June 2018 PC Build Guide and Parts List

Hello everyone. Will here and today, I am bringing you something a little different than usual but in line and consistent with what I normally do. This is the June 2018 monthly PC build parts list but with a twist. This build is a build that will be part of my carry-on luggage or in my checked baggage when I fly out in a few days for my next duty assignment in Korea. I have decided to put this system together so that I can take my gaming PC with me and be able to use it immediately upon arrival. So, without further delay, let’s see what we have in this system.

First up is the processor. I will continue to use what I feel is the best valued processor on the market right now and that is the AMD Ryzen 5 2600 processor. It is a 6 core, 12 thread processor with a base operating frequency of 3.4GHz and a boost operating frequency of 3.9GHz. I will keep this processor at stock clocks given the case the processor will be in as cooling will be quite difficult. This processor comes with a standard AMD Wraith Stealth cooler, supports up to 64GB of 2933MHz RAM in dual channel configuration, and has a TDP of just 65 watts allowing maximum temperatures of up to 95 degrees Celsius.

For cooling, I am going to forgo the stock cooler and instead go with the Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 low profile cooler. With a fan speed ranging from 600-2500 RPM, it should remain fairly quiet at around 14.8-23.6 dbA. At just 37mm (1.46 inches) in height, it will fit quite comfortably in the Fractal Design Node 202 ITX case. Given the size of this cooler, it is not necessarily a great idea to try and overclock the Ryzen CPU, especially in this case, which is why I will keep the CPU at stock speeds and will still get pretty good performance out of it. This cooler supports CPUs with a TDP of 95 watts so, a mild overclock might would be okay but just mild maybe at around 3.95GHz or 3.975GHz. Either way, as I stated before, the CPU will be kept at stock speeds.

Next, is the RAM and storage. For RAM, I am going with the G.Skill TridentZ 3200MHz RAM in 2x8GB, dual channel configuration. This should be nice, adequate speed for the Ryzen 5 2600 with decent gaming performance and is supported with both the processor and motherboard this will be on at over 3000MHz after BIOS updates. For storage, I have 3 drives. First, a 256GB ADATA XPG SX6000 M.2 NVME drive which should give blazing fast boot times. Next, I have a 500GB Samsung 860 EVO, 2.5” SSD. Finally, I will also install a 500GB WD Blue 2.5” SSD. This gives me an adequate amount of storage for the OS as well as the normal games that I play.

For the motherboard, I am going with the ASRock AB350 Gaming-ITX/ac mini ITX AM4 motherboard. This is a solid choice for the case I have chosen as well as the other components. The motherboard uses the AMD B350 chipset which will allow for overclocking if I desire to do so. The board will allow for 32GB of DDR4 RAM clocked from 2133MHz to 3466MHz with 2 DIMM slots available. Onboard, integrated graphics is supported as is RAID. There is no crossfire or SLI support, however. There is onboard ethernet and integrated WiFi and there are 4 SATAIII (6GB/s) ports available.

The graphics card I am going with is the EVGA GTX 1080 Ti SC2. This is nVidia’s premiere card at the moment and is the middle of the road card design for EVGA. This card comes with 11GB of GDDR5X video memory along with a core clock of 1560MHz that will boost to 1670MHz at just 250 watts TDP. With the card being just 267mm (10.51 inches) long, it should fit nicely inside of the Fractal Design Node 202. Cooling could be a bit of a concern as this card does get a little toasty at times, sometimes reaching 80 degrees Celsius in my current Meshify C Mini case but I should be able to control the temperatures well enough to game at a decent level. The card offers a single DVI-D port, 3 DisplayPorts, and a single HDMI port.

Powering this system is the Silverstone 650 watt, 80+ Gold Certified, fully modular SFX power supply. There aren’t many options in the SFX arena these days and it appears Silverstone may have the market cornered. I went with this power supply as I originally planned on putting a Vega 56 in this system and needed the power but I eventually got a pretty good deal on a GTX 1080 Ti.

Finally, this system will be housed inside of the Fractal Design Node 202 ITX case. This is a case for HTPC purposes but will house my component perfectly to allow me to take with me in my luggage. The Node 202 has 2 internal 2.5” bays for my SSDs, 2 front panel USB 3.0 ports, and supports graphics cards up to 12.20 inches via the PCIe riser/adapter card. Cable management may be tough but it is expected in a small form factor case like this.

So, there you have it; the June 2018 build guide and parts list. Is there anything you would change? Leave me a comment below telling me what and don’t forget to vote in the poll. Share the article with your friends and check back again soon as I will be putting up my review and benchmarks of the EVGA GTX 1080 Ti SC2 Edition graphics card. Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you next time.