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Build Advice

Q

quasar

n00b
Joined
Jul 25, 2006
Messages
8
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming (rFactor, Killing Floor, L4D, CoH, and eventually DNF), web develompent (RoR), and some music creation (Pro Tools LE, Reason)

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
About 1,000 euros

3) Where do you live?
the Netherlands

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
CPU (would like the 2500k), Mobo, RAM, case, psu, hd (500gb will do), graphics card (preferably nvidia, unless convinced otherwise), dvdrw drive, and monitor

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
not reusing any parts

6) Will you be overclocking?
yes, but in a couple of years (at which point I'd also buy a specialized cooler)

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
I would like a 22" or greater, at least 1920x1080 resolution

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
In 3 to 6 months

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.
SLI (or Crossfire) for future hook-up to bump performance, adequate sound reproduction qualities (which I guess most have nowadays anyway)

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I have Win7 Pro (32 and 64)

---

Some additional general comments:

As far the graphics card goes.. I don't mind ATI, I just prefer Nvidia so a slight reduction in performance for a comparative price is ok. If an ATI card blows a similarly priced Nvidia card out of the water, I could consider it. My last ATI card was the ol' 9800 pro in a s754 machine.

With a case, I do love the Antec solutions. Especially the ones that keep the noise levels down a bit as it is some what preferable. I suppose I just want the right balance between airflow and sound levels.

A little note about building though. I've never really built my own pc before. Have changed heatsinks and what not before. Slightly daunted by perhaps damaging the CPU while installing it on the board. If there's a website or store that could build it for a moderate fee, that would be nice (not necessary though as I do need to bite the bullet and try my hands at a real full build).

Even if you have no idea about shopping in Europe, I'd be interesting to hear any input you guys might have.

Thanks in advance :)
 
quasar said:
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
In 3 to 6 months
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, whatever parts we recommend to you right now won't exactly be the same parts we recommend a month from now let alone 3 to 6 months. So please come back when you're about 2-3 weeks away from actually buying the parts for the PC. You'll get up-to-date advice that way and we won't be spending too much time talking about a build that's gonna be a poor buy a month to two months away.
 
quasar said:
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
About 1,000 euros

3) Where do you live?
the Netherlands

Even if you have no idea about shopping in Europe, I'd be interesting to hear any input you guys might have.
Click to expand...
It will help us greatly if you tell us which stores you'll be shopping from (with links to said stores). Since the majority of us here live in North America, our advice would do you little good if you can't afford the parts that we recommend.

As for your first time building a PC, check out the GenHard FAQ sticky. It has a few links that show you how to build a computer from scratch.
 
@Danny Bui, I can understand that. On the other hand it does seem that new items that are put on sale in the US are extremely expensive at first here in Europe. Though I could be completely wrong about it these days, but it usually takes a bit of time for the prices to normalize with what is seen on the other side of the Atlantic. And as such, I thought I'd say 3-6 months. It's hard to say really, but even a computer built today would be great for me even after 6 months I'd say. I don't mind sacrificing graphic quality for smoother gameplay.

@tiraides, well.. that's a slight pickle. I'm not that familiar with the shops here. I've looked at one in particular http://www.alternate.nl. There's also a site that gathers the prices from numerous shops around the country, http://tweakers.net/pricewatch. Perhaps to make it easier, listing some products that would add up to about $1,100 should suffice. Not exactly equal to the 1,000 euros but given that things are a bit more expensive here I guess that would make for a reasonable point of reference.
 
quasar said:
@Danny Bui, I can understand that. On the other hand it does seem that new items that are put on sale in the US are extremely expensive at first here in Europe. Though I could be completely wrong about it these days, but it usually takes a bit of time for the prices to normalize with what is seen on the other side of the Atlantic. And as such, I thought I'd say 3-6 months. It's hard to say really, but even a computer built today would be great for me even after 6 months I'd say. I don't mind sacrificing graphic quality for smoother gameplay.
Click to expand...

The problem is that a whole lot of new parts are coming out in 3-6 months from now. While yes parts are initially more expensive, it doesn't take that long for the price to normalize. We're trying to help you get the best value for your money here. Giving you a build list 3-6 months in advance is not gonna help you in any way.
 
Alright Danny :)

Last time I had a custom computer built was over 5 years ago and in Belgium. Perhaps things are better with regards to pricing. Some general browsing through various products seems to indicate so.. with a few exceptions here and there.

I'll post again once I'm ready to shop
 
quasar said:
@tiraides, well.. that's a slight pickle. I'm not that familiar with the shops here. I've looked at one in particular http://www.alternate.nl. There's also a site that gathers the prices from numerous shops around the country, http://tweakers.net/pricewatch. Perhaps to make it easier, listing some products that would add up to about $1,100 should suffice. Not exactly equal to the 1,000 euros but given that things are a bit more expensive here I guess that would make for a reasonable point of reference.
Click to expand...

From my experiences with most European retailers, the video cards are far more expensive there than they are with American or Canadian retailers. Oftentimes, a good video card like the Radeon HD 6950 (2GB model) would eat up most of one's budget.

US (NewEgg) - $274.99 USD
Canada (Canada Computers) - $289.99 CAD (roughly $298.19 USD)
Europe (Alternate) - € 237,90 (roughly $334.96 USD)

Granted, I haven't included the taxes yet, and those are the main reason why video cards in Europe are so expensive.
 
well it's about that time now...

I can understand it's a bit difficult to comment on prices which I will include nonetheless (no links), but I would appreciate any comments on my following list of components..

CPU - Intel i5-2500k
(179 euros)
MOBO - ASUS P8P67 LE -=Rev.3.0=-
(119 euros)
GPU - XFX HD6870
(139 euros)
RAM - G.Skill 8GB CL9 9-9-24 DDR3-1333 kit
(66 euros)
Case - Silverstone FT02b
(224 euros)
PSU - Corsair CMPSU-650HX
(104 euros)
DVD-RW - ASUS DRW-24B3ST
(24 euros)
HD - Western Digital WD1002FAEX 1TB
(69 euros)
Monitor - Asus VH222D
(115 euros)
Keyboard - Logitech G110
(63 euros)
Mouse - Logitech G400
(42 euros)

Total... more or less 1,150 euros (I left off the cents here and there)
 
All of those are quality parts. How much more would a Radeon 6950 or GeForce GTX 560Ti be? That would be the main concern I'd have, especially as you went high end on your case and power supply. What about a Samsung F3 1TB drive? They're as fast as a WD Black drive but cheaper (at least in the US.)
 
66 euros seems a bit expensive for 8GB of DDR3. here in the states we can get 8GB Gskill DDR3 1600 for $60.

How much is DDR3 1600 for you? How about other brands of memory?
I've had good luck with Adata & Kingston.
 
@tonytnnt, the 6950 would be about 100 euros more and the 560ti about 60 euros more. I just think the 6870 fits what I'd like quite well in terms of performance, power usage, and temperature. Though having said that, the computer wont be on 24/7... probably just a couple of hours a day.

The Samsung HD is indeed cheaper here too. Just always used the WD drives in the past, but would be good to save a bit where ever possible. The case is a bit pricey, but it's a part that I intend to keep around for a lot longer than the rest of the components will probably last. It supposedly does an excellent job in cooling while remaining relatively quiet which is a plus. The PSU, well if its a bit too much power, I can always go for a less powerful one. How does a Corsair VX550W sound? It's about 40 euros cheaper.

--

@J Macker, well things are generally a bit more pricey here due to taxes and what not. However, looking around a bit more I noticed that for about 5 euros more I could get a Corsair Vengeance 1600 8gb kit or a Kingston HyperX kit. Just by with what others having been saying about there being no real difference between 1333 and 1600, I'm not sure if it's worth it. And as always if I can save a bit here and there, it would help.
 
quasar said:
The PSU, well if its a bit too much power, I can always go for a less powerful one. How does a Corsair VX550W sound? It's about 40 euros cheaper.
Click to expand...

The 550VX is actually overpriced here in the U.S. So probably overpriced in Europe as well. Take a look at the Corsair 650TX V2 650W PSU as it should be cheaper than the 650HX
 
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