I've used AKG K52, AKG Q701, Audeze LCD-2 Classic, Audio-Technica ATH-AD700x, Beyerdynamic DT990 (600 ohms), HiFiMan HE400i (the revision), HiFiMan HE500, HyperX Cloud, Koss Porta Pro, Monoprice Monolith M1060, Philips Fidelio X2, Philips SHP9500, Sennheiser HD598, Sennheiser HD700, Sennheiser HD800, Superlux HD662 EVO, Superlux HD668B, Superlux HD669, Superlux HD681 EVO, Tritton Pro+ and Turtle Beach Ear Force XP Seven for gaming, and my recommendations for online/competitive shooters are AD700x and DT990, or HD668B if you're on a budget.

If you need sound isolation, then I recommend HD669 first and K52 second, but only if you need sound isolation. I don't recommend HyperX Cloud (II) because it has been surpassed by HD669, K52 and especially HD668B in sound quality.

Sound:

AD700x has a sound signature/profile with subdued sub-bass and emphasized treble. It has clean bass and a little harsh treble. It has a huge soundstage, excellent imaging, separation and clarity, and great detail retrieval.

DT990 has a sound signature with subdued sub-bass, emphasized mid-bass and very emphasized treble. The bass is clean. The treble is slightly splashy or overly sparkly and somewhat sharp. It has a huge soundstage and excellent imaging, separation, clarity and detail retrieval.

HD668B has a sound signature with subdued sub-bass, emphasized mid-bass and emphasized treble. It has clean bass and a little sharp treble. It has a large soundstage and very good imaging, separation clarity and detail retrieval.

Soundstage and imaging constitute positional audio. Soundstage is produced by the headphone and is how you perceive space and environment of sound, like virtual surround sound. Imaging is how accurately the locations of sounds/objects are reproduced. Separation is how you discern individual sounds from a range of overlapping sounds. This is only important in competitive shooters.

Sub-bass is how deep the bass goes and is where rumble comes from. For competitive shooters, you don't want this as it masks or overshadows sound cues. Mid-bass is where impact comes from. Generally, you also want as little mid-bass as possible, but this isn't a problem with DT990 or HD668B. How bright you perceive the treble, depends largely on how treble sensitive you are and what your point of reference is. In games, treble isn't as bright as it is in music.

 

Amplifiers:

These headphones should output loud volume levels for most people. If they don't for you, then the easiest solution is to use a USB sound card like Creative Sound BlasterX G1 or G5. G1 is the cheapest sound card I know of that officially supports PS4 and offers ample amplification for most consumer-grade headphones with the exception of the 600-ohm and maybe the 250-ohm version of DT990. For these, use G5.

It's possible to use an Astro MixAmp Pro TR or a Turtle Beach Elite Pro TAC with power-hungry headphones if you want those sound cards because of their game and audio chat balancing or other features, but it would require pairing them with a more powerful amp.

You can use a headphone amplifier and a DAC (digital-to-analog converter), but it's less convenient.

Some well-regarded options:

• Audio-gd NFB-11.28 (both)
  
• Audio-gd R2R-11 (both)
  
• Audioengine D1 (both)
  
• Creative Sound Blaster X7 (both)
  
• FiiO D3 (DAC)
  
• FX Audio DAC-X6 (both)
  
• Mayflower ARC (both)
  
• Micca OriGen G2 (both)
  
• Schiit Magni 3 (amp)
  
• Schiit Modi 2 Uber (DAC)
  
• SMSL SD793-II (both)
  
• Topping A30 (amp)
  
• Topping D30 (DAC)
  
   
  
  Microphones:
  
  You can attach an Antlion ModMic or a Massdrop Minimic to the headphone. They don't have an in-line volume control, but you can use gadgets like these:
  
  adjustR, BENGOO, Fosmon, Insignia, Lucid Sound AdjustR
  
   
  
  Setup:
  
  The ModMic attaches magnetically to a base that you stick to either earcup. The Minimic uses the same clasp system except with velcro instead. They're easy to attach and detach, especially the Minimic since it's modular. They have their own cable and operate separately from the headphone, so they're compatible with all headphones.
  
  

  
  

  
  To connect the headphone and mic to the controller or other devices with a single jack, you need to use a TRRS Y-splitter. The Y-splitter must have three black rings on the connector.
  
  

  
  

  
  You can connect the headphone and mic to the USB port on PS4 by using an audio USB adapter.
  
  

  
  

  
  Sound BlasterX G1 anf G5 are plug-and-play. To use an amp and a DAC, you have to connect the mic to the controller with a TRRS Y-splitter or to the USB port on PS4 with an audio USB adapter, unless you use an amp that has a TRRS jack or a separate jack for the mic, like Mayflower ARC. Most sound cards have either of these. A sound card has an amp and a DAC built in and sacrifice sound quality for features. There's a common problem with reversed left and right channels when using USB DACs, so only use optical unless the DAC or sound card officially supports PS4. The headphone connects to the amp like usual. Amps and DACs can be bought separate or as combined units. You need a DAC because USB and optical are digital signals and PS4 has no analog outputs. If you get a separate amp and DAC, then you need RCA cables to connect them to each other.
  
  

  
  

  
  To pair an amp with the MixAmp or Elite Pro TAC, it's probably easier to show you this image. This is a 3.5mm-to-RCA cable. The featured amp is Schiit Magni, which has been replaced by Magni 3. You can only use a separate amp, not a DAC and amp combo unit.
  
   
  
  I'm almost out of space, so just ask me if you have questions.
  
  

>So I wanted to get an Xbox one but I'm really conviced that PC is the way to go gaming wise so I did a bit of research and consulted with the guys at r/buildapcforme and this is where I am right now.

Right on, bud! I'm a bit biased, but I think you've made a good choice!

>Before I get down voted or criticized, I just want you to know that this is new for me and I would really like to start building e PC as soon as possible so any help/advice would be appreciated.

Downvote? Criticize? LOL, we're just happy to help you out!

$500 is totally doable.

First, I have a few quick questions though.

1. Are you a high school or college student?
   
   The reason I ask is that a lot of schools give out free or reduced cost copies of Windows to their students!
   
   
2. Do you think you'll be able to afford $90 in 3 months?
   
   Windows has a 90-day free evaluation trial that you can use. It's primarily so that people in charge of businesses can see if they want to upgrade to the new version of Windows, but on a tight-budget build like this, it allows you to pump that money into an awesome GPU and get Windows with Christmas money!
   
   $90 extra bucks goes a LONG way in terms of building a PC at this price point, and if you can hold off on actually Windows until later, it's something I'd recommend (unless you can get it legally for free!)
   
   
3. Do you have a MicroCenter nearby?
   
   Here's a list of their locations.
   
   Microcenter has AMAZING deals, particularly on CPUs and Motherboards (you can usually get a motherboard free or very cheap with the purchase of a CPU.)
   
   
4. Do you plan on overclocking?
   
   If you like overclocking, the G3258 is a GREAT pick. If not, then you'll probably want to go AMD.
   
   
5. Between the Enermax Ostrog, Rosewill Galaxy-03, NZXT Source 210 Elite, Cougar Solution, and DeepCool Tessaract, do you think any of these cases are right for you? That Thermaltake one looks a bit...not good to build in. If you have any cases that you see under about $50 or so, I'll be happy to take a look at them for you!
   
   Anyway, I'm off to pick parts/find deals to see what we can do for you!!
   
   PS - Here are some links to some comments I wrote a while back that describe the current PC hardware market and where we're at right now, IMHO.

• no need for the thermal paste, the cooler will come with it pre-applied
  
• Why 6000 series? That's a 3 year old CPU at this point. The i3-8100 is practically the same price and has twice as many cores?
  
• You're not using 1 expansion lot, but bought a full size ATX board, while say you want it to be small... Why? Look into mATX or ITX instead. Seems like it'd fit your use case better.
  
• I can't find any professional reviews for the 300W version of that PSU, and generally speaking, no one is making a PSU worth a damn under 450-500W right now. While you don't need the extra power, I'd recommend upgrading to a unit that's actually been reviewed, tested, and shown to be reliable. SeaSonic Focus and Focus Plus are good choices.
  
• That wifi adapter only supports N speeds, I'd recommend getting a newer AC network adapter if you have to use wireless. Gigabyte and Asus both make affordable WiFi options that support AC standards, have bluetooth as well, and come with relocatable antennas.
  
• For case, if you want something small with a lot of HDD expansion the SilverStone DS380 is pretty solid. Not very flashy, but solid. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IAELTAI
  
• OS really depends on everything you want to do. FreeNAS is a pretty popular choice these days for home file servers and is fairly user friendly for what most people need to do. Windows Server is nice if you want to run a domain network at home for some reason. UnRAID has some really nice virtualization and expansion options.
  
• UPS is a good idea for something you want on and stable all the time. I recommend looking into the Cyber Power PFC Sinewave lineup. Some of the best UPSes on the consumer market right now, and they have a few sizes depending on how much you want to plug into it, and how long you want it to run. If you do get a UPS, remember they need regular maintenance. Most people forget this. You'll need to replace the batteries inside it every 3-5 years.
  

[Problem Solved][Still need to try Fiio D3]

First of all thanks so much for those detailed yet easy to understand explanations.

Today I spent the day in search for a place where I could get a FiiO locally or something similar to it.

At first the closest thing I found to it was at Guitar Center and Sam Ash. From what I was told at one of the stores they only had Audio Digital Interfaces and not a simple Digital to Analog Audio Converter like the Fiio D3. I'm not even sure any of them there had Optical inputs which are a must for this problem.

I then decided to try a different brick and mortar store that is very popular all across the US. There I found a Sound Blaster G5 https://www.amazon.com/Creative-BlasterX-Headphone-Amplifier-SB1700/dp/B018JUPY3A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473987063&sr=8-1&keywords=sound+blaster+g5. This seemed to have exactly what I was looking for as far as inputs outputs but also came along with an AMP and access its own Sound Blaster software (Different Software than the SB Zx). I haven't tried installing the software since I don't plan on keeping it so I can't tell u if its as good as the Zx as far as that goes.

I get home with the mind set that I want to power it not using my PC and for the audio signal I only want to use the optical cables that come with it.

To power the G5 not using the USB from the computer u need a plug similar to what comes with cell phones now a days (plugs into wall outlet and then connect the USB cable that came with it to that and run it to the G5. I then connected the Optical cable out from my Sound Blaster Zx to the G5. This cable is a little weird, it s standard optical on one side and on the other it looks like a 3.5mm but with an optical light.

Finally, crystal clear sound with no HUMS, CRACKCLES and POPS!!!

I can't compare to how it sounded before because previously I wouldn't turn the knobs on the back of the LSR305 very high and I feel like this has a definite effect on the sound quality (Friend thinks it has to do with the amp inside the 305 not being utilized efficiently when the knobs are at low settings).

With that being said they speakers sound great now and I feel like they will only continue to grow on me. When I tried them at the store I thought they would give me no bass at all in my room but I'm actually impressed with how much of a nice tight clean bass these put out.

I have to add that I later tested plugging the power cable on the G5 to my PC and the noise was instantly back. Same with using a 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable instead of the optical cable.

I have ordered a FiiO D3 off of Amazon to use in the place of my G5 due to the huge price difference. Even though I was able to get the G5 on sale for $100 the FiiO is only $20. I will wait until I'm able to verify the FiiO works as I intend it to before returning the G5.

Lastly I have been able to verify that once I use the optical out of my Sound Blaster I completely lost the ability to use the Sound Blaster software for my Zx. At first I couldn't open it but once I enabled the Zx and then set the SPDIF as my primary it at least let me access the software. It doesn't matter though because no matter what you do in there it doesn't get applied to what you're hearing on the SPDIF line (JBL 305s).

Makes me wonder if it somehow has to do with both Sound Blaster devices conflicting and therefor would only work if I ran the G5 software instead of the Zx. The reason this is important is because I'd like for the Sound Blaster software to work with my FiiO but at the moment it's looking like a very long shot.

If this is the case does anyone have any recommendations on the best free software I could use for EQ and just overall basic sound adjustments?

I could not find any ground loop isolators, HUM destroyers etc locally so I don't know if they would've worked but I have a feeling it probably would've. With the risk of possibly effecting sound quality I didn't want to make this my first option.

Thanks again!

EDIT 1: Found out how to preserve my Sound Blaster Software using the optical. I just had to check the box in the Sound Blaster advanced features "Play stereo mix to digital output". At this point I can even disable the SPDIF-Out in the windows sounds settings if I wanted to and still get the optical to play to the "Speakers Sound Blaster Z" playback option which allows the Sound Blaster software to work.

Because the PS4 is your primary usage with the HD800S, I recommend trying the Creative Sound BlasterX G5. This is entry level as a DAC/AMP combo unit but should work very well in your use case. This device is designed for consoles and PC usage and can produce very good audio from your PS4 (and PC) over a USB connection and it has separate 3.5 mm connections for the headphones and a mic (HD800S does not have a mic, but if you play online games with friends you will want to get something like the Antlion Audio ModMic to turn the headphones into a headset when you want to. If you get the G5, do not use the virtual surround sound SB-Axx1 and Scout Mode options, they are likely not as good as the standard audio output. An alternative to the Creative G5 would be a Schiit Audio Modi 2 DAC (connect to PS4 over optical instead of USB) paired with a Schiit Audio Magni 3 AMP. This "Schiit stack" as it is often called is less gamer focussed (no mic input, etc) but would still be fantastic for gaming and listening to music and is highly recommended in the audio community. You would need both the Magni 3 AMP and the Modi 2 DAC linked together to get sound - whereas you could alternatively use the all in on Creative G5. These options are audiophile entry level, but should impress you since you are so happy with the headphones on the PS4 controller already. I would try and recommend something more expensive, but honestly don't think you need that and I would have difficulty recommending more expensive devices since I dont have proper experience with that level of DACs and AMPs. TLDR; Get the Creative Sound BlasterX G5 if you want to use a mic on your PS4 with the headphones, and get the Antlion Audio ModMic to turn the headphones into a headset when you want to talk in games with friends and online gamers. If you dont need to use a mic on your PS4 and price is no matter to you (G5 is cheaper), then get the Schiit Audio Modi 2 DAC and the Schiit Audio Magni 3 AMP. Also, regardless of which DAC and AMP you get, get some nice cables off Amazon for USB or optical for your setup to connect from the PS4 to your couch/coffee table where you probably game.

Thanks for the reply.

1. Yes, I have been checking reviews and have an idea but like to hear what my fellow redditors have approved of! And to help narrow things down, I don't OC the cards myself, ever. And noise is NOT a concern. Every bunk has 1 - 2 fans going 24/7. No one can hear it but me and I game with a headset since guys may be sleeping.
   
   

2. Outside locker temps are decent. We keep A/C at like 68F 24/7/365 (South Florida). Concerns are the temps/hot air being trapped/causing back flow since the PC is pretty obstructed/flush against locker on all sides. Obviously the door remains wide open and air escapes, but perhaps it can escape better?
   
   As for 180 flip. Maybe? I'd have to drill some more cable holes and re-route, but the major concern is the 180 flip would place the power/reset buttons against back of locker and out of reach. I guess these exist and could be a solution.
   
   Now that you have my wheels turning I think the 180 flip might be the best idea ever! You sir are a mad genius! This actually can solve a bunch of other minor cable issues/annoyances.
   
   Plus I get to bring all the power tools in and practice my carpentry. =D
   
   I still need to pick the coolest GPU but I feel like we have solved my ventilation dilemma. Also, my case, I know it's not the best but I searched for a about 2 weeks to find something the the proper dimensions to fit on that shelf. At the time, it was the only MATX that would fit. =(
   
   Thanks for your reply sir!

> My main purpose for it is really to do backups with a RAID setup and photo and other file storage.

RAID is not a backup solution. It is simply a way to utilize multiple disks to increase storage space or overall performance. You will still need some kind of backup, whether that is some kind of external USB drive like a WD Passport or using a cloud-based service like CrashPlan, that's up to you.

> I’m willing to spend about $300-$250 on the case and any components needed for it.

If you're planning on building your own server, $300 won't get you very far at all. Depending on the size you're looking for, the hard drives alone will cost more than that.

> If I wanted to “build my own” how are NAS cases usually sold?

Unfortunately there aren't a lot of NAS-centric cases around.

The SilverStone DS308 is kinda neat. It has 8 hot-swappable drive bays.

What a lot of people do is go with some sort of tower case and some hot-swap trays like these.

>Is it likely that I’ll need to buy a power supply, RAM, fans, or any other components for them?

Unless you already have an old PC laying around that you can use, then yes.

>If I built my own how hard is it to install software, etc. to run it?

Do you have experience installing an OS on a PC or laptop? I would recommend going with some flavor of Linux like Ubuntu Server. The installation process is very easy, especially if you're doing it on a brand new computer where you don't need to worry about overwriting anything important.

>What’s the minimum processor speed and memory I should aim for?

Unless you plan on doing things like Video Transcoding or running Virtual Machines, CPU speed and RAM aren't really that important. What's more important is the network hardware and your SATA controller. You want to make sure it has a good 1Gbps network card (Intel is preferred). You also want to make sure that it has SATA-III and that there are enough ports for each hard drive.

>Am I likely to get better performance by tailoring it to better specs (faster processor, more RAM) by building my own then buying a “diskless” setup?

Almost certainly. It will also be more flexible and able to do more things. It will also give you valuable knowledge and experience that you can use in the future.

>Even if I buy a "diskless" system am I going to need to buy an OS? Which one would be best?

No, you will not need any separate OS. These systems are basically little self-contained PCs with an ARM (or sometimes an x86) processor and some sort of Linux-based OS running on them. They're pretty much Plug 'n Play, just load them with some hard drives, set up networking and they're good to go.

> If I just wanted to buy one that’s completely setup, or a “diskless “ that I would add my own NAS HDs too what would you recommend?

Whatever is the least expensive, highest rated and has the features you require. The rest does not matter.

Ultimately what you decide to do depends on your goals. Do you want to learn about building and configuring a server? Then you might consider sourcing the parts and building something yourself. This will be the more expensive approach but it will also be more flexible, have much more performance than a pre-built solution and give you knowledge you can use in the future.

If you want something that Just Works™ then I would go with a prebuilt NAS like the DS216, it looks like a decent system and will give you the features you require.

Hope that helps!

TLDNR; Without having more info on what I described in the first paragraph. I'd say just buy a couple 10TB Easystores on sale ($180ea) and use your current SBCs and smaller server setups. After I wrote all of this I saw that you are from AUS(I think), so no clue if you can get close to $18 per TB in your area, but prices are coming down every year so sometimes better to just save $$$. It is super fun to think about a new and more powerful setup, plus buying it and putting it together, but as you can see I've done a lot of this thinking already. You are also probably feeling guilty that you have to make use of all your 2TBs, but lots of little HDDs do require more electricity to power up and cool. You need storage density and you cant get around that. Upgrade to 10TB and use the 2TB as a cold storage (backup). You are at a heck of a crossroads because the cost to go from SBCs to a "Proper" server plus buying storage isnt a cheap one. Currently there are limited stepping stones, but more powerful SBCs and Ryzen Embedded are here and on the way so wait if possible. Either way you go, you will spend more money and use up storage faster than you planned... The more powerful SBCs arent always cheap either, once you factor in cost of: memory card, power supply, case, possible heatsink/extra heat sinks, a fan, etc. Their lower price starts creeping into the middle range...


What brand, how many, and how long have the 2TBs been powered on for? It sounds like you are currently swapping out the 2TBs for others depending on what you want to watch and on which HDD it is? Do you have any projected storage numbers and what is your current and future budget? You mentioned that you have a small dedicated server? Is that another SBC or what is with that setup and how many sata ports? I'd forgo the transcoding ideas and nix buying any sort of new "Server" options. Focus on reusing what you have or going with a "Used" setup, so you can start saving that money for when 8TB or 10TB Easystores go on sale.

IMO for a true new build you'd want to price in ECC RAM, UPS, and I personally prefer a case that has hot swap access to HDDs. The Rosewill that meemo linked cant be beat for the price especially since it comes with 7 fans, but it requires extra steps to access the HDDs (internally only), which may be fine for you. There is Mediasonic (JBOD version only) that you could plug into your SBC, but that technically isnt hot swappable either, plus it is USB 3.1 to USB-C which isnt the worst but it isnt the best... I know you wanted to get away from SBCs, but if you disable transcoding there are some SBCs that use SATA to SATA connections that are very viable. Any SBC or standalone storage that uses USB is a potential risk, since USB can suffer connection issues when doing rebuilding, parity, and scrubbing maintenance (same if your power goes out, hence a need for UPS). Helios4 is a time restricted option, since they only open up orders once or twice a year (they are currently taking orders). *I saw a post saying that since the Helios4 is a 32bit processor, so it is limited to 16TB volumes. You get 2GB ECC + 4x SATA and I believe you can use any HDD size with that (double check tho), so 4 separate 10TB volumes (4x$180sale=$720+tax), not including parity... I'm not sure how the 32bit and the 16TB volume limit effect drive pooling... I gotta research more into that. I'm not familiar with the UnRaid, FreeNAS, or the other options that you mentioned, but OpenMediaVault4 has MergerFS drive pooling and Snapraid plugin, you could run 3x storage HDD and 1x parity or you could forgo parity for now. If you prefer Windows (You can also run omv4 on windows in a VM) there is Stablebit Drivepool (Not free) for pooling and then Snapraid (not completely novice friendly) for parity. Depending on the HDD type you could reuse the discarded Easystore enclosures and put your 2TB drives in there (still USB connection). If they are a different brand (non WD/HGST) I think you have to desolder something on the Easystore board? I lost the link on how to do that. You could also just keep the 2TB as cold storage backups, but that still carries a risk, but it's cheaper. You could also get 2nd Helios, but for about the same price you could use that money on a 10TB. That would replace 5x of your 2TB drives... Not too mention the extra electricity to power and cool 5x drives vs 1x drive... As you can see, storage density starts coming into play here, big time.
UPS https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00429N18S/
Mediasonic https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078YQHWYW/
Helios4 https://shop.kobol.io/collections/frontpage/products/helios4-full-kit-2gb-ecc-3rd-batch-pre-order?variant=18881501528137
https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/as17od/helios4_batch_3_available_for_preorder/

There are other SATA SBCs that you could use and you could also do a janky setup and put the SATA SBCs inside a hot swappable case like this Silverstone one. There are other cases, but this is the only name that came to mind. This case also doesnt have any power supply or fans to cool the HDDs so there will be extra cost there, plus you'll need a power supply, PLUS a way to turn on your power supply (with a power board), since that SBC setup wont have a motherboard. You can also make your own "Dumb" JBOD HDD enclosure and connect that to your mini server. Another option to SBCs is the ASRock cpu+mobo line: J3455-ITX, J4105-ITX, annd J5005-ITX. The issue with this that it appears you are still limited to 4x SATA or other variations of these boards have a PCIe 2.0 x16 slot at x1 or x2 transfer lanes/speed instead of x8 or x16... Also you have to factor in the price of ram and a mini PICO power supply. There is a subreddit+website that focuses on used parts for cheap server setups, but you might want to verify the power consumption of those setups when they are idling. With the NAS killer option, you gotta make sure all of the parts are still available on ebay or refurb sites, plus make sure you have time to build your setup to verify everything is working plus stress test it before the return window closes to weed out any weak used parts.
Silverstone https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IAELTAI/
HDD enclosure option https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-5-25-Inch-3-5-Inch-Hot-swap-SATAIII/dp/B00DGZ42SM/
Power Board https://www.amazon.com/Super-Micro-Computer-Supermicro-Cse-ptjbod-cb2/dp/B008FQZHZE
J3455-ITX https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=13-157-728
https://www.serverbuilds.net/nas-killer-v30/

Another option if you really want transcoding and a more powerful "Server" would be a Dell Optiplex 7010, which are used business computers that are "Refurbished", but I think they just take them from that company and wipe the hard drive, nothing else. The Minitower Desktop version is roomier than the slightly cheaper SFF (SmallFormFactor) version, which might be important if you want to swap out the power supply, watch the youtube video to get an idea of what you are getting into. Since a cheap power supply is a weak point plus a potential hazard I'd recommend swapping in a new power supply, but you could risk it with its current power supply. Everything else should last for a good while. You'll also need to install a HBA card. You can get Genuine used cards that were in good working order or you could get a new knock off from China. Both options are viable, but personally I prefer the used option. Theartofserver, ebay seller, also has a youtube channel, so I purchased from him, but I have also purchased from other sellers and got good working parts (I think Ebay still has the most honest and accurate rating system out there?). Since the Optiplex doesnt have room for internal HDDs then you are left with a few options with various HBA cards (internal vs external), expander cards, and adapter setups (SFF-8087 to SFF-8088). If you want it to look "Proper" there will be a lot of wasted money on 2x adapters (1x Optiplex + 1x external HDD enclosure) and an extra SFF-8088 cable between the two. I'd just go janky with it and get a longer reverse breakout cable of 3.3feet (4x SATA to 1x SFF-8087), which should be long enough to go from your external HDDs setup into the Optiplex case and internally connected to the HBA card, like the popular 9201-8i. The janky part being that you'll have the reverse breakout cable snaking directly into each case, instead of plugging into an adapter in the back.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K0GNUOG/
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Internal-Breakout-SFF-8087/dp/B018YHS9GM
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-LSI-6Gbps-SAS-HBA-LSI-9201-8i-9211-8i-P20-IT-Mode-ZFS-FreeNAS-unRAID/162958581156
Single adapter https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816133055
Double adapter https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GPD9QEQ/
SFF-8080 cable https://www.amazon.com/Norco-Technologies-C-SFF8088-External-SFF-8088/dp/B003J9CZCK/

If you don't plan on overclocking, you should not only try the stock cooler first, but also get an i5-6500 instead, which has in games almost the same performance.

You do not necessarily need thermal paste, but it can be useful to have it if something goes wrong.

A GTX 980 Ti is totally overpowered for 1080p even if you want good settings. A R9 390 is a better fit, and a lot better in terms of price/performance

You can get a HDD indeed later.

Even though I understand that you want a good mainboard, there is no need at all to get a 200€ mainboard. Evaluate carefully what you need, which connectors and which features, and I'm pretty certain you will realize that a 110€ Z170 will be fine as well – or 140 if SLI support is a must.

If already being ready to invest much in a PC, get faster ram to gain some fps.

pc-kombo recommendation

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-6500 | EUR 219,90 @ Caseking
Motherboard | MSI Z170A PC-Mate | EUR 116,47 @ Cyberport
Memory | G.Skill 16GB DDR4 3000 (16 GB) | EUR 111,50 @ Amazon.de
SSD | SanDisk Ultra II 480 (512 GB) | EUR 139,00 @ Amazon.de
Video Card | Radeon R9 390 | EUR 319,90 @ Caseking
Case | Fractal Design R5 | EUR 109,11 @ Amazon.de
Power Supply | Antec Edge 550 (550 W) | EUR 107,89 @ Amazon.de
| Total | €1123.77
| Generated by pc-kombo 29.01.2016 |

Of course, just switch out the parts you are set on, like the case or the PSU. Though 750W would be too much for one R9 390.

Sweet thanks for all the info think I'll go with the 2700, definitely cheaper and I think itll do fine with what I need it for.

While I got you here I dont suppose you can recommend a good small case for an matx motherboard. The smaller and cheaper the better but not at a cost of cooling

When I do the upgrade I'm gonna take the asrock ab350m and the 2400g and put it in a build for my friend. I'm probably gonna use the wraith cooler that comes with the 2700 in it since I already have a 240 aio that will handle the 2700 just fine.

So it has to fit:
Asrock ab350m
The wraith cooler(unless you can recommend a better one)
1ssd
Msi rx570 armor 8gb oc
Power supply unknown, idk if the extra one I have fits this board

So far this one is the best most affordable I've found I would like to find one with at least one drive bay even if it's one of the slim ones and the clear side it best but unnecessary for him

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0785GRMPG/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

Oh my god please don't do a prebuilt from here and not likes Dell prebuilt like someone built it here. You can learn so much but buying the parts, and researching it can be a bonding experience with your son!
Edit: SORRY IN ADVANCE FOR A WALL OF TEXT!
anyway lets get this build started!
Idk what you want but for a case that looks super sexy the NZXT S340 would be a good start, cheap and nice.
CASE:NZXT S340 Mid Tower Case CA-S340MB-GR Matte Black/Blue https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T4BWUUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_wR12xbKDZPNE8
Note: $74 Jet.com has it cheaper. (GET THE BLUE AS I MADE IT A BLUE BUILD)
CPU:Intel Core i7-2600 Quad-Core Processor 3.4 GHz 8 MB Cache LGA 1155 - BX80623I72600 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004EBUXSU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_nT12xb7BECNJC
Note: $164
MOTHERBOARD: ASUS P8H61-M LE/CSM R2.0 LGA 1155 Intel H61 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008NA1K0S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_b112xb1T6M7HK
Note: $94
RAM: PNY Anarchy 8GB Kit (2x4GB) DDR3 2133MHz (PC3-17000) CL10 Desktop Memory (BLUE) - MD8GK2D3213310AB-Z https://www.amazon.com/dp/B012DT0IB6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_h412xb3VC5JNW
Note: $45
POWER SUPPLY: EVGA 500 W1, 80+ WHITE 500W, 3 Year Warranty, Power Supply 100-W1-0500-KR https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H33SFJU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_E512xb56068FP
Note: $37
GRAPHICS CARD: ASUS ROG STRIX Radeon RX 460 4GB OC Edition AMD Gaming Graphics Card (STRIX-RX460-O4G-GAMING) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K1JVQI4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_z712xbFGF2Y2T
Note: $140

TOTAL: $554

Edit 2: As your budget is $600 and I don't know how lenient you are with going over or what, but an Asus RX 470 would be a better graphics card and would increase the total to around $650.

Edit 3:
AFTERMARKET CPU COOLER:Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120mm PWM Fan (RR-212E-20PK-R2) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005O65JXI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_E-12xbR7ZCHBK
Note: $28

Edit 4: If you want peripherals that's gonna be around $1000 in total for decent crap. I would suggest a 1080p 60hz monitor, a mechanical keyboard ( I use a G. Skillz KM780 RGB and it is fabulous), a nice pair of headphones HyperX cloud 2, and a nice set of speakers Logitech Z506. Also idk what you have but get a wifi adapter as well unless you can hook up to Ethernet which is highly recommended.

Edit 5: If any other questions just PM me glad to help you out more.

Edit 6: shit I forgot drives and OS. I'm too tired to link things anymore so I suggest getting a 128gb Samsung PRO SSD for your OS and main shit then get a Seagate 1TB HDD and you're good to go. Hopefully I covered everything.

Honestly 500-600 wouldn't make a very decent computer for a first rig. You can make one and well I made one just right now but that doesn't take into account peripherals. If you wanted 500-600 WITH peripherals that would have been the hardest budget build of my life. To maintain quality and performance, I'm cringing just thinking of it.

So I decided to buy a sound card (G5) to try to combine it with the Mobius, because I thought it might help, but unfortunately it didn't work. So I was returning the sound card the next day, I was really set on returning the DT 1990 Pro too. However, during the night before returning the sound card tomorrow, I decided to give the DT 1990 one last try, since it seemed to be more compatible with the sound card. OMG, the DT 1990 just jumped by a couple levels of improvements, most probably because of the amp that's also in the sound card, because the DT 1990's volume is really low, even at 100%, I could only go up to 26% with the sound card. So at that last minute, the DT 1990 made a massive comeback and won the competition for me, of which headphone is better. In the end, I decided to stick with the DT 1990 because it was just on a whole new level of sound clarity, I'm not even hardcore when it comes to audio stuff, but even I could tell the difference, DT 1990 was just that good. After I returned the G5, I decided to upgrade to the G6, latest model, and now that's the setup I have now. Using my DT 1990, connecting it to the external sound card G6, then to my PC, its a really easy setup. I wanted an external sound card because I wanted a physical volume knob I can control with, instead of using some command on the keyboard or alt tab out to change the volume. A bit after that, I needed a new mic, since the Dt 1990 is just standalone headphone, I went with the Antlion wireless Modmic, and it is a really good mic too, I love it, I even wrote a review on it on Amazon if you wish to read it, got pictures included, it is under the same name as my Reddit name. I hope this has helped you to decide, let me know if you need to know anything else!

Okay, I've been doing some research into getting my build together, before I post a Build Ready I want to ask a few simple questions to get more information:

One: I already have a cPU (i5-4670k) purchased and want to build around it, but I can't seem to pick out a motherboard. Comparing these two options (price/budget wise) - is there a clear winner? Is gigabyte a trusted brand? Does the cheaper Gigabyte one still get the job done?

http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Intel-6Gbps-Motherboards-GA-Z87-HD3/dp/B00D94X6AK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1396970604&sr=8-3&keywords=gigabyte+z87
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D12OBEU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2MQNI3HX2CKTY&coliid=IZ8KDHOJNGBP4

There are other Gigabyte Z87's then go up in price to like 120, 140, 160 dollars, are those more worth it? What's the gain vs price? Am I losing anything with the 105 dollar one?

Two: When buying RAM, does the 1.5V vs 1.65V thing matter a ton? Do certain motherboards only allow certain RAM voltages? How can I tell what my motherboard will allow?

Three: Relatively cheap trusted RAM brands? I'm such a brand whore when buying stuff like TV's and headphones and stuff but I know nothing about "Gskill" and "Crucial" and stuff like that?

Four: Any obvious disadvantages of this sleek budget case?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005869IUY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2MQNI3HX2CKTY&coliid=I2Z9W1ADNDRLKF&psc=1

I'll ask more questions later. This is enough for now. Thanks guys.

This looks like a really solid build.

I would however recomend air cooling instead of water cooling, water cooling can be tricky to put together and it's not a whole lot better, plus it's more expensive. I recomend the ''Hyper 212 EVO'', It's the most efficent cooler for the money out there, it's only 35$ and keeps my I7-4790K around 70 degrees while overclocked to 4.7Ghz.

Hyper 212 EVO: http://amzn.com/B005O65JXI

Also, I don't know about you, but if you want to be able to put dvd's and such into your pc, which can be really helpful for installing drivers and such, you shouldn't forget the optical drive, they are only 20$!

Asus Optical Drive: http://amzn.com/B0033Z2BAQ

Other than that this looks like a really strong build, will max out almost everything, if you want more storage I would recommend the 4 Tb Western Digital Green, the green is twice as cheap as the black and sees almost no difference, (in my opinion). 750GB won't last forever, and if you want to be comfortable being able to record and download how much you want, mass storage can be a good thing.

WD Green 4TB: http://amzn.com/B00EHBEUZO

Welcome aboard the pc master race!

Alright I made a build tell me what you think.

• Case: NZXT Vulcan Enthusiast $69.51 Free Shipping
  
• Motherboard: Gigabyte Intel Z77 G1.SNIPER M3 $179.99 Free Shipping
  
• Processor: Intel Core i7 3770K $338.98 Free Shipping
  
• RAM: Corsair Vengeance 32 GB Ram $209.98 Free Shipping
  
• Hard Drive: Western Digital 3TB $168.77 Free Shipping
  
• Solid State Drive OCZ Technology 64 GB $72.24 Free Shipping
  
• Cooling: Corsair Hydro Series H80 $86.26 Shipping: Free Shipping
  
• Power Supply: KenTek 1000W $64.51 Shipping: $6.54
  
• Graphics Card: EVGA GeForce GTX690 $1,199 Shipping $9.55
  
• OS Windows 7 Home Premium $96.48 Free Shipping
  
• DVD Drive: Asus 24xDVD-RW $19.99 Free Shipping
  
• Monitor: 47 Inch LG Commercial TV $499.99 Free Shipping
  
  Price comes to $3003. (With Shipping)
  
  Cant go wrong with GTX 690, Intel 3770k liquid cooled, and 32 GB Ram with a 47 Inch Monitor!

I do not see any reason why not, in resolving your situation to purchase a decent USB sound card/adaptor. I'm partial to Creative Lab's stuff, but as I've haven't given a damn about high-end gaming for the past 8 years, I can't say Creative Labs is the best anymore.

Be forewarned, if you go cheap on the USB sound card, you wont ever use the quality of those $300 headphones. Yes it is mostly emulation sound from those headphones, but the maker did put effort.

Here is a Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Creative-BlasterX-Headphone-Amplifier-SB1700/dp/B018JUPY3A/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1483031059&sr=8-4&keywords=USB+7.1+sound+card+creative+labs) search for "USB 7.1 sound card" This Creative Labs one is about $120. Worth spending that much for an external USB sound hub, with all the connections you'll ever need. I have a old model that is USB2.0 ages old, that I used for DJing, with the RCA phono plugs, larger "fat" headphone plug, input & output SPDIFs., old but was only $50 at the time. (Creative Labs USB Sound Blaster Audigy2 External Sound Card Sound System)

With that said, your motherboard has a "base" model sound card. Because now-a-days we like to streamline our equipment. You have a HDMI port, which can carry audio to external devices. I used my older (8yr old) gaming rig as a HTPC in the entertainment room. The motherboard had every connection possible. So the back panel of that tower is packed.

Your board is designed to lessen the options you get. If you want better sound, you'll be replacing that motherboard or the whole computer.

However back to your immediate issue, USB sound cards are pretty decent, and you'll find the name/brand/model you want. Just don't go cheap on it.

I know MSI has some sort of offer going on with that MOBO right now for a free AIO with it so I'd look into that.

Overall though that board has not received great reviews, though I think it's mostly for it's VRM so if you're not planning to overclock you might be ok.

Also I'd consider upgrading the GPU. Many RX 580s are selling at $200 or below right now which at max would be $70 more than you're current choice, so still with in your budget.

For instance the Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8gb is $170 and also comes with 3 months of Xbox Game pass and Devil May Cry 5. You can either use those or sell them on something like /r/SteamGameSwap (note, these are redeemed through AMD rewards which does a hardware check for AMD cards so they can only be redeemed by people with the right card in their system.)

Also that case seems really overpriced. If you really want an overpriced pretty looking case I'd suggest the NZXT H510 Elite, $170, but it's free shipping and no taxes if you order directly from their site. That case is all about the looks though and really doesn't have the feature set to justify the price tag, it's for people who don't care about the premium and want that front panel tempered glass look.

Otherwise there are plenty of solid cases that look nice with glass side panels for less than $100.

The Fractal Design Meshify C has decent thermals and looks pretty nice for around $85-$100 (depending on the color.)

Phanteks has a case similar to the one you listed for just $60

NZXT Also has some nice cases under $100. There are the "I" (intelligent variants) that come with a smart controller and some RGB strips for usually $30 more if you're into lighting.

Unless you really want the case you listed though I definitely suggest something else.

this one

price has gone up i think, but it works really well on *nix (tested on Ubuntu and Kali), and works well with all the major SDR software suites i tried (their names escape me, its been a while).

Note that it gets very hot, so maybe get some of those adhesive heatsinks that amazon sells as add-on items. The heat never caused me issues, but i'd say it's a good idea anyway.

The one you linked uses the exact same demodulator, so it should also be decent.

However, the NooElec stuff tends to have better support, and good build quality. The NooElec one has separate add-ons for Ham radio (called "ham it up"), and another one for Wi-Fi.

Anything with a RTL2832U demodulator should work on linux pretty well, though.

Since I love my Air 540 so much, I can't help but suggest the Air 240, it's a cube case with really good airflow, I hate my components running hot and I like giving them fresh air, so this is one of the reason I bought mine. Also, there is a lot of room for cable management, the case is cut into two halves, one for the Active Cooling components (GPU, CPU) and the other half for the passive cooling components (PSU) so it's a breeze, really, you shouldn't spend too much time with cable management since it's basically route and plug. It will support your GTX 950 FTW but I don't know what kind of CPU cooler you have; you didn't include it in the build page, but the maximum CPU cooler height for the Air 240 is 120mm only. For you it might lose out on "sexy" points but for me I like symmetrical and clean cases. Overall I think you'll love it. Oh, and.. 80$ :S sorry.

Fractal and Corsair are pretty much the top dogs when it comes to pc cooling. Lots of room for fans and they are open enough to provide ample airflow to cool all your components.

NZXT would be the runners up. Their cases are very attractive and they have the PSU and HDD on the bottom so its not obstructing the Mobo/CPU/GPU up top. the only thing is their cases are not as open, so your airflow isn't as good as it would be in a corsair. However, that is a minor gripe, I use a NZXT case and my temperatures at idle are 25c-28c (CPU) and 25c-30c(GPU).

Style, color, and size all come into play when getting your case. I'd argue getting the right case is the most crucial part of any PC build. It has to look good, it has to have enough room without looking like a barely furnished house, and it has to have the right type of airflow going through it.

Those cases you listed are all very good ones though. Can't go wrong with any of them. ;)

edit: I'll go ahead and recommend the case that I personally use, the NZXT s340 It's a decent size and I managed to fit everything nicely and the airflow rate is superb.

Here it is up and running. (I like showing it off, don't judge)

Strictly speaking there's nothing wrong with using a "gaming" desktop as opposed to an "office" desktop. The key thing with gaming computers is the presence of a dedicated graphics card...which you would find pretty useless.

So comparing these two machines the Avatar would have slightly better graphics performance since it's got the GPU, however the Dell actually has the superior CPU in it which is what you're going to care about. That and if it's something that customers might see it probably looks a little more professional than a gaming computer.

If you want to save a little more money, and those are more or less the most demanding things you're going to do with it I'd recommend something like this:

Dell Inspiron i3 8GB RAM

Main difference there is the CPU, which is an i3. However it's more than capable of doing office grunt.

This Inspiron is even less, with a two sacrifices. It's only got 4GB of RAM, which means that if you're the kind of person to have tons of programs running at the same time might give you some headaches. It also doesn't have a disk drive, which could be a problem for some. Nice thing at least is that external drives are cheap, and easy to use for the few times that you might need it.

I'd say overall the i5 is a little overkill unless you're really crunching a lot of stuff at the same time. So the i3 8GB model is probably your best choice, and it's a bit cheaper than the Avatar and the i5 model.

If you're feeling savvy you could try to look into the slim Inspiron model and just buy your own RAM to stick in it. I'm not sure how easy it would be to get in there though.

Then your choices for a case are only limited to itx, nearly every tower case you come across will support mATX and ATX, then you have Full Tower cases that would make that little motherboard seem out of place. Tons and tons of good options from $60 and up.

As others have touched on, a good modular power supply unit will not only be more efficient/reliable (especially if you want to OC anything!), it will help take care of cable management. I have always went for "full modular", semi modular will have a 'pony tail' with the motherboard, cpu, and gpu connectors rolled into one. It's nice to be able to route each PSU cable where you want imo.

So then there are your two main issues, cable management and airflow. You have a decision to make regarding the case, I understand liking how a prebuilt case looks because some do look nice. If you want to stick with that case you need to figure out how to mod it to increase airflow. Generally speaking, switching to a aftermarket case will be simple and increase your cooling performance twice over without having to mod a thing.

I use and always recommend EVGA PSU's because they generally perform great in benchmarks and come with a 10yr warranty: 550w Gold

If it were me I'd build in this case just for the hell of it for $40: CM Masterbox

Here's another case that would be good in your situation: Corsair Air 240

All depends on your budget.

Dynamic disks have gotten a lot better, haha. If you are going with the case you own, There are some internal enclosures that can hold 5 3.25 in drives per 5 in bay. Like this. With the benefit of being hot swappable. If you don't care wether or not things are hot swappable, you can go cheaper and get better air flow.

You can also get a box case like this which has the bays built in and just fit it with a good motherboard, processor, maybe an HBA and maybe a NIC. Honestly, with current parts, you should be able to saturate 1 gigabit drop. Since we are dealing with pictures and videos, I'm thinking you'll be reading and writing sequentially for the most part which maximizes your read/write speeds.

Take a quick look at this before you buy your drives, that way you have the option to balance price with storage. 10TB drives usually cost more than what you get, especially since the 12TB drives are cheaper per gig right now. If you don't want to pay that much for a drive, you can go with one of the cheaper 8TB or shuck for an even lower price with a bit more effort on your part.

As for pre-built appliances, you can go with something like this or this both can saturate your network and give you the storage you desire.

Edit: My first gold, thank you!!

From another posting

Your best option is to go to This List and select the Acer Aspire V7-582PG and bundle it with Office 365 Personal. You can get the 582PG for only $669 that way, which would normally cost $750 on it's own and that would still be what I would recommend to you.
It has an i5-4200U, 8GB RAM, 500GB Hybrid SSD, Nvidia GT 750M graphics, and a beautiful 15.6" 1920x1080 IPS touch display. It weighs only 4.8lbs and gets 6.5 hours of battery life. Definitely your best option here.

notation: This would apply to you perfectly, although it does not have an optical drive. You can get an external drive easily enough and keep that in your room or carry it with you for when you need it. It's thin and cheap.

The only way you could get a vr capable pc for under $700 would be to build one with buying the main components used off Ebay. Let me see if I can put together something:

Used Parts
GPU - $95
CPU, motherboard, and memory - $233

New Parts
Power Supply - $50
Hard Drive - $110
Case - $45

Total - $533

You'll still need a mouse and keyboard, which you can spend as little or as much as you want on. If you have a TV with an hdmi input, which you probably do, you can use that as a monitor. This will satisfy the minimum requirements for most headsets, but just barely. You would be better off getting a gtx 1070 over a 970.

GTX 1070 - $260

New Total - $698


That would give you a better experience, but is obviously more expensive. If you haven't built your own pc yet, don't feel intimidated. There are plenty of guides on youtube and it is very simple. It is also a right of passage. Putting it together yourself will also allow you to upgrade one component at a time later on. Used pc parts are usually pretty good. All the stuff I listed should be able to work for another 8 years or so, well beyond the time they will be obsolete. Feel free to ask any questions.

The optical drive limits your choices. More and more manufacturers are dropping it. Nonetheless, here are some suggestions with a DVD drive:

Sony Vaio T15:

• 15.6 inch, 1920x1080p display
  
• Intel i5-3337U + 4 GB of RAM
  
• 750 GB HDD + 32 GB SSD cache
  
• Price: $799
  
  It's one of the lightest 15 inch laptops out there with an optical drive. With a weight of only 4.9 lbs it's quite portable. Battery life is stellar, but 4 hours should be doable, if you don't turn up the display brightness to a maximum. Would handle all your needs for several years and has enough storage for an extended music and video collectionn. It also would feel quite fast due to the SSD cache (a fast storage solution compared to spinning hard drives).
  
  If you want something smaller and more portable, you can take a look at the Toshiba Portege R935-ST4N01:
  
  
• 13.3 inch, 1366x768p display
  
• Intel i5-3210M + 8 GB of RAM
  
• 1 TB HDD
  
• Price: $749.99
  
  Very light weight, under 3.5 lbs, and with long battery life. One charge would carry you through the whole day. You can expect about 7 to 8 hours of usage till it shuts down. Due to it's size, it wouldn't be a problem to take it to class and make notes with it. The display isn't a high resolution one like in the Sony Vaio T15, but it's not bad for a 13.3 inch laptop. And the HDD is quite large with 1 TB of storage.
  
  And an honorable mention to the Apple MacBook Pro 13:
  
  
• 13.3 inch, 1280x800p display
  
• Intel i5 CPU + 4 GB of RAM
  
• 500 GB HDD
  
• Price: $999
  
  It's a refurbished model and still it's more expensive than the other two, but it's an Apple product. You can expect better build quality and better customer service.
  
  I don't know how often you use a DVD drive (optical drive), but if you just use it once or twice a month an external one could be viable option. You could get a laptop without one, which would give you a broader selection.

Hey there everyone, right now I've got a completed build which started as a Cyberpower prebuild, which I've slowly upgraded over time and right now all that remains from that is the RAM and case.

I'm looking to upgrade both, but right now I'm looking for a new case. I've got a few in mind, I'm just wondering if my parts would fit inside? I LOVE the look of a smaller cube-ish case, but if my parts won't fit then obviously it won't work out.

I'm looking at the Cooler Master Elite 130 and Corsair Carbide Series Air 240. Alternatively if those don't work, I'd like to get the Rosewill NIGHTHAWK117. I got a NZXT Hue lighting system the other day and have it in my current case. Can I transfer that to my new one? I'm hoping the 3m will still be sticky enough. I appreciate ANY help.

Here is my current part list, IK that it's missing stuff, but rest assured I've got everything I need and a working build. I couldn't find my HD or RAM on the old listing I bought the computer from, its just a generic 1tb HD and two sticks of 4gb RAM.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor | $177.49 @ SuperBiiz
CPU Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler | $18.88 @ OutletPC
Motherboard | MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $42.98 @ Newegg
Storage | Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $68.95 @ Amazon
Video Card | XFX Radeon R9 380 2GB Double Dissipation Black Edition Video Card |-
Case | Azza CSAZ-203 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case |-
Power Supply | EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply | $51.43 @ OutletPC
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $364.73
| Mail-in rebates | -$5.00
| Total | $359.73
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-25 08:41 EDT-0400 |

First off, thank you a ton. I asked a friend of mine to look at the build (sorry, but I like to check things :P, I'm paranoid), and he said it looks great. I was curious though if you had the time to verify a few things for me. I couldn't find a few of the things you had suggested so I checked on some other things... Could you verify that they are just as usable for me please?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GQMHBI/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A34FFV8YYDM571

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064GOQ86/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DHW4HXY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0088PUEPK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_8?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0055QYKQO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_9?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A1XBPHGHAXLHDG

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005O65JXI/ref=ox_sc_act_title_10?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QBUL1C/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0033Z2BAQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A30YNTVQ04HG16

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003HE260I/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

And sorry for the late reply. I've been trying to ensure that I have the money together so that I can actually pay for it without running into issues haha.

So when I originally moved in to my house last year, I set things up in a very temporary setup that became more permanent than I was hoping. I also had to bring another box home from my office when we moved locations and we no longer had a dedicated internet connection so I couldn't expose anything directly to the internet.

I've been looking at setups from everyone for a while now, getting ideas of what I needed and I finally settled on the following:

• NavePoint 4ft Open Frame 19" 22U 4-Post Network Server - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01A6JQO4A
  
• TP-Link 24-Port Gigabit Ethernet Unmanaged Switch - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003BU0EKW
  
• Keystone panel - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F8NLZ4Z
  
• 2U shelf - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008X3JHJQ
  
• 1U shelf - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01A6JQYDG
  
• Rosewill 4U case (8 bay) - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0055EV30W
  
• Rosewill 4U case (6 bay) - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07957B2VF
  
• 80mm quieter fans - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NTUJZ36
  
• 1U PDU - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075TQS7XC
  
• 1U Blank - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0779M2D96
  
• Velcro! - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001E1Y5O6
  
• POE injectors - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NRF9GQO
  
  I don't intend on purchasing full sized rack mount servers as I just use desktop class hardware for the most part but I took the two systems that I had in desktop cases and put them in the Rosewill cases that I've seen a lot of people use and a coworker recently suggested them as well as he recent did a rack setup. Since I don't need full size servers, I decided to go with a 4 post "network" rack as I don't really need the extra depth. I'm just using a 1U blank to help stabilize the servers in the rack so they're not just hanging from the front.
  
  If anyone is looking to get some of the same components, I would say that the 1U shelves that I bought don't really work that well as I had to get creative with the brackets to make them work and they do extend out the back a bit but I knew they would do that when I purchased them, I just didn't realize I would have to flip around some brackets to make it work.
  
  My network is really basic so I went with a 24 port unmanaged gigabit switch. I did have to get some POE injectors for my 3 WAPs as I did have a 8 port switch that had built in POE before but I knew that 8 ports wasn't going to cut it and I wanted to go with a rack mount switch.
  
  Future plans are to replace the 3 regular PSUs with something rack mountable. Right now I have one PSU for each box and then the 3rd is for all of the network equipment. I'd also like to get a KVM but for right now I have HDMI cables ran to the side where I can easily switch them out and the keyboard I only plug into the front panels if I need it.

Desk: IKEA Linnmon/Oddvald. Pretty solid desk for the price, although leg room is a bit lacking, probably upgrading soon.

Chair: DXRacer Formula Series, really helped my posture and got rid of my back pain. Plus I'm a huge gear-head so it's very much my style.

Keyboard: Das Keyboard Professional w/ Brown Switches. This keyboard is fantastic, it's a treat to use every day, feels buttery smooth to type on and build quality is superb. I also have a CM Quickfire Ultimate that I use at work, also browns.

Mouse: Zowie EC2-A. Replaced my old Logitech G400 when it started intermittently cutting out, I think I like this mouse even more.

Mousepad: SteelSeries QcK+ for all that low DPI goodness.

Headset: Kingston HyperX Cloud II. I love this headset, it's super comfortable and has good directional sound.

Speakers: Cyber Acoustics CA-3602 FFP. I use my headset mainly but these are good enough for when I need them.

Monitors: BenQ XL2411Z flanked by two ASUS VS247H-P mounted on an Ergotech Triple Monitor Stand. Finally got the monitor stand this year after using two boxes to hold up my side monitors for far too long. However, the BenQ is probably my favorite purchase out of all of these, would've bought three if it served any real benefit to me.

Random Peripherals: uxcell extended power switch. I keep my computer under my desk so this is handy so I don't have to crouch under my desk to turn on my computer.

Inateck PCI-E to USB 3.0 5-Port PCI Express Card. My motherboard came with a fairly low number of USB ports so this allows me to plug in my printer and external hard drive, etc.

As /u/just_insane has mentioned, plex is a good option for streaming. I'm an opponent of freenas, in favor of using something homebrew (zfsonlinux with debian or ubuntu, in my case, gentoo with zfs) to do what you need. I don't like how finicky freenas can be even with server-grade hardware. It's just not my thing.

That said, for someone who's new, it may be a good idea to try out freenas or nas4free. I just finished building a 16TB usable (20.5TB raw) system last week. I'll link my items below.

2x iocrest controllers

1x16GB kingston ECC ram

1xNZXT source 210

5xHGST 4TB deskstar NAS

1xsupermicro mbd-x9scm-f-o - Great board. Loving it so far. dual onboard nic is nice.

2x850 Pro 256GB that I had laying around

1x 550W PSU laying around.

total ran me about $1300 and I'm able to max out a 2x1GB LACP setup writing and reading directly on rust.

EDIT: my recommendation, in most cases, is to at least do raidz1 (RAID5). RAID is no substitute for backups though, so invest in something offsite and make sure it's staying backed up. I use CrashPlan for offsite and local backups and it works like a charm.

Noctua has a good reputation for having some of the best performing fans though they are a bit pricey maybe because of the demand for them if spending $20 or more per case fan is too much going for cheaper fan's wouldn't be the worse idea as replacing a fan is easier these fan's are pretty cheap and it comes with 3 of them Noctua also has some of the best CPU Coolers

Here's a couple of CPU coolers if they cost too much there's a couple others I can think of

Noctua NH-D15 one of the best coolers by noctua the FSP case may have trouble mounting this.

Noctua NH-U14S a more budget cooler but still capable might be a bit louder then the D15 the FSP case may have trouble mounting this

Dark Rock Pro 4 one of the most recommended CPU coolers I've seen at the moment probably because of it's price for a dual heat sink tower cooler the FSP case may have trouble mounting this

​

Corsair H115i a very high end Liquid cooler it's expensive but it'll definitely get the job done might have better overclocking performance as AIO cooler's don't suffer from stark changes in temperatures with an air cooler you may see temperature spikes for example your CPU is sitting at 40 C and it jumps up to 50 C for a second and then quickly climbs back down this is pretty rare for an AIO Liquid cooler

with all the clearance issue's with the FSP case you could look into this case it would be wide enough to fit all cooler's I mentioned here while also not being too expensive

Just got my NooElec dongle in the mail today! I'm having some trouble picking up NPR but I'll trying fiddling with my antenna angle. Just a couple of questions:

1. I tried googling which software to use, and SDR# came up an awful lot but for some reason I can't connect to airspy.com, it just times out for me. I found an old build (1.0.0.1361) but can anyone point me to a newer build? (Or better (free) software)?
   
   
2. Is my window pane a Yagi antenna? Kind of random haha, but I found that pressing my antenna to it could really clear up the signal I was getting. I read about Yagi antennae while browsing this sub and I thought it'd be pretty funny if thats actually how my window was working.
   
   Thanks!

Thanks again for all the help. I'll look closer at my hand size and the mouse reviews when I can accurately measure my hand size. This one can wait, as I can use a cheapo mouse to get the pc setup initially.

On the monitor you've listed, how would that compare to this one I found on buildapcsales?

https://m.newegg.com/products/N82E16824011162?amp

I'm putting together my Amazon and Newegg carts right now and hopefully I'll be at Microcenter either tomorrow or Monday.

I hope you won't begrudge me nickel and diming myself on a case I like a little better, I think I might grab the Fractal Meshify C.

https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-FD-CA-MESH-C-WT-TGC-Computer-Case/dp/B07BPP9KYD/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1550379024&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Fractal+Design+Meshify&dpPl=1&dpID=51goY0qXoxL&ref=plSrch

> AMP/DAC that I can use with them that also has a mic input.

A DAC/Amp never has mic input, it only outputs sound but doesn't accept any audio input. What you are looking for is an external sound card or an audio interface.

the MMX300 has an impedance of 32 Ohm and a sensitivity of 96dB/mW....why don't you plug both connectors to your motherboard? This headset is very easy to drive and should work perfectly fine if you just plug it into the computer.

__


Once you connect the MMX300 to the mainboard outputs.

• Follow this guide to disable all enhancements
  
  
• Setup the Realtek Driver with noise supression enabled and apply the correct gain settings.
  
  
• if you want an external solution because of EMI, get rid of the 2i4 and buy a Soundblaster G5; or Soundblaster E1 if you don't want to spend that much.
  
  

I just ordered mine so I can't actually vouch for it, but the Meshify C is a pretty good price point and the reviews are pretty solid https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-FD-CA-MESH-C-WT-TGC-Computer-Case/dp/B07BPP9KYD?keywords=meshify+c&qid=1540674214&s=Electronics&sr=1-1&ref=sr_1_1

of course, if you're willing to spend more you could possibly get a nicer case, though I haven't been seeing "nice" (aka has features but also is well liked) cases on sale very much lately.

Nice great monitor.

I'd go for slightly cheaper case. Either the Meshify C is a great option or the Cooler Master Masterbox if you wanna stick with the RGB.


I'd go a little higher end on the PSU. The Seasonic Focus Plus is a great tier 1 PSU and fully modular but if you don't want to spend more then go for a Corsair CX series which is semi modular at least. Or if you wanna maintain the RGB theme you could go with this Thermaltake PSU.

Double your SSD capacity and get a higher tier one for only a few bucks more with the WD Blue.. Or go with a M.2 form factor one since your MOBO has a slot for it.

Just some ideas. CPU and GPU are good combo, as is the RAM.

Story Time

​

Initially, I started with this case ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Q2Z11QE ) as I was thinking of throwing something together like what you're talking about. Then my "project" began to grow.

That's when I ended up ordering this case instead ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005KQ66ZC ). That said, my server consists of a Threadripper 2990WX with an AIO water cooler. Well...this case wasn't made for that. So my father in law machined a hole in the top to mount the radiator on the top of the case like a blower on a car. This worked VERY well for a couple of weeks, but I just wasn't happy with it.

Finally, I ordered this case ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0091IZ1ZG ), to which I was able to fit everything inside of with a few extra bolts that still need to be trimmed. Here's a pic of the inside of mine and the temp 32 cores runs at ( https://imgur.com/tek9ID0 - https://imgur.com/vEPFLv5 ), do excuse the dust.

​

As far as SSD's go, just do something like this ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GMGZBP0 ). Saves space and doesn't hurt them as they only take a single HDD slot. Taping them to the side of the case doesn't hurt either if you don't care about the looks. Also, I want to boast about these fans for a min ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KFCRF1A ). Move a lot of air and aren't as loud as you'd think. The 120mm variant is a good bit louder, but still well worth it.

I'll second this one. Ed's talking about Software Defined Radio (SDR) which is basically where you have a computer addon, often a usb dongle, that works much like a sound card to convert computer generated digital output to an analog signal only instead of the output being in the form of audio, it's in the form of radio. With a dongle like this and the right software to drive it, you can do pretty much anything that can be accomplished with a radio signal including building your own ham radio, radio control, or even radio based networking. You can get a basic SDR dongle for about $25 and there's software to drive them available for raspberry pi (and I'm sure lots of other small computers and microcontrollers). Seems like a great fit for a HB.

A lot of that looks great - except that a 4U rack mount case is large, and will easily fit a full ATX motherboard and graphics card.

I've never overclocked before, so I guess what I'm mostly looking for is the following:

• A great Z370 motherboard that has lots of features (addressing the extra SATA ports was a great thought - I also had the Blu-ray drive I wanted to hook up, and that requires SATA. I haven't built a system in 8 years, so I didn't realize that the M.2 port can overlay a SATA port) but doesn't have to have all the fancy lights, armor, etc that just make it look pretty.
  
• It's going to be rack mounted 2 feet down from my network switch, so wireless isn't needed.
  
• Whatever cooler would be required to keep an i7-8700k cool under mild to moderate overclocking, preferably air-cooled.
  
  How does having the extra space available in the case change your recommendation, if any? I mean, I have a 7ft tall 42U rack in my basement - for this, space isn't really a concern, because I have about 30U available currently.
  
  Thanks again!

Yes. The HDHomeRun is the best device for the purpose, just be sure you get a model for over-the-air channels and not the one for cable channels. The older model HDHomeRun DUAL (model HDHR3-US) works well and is a little less expensive than the HDHomeRun CONNECT, though either should work. Amazon links are:

https://www.amazon.com/SiliconDust-HDHomeRun-Definition-Digital-HDHR3-US/dp/B004HO58SO

https://www.amazon.com/SiliconDust-HDHomeRun-CONNECT-broadcast-2-Tuner/dp/B00GY0UB54

Both models have dual tuners so you can watch programs from two different channels at once, or if you have PVR backend software such as Tvheadend, MythTV, MediaPortal, NextPVR, etc. installed on a computer, you can record from one channel while watching another, or record from two channels at the same time. If you have any experience at all with Linux then I recommend Tvheaded, but that's a personal preference.

On your computer (or home theater PC, if you ever want to watch using a TV) you would run Kodi (please be sure you get the official Kodi from https://kodi.tv/download and not from some sleazy third party site that might contain malware), or you could even view the stream in VLC or possibly your operating system's media player, if that's your preference. Kodi just makes it a little easier.

The nice thing about the HDHomeRun device is it does not have to be connected to a computer; it streams directly through your network to whatever computer is requesting the stream. With a USB tuner stick you'd need to have it plugged into a computer somewhere to work. Also, you can locate the HDHomeRun wherever your antenna cable enters your house, as long as there's also a local network connection available. So if your antenna wire comes into the basement you can put the HDHomeRun there and still watch it on a computer in an upstairs bedroom, as long as there is a network (LAN) connection at both places, and electric power of course.

Yeah it's a small cheap matx case from silverstone. Good case for what it is, but there are certainly better ones out there. Microcenter has the Bitfenix Shinobi on sale for $40. That's cheap for that case, although it only comes with one exhaust fan. Here's another good option. If you can spend $80 on a case, the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 or Define R4 are great cases. The Arc Midi is geared towards air flow, and the R4 towards quietness.

Well, you could move the camera. Find a comfortable space for a potential cockpit, see where you'd need the camera to be, and find a little stand for it, along with a USB extension cord to go along the edge of the room. If the headset's wires aren't long enough to properly extend to you from that position, you could find an HDMI and USB extension cords for it as well. If you want the cameras to be static, you could buy a second camera to sit in the middle of the room, and use a USB switch to switch between them (I personally use this one to switch between my PS3 and PS4, but there are other options out there).

Otherwise, I'd also agree that a fold up stand would probably be best here. I have the Apiga AP2, which also has the option for the seat mount (though you'd have to source the seat). You could have the stand folded up in a closet with the seat, and when you want to race, put them together in the middle of the room, and enjoy. There are other folding mounts out there, but the AP2 is the only one that I know of that also has an option for seating, and most of the other ones have a bar that goes between your legs.

are you sure you want a $40 and under mATX mini tower? All of them have mediocre airflow at best; the focus g ATX is $50 and the focus g mATX is $60, both having excellent airflow, and the next best option is the cougar mx330 for $40, having OK airflow, but for $40 and under, there's not really a lot of options

That being said, this is probably the best case that will fit your specifications



currently for psu's, the cx 2017 series is on sale for under 30 dollars, so if you're on a tight budget, you might wanna grab this

If you want general understanding, you could do a whole lot worse than picking up a ham radio license manual. ;-)

For antenna's specifically, for most frequencies of interest you're best off using a 1/2 or 1/4 wave antenna to start. Most of the better RTL-SDR receivers come with an adjustable antenna, which you can make either 1/2 or 1/4 of the wavelength (whichever fits). Use a calcualtor like this one, and just measure the metal part of the antenna from the base to the tip.

When you need more antenna than that for specific uses, you'll have learned enough to make a better decision then.

If you don't have a RTL-SDR yet, I'd get one of these, it's a great piece of kit and has everything you'll need to get going.

It's way more than $1500... the build you linked isn't the same at all and doesn't include peripherals nor some other add-ins.

/u/forrealimadetective linked a pretty accurate build here which comes out to about $1900. Add the capture card ($150), upgrade the optical drive to the external DVD writer (+$15), anti-virus ($30), flash drive ($10?), t-shirt ($10?), and the value of the warranty ($100++?) and the total is at least $2200 in parts alone, or more if you consider the fact that the case is custom designed for this build and isn't otherwise available.

Still a better deal if you build it yourself, but not nearly as bad of a deal as a $1500 PC for $2750. Honestly this ends up not being that terrible of a deal for someone who isn't tech-savvy enough to put together this list of products and assemble them, and install OS/software.

Also, the better spec you linked would be something like $2400 if you also include the keyboard, mouse, monitor, and capture card.

You can buy satisfying big buttons that wires to your front panel connectors on your MB and it on your desk (wherever you prefer in range). Looks great for a red led rig too lol. Heres an example from amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Desktop-Computer-Supply-Button-Switch/dp/B00HG7HO22

There is also a way to set up your pc to turn on via a magic packet (correct me if im wrong) which you can send over the phone via an app. I think the pc needs a LAN connection too (again anyone correct if wrong my friend has this setup so he can boot up while he walk into his house).
Not sure if they're amazing ideas but I hope it helps :)

I entered 1300 as a budget and it came out with this

pc-kombo recommendation

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-4790K | EUR 349,00 @ Amazon.de
Motherboard | ASRock Z97 Anniversary | EUR 82,90 @ Cyberport
Memory | Kingston HX316 (8 GB) | EUR 42,32 @ Amazon.de
Storage | WD10EZEX Blue (1 TB) | EUR 52,23 @ Amazon.de
SSD | Samsung MZ-75E250B/EU (256 GB) | EUR 75,97 @ Amazon.de
Video Card | GeForce GTX 980 | EUR 499,00 @ Amazon.de
Case | Fractal Design R5 | EUR 109,11 @ Amazon.de
Power Supply | Be quiet! L8-CM (430 W) | EUR 61,80 @ Amazon.de
| Total | €1272.33
| Generated by pc-kombo 10.01.2016 |

This should acceptable i think. Upgraded graphics card and better CPU. I was looking onto getting more new game title since right now im only capable on playing these two low requirement games. I was thinking about games like GTA V or Witcher 3. I also want some higher graphics in WoW even in intensive Raids.
Maybe change the graphics card since i think its kinda overkill ( is it?)

Honestly, the tutorials you find will be fine. Like they've said, you'll need a CPU cooler. A couple first-time builder tips I'd recommend, though:

• Make sure you're conscious of static while you build, and ground yourself by touching your case. It'd be easy for a new builder to not account for that, but there are horror stories of pieces being fried.
  
  
• I'd connect everything you can on the mobo outside the case. Seat the processor, put in the RAM. If you go with a cooler that uses a backplate (liquid AIO,) install that too.
  
  
• Micro ATX will be fine in a mid-size case, it's just odd really. You could take advantage of your smaller mobo and get a smaller case if you'd like. I just completed a microATX build in the Corsair Air 240 and love it, for example.
  
  
• Be conscious of your cable management. It'll probably look awful when you're done, because most peoples first build or two always do. Zipties or the little twist ties can go a long way to alleviate that.
  
  
• If you don't have a tiny screwdriver, get one.
  
  You'll be able to manage, no sweat. :) Good luck with your build!

I was choosing the 'L' CPUs not really for power consumption but rather for cooling needed as I would expect to be able to run with less noisy fans with those. Does that make sense or heat generated wouldn't change for the use cases mentioned above (prob CPU not running very high load).
What other cases do you have mind that would fit a nice little NAS? I looked as well at this SilverStone Mini-ITXcase or this Fractal Node 304

Based on the comments on this thread, looking into a e5 whitebox, but definitely not the e5-2640 - expensive CPUs even 2nd hand!

Buying parts for my first PC today and i'm still a bit on the fence about the case. This one was recommended to me, but it's a bit too pricey for me, so i was wondering if either of these two would work aswell:

Option 1 or Option 2

I like both more visually and they're both cheaper, but i'm not sure if they would work for my build. Not sure what i need to look out for, so would appreciate some help.

(I'm also open to suggestions for Cases, haven't done much digging)

Gonna paste the build here, so see for yourselves.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor | €139.90 @ Amazon Deutschland
Motherboard | Gigabyte - B450M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard | €66.00 @ Amazon Deutschland
Memory | G.Skill - Aegis 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory | €79.99 @ Amazon Deutschland
Storage | Crucial - MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | €69.90 @ Amazon Deutschland
Video Card | ASRock - Radeon RX 570 8 GB Phantom Gaming X Video Card | €144.00 @ Amazon Deutschland
Case | Cooler Master - MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case | €39.90 @ Caseking
Power Supply | Cooler Master - MasterWatt 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply | €57.89 @ Amazon Deutschland
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | €597.58
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-04-13 13:23 CEST+0200 |

Odd that you want to build this yesterday but okay.

Jokes aside, I’ve got a brand new build for you because your rig is pretty dated and if you’ve got $800 you can definitely afford a new system.

|Component|Title|Price|
|:-|:-|:-|
|CPU|Ryzen 5 3400G + Vega 11 GPU|$149 (Amazon US)|
|GPU|Empty GPU|$0 (Amazon US)|
|RAM|(2x8GB) Corsair Vengeance LPX 3000|$74 (Amazon US)|
|Motherboard|Gigabyte B450M DS3H|$70 (Amazon US)|
|Storage|Crucial P1 500GB|$66 (Amazon US)|
|Storage 2|Empty Storage|$0 (Amazon US)|
|Power Supply|Seasonic FOCUS Plus 650 Gold|$88 (Amazon US)|
|Case|Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L|$35 (Amazon US)|
|Monitor|Empty Monitor|$0 (Amazon US)|

Generated by BuildCores on August 21, 2019 12:28 AM

It doesn’t quite take up all of your budget but if you want something a bit better you can toss in a 2060 to that build.

You could buy some thermal paste, take your laptop apart, spray out all of the dust, and then reapply the aftermarket thermal paste to your cpu just in case to help it stay cool. I saw a video of it on youtube. Maybe thermal paste could be applied to the GPU as well?

I just used amazon spain to find the parts since pcpartpicker doesn't support spain. It's a similar build to one I posted earlier; maybe it will give you an idea of the build you are looking for.

• CPU - AMD FX-6300 - 100 - One of the best gaming processors under the i5s.
  
• GPU - Nvidia GTX 660 - 170 - GTX 660 Benchmark
  
• Memory - x2 Kingston 8GB 1600Mhz DDR3 - 60 - 8GB is the most that is needed for normal use.
  
• Motherboard - MSI 970A-G43 - 63 - An MSI motherboard.
  
• Storage - Seagate Barracuda 1TB HDD - 59 - A normal 1TB HDD.
  
• PSU - Corsair CX500 - 51 - A common corsair power supply that can support the components.
  
• Case - NZXT Source 210 Elite White Computer Case - 50 - A good case with cable management.
  
• Optical Drive - ASUS DVD Writer - 18
  
• Total: 571€
  
  

For a case that'll leave a smaller footprint, I really want to recommend the Air 240 but because you have the NH-D14 (ayyy Noctua. High five) you will most definitely have a clearance issue. It can definitely house your 780ti though since the Air 240 has no problem housing the 970 G1 even with a rad at the front.

I'd like to throw in the Air 540 because ugh, I really love the Carbide Air 240 and 540

Thanks for the response! This idea is still in its infancy and was actually prompted because I had to purchase one of these to move power from the front panel. I agree that extending a USB 3.0 to a hub is probably the better idea, as I'd probably only really need one or two up top. Also, when I refer to moving the computer to 'another room' I really only mean bridging to the opposite side of a wall, which adds probably a foot tops to the length of the cabling.

Audio quality is probably the one thing im truly skeptical about, and I may just end up running a dedicated cable for it.

I use an hdhr3 to record ota hd ... then stream it to my minix neo g4

picture's not 100% smooth ... but still 1,000x better than a vcr ... fast fwd commercials with a wireless mouse

I've little doubt, if I had a wired connection to the g4, it'd be perfect ... but vs runnin new wires, I'm very happy with what I got ... especially the monthly fees!

... bigger antenna wouldn't hurt, neither!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079JSKCW3/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075SBFGRB/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VB3Y89E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BP7RQTT/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013JPLOQQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DJ6A88G/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LYGFRL6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XSMTN31/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0759FTRZL/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01ARGXM0Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Total as of right now for available purchase is around $800 with out taxes! I spent $742! I just put things i want into my cart on amazon and when the price drops i buy! I do shop around other websites and amazon still was the better choice and with free non-prime shipping! who cares if it comes two days later than normal. shoot ive had things come after two days with the free shipping.

Alright here we go, it's close to budget, but the looks and performance are amazing.

CPU and MOBO: https://www.microcenter.com/product/5003166/AMD_Ryzen_7_3700X_with_Wraith_Prism_Cooler,_ASUS_ROG_Strix_X570-F_Gaming,_CPU_-_Motherboard_Bundle

Other Parts are better bought on AMAZON.

GPU: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TMK8HMC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

RAM: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D5SN1ZK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

SSD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CYJ4GS3/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?smid=AAQGGA3IAV1C8&psc=1

HDD:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07H2RR55Q/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

CPU Cooler:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074SD6LH3/ref=ox_sc_act_title_8?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

FANS:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NB0S6A6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

PSU:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N4C39AR/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

Case:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BPP9KYD/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

​

I went with a White/Black Design with RGB Lighting. I should be just a bit above budget after tax. This PC should crush High/Ultra detail VR, Streaming, Workstation, 120FPS+ AAA 1080p Gaming, Competitive eSports, and even Light Server Loads.

It should be $1704.06 Pre-Tax and around $1850 After Tax

Well damn. Sorry you have to deal with that stuff! That is really frustrating!

My last suggestion, if you are willing, is to get a cheap USB Sound Card and completely bypass your internal jack. As that could be the issue as well.

It is a really cheap test and it would let you know if it is the headset or the jack or the adapter.

Something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Aluminum-External-Adapter-AU-EMAC/dp/B00OJ5AV8I/

Or this:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Adapter-Windows-AU-MMSA/dp/B00IRVQ0F8/

Anyway, good luck on solving that issue man. And if they USB Sound Card works you could try some different headsets/headphones. Just remember that those USB Sound Cards are very basic and offer little to no amping. So you wont be getting the best sound quality. But it would definitely be equivalent to the onboard sound of laptops. And let you test your situation.

If you want to do a serious upgrade in sound quality, get the Sound Blaster Omni 5.1.

I have it and it amps all my headphones perfectly and has so many features and options and is rock solid. It does have an integrated mic into the unit and does noise cancel quite well but I wouldn't recommend it if you can use one on a headset as that would probably be clearer.

https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Performance-Headphone-Integrated-Microphone/dp/B00EZT7RE4/

Just letting you know of the options, and sorry about all the info.

The reason I thought it could be the adapter or port is because I have the Game One and the SHP 9500's which are VERY open and leak sound substantially and I never get the mic picking up the audio from the headphones when using voice activated on PC or even on PS4 which is only voice activated.

Also, I just noticed something from your wording and just want to clarify something.

You are saying that when you are on a voice chat program with someone, they hear coming through your mic what is playing on your headphones right? It's not that you are hearing your mic in your headphones right? Just being sure. Because if you hear your mic in your headphones that is a completely different issue and can be disabled by going into your speaker settings and muting the mic playback which plays back to your headphones for closed headphones so you can hear yourself without having to yell it's called sidetone. Anyway, this is probably definitely not the issue but I just want to clarify so we can rule out everything else.

Are you looking for rackmount? You aren't likely to find anything with 120-140mm fan support. Most rackmounts have tiny, but loud fast spinning fans.

It's not supermicro, or rackmount, but something like this might work well. Can hold 8 x 3.5 drives, and also has space for 4x 2.5" drives inside. The only thing it doesn't have is ATX PSU support. It needs a SFX power supply.

Silverstone DS380

If you need Rackmount, maybe take a look at some Norco cass. This 4U Norco case might fit the bill. You'd just need to get some adaptors to put in the 2.5" drives.

I'm not sure about the fans but I can recommend some good mATX cases.

This is a really nice case: http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Airflow-MicroATX-Mini-ITX/dp/B00LA6WXEO/ref=sr_1_8?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1462648211&sr=1-8&keywords=micro+atx+case

I can recommend others if you tell me your budget.

I use the micromix, it works great! The only thing to be aware of is that all the ins and outs are 1/4, and the output is mono so you'll need A mono to stereo converter like this if you want to listen on headphones.

As you noted, the micromix only has one output so you can't do multitrack recordings with it, but it is good for jamming or even small live performances. If you want to do multitrack recording on the cheap, and you have a mac, look into aggregate devices. Basically, you can get a bunch of these, plug them into a single USB hub, and tell your mac it's one device with multiple inputs. If you're not using a mac I don't know what to do but I'm sure there's a solution out there!

As much as I like new toys, if it were me, I'd bite my lip and do the responsible thing by getting AppleCare for the computer. :P

If you already did get AppleCare, I'd say go for the external drive; optical media is falling quickly out of usage, but you can get a much better deal than Apple's SuperDrive if you choose to in the future. The Apple Store does have a respectable selection of third-party drives, on the other hand.

There's quite a few by corsair that are priced under 100 dollars. Most of them are well designed and decent to excellent quality.

This is on sale for 99


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00EB6O4N8/ref=mp_s_a_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1468385177&sr=8-9&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=corsair+case

Or this for example

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LA6WXEO/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1468385177&sr=8-13&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=corsair+case


While filling different needs, both cases offer great cable management, good aesthetics, stellar interior arrangements, and good quality. If you check out the accessories section of the corsair website, some cases have back plane updates, widowed side panels, or just well priced replacement parts. Not something every manufacturer offers.

I'm rocking either a ModMic/Headset combo or the ADG1X:

Antlion Audio ModMic 4.0 LINK

Note: If you have your favorite pair of headphones that you would love to have a mic on and convert it into a Headset, get the ModMic and apply it on!

Audio Technica ATH-AD900X Open-Back LINK

Note: Audio Technica ATH-AD700X Open-Back is a favored 2nd choice by me.

Creative Sound BlasterX G5 HD Audio External Sound Card LINK

Note: If you don't have a Sound Card and need something to drive your headset.

Audio-Technica ATH-ADG1X Open Air LINK

Note: This headset is Big Head Summit1G approved Kappa (Current headset he is using)

Well, Since yesterday I have been looking at deals left and right and this is what I bought:

This Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?SID=u133434t2873409f9fp0dd0c0s701&AID=10440897&PID=1225267&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-cables-_-na-_-na&ItemList=Combo.632492 $176

This Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?SID=u133434t2838759f9fp0dd0c0s701&AID=10440897&PID=1225267&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-cables-_-na-_-na&ItemList=Combo.634440 $80

Micro Center: i5 2600k $194

Amazon DVD: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0033Z2BAQ $30

Do you think they will all be compatible nicely?

Also, looking for a good HDD now .... :)

Thanks

Yes just the tower.

With this you wont need a 4k monitor, just 1080p so depends on how much you want to spend and how big you want. [I had this one for a while and loved it.] (https://www.amazon.com/23-inch-Wide-Screen-VX238H-Response-Speakers/dp/B00ANKMNXO/ref=nav_ya_signin?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1522551594&sr=1-8&keywords=1080p+monitor&)

As for a mouse, i would go to best buy or frys and put your hand on one and see which one feels the best. But I really like the [Razer Mamba] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013HSWF40/ref=twister_B071WFY14D?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1).

Just FYI, the motherboard i picked is a mATX which is micro ATX so its smaller and i picked a case that supports mATX. Its more expensive than ATX by around $25 so you can get a regular ATX motherboard cheaper but you will need larger case than the one i picked. I actually ended up using [this case.] (https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Airflow-MicroATX-Mini-ITX/dp/B00LA6Y5XQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1522552372&sr=8-2&keywords=corsair+240)

The top one is https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0055EV30W/ref=ppx_yo_mob_b_inactive_ship_o0_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1 housing an AMD Epyc 7281.

Underneath that is my NAS chassis, https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00N9CXGSO/ref=ya_aw_oh_bia_dp?ie=UTF8&psc=1.

They've been pretty solid. I replaced the fans with quieter ones. Same goes with my USG. The whole setup has a nice quiet hum 😊

As /u/Astec123 said, you can use a KVM switch.

If you really just want to share a mouse and not a keyboard / monitor as well, you can also use a USB A/B Switch.

Another option is Synergy, software that you install on both computers that just shares the mouse and keyboard between them. I have used a previously available free version across 8 workstations driving 32 LCDs and it worked perfectly.

That sounds more like a driver or hardware issue IMO. If you're still having the issue, I'd recommend consulting this thread, and if that doesn't work buying one of these. Pretty cheap and pretty useful, was a big help when my soundcard starting shitting itself.

You've thought this out pretty well. I'd probably only change a couple of things. First would be to look into getting a networked HDHomeRun DUAL over a USB tuner. I'd go with this one because you'd be able to connect it to any computer in the house over LAN. If this wouldn't benefit you then a USB tuner might suit you better.

And the second is I wouldn't necessarily change, but you might want to consider. The chromebox ships soon, but we don't know yet if we'd be able to load any other OS on it yet. My guess would be yes. Other chromebooks have had success, but we just don't know yet so I wouldn't commit just yet.

The only other issue I can see is Plex might have an issue transcoding to play on your devices, especially the Celeron based chromebox.

Edit: Oh, and for wife proofing, I've got a Harmony 650 and FLIRC IR dongle that makes controling my TV, receiver, cable box, and HTPC easy

If 8 bays is all you need right now, consider something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Norco-4U-Rackmount-Components-RPC-4308/dp/B00N5C6GYY/ref=sr_1_16?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1536045035&sr=1-16&keywords=short+depth+rack+mount

or

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055EV30W/ref=psdc_572238_t1_B00BQY388A?th=1

​

What I would do is use:

-Full size atx asrock taichi motherboard (Which has 8 sata ports, with all the pci-e slots you'll ever want for expansion. The taichi ultimate has a 10gb port)

-A Ryzen APU (The Ryzen 5 2400GE 3.8GHz 35W looks interesting https://www.quietpc.com/amd-2nd-gen-ryzen-cpus)

-ECC ram. A single 16gb stick would be fine, which gives plenty of expansion potential later.

-Openmediavault with the zfs plugin

-Reuse a power supply I have around, but really good new ones aren't much these days.

​

And boom, you'll have everything you need as well as future expandability for much less than a prebuilt nas that locks you into an ecosystem. The norco case would allow you to add another five disk bay in the middle, and you could use the pci-e slot to get an hba card and use sas to sata cables to connect those drives.

I've had it for a year now, so I would recommend a newer CPU/Motherboard. And please note that this unit is only up to running old arcade games, not something that takes a lot of display horsepower. Here is the system I built, it is running OpenELEC:

Case - Thermaltake Element Q - $75

Motherboard/CPU/APU - Asus AT5IONT-I - $180

Memory - Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) - $30

SSD - Crucial M4 64GB - $73

Blu-ray Drive - I have a discontinued Sony Optiarc full height unit - I would recommend - Asus Black 12X BD-ROM - $53

A couple of items that made the build easier:

10" SATA Cables - $10

1 Foot Right Angle Power Cord - $9

TOTAL: $430

EDIT: I forgot the remote. Any Windows Media remote works, I chose this one ($21) since its IR unit seemed to have a wide angle of signal capture, which it does. I also have a small mini-keyboard/remote ($37) for those times I need it.

EDIT II: I also forgot that I have a HD HomeRun ($90) to support TV. Storage is handled by a Startech 2 Drive Enclosure ($72) with 2 WD AV-GP WD20EURS 2TB ($120 each) These will be replaced by a server when I can afford it.

This makes a grand total that might not be so attractive: $430 for the HTPC + $460 for peripherals and storage = $890

I just bought this recently. Looks pretty good with fans in and i like how many different orientations you can have it. Only thing i wish is it was tempered glass. At the price point i can't complain. You can fit a full sized hdd in the back and 2 ssd's.

If it were Me, I'd get this:

http://www.amazon.com/Zotac-ZBOX-1-6GHz-Barebone-ZBOX-AD02-U/dp/B004XYJLY0/ref=sr_1_7?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1319408109&sr=1-7

and this

http://www.amazon.com/SiliconDust-HDHomeRun-Definition-Television-HDHR3-US/dp/B004HO58SO/ref=dp_cp_ob_e_title_0

FWIW, this is what I currently own today:

http://www.barrymorrison.com/2011/04/25/my-htpc-coming-soon/

http://www.barrymorrison.com/2011/05/01/my-htpc-its-here/

Only thing I'd do differently, is a dual-tuner. BUT this was at Woot for $80 so I did it! A dual-tuner is a necessity (for me IMO).

Good luck!

I‘m not really into radio-things, but I want to get into it. I want something that is able to hijack a radio-audio system (basically speakers with the audio being transmitted on radio) , at best as far away as possible. Can you give me any advice for that?
Is this good, or could I also go with the ones you linked?

ditch the origen, you can get a G5 for $112.50 and free shipping. Good dac, good amp, good mic input. You need to use the coupon code LABOR25 at checkout

http://us.creative.com/p/sound-blaster/sound-blasterx-g5


EDIT: nevermind you can get it on amazon for $96 ! https://www.amazon.com/Creative-BlasterX-Headphone-Amplifier-SB1700/dp/B018JUPY3A

http://www.reddit.com/r/htpc/ might be a good place to ask as well.

Can't really provide any input on that card, but it's definitely an OEM device, so drivers could be an issue. Most that are available are pulls or remans, so there's a good chance that they are used, and will have no support or warranty. So the decision is if you want to risk the $$ on a used / unsupported part (that very well could work like a champ), or pay a bit more for something that's guaranteed to work.

Personally, I like the HDHomeRun tuners. They are external network devices, and don't require any space in the machine (or even have to be in the same room).

http://www.amazon.com/SiliconDust-HDHomeRun-Definition-Digital-HDHR3-US/dp/B004HO58SO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380923301&sr=8-1&keywords=hdhomerun

Of course, they are more than $30.

I provide the scanner feed for my area and I had been using a Bearcat to receive on. A friend of a friend got me started with SDR and I've seen a HUGE improvement. I live on the south side of town but I'm getting a great signal from all over.

You need two of the SDR dongles (they are cheap on Amazon) and just follow this guide.

I have Charter for internet (15Mbps down/3 up for ~$50/mo after the promo rate expires) and an antenna for TV. I built my own DVR so I can record the network shows, which is what we mainly watch anyway. I live in south Reno so the antenna reception is great coming off Slide Mtn. It is probably a bit tougher to pull off in the northern areas.

There's plenty of free DVR software. Windows Media Player can do it or if you use Linux mythtv is wonderful. That is what I use.

I use the HDHomeRun to tune the channels.

The Meshify C is too big, the Dan Case has crap cooling (where would a fan go anyway?), and none of the other cases on the market do it for me.

​

I've spent way more time on this than I should have. This is inspired by the Meshify C, the Dan Case and the DIY Perks MDF case.

​

You should be able to do this with some MDF and some patience. While the dimensions aren't perfect, the final product should be around 12.3L, which is as small as it gets for having space for two 2.5" drives behind the MB, 2 platter drives, the best GPUs on the market, a CD-ROM, and the best cooling that you can get (no compromises).

​

You could easily shrink it down by nixing the CD Rom and the two HDs, if you've no use for them.

​

Parts:

CPU Cooler (fan oriented to draw air into the case):

https://noctua.at/en/products/cpu-cooler-retail/nh-c14s

​

IO (will be placed in the DVD Drive space):

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BUUM2FU/ref=crt_ewc_img_dp_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=APIEQ5O19JI77

​

GPU Filter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BXYWJ9K/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=A2YR19H7JUSC4V&psc=1

​

CPU Filter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KHO0CZW/ref=crt_ewc_img_dp_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

​

Inspriations:

Meshify C (no compromises)

https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-FD-CA-MESH-C-WT-TGC-Computer-Case/dp/B07BPP9KYD/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=meshify+c+mini&qid=1550477333&s=gateway&sr=8-2

Dan Case:

https://www.dan-cases.com/dana4.php

DIY Perks Case:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8hLXJUQFoc

​

I'm a gamer and know nothing of sound but the guys over at /r/buildapc gave me some suggestions to come to the pros here at r/headphones

I currently have the HyperX Cloud Pro Gaming Headset which for the price I have no complains about. The only reason I'm looking to get new headphones is that this headphones kinda suck at helping me hear footsteps and don't get very loud.

Can you guys help me find the best headphones for around 400$. I have no problem going higher as long as I get the best set up possible.

My requirements so far are

• No mic is needed
  
• Closed back preferred unless open provide better sound quality
  
• Used primary for gaming (hearing footsteps lol)
  
• Durable if possible (Kids at my house might drop them once or twice but this is low priority over quality)
  
  I don't know to much about all the components I need to buy so if you can list them all in one post with the name to find on Amazon that would be really helpful.
  
  What I kinda put together but I was told I need an amp.
  
  Headphones
  
  Audio-Technica ATH-A990Z Art Monitor Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones
  
  DAC & AMP
  Creative Sound BlasterX G5 7.1 Headphone Surround HD Audio External Sound Card with Headphone Amplifier for Windows PC/Mac/PS4/and Other Consoles

Interesting! Well the obvious solution to me, would just be take out the original power switch and add that to your new case in some way shape or form. This will lead to your being able to add a new PSU and keep the old power switch. If you imagine the one you pull from your old chassis to act like this: https://www.amazon.com/uxcell-Desktop-Computer-Supply-Button/dp/B00HG7HO22
It should work fine!

The only video card that is really 4k ready right now is the 1080 and it can't even do 60 FPS max settings consistently. An RX 480 is a 1080p gaming card. I love my RX 480, but I just don't want you thinking it will do 4k very well. For the case, the Fractal Design Define R5 or Define S should fit the bill. You can go look at reviews or Fractal Design's website to see the differences as there are a few, but they both are capable of holding 3 HDDs, have noise cancelling padding, and the R5 has rubber stands for HDDs to mitigate vibration.

Here's my parts list

Akitio Thunder 2

NIVIDIA GTX 970 Mini-ITX

Corsair CM450

Cooler Master Elite 130 w/o PSU

PCIe to Molex adapter

90 degree PCIe riser

Here is a post on TechInferno about eGPUs. These guys are super helpful and have loads of tutorials. Still not a project for the faint of heart!

The same ASUS optical drive is ~$18 on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Asus-24xDVD-RW-Serial-Internal-DRW-24B1ST/dp/B0033Z2BAQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1345945034&sr=1-1&keywords=asus+optical+drive

Comparisons and reviews show that the Gigabyte DH3 and superior models are bit better for SLI (and already comes with the cables). It's your choice, the ASRock is still very good.

The OC'd ASUS 660 Ti has been reviewed as the superior of the bunch - but again, your call. =)

I think it’s a solid build. My only suggestions would be:

1- if you shop around you might find for maybe $20 more you can upgrade your ram to 16GB
2- if you haven’t built a pc before then I highly recommend getting a semi-modular or modular psu. It may cost you $50 extra but it’s excellent for cable management and will help you a great deal if you’re building a microATX pc
3- lastly- I actually just made a build with that pc case and I absolutely hate it. I hate such a hard time navigating the case (my massive cooler didn’t help either). I don’t even put the plastic siding on it bc it gets so hot. I would highly recommend spending the extra money on this one instead - https://www.amazon.com/MasterBox-Magnetic-Transparent-Acrylic-Performance/dp/B0785GRMPG/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1563966213&refinements=p_89%3ACooler+Master&s=pc&sr=1-2

Ah that does make sense. Thanks.

Edit:
I've chosen this case out of the part picker list (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00DJ6A88G/?tag=pcp0f-21). It has good reviews and it has a nice design. What mobo should I get for it though? Also have you got any idea how my RX 480 would fit? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sapphire-Radeon-RX480-Polaris-Graphics/dp/B01JJNSW58/ref=sr_1_16?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1473194155&sr=1-16&keywords=RX+480

Thanks for the reply! This looks pretty great. This is cheap and does the job.
How does this one look?

http://www.amazon.com/RTL-SDR-RTL2832U-Popular-Software-Packages/dp/B00C37AZXK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408850993&sr=8-1&keywords=USB+sdr+tuner#cm_cr_dpwidget

or

http://www.amazon.com/Receiver-Previously-Compatible-Packages-Guaranteed/dp/B009U7WZCA/ref=pd_sim_e_7?ie=UTF8&refRID=1GTFVRQ2YBC6P749ZN8T

no, it wont work that way. you would need something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Plugable-One-Button-Swapping-Between-Computers/dp/B006Z0Q2SI/

and then you would have to push a button to make it switch between the two.

but you could use a network hard drive. pretty much all the new TVs support reading files from network hard drives. you could put the network hard drive into your tv and computer at the same time.

Edit: wait, actually, you can set your computer to use the USB drive as a network share. so it stays plugged into your computer, then its configured to share the files over the network.

I would get this and this but everything else looks pretty solid. Also some more fans and maybe an rx580. With all of that it’ll be like $50-$100 more I believe, but it’s all worth it.

Funnily enough, I had that same setup. Yes, you will need a splitter, however, the Boompro comes with a splitter IIRC so you should be fine in that department. All you have to do is plug the headphone jack into the DAC and the mic jack into your onboard sound.

HOWEVER. You might get a faint hissing/interference in your headphones if you do this, It happened to me, and I'm pretty sure it'll happen to anyone who uses the mic on their onboard sound. Apparently, the way to solve this is to get a USB to 3.5mm converter, and plug the mic into there. Here's the guy that suggested it further down this thread.

And here's the adapter he linked that fixed his problem

I have yet to try it out though. I just bought another mic and stopped using the Boompro.

Something like this guy? Looks like the best fit for my situation http://www.amazon.com/Plugable-One-Button-Swapping-Between-Computers/dp/B006Z0Q2SI/ref=cm_cd_al_qh_dp_i

I considered an open case design like this, but it's gonna be hard to do liquid cooling without a custom loop. Also, I was concerned about portability. I'm gonna need to move a few times in the next 5 years, and that thing seems like a nightmare to move.


Now I'm leaning towards a smaller cube design with plenty of room for cable management. This corsair case looks great. It's also compatible with this liquid cooling system, so that's what I'm leaning towards now.


I'm gonna wait until the 1080 drops at the end of the month before I buy a GPU.

I have the 598 and purchased this amp from Creative:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018JUPY3A/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Boosts the sound tons, but keep in mind, it only supports surround on a PC, though trust me, with the Sennheiser 598 open ears, you won't miss it. It comes with an optical cable, so you can link the amp through the PS4's optical port on back, without taking up a USB port (or you can plug it into USB). I have it hooked up with my PC and PS4 and through the software, I can turn either on/off.

I just built my first NAS/PLEX server and things are going great. Total cost was around $1300

SilverStone Mini-ITX NAS case

32GB DDR3 ECC RAM

4x HGST Deskstars

this sweet mobo ties it all together. It's got a quad-core Atom processor, 12 SATA ports across 3 RAID controllers, and supports 64GB of RAM, all in a Mini ITX form factor.

I'm running FreeNAS with a Plex jail

Check out this PC case It's not a fancy RGB case but it has a dampening material inside that helps with noise. I also recommend getting these fans to help with reduced noise.

You only need about 500 watts for a single video card. You'd be just fine with something like an Antec BP550 Plus.

Spend the difference on a better video card instead, like a 7850.

The case is fine, though. I'd also look at the HAF 912 and the Source 210 Elite.

trade for my desktop?
Desktop specs:

• i7-5930k
  
• 32GB DDR4 Corsair Vengeance LPX 2666MHz (4x8)
  
• NVIDIA GTX 980 Gigabyte Windforce
  
• MSI XPOWER X99 mobo
  
• Corsair TX750 750W Bronze rated PSU (discontinued now)
  
• Be Quiet! Dark Rock 3 CPU Cooler
  
• Rosewill 4U server case (12 HDD bays)
  
• Corsair SP 120mm fans x4
  
• Basic wall mount 8U rack
  
  edit: I have a Fractal design define R4 that I could use instead of the rosewill server case/rack. It is the original one in black with white accents. I also traded out for a tinted window with a friend that had it and wanted the clear window. but the white accents have been painted blue. Decent paint job. But I also didn't paint all of the brackets. So some are still white. I use it as a media PC case now. There are no scratches or anything at all. I take really good care of my stuff. Also would throw in a 256gb Kingston HyperX predator m.2. SSD. I'm in GA, USA so idk how I would get it up there to CAN. But this may be a good excuse for a road trip for me. I would really hate to ship it. but I might have to.

I'm in the process of buying my parts for my first build, how important is it to get a case with plenty of room for upgrades?

Or I guess to phrase it better, I was originally thinking of getting a Rosewell
(http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007VER010/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=295YOD99MXIPO&coliid=I1IFTLDFVRMCP7)

But then I saw the Air 240(http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Airflow-MicroATX-Mini-ITX/dp/B00LA6Y5XQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1412620613&sr=1-2&keywords=air+240) and I just love the aesthetics of it!

Would I be hampering any future upgrade possibilities by going with the Air 240?

With the same features? No. That board gives you room to crossfire in the future if you want and is a pretty good overclocker. It also has four full RAM slots while being AM3+. That is probably the cheapest board you will find with those features.

The GPU I suggested is far better than the 6790. Look at a review to get an idea. As for the second card, it's only $2.44 cheaper. I'd buy a Sapphire card over PowerColor, if just for the brand name, for such a marginal difference.

If you grab the suggestions I made, that brings you to $525 after MIR, not too terribly over. If you want to cut your budget somewhere, I wouldn't cut it in the mobo and the GPU department. Cut it in the RAM department and drop to 4GB and cut it in the case department and get a cheaper, but good case like the Source 210, Source 210 Elite in black, or Source 210 Elite in white.

I have an Antlion Modmic and I had the same hissing issue, but to solve it I just bought a $5 usb-to-3.5mm adapter from amazon and plugged the mic jack into there. Mic sounds great now, and my headphones are still through my DAC.

Here's the exact adapter I got if you're curious, no issues on Win10.

There are a few <$10 USB dongle sound cards on amazon. I've never used one, but they generally have pretty good reviews, and they are tiny.

https://smile.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Adapter-Windows-AU-MMSA/dp/B00IRVQ0F8/ref=sr_1_41?ie=UTF8&qid=1468787901&sr=8-41&keywords=usb+dac

https://smile.amazon.com/Sabrent-Aluminum-External-Adapter-AU-EMAC/dp/B00OJ5AV8I/ref=sr_1_59?ie=UTF8&qid=1468787923&sr=8-59&keywords=usb+dac

https://smile.amazon.com/external-Adapter-Windows-Microphone-SD-CM-UAUD/dp/B001MSS6CS/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1468787875&sr=8-5&keywords=usb+dac


There are more expensive ones too, but I think I'd try one of the ~$10 ones first just in case they happen to be decent.

If any of you want to do this for your own computer, it's pretty simple depending on the resources you have available.

Here's what you'll need (disclaimer, I hardly know electronics. If you notice something wrong correct me, please):

• Some wire (I think it's 22 gauge? I'm not quite sure) and (optionally) heat shrink
  
• Access to a soldering iron, wire cutters, wire strippers, and solder. Optionally, a heat gun, if using heat shrink.
  
• At least 8 Female dupont connectors
  
• At least 4 housings for the dupont connectors
  
• Two switches of your choice
  
• The 3D-printed (or laser cut -- make sure your material is around 1.5mm thick!) switch holder. If you want the STL, just ask, but it's just a 1.5 mm thick plate with 14mmx14mm square holes cut out for the switches and 3mm circular holes for screws. The gap between switches is 5mm.
  
• Two 2x3x4mm rectangular LEDs (other kinds work; use what you'd use in a regular switch)
  
• Two resistors if necessary. Check the voltage your motherboard supplies to the LEDs and adjust as needed. I contacted my motherboard's manufacturer (MSI) with my motherboard ID and they responded within a day with the voltage.
  
• Two keycaps
  
  Instead of getting the wires and dupont connectors, you could also just buy a power button, cut off the wires, and solder them to the switches. This will probably be more cost effective. I recommend this power button, as it has a reset switch and both LEDs (and thus, wires for all of them).
  
  Once you have the materials, it's just a matter of soldering the wires to the pins, really. The orientation of the wires doesn't matter for the switches (i.e. you can attach them to the power button pins on your motherboard in any order), but make sure you get the right order for the LEDs (positive is the long leg, usually). I'd recommend cutting the LED legs to size as well.
  
  Also, if you need a resistor, what I did was just solder it to the LED leg and then to the wire. That's probably the worst way to go about that, but like I said, I don't know electronics well. I'm sure someone else has a better idea.
  
  EDIT:
  
  If you can't find a way to mount this on your case, you can always 3D print (or laser cut, or fashion using regular tools) a box for it, run the wires through it, and place it on your desk.

If you just want to receive, then a $20 USB stick like this is a good place to start. From there you can experiment with antennas and see what you can pick up. Here is a Hak5 episode covering it.

If you want to transmit, you will need to get your license and a transceiver. You can get a dual-band Baofeng handheld on amazon for about $30 if you want to just try the hobby out. Hamstudy.org has the question pool for each license class (start with technician), then you need to find a testing session in your area when you are ready to take the test. Sessions usually cost $15.

Also check out the links on the sidebar. The IRC channel is also a good place to ask specific questions.

I have what will be perfect for you.. And it runs at 45-50 Watts. Easily runs 3 streams+ . Any low wattage Powersupply will work. I am using an ITX-case with 8 Hot-swap bays with backplane included. I am running FreeNAS as the OS, and also using a IBM Megaraid 1015 flashed to ITmode but it isnt necessarily needed.
Case also has internal storage slots.
On the FreeNAS os I am using Plex in a jail, transmission as the bittorrent client, in a jail with VPN, and couchpotato and sickrage for media search and management. Love this setup. and once again, 45w power consumption. Thats less than your average lightbulb

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F0YROSC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

32GB of this.
Kingston Technology ValueRAM 8GB 1600MHz DDR3L PC3-12800 ECC CL11 1.35V SODIMM
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CUYOGRM?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

SilverStone Technology Premium Mini-ITX / DTX Small Form Factor NAS Computer Case
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IAELTAI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s01

Not necessarily. I don't want to go to ITX. I liked that it had plenty of ventilation, had windows, was white, and had an SD slot, eliminating the need for an external dongle (provided the board supports it).

Thernaltake Core was pretty cool too. Same with the Master Box from Cooler Master

Setting up a windows share on your Windows 7 system where your music is located. First three steps of this link:
https://www.howtogeek.com/176471/how-to-share-files-between-windows-and-linux/
How to set up Volumio:
https://volumio.github.io/docs/User_Manual/Quick_Start_Guide.html
In Volumio, click on the gear icon in the upper right, and go to My Music. And set up the Network Drives section so that it points to your Windows 7 system share.

Instead of using Windows Shares, you can use Your Windows box as a DLNA Server:
http://av.jpn.support.panasonic.com/support/global/cs/bd/faq/DLNA.html
Receiving DLNA on Volumio:
https://volumio.github.io/docs/User_Manual/Stream_audio_to_volumio.html

Other Pi music distributions:
http://www.pimusicbox.com/
https://www.max2play.com/en/
http://www.runeaudio.com/

Cheap USB sound card:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Aluminum-External-Adapter-AU-EMAC/dp/B00OJ5AV8I/ref=sr_1_6?s=electronics
Better USB sound card:
https://www.amazon.com/Dual-Input-Output-Audio-Interface/dp/B00S668FWK/ref=sr_1_3
Cheap DAC HAT that wil work on a Pi 1B+:
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3016
Other Pi DAC HATS. Need to make sure that they work on a Pi 1B:
http://raspi.tv/2016/dac-review

If you're using Windows for your HTPC, Windows Media Center functions very well as a DVR off an antenna, you'd just need a tuner to be able to get the antenna signal into the pc. What I use, and what a lot of people are fans of is the HD HomeRun, a network connected tuner.


As for your second question, Antennaweb.org is your best friend.

NZXT S340

Phanteks Eclipse P400

Just two examples from the top of my head. Improved internal layout for better airflow/cooling and cleaner cable management. The Phanteks P400 also comes in a silent edition with noise dampening materials. Also RGB lighting.

As the for the PSU: The model is okay, just the smaller version with 550 watts would be enough.

Sure, but it's two years old...
Intel G3220-dual core on a ASUS H871-PLUS MoBo (with 16GB DDR3) in a SilverStone Tek Premium Mini-ITX and eight 2TB WD NAS drives.


Running FreeNAS.

This is the one I got my build. It has a ton of room inside and breathes great. It's kind of simple but I absolutely love the design.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Airflow-MicroATX-Mini-ITX/dp/B00LA6WXEO&ved=0ahUKEwjZmIH3-6bXAhUNxWMKHcirBjMQFghuMA0&usg=AOvVaw3RzDbI3p-4wGOZVZY8xDd4

It's not even really a discount. You see the meshify C plenty of places for $100. Even in the black non-tinted TG style. You're really just getting a free fan of questionable quality, when you should be buying noctuas anyway.

https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-Meshify-TG-Lt/dp/B07BPP9KYD/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=meshify%2Bc%2Btg&qid=1566419382&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1

​

$84.

...sure, it's white. But the black comes back in stock regularly and the pricing just depends on numbers available. If you want the perfect aesthetic and don't care about price, fair enough, though.

Which case is better? I'm looking for good airflow because I heard that the Rx 480 gaming x needs good ventilation.
Pros and cons of each?


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B017XPPH9I/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_2?colid=1KLL0NTYG349U&coliid=I1WRL0TRE1U8FT&vs=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T4BWUUY/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_3?colid=1KLL0NTYG349U&coliid=I3FMV1438COLUE&vs=1

I love my white Corsair Air 240, it's around $90.

Full sized cases with microATX motherboards just give you more room. Airflow isn't necessarily going to be better unless you load it up with enough fans to sound like a leaf blower.

Edit: Link fix.

I'm on highschool wifi so i can't take a look at the build in your current case yet, but I'm in the process of moving my build into a small format, I went with the coolermaster elite 130, because its cheap and should have the space to fit all of the components, including gpu's up to at least 12 inches(and then a bit from a review I watched) https://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Elite-130-Mini-ITX/dp/B00DJ6A88G
My case is arriving today so if you want to ask any specific questions about it feel free to pm me later today.

Specs:

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor | $204.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard | ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard | $67.99 @ Amazon
Memory | Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory | $68.99 @ Amazon
Storage | Hitachi Ultrastar A7K3000 2TB 64MB Cache 7200RPM SATA III (6.0Gb/s) | $53.88 @ Amazon
Storage | KingDian 120GB With 128M Cache Internal Solid State Drive|$36.99 @ Amazon
Video Card | PNY GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB Video Card | $249.99 @ Amazon
Case | Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case | $42.00 @ Amazon
Power Supply | EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply | $37.48 @ Amazon
Monitor | LG 25UM58-P 25.0" 75Hz Monitor | $181.81 @ Amazon
Keyboard & Mouse | IXCC-LED Illuminated Water-Resistant Gaming Keyboard | $22.99 @ Amazon
Mouse pad | Spigen Gaming Mouse Pad | $7.99 @ Amazon
| PC Sub Total | $762.31
| Monitor & Peripherals Sub Total | $212.79
| Total Build Cost | $975.10

The white Meshify C case could be a nice look if you are going for black/white: https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-FD-CA-MESH-C-WT-TGC-Computer-Case/dp/B07BPP9KYD?keywords=White+Meshify+C&qid=1537244988&sr=8-1-fkmrnull&ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1

Otherwise the build looks great and a 1080 would pair very well. Should see them a little cheaper when the new cards get released.

If you're not dead set on overclocking her computer you could also go i5 8400. It will rip 1080p 144hz gaming no problem and could save you some $$ for the video card.

Thanks for this! I ended up ordering one that matches the macbook. It's times like these that I'm extra thankful for dongles.

check out /r/rtlsdr lots of friends, advice and links to cool things that can be done with them.

There are cheaper ones out there that are most likely exactly the same chips...but this is the one that I purchased:

http://www.amazon.com/NooElec-Previously-Compatible-Packages-Guaranteed/dp/B009U7WZCA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1420983857&sr=8-3&keywords=rtl-sdr

If you want to cover even more bandwidth (ham bands) I also have one of these: http://www.amazon.com/NooElec-Ham-It-Up-v1-2/dp/B009LQT3G6/ref=pd_sim_e_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1CRMFJH1XA8H72GGV088

And depending on your OS of choice there are a few different free programs you can use to give you a front end.

windows: sdr#
mac: gqrx
gnuradio

I'm using Acurite temp/humidity sensors and a USB RTL-SDR to sniff the signals. Then a neat little piece of software called rtl_433 decodes the radio signals and can output in json format over mqtt. I have home assistant listening to the topics and just view the data there. I'm sure there is an easy way to get data into grafana as well. I ran that setup on a Rpi no problem but have since switched to a NUC and things are still going great.

My buddy and I each built unraid servers in the past month. He went higher specs with a Xeon e3-1250v3 and a higher end consumer motherboard. Hes going to get an AMD rx480 video card for it so he has a second gaming computer for anyone that comes over. 16 gigs of ecc RAM. I went more power efficient and bought a supermicro board with an Intel Avalon C2750 CPU. It's essentially a server Atom CPU. It uses 20watts and has eight cores and 16 gigs of ecc RAM too. The motherboard has the right features I wanted. ipmi built in, four nics and some other stuff. I was worried the CPU would be under powered by it packs plenty of power for my docker containers. Sonarr for auto TV downloading, couch potato, nextcloud server, web server, MySQL server, modded Minecraft server, crash plan backup server, and others. I barely eat up 30% CPU when everything is running and actually doing something. Idle is below 5%. I don't have Plex on it because my Nvidia shield does that. It's surprised me a lot how much power it has. If you want gaming, it's not for you but it is more than enough as a file server and the applications its running and plenty more.

Motherboard/CPU

16GB RAM

SATA Controller Card (needed more sata ports than motherboard had)

Power Supply

[2x SSD for Cache/Pool set up]
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FJ4UN76/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

5x WD Red 3TB

Better fans for case

Case (LOVE the case)

Very cool. Another idea is to use this case. Add hot-swappableness.
http://www.amazon.com/Silverstone-Tek-Mini-ITX-Computer-DS380B/dp/B00IAELTAI/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Seems like that octa-core 20W cpu will handle all I need. And with ram upgrading capability like this, virtual machines are a breeze. Appreciate showing me that mobo/cpu.

Hmm... I'm assuming by directional sound you mean the ability to tell which direction sounds are coming from? This is more software based and not hardware. Sound cards are pointless, amps are nice but really used more for high end monitoring headphones. The way your brain works (since you only have 2 ears), you judge direction by time delay, wavelength, and tone. For gaming, the in game sounds will simulate this effect, so special headphones are not necessary.

> My motherboard is MSI Z170-A PRO I read a little about this and allot of people said your motherboard can affect this.

It's not ideal or audiophiles, and can also cause static due to electric interference. If you're just gaming, something like this is a cheap and effective solution.

Edit : Looks like the Coupon got taken down, games over folks :(
=

Looks like it's bugging out and applying the 20% off Twice. Discount applies at checkout!

YMMV as it may not apply twice to everything.

This is already posted on Slickdeals so you better look fast if you want to get anything good before they clean everything out.

___

Examples

A10-7700k for ~$45

NZXT H440 for ~$58

Corsair Carbide Air 240 for ~$41

Seagate 500GB SSHD for ~$26

WD Purple 2TB for ~$37

Seagate 6TB for ~$111


ASUS PB258Q 25" WQHD 2560x1440 IPS for ~$175

ASUS MG28UQ 4K/UHD 28-Inch FreeSync Gaming Monitor for ~$230

Why yes, of course! I really appreciate your help!

NZXT Source 210 ELITE Midtower Case with 3.0 USB - White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005869IUY/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_-T.1tb052PC8HAXZ

Is it possible? Yes. For USB 2.0, it definitly exists.

For USB 3, the best I've found only has two inputs. A combined solution, i.e. this in combination with an ordinary USB hub, may work.

Check out this loophole saying you can use accessibility technology to upgrade to Windows 10 for free. Always backup before upgrading just in case any issues come up.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/accessibility/windows10upgrade

This case is my favorite regarding silence, available interior space, easy cleaning, and able to hold internal dvd drive/ssd/hd.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fractal-Design-Define-Midtower-Computer/dp/B00Q2Z11QE

Below is a cheaper version if you don't need an internal optical drive or many storage drives in your system.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fractal-Design-Define-Computer-Case/dp/B00WGFVO8E

You are what? A sports fan? Nearly any "main stream" TV show can be obtained OTA. NBC/ABC/CBS/Fox... they are free and OTA in pure HD nearly everywhere. With something like a HDHomerun you can literally setup a free DVR system for all prime time television.

It's really a crime that they charge for the feeds through cable... but I believe they call it a "rebroadcast" fee and the directly relay the cost to the customer... so you pay for free services being given to you in a different medium.

Alternatively to your battery backup idea, you could wire up an external switch and run it somewhere in your vehicle. I'm assuming the reason for asking about this is because you're going to put your NUC somewhere out of reach.

The subject of external power switch for NUCs comes up from time to time in various applications and there are solutions that come with varied degrees of cost and complexity. It all centers around supplementing or replacing the internal wires connected to what is called the "header" (located on the mainboard) and running them to an exterior switch. If you want to investigate this route go to Intel's website and find the "technical product specifications" for your model. This is not the users manual. Its a long technical document and in it will most likely be a section with the pinout specs for the header that controls the things on the front panel such as the power button, the reset button, and activity lights.

With the knowledge of what each pin does you can then go hunting for something like this or this (btw I'm not saying these will necessarily work for you, they're just an examples). Of course that solution depends on the ability to remove the original connectors from the header. I don't know how every NUC model is designed and so I cant say for sure that there doesn't exist an NUC model where these pins are soldered to the header and that you own such a model. If that be the case then the concept is the same except now you're faced with the task of soldering.

​

​

It makes sense. So dorm = cable, yeah? The problem is, even with something like this, which isn't wireless, you'd still need a computer present. It looks like a great solution otherwise; you can stream and interface with software (there are very popular free ones) to control and record it to your computer just like with a DVR but to a hard drive or maybe a NAS instead.

Edit: Or this if it isn't digital cable.

>external sound adapter

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Aluminum-External-Adapter-AU-EMAC/dp/B00OJ5AV8I/ref=sr_1_3?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1538818487&sr=8-3&keywords=usb+external+sound+adapter&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011

​

Cheap and cheerful, I cant personally review it as I the one I own is fairly more expensive, but it seems to have very good score 4.5/5 and should solve your issue.

Thanks for the input!

So something like this guy? Price is certainly right!

https://www.amazon.com/NooElec-NESDR-Mini-Compatible-Packages/dp/B009U7WZCA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538540479&sr=8-1&keywords=nooelec+rtlsdr+dongle

I have a laptop PC I could bring.