N100 is faster performance, RK3588 is better power consumption and temperatures. Off topic: In light of Intel having some issues (earnings report, raptor lake snafu), I'm kinda wanting to see if AMD has anything going on in the low cost low power embedded space. Outside full blown mini PCs (or maybe beelink, NUC type stuff, etc), there aren't any pi-type AMD products.
Greetings from across the pond near Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. With the appeal of mini PCs, it would be interesting to see a comparison with an N100 and/or N200 based machine. Thanks for yet another super-max groovy First-Class video. You make it look like so much fun. Wait ... it doesn't just LOOK like fun, it IS fun to build computers like this! Thanks for all your hard work to bring your viewers such interesting videos. It just doesn't get better than EC.
ditto the "SUPER-MAX GROOVY" too; I have visions tomorrow of row-upon-row of factory robots a/k/a Christopher Clones, building millions of these mini PCs to compete with WinTel. You may laf, but I shall laf last.
Wow, Stanley the Knife, Mr. Scissors, AND Mr. Screwdriver in the same build video? Stuff has definitely gotten real! I am a bit sad that we didn't get to pay a visit to the WebGL Aquarium this time though. With that said, this was a fun build to watch and I'd like to see the RK3588 PC pitted against the N100 PC hopefully in the not-too-distant future. :)
@@JeffGeerling You and your channel!! You're insane, but you get results. A salute to your broadcaster dad and the rest of the overworked equipment in your lab.
Always fun to watch a PC build on EC. I don't think I will be building a PC in the near future, but if nothing else, it brings back memories of many hours spent on PC builds. Thanks for another video Chris. Take Good Care.
I always enjoy unboxing and exploring new hardware vicariously through EC. Very nice ARM board with lots of connectivity options. Can’t wait to get my own!
17:00 The desktop actually does not seem to be GPU-accelerated. The first indicator is probably the screen tearing, but when you go into the info center at 17:34, you can see that the GPU is listed as "llvmpipe", which is a software-render that runs on the CPU when there is no GPU-accelerated renderer available. The performance of RK3588's CPU probably makes up for it, but the GPU is not used at all. Though it's very interesting that Chromium says it does use hardware acceleration, but maybe it sees LLVMpipe as a hardware renderer. Maybe it's missing driver packages, maybe it's the old kernel, but it's kind of a shame that the Mali G610 can't be used properly yet.
@@igorpecovnik I suspect this is because Armbian uses a newer kernel and probably also packages. Afaik, the Debian KDE option uses Radxa's Debian fork, which is not that up to date.
"sudo apt install mesa-utils ligbles2" will give some 2d gpu acceleration. Radxa seems to need some vpu driver installed for more advanced acceleration, I still haven't figured that one out
@@Stridsvagn69420 generic distributions are not well adopted for custom hardware world ... Its tl;dr; stuff. Armbian will usually work (much) better then Debian, original or baked by HW vendor. Armbian makes & maintain kernel(s) (and related packages) not just download, mix and ship. Like (Debian) distribution(s) do. Eventually some things gets to Debian too, but much later. Armbian is Debian with optimisations for this custom hardware world ...
And it's pronounced "show-PAN". It's always funny and vaguely annoying to me as a classically trained pianist to hear people mess this up (this isn't the first time).
Excellent content as always .. I would recommend showing the removal of the protective film from the thermal pad to ensure that those new to tech wont feel your advocating keeping it in place.. Thank You for sharing ... Cheers :)
Correct me if I am wrong, but from the KDE Info page the video driver in use is llvmpipe which denotes only software rendering and no hardware acceleration at all. Basically, no driver has been loaded for the gpu. Although a powerful machine it does not stand a chance against a N100 comparison, basically due to the biggest problem that all these sbcs have, i.e. proper software support for the hardware. Thanks for the review!
It is a joy to my eyes to see you engaging in those beautiful things. Am a man with a stressful life pattern. Watching your videos chills me down. Thank you!
The front panel button wires are bound together in a single connector, rather than being a bunch of fiddly individual connectors! That case is worth it just for that
In my In Win Chopin the front panel connectors are not bound together. Maybe this is a redesign? I got mine in 2021. Its a really good case. The PSUs fan is unfortunately a crap one, so out of warranty its recommended to replace with a Noctua fan.
I think front panel connections are almost becoming a somewhat-standard... so yeah, these connector blocks are becoming common. I say that but I think I remember it still not being quite standard. Ludicrous that this hasn't been worked out by now.
@@berjbedrosian4225 because you need the cable length to install the motherboard into the case. If you use those push in mounting coolers(like the stock Intel cooler), then you have easy time. You can plug the cables in after you installed the mobo into the case, bacause the cooler wont in the way. But if you need to pre install the cooler, like the stock AMD, Noctua L9a/L9i or Cryorig C1 LP, you need the extra cable length to play the mobo into the case. You need to plug in all the connectors before you place the mobo into the case. Ive already built 3 systems into the Chopin case.
about the SATA: at around 4:40, there is visble an 'asmedia ASM 1164' controller, which is PCIe Gen 3x2, providing 4 SATA Gen3 ports but only using 2- or 1- lanes upstream PCIe
A PCIe port would have been interesting. Not that there is support for any GPUs anyway, but other stuff could be added. In the end, it's yet another ARM SBC with terrible software support, that will basically be abandoned in 12 months.
There are 2 Gen3 lanes on the M.2 port. You just need an OS smaller than 8 GB to fit into the eMMC, or install another SSD or SATA adapter into the WiFi M.2 slot.
I owned an original Chopin like this and used it for my media PC for several years. I couldn't use the included PSU because it was too loud: The fan on the PSU itself was actually nicely quiet, as I was able to test it outside of the case, but the air would flow around a few bends, as you can see with the exterior shroud, and that airflow got quite noisy. I went with a PicoPSU instead. Then on the upside, I had much more room for cable management without having the included PSU installed. I did have to figure out a janky way to mount the PicoPSU power input connector, and then block off the remainder of the PSU opening on the back. I was never truly happy with it--I always wanted to try to 3D print something, but never got around to it.
O my goddd =;-o iTotally get it now = this whole 'ARM PC' thing is not about efficiency or power saving or whatever else, but a hobby thing like clowns trying 2 get ridiculously high frame rates at gigantic resolutions on their ugly video games that would look better on a 720p TV with a bit of motion blur =)) Yes iKnow some have 'lag' but 4 instance an old 'krap' Vizio can B fast = just need 2 look up the 'charts'. But 3D printing something 2 accomodate a piece of $hit CPU that won't even run regular windows so none of yor 'oddball' utilities work = it's a horror show, not a computer. Stick 2 'file server' maybe LOL!! If iWant 2 spend literally decades getting $hit 2 work on 'ARM' that has already worked fine on Windows on free PCs off the street for decades, then this is your ticket 2 new levels of masochism =D The whole 'ARM PC' thing is (((Clot $hot))) level #FullRetard ~> justpaste.it/367w8 'Let's turn this jigsaw into a hammer' kind of thing = that is Linux, ARM, etc. =))
Thank you for this nice view of the Rock 5 ITX with an RK3588! I think it will be even more valuable when this CPU gets a fully upstreamed linux kernel. A comparison with the Intel N100 would be nice, even tho there are benchmarks for both CPUs out there already. A review of the just released Radxa X4 with N100 would be nice too!
So many of the SBCs that you present are solutions looking for a problem. I can't wait until the software catches up so we can pick our OS and desktop.
I've owned a couple of the snapdragon mobile windows ARM solutions from Verizon and AT&T 2 in 1 devices over the last several years. I hate 'em. They won't do everything I need to do, especially for the price, and windows for ARM is still buggy AF. THIS is an enjoyable video none-the-less
I don't think I would ever buy one just because you can't remove the processor or RAM. I is good to see a ARM mini-itx and I hope other companies will come out with one as well.
I built this without the fan, someone on the Rockchip forums told me not to bother with active cooling and leave my outdated knowledge at the door, so I decided to take that advice and only got a heatsink. I was a bit worried that previous generation ARM chips would generate a lot more heat with the GPU going, but I can confirm that on this board that is not the case. You can really run this thing passive using "just a heatsink", the fan is total overkill.
I thnk the larger board and lots of space around the CPU likely helps with heat dissipation. But yeah I honestly don't see the point of a fan on this board. I know they sell them, but you really don't need one. Just a stick-on Raspberry pi heatsink on the CPU is all you need and just run this board passively.
This is exactly what I needed for my Linux minipc with Windows on a virtual machine ❤ I will save a lot of money by not buying an intel nuc. Thank you so much!!!
Thanks Chris for the video. Also looking forward to RK3588 N100 comparison. While I have 8 different ARM SBCs one thing I have noticed is that even though they play UA-cam videos quite well they won't play UA-camTV or Amazon video. My H3 and X2L have no problem with either. Thanks for the channel. Keep up the good work. Hope you and yours are safe and warm. Dan
Very much enjoyed this video. You see, my AMD daily driver machine is housed in a Chopin In Win case, same as yours. I smiled at your brief cooler challenge. I am on my third thin-profile Noctua fan in 4 years. 65W TDP CPU is a little much in such cramped quarters. Certainly not a blame on Noctua. The In Win now exists in a wider version for normal fans. Somewhat wish I had that case version. As for the RK3588, I have a SBC with the RK3588S and its runs multiple Docker containers 24/7. Not bad at all considering power draw.
I've had one of these little cases since about 2014'ish. They haven't changed in all that time (apart from PSU). Solid and great quality. It's had 4 different MoBo's fitted over that time. Great little media setup hidden in the tv cabinet. Quiet and cool. :) Might have to grab one of these ARM boards for a trial.
What a beautiful build, Chris. And hearing you say “let’s go and get started” always gets my heart beating a little bit faster. I guess it’s pavlovian by now... :D
Excelent video! Seeing for all those sata connectors come to my mind that it would be great if you make a tutorial with this build to implement a home NAS. I think this ARM PC would be perfect for that kind of project.
@@ExplainingComputers Happy to see you reply. Don't often see UA-camrs with a big following like yours responding to comments this frequently, I sure do respect that! P.S I recently watched your ryzen 5600G build video from last year. Did you put the GT1030 from the old AMD test rig into your editing machine, or did the editing PC have a 1030 already?
Very true. As I've experimented with in the past, it is possible to run Arm Windows 11 on an RK3588, but the current (totally unofficial) images lack SATA and PCIe support. :(
Agreed. I think Mint will become more popular over the coming year since its most similar to Windows 10 for the Linux variants and Windows 10 support ends in a year.
Excellent video as usual! Thank you! Just a suggestion... could you make a 4K60 or 4K30 version of your test video perhaps? I don't think a 1080p30 video is a real test anymore.
It looks amazingly responsive. I don't see this board or case on Amazon. Also a case with a power supply is non-existent. The arm boards may be more common in a few months hopefully. Love these build videos Chris. Thanks for your time, expense and effort. I look forward to the comparison with the N-100. Thank you!
Thanks for this. :) The In Win Chopin MAX (a deluxe version of what I used here with a better PSU) is in stock on Amazon UK as I type this: amzn.to/4d9ffAd and on Amazon US here: amzn.to/4dsZofq [Both affiliate links]
When I build a PC system I always use modular PSU's. Back in the day they weren't available and I ended up with so many wires jammed into a Midi case it meant I had sod all space, if I wanted to do any upgrade it looked like I was delivering an electric octopus, I saw an advert for a modular PSU and bought one the next week. I actually cackled with joy with all the space and airflow I had.
Installed using ROOBI OS -- Debian with the KDE plasma desktop. Like all Arm boards, an image customized for the hardware is needed if thing like GPU acceleration are required. The Arm image from the Debian website could be made to work with GPU acceleration an peripherals, but it would take time! :)
From the comments here it is clear there is interest in a follow up, in which I will try other OS. I already have this system running Ubuntu 24.04 really nicely.
I keep hoping that manufacturers will start selling parts so you can actually build an ARM desktop like we can build x86 ones now. I know there are custom machines out there, just surprised we don’t really have an ARM ecosystem like x86 does now.
I would like to see a comparison video between this and the N100, providing they are aimed at the same 'space' in the market. That and possibly a third machine.. maybe if a mini ITX RISC 5 machine appears on the horizon.
Brilliant - it is just as beautiful as I initially thought - I really hope they make an upgrade of the RK3588 sometime soon. When my desktop dies I really hope I can replace it with something like this. The RPi5 I have replaced my Atom webserver with, about a month ago, has already impressed me plenty.
What an interesting Mini ITX case it looks fairly tight for all the knitting, I’m glad to see the IO shield went in first time or did it? Nice to see Stanley, Mr Scissors & Sid the screwdriver helping out. It’s a shame that Radxa couldn’t make a thinner back plate to fit the case, you’d think there’d be a standard for it! This would make a great media PC with an N100 fitted, would the 150 watt PSU be enough? I’m looking forward to seeing more Mini ITX projects in the future using that lovely case. I’d also be interested in seeing a comparison video of the Radxa Rock 5 & N100. Thanks for the video Chris & I hope all is well with you. :)
Chris, I enjoy your videos. It just seems that you're excited because it's an arm processor fit inside a ITX case. To me it seems like a very expensive raspberry pi plus. I would rather have seen that with a risk processor then an arm processor but ideally if you're going to conduct some tests, which I think is a great idea, I would like to also see it against a like a minute's forum or other type of $350 ryzen laptop in a case type system to see how much power compute wise and energy-wise you get in that versus these other devices so you can look at compute value
@@foggygray Neither truenas nor unRAID support this CPU, sadly. You could configure everything off of a basic debian install, using zfs and smb/nfs and have your solid 1GBaseT NAS
A few years back, your PC build got me interested in building a PC. It’s my lucky day that this build was done. Now I have to convince my wife that we need another PC. Thank you for all your hard work, Chris.
I would be more interested in a ITX sized carrier board, that could be upgraded with newer compute modules in the future. This way I could reuse the old compute modules for other projects.
@@mikespangler98 the Intel solution was the processor only, right? I'm talking about a carrier board only for external ports, everything else is on the compute module.
@@SkepticalCaveman So Slot 1 with CPU and RAM, and maybe space for a M2 slot? The Compute module would be bigger than the carrier board which would be down to USB and Ethernet plus the graphics card. I'm really not seeing a huge advantage over the conventional ITX standard. Now you disconnect cables, possibly move the video card and install a new computer while moving the old one to its new job. With the new system you move the compute module to a new system and install a new compute module in its place assuming the existing power supply can handle it, and you still might be changing the video card, and you'll still likely have to reinstall the OS.
Hi from Bosnia! excellent video, I really enjoyed it. Excellent machine. Excellent and clean build. I love ARM processors. I wish you lots of health and business success in the future and I look forward to new projects.
Another beautiful PC build. Can’t wait to see the follow-up videos with different motherboards. Then I’ll follow the instructions and build one myself. :)
Just twelve months ago, someone who would have announced that they were going to build a fully functional desktop - with a mini-ITX Rockship RK3588 card would have looked like a bit of a nutter... But here it is!
Can't wait for RK3588 vs N100.
N100 will most likely win in everything except power usage
N100 is faster performance, RK3588 is better power consumption and temperatures.
Off topic: In light of Intel having some issues (earnings report, raptor lake snafu), I'm kinda wanting to see if AMD has anything going on in the low cost low power embedded space. Outside full blown mini PCs (or maybe beelink, NUC type stuff, etc), there aren't any pi-type AMD products.
Me too!
What's the best benchmarks for different architectures? I was reading some papers for ISAs, and the stuff they use are.. nonstandard.
@@SithhyRK 3588 has 6 tops in his NPU, but it’s difficult to evaluate IA perf without software support details and implementations…
Greetings from across the pond near Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. With the appeal of mini PCs, it would be interesting to see a comparison with an N100 and/or N200 based machine. Thanks for yet another super-max groovy First-Class video. You make it look like so much fun. Wait ... it doesn't just LOOK like fun, it IS fun to build computers like this! Thanks for all your hard work to bring your viewers such interesting videos. It just doesn't get better than EC.
Agreed, fellow Burqueño!
Thanks for your support. :)
ditto the "SUPER-MAX GROOVY" too; I have visions tomorrow of row-upon-row of factory robots a/k/a Christopher Clones, building millions of these mini PCs to compete with WinTel. You may laf, but I shall laf last.
Burque!@@SchoolforHackers
Agreed... 👏
Oh yes! Please compare the N100 and Radxa systems under Ubuntu! That would be a very helpful video to see. Thank you for all your educational content.
Why Ubuntu? A fair comparison would be emerged Gentoo vs emerged Gentoo
Emerging could be a test on itself
No one cares about Ubuntu anymore.
What about DietPie ?
@@thegorn 117 upvotes and you have how many? That the 117 is the third highest up vote count on the video. I'd same at least 117 people care.
Wow, Stanley the Knife, Mr. Scissors, AND Mr. Screwdriver in the same build video? Stuff has definitely gotten real! I am a bit sad that we didn't get to pay a visit to the WebGL Aquarium this time though. With that said, this was a fun build to watch and I'd like to see the RK3588 PC pitted against the N100 PC hopefully in the not-too-distant future. :)
It's a rare treat!
@@JeffGeerling Hi, Jeff! :D
Isn't that Robertson, the Driver? I had one identical from 1979, but left it down south five years ago.
@@JeffGeerling You and your channel!! You're insane, but you get results. A salute to your broadcaster dad and the rest of the overworked equipment in your lab.
@@JeffGeerlingI guess you want to run a GPU?
I always love your clear explanations sprinkled with some light and dry humor.
Of course, would love to see a comparison video. I wouldn’t mind seeing it compared to other computers also. Looking forward to your next video!
Always fun to watch a PC build on EC. I don't think I will be building a PC in the near future, but if nothing else, it brings back memories of many hours spent on PC builds. Thanks for another video Chris. Take Good Care.
Good morning! Looks like we got a pretty _rad_ PC build this week.
Greetings!
@@ExplainingComputers Hi, Chris! Tell Stanley I said hi too. 😁
Good morning to you to, an interesting video indeed ;)
@@alanthornton3530 Good morning, Alan! :D
@@Praxibetel-Ix ;)
Definately, a comparison video would be most welcome.
Thanks for adding the power consumption numbers! This is a lovely addition to your videos!
I always enjoy unboxing and exploring new hardware vicariously through EC. Very nice ARM board with lots of connectivity options. Can’t wait to get my own!
Love to see the Intel/Arm comparison video.
Many thanks. It’s a new day for building! The hobby thankfully continues.
Exactly. You put this far better than I did. :)
17:00 The desktop actually does not seem to be GPU-accelerated. The first indicator is probably the screen tearing, but when you go into the info center at 17:34, you can see that the GPU is listed as "llvmpipe", which is a software-render that runs on the CPU when there is no GPU-accelerated renderer available. The performance of RK3588's CPU probably makes up for it, but the GPU is not used at all. Though it's very interesting that Chromium says it does use hardware acceleration, but maybe it sees LLVMpipe as a hardware renderer.
Maybe it's missing driver packages, maybe it's the old kernel, but it's kind of a shame that the Mali G610 can't be used properly yet.
Armbian works with full acceleration.
@@igorpecovnik I suspect this is because Armbian uses a newer kernel and probably also packages. Afaik, the Debian KDE option uses Radxa's Debian fork, which is not that up to date.
"sudo apt install mesa-utils ligbles2" will give some 2d gpu acceleration. Radxa seems to need some vpu driver installed for more advanced acceleration, I still haven't figured that one out
@@Stridsvagn69420 generic distributions are not well adopted for custom hardware world ... Its tl;dr; stuff. Armbian will usually work (much) better then Debian, original or baked by HW vendor. Armbian makes & maintain kernel(s) (and related packages) not just download, mix and ship. Like (Debian) distribution(s) do. Eventually some things gets to Debian too, but much later. Armbian is Debian with optimisations for this custom hardware world ...
@@RowdyDemon70 Its more complicated then that.
Chris that brand of that Mini-ITX case is actually named after a polish composer, Frederic Chopin
It would have been cool if he played back some of Chopin's compositions like Fantaisie Impromptu or Minute Waltz for testing.
@@PVZBlover Polish Chopin Radio is the best for me to have in the background when studying :)
The brand is InWin. Chopin is the model, but possibly is named in honour of the composer's poetic genius (less is more).
And it's pronounced "show-PAN". It's always funny and vaguely annoying to me as a classically trained pianist to hear people mess this up (this isn't the first time).
@@PlaAwa looks like that InWin named that Mini-ITX PC case as a honour to the Polish Composer
Oh, I've been waiting for this review since the community post 😊.
And here it is! :)
very cool! love the rk3588 soc, it's crazy how powerful it is.
Am just relieved to see that in this timeline that I will still be able to do my own computer builds
Another great EC build video. Looking forward to further updates. Great to see Stanley and Mr Scissors gainfully employed again.
Excellent content as always .. I would recommend showing the removal of the protective film from the thermal pad to ensure that those new to tech wont feel your advocating keeping it in place.. Thank You for sharing ... Cheers :)
I did not show the removal on either side! :)
Correct me if I am wrong, but from the KDE Info page the video driver in use is llvmpipe which denotes only software rendering and no hardware acceleration at all. Basically, no driver has been loaded for the gpu. Although a powerful machine it does not stand a chance against a N100 comparison, basically due to the biggest problem that all these sbcs have, i.e. proper software support for the hardware. Thanks for the review!
You're doing everything I love to do. And in better way.
This case has the front panel wires in a single connector. Colour me impressed. So it can be done, but this is the first time I've seen it
Me too! :) I did worry if they would be in the right positions . . . and they were!
It is a joy to my eyes to see you engaging in those beautiful things.
Am a man with a stressful life pattern.
Watching your videos chills me down.
Thank you!
The front panel button wires are bound together in a single connector, rather than being a bunch of fiddly individual connectors!
That case is worth it just for that
In my In Win Chopin the front panel connectors are not bound together. Maybe this is a redesign? I got mine in 2021. Its a really good case. The PSUs fan is unfortunately a crap one, so out of warranty its recommended to replace with a Noctua fan.
I think front panel connections are almost becoming a somewhat-standard... so yeah, these connector blocks are becoming common. I say that but I think I remember it still not being quite standard.
Ludicrous that this hasn't been worked out by now.
I LOVE the Chopin case, I don't understand why they still make the cables so long....
@@berjbedrosian4225 because you need the cable length to install the motherboard into the case. If you use those push in mounting coolers(like the stock Intel cooler), then you have easy time. You can plug the cables in after you installed the mobo into the case, bacause the cooler wont in the way. But if you need to pre install the cooler, like the stock AMD, Noctua L9a/L9i or Cryorig C1 LP, you need the extra cable length to play the mobo into the case. You need to plug in all the connectors before you place the mobo into the case. Ive already built 3 systems into the Chopin case.
about the SATA: at around 4:40, there is visble an 'asmedia ASM 1164' controller, which is PCIe Gen 3x2, providing 4 SATA Gen3 ports but only using 2- or 1- lanes upstream PCIe
Thanks for this, most appreciated. :)
@@ExplainingComputers P.S. - congratulations to your 1st full-ARM-PC build ;-)
A PCIe port would have been interesting. Not that there is support for any GPUs anyway, but other stuff could be added.
In the end, it's yet another ARM SBC with terrible software support, that will basically be abandoned in 12 months.
wish the Raspberry Pi Foundation would release an ITX board like that but with Pi 5 internals
If only it somehow adapted a community-ratified compute module design for ITX, at least upgradability would be there
rk3588 belongs in tablets and dedicated game consoles - it's too underpowered for PC build, but too OVERpowered for network add-on purposes
It has Armbian platinum support. Don't worry about support. Armbian support 10 years old devices ...
There are 2 Gen3 lanes on the M.2 port. You just need an OS smaller than 8 GB to fit into the eMMC, or install another SSD or SATA adapter into the WiFi M.2 slot.
I owned an original Chopin like this and used it for my media PC for several years. I couldn't use the included PSU because it was too loud: The fan on the PSU itself was actually nicely quiet, as I was able to test it outside of the case, but the air would flow around a few bends, as you can see with the exterior shroud, and that airflow got quite noisy. I went with a PicoPSU instead. Then on the upside, I had much more room for cable management without having the included PSU installed. I did have to figure out a janky way to mount the PicoPSU power input connector, and then block off the remainder of the PSU opening on the back. I was never truly happy with it--I always wanted to try to 3D print something, but never got around to it.
O my goddd =;-o iTotally get it now = this whole 'ARM PC' thing is not about efficiency or power saving or whatever else, but a hobby thing like clowns trying 2 get ridiculously high frame rates at gigantic resolutions on their ugly video games that would look better on a 720p TV with a bit of motion blur =)) Yes iKnow some have 'lag' but 4 instance an old 'krap' Vizio can B fast = just need 2 look up the 'charts'. But 3D printing something 2 accomodate a piece of $hit CPU that won't even run regular windows so none of yor 'oddball' utilities work = it's a horror show, not a computer. Stick 2 'file server' maybe LOL!! If iWant 2 spend literally decades getting $hit 2 work on 'ARM' that has already worked fine on Windows on free PCs off the street for decades, then this is your ticket 2 new levels of masochism =D The whole 'ARM PC' thing is (((Clot $hot))) level #FullRetard ~> justpaste.it/367w8
'Let's turn this jigsaw into a hammer' kind of thing = that is Linux, ARM, etc. =))
Thank you for this nice view of the Rock 5 ITX with an RK3588! I think it will be even more valuable when this CPU gets a fully upstreamed linux kernel. A comparison with the Intel N100 would be nice, even tho there are benchmarks for both CPUs out there already. A review of the just released Radxa X4 with N100 would be nice too!
Thanks for this. I have a Radxa X4 on pre-order -- ships in two days . . .
This is faster than every part of my computer and everything else too ❤ wow 😳
Wow gold plated cmos. Sick
This case would be cool with a passive heat sink in it with heat pipes to the board 🛹 🤙🏼🌊
Did you forget to take the plastic off part off the top of the heat pad?😊
What kernel version is it running?
So many of the SBCs that you present are solutions looking for a problem. I can't wait until the software catches up so we can pick our OS and desktop.
Isn't that what computers are all about: solutions looking for problems?
The software side of this board is a nightmare. Rpi5 is so much simpler and better supported.
I've owned a couple of the snapdragon mobile windows ARM solutions from Verizon and AT&T 2 in 1 devices over the last several years. I hate 'em. They won't do everything I need to do, especially for the price, and windows for ARM is still buggy AF. THIS is an enjoyable video none-the-less
I don't think I would ever buy one just because you can't remove the processor or RAM. I is good to see a ARM mini-itx and I hope other companies will come out with one as well.
I built this without the fan, someone on the Rockchip forums told me not to bother with active cooling and leave my outdated knowledge at the door, so I decided to take that advice and only got a heatsink. I was a bit worried that previous generation ARM chips would generate a lot more heat with the GPU going, but I can confirm that on this board that is not the case. You can really run this thing passive using "just a heatsink", the fan is total overkill.
I thnk the larger board and lots of space around the CPU likely helps with heat dissipation. But yeah I honestly don't see the point of a fan on this board. I know they sell them, but you really don't need one. Just a stick-on Raspberry pi heatsink on the CPU is all you need and just run this board passively.
This is exactly what I needed for my Linux minipc with Windows on a virtual machine ❤ I will save a lot of money by not buying an intel nuc. Thank you so much!!!
You can basically buy intel N100 mini ITX boards for the same or even lower price.
Hope you are a fan on debian and are willing to maintaining your own distro after they stop publishing fresh builds.
@ginger_toggaf oh okey, I'm a complete noob when it comes to ARM. Thank you for the heads up!
@@RWLN508D thanks for the advice!
@@ginger_toggaf 🤣🤣🤣
Yes I am very interested in the N100 vs RK3588.
Great Video!
Oh yes please - comparison to an N100 system would be very good
I'd not mind one of these systems in my collection. Very much loving the ARM architecture on computers.
Thanks Chris for the video. Also looking forward to RK3588 N100 comparison. While I have 8 different ARM SBCs one thing I have noticed is that even though they play UA-cam videos quite well they won't play UA-camTV or Amazon video. My H3 and X2L have no problem with either. Thanks for the channel. Keep up the good work. Hope you and yours are safe and warm.
Dan
Amazing PC to surf the web, and run benchmarks
Very much enjoyed this video. You see, my AMD daily driver machine is housed in a Chopin In Win case, same as yours. I smiled at your brief cooler challenge. I am on my third thin-profile Noctua fan in 4 years. 65W TDP CPU is a little much in such cramped quarters. Certainly not a blame on Noctua. The In Win now exists in a wider version for normal fans. Somewhat wish I had that case version. As for the RK3588, I have a SBC with the RK3588S and its runs multiple Docker containers 24/7. Not bad at all considering power draw.
I haven't seen an optical port in awhile. VERY cool.
This looks like it would be a fantastic NAS project. I think I'll check it out!
I've had one of these little cases since about 2014'ish. They haven't changed in all that time (apart from PSU). Solid and great quality. It's had 4 different MoBo's fitted over that time. Great little media setup hidden in the tv cabinet. Quiet and cool. :)
Might have to grab one of these ARM boards for a trial.
What a beautiful build, Chris. And hearing you say “let’s go and get started” always gets my heart beating a little bit faster. I guess it’s pavlovian by now... :D
:)
Congratulations to 1M subscribers! :) Nicely done video as always. Enjoy your new ARM-PC.
Thanks. :)
Excelent video! Seeing for all those sata connectors come to my mind that it would be great if you make a tutorial with this build to implement a home NAS. I think this ARM PC would be perfect for that kind of project.
Initial impressions are really very good. Have to go out half way through, but will return.
An excellent presentation, Mr Barnatt! As always!
I love these build videos of yours! If you ever do any more builds/upgrades, it'd be great to see videos of those too. Greetings from Finland
Greetings!
@@ExplainingComputers Happy to see you reply. Don't often see UA-camrs with a big following like yours responding to comments this frequently, I sure do respect that!
P.S I recently watched your ryzen 5600G build video from last year. Did you put the GT1030 from the old AMD test rig into your editing machine, or did the editing PC have a 1030 already?
9:47 that price also include the power supply, so fairly reasonable.
Exactly.
REALLY like that case. 4mm WOW NICE. it's so CLEAN!
Microsoft sells their "ARM Dev" computers for a hefty price. If this board can run Windows ARM, I think a lot of folks might love it.
Very true. As I've experimented with in the past, it is possible to run Arm Windows 11 on an RK3588, but the current (totally unofficial) images lack SATA and PCIe support. :(
@@ExplainingComputersthat’s ridiculous
Mint on an ARM ITX would be interesting. Thanks for all you do.
Agreed. I think Mint will become more popular over the coming year since its most similar to Windows 10 for the Linux variants and Windows 10 support ends in a year.
Excellent video as usual! Thank you!
Just a suggestion... could you make a 4K60 or 4K30 version of your test video perhaps? I don't think a 1080p30 video is a real test anymore.
This is a very good point. I must do this.
I believe that a reason to use ARM system is to reduce TDP. So It would be cool to see such system with passive cooling.
Arm is something that fascinates me. I want to see its progression.
It looks amazingly responsive. I don't see this board or case on Amazon. Also a case with a power supply is non-existent. The arm boards may be more common in a few months hopefully. Love these build videos Chris. Thanks for your time, expense and effort. I look forward to the comparison with the N-100. Thank you!
Thanks for this. :) The In Win Chopin MAX (a deluxe version of what I used here with a better PSU) is in stock on Amazon UK as I type this: amzn.to/4d9ffAd and on Amazon US here: amzn.to/4dsZofq [Both affiliate links]
When I build a PC system I always use modular PSU's. Back in the day they weren't available and I ended up with so many wires jammed into a Midi case it meant I had sod all space, if I wanted to do any upgrade it looked like I was delivering an electric octopus, I saw an advert for a modular PSU and bought one the next week. I actually cackled with joy with all the space and airflow I had.
Nice video and nice build. Thank you Debian for supporting ARM.
You can't run Debian on this board.
We did run Debian on this board! :)
@@ExplainingComputers Downloaded from Debian website?
Installed using ROOBI OS -- Debian with the KDE plasma desktop. Like all Arm boards, an image customized for the hardware is needed if thing like GPU acceleration are required. The Arm image from the Debian website could be made to work with GPU acceleration an peripherals, but it would take time! :)
Hope there's a part 2 video for installing other OS aside from debian & armbian, hope it runs Android OS & Ubuntu.
From the comments here it is clear there is interest in a follow up, in which I will try other OS. I already have this system running Ubuntu 24.04 really nicely.
Oh yes, we need more ARM boards in desktop space
i love it ❤
THX for the review
I keep hoping that manufacturers will start selling parts so you can actually build an ARM desktop like we can build x86 ones now. I know there are custom machines out there, just surprised we don’t really have an ARM ecosystem like x86 does now.
You're having fun, which means I'm having fun watching the build and test. Many Thanks!
You know it's a Sunday when you've got a cup of coffee, some chocolate biscuits and a new video from ExplainingComputers
Hi!, nice build. Seems a well designed device. Another reason to call it SBC instead of motherboard is the lack of pcie slots.
I would like to see a comparison video between this and the N100, providing they are aimed at the same 'space' in the market. That and possibly a third machine.. maybe if a mini ITX RISC 5 machine appears on the horizon.
Brilliant - it is just as beautiful as I initially thought - I really hope they make an upgrade of the RK3588 sometime soon.
When my desktop dies I really hope I can replace it with something like this. The RPi5 I have replaced my Atom webserver with, about a month ago, has already impressed me plenty.
What an interesting Mini ITX case it looks fairly tight for all the knitting, I’m glad to see the IO shield went in first time or did it? Nice to see Stanley, Mr Scissors & Sid the screwdriver helping out.
It’s a shame that Radxa couldn’t make a thinner back plate to fit the case, you’d think there’d be a standard for it! This would make a great media PC with an N100 fitted, would the 150 watt PSU be enough? I’m looking forward to seeing more Mini ITX projects in the future using that lovely case. I’d also be interested in seeing a comparison video of the Radxa Rock 5 & N100. Thanks for the video Chris & I hope all is well with you. :)
Chris, I enjoy your videos. It just seems that you're excited because it's an arm processor fit inside a ITX case. To me it seems like a very expensive raspberry pi plus. I would rather have seen that with a risk processor then an arm processor but ideally if you're going to conduct some tests, which I think is a great idea, I would like to also see it against a like a minute's forum or other type of $350 ryzen laptop in a case type system to see how much power compute wise and energy-wise you get in that versus these other devices so you can look at compute value
At last a good home server board that cheap-arse Intel and it's vendors could not make.
Thank you for showing it!
Finally an ARM build!!! Can't wait for the comparison with n100
Yuppy, I was waiting for someone to review this board. Time to grab a drink and watch
Thanks for sharing. The ITX case was impressive. Everything appeared to work very smoothly
Всяке бачив, но такого в перший раз. Дякую, Кріс!
Nice one build, i was thinking build one as a home server for the low energy consumption.
Thanks a lot.
This is what I watch when there's no F1 on a Sunday afternoon!
surely this takes priority, even if F1 is on!
COMPUTER
SAYS
"NO!"
Great stuff. Thumbs up for the RK3588 vs N100 video,, I'd be very interested to see what comes out of that.
With the 4 SATA ports this could make for a nice NAS motherboard. Especially if TrueNAS or Unraid supports the CPU.
@@foggygray Neither truenas nor unRAID support this CPU, sadly. You could configure everything off of a basic debian install, using zfs and smb/nfs and have your solid 1GBaseT NAS
A few years back, your PC build got me interested in building a PC. It’s my lucky day that this build was done. Now I have to convince my wife that we need another PC. Thank you for all your hard work, Chris.
In case of American viewers... "Stanley, the knife" is, in fact, "Billy Box Cutter."😂
:)
This board literally has more connectivity features and I/O tham many costly regular motherboards.... Good useful and satisfying..
I would be more interested in a ITX sized carrier board, that could be upgraded with newer compute modules in the future. This way I could reuse the old compute modules for other projects.
I think there is/was such a thing for the Raspberry Pi where you could swap out the compute modules
The return of Intel's slot 1 or even further back the S-100 CPM systems? I think there would be too much trouble with the connectors at modern speeds.
@@mikespangler98 the Intel solution was the processor only, right? I'm talking about a carrier board only for external ports, everything else is on the compute module.
@@SkepticalCaveman So Slot 1 with CPU and RAM, and maybe space for a M2 slot? The Compute module would be bigger than the carrier board which would be down to USB and Ethernet plus the graphics card. I'm really not seeing a huge advantage over the conventional ITX standard.
Now you disconnect cables, possibly move the video card and install a new computer while moving the old one to its new job. With the new system you move the compute module to a new system and install a new compute module in its place assuming the existing power supply can handle it, and you still might be changing the video card, and you'll still likely have to reinstall the OS.
@@mikespangler98 the Raspberry pi CM4 already have carrier boards why wouldn't it fit on a miniITX?
All stuff and no fluff; this is why I've been subbed for all these years - thank you Chris, keep it up!
Much appreciated!
I completely forgot to contribute to the tea fund, so here it is. Sorry, Chris! :(
Thanks for your support. :) But please do not feel obliged to contribute.
@@ExplainingComputers Gotcha, Chris! Thanks.
Hi from Bosnia! excellent video, I really enjoyed it. Excellent machine. Excellent and clean build. I love ARM processors. I wish you lots of health and business success in the future and I look forward to new projects.
Greetings from the UK! :)
A shame there is no full size or at least half size pcie slot, but I guess this board is mainly intended for nas usage
Hmm Chris is drooling 🤤 over his rock 🪨
Chris oohing and aahing over a fresh, fun board: just what I need this Sunday morning.
Very exciting. Can’t wait to build one myself.
10:25 isn't there plastic on it that needs to be removed still?
There is indeed! :) It was removed. I should have said that.
Another beautiful PC build. Can’t wait to see the follow-up videos with different motherboards. Then I’ll follow the instructions and build one myself. :)
Great content as always. Could you please make a video on SDRs( Software Defined Radio)?
i do agree about finally proposed comparison indeed! Thx for your lovely work dear!
Rockchip in a rather heavy case. Hmmm... rock... and it's heavy... Maybe it should be called Heavy Metal?
:)
Greetings Chris! Impressive little build. Fairly reasonable cost all things considered. Nice little case too. Well done!
Just twelve months ago, someone who would have announced that they were going to build a fully functional desktop - with a mini-ITX Rockship RK3588 card would have looked like a bit of a nutter... But here it is!
Lovely job, Chris. I'll have to look into getting this, it seems very efficient. Thanks for sharing.
Costs ARM and a leg. I will see myself out.
Wonderful! "Kind tips"!!!! Yes, please - let's see a comparison. I'm sorely tempted to have a go at doing something like this for myself.