Beginner looking for advice on ~£550 system

[FisherPrice92]

I’m brand new to the world of custom pc building but I’m planning on building my first system this summer. I’ve been looking around for a while and have come up with a provisional list of components I want to use:

This being my first build I’ve got a few questions. First of all what kind of power supply will I need? and can someone suggest a reasonably priced one. Secondly is the processor I’ve chosen ok or would I be better going with one of the similarly priced athelon 4 core range or stretching to a phenom II 4 core?

I will be using the computer mainly for gaming, media editing and watching movies and stuff. All suggestions welcome x

 

[Faztastic]

i personaly think you should invest in blu ray if your into movies, then this comes down to the fact of the monitor you are using with its resolutions.
600 watt power supply would be fine.

also just incase dont forget operating system

Regarding cpu, your motherboard you can still upgrade your cpu at a later date so it doesnt really matter, that cpu will be fine for now. Or you could delay your build by 1 more month and save up for an extra month and buy an x4 system with a blu ray.

 

[Ordokai]

Note that the case comes with only 1 fan included. You should make sure to have at least an exhaust as well.


- Ordokai

 

[tankskun]

Secondly is the processor I’ve chosen ok or would I be better going with one of the similarly priced athelon 4 core range or stretching to a phenom II 4 core?

I will be using the computer mainly for gaming, media editing and watching movies and stuff. All suggestions welcome x

what kind of games you playing? not a lot utilise all four cores yet, so should be ok with dual core. But games like bfbc2 run much better on a quad, media editing will also be a lot quicker. Only read good things about the Phenom II 4 core. I would.

 

[Ordokai]

[snip] not a lot [of games] utilise all four cores yet [snip]

True enough, but some of the more CPU dependant ones, such as console ports, do benefit greatly. And dare I say the PC gaming market gets more saturated with those every year.

Stretch for a 955 BE, well worth it. Althlons, on the other hand, run hot and are slower in comparison, its a no-brainer.


- Ordokai

 

[FisherPrice92]

Thanks for all the advice I think I will save extra hard and go for the 955 black edition. I do intend to buy a BD drive in the future but that can wait till I get a decent monitor. Something I didn’t mention before, I decided to do this now as I’m about to go to uni to read engineering, I will be using some fairly graphics heavy CAD software. I think I’ll go the extra mile with this system so it will see me through the whole 5 years. X
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edit: Is a 600w power supply the ony wattage that would be suitable or would 50w either way be ok?

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I would have a look at the Phenom II X6 1055T as this should be good for software which can use multiple cores well. The Phenom II X4 is probably the better choice for gaming ATM though. If you are looking for reliability one of the Seasonic units (or those made by Seasonic) are worth a look at IMHO.