Shuttle XH61INTEL H61 LGA1155 Mini-ITX DDR3 D-SUB + HDMI Full HD 1080p 65W Mini PC Barebone

Comment:
A nice quiet (it's true!) Shuttle system, very compact. Built it for my parents who wanted something smaller on their desk. Had to add some rubber feet so it wouldn't slide when opening the doors to access the DVD drive or USB ports (when placed in a vertical orientation) . Having the picture of the stand in the description is a bit of a tease ( looking at you NCIX! At least offer it up for sale)cables are already installed in the case, but still have to be routed to ensure they won't interfere with the CPU fan. Considering installing a slim 60mm fan with resistor to help draw out heat and extend the life of the system as a precaution.

Comment:
Exactly as described in web materials. This is a great way how to build a super-compact desktop. Got NCIX to assemble a "puny workstation" to run Lightroom for our photo editing and store our ripped CD collection. Can handle an i7 2600S! About the only cons I can think of is that you can't install a better graphics card, and that the covers on the front panel are flimsier than the rest of the box. But that's minor. Look it up on Shuttle's own website to get precise docs on what components it is compatible with.

Comment:
The case is very high quality, surprisingly thick aliminium.Lots of holes on either side to vent heat.The mobo comes with its own low profile heat sink and fan (that was a surprise - maybe I had not read the full product description?), that fits perfectly under the Hard Drive and Optical disk enclosures. They even provide a little tube of heatsink compund for when you pop in the CPU, as opposed to the Intel stock formpad. Nice touch. So you should buy a OEM (no heatsink/fan) CPU for this PC.Very easy to work with. You'd think for such a cramp space it would be hell to build, but not at all:it's just well made. There were already sata cables wired and well tucked on the mobo and attached.So all I needed to do was:- put in some RAM;- put in CPU, apply heatsink compound, screw back in the heatsink and fan.- screw in my small HD in the removable tray and connect it;- screw in my slim optical drive in the removable tray and connect it.The fastest PC build ever.Windows Install went without problems. Shuttle provides a drivers CD. Everything was smooth the first time around.All in all, a superb case.I've been running it for 2 days, and it is 100% silent in the cabinet, even with the doors open. You have to put your ear very close to the case to hear the only fan running. Having a SSD helps for sure.