PC to replace console in my home cinema

[Roust_m]

Hi,

I am looking to use this mini PC in my home cinema to stream movies and for gaming:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006746009434.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.1.79631e2btIybDY&algo_pvid=d873e808-e6ed-4a32-b599-235706e08bb2&algo_exp_id=d873e808-e6ed-4a32-b599-235706e08bb2-0&pdp_npi=4%40dis%21AUD%213884.10%212641.19%21%21%212528.38%211719.30%21%402101c59517126662982626042e4ed0%2112000038168607875%21sea%21AU%21746672136%21&curPageLogUid=rXC3he9T7lC3&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A

I am looking for I9 CPU/64GB RAM/2 TB SSD and RTX 4070 12G for video card.

What do you think about this configuration from gaming perspective?

Thanks.

 

[dolynick]

It would be a pass from me. The specs look good until you see the design.

If the product pictures are accurate, it looks like some sort of strange mobile/laptop and desktop crossover design.

It claims a desktop CPU and GPU but a 14900 and 4070 desktop could draw 700W of power and it uses an external power brick. A quick search for a 700W external power supply yields only internal PSU models.

It uses SO-DIMMs.

It lists only HDMI 2.0 ports despite claiming a 4070 GPU. Maybe this is just a promotional error?

It's using laptop style blowers to try and cool supposed desktop parts that would draw far more power. If it's not throttling like mad, I expect it to be loud.

I'm sure the system will work. I'm just not sure I trust it to live up to it's claimed component levels. If you must have that form factor, then I guess it will be what it will be.

Personally I would go with something that uses a more traditional desktop style component build if I was looking to get the full performance of the build.

Something more along the lines of the results here:

Slim/Small Form Factor,NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series Gaming Desktops | Newegg.com

Shop Slim/Small Form Factor,NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series Gaming Desktops on Newegg.com. Watch for amazing deals and get great pricing.

www.newegg.com

This one has your 14900F and a 4070:

2023 ASUS ROG G22CH Gaming Desktop PC, Small Form Factor, Intel Core i9-14900KF, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 DUAL, 1TB SSD Gen 4, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11, G22CH-DH978 - Newegg.com

Buy 2023 ASUS ROG G22CH Gaming Desktop PC, Small Form Factor, Intel Core i9-14900KF, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 DUAL, 1TB SSD Gen 4, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11, G22CH-DH978 with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.com

If it wasn't for the (assumed) need to drive games at 4k 60fps or better, I would say you could probably step down a model or two but the GPU demand there tends to push you up into the higher packages. If you're playing mostly older games, a 4060ti model would probably do.

 

[Roust_m]

Thanks for detailed explanation. Regarding HDMI, it is 2.1. In another area of the specs it says:

Desktop Version:
RTX 4070 12G: 1*HDMI2.1, 3*DP1.4
RTX 4060Ti 8G: 2*HDMI2.1, 2*DP1.4
RTX 4060 8G: 2*HDMI2.1, 2*DP1.4
RTX 3060 12G: 2*HDMI2.1, 2*DP1.4

The mentioning of HDMI 2.0 on the brochure is an error. The seller confirmed it is 2.1. Besides Nidia chipset from 3060 has HDMI 2.1. How can 4070 be 2.0?

The PC is going to be in another room. I will be playing in cinema room which only has a projector, speakers and the screen, everything else: receiver, amp, console or PC will be in the living room. So a bit of noise is not going to be a problem.

The reason I went for that small factor is space, I want it to fit on the same shelf as the Xbox One X currently seats.

And yes, your assumption is correct, I need it to support 4k gaming at 60fps. I have a 152 inch projector screen and want a good resolution.

 

[Roust_m]

It would be a pass from me. The specs look good until you see the design.

If the product pictures are accurate, it looks like some sort of strange mobile/laptop and desktop crossover design.

It claims a desktop CPU and GPU but a 14900 and 4070 desktop could draw 700W of power and it uses an external power brick. A quick search for a 700W external power supply yields only internal PSU models.

It uses SO-DIMMs.

It lists only HDMI 2.0 ports despite claiming a 4070 GPU. Maybe this is just a promotional error?

It's using laptop style blowers to try and cool supposed desktop parts that would draw far more power. If it's not throttling like mad, I expect it to be loud.

I'm sure the system will work. I'm just not sure I trust it to live up to it's claimed component levels. If you must have that form factor, then I guess it will be what it will be.

Personally I would go with something that uses a more traditional desktop style component build if I was looking to get the full performance of the build.

Something more along the lines of the results here:

Slim/Small Form Factor,NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series Gaming Desktops | Newegg.com

Shop Slim/Small Form Factor,NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series Gaming Desktops on Newegg.com. Watch for amazing deals and get great pricing.

www.newegg.com

This one has your 14900F and a 4070:

2023 ASUS ROG G22CH Gaming Desktop PC, Small Form Factor, Intel Core i9-14900KF, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 DUAL, 1TB SSD Gen 4, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11, G22CH-DH978 - Newegg.com

Buy 2023 ASUS ROG G22CH Gaming Desktop PC, Small Form Factor, Intel Core i9-14900KF, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 DUAL, 1TB SSD Gen 4, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11, G22CH-DH978 with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.com

If it wasn't for the (assumed) need to drive games at 4k 60fps or better, I would say you could probably step down a model or two but the GPU demand there tends to push you up into the higher packages. If you're playing mostly older games, a 4060ti model would probably do.

BTW, how can I check if the system is throttling or not?

 

[dolynick]

Unfortunately, the smaller you go, the more issues with heat, noise and throttling you're like to encounter.

If you really must have the 2.2" width, your options are likely going to be very limited and that might be as good as anything else. The Asus I linked is only 4.5" wide and I suspect will live up to the promise of the components better. I didn't do an exhaustive search either, there are probably some other options around the latter's mark too.

To answer your basic spec question though:
In general a desktop 14900F and a 4070 with 32GB of RAM or more and an NVME/SDD drive will make a fine gaming system. It won't guarantee native 4k 60fps on all games but the majority from the timeframe of the 4070's release should hit the mark. You can also use DLSS if need be to boost up the numbers on more demanding, newer titles if you like.

 

[dolynick]

BTW, how can I check if the system is throttling or not?

Throttling generally means that the component is scaling back it's performance to stay within a certain thermal or power limit. This is typically seen in clock speeds being held back from the normal spec for the unit. Task manager might let you see that on the CPU but a more specialized monitoring tool (like HWINFO for example) is probably going to work better. For the GPU, the same specialized tool may work, or you can use manufacturer's monitoring/overclocking control tool. You'll compare the numbers you're seeing to the published spec (typically the boost spec as those are max performance).

You can also just use a benchmark tool but it can be difficult to find a comparable system to measure against.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I won't recommend buying a 2k gaming machine from Aliexpress for several good reasons:
a) Effectively, there is no warranty on parts or whole PC
b) Both memory and SSD storage devices would be of the lowest possible tier
c) The 4070 12 GB edition has been discontinued by Nvidia and replaced with the 4070 super.
d) the heat produced by both i9 cpu and 4070 class gpu in that tiny box would either be unmanageable (and thermal throttled), or fan noise would compete with a jet plane.

If you can't build your own, then I recommend to check out this channel for his pre-build PC reviews:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsuVSmND84QuM2HKzG7ipbIbE_R5EnCLM

 

[Roust_m]

Throttling generally means that the component is scaling back it's performance to stay within a certain thermal or power limit. This is typically seen in clock speeds being held back from the normal spec for the unit. Task manager might let you see that on the CPU but a more specialized monitoring tool (like HWINFO for example) is probably going to work better. For the GPU, the same specialized tool may work, or you can use manufacturer's monitoring/overclocking control tool. You'll compare the numbers you're seeing to the published spec (typically the boost spec as those are max performance).

You can also just use a benchmark tool but it can be difficult to find a comparable system to measure against.

So, if the base clock speed for I9 14900KF is 3200 and the boost on is 6000, what should task manager or HWInfo show under load? The benchmark tool shows some score, but I have no idea on what to make of that score.

 

[dolynick]

So, if the base clock speed for I9 14900KF is 3200 and the boost on is 6000, what should task manager or HWInfo show under load? The benchmark tool shows some score, but I have no idea on what to make of that score.

Modern CPUs generally boost up from a base depending on their thermal and power headroom. If you are seeing at least one core hit 6 GHz in a single threaded test, you are technically getting full performance. It looks like the maximum default-all core speed (with all boost options enabled) should be 5.6 GHz. The more limitted your system/CPU is by thermals and power, the lower and further away from that limit you'll see.

You'll generally need some sort of sustained benchmark stress test for this. Prime95, Cinebench or even CPU-Z's basic stress test.

I haven't used an Intel CPU for a while now, so I'm not familiar with the behavior of the current lines first hand but the general concept of boosting CPUs like these is the cooler they are kept, the better the overall clockspeed - up until their designated limits (typically set in the BIOS).