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FredSRichardson

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Everything posted by FredSRichardson

  1. FredSRichardson
    I realize there are places dedicated to this type of build. I'm looking to build a fairly portable PC. My plan is to get a portably keyboard and monitor that I could use like a laptop connected to the system (there are a few out there that look decent). Thin is pretty important, so I'm looking at cases under 70mm. The Skyreach 4 Mini looks perfect but is not currently available, but the Sliger CL520 is available and also looks pretty good. I'm thinking a RTX 3060 TI would be as much as I need, but I've heard these tiny cases can support some of the beefier GPUs. I won't ask you guys too much about build specifics. What I was really wondering is if anyone's tried out a portable desktop as an alternative to a DTR laptop, if that ended up working out for you and what you think the biggest tradeoffs are. Thank you for any insight! -Fred
  2. FredSRichardson
    This thread has really inspired me to learn a bit more about SFF builds that might be suitable for travel. I can definitely build something that would fit fairly easily into a backpack with up to a 3060 TI in it. From what little I've read the mobile 3080 benchmarks pretty close to a desktop 3060 TI. The thing I'm really not clear on is travel robustness for something I build LOL! There are a few pretty nice forums dedicated to SFF builds though. EDIT: this is actually exactly what I'm thinking of, but I think the s4mini case is a rainbow unicorn right now...
  3. FredSRichardson
    @Titopte - the X170KM-G has a socketed MXM GPU and socketed desktop CPU. I think both are BGA on the PD70PNT (the CPU definitely is) which means there is no upgrade path. You should check the thread on this forum for the X170KM-G - some folks are having issues with the usual types of problems (heat, throttling, etc). If you go with a good reseller (I personally like HIDevolution) they can generally offer a lot of support to sort through these types of problems. I personally would probably go with the X170KM-G or maybe the prior X170SM-G if I had to buy a laptop today. I'm actually considering building my own travel friendly desktop for when the time comes - but that is another total can of worms!
  4. FredSRichardson
    By the way - so far I have not been able to install any DCH driver on this system. Driver installation simply halts at a black screen (backlight is still on) and after a forced reboot the system won't boot into windows - basically I had to restore the system from the last restore point. Anyone else had trouble with the DCH drivers? I'm definitely going to stay away from them.
  5. FredSRichardson
    An aluminum case would be sweet!
  6. FredSRichardson
    I've been looking to see what cases out there could fit in a backpack. My dream would be a RTX3070(+) backpack build - but I'm beginning to think that just doesn't exist - unless it's a really big backpack... Well, I did see this RTX3090 build - I don't know what to make of it: With an option to have an outboard folding monitor/keyboard, I would be okay with any case that I could stuff in my backpack - but I might have to start thinking suitcase instead. The limiting factor is really the width. There are a few options out there: Velka 5 - 99mm (really really thick...) - up to RTX3070: https://www.velkase.com/products/velka-5 Velka 3 - 96mm (really thick) - RTX3060 (TI?): https://www.velkase.com/products/velka-3 SFF Time P-ATX v2 - under 80mm (pretty thick) - I'm guessing RTX3060 TI: https://www.sfftime.com/ Sentry 3.0 (TBD) - 2.0 is here under 75mm: https://zaber.com.pl/sentry/ HZMOD Flat XQ69 V4.1 (Sentry knock off - poor value) - under 70mm thick - RTX3060 TI (runs hot): pricey! https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001920647703.html s4mini of course (currently unavailable) - under 65mm - RTX3060 TI: https://nfc-systems.com/skyreach-4-mini I'm kind of interested in this. I can see where laptop manufacturers have an angle here - you can get a laptop with mobile RTX 3080 and maybe it out-performs a desktop RTX 3060 TI but at a really high price (and a lot of heat).
  7. FredSRichardson
    Well that is looking damn impressive. It would be wonderful getting a picture of it and the reactions you get at a coffee shop (plugged in near a wall of course)! Though really for me this kind of thing is designed for the hotel room after flights - rather than in the wild. The good thing is that it's tall enough not to easily spill a can of coke on or something (that's all to easy with the ultra thins...).
  8. FredSRichardson
    I think the nice thing with an outboard keyboard/monitor combo is that the focus is on a flat case design without worrying about hinges etc. Unfortunately, the commercial flat cases I've seen like the s4mini are too small in the other dimensions. And it is really clear no one is trying to put anything over a 3070 in those small cases so I definitely see your point there. Also great work on the build!! Do you think having some parts in aluminum might add stability - maybe round the edge? But seriously that is a really nice looking design! Small and thin by my book! 😁
  9. FredSRichardson
    I think X170KM-G (and prior X170SM-G) may be the only models with MXM GPU and socketed CPU. I had to check the manual because all models come "configured" with a single GPU option - but the GPU is socketed: https://download.schenker-tech.de/package/xmg-ultra-17-id-xul17e21/?wpdmdl=3947&ind=1618540205850
  10. FredSRichardson
    @Eban - I actually really like the idea of a janktop style computer with a separate keyboard and screen so the big unit can be anywhere including under the keyboard + screen. The main thing is that the whole thing should be travel ready.
  11. FredSRichardson
    Lag and rendering is the only real issue with remote desktop solutions. I think nvidia actually has some pretty good remote gaming solutions - someone was telling me about that. But if you're right next to your desktop and that has a good GPU, you really want to be connected by something like HDMI or viewport. I was actually wondering if you could swap the panel for a 144 hz - actually I think there are portable fast monitors if you don't need the keyboard connected...
  12. FredSRichardson
    The price didn't seem bad - around $220 with shipping. I'm not sure I'd spring for it though without knowing more about the panel and keyboard - but the concept is all there. There's another 4K touchscreen model that is a lot more expensive...
  13. FredSRichardson
    I think that is nearly perfect! Thank you!
  14. FredSRichardson
    Yeah, the forum here is a bit hard to track - there are a lot of "sleeper" threads here I think.
  15. FredSRichardson
    Very nice! His "flying leads" freak me out LOL! I would have to buy a really good soldering iron before taking any of that on - but I used to do a ton of soldering back in the day. I'll have to read a bit more about the teensy.
  16. FredSRichardson
    @Eban - yes that video opened my eyes to what this might look like or at least what you're in for when doing this kind of stuff. I was pretty amazed to see the guy just take apart those old displays and mount them to plexiglass - it actually worked surprisingly well. I am glad the display on my laptop is really flexible though!
  17. FredSRichardson
    I think you could start a whole community around this idea. The one danger with selling kits is that you might find yourself in a really time consuming tech support role. Having a forum with a bunch of like minded enthusiasts could distribute the load. Also by selling as little as possible of the final system you offload a lot of things you don't need to support.
  18. FredSRichardson
    Kudos for taking all this on! Were there any other boards you had to have made for this project or is that about it?
  19. FredSRichardson
    Yeah, I'm just checking it out. I wasn't aware of the Teensy micro-controller. That's some hairy soldering there! Not sure I'd want to handle the surface mount work. But really cool that he provides all PCB specs for this.
  20. FredSRichardson
    Is this it here? https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Make-a-USB-Laptop-Keyboard-Controller/
  21. FredSRichardson
    I feel pretty fortunate that my laptop is unable to run Windows 11. I really hope to avoid it - it's taken me a while to get used to windows 10... Back in the day I used to run Linux on my laptop - it was a pain because of drivers (for audio, keyboard, etc) and any windows required software had to run in a VM. This just wasn't possible to keep up for work. But I might go back to Linux for home use - the games are really all I care about and Steam has been paving the way.
  22. FredSRichardson
    That would be a really nice feature - great alternative to those "eGPU" cases (that are huge...). And yeah having it clock down when "docked" would be really amazing. I actually have a random modding question - would it be tough to take a laptop keyboard and display and connect them directly to a desktop? The goal would be to have a thin folding keyboard + display that you could plug into a regular desktop with a long cable (or cable bundle). I'm guessing this would have to be a viewport+usb wire bundle unless there's a really easy way to get both onto the same thunderbolt bus.
  23. FredSRichardson
    Fair enough and I totally get your point. The cooling game is really the hard part and I get your point about the 2060. I think it's going to be really interesting to see what you discover as you move forward with that. I would actually be pretty happy with a system where I could "detach" the screen and keyboard (kind of like having an ultrathin book on top) and have a wire back to the main unit. Then I wouldn't mind letting the main unit run hot (or like a hair dryer). It would still be important to have them attach when space is a premium and for travel.
  24. FredSRichardson
    Did you check out this Asus "EKWB" one? https://www.asus.com/Motherboards-Components/Graphics-Cards/ASUS/RTX3070-8G-EK/ It requires liquid cooling - but maybe that would work? Dimension is 209 x 111.5 x 21.5 so very slim and short. Definitely more expensive and harder to find than the Zotac... And of course there's a 3080 (and I think 3090 lol) model - not sure this would be at all viable or not (certainly not price wise - I only saw ones for over $3K...) https://www.asus.com/Motherboards-Components/Graphics-Cards/ASUS/RTX3080-10G-EK/techspec/
  25. FredSRichardson
    BTW - you're getting me more interested in this. It looks like in the US you can get a similar display on ebay for under $250 with some good options. Keyboard options are out there and appear to be well under $100. The Zotac 3070 GPU is a around $1K new, and half that used - but I'd be worried about getting a crypto mining burned out unit if it's used... I think you said clearance is 50mm? So yeah the Zotac 3070s I looked at is around 41.5mm thick 220W (e.g. ZT-A30700H-10PLHR). The "TI" version adds 90W and 18.2mm (and a 3080 would be a better choice at that point). But the Zotac "Amp Holo" 3070 (not TI) version is thicker as well at 58.7mm so I guess you have to be careful when buying these...
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