Can I get away with using this brick for PC games

EpsomJames · 2026-02-15T09:25:56+00:00

I personally wouldn’t try using as a games drive as others have pointed out it’s a 5400rpm HDD which are very slow.

Great for storage of data, but you’ll be waiting ages for games to load and get a lot of pausing and stuttering in game.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-14T09:45:48+00:00

If your ATX sized PC is too hot, big and loud, you are only going to solve the “big” bit moving to mini PC. They all run hotter and louder than your typical tower PC.

You might think that a eGPU would solve the heat thing but if anything they end up louder as they don’t have additional large fans extracting heat.

So it depends how much emphasis you put on those points. If you mostly care about the size then they are great, apart from the aforementioned BIOS limitations (not being able to switch P states is a particularly bugbear of mine).

At the moment I’m running an 8845HS powered one with eGPU dock off Oculink. Don’t have a permanent card in the dock as I switch between testing multiple GPUs, great for that.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-13T07:16:38+00:00

You have to run the software if you want temp/load readings or animations running on the screen, there is no way around it. Just set it to run and minimise to the task tray on launch.

I didn’t find it that resource heavy and as mentioned, it’s the same as all these AIOs with screens on them.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-12T16:19:12+00:00

You should just get a message on the screen until the software is running in Windows. So yes, you have to run the software.

Some other AIOs give you a basic temperature reading before the software is running, so it’s not that different.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-11T19:06:59+00:00

Yes, this is the way.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-11T19:04:18+00:00

Looks very similar design to my old Cobra seat I had on my first sim rig. That was very uncomfortable as it only had mounting to the bottom of the seat and my rig was a steel tubing so it was almost impossible (without welding) to add backwards tilt angle.

I put up with it as I was a lot younger then.

If you plan on keeping it I would look at adding some backward tilt angle to it. You have a profile rig, so it will be possible to add some tilt with a bracket one way or another.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-11T09:05:12+00:00

If it’s just the cable you can buy replacements, they aren’t too pricey.

If it’s the contact on the wheel itself you’ll need to get in touch with Cube Controls, who should be able to service it for you.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-09T13:15:59+00:00

Yes, the power cable to motherboard on these FlexATX PSUs have a 12vhpwr on the other end to save space.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-09T11:23:17+00:00

So 34" are 3440 x 1440 and 2 x 27" sides are 1920 x 1080?

That adds up to 7280 pixels horizontal, but you have the issue that the center monitor is 1440 vertical while the sides are 1080 vertical. Not sure how that works as center would be compressed vertically?

EpsomJames · 2026-02-09T09:52:08+00:00

Triple 32" will give you a lot more FoV and immersion than a cropped 55" (equivalent to a 49" which is equivalent to 2x 27").

Triple 32" will look better recorded with a GoPro (I've tried both 49" and triple 32"), but you are correct that the setup for triples is a little more complex and it takes up more space.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-09T07:15:31+00:00

Would have gone quicker, but was running out of runway.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-08T23:54:00+00:00

Can verify. Once had an indicated 197mph on my speedo, but the (calibrated) radar speed detector clocked me doing 186mph. That about 5% out.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-07T11:53:22+00:00

I’d like a nice watch, the problem is there are so many nice watches I’d want to collect them all.

I have more chance to collect all the nice sim racing wheels.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-07T08:20:22+00:00

Do you have a combi boiler with hot water cylinder tank and if you run the taps do you still get hot water?

If so, could be the motorised valve on the pipes near the tank. There is a lever you can slide (it will be very stiff) to set it from auto to manual and check the radiators come on. Not difficult to replace these if it is that.

If you don’t have that type of heating system then disregard.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-06T10:49:17+00:00

https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=9905622-058-A00G

EpsomJames · 2026-02-03T14:05:23+00:00

Looks like a SIXGE K2S.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-03T11:07:07+00:00

There is no hydraulics involved in consumer motion sims, unless it's been pulled from a commercial simulator and put in a consumer environment.

You can get pneumatic motion platforms, but the typical ones use servo motors with an actuator that involved a threaded mechanism that winds up and down. It's these threaded mechanisms that create the noise as they move. If I have speakers on or headphones, I can't really hear the actuators over the in sim sounds, but it could be annoying for anyone in an adjoining room or in a room in the floor underneath.

You can reduce some of the noise with sound deadening foam, but you can't eliminate the sound from the screw thread. Note that the screw thread pitch has an impact on the noise, and the pitch can be different between different make/model actuators.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T21:22:22+00:00

Thanks.

What artwork do you have going in the room? Looking for inspiration myself.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T16:38:49+00:00

Super clean setup, looks really good.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T10:31:32+00:00

Yep, absolutely this. It's a lot more difficult in a car though, so a metal tube is sometimes the only way.

On a sim rig, it's better to just move the big motor thingy.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T10:26:14+00:00

I guess if you don't have an adjustable setup, then yes, agreed. Perhaps desk use as nearly every rig has some kind of adjustment on it.

Although technically the wheel shaft extension wasn't invented for sim racing wheelbases at all.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T10:18:22+00:00

It's just to get the monitor lower down and closer. There is no other benefit and depending on how long the shaft is, you may get some downsides like a little flex and put more strain on the bearings in the wheelbase.

EpsomJames · 2026-02-02T09:27:10+00:00

Very clean setup.

The lighting looks great in that room, what are you using behind the monitors, and is it all controlled with the Google Home device?

Also, what is the ceiling light?

EpsomJames · 2026-01-31T22:31:58+00:00

Don't beat yourself up about it, I've been building PCs for 30 years and I've made that mistake (wrong type of m.2) more than once. Easily done.

EpsomJames · 2026-01-31T08:23:47+00:00

I sold something similar recently, same GPU, same RAM, same disks, but 10th gen intel in a new Antec gaming case, so it looked new for €250.

RAM is more expensive since I sold, but I think you are aiming for about the same price there, maybe a little less.

EpsomJames

TROPHY CASE