Alexander OuyangThings to understand going SFF
Whether you’re a new builder or are looking to downsize your PC, I think it’s important to understand that going small form factor (SFF) will not be able to replicate the same capabilities of a traditional ATX mid-tower. So you should ideally have the expectation that putting the highest end components in an SFF case will not have the same performance headroom as a mid-tower case. Also, I only recommend going small form factor if you really need to other than aesthetics. I say that as in the current case market, there are now smaller micro-ATX (mATX) cases that are slightly bigger than an ITX case but can fit so much more while avoiding the issues that arise with going SFF. Additionally, the approach to building SFF is going to be different to ATX mid-towers as there are factors you have consider now that you are space constrained. I personally love the space efficiency that utilised properly in SFF compared to some mATX or ATX mid-towers that have some empty space that you can’t use. If you share the same sentiment as I do about space efficiency, then that can be another reason to go SFF. If you do decide to go SFF, I have some tips for you.
- Avoid RGB if possible. If you want RGB, try getting fans that can daisy chain. RGB controllers can take up extra space and cables.
- Go for quality airflow focused fans for a quieter experience
- Give yourself lots of space as ironic as that sounds for a small build
- M.2 NVME for storage
- Plan your build around your case
- Zipties
- Get low profile RAM sticks for best CPU cooler clearances
- If you’re coming from an ATX or mATX tower, do not think of the build process in the same order. Component installation order matters for build difficulty
- SFX over SFX-L if you can find one and buy it
- Make Thermalright (not to be confused with ThermalTake) your best friend, as they offer great air coolers on a budget compared to Noctua’s coolers.
Research and Inspirations
Whether you are looking to research or find some inspirations, I recommend taking a look at r/sffpc and some YouTube channels. Optimum Tech, Devyn Johnston, Machines and More, Chris Russel Tech, just to name a few. These channels mentioned have some informative content about SFF PC’s as well as standard gaming PC content, even offering some video build guides. Chances are, if you have a particular build configuration in mind, one of the mentioned resources might have the same configuration which you can reference for your own build. Speaking of inspirations, here’s what my PC setup currently looks like.
Reasons to go SFF
Size and Aesthetics
The obvious reason as to why you’d want to go SFF in the first place is size. Perhaps you are sick of that large fish-tank PC that occupies a third of your desk? Or you think that it’s just a massive eyesore on your desk? Then it’s clear that having a SFF PC will answer those problems mentioned. While aesthetics are subjective, I like the minimalist look of the SFF cases that are out there in the market, such as the FormD T1 and NCase M2 (Also their newly announced M3). I also believe that many people that see cases like the ones above are generally drawn by the aesthetics of it at first glance.
Portability
Portability is not the first thing people think about when they consider SFF. However, some people do value portability depending on their circumstances. There are people who speak for portability as truck drivers for instance. As they are always travelling with their job, the portable nature is appealing to them. Perhaps you’re a student and you more power than a gaming laptop can provide? Or you like to bring your PC to across different places such as your mate’s house? Then it only makes sense to go SFF, assuming you’ll always be nearby an AC outlet. Of course, this is assuming you don’t need a portable solution that is super thin and light like a modern gaming laptop.
Difficult but rewarding
If you’re a first time builder and decide to go SFF (just like I did), then it can be a challenging but rewarding process. Building and researching requires more work than planning a standard ATX mid-tower build. You’ll actually need to pay attention to GPU and CPU cooler clearances. Little things like that which you can mostly ignore when building in ATX cases. In my experience having built in really large cases and SFF, complete opposite sides of the spectrum, I always get more satisfaction building SFF than large over the top builds. That’s because usually I feel that in large cases, ironically don’t make it much easier than a standard ATX or even SFF for that matter. Whereas in SFF, sure cable management will be an issue for most unless using custom length cables but that is because of the case’s natural size constraint.
Reasons against SFF
Value Proposition
You’ll realise how much more going SFF costs, particularly components such as the motherboard, power supply (PSU) and case. This is what is known as the ‘ITX tax’. As generally you pay the same if not more than what the ATX or mATX counterpart costs. Usually that is because it’s a lot harder to cram so many features into such smaller form factors.
This really applies if you go full SFF everything with all components such as a Fractal Terra or Lian Li Dan A4-H20. Some SFF cases such as the NCase M2 or Lian Li Dan A3 (a bit large to call SFF but still smaller than most mid-towers) offer the option of going m-ATX and ATX PSU support which can save you a decent amount of money with more features.
Upgrade Paths
This may not be obvious to some new builders looking to go SFF but going small does limit you on what upgrade paths you may choose to go for in future. Common upgrades such as a new GPU (with every generation getting bigger), you may not be able to fit the newest GPU. CPU’s are also affected, as upgrading to a higher end CPU may require a more powerful CPU cooler that fits in your SFF case.
Cooling and Noise
Cooling will be limited by the case’s cooler height or AIO support, but also the case’s layout. For instance cases like the DeepCool CH160 Mesh, you can fit a really big tower cooler but you cannot use the additional fan bracket that goes on the side.
Difficult for beginners
Even though I mentioned that building in SFF as it’s challenging can be a reason to go for it, it simultaneously also isn’t a good reason to for normal people who just want a PC. If you just want a small PC but aren’t looking to be a SFF enthusiast, then i suggest trying to find cases that are a bit bigger.
SFF Case Recommendations
- NCase M2 or M3
- FormD T1 (preferably V2.1 to support the original creator)
- NR200 (V1 if you want flexible air cooling otherwise V2 should work fine)
- Lian Li Dan A3 (Wood over normal, as Wood variant has ventilated front panel)
- Lian Li Dan A4H20
- Fractal Terra
- DeepCool CH160 (Glass or Mesh)
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