Bitfenix Prodigy ITX build advice

[Bartacus]

Merry Christmas Eve gentlemen!

Recently, I bought some ITX stuff from a forum member (MRDCanadian). The plan was to throw together a second system, so I don't get nerd withdrawal if I have to take down my main system for maintenance. I bought a near-complete system from him, which came with a Bitfenix Prodigy ITX case. Here's the parts list:

Bitfenix Prodigy ITX case
Asus P8Z77-I motherboard + 3750K CPU + Bitspower CPU / mobo combo block
Corsair CX750M semi-modular PSU
240mm XSPC crossflow radiator
D5 strong pump + XSPC cube res
Sapphire Radeon 7950 from my previous system
Mushkin Cronos 120GB SSD

I've never built a system this small before. I've been toying with it for the past few days, trying to figure out how to lay it all out. This will NOT be a pretty build. The case doesn't have windows (thank god), so no one will see the mess therein. But I would like to make it as tidy as I can without using custom cables. This is where I'm at so far:

GPU side:


Messy side:


I mounted the fans outside the case, because unfortunately they interfere with the GPU fittings when mounted on the inside:


So my question to those with experience in small builds is: how can I do this as neat as possible? Also, is there any way to get a 3.5" HDD in there without using the HDD cages? I have 5.25" mounting rails for the HDD, but that won't fit in the 5.25 bay for some reason. Plus even if it did, I can't see how I'd get the SATA power / data cables connected. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, as usual! Merry Christmas all!

Bart

[xmanrigger]

Hey, pretty doesnt matter unless she wears tight panties. Functional is what ultimately matters. Dont worry about that. Just plan and route wiring neatly. Your lay out will work. Sometimes wiring can make or break a build. Take your time. Even un-sleeved wiring can pass with method. The 24 pin would be better coming in from behind. Will easily make it look cleaner.

As far as mounting 3.5 HDDs, I can see a quite obvious spot with a couple bucks at CanTire. Grab a piece of sheet metal, and make a mount right behind the the pump on ledge below. I can see a couple SSDs sitiin' beside that PSU as well.

Stock clocks might be alright with that rad, but I think you might be able to put a 120 or 140 rad beside the pump for more cooling if overclocking.

Good luck and have fun.

[Bartacus]

Yeah I know a 240 rad isn't much, but you can't fit anything else in this case. I have a 140, but there's no way it's fitting with that 240 in the roof. Also, I tried the 24 pin in other places first, including where you suggested (actually my first choice). But doing it that way results in a ton more cable in the pump area. I'll figure something out eventually. Modding isn't my strong suite, obviously.

[Bartacus]

UPDATE: after much trial and tribulation, it lives. The fans that came with the case did not though, so I replaced those. System booted, Windows 8.1 installed, and now I need to figure out how to get it back to a Windows 7 classic interface, since the Metro interface is just awful. I didn't take pics of the mess (never doing an ITX build again!), but I managed to finagle a 1TB HDD in there, along with a Mushkin Cronos 120GB SSD for a boot drive. The tubing was tough to install (Primochill Advanced LRT), and the ends of the tube needed to be dipping in boiling water before they would play nice. I can't use the external USB 3.0 ports because the USB 3 port on the mobo is block by the graphics card (awful design by ASUS IMO). This was painful. I realize I do not have the patience for ITX builds in small spaces.

[Father Fuzzy]

sweet hardware Bart

I love the mobo has alot of great features for a htpc
been rocking the same setup for a couple years now runs great

had to get a usb3 extension cable to get the ports available

damn prodigy side door wiring is a pain

[xmanrigger]

UPDATE:System booted, Windows 8.1 installed, and now I need to figure out how to get it back to a Windows 7 classic interface, since the Metro interface is just awful.

Best way to to a Win7 interface is, .....well, a Win7 install. If you have a copy, I would ditch Win8 and wait until Win10. Just because Win8 is newer, doesnt mean it's better. To the contrary. I rocked WinXP until Win7's release. Vista was a disaster, as with Win8. Some business data base and networking software doesnt work well with Win8, if it even will. The engineering software I use for work is a good example. It is a no-go on Win8, and thankfully. I provide software support to some colleagues, so eliminating any issue with Win8 is a blessing.

[Bartacus]

This whole case is a pain. After I got all the gear in it, I could barely get my hand in there to open the reservoir! Door wiring is indeed painful, but I do like the fact that you can mount 2.5" drives / SSDs there. The USB3 header could be used if I ditched the back plate on the Heatkiller GPU block, I think.

Just realized I can't activate Windows 8 since I downloaded the Pro ISO image, not the OEM one I just bought on DVD. DOH!

Nice to see you back FF, we missed ya!

[Bartacus]

Best way to to a Win7 interface is, .....well, a Win7 install. If you have a copy, I would ditch Win8 and wait until Win10. Just because Win8 is newer, doesnt mean it's better. To the contrary. I rocked WinXP until Win7's release. Vista was a disaster, as with Win8. Some business data base and networking software doesnt work well with Win8, if it even will. The engineering software I use for work is a good example. It is a no-go on Win8, and thankfully. I provide software support to some colleagues, so eliminating any issue with Win8 is a blessing.

I already bought 8.1 OEM. Once I get rid of the interface mess and get back to a classic start button, it won't be that bad. This is a second system to use when I take down my big guy for maintenance, so it doesn't need to be perfect. I'm sticking with 7 on my main gaming rig.

[Jeff R 1]

I already bought 8.1 OEM. Once I get rid of the interface mess and get back to a classic start button, it won't be that bad. This is a second system to use when I take down my big guy for maintenance, so it doesn't need to be perfect. I'm sticking with 7 on my main gaming rig.

In W8.1 _ from your Metro Page.
Look for the "Desk Top" app
Click on that and it will take you to a standard desk top.
Right click on the tool bar at the bottom of the page and choose "Properties"

In the heading bar in that window choose "Navigation"

In that window, there will be a number of options there to choose, one of which is to boot directly to the desk top rather the Metro page.

You can also disable the charms bar from popping out if you mouse over to the upper right hand corner _ this was a great annoyance when opening and closing windows.

They brought the "Start" button back in 8.1 _ mouse over that and right click on it for more options.
If you connect directly on the "Start" button it will take you to "Programs"
You can tell W8.1 to show the programs first rather then all this annoying apps.
You can change this in "Navigation" discussed earlier.

You can uninstall or turn "Apps" off by right clicking on them. Especially the ones like Stock Market, Shopping, Weather etc and all the other BS...

If you hit the "Windows" key on the keyboard it will toggle between the standard desktop and programs _ depending on how navigation is set up.

[Bartacus]

Thanks for the tips Jeff (replied to your PM too). I have it set up properly now. I had downloaded the wrong ISO file (pro instead of OEM). Now that I have the right ISO file for 8.1 OEM, the interface isn't all that bad. Performance seems to be nice and snappy.

I must thank MRDCanadian for the gear, and for installing the Bitspower CPU/MOBO block properly. CPU temps don't top 57C (i5 3570k boosts to 3.6Ghz at low voltage). I used OCCT Linpack testing to stress the CPU, and running Furmark to stress the GPU. It stays surprisingly cool for only having a 240 rad. So far, I'm pretty impressed! This is a kick ass little system! Boots like it's ass is on fire too.

[Jeff R 1]

W8/8.1 does boot fast with an SSD !

[nass]

cool looking little rig Bart, I find I use mine more than my main rig nowadays, least for forums idea and htpc. You'll get used to win8.1...

[gdesmo]

Looks good so far, a bit of an engineering challenge to stuff the case but am sure you are up for the challenge.

[Jeff R 1]

Hey Bart, where did you get your OEM copy of 8.1 and how much did you pay for it, if you don't mind me asking ?

[Bartacus]

Hey Bart, where did you get your OEM copy of 8.1 and how much did you pay for it, if you don't mind me asking ?

I bought it at a local Canada Computers, along with the Mushkin SSD used for this build. Cost me $109 if memory serves.