering I'm on the second floor and the opposite side of the house from the router.
Just make sure you check the manufacturer website for M.2 compatibility if you plan to utilize that slot.
Storage
Cheapest M.2 drive in this capacity that I could find that was compatible with my motherboard. Nothing to complain about really. I just use this for my OS and a handful of games for my HTPC.
Video Card
I'm happy with this cards performance. I successfully overclocked to core 1586mhz / mem 3824mhz. It runs stable and hit a max of 62C in Heaven benchmark (high/2xAA/mod tess).
Great card for 1080p gaming. Not sure I'd spend more than $200 on a card like this, but I did get it on sale for $180, so it was a win-win for me.
I've heard blower style cards can be louder and it's definitely true, though not as bad as the PSU in this build. Something to keep in mind if total silence is something you want.
Case
I wanted to do a build in this case for so long and I'm glad I was finally able to. It's definitely a challenge to work in, but well worth it in the end. It's about the size of an XBOX One, so you can definitely travel with it (as I have!). I would highly recommend buying a power supply with flat cables for this case and if it's in your budget, get a motherboard with an m.2 slot. Taking the SSD cage out frees up a bit of extra room for cable management.
I have only two complaints about this case:
The clips for the bottom panel. They're incredibly frustrating to pull back. The fact that they're plastic as well worries me, because once they're broken that's it.
The front IO can easily be damaged when attempting to place the guts back onto the bottom panel. Just be careful about making sure it's aligned properly.
I accidentally bought two of these on Amazon, so I look forward to a second future build in this case.
Power Supply
Great for what it does, but it's louder than my CPU cooler and two case fans cooling my GPU combined. I will be replacing it with Corsairs 600W Gold SFX PSU.
It would also be nice if it came with flat cables. The Mobo cable is short and fat, effectively making it impossible to do anything with it in terms of cable management.
Case Fan
I've never used these before, but heard a few good things about them and decided to give them a shot. I use two of these to cool my GPU in my Node 202 and holy hell do they do a great job of that. My GPU temps went down 10-13C. Keep in mind this is using the included fan splitter that reduces the fan speeds in half. This way they're silent and effective. Really happy with these fans. Great value!
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