• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

New rig: would like feedback and input

W

WarriorX

2[H]4U
2FA
Joined
Nov 18, 2006
Messages
2,352
My old rig died and I’m going to go ahead and buy new stuff for a new rig. I have a pretty good idea on what Ill be getting but would like some feedback. So to start off ill answer the questions:

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

Mostly gaming. Old and new games.

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

Around $1000-1100.

3) Where do you live?

Washington

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, mobo, HDD, PSU, ram, video card and an after market HSF.

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

Going to reuse my monitor, input device, and my dvd drive. Reusing my old case but open for suggetions.

6) Will you be overclocking?

Most likely

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

Currently its a 19in but I do plan on going to a 24in screen.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

This week or early next week.

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.

USB 3 and SATA 6

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

I have WinXP 32bit Home right now but will be getting Win7. Either professional OEM or upgrade. Could use some insight on this decision. I would like the ability to transfer keys and such in case I upgrade again so I am leaning more to the upgrade path vs OEM.

The parts I am looking at:
CPU: 2500K Sandy Bridge
Mobo: MSI P67A-GD65 (B3)
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Do I need 1600 speed ram? Would 1333 ram do the trick.
HDD: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 I see this HD get mentioned alot around here.
PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W

The video card I am looking at getting is a EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Ti . How is this video card? I might be able to go up to a 570 series but how much of an improvement would that be. Keep in mind I do plan on going to a 24in monitor. What about AMD/ATI alternatives.

I could use some suggestions for HSF. The one I was thinking of getting is the COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus but it might be too big for my case. What other options are there that are under $50

Any guidance or suggestions would be appreciated.
 
Get 1333 ram, there is little difference at 1600.
The HD 6950 2gb would give you the best bang for buck. The gtx 570 is just a tiny bit better, in some games the 6950 will match or outperform the gtx 570. But make sure you look at benchmarks for the games you will actually play, and also what resolution you will be using.

Also make sure you use a 64 bit windows, or else it will only be able to use 3gb of RAM
 
Which video card you should buy, in my opinion, largely depends on when you plan on purchasing your new monitor. I recommend that you buy a cheap (or used) mid-range card like the HD 5770 for your current resolution and buy a brand new, high-end card at the same time as your new monitor.

Then again, you could go the SLI/CrossFire route and buy a second GTX 560 Ti when you buy the monitor. The problems with that plan are that some games don't scale well with a multi-GPU setup and a newer, (comparatively) cheaper card could arrive within a few months (of the second card purchase) that could match or exceed the performance from your SLI/CF setup.

The GTX 560 Ti is designed to compete with the Radeon HD 6870, and the GTX 570 is supposed to compete with the HD 6950. Nvidia cards are generally more powerful than their AMD/ATI counterparts, but they cost more. AMD's Eyefinity technology allows for you to connect three monitors onto one card (provided that one of the monitors uses a Display Port). Nvidia has better 3D and Linux drivers and some programs take advantage of its CUDA technology.

Unless you have a need for Nvidia, I recommend going with the (comparatively) cheaper AMD cards. The only reasons I would recommend Nvidia are if you use Linux, run programs (like the Adobe CS5 programs) that take advantage of CUDA, or you're really into 3D displays.

As for RAM, stick to DDR3 1333 RAM. As you'll be overclocking using the i5-2500K's unlocked CPU multiplier, you have no reason to touch the RAM. Also, which case are you using? With your budget, you may have to break down and buy a new case; you aren't going to find a better CPU cooler for around the same price as the Hyper 212 Plus.

Go with 64-bit Windows. But you lost me on the "transfer [OS] keys" requirement. If you want to use the same license key in multiple systems (over time, not simultaneously), then you need to buy the retail version of Windows 7. (It's illegal to use the same key in multiple systems simultaneously, regardless of whether you're using a Retail or an OEM version.)

Why are you looking at Windows 7 Professional? What does it have (that you need) that Windows 7 Home Premium doesn't?

What features does the MSI P67A-GD65 have that are important to you? While you mention USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s as prerequisites, the main features of that board are SLI and CrossFire support and "one-button" OC Genie.
 
Do you live by a Frys by any chance? I have to run but I'll try to respond later.
 
tiraides said:
Which video card you should buy, in my opinion, largely depends on when you plan on purchasing your new monitor. I recommend that you buy a cheap (or used) mid-range card like the HD 5770 for your current resolution and buy a brand new, high-end card at the same time as your new monitor.

The GTX 560 Ti is designed to compete with the Radeon HD 6870, and the GTX 570 is supposed to compete with the HD 6950. Nvidia cards are generally more powerful than their AMD/ATI counterparts, but they cost more. AMD's Eyefinity technology allows for you to connect three monitors onto one card (provided that one of the monitors uses a Display Port). Nvidia has better 3D and Linux drivers and some programs take advantage of its CUDA technology.

Go with 64-bit Windows. But you lost me on the "transfer [OS] keys" requirement. If you want to use the same license key in multiple systems (over time, not simultaneously), then you need to buy the retail version of Windows 7. (It's illegal to use the same key in multiple systems simultaneously, regardless of whether you're using a Retail or an OEM version.)

Why are you looking at Windows 7 Professional? What does it have (that you need) that Windows 7 Home Premium doesn't?

What features does the MSI P67A-GD65 have that are important to you? While you mention USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s as prerequisites, the main features of that board are SLI and CrossFire support and "one-button" OC Genie.
Click to expand...

When I was talking about transferring OS keys I was talking about when I get a new computer later on, I can reuse my Win7 OS. I was under the belief that OEM locked you to your motherboard where upgrade or retail could be installed on a new PC. I have no intentions in trying to run them simultaneously.

I was going to get the GD65 because it is only a little bit more then the GD55. The GD65 has free shipping where the GD55 does not. What other mobos would you recommend? The GD65 was reviewed by [H] and seemed be highly praised. On the MSI website they talk about high quality components being used. Does the ASUS board I linked below have something similar, or is this even worth paying the extra money for?
I was looking at the ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) as a possible option as well. Lack of SLI/Crossfire isn't a deal killer for me.

I don’t know who makes my case. Its a case I bought 5 years ago. I will most likely be getting a new case to help fit the new HSF. Any suggestions?

@tonytnnt There is a Fry's nearby.
 
WarriorX said:
I don’t know who makes my case. Its a case I bought 5 years ago. I will most likely be getting a new case to help fit the new HSF. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
$60 - Cooler Master HAF 912 RC-912-KKN1 ATX Case
$70 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K58W ATX Case
$90 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K56 ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master CM690 II Advance ATX Case
$100 - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$90 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$106 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$110 - Fractal Design Define R3 Black ATX Case
$110 - NZXT Whisper WHI - 001BK ATX Full Tower Case
$120 - Velocity Micro GX2-W Silver Classic Aluminum Case with Side Window
$140 - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001WT White Full Tower ATX Case
$140 - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001BK Black Full Tower ATX Case
$140 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$165 - Corsair Graphite Series 600T ATX Case
$160 - Silverstone RV02B-W ATX case
$220 - Corsair Obsidian Series 650D ATX Case
$220 - Cooler Master ATCS 840 RC-840-KKN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$230 - Silverstone FT02B ATX Case
$220 - Lian Li PC-A71F Black ATX Case
$290 - Corsair Obsidian Series 800D CC800DW Full Tower ATX Case
$330 - Silverstone Temjin SST-TJ07B Full Tower ATX Case
Cases (ATX w/PSU):
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top