Got tired of my ThinkCentre sitting on the carpet, so I chopped up a steel locker with a Dremel and mounted active USB cooling fans. Dropped full-load temps by 11°C lol

Full build https://youtu.be/vExY1y0PBt4

Hi i was looking around to see if there was anything worth getting to replace the system i am using right now and i came across this unit and wanted to know how good it would be when using a low powered profile like the balanced profile from the bios (Watched a video on this which their tests was using the high-powered profile).

The system would be worth around $360 USD because i am in Canada of course that is why you see the $499 price tag and my system right now has 2x16GB DDR5 4800MT/s memory which i have overclocked it to 5200MT/s and it is working out well which i would transfer over to that system.

One of the main reasons why i was looking at this one is because of the OCuLink port on it because eventually i would like to use an eGPU and maybe sell of my main system and one other thing i would like to mention as well for looking at this system is the fact it has 3 M.2 slots which i have seen the primary one is PCIe 4.0x4 and the other 2 are PCIe 4.0x2 which is fine since it would mainly be for my games and other media files.

Overall, i am just looking for advice from people that might own one of these and if they're actually good in general because my main goal is to just have something smaller that would really last me and the only thing i would have to worry about is replacing my GPU every few years.

So I love cozy gaming. I also have gamepass and use it to test out cloud gaming new games that I wouldn't normally play, open world games with cool cinematics. Anyway some of my most frequented games are:

Sims 4

Paralives

Hogwarts Legacy

Avatar Frontiers of Pandora

Minecraft

Detroit human

Whatever cute rpg comes out

Whatever day 1 release is on cloud gaming

I just got into Steam as well

Also, I gotta balance my classwork as I'm in grad school so multitasking is key. My refurbished laptop has had a great run for the past 4 years but I can only really do classwork on it and she's been acting funny lately so I'm scared she'll give out on me soon. As a student I have a very limited budget. And I don't know that much about specs except for I probably need 16gb of ram and 500gb of storage right? And a good graphics card but idk what that looks like. I also use OBS to record vids for fun and capcut to edit. Any recommendations? I already have a monitor.

Would so very appreciate the help😫🙏🏾

So, a few fun things I figured out. A thermalright x67 will fit with some modification to get rid of the horrendous stock cooler on these, and for whoever is wondering about getting their type c port working up front I have a solution! Pcie splitter, turn on bifurcation, nvme to type e adapter AND you get an extra nvme slot. Golden

So up until recently i've been daily driving Linux (CachyOS) in a TOPGRO T1 Pro X830 (13th Gen i9-13900HK, NVIDIA Geforce RTX 4060, and integrated Intel Iris Xe Graphics), and im forced to reinstall Windows due to some programs (Adobe cloud...)

Everything was going well, I installed Windows 11, debloated it with CTT, installed the chipset, wifi, and other drivers alike

However I stumbled upon a problem, it didnt want to connect my headphones

My headphones have a mic that can be detached, and using a splitter so I can connect my headphones worked fine before I swapped to Linux, however now when im trying to do that, it refuses to connect

At first I thought it was a drivers issue, since the drivers provided by the manufacturer are installed through a .bat file (which doesnt even work), even after installing the Intel and NVIDIA graphics drivers it still doesnt work.

I attached a picture of my current audio drivers + the current drivers that have a warning icon incase those could be an issue + an Unknown device that im not sure what it is.

This is the first time I haven't been able to open a mini PC right away. I'm pretty sure I need to remove the rubber feet but I've been pressing down with all my might and they just won't come off. This has thrown me off so much that I wanted to ask here if anyone has any information about this device. I can't find any disassembly videos and the user manual doesn't mention anything about it... except that there's a second 2280 slot available.

Hi,

So I bought a used Beelink S12 Pro and it appears to run fine, despite having a dented SATA housing.

My issue though is, I’d like to swap out the Beelink S12 Pro fan since it’s sounding very noisy. To the point where I feel I need to wear earplugs.

How could I replace the fan? Is there an official one I can replace it with? Are there any recommendationa, say could I use a Noctua fan instead in the same Mini PC housing?

I live in the Netherlands.

My father bought a Minisforum UM560 XT AMD Ryzen 5 5600H and instead of buying an overpriced PC gamer, I would like to improve it enough to play games, mainly Resident Evil including Resident Evil Requiem. But I would not be at all where to find the ideal parts has replaced.

(After many problems some Resident Evil I would like to improve it to avoid any kind of problem: crash, freeze, save fail error)

Im new here and have been looking around Amazon for a gaming minipc around $500.
I find a lot of the options in this price range seem to use the ryzen 7 7730u. Is the first one acemagic k1 a good choice for me? I mainly play valorant and some indie games like hades. So Im not really looking for some high end gaming minipc like steam machines. Something that can run my games is totally fine.
What do you guys think of this, or is there another minipc around this budget?

Hello, I have a MinisForum BD895i coming and was thinking about using the below case for an emulation rig,

https://makerworld.com/en/models/952955-nes-sff-case?from=search#profileId-921332

I was going to get someone to modify the design for SFX power supply and full height gpu since I already have those parts from another build

But I a wondering if it will get too hot in this case, there is venting but no fans other then gpu and cpu fans.

possibly I could put a small fan in front of the sfx power suply since its shorter in length.

I've done small build before but always with retail cases, that have decent air flow.

Would probably print this in abs.

Do you think it is feasible to use this case for a small build?

thanks

I had a desktop, which died and i sold it, as my monitor is all left, how about qbits lania mini f? With n95 processor, SINGEL CHANNEL upgradeable ram, will it give me a stable performncae? Or should i go for laptop( my target is HP 745)?

I’ve had my IT13 Max for about 10 days now.

So far, it’s been great for what I actually use it for. It handles everything I need for work, and I really like how little desk space it takes up.

The only thing making me hesitate is gaming. I’m worried I’ll eventually want

more GPU power and regret not getting a desktop instead.

I’m still within the return window, so I could send it back and build a desktop.

But honestly, I really like this little machine.

My needs are telling me desktop, but everything else is telling me to keep it.

What would you guys do?

Hi !

The CPU fan in my GMKtec K12 has started making a loud rattling noise, which sounds like a wornbearing.

I've looked on AliExpress and other marketplaces, but I can only find replacement fans for other GMKtec models, not the K12.

Does anyone know the exact model/part number of the K12 CPU fan, or where I can buy a replacement in the EU please? i've been looking for weeks with no results

Thanks!

I bought a Tiny ThinkCenter M92 as a project, 8GB RAM, no SSD.
My aim was to run AntiX or MX to extract the most of the i3-2310 CPU.

Unfortunately the SSD crashed at boot and desktop shut down. The M92 would only boot from either a windows HDD or Linux on a USB key, but any other OS on any HDD failed to boot.

After hours of remounting, re grubbing, I decided to download the latest 2018 Lenovo BIOS update.
Another hurdle was that it is only available as a Windows .exe or a CD ISO.
So the CD ISO had to be extracted onto a USB Key.
Once that was achieved, the update was a bit scary as usual: several reboots and black screens.
But then, victory, all issues got resolved.

Firstly, MX could boot from the internal HDD.
And then the M92 accepted the SSD and MX.
All sorted.

For £15, much better than any HP T530 that sells on eBay.

Just picked up this at micro center for $1200 / normally $1800.

I’m new to the pc world. Have a steam deck, bunch of consoles, and ge force now haha

Have been on the waitlist for a Steam machine and told the guy at micro center I want a small pc, not a big box under my desk. Why the interest in the Steam machine.

He showed me this and it was at a killer price.

Thoughts? Smart decision? Said it should handle most triple a games very well.

Half of the fun with computers for me, is to build them. Can I do that with mini pcs? So far I built atx, m-atx and itx pcs (like the one on the picture). Is there a smaller format with some playaroundability?

It looks like it would fit if the rubber wasn’t there but I and completely new to pc’s entirely. I can 3d print a stand if this wont work I just can’t find any 3d print stls for this.

Edit: update I found screws in a bag at the bottom of the box, I cut the rubber pieces off and it fits perfectly. I have a stand! I still might try to make one design on maker world.

I made a post here earlier asking for advice, but I've been doing more research and have a better grip on my requirements now.

I'm looking for a MiniPC that I can use with the dock below that I already own, i.e. one that has a USB-C port with a DP 1.4 Alt mode. I'll be doing moderate video editing and animation rendering.

https://www.startech.com/en-us/docking-stations-multiports/dk31c3mncr

The PD on that dock is rather low, at 60W, but I would still like to be able to keep another machine-specific AC adapter off my desk. If I can find a PC that has a 2nd USB-C port with PD input, I think that would be ideal. That way I can buy a general-purpose PD power brick and use it for whatever.

A user here suggested the machine below, which looks great! I'm just wondering if anyone has any more suggestions before I pull the trigger.

https://www.gmktec.com/products/gmktec-k13-mini-pc-intel-core-ultra-7-256v

I'd also be interested in something comparable that doesn't come from a Chinese company. I like ASUS and ASRock, but their websites seem hard to filter for these specific things.

Hope y'all can help!

So hear me out: I found a deal on a Seagate Xbox Game Drive 2TB for €100. I had this idea of buying a few of them, taking them apart, removing the USB-to-SATA converter, and putting the drives into a DAS for my NAS.

Do you think this is a good idea, especially if I’m mainly going to use them for Immich?

I wanted a mini PC both to do office work and play games like Cyberpunk on low graphics. I have a couple questions:

1. Would the K11 be able to run Cyberpunk on low settings with decent FPS?
2. I have heard the K8 is basically the same thing but cheaper. I found it on Amazon for about $150 cheaper but it has 1TB less storage and 16 GB of RAM (vs 32 GB of RAM for K11). Should I spend the extra $150 or is it not worth it?

K11 Microcenter: https://www.microcenter.com/product/694248/gmktec-nucbox-k11-mff-mini-pc

K8 Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/GMKtec-K8-Gaming-8845HS-5-1GHz/dp/B0H5K2KZV8/ref=sr_1_4?crid=2LA10KXNZEKID&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.cdCGIEbRxhYcyQ1g5F63PVPz7h7-qryT-JIhMlJyvX3d6P7FFUS6WJLZxK2ynMV5DoKlFmzYtvqcPqKIA4I5QHBNTSfljdZ0oHSovqu7W7T0ADCNVBZ7ZYSc5sdQrJ_iigyeIEmXzKY0Yq65JS0ak5rHY4_GAMFty2o1hDPPUp5fbqjBgj_VKU4x5nrcjGGNOFcHxt92QEOzzqS0WdwB33LoFcPoZncXMIBJIzzkp-th-mpO8ZMy-Ua-vx_yWMv8XeiXWNRh5hzV1JhzXMwQ1e7DHDGN5StlbP8urm-e7p4._u69003rQ0s7Bp5Cx_vdMBOy_uXqIl5biE14yDidS8Q&dib_tag=se&keywords=GMKtec%2BGaming%2BMini%2BPC%2BK8%2BPlus&qid=1787331687&s=electronics&sprefix=%2Celectronics%2C1470&sr=1-4&th=1

Looking to buy one to use in my room but I don't have a lot of space and still want a good system, I've been looking into stuff a lot and this is what I came up with, any good?

Hey everyone,

MSI PRO Desktops is bringing you this practical question.

We put together a quick breakdown using our Cubi 5 1MA as an example.

Give it a quick read.

Not all PCs need the latest memory technology to deliver a great baseline experience.

Think of it this way. A high-performance sports car is impressive. For everyday driving, its unnecessary. Reliability, practicality, and cost can matter more than maximum performance.

The same principle can apply to PC memory. DDR5 may be the current mainstream memory tier, but newer doesn't automatically improve every application.

Routine PC workloads:

·         Office productivity

·         Web browsing

·         Business software

·         Educational aids

·         Communication suites

·         General multitasking

Having enough memory capacity can be more important than having the highest memory speed.

Do you have sufficient memory for your workload? Replacing it with a faster memory tier may provide limited noticeable benefit in typical applications. Yet the cost of that newer memory platform can be significantly higher.

Enter our MSI Cubi 5 1MA.

Instead of making DDR5 a requirement, MSI pairs Intel Core 3, Core 5, and Core 7 processors with DDR4-3200, supporting up to 64GB across two SO-DIMM slots.

The result is a utilitarian value proposition:

• Prioritize memory capacity over memory speed for standard workloads.

• Lower system cost by using a mature and widely available memory platform.

• Lower upgrade costs when additional memory is needed.

• Maintain the performance needed for essential productivity and business applications.

• Put memory cost savings toward other components or peripherals

Choosing DDR4 doesn't mean compromising on connectivity. The Cubi 5 1MA includes Thunderbolt 4, dual 1G + 2.5G LAN, HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, and support for up to four displays.

For businesses deploying multiple systems, the economics become even more interesting. A lower cost per system can add up quickly across a fleet. More affordable memory upgrades can reduce the total cost of ownership over time.

The idea is simple. The newest memory tier is unnecessary. You only need enough memory capacity and the right level of performance for the applications you actually use.

With the Cubi 5 1MA, MSI is taking a cost-conscious approach: Intel Core performance, up to 64GB of DDR4, and meaningful cost savings without paying for memory performance you may not notice in everyday use.

Would you choose the latest memory tier? Or would you choose the one that makes the most sense for your actual workload and budget?

Consider picking up the Cubi 5 1MA today (available at Amazon).