Smallest case for a quad core - or - talk me out of an Imac!

I recently sold on my desktop pc with the plan of only using my laptop and a lounge based HTPC for all my computing needs, basically to cut down on the desk space used and simplify things.... this plan has failed! :)

So the current plan is to buy an 20" 2.4ghz Imac since they take up so little space, look pretty and seem resonably powerful these days (and run OSX which seems particularly nice and 'family friendly' from my experiance)

The thing is that it will cost me about £1000, and with the current price of a Q6600 my mind keeps to be drifting towards a nice new build pc....

So after all that here is the question...

Are the any small and pretty cases that will allow me to run a quad core cpu, or even something tiny for a fast core 2 duo that will outperform the imac and look equally good next to a 22" tft? This may help to lure me away from the dark side....

Any suggestions welcome

shuttle is the way to go

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=337360 for example

I got one 3 years ago and it's still kicking ass (although it's about to be relegated to a pvr)

Theres plenty. How small are we taking here?

http://www.silverstonetek.com/

Silverstone do the biggest range of HTPC cases, from AV Amp sized HTPC cases right down to VCR size ones.

If you want smaller (i.e. the size of a DVD player) then Hiper are you're best bet. Not sure if they'll take a Quad-Core though?

http://www.hipergroup.com/English/products/media.html

you can get some nifty commell boards that take C2D's, not sure about C2Q's yet though. They're expensive!
Hit www.linitx.com or www.mini-itx.com for more information on the mini-ITX form factor:)

Thanks guys,

A mini-itx with a C2D might be a good idea. over £200 for some commell boards though!

I did look at the shuttle, but i'm not sure i like the square design.
Some of the silverstone m-atx cases are nice, but most i like seem to require mobile CPU's. I dont know much about mobile C2D's. Are they much more expensive than equivalent desktop cpu's?

what about a nice and small mATX case, like a lian-li or silverstone. i'll dig you out some model numbers:)
how about a little Sugo? i know you dont like the shuttle cases, and frankly, neither do I, but i love the sugo :D
The TJ08's are also really small and dont break the bank either :)

Thanks Steve, I think mATX is the way to go over mini-itx.

didn't know Lian-li did matx cases. I like the look of the pc-c35. Would be great if it could stand end on, a bit like a really short and thin tower with a vertical optical drive (i would be happy with a slot loading drive).

I need to spec a spec a system that out performs the imac for less money to make it really worthwhile. Then hopefully i could live without OSx.

i've got a LL V880 and its lush :D They're solid as rocks!

I've got a TT Lanbox and you certainly couldn't call it small but I do like it - for a quad an SG03 would probably be good. :)

If you want to build a small, great looking, fast PC that will look completely in place in the living room, and that is well built and designed.... check out the Antec Fusion - with a micro ATX motherboard of your choice.....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by pollaxe

I've got a TT Lanbox and you certainly couldn't call it small but I do like it - for a quad an SG03 would probably be good. :)

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Just finished a small pc, I used a Silverstone SG03. It is well designed, can fit a regular atx psu in it. All the front is aluminium, no plastic doors! If you were wanting it for a portable gaming machine, the bigger graphics cards will just about fit (with a squeeze!). I managed to get an 8800gts in mine, but it does get fairly toasty inside, so you would probably want to fit an extra 120mm fan (comes with 1 silverstone 120mm fan as standard).

Why do you need quad core for a HTPC? If you want OSX, why not just get a macmini? There's bound to be some people selling off the old models, drop in a T7600, or indeed any of the T7 series and 2GB RAM, and you're set.

its not for a HTPC, i've already got one of those, its for a general computer.
An old mac mini with a T7600 sounds good, if a little expensive. The T7600 chips seem to be over £300 at the moment. Need to find a cheap outlet of old mac mini's to see if its worth while.

would be an excellent setup though :)

It is an excellent setup - it's what I have as my HTPC / torrent / vmware box. It'd be rubbish for gaming though (as they have integrated graphics). Apple have just speed bumped the macmini, so it's likely you'll see a few on ebay or on the Apple store as refurbs....