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New Build ideas

M

mrkma

Weaksauce
Joined
May 28, 2014
Messages
75
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming, Web Browsing
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Around $1000 but I can go over.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
U.S.
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, RAM, GPU, Case, PSU, SSD
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
none
6) Will you be overclocking?
no
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
around 23" resolution used will be 1920 x 1080
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
next 2-3 weeks
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
USB 3.0, SATA 6GB/s, UEFI would be nice. I like to have a lot of options since you never know what you may need in the future, but I listed the basics which I need right now.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
WIN 7 64 bit


I am considering a new game build. here it is

Intel Haswell refresh CPU, whatever the refresh version of the 4570 is, which appears to be the 4590 ( around $200)
asus x97 pro motherboard
EVGA GeForce gtx 750 ti
Corsair 2 x 4gb pc2133 ddr3
Samsung evo 120gb
corsair 550 CSM Power supply
corsair 450D case

I figured I would go with the z97 so I can use the haswell refresh CPU. I have seen some impressive temperature benchmarks for the higher end processors which some nice improvements in temperature compared to the original haswell cpu's. I like the CPU's to run at low temperatures so this is a big plus for me. The current CPU that I think meets the demand is the 4570 so I will wait and see what the details are on the 4590. I figure this week we will know the details on them and then I can make the decision on CPU


The gtx 750 TI seemed like a good card for the money and doesn't require any power except from the pci express slot. I will not overclock anything. I am unsure if I should go for the gtx 760 instead as there is about a $100 increase in price. Should I got the gtx 750ti for now and upgrade when the new Maxwell cards come out? Will the GTX760 or even 770 last me about 2 years for 1920 x 1080 gaming? I don't like to spend hundreds and hundreds on video cards only to have it outdated in 1 year. Id rather go mid or low range and upgrade it more frequently but I understand this is not always practical. I am not one who needs to have every option maxed out on every game. AA can be on its lowest setting or even off without issue.

Gaming will be the most demanding for this machine. Can it keep up with games like ARMA 3 or Planetside 2?

Let me know what you think.
 
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That motherboard is beyond overkill for your needs. You just said you're not overclocking. The main reason to get the Asus Z97 Pro is to overclock. If you don't overclock, then that motherboard is an absolute total waste. You'll be fine with a cheaper Z97 mobo like the AsRock Z97 Extreme3 or the MSI Z87 PC Mate. Either way, no good reason for you to get the Z97 Pro at all.

That high-speed RAM is not necessary at all. DDR3 1600 is all that you need. Unless that particular RAM kit is below $70 and is rated at 1.5V, I wouldn't bother getting it. I recommend this RAM instead:
$70 - Kingston HyperX Blu KHX1600C10D3B1/8G 8GB DDR3 1600 RAM

That PSU is just a poor choice:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2014/01/15/corsair_cs550m_550w_power_supply_review/

For the same price as that crappy Corsair PSU (never thought I'd ever have to type that), you can get this significantly higher quality Seasonic PSU:
$80 - Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W Modular PSU

As for the video card, whether or not the GTX 760 or GTX 770 will last you for two years is on YOU. Meaning that as long as you're fine with the performance that the video card is providing you, then a video card will last however long you use that PC for or until the performance is not good enough for you. With that said, I wouldn't recommend getting the 750TI for now and then getting one of the new Maxwell cards later this year. It's just a waste of money if you think about it: The 750 TI costs $150 now. A new Maxwell card will more than likely cost around $250 to $300. So if you were to upgrade to Maxwell this year, you'd be spending $350 to $400 alone on video cards. Better to just buy it right the first time.

My main recommendation in terms of bang for the buck value would be the $190 R9 270X, $230 R9 280 or the $280 R9 280X. If you want to stick with Nvidia despite the slightly worse bang for the buck value, go for the GTX 760.
 
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All of your responses make sense.

Main reason for going with the Asus was my trust in the brand from past mobo, and the fact I can add thunderbolt to the mobo in the future if needed. I do see your point though and it may not be practical. I will look into your mobo suggestions

Does the whole 1.5v vs 1.65v ram come into play here or do the mother boards only support one or the other? Don't want to buy the wrong kind. Also I heard the high speed ram can benefit some games. Is that true or just not worth the price for the performance gain?

I am more familiar with NVIDIA since the only 2 video cards I have ever owned were both from them ( Geforce fx 5900 ultra 256mb ram, and a GeForce 6000 series card I cant remember which replaced it several years later for $$) So I am likely to stay with NVIDIA. How much does ram on the video card matter? should I post in the video card forum? I am finding GTX 760's with 2 and 4gb of ram.
 
mrkma said:
All of your responses make sense.

Main reason for going with the Asus was my trust in the brand from past mobo, and the fact I can add thunderbolt to the mobo in the future if needed. I do see your point though and it may not be practical. I will look into your mobo suggestions
Click to expand...
You'd have to be getting thunderbolt right away in order for a thunderbolt enabled mobo to make sense. The higher costs isn't worth a "maybe".
mrkma said:
Does the whole 1.5v vs 1.65v ram come into play here or do the mother boards only support one or the other? Don't want to buy the wrong kind. Also I heard the high speed ram can benefit some games. Is that true or just not worth the price for the performance gain?
Click to expand...
AFAIk, most mobos don't support RAM with different voltages at the same time. In general, I recommend 1.5V as much as possible to avoid potential (however unlikely it is) CPU damage as Intel does not recommend more than 1.5V for their CPUs. Not worth the price for the performance gain. The performance increases you see in some game with high-speed RAM only occur at select resolutions and only with a handful of games out there.
mrkma said:
I am more familiar with NVIDIA since the only 2 video cards I have ever owned were both from them ( Geforce fx 5900 ultra 256mb ram, and a GeForce 6000 series card I cant remember which replaced it several years later for $$) So I am likely to stay with NVIDIA. How much does ram on the video card matter? should I post in the video card forum? I am finding GTX 760's with 2 and 4gb of ram.
Click to expand...
In general, a GTX 760 with 2GB of VRAM is more than enough for 1080P. Not many games out there requires 4GB of VRAM at 1080P.
 
great. thanks for the help. that certainly clears some things up and gives me some things to look at. Looking at a gtx 760 vs gtx 770 now. will do some reading and update accordingly
 
How will the different video cards affect which PSU I get. I would imagine the 750 ti is not a major concern in terms of the PSU, but would I need a 650W PSU for the 760 or 770?
 
the 770 says it requires a 600w psu, so I would have to got for a 650 or higher to be safe if I went with that GPU wouldn't I?
 
They say PSUs are more efficient when they're not at 100% load.

Plus, I find having more overhead reduces heat.
 
Go with a Gold (or better) 550W powersupply check Jonnyguru to make sure you get the best one.
I have run a I7 2600 with an OC'ed 770 on a 450W PSU (for testing) and it ran perfectly even under stresstests. I would recommend a 550W to give you headroom for more power-hungry cards. A game will never stress your CPU and GPU to it's maximum like stresstests do btw, thus will never pull as much power.
But this is [H] I would go for the new Corsair 1500W PSU :rolleyes:.
 
mrkma said:
How will the different video cards affect which PSU I get. I would imagine the 750 ti is not a major concern in terms of the PSU, but would I need a 650W PSU for the 760 or 770?
Click to expand...

I'm running a 780 Ti on a 460W PSU

Which games do you wish to play? Are there any other factors we should consider? Things like noise, size, etc.
 
I always like to keep noise to a minimum if possible, but its not a huge deal. Doesn't have to be HTPC quiet, but I don't want a leaf blower. That is why the 750ti caught my eye, because it gives off very little heat and consumer very little power, however that does all come at the expense of performance compared to the 760's and 770's. I am not overly picky about graphics and can dial things back to make things playable. I remember never needing to use anti aliasing in the past (see below) because it never bothered me.

My last gaming pc was bought in 2003 , and I stopped gaming for awhile. I cant find a lot of info on noise or heat from my old video card as a reference to compare it to a new one.
 
mrkma said:
the 770 says it requires a 600w psu, so I would have to got for a 650 or higher to be safe if I went with that GPU wouldn't I?
Click to expand...
No. GPU manufacturers tends to over-inflate the required PSU to account for the sheer number of shitty power supplies out there. There are a lot of 600W PSUs that can only realistically provide 200W of power under real world conditions. A good quality 450W PSU or higher is more than enough power for that card and most PC these days. Couldn't find a 450W PSU that had the same bang for the buck value as that Seasonic 550W hence why I recommended the 550W.

Considering the amount of trouble it it is to educate people on PSU quality (even here on HardForum we have people recommending shitty power supplies for good PCs), it's just simpler to over-inflate the requirement and hope for the best.

Quartz-1 said:
I'm running a 780 Ti on a good quality 460W PSU.
Click to expand...
FTFY. Some unfortunate people might get the impression that any 460W PSU is enough....
mrkma said:
I always like to keep noise to a minimum if possible, but its not a huge deal. Doesn't have to be HTPC quiet, but I don't want a leaf blower. That is why the 750ti caught my eye, because it gives off very little heat and consumer very little power, however that does all come at the expense of performance compared to the 760's and 770's. I am not overly picky about graphics and can dial things back to make things playable. I remember never needing to use anti aliasing in the past (see below) because it never bothered me.

My last gaming pc was bought in 2003 , and I stopped gaming for awhile. I cant find a lot of info on noise or heat from my old video card as a reference to compare it to a new one.
Click to expand...
There are quiet GTX 760s like the Asus DirectCU II, the MSI TwinFrozr, eVGA ACX, and Gigabyte Windforce models.
 
Well I have decided to narrow it down to the GTX 750ti or the GTX 760. I am leaning towards the 760 right now. http://www.evga.com/Products/Product.aspx?pn=02G-P4-2763-KR That has the better cooler as I like to keep the temps down on the cards whenever possible.

The last video card I had was a Geforce FX 5900 Ultra with 256 Mb of ram. ( I later replaced it with a Geforce 6000 series card) so I am somewhat out of the loop as to the differences in noise and temperature on GPU's now vs then.
 
As a passing comment, I read someone here said they had an EVGA card with the ACX cooler and decided to put Noctua fans on it instead.

I agree with heatpipe coolers however in case of fan failure.
 
Again, go for the GTX 760. You're gaming which means you're going to need faster card unless you're only planning on playing LoL or DOTA.
 
Alright, I have finalized the build I think.

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card
Case: Corsair 450D ATX Mid Tower Case
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)

I like the Asus Mobo so I have chosen to stay with that. Actually I have changed it to the version with the wifi built in which will be useful in some scenarios. I realize I can get similar features in a cheaper mobo but I always likes Asus and the wifi is a nice deal.

I chose to go with the GTX 760

Only thing left is a 650w PSU (which I believe will be a Seasonic) however none of the local stores around here have them so I am open to suggestions. Corsair TX series? I also will need a monitor (1920 x 1080, 5ms response time, either Dell, LG, Asus, or Samsung) and a CPU cooler. Is the stock cooler good enough if im not overclocking? I have heard mixed things about them with haswell. Would not like to have the cpu go past mid 60C.

so, PSU suggestions
Monitor Suggestions
CPU (air) Cooler Suggestions
 
mrkma said:
CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
Click to expand...
Poor choice for a CPU. It's not worth the $20 over the Core i5 4570. Only good reason to get the 4670 is if costs the same as the 4570 or less than the 4570. It's just a badly priced CPU.

mrkma said:
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
I like the Asus Mobo so I have chosen to stay with that. Actually I have changed it to the version with the wifi built in which will be useful in some scenarios. I realize I can get similar features in a cheaper mobo but I always likes Asus and the wifi is a nice deal.
Click to expand...
I have an Asus mobo which I absolutely love. It's a very solid motherboard in my use and I would recommend my exact Asus mobo to anyone who wants to overclock. The key word here is "want to overclock". In this case, I would not recommend an Asus overclocking motherboard in this case because:
1) You're not overclocking.
2) You sound like you're not going to be using the wifi as your main connection. Even then, the wifi is not a nice deal since there are far better dedicated wifi options than the onboard.
3) You have not mentioned anything that shows you're going to be taking advantage of most of the features of that motherboard.

So I see no reason for you to get that particular Asus motherboard. If you were overclocking or mentioned something where a particular Asus motherboard was just right for the situation, I would happily recommend Asus all day long. But not in this case. For your situation, I would recommend these motherboards instead:
$88 - ASRock H87M Pro4 Intel H87 mATX Motherboard

Even if you want to splurge, you still don't need to spend that much:
$125 - AsRock Fatal1ty Z87 Killer Intel Z87 Motherboard

mrkma said:
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB)
Click to expand...
How much is this?

mrkma said:
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer
Click to expand...
Why two different DVD burners? Actually, why two DVD burners in general?

mrkma said:
Only thing left is a 650w PSU (which I believe will be a Seasonic) however none of the local stores around here have them so I am open to suggestions. Corsair TX series?
Click to expand...
You don't need a 650W PSU. You'll be fine with a solid 550W PSU unless there's no solid 550W PSUs in your area. Based on current pricing, the TX series aren't that good for the money compared to the Seasonic I recommended earlier. In addition, some of the TX series are a tad outdated. If you can find an XFX 550W to 650W locally for less than the price of the Seasonic I recommended earlier, go for that. Otherwise, I'd just bite the bullet and get the Seasonig SSR-550RM. It's a rock solid PSU:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/09/seasonic_gseries_g550_power_supply_review/#.U5kPmPldXlk

mrkma said:
Is the stock cooler good enough if im not overclocking? I have heard mixed things about them with haswell. Would not like to have the cpu go past mid 60C.
Click to expand...
Whether or not the stock cooling is good enough is largely dependent on where you live and how cool you keep your home. If you live in a hot place with no AC on, then the stock cooling may not be that great. If you live in a hot place but leave the AC on day long, the stock cooling is just fine. Or if you live in a cold place but keep the heater on all day long, then the stock cooling may not be that great either. So all dependent on the temperature situation in your home. Our go-to HSF recommendation is the Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo for $30.
 
Thanks for the heads up about the cpu. I will get the 4570 then.

I want to splurge a little so I will look into the AROCK mobo you linked.

What is a good wifi card for wireless N or AC (im sure its backwards compatible).

DVD burners cost about $15 each. I like having them and they are cheap so not really a concern. I have always had 2 in my desktops and it comes in quite handy sometimes.

and you are 100% right about the PSU. I was thinking about the 770 when I typed that.
Specs from EVGA site for the 760
"Requirements

Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.

(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 30 Amps.)

An available 6-pin PCI-E power connector and an available 8 pin PCI-E power connector

Total Power Draw : 170 Watts "

I would be getting the powersupply from microcenter and they mainly had EVGA and Corsair PSU's if I remember correctly.

I guess that leaves just the monitor and I guess I am set then.
 
I would get an i5-4690 and Seasonic power supply. (And I'd make sure the RAM can run at 1.5V at 1600MHz.)

I could re-verify the information. But from what I quickly saw, the new 9 series chipsets can use the security features on the Haswell refresh CPUs.
 
Whoa whoa hold up:

mrkma said:
I would be getting the powersupply from microcenter and they mainly had EVGA and Corsair PSU's if I remember correctly.
Click to expand...
And this is why I added " If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible." to question #3.

So you actually live near a Microcenter? How long is the drive to that Microcenter? Which Microcenter is it?
 
The drive is maybe 25 minutes to a microcenter. Closest one is Paterson, NJ
 
If you are actually within a 30 minute driving period of that NJ Patterson Microcenter, here's what I recommend instead:

Get the PSU online. Yes your Microcenter does have a lot of eVGA and Corsair PSUs. However, I can't recommend any of those PSUs because they're either
A) Stupidly overpriced compared to online competitors
B) Low quality-ish.

That's not to say there aren't any good PSUs at Microcenter. There are. However, they're just way too overpriced or stupidly overkill for your needs. So you're really better off just buying that Seasonic PSU online than get a PSU in-store from Microcenter if you want bang for the buck value and don't want to be completely wasting your money.

For the CPU and motherboard however, get that from Microcenter as you'll won't be able to beat the pricing there by buying online. Microcenter has a $40 off combo deal going on when you buy certain Intel CPUs with any compatible motherboard. In this case, I recommend getting the Intel Core i5 4670K and the AsRock Z97 Extreme4 or ASRock Z97X Killer motherboards.
 
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I looked into that mobo and it does look great. The cpu and mobo combo was what I was thinking also.

May I ask what PSU you would go with out of those available from microcenter? one reason is curiosity and the other is it may just be easier to spend some more to get it right away. So money aside and strictly based on quality what would you say from microcenter?
 
mrkma said:
I looked into that mobo and it does look great. The cpu and mobo combo was what I was thinking also.

May I ask what PSU you would go with out of those available from microcenter? one reason is curiosity and the other is it may just be easier to spend some more to get it right away. So money aside and strictly based on quality what would you say from microcenter?
Click to expand...

For your kind of system, I wouldn't go with any of those available from Microcenter. They're just too much overkill. Your system will be just fine with a solid 550W PSU even if you went with the GTX 780 Ti. The majority of the good to high quality PSUs available at Microcenter are in the 750W range.

Nor is your system really low-end enough where you could get away with a cheap but decent 430W PSU.

The price difference is pretty substantial. For example, there's the Corsair AX760 which is $200 from Microcenter:
http://www.microcenter.com/product/...s_AX760_760_Watt_ATX-EPS_Modular_Power_Supply

But you can get that same PSU for $40 less from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A0HZMEM/?tag=extension-kb-20

$40 is a pretty substantial difference and it also technically means you're getting less quality for your money since there are better quality $200 PSUs online than the AX760. Even at the $160 price, that's still double the money you actually need to spend on a PSU for your system. So that's actually a $120 price difference now that I think about it. Do you really need the PC up and running that quickly to justify an extra $120 and a poorer bang for the buck value?
 
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How about what would the second PSU that you recommend be? If nothing else just to have an option and to be able to compare them both. I do not mind spending a little more for a better PSU at the same wattage.
 
mrkma said:
How about what would the second PSU that you recommend be? If nothing else just to have an option and to be able to compare them both. I do not mind spending a little more for a better PSU at the same wattage.
Click to expand...
Again, I can't recommend any PSU for your system from Microcenter. They're either too low quality or massively overpriced.
 
mrkma said:
I mean a second PSU that isn't sold at microcenter.
Click to expand...
Oh. If you're looking for something cheaper, then this:
$61 - XFX TS Series XFX TS 550W PSU

But there's a really decent amount in difference in quality and performance between the two PSUs so the extra $20 for the Seasonic is totally worth it. But if you absolutely can't spend the extra $20, that XFX isn't a bad choice at $61.

However, if you want an actual step-up over the Seasonic 550W, then you're looking at an extra $60:
$140 - Seasonic SS-660XP2 660W Modular PSU
 
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Great thanks for the info. I have no problem getting the 550W seasonic, but may want to go just a little higher quality so the 660w may be what I go for. I will have to compare them both and see. Thanks for all the info and the help!
 
They both seem very solid so I don't think I can really go wrong either way.

I am deciding whether to go with the GTX 760 or the 770 which will probably determine which of the two PSU that I get.
 
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