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Help with new PC build

L

Louisville Slugger

Weaksauce
Joined
Aug 25, 2005
Messages
85
What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing?

Diablo 3! (When it comes out), Photoshop, web browsing, photo editing, video encoding.

What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

I want to try and stay under $1,300 (shipped with tax).

Where do you live?

Massachusetts.

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, Video card, RAM, Case, Power Supply, Processor, DVD-RW, Motherboard, SSD, and Hard drive.

If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

I won’t be re-using any parts.

Will you be overclocking?

No.

What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?

I am currently using a Dell 21” 1680 x 1050 native. I could hook it up to my TV though 1920 x 1080p (37").

When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

Within the next month or so.

What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.

Really just SATA and USB. I don’t plan to having more than one video card. Firewire is nice, but not necessary. I am not going to be doing a RAID.

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

Yes, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit.
Click to expand...

1. CORSAIR XMS3 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model CMX8GX3M4A1333C9
2. COOLER MASTER GX Series RS750-ACAAE3-US 750W ATX12V v2.31 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
3. Palit NE5X56T01142-1041F GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
4. COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Advanced RC-932-KKN5-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Compucase Case with USB 3.0 and Black Interior
5. Intel Core i5-2400 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52400
6. LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM
7. MSI P67A-C43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
8. Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - Bare Drive
9. Z Vertex 2 OCZSSD2-2VTXE120G 2.5" 120GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

$1,176.27
Click to expand...

What do you guys think of this build? Everything compatible? Will everything fit? Anything suggestions? Recommendations?

Thanks so much in advance guys.
 
Last edited:
Louisville Slugger said:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=16470052



What do you guys think of this build? Everything compatible? Will everything fit? Anything suggestions? Recommendations?

Thanks so much in advance guys.
Click to expand...

Several poor choices there:

1) The RAM. You'd fill up all four of the motherboard's DIMM slots with only 8GB total of RAM right off the bat. That leaves absolutely no RAM expansion room at all whatsoever unless you "throw away" some or all of those sticks of RAM if you need to add more RAM.

2) The Cooler Master GX series of PSU's are kinda shitty: Although the "750W" model might handle the components currently on your list, the DC output quality from that PSU is very poor. This could, in turn, result in early death to some or all of your system's components (in fact, some of them might die out in just months or even weeks - and such damage due to a malfunctioning PSU is not covered at all under some companies' warranties). And that's not to mention that it is of an old design and relatively inefficient.

3) The Vertex 2 SSDs are now seriously outdated, and are much slower in real-world performance than they've been benchmarked to be. In fact, the Sandforce-based SSDs based on the same controller design as the one in the Vertex 2 have been shown to deliver extremely poor small-file performance: A conventional hard drive might achieve 25 MB/s with 4K (4 kB) files - but the Sandforce-based SSDs of the same generation as the Vertex 2 struggle to even reach 15 MB/s with 4K files.

4) The 500GB WD Blue now has a relatively poor performance-to-price ratio compared to larger-capacity hard drives that sell for only a few dollars more (such as the Samsung F3 1TB HD103SJ): That WD Blue, even though it has a 7200 rpm spindle speed, has an extremely slow random access speed that's actually slower than some of the 5400 rpm hard drives (as my own benchmark tests have shown). The 1TB version of the WD Blue is of a different design, so the molasses-slow access speed does not apply to the 1TB edition of the Blue. And all of the 500GB hard drives from any brand are now almost as expensive to buy as their 1TB siblings or cousins.
 
Disregard the link as it doesn't point to the right build. Look at the specs below.

^ So what hardware should I get instead of the ones you disagree with? (like which SSD for example?)
 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324 -- Memory.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139024 -- Power Supply.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185 -- Hard Drive.

1. CORSAIR XMS 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMX8GX3M2A1600C9
2. CORSAIR Gaming Series GS700 700W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply
3. Palit NE5X56T01142-1041F GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
4. COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Advanced RC-932-KKN5-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Compucase Case with USB 3.0 and Black Interior
5. Intel Core i5-2400 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52400
6. LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM
7. MSI P67A-C43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
8. SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - Bare Drive
Click to expand...

Any recommendations on the SSD? How does this look now?
 
The TX750/650 will be a better psu- my roommate has a TX650 powering 4 beefy gpus and an AMD quad, so they are pretty stout.

Buy the ram shell shocker today in a few hours when the price hits- it will sell out fast. $45 for 8GB of ripjaws is a great price.

I have had several F3 drives, they are excellent IMO.
 
My F3 is working fine. They're the #1 recommended drive for builds on GenHard and I haven't seen people coming back saying they died. SSDs are also very popular. I haven't seen any abnormal rates of people saying they don't work.

I'm not a huge fan of the Corsair GS. For your stated specs I'd probably drop down to a good 650W.

Here's my suggested build for your budget and stated requirements (assuming you can't get to the Microcenter in Cambridge. If you can get there, the processor combos will change.)

$315 - Intel Core i5-2500K AND MSI P67A-C43
OR
$315 - Intel Core i5-2500 AND GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3

$65 - SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM
$19 - LG DVD±RW SuperMulti Drive Black SATA Model GH22NS50 Bulk - OEM
$55 - G.SKILL Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT (comes with a free, 4GB flash drive too but that's just gravy)
$70 (before $20 MIR) - Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-620 620W
$340 (before $20 MIR) - XFX HD-697A-CNFC Radeon HD 6970 2GB
$47 - COOLER MASTER HAF 912

$250 - OCZ Vertex 3 VTX3-25SAT3-120G 2.5" 120GB
OR
$230 - Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB

Subtotal: $1,160.92
Shipping (to 02467): $15.32
Total: $1,176.24
Total after MIRs: $1,136.24

The 2500k with the P67 motherboard will allow for an overclocking option, while the 2500 (non-k) with a Z68 will offer backup integrated graphics abilities. It also has SSD caching but you're looking at an SSD larger than SSD caching can use anyways. The 2400 is a good chip, but the combo deals for the 2500 and 2500k are better right now.

There's even a bit of room to work in a 23" 1080p screen if you want it. But as it stands, the above system is quite a bit more powerful than the one you originally posted, primarily with the GPU and SSD. The processor is also a tad faster. While the PSU is "only" 650W, you mentioned you do not plan on using a dual GPU setup, and for single GPU systems a decent 650W is fine. If you'd really just prefer something bigger, since you have room left in your budget, you could jump up to a Corsair 750W TX v2 for $130 before a $10 MIR. It's a higher quality power supply than the GS series.
 
+1 on CORSAIR Gaming Series GS700 700W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

Or you can always look for pc power and cooling used like 1kw.
 
Louisville Slugger said:
Damn that GPU is insane.
Click to expand...

Your $1300 budget leaves quite a bit of room for high end components (like a Radeon 6970.) In fact, if the $1300 is a hard budget for everything you purchase, do consider getting a 1080p monitor. You'll have more real estate for your desktop apps, and with this budget you can afford the hardware to drive it with all the eye candy turned on.

Also, do you live in the Boston/Cambridge area? Because Microcenter sells the 2500k for quite a bit less than you can find it online.

Shata said:
Or you can always look for pc power and cooling used like 1kw.
Click to expand...

I would avoid a used power supply... your budget can fit a new PSU quite easily. Power supplies do lose performance over time due to capacitor aging. However, I will admit with a 1kw PSU on this type of system you probably won't notice it.
 
Louisville Slugger said:
I am about 40 miles from Cambridge one way. Between gas and tolls how much savings are we talking?
Click to expand...

About $40 in savings.

EDIT: I do not recommend the Corsair GS 700W either since it costs $116 shipped. Thats not a good deal when there's this XFX HD 6970 2GB + Corsair 850TX V2 combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.687418

With the combo discount, the cost of the 850TX V2 would be about $115 shipped. So for a $1 less, you're gonna get a higher quality and larger PSU.
 
The TX850 is in a totally different class of PSU- I would say not even comparable. If you can afford the TX850, do it. Though I will say a TX650 should handle most dual card setups as well. My roommate is currently powering a 955BE, 2x5830 and 2x5770 just fine with his. Given this, you should be fine with any and every single card setup you can think of.

Also, that ram deal is up on shell shocker now. You likely will not find a better deal on 8GB of ram. Also, you could do this combo if you want a 6870-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.684221
 
Louisville Slugger said:
I am about 40 miles from Cambridge one way. Between gas and tolls how much savings are we talking?
Click to expand...

Ew. Given how much the tolls are on the MassPike/bridges/tunnels, plus the cost of gas... and then traffic, it might be easier to just find some good deals on Newegg. But yeah, the Intel Core i5-2500k is $180 before taxes at Microcenter, and then you can also get motherboard combo deals for about $300 before taxes and MIRs. So really, the $315 from Newegg vs $300 at Microcenter isn't that great of a deal considering how far you are.

Mr34727 said:
The TX850 is in a totally different class of PSU- I would say not even comparable. If you can afford the TX850, do it. Though I will say a TX650 should handle most dual card setups as well. My roommate is currently powering a 955BE, 2x5830 and 2x5770 just fine with his. Given this, you should be fine with any and every single card setup you can think of.
Click to expand...

I agree.

I also agree with Danny in that if the OP really wants something higher than a 650W PSU, the combo deal Danny listed is FAR better than getting the GS700. The TX comes out cheaper, and is of superior quality.
 
Louisville Slugger said:
What about a modular power supply? I like having the abliity to use only the cables I need. That sounds awesome. Any recommendations?

Also I watched Newegg's three part video on how to build a PC. I was really impressed with this case:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139006
Click to expand...

Well I can kill two birds with one stone then: If you really want that case and a modular PSU, I recommend this combo deal with that case and the Corsair 750HX 750W Modular PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.677139
 
Yes. If you wanted a quieter system you could get an aftermarket HSF, but I've found the stock HSF to not be too annoying.
 
Yay, all done!

IMG-20110726-00057.jpg


IMG-20110726-00058.jpg



ASSD.png


ATTO.png


Temps.png


WEI.png


3DMark ScoreP4824
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Graphics Score4726
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Physics Score5501
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Combined Score4691
Click to expand...


3D Mark 2011.

Well that was a fun night. Parts came yesterday from NewEgg. It's been six years since I last built a machine, but I got this one to POST the first time! At first I heard this weird noise and thought the stock HSF can't be this loud. The CPU fan wire was in the way, :eek: First time I turned it on nothing showed up in the screen. Turns out I was in D-SUB mode on the monitor. Switched to DVI and was all set, :eek: Putting the CPU in was a little tricky. I got the CPU in, but I had to put a little pressure to get the lever down and into place. Was that normal? It finally went down and I was able to secure the CPU.

Any other benchmarks I should run?
 
Cool, congrats :) How do you like that case? I just ordered it for my build as well.
 
Installed DX9, uninstalled my graphics card drivers. Performed a clean install through NVIDIA's installer.

Deleted all the files in C:\Windows\Performance\WinSAT\DataStore and the winsat file in C:\Windows\Performance\WinSAT because WEI wouldn't finish.

I was wondering why my video card was a 7.0. New WEI score, :D

WEI2.png



IMG-20110727-00059.jpg


IMG-20110727-00060.jpg


Some more pics. I tried to manage the cables as best I could.
 
TempsAfterPrime95.png


CPU Temp after 30 minutes of Prime95. I ran the default test. The highs were the temps while the test was running.

Ambient temp is 20°C.
 
Looks good! And yeah, a little bit of pressure is normal. It's hard to quantify that by feel but it looks like it's running well!
 
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