< £1000 AMD Build?

Ravioli · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:47

Hello all.
This is going to be my first Gaming build. I have no other need for it such as video editing rendering etc.
Although I've become quite familiar with what to buy and what each component comprises of and contributes to, I find myself wandering into an high-end AMD build, and questioning what I really need and what I actually should be spending my money on.

Basically I want the 6970 2GB Twin Frozr III (purely because it is a beast and is really sexy) And a MoBo which would allow me to upgrade to 2x that GPU if/when I eventually need to.

(Originally I was going for the Crosshair V, but it seems that -along with many many other things in this build- it's a bit of an overkill.

I was going to go for a FX4100 but the performance seems to be off. So as for now I'm looking at the Phenom II 1055T.

I also want to run my games from an SSD, ie OCZ agility 3 series Whereas the Data storing drive barely has to be larger than 500GB.

RAM if I'm not mistaken should only be 4GB(2x2), although I have been looking at 8GB (2x4)

The case was set as the Coolermaster HAF X purely because I am under the impression the GPU wont fit in anything less than a full tower.

As for the Cooling system, I am at a loss.
Overclocking will also be new to me, but I'm fairly certain its something I will be getting into especially later on in time.

The mid range AMD build shown here:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18060182
Is almost perfect. Would it be possible to upgrade to the aforementioned GPU, CPU and would the MoBo in that build support future Sli?

Most of you will probably be confused/disgusted by what I'm proposing here, I just wanted an opinion on what really is necessary, and whether or not the GPU is affordable in my budget.

Any kind of help would be Greatly appreciated, and I am completely open to any other AMD build suggestions.

ng93 · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:50

Any particular reason you want AMD? £1000 should be enough to get you a 2500K, which is much faster than anything AMD offer.

Loke · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:50

I know you say AMD, but are you absolutely dead set on that?

Intel is just better than AMD at this moment in time.

Ravioli · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:53

I'm going AMD purely because I've heard there are a lot of temp problems with nvidia cards (going Intel would change my GPU choice as I really dont the ins and outs of a Radeon GPU on an Intel set up) and that generally it seems to be more expensive.
But I think I can consider Intel, seeing as so many people here are using it.

ishoeyi · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:56

Ravioli said:
I'm going AMD purely because I've heard there are a lot of temp problems with nvidia cards (going Intel would change my GPU choice as I really dont the ins and outs of a Radeon GPU on an Intel set up) and that generally it seems to be more expensive.
But I think I can consider Intel, seeing as so many people here are using it.

you can have intel cpu and amd gpu it will not cos problems

Reaper 392 · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:56

Ravioli said:
I'm going AMD purely because I've heard there are a lot of temp problems with nvidia cards (going Intel would change my GPU choice as I really dont the ins and outs of a Radeon GPU on an Intel set up) and that generally it seems to be more expensive.
But I think I can consider Intel, seeing as so many people here are using it.

GPU and CPU choice have no effect on each other. you can have an AMD graphics card and an intel processor if you want.

i dont know whos been telling you all this about temperature problems with Nvidia cards, but unless you get the GTX 590 or the GTX 480 (which would be stupid) then you wont get any temperature problems

also, whoever told you a big graphics card wont fit in anything other than a full tower is talking nonsense. i have a rubbish coolermaster elite 342 case and, if i take the hard drive cage out, i can fit every single graphics card on the market bar one in there (the one being the ASUS mars II because its too wide for the side panel to fit on)

ng93 · 19 Dec 2011 at 20:59

The latest Nvidia cards (GTX5*0) are fine, it was the GTX480 which got hot, but even then not enough to cause trouble.

There is no problem running AMD GPUs and Intel CPUs together. I and many others on this forum are doing it just fine.

When are you buying? As the new AMD cards (Radeon HD7**0) are out in January, so are worth waiting for if you can.

Oh and you'll want 8GB (2x4GB) RAM.

RJC · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:01

Your basket
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI ATI Radeon HD 6970 2048MB Twin Frozr III GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **Supplied with Dirt 3 & Deus Ex PC Games** £269.99
(£224.99) £269.99
(£224.99)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £179.99
(£149.99) £179.99
(£149.99)
Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £99.98
(£83.32) £99.98
(£83.32)
Crucial RealSSD M4 64GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT064M4SSD2) £86.99
(£72.49) £86.99
(£72.49)
XFX Pro 850W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £79.98
(£66.65) £79.98
(£66.65)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £69.98
(£58.32) £69.98
(£58.32)
Cooler Master CM-690 II Lite Dominator Case - Black £63.98
(£53.32) £63.98
(£53.32)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £41.99
(£34.99) £41.99
(£34.99)
Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.99
(£21.66) £25.99
(£21.66)
OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£14.99) £17.99
(£14.99)
Sub Total : £780.72
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £13.75
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £158.89
Total : £953.36

Reaper 392 · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:08

this is the best i could do:

YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI ATI Radeon HD 6970 2048MB Twin Frozr III GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **Supplied with Dirt 3 & Deus Ex PC Games** £269.99
1 x Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - OEM £161.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT128M4SSD2) £154.99
1 x Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £99.98
1 x Antec TruePower New Modular 750W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £89.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £69.98
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £49.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £41.99
1 x Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £997.88 (includes shipping : £12.50).

does crossfire (and SLI) at x8/x8 speeds (ie, it wont bottleneck the cards)
big SSD for the OS, HDD caching, apps and games
modular PSU that is enough for a second card in crossfire

i wasnt sure between the zalman Z9 and coolermaster HAF912 for the case. they cost exactly the same though so pick whichever you prefer

Ravioli · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:14

ng93 said:
The latest Nvidia cards (GTX5*0) are fine, it was the GTX480 which got hot, but even then not enough to cause trouble.

There is no problem running AMD GPUs and Intel CPUs together. I and many others on this forum are doing it just fine.

When are you buying? As the new AMD cards (Radeon HD7**0) are out in January, so are worth waiting for if you can.

Oh and you'll want 8GB (2x4GB) RAM.

The only reason I haven't looked at crossing between the two -GPU and CPU wise- is because I was told that it's always better to stick with the same brand for both GPU and CPU.
Plus I really don't want to wait, have been without a pc for months and have suffered severe withdrawal issues.
Cheers on the RAM clear up.

Reaper392 & RJC

First off thanks a lot for all the feedback and alternative builds.
And I must say I've been convinced to go Intel.

@Reaper
Should the SSD only be used for the OS? Or would it be wise to store my most used apps and games on that too?

RJC · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:19

I use the SSD for my Windows install and a 500gb drive for my documents and 1TB drive for programs, I put the most used programs on my SSD.

You don't need to worry about Nvidia GPU with a Intel CPU and vice versa.

Reaper 392 · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:20

there is no benefit in sticking with the same brand for CPU and GPU. just go for the fastest of all of the brands
(well, if your going for a really low end llano build then there is an advantage, but you dont need to worry about that)

the SSD will reduce loading times on everything, so yes, put the OS, your most common programs and games on there, and leave ~20GB for HDD caching, which uses the SSD to speed up the HDD

just a quick note on the RAM. 4GB would be fine, but 8GB is so cheap that theres no reason not to go for it

Ravioli · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:23

This would mean however that I would need to self assemble, or am I mistaken?

RJC · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:26

The build myself and Reaper 392 have posted would require you to self build.

UberGinge · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:30

Just as a note, you don't need a HAF X to house that card. You can easily get that card in say an Elite 335.

olivier renault · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:55

Ravioli said:
The only reason I haven't looked at crossing between the two -GPU and CPU wise- is because I was told that it's always better to stick with the same brand for both GPU and CPU.
Plus I really don't want to wait, have been without a pc for months and have suffered severe withdrawal issues.

Na, that's BS. I'm running 2500K and crossfire 6950's. Previously was running a 1055T and a 560ti. And I'm definitely not alone

Definitely go 2500K and a decent £100 board. Then the GPU is up to you, the 6970's are good cards, 570's are good too and around the same price.

The 1055T base clock is low, you will need to overclock it to get anything decent out of it, especially in some games like Skyrim. The 2500K is good to go, and overclocks easily, runs cooler, uses less juice, and is just a better rounded chip.

Tibbz2 · 19 Dec 2011 at 21:57

Reaper 392 said:
this is the best i could do:

YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI ATI Radeon HD 6970 2048MB Twin Frozr III GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **Supplied with Dirt 3 & Deus Ex PC Games** £269.99
1 x Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - OEM £161.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT128M4SSD2) £154.99
1 x Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £99.98
1 x Antec TruePower New Modular 750W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £89.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £69.98
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £49.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £41.99
1 x Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £997.88 (includes shipping : £12.50).

does crossfire (and SLI) at x8/x8 speeds (ie, it wont bottleneck the cards)
big SSD for the OS, HDD caching, apps and games
modular PSU that is enough for a second card in crossfire

i wasnt sure between the zalman Z9 and coolermaster HAF912 for the case. they cost exactly the same though so pick whichever you prefer

I thought that GPU was 310mm?

Because the Zalaman only supports 290mm GPU's...

PapaLazaru · 19 Dec 2011 at 22:02

RJC said:
I use the SSD for my Windows install and a 500gb drive for my documents and 1TB drive for programs, I put the most used programs on my SSD.

You don't need to worry about Nvidia GPU with a Intel CPU and vice versa.

What he said. I use that same SSD for Win7, my most used apps and Battlefield 3 only.

ng93 · 19 Dec 2011 at 22:09

Put OS, apps and a couple of your most played games on the SSD. You'll want atleast 120GB for this. Everything else put on the HDD.

fowler002 · 20 Dec 2011 at 00:21

little over budget but

YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI ATI Radeon HD 6970 2048MB Twin Frozr III GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **Supplied with Dirt 3 & Deus Ex PC Games** £269.99
1 x Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - OEM £161.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT128M4SSD2) £154.99
1 x Silverstone Raven 3 RV03B-W Full Tower Windowed Case - Black/Gold £109.99
1 x Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £99.98
1 x XFX Pro 850W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £79.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £69.98
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £41.99
1 x Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.99
1 x Samsung SH-S222AB/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £18.98
Total : £1,050.37 (includes shipping : £13.75).

do you not have any old sata hard disks you can reuse, the current prices mean you have to either end up bit over budget or compromise elsewhere.

could drop the ssd to the 64gb one.