Deciding on a new system.

Ozir

Ozir

Ozir

Associate
Joined
12 Jul 2012
Posts
22
Hi,

At around the end of this month to the beginning of the next, I am looking to purchase a new PC for gaming.

My primary intent and ambition with this system is to be able to play Guild Wars 2 and Tera on max settings without any slowdown; However, I am also looking to use this system to be able to play any new games on max as and when they're released in the similar fashion of 60+ fps without any slowdown.

Now my reason behind making this thread; I spend a lot of time on computers but I would consider myself a novice in the knowledge of the parts that go together to build the best one for me.

At this time I have narrowed my decision down to two pre-builds on overclockers.co.uk:

"Ultima 9200i Arctic" Intel Core i7 3770K 3.40GHz @ 4.30GHz DDR3 Quad Core System:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-262-OE&groupid=43&catid=2040&subcat=

"Ultima 9550i Tyrannosaur MKIII" Intel Core i7 3770K 3.50GHz @ 4.50GHz DDR3 Quad Core Ivybridge Nvidia GTX 680 System:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-244-OE&groupid=43&catid=2040&subcat=

I am mainly looking for clarification from someone who knows more than I do about what the difference in these two are. I am looking to SLI with a second 680 on whichever build I decide on.

From what I can see, the Tyrannosaur has the higher cpu clock speed of the two, at 4.50GHz and the better power supply at 850. The Arctic is at a slightly lower cpu clock speed, but has SSDs in the default price. Would anyone be able to confirm that this is the only difference between the two systems and that the SSDs are why the default price of the Arctic is higher?
From what I can see, the CPU, graphics cards and RAM are the same?

Would both of these PCs be sufficient to play Guild Wars 2 and Tera as I want?

Many thanks for any help.
 
Thanks for the response mickyflinn.

I have been doing some more research into cpu's after what you mentioned in your post.

Let's say that for example I wanted an i7 to make use of the hyperthreading for things other than gaming- would there be any disadvantage over the i5 when I am gaming? Is it possible that the i7 can perform worse than the i5 (assuming identical clock speeds etc.)?
 
So, an i5 3570k is effectively an i7 3770k without the hyperthreading? Is the diffeence really as literal as that?

I am still considering the i7 system due to the higher clock speed on the machine I was looking at (which I assume will be some advantage), but probably mainly because of a "just because I can" attitude.

I was also looking at this:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-256-OE&groupid=43&catid=2040&subcat=
Which when SLI'd with a second 670 comes to around the same total as the 680 systems. I am aware that the 670 and 680 are very close in terms of performance, but assuming that price is not a factor in this decision, would a 4.8GHz 2x670 or a 4.5GHz 2x680 system perform better for gaming?

Any input is welcome.
 
Thanks for all the help.

I had since all but decided on the:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-244-OE&groupid=43&catid=2040&subcat=

But since, I was browsing the forums and noticed someone recommend this system to someone else:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-249-OE&groupid=43&catid=2040&subcat=

With the second system I've linked, I can replace the default card with a 690 and come up with a system ~£200 cheaper than the 680 SLI one.

The money isn't remotely the defining factor between deciding between these systems for me, and my research has lead me to believe that a single 690 is slightly inferior performance wise to having two 680s.

Aside from the graphical inferiority, is there anything else I am missing that would be a major performance difference between these two systems? And if possible, would anyone with better knowledge of graphics cards be able to recommend either system? With the 690 being the newer card have performance and compaitibility issues been ironed out by now?

Many thanks.

Edit: Would the 750W psu on the second system be at all an issue with a 690, do I need something more to be safe?
 
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Will the 750W psu be sufficient for the specs inside the Laser system with a 690?

I was leaning towards the 690 as not to run into problems with games not supporting SLI, but I'm also now aware that the 690 runs in SLI in itself.
With that in mind I'm really not sure what to go for. I guess the Tyrannosaur with 2x 680s will perform better, if only very marginally?
 
Many thanks for your help NathWraith.

I feel as if I've gotten more and more persnickety as this thread has gone on, but I was wondering about something else:

Say I have to disable SLI for a certain game, am I correct in thinking that the 680 sli will be reduced to the power of a single 680, and the 690 would be limited to only one of its dual-gpu?

If this is the case, does either set up perform better/worse under these circumstances?

I understand that the majority of games that would require SLI do support it, but I'm probably more curious than anything.
 
I guess noise and power is just personal preference, but how important should space be to me in a build?

Are you just referring to the fact that with only a single 690 there is room to add a second in the future, or are there other underlying factors?

Are both default cases with the Tyrannosaur and the Laser systems sufficient for two card set ups? And if not would you be able to suggest a more suitable case selection available in either build?

Also in regards to the noise, how significant is it between the 2x 680 and 690 set ups? My PC tower is effectively beside my monitor on my desk, would either be a nuisance?

Thanks again.
 
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Great NathWraith, thanks again.

I am just trying to make up the price difference in the two systems for my own understanding:

The Tyrannosaur with the 680 SLI comes to £2198.95
The Laser with 2x 680s would come to £2018.93

The case on the Tyrannosaur is £8.37 more.
The PSU is £57.01 more expensive.
And when adding SLI on the Tyrannosaur, I have to pay an additional £24.99 on the same 680 listed in the Laser build, is this a charge that comes with SLI?

If so, that still only bumps the price of the Laser to £2109.30, so where is the other ~£89 coming from?


Also, what is the difference in cards from different manufacturers? I've noticed that there is sometimes a big price difference in the same card from a different manufacturer; are these price differences due to better performance? And is it something worth looking in to?
 
Okay cool, thanks.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-182-EA

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-030-KF

Are the two cards that I think I would be considering. Am I correct in thinking that the KFA2 here is the same one included in the Tyrannosaur build, and as such I could swap for the EVGA SLI at an identical price? Sorry for my ignorance.

If so could anyone adivse either way? Google searches show the mostly people complimenting EVGA when it comes to graphics card manufacturers, but would the performance of the two be identical or is there something I'm missing?

Many thanks again.
 
Just wanted to say thanks again to everyone in this thread for the help.

I placed my order today, I decided to go for the 680 SLI Tyrannosaur, which is due to arrive on Friday.
 
I noticed that on the card I chose:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-030-KF
Only has HDMI ports.

Whilst I am fine with this, I am wondering for confirmation as to whether these ports require me to have a hdmi to hdmi mini cable to connect to the card.

The pictures of the card and annotations list it as minihdmi ports, but the specs state just standard. What type of cable will I need?

EDIT:
I have been reading reviews and such on the card and it is noted that the card does come packaged with hdmi to mini hdmi adapters and hdmi to dvi adapters.

When I ordered my last PC from Overclockers I believed I was sent everything that came packaged with my card choice/motherboard etc, but could anyone from Overclockers be able to confirm if I will receive these cables? I am asking because if not, then I want to acquire one from elsewhere before my machine arrives.
 
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