AVADirect Mini Gaming PC: Titan in a Small Package
Design and Layout
“Broad-shouldered” isn’t a description you’d want to assign to most mini gaming systems, but the BitFenix Prodigy really does have a sturdy, wide-ish look to it, and it works for this chassis. The front panel fan has bright purple lighting that gives the system some bling without going over the top. The light frames the two case badges nicely.
Front ports (2 USB ports and the headphones/mic ports) are actually at the side of the system, which is also where you’ll find the power and reset buttons. They’re close to the front and easy to reach, and they ensure that any cords (like your headphone cord, for example) aren’t dangling in front of the system, as they would if the ports were at the top.
For its size, the Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe motherboard has plenty of outputs. Four USB 2.0 ports and four USB 3.0 ports sit at the back of the board, along with two eSATA 3Gbps ports. There are also pinholes for reaching the CMOS Reset button and Asus’ BIOS Flashback feature. The Titan provides a Display Port, HDMI port, and two DVI ports.
The Prodigy looks like a tough case, and it mostly is - though those four rails are a little more flexible than you might think. The rails serve as the feet for the system, so you’ll want to be careful if you carry this system a lot.
Take the side panel off the system and you’re immediately greeted by the Titan, which has its own sharp-looking chassis. The GeForce GTX LEDs are bright. You can barely see them through the grill of the side panel, but that’s as it should be – the system looks dark and tough with the one purple fan light at the front. In any event, when you remove that side panel to show off your Titan, your friends will have no trouble checking it out.
Because the system is so small and the graphics card is right at the front (of the side area), the rest of the components are somewhat blocked from view. The memory is deep in the system and hard to spot, and even the massive Megahalems heatsink takes a back seat to the card. The drives area is easy to reach though, thanks to bays that face to the side. Also, you can get a nice top-down look at the CPU heatsink by lifting the air filter at the top of the system.
AVADirect has a lot of experience with cable management and that comes into play here, what with the size of the system. The cables are folded neatly along the equipment and tied in places, giving the system the same polished look on the inside that it has on the outside.
;)
Front ports (2 USB ports and the headphones/mic ports) are actually at the side of the system, which is also where you’ll find the power and reset buttons. They’re close to the front and easy to reach, and they ensure that any cords (like your headphone cord, for example) aren’t dangling in front of the system, as they would if the ports were at the top.
For its size, the Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe motherboard has plenty of outputs. Four USB 2.0 ports and four USB 3.0 ports sit at the back of the board, along with two eSATA 3Gbps ports. There are also pinholes for reaching the CMOS Reset button and Asus’ BIOS Flashback feature. The Titan provides a Display Port, HDMI port, and two DVI ports.
;)
;)
The Prodigy looks like a tough case, and it mostly is - though those four rails are a little more flexible than you might think. The rails serve as the feet for the system, so you’ll want to be careful if you carry this system a lot.
Take the side panel off the system and you’re immediately greeted by the Titan, which has its own sharp-looking chassis. The GeForce GTX LEDs are bright. You can barely see them through the grill of the side panel, but that’s as it should be – the system looks dark and tough with the one purple fan light at the front. In any event, when you remove that side panel to show off your Titan, your friends will have no trouble checking it out.
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
Because the system is so small and the graphics card is right at the front (of the side area), the rest of the components are somewhat blocked from view. The memory is deep in the system and hard to spot, and even the massive Megahalems heatsink takes a back seat to the card. The drives area is easy to reach though, thanks to bays that face to the side. Also, you can get a nice top-down look at the CPU heatsink by lifting the air filter at the top of the system.
;)
;)
This is a bird's-eye view of the CPU heatsink on the left, and a look at the drives and cable management on the right.
AVADirect has a lot of experience with cable management and that comes into play here, what with the size of the system. The cables are folded neatly along the equipment and tied in places, giving the system the same polished look on the inside that it has on the outside.
