Another "spec me" thread

Soldato
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Sorry guys you're probably bored of these.

I've been out of the hardware loop for a while but looking to build a system to a budget of around £750, excluding OS and peripherals.

This is what's I've come up with so far - what do you think? Any opportunities for trimming the cost down a little?

A few questions I have:
1) Will the graphics card fit into the case?
2) Will the PSU be good enough for the system?

capturebv.jpg


Thanks for any responses/comments/suggestions :)

PS. Yes I do need the dual 1.5TB drives - they're going in RAID 1.
 
dont know about the case, the PSU would be fine I think, although I tend to overspec my PSUs a bit to allow future upgrades. But, as your board does not support CF, its fine.
 
Excellent - the system will definitely not be requiring dual graphics cards in the future so that is not an issue.

As long as the spec'd PSU can powe the spec'd system that's all I require.
 
Hi mate. Do you intend to play any games? I just ask as the 5750 is a bit of a in-between card. As in, its not fantasic for gaming, But is also to powerfull really for general use, internet, photo editing ext.
 
It will be used mainly for photoshop/graphics work, with the occasional light gaming.

Would you recommend a cheaper/more expensive card?
 
Hmm I see your point entirely - it's just I'm trying to cut down the cost of this system slightly rather than increase it.

Another couple of questions:
1) How is the stock CPU cooler for that CPU? Is it good enough or should I be looking at a 3rd party one?
2) Does the stock cooler come with thermal paste?

Thanks for your help everyone :)
 
I came up with two specs, the first is based on the i5 750 chip. It will perform just as well as the rig shown above, but cost less. Also, I included an aftermarket CPU cooler that should allow for some nice overclocking (aim for 3.5GHz at least). If you want to take the overclock even higher - switch the cooler for this one.

672i5.png



The second spec is even more expensive than your initial spec, but it uses an i7 CPU, X58 motherboard and 6GB of RAM. I also included an excellent CPU cooler that will allow you to overclock to 4GHz.

837i7.png


The graphics card I used is the 4850 - a great card for "light gaming" and performs as well as the 5750 - it just doesn't support DX11 (which IMHO is somewhat useless on a card at this level).

I also changed the hard disks to samsung F3s as the seagate 7200.11 drives had many problems. Other good drives to look at are the Seagate 7200.12 and WD Caviar Black.

The PSU I chose is slightly more expensive and powerful, but also good quality.
 
I came up with two specs, the first is based on the i5 750 chip. It will perform just as well as the rig shown above, but cost less. Also, I included an aftermarket CPU cooler that should allow for some nice overclocking (aim for 3.5GHz at least). If you want to take the overclock even higher - switch the cooler for this one.

672i5.png



The second spec is even more expensive than your initial spec, but it uses an i7 CPU, X58 motherboard and 6GB of RAM. I also included an excellent CPU cooler that will allow you to overclock to 4GHz.

837i7.png


The graphics card I used is the 4850 - a great card for "light gaming" and performs as well as the 5750 - it just doesn't support DX11 (which IMHO is somewhat useless on a card at this level).

I also changed the hard disks to samsung F3s as the seagate 7200.11 drives had many problems. Other good drives to look at are the Seagate 7200.12 and WD Caviar Black.

The PSU I chose is slightly more expensive and powerful, but also good quality.


On the I7 System I would buy a better PSU ( preferably a quality 750 watt to give better headway for overclocking and for future power hungry graphic cards ) and a better case. I don't see the point in buying an expensive system without being able to see the components.
 
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On the I7 System I would buy a better PSU ( preferably a quality 750 watt to give better headway for overclocking and for future power hungry graphic cards ) and a better case. I don't see the point in buying an expensive system without being able to see the components.

You could, but it would push the budget even further past £750.

As it stands, that PSU is more than adequate to power that system (even with the i7 overclocked). A more expensive PSU would only increase power efficiency and allow for the addition of a second graphics card. Considering a good 500W supply (like that OCZ one) can happily supply an overclocked i7 system with a 57870 graphics card, I imagine the PSU will be fine for the intended "light gaming".

As for a more expensive case. That is personal preference, not everyone want to see the components, most just want a box that houses their components and keeps them cool and quiet. The Antec 300 does these things very well and in my own opinion looks rather nice.
 
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As it stands, that PSU is more than adequate to power that system (even with the i7 overclocked). A more expensive PSU would only increase power efficiency and allow for the addition of another graphics card.

Yeah power efficency in the way it utilises the current draw of the components which leads to lower electricity bills, as well as increased life span of the PSU itself. Better components are what you you are paying for and which have better capacitors and silent running fans.
 
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I second the opinions here, get the HD 5770 GPU. And get a better PSU, I recommend the 550W Antec one, http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-111-AN&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1088.

400W is not enough for either GPU:
http://www.amd.com/us/products/desk...s/ati-radeon-hd-5750-system-requirements.aspx
450 Watt or greater power supply
http://www.amd.com/us/products/desk...s/ati-radeon-hd-5770-system-requirements.aspx
450 Watt or greater power supply

I have an i5 750 myself, marvelous processor. I don't remember it coming with thermal paste.
 
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Thank you all for your help, very helpful indeed.

I've come up with this revised system spec, what do you all think?

1) Gone with the Antec 550W modular PSU
2) Taken your advice and switched to a 1GB 5770 GPU
3) Gone for the OEM CPU with a seperate HSF (as recommended)
4) Dropped to 2x1TB drives instead of 2x1.5TB.
5) Cheaper motherboard that still seems to do everything I want.

captureyu.jpg


Is this better?

Thanks again guys!
 
very good.

as long as you don't ever want to add a second 5770 in the future for a crossfire setup, then its good to go
 
Just switched to the XFX version of the GPU - the HIS one only has one DVI port and I might be wanting dual screens in the future.

capturenj.jpg
 
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