First build - but with potential to expand?

barneystuta · 19 Sep 2011 at 09:56

I've read a few great topics here, and everyone seems really helpful, so I thought I'd ask myself.

I am looking at my first build. My laptop packed in, and I am currently using a netbook, which is great for browsing, but limited in everything else really.

What do I want to do with it?

- Play HD content videos (eventually blu-rays, more on that later).
- Gaming - not a huge PC gamer (I have an Xbox 360), but the option to play some if I want to would be good.

What I have already?

Mainly bought second hand, I currently have the following:

Coolermaster HAF 932

A DVD RW
ASUS Radeon HD 5770 Cucore
Windows 7 OS
Wireless Keyboard/Mouse

What do I need?

I don't mind paying most of my budget on the processor/motherboard. I understand these are the most expensive components (until I look at a GPU upgrade).

Then of course I'll need a PSU, 4GB ram, and a 500gb hard drive.

I also need a monitor with DVI input. This can be basic cheap and cheerful, not to concerned on size either, as I will be hooking up my system to my HDTV at times too.

Some very basic budget speakers would be a bonus.

Budget?

The bits I have so far cost me £70. So ideally want to get the rest for £430. I don't want to skip on the motherboard/processor, the rest I can look at more budget options for now. I don't want to overclock to start with, but want the option to do so in the future (so stock CPU cooler is fine for now).

I will eventually be getting a Blu-Ray optical drive, and some form of HD recording TV card/Hauppauge HD PVR to add to the system, so want it to be "ready" for those additions (will likely be in the new year).

I appreciate your help.

skid34 · 19 Sep 2011 at 10:18

Your basket
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail with FREE TrackMania 2 Canyon PC Game £173.99
(£144.99) £173.99
(£144.99)
OcUK V-Line 221V2SB 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £94.99
(£79.16) £94.99
(£79.16)
Asus P8P67 LE Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard ** B3 REVISION ** £72.59
(£60.49) £72.59
(£60.49)
Lepa W-Series 500W '80 Plus' Power Supply £46.99
(£39.16) £46.99
(£39.16)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £29.99
(£24.99) £29.99
(£24.99)
Corsair Value 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low Voltage Dual-Channel Kit £23.98
(£19.98) £23.98
(£19.98)
Sub Total : £368.77
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £10.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £75.85
Total : £455.12

barneystuta · 19 Sep 2011 at 11:22

That looks just about right. After researching and reading up, the i5 is the way to go, right? Especially if I want it to last me a solid few years.

I made up a pretty similar spec, so my instinct was right.

I should be ordering on the weekend, so thanks for your help

mp260767 · 19 Sep 2011 at 11:33

yeah new sandybridge are the best processors at the moment, if your not in a rush could wait to see what the new amd chips are like when released (no confirmed date yet tho).

skid34 · 19 Sep 2011 at 12:08

barneystuta said:
That looks just about right. After researching and reading up, the i5 is the way to go, right? Especially if I want it to last me a solid few years.

I made up a pretty similar spec, so my instinct was right.

I should be ordering on the weekend, so thanks for your help

cool, enjoy your new build, post some piccies up when you done!

mickyflinn · 19 Sep 2011 at 12:15

Personally i would get a better gpu such as 6850 or 6870 and maybe a 600w psu if you want to go crossfire.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-041-HS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1866

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-252-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1866

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-004-LA

barneystuta · 20 Sep 2011 at 09:25

Thanks for the feedback.

A new GPU will be on the list, this is just to get me up and running. And with the GPU being one of the most expensive components, this second hand one will have to do for now.

A really n00b question here. Does everything come with all the cables I need? My case takes a base mounted PSU, is it worth buying an extension for it, or will the one with that PSU be long enough?

barneystuta · 20 Sep 2011 at 15:22

Sorry for the double post, just a quick question/opinion on motherboards. I am thinking of going down the Z68 route, but don't really want to be paying £150+ on a mobo.

Which of these three would be best do you think?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-483-AS - Asus P8Z68-V LX

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-368-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1990 - Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-052-AK&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1990 - Asrock Z68 PRO3 Intel Z68

mp260767 · 20 Sep 2011 at 15:31

asrock pro 3 , then Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3.

but either will be fine if you prefer gigabyte over asrock.

Reaper 392 · 20 Sep 2011 at 15:33

the gigabyte one is far superior to the other two as it supports using two graphics cards in crossfire or SLI at speeds which wont bottleneck the cards (x8/x8)

if i was to recommend the whole lot your after i'd go for something like this:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £99.98
1 x Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £94.99
1 x OcUK V-Line 221V2SB 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £94.99
1 x Lepa W-Series 500W '80 Plus' Power Supply £46.99
1 x Creative A320 2.1 Speakers (51MF0405AA003) £32.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £29.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Blu 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9AD3B1K2/4G) £23.99
Total : £436.52 (includes shipping : £10.50).

i really cant recommend a PSU until you decide what your likely to be doing graphics card wise. what i have chosen will cope with any single graphics card, but if your planning on going crossfire or SLI you will need something much bigger.
a good 650W would cope with any two ATI cards, and any two Nvidia cards up to the 560Ti in the 500 series, and the 460 in the 400 series. a 750W would be needed for two 470s or 570s and an 850W+ would be needed for two 480's or 580s

stulid · 20 Sep 2011 at 15:36

Must agree, Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3 > Asrock Pro3

barneystuta · 20 Sep 2011 at 16:48

The only thing that put me off the Gigabyte one, is there is only a HDMI out (no VGA or DVI). But I guess that wont be a problem (as my GPU has both via a connector).

I will eventually upgrade the GPU in the future, and as that has the option for crossfire in the future, that is something I would want to look at maybe.

Thanks again for the answers.