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Please evaluate my mid-range build!

B

badpool

n00b
Joined
Jun 29, 2008
Messages
50
Hi,

I'd appreciate any wisdom from you experts. Here goes:

1) What will you be doing with this PC?
  • Gaming
  • Bluray ripping/transcoding

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Below $1500 incl. tax. Lower is better, but not at the expense of quality.

3) Which country do you live in?
Canada (Ontario)

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget?
  • CPU
  • Motherboard
  • Video Card
  • Memory
  • PSU
  • Storage
  • BD-ROM

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
  • Chassis: Antec P182
  • Mouse, keyboard, gamepad.
  • Will be using audio via HDMI from video card so I shouln't need a sound card. This works on my Fusion-based HTPC so I assume it will work with discrete AMD graphics boards.

6) Will you be overclocking?
The CPU, yes. I will go as high as possible with stock cooling. If I am not satisfied and believe I can go higher, I will purchase a 3rd party heatsink/fan at a later time.

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1920x1080, 50”. Running at lower res is not an option.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
During the next 3 weeks.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard?
  • USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.
  • CF and/or SLI support
  • Gigabit ethernet
  • Z68 for quicksync support (I know that current software that supports quicksync is not intended for blueray archiving, but I think it's on its way)
  • Either eSata or USB3. Both would be nice, but only one is required.
  • RAID not important
  • UEFI not important

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I will buy 64-bit W7 Pro.


Here's my current build, all from newegg.ca:

Comments/justifications:

  • After Kyle's review I'm really impressed by the MSI motherboard. I like how resilient it is, love the warranty, and the high overclock is icing on the cake.
  • The G.SKILL memory is the cheapest DDR3 1600 that was tested by MSI for this board.
  • Caviar black: great warranty, never had problems with this brand.
  • Asus BD-ROM: I don't really care which model, so long as it's all-black.
  • Gigabyte radeon 6950: Also don't really care, but this one has a 70MHz factory overclock according to newegg. Sounds like win to me. I could go Nvidia too, as long as noise/power is similar.

Future plans: I'll keep an eye out for 6950 prices as the next gen AMD GPUs come out. If they drop enough I'll probably pick one up and run CF. Same applies if I go Nvidia.

In case it wasn't clear from the list, I like to buy decent-to-good quality stuff. I hate HW problems, and I hate RMA'ing stuff. My last rig (C2Duo based) sustained a 75% overlock for 3 years without stability issues (on air), until I gave it away. I don't expect the same from the 2600K, but I still want a rock-solid, relatively high overclock. Thanks again for your opinions!
 
Looks pretty good. You could save a few dollars here and there with different choices, but nothing significant. Only thing I might change is to get a 2GB 6950 instead ofthe one you choose - you could step up for only about $20 and overclock it yourself (70 Mhz should be easy for any 6950). Also, I'd go ahead and get an aftermarket cooler now, rather than waiting - the CoolerMaster Hyper 212+ is a good, cheap choice.

XFX 6950 2GB $259.99
CoolerMaster Hyper 212+ EVO $36.99
 
Actually at that price, the CM 212+ isn't that good of a choice when this cooler provides better cooling at just a couple bucks more.

$29.99 - Sunbeam Twister 120 CW-TWI-120-SV
 
Agreed, get the cooler now, trust me when I say you are definitely going to want to get an aftermarket heatsink. With that being said, it's a hassle to put the stock one on now, remove it along with the thermal paste and then reapply it all for a new heatsink. Also buy some good thermal paste with the new heatsink.

Skillz said:
Actually at that price, the CM 212+ isn't that good of a choice when this cooler provides better cooling at just a couple bucks more.

$29.99 - Sunbeam Twister 120 CW-TWI-120-SV
Click to expand...

Where did you read this? I could be wrong but from what I've read the 212 plus comes second to none in the price range. I see that heatsink comes stock with two fans. Was that compared to the temps of the 212plus with its stock one fan or with a second fan added as well?
 
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2569

It does come with two fans and adding a second fan to the 212+ will lower it's temps as well, but it'll cost more money where as the Sunbeam already comes with 2 fans and, with shipping factored in it's only a couple bucks more.

Like I said, at nearly $40 for the 212+ it's not the best choice. If it was under $30 shipped, that would be a different story then.
 
Skillz said:
Actually at that price, the CM 212+ isn't that good of a choice when this cooler provides better cooling at just a couple bucks more.

$29.99 - Sunbeam Twister 120 CW-TWI-120-SV
Click to expand...

Xbit Labs was less impressed with it, but they didn't compare it directly to the 212+.

Factoring in shipping, I don't think I'd pay more for the Sunbeam, (I'm guessing performance is within a whisker of the 212+), but that's just my opinion. Certainly is cheap though - too bad it doesn't have free shipping.
 
Last edited:
Forceman said:
Xbit Labs was less impressed with it, but they didn't compare it directly to the 212+.
Click to expand...

The only issue I've seen with the cooler is the little rubber pieces that hold the 120mm fans onto the heatsink. Which IMHO, isn't that big of a deal. The 212+ is still a great cooler, not saying it's not but Frosty Tech's comparison claims that the dual fan Twister provides better thermal cooling than the single fan 212+ and since both coolers are within' a couple dollars of each other, IMHO, I think it's worth spending the couple dollars to get a few degrees cooler. That's just me though. Even though I have the 212+, but I got it for less than $30. :eek:
 
Skillz said:
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2569

It does come with two fans and adding a second fan to the 212+ will lower it's temps as well, but it'll cost more money where as the Sunbeam already comes with 2 fans and, with shipping factored in it's only a couple bucks more.

Like I said, at nearly $40 for the 212+ it's not the best choice. If it was under $30 shipped, that would be a different story then.
Click to expand...

I just saw that the OP is buying from canada. The hyper 212+ is expensive up there huh? On amazon.com in the US you can get the 212+ and an extra 120 mm fan for a little under $35 shipped. I guess it depends how much you want to spend but I've heard great reviews on the 212+, if the price isn't an issue its a great cooler.

And IMHO I don't trust frostytech's reviews, they have some reviews that don't agree at all with the majority of other reviews on heatsinks
 
I'm impressed at how cheap they've made good coolers now - a couple of years ago that kind of performance was $75 TRUE territory.
 
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