First PC Build. Help and Advice Appreciated.

IdiotCoder

IdiotCoder

IdiotCoder

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Joined
5 May 2011
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101
Hey guys, as you can probably tell I'm new here.
I've joined the forums to get a little more information and help before I dive into my first PC build in about a months time (I know in a months time, prices could have changed and new things released, but I want to prepare well and make sure I end up buying the right things!).

So anyway. My budget is £600 (excluding graphics card, dad is buying me a 570).

My plan was to go with the following:

-Cooler Master cm 690 ii lite (love the look of this case) [HAF 912 Plus also catches my eye]
-Corsair HX650W (thought modular would be easier for first build, plus tidier)
-Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB
-i5-2500K
-8GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHZ DDR3
-P67 MoBo ~ £100-110
-CPU Cooler (£50 MAX... <40 preferably)

I might add that I don't plan on doing any OC, atleast not until I learn how to =P.

So, what does everyone think?
Any guidance on choosing parts would be appreciated!

P.S. Although my dad said he is going to buy me the 570, I'd feel bad about him spending too much, I seen http://overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-079-GI&tool=3 and looked up some benchmarks and was really impressed! Would this be a better pick than a 570 or should I stick with a 570?

Thanks in advance!
 
Whats the main use of the PC? If it's gaming, you will only need 4GB really.

I'd go with something like this:


intel core i5-2500k 3.30ghz (sandybridge) socket lga1155 processor with free operation flashpoint red river game £169.99

msi p67a-gd65 intel p67 (socket 1155) ddr3 motherboard - (sandybridge) ** b3 revision ** £139.98

coolermaster silent pro modular 600w power supply £69.98

coolermaster cm-690 ii lite dominator case - black £59.99

seagate barracuda 7200.12 1tb sata-ii 32mb cache - oem (st31000528as) £42.98

kingston hyperx genesis grey 4gb (2x2gb) ddr3 pc3-12800c9 1600mhz dual channel kit (khx1600c9d3x2k2/4gx) £37.19

corsair a50 high-performance cpu cooler (socket am2/am3/lga775/lga1155/lga1156/lga1366) £24.98

sony optiarc ad-5260s 24x dvd±rw sata rewriter (black) - oem £15.98

total : £576.08 (includes shipping : £12.50).




similar to what you specced with a few changes.

obviously you still have a bit of budget left and if you really wanted 8gb the cost would push up to £610.88 with this:

kingston hyperx genesis grey 8gb (2x4gb) ddr3 pc3-12800c9 1600mhz dual channel kit (khx1600c9d3x2k2/8gx) £71.99

cheaper psu (still modular), enough to power this spec with a 570 (or 460 soc) but probably not enough for sli (if you ever wanted to, but i'd probably cross that bridge when you get to it lol).

top quality motherboard, haven't heard any problems about it (unlike the asus boards), will allow you to sli in future.

cosair a50 is a bargain at £25 and should get you to 4.5ghz no problem.

with regards to 570 vs 480 soc, these benchmarks show that the 480 soc out performs the 570 in every test, except in 3d mark vantage (previous page). but with the 480 comes a lot more power consumption and a lot more heat produced.

overclocking on sandybridge is really easy (just changing the multiplier value in the bios) but there are some good overclocking walkthroughs out there and if you still have problems there will be people in the overclocking and cooling section who will gladly help you out:)

beginners guide to overclocking sticky

or more specifically

P67 Sandy Bridge Overclocking Guide for Beginners
 
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Thanks for the reply!

What do you think about the Corsair A50 vs the Coolermaster Hyper 212+ ?
I've heard good things about the 212+ and it's even cheaper than the A50!

Also, I did a PSU calculator thing, and it came out with minimum wattage of around 610W (with gtx 480)! Made me slightly worried. Another point with the PSU, are the Coolermaster modular PSUs pretty decent compared to the Corsairs?

I like the idea of paying a bit extra on the MoBo to give possibilities of future SLI, something I'd definitely be interested in (more in the far future), but nonetheless will save money whenever it comes that i want to upgrade my graphics.

Thanks again!

:)
 
I've got the GTX 480 SOC and it blows away every game I have, no matter how high the settings. However as said above it gets very warm! Because of this I bought the Zalman V3000F for it not realising the SOC model isn't a reference design and so it doesn't fit. Dont make the same mistake I did!
 
check out hardware secrets review of the glacialtech Siberia CPU cooler review. its their latest review and so has a lot of other cooler comparisons in a table and graph (would link to it I'm on my phone and its taking looong lol)

I'm not sure about the psu wattage then, your better off waiting for stulid or rjc or anyone else who has a bit more knowledge :p lol but you have a little bit of your budget left in the build I specced so could up to the 800w version.
 
Boycey0211 said:
I've got the GTX 480 SOC and it blows away every game I have, no matter how high the settings. However as said above it gets very warm! Because of this I bought the Zalman V3000F for it not realising the SOC model isn't a reference design and so it doesn't fit. Dont make the same mistake I did!
Click to expand...

The SOC model already has a better cooler on it compared to the stock ones, I bought a stock 480 and bought the Zalman VF3000-F and have not looked back since.

sk82jack said:
but you have a little bit of your budget left in the build I specced so could up to the 800w version.
Click to expand...

+1 to this if not more! Your PSU is one of the most important aspects of your build and since you are thinking about SLI at some point then get a really decent PSU now since that will save you from replacing it later.

Stoner81.
 
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I would change a few things to get better performance/compatibility:)

Untitled-94.jpg


The XFX PSU has more power, made by Seasonic, has four PCI-E connectors for two GPU's if you want two graphic cards, and more importantly is in stock.

Review here - http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/899

The Samsung F3 is the fastest 1TB drive available.

The HAF912 case offers better cooling, the name stands for "HIGH AIR FLOW" and is quiet along with it,

http://www.coolermaster.co.uk/product.php?category_id=3588&product_id=6643
 
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stulid said:
The HAF912 case offers better cooling, the name stands for "HIGH AIR FLOW" and is quiet along with it,
Click to expand...

I think the HAF has overtook the 690 in my preference now. Never checked what the HAF stood for.

The Gelid Tranquillo sounds like a nice idea, i read it's a lot quieter than the A50 but performs about as well.

So, would the 650W be plenty of power for me then? That XFX PSU looks pretty damn good. The design of it seems to fit with the HAF.
 
IdiotCoder said:
I think the HAF has overtook the 690 in my preference now. Never checked what the HAF stood for.

The Gelid Tranquillo sounds like a nice idea, i read it's a lot quieter than the A50 but performs about as well.

So, would the 650W be plenty of power for me then? That XFX PSU looks pretty damn good. The design of it seems to fit with the HAF.
Click to expand...

The PSU is indeed a champ, it now depends what sort of GPU'S you are thinking off?

Its good enough for any single gpu, or any multi gpu setup, upto SLi 560ti/ crossfire 6950/70

SLI GTX480 needs a 900w+ PSU

SLI GTX570 is needing a 750w+ PSU

SLI GTX580 is around the 850w mark.
 
stulid said:
The PSU is indeed a champ, it now depends what sort of GPU'S you are thinking off?
Click to expand...

Well I'm not planning on going SLI anytime in the near future. The set-up as it stands would be plenty for my gaming needs for now.

However, anything which would save me money in the future rather than having to rebuy when/if i upgrade would be nice. The MoBo is a good example of this.
 
the HAF is nice, you can remove the HD compartment for extra long cards, and you have still a mini drive bay available at the bottom. Plus, it's a nice all-round case, with dust filters and all that jive. Not as stylish as others though.
 
Ok so, I know I said I'd like to go modular to help keep it simpler for me.

How much of a challenge will it be without a modular PSU to try and keep everything nice and tidy? Is it worth the extra money to go modular or is that money best spent elsewhere? (I know this could be personal opinion).

I was just looking at the Corsair GS series. They seem pretty nice. and the 800w is only £89. Is there any better non-modular PSUs for the same or lower price?

Once again, thanks to everyone replying! I really appreciate it!

:)
 
sk82jack said:
Whats the main use of the PC? If it's gaming, you will only need 4GB really.

I'd go with something like this:


intel core i5-2500k 3.30ghz (sandybridge) socket lga1155 processor with free operation flashpoint red river game £169.99

msi p67a-gd65 intel p67 (socket 1155) ddr3 motherboard - (sandybridge) ** b3 revision ** £139.98

coolermaster silent pro modular 600w power supply £69.98

coolermaster cm-690 ii lite dominator case - black £59.99

seagate barracuda 7200.12 1tb sata-ii 32mb cache - oem (st31000528as) £42.98

kingston hyperx genesis grey 4gb (2x2gb) ddr3 pc3-12800c9 1600mhz dual channel kit (khx1600c9d3x2k2/4gx) £37.19

corsair a50 high-performance cpu cooler (socket am2/am3/lga775/lga1155/lga1156/lga1366) £24.98

sony optiarc ad-5260s 24x dvd±rw sata rewriter (black) - oem £15.98

total : £576.08 (includes shipping : £12.50).




similar to what you specced with a few changes.

obviously you still have a bit of budget left and if you really wanted 8gb the cost would push up to £610.88 with this:

kingston hyperx genesis grey 8gb (2x4gb) ddr3 pc3-12800c9 1600mhz dual channel kit (khx1600c9d3x2k2/8gx) £71.99

cheaper psu (still modular), enough to power this spec with a 570 (or 460 soc) but probably not enough for sli (if you ever wanted to, but i'd probably cross that bridge when you get to it lol).

top quality motherboard, haven't heard any problems about it (unlike the asus boards), will allow you to sli in future.

cosair a50 is a bargain at £25 and should get you to 4.5ghz no problem.

with regards to 570 vs 480 soc, these benchmarks show that the 480 soc out performs the 570 in every test, except in 3d mark vantage (previous page). but with the 480 comes a lot more power consumption and a lot more heat produced.

overclocking on sandybridge is really easy (just changing the multiplier value in the bios) but there are some good overclocking walkthroughs out there and if you still have problems there will be people in the overclocking and cooling section who will gladly help you out:)

beginners guide to overclocking sticky

or more specifically

P67 Sandy Bridge Overclocking Guide for Beginners
Click to expand...
Sick
 
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