Help Speccing a Machine

themistry

themistry

themistry

Associate
Joined
15 Jun 2006
Posts
575
Hi everyone,

this is a standard thread asking for help from someone who's been out of touch for a while! :) So, thanks to all for your advice.

I'm building a new machine that I will use specifically for software development. I do a lot of virtualisation, so need 8 to 16gb of memory, and plenty of cores if possible. Gaming is also on the agenda, but I do not need the best gfx card in the world - DX11 is important though.

I'm looking to get one of the Lian Li PC-V351 cases, so need everything to fit in there.

I don't need a monitor (but recommendations for a 24" would be nice), keyboard, mouse or speakers.

To spend, lets say 500-1000 quid. I'm more interested in a decent spec and recommendations for what I should get, budget could change.

I need to buy something in the next 2 to 3 weeks.

Thanks for all your help,
TM
 
Intel Core i7 930 2.80GHz (Bloomfield) (Socket LGA1366) - Retail £211.49
(£179.99) £211.49
(£179.99)
Asus Rampage III Gene Intel X58 (Socket 1366) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £196.99
(£167.65) £196.99
(£167.65)
Gainward GeForce GTX 460 GS 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £187.99
(£159.99) £187.99
(£159.99)
2x Patriot Viper 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 12800C8 (1600MHz) Low Latency Tri-Channel (PVT36G1600LLK) £129.24
(£109.99) £258.48
(£219.98)
Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black £88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650TXUK) £59.98
(£51.05) £59.98
(£51.05)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £45.99
(£39.14) £45.99
(£39.14)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
(£11.91) £13.99
(£11.91)
Sub Total : £905.45
Shipping cost based on delivery to Credit/debit card billing address, with:
FREE SHIPPING (DPD Next Day)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £158.45
Total : £1,063.90

24" screen suggestion

Or possibly i5 with 16GB RAM:

Gainward GeForce GTX 460 GS 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £187.99
(£159.99) £187.99
(£159.99)
2x G.Skill RipJaw 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit £176.24
(£149.99) £352.48
(£299.98)
Intel Core i5 760 2.80GHz (Lynnfield) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail £146.86
(£124.99) £146.86
(£124.99)
Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black £88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
Gigabyte GA-P55M-UD2 Intel P55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £87.98
(£74.88) £87.98
(£74.88)
Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650TXUK) £59.98
(£51.05) £59.98
(£51.05)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £45.99
(£39.14) £45.99
(£39.14)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
(£11.91) £13.99
(£11.91)
Sub Total : £837.68
Shipping cost based on delivery to Credit/debit card billing address, GU2 8AU with:
FREE SHIPPING (DPD Next Day)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £146.59
Total : £984.27
 
Last edited:
1st build = 8gb ram, ssd
2nd build = 16gb ram, no ssd
Gone for a modular psu for both builds due to the case. Maybe go for the this one to save dosh when it comes in stock
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-117-AN&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1088

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
OcUK Value GeForce GTX 460 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £173.89
(£147.99) £173.89
(£147.99)
AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £152.74
(£129.99) £152.74
(£129.99)
OCZ Vertex 2E 60GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive (OCZSSD2-2VTXE60G) £134.98
(£114.88) £134.98
(£114.88)
Corsair HX 650W ATX Modular SLI Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650HXUK) £99.99
(£85.10) £99.99
(£85.10)
Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black £88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
G.Skill RipJaw 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C7 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit £88.11
(£74.99) £176.22
(£149.98)
Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £84.99
(£72.33) £84.99
(£72.33)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £45.99
(£39.14) £45.99
(£39.14)
Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM3) £37.99
(£32.33) £37.99
(£32.33)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
(£11.91) £13.99
(£11.91)
Sub Total : £859.39
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £152.58
Total : £1,024.47

OR
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
G.Skill RipJaw 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit £176.24
(£149.99) £352.48
(£299.98)
OcUK Value GeForce GTX 460 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £173.89
(£147.99) £173.89
(£147.99)
AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £152.74
(£129.99) £152.74
(£129.99)
Corsair HX 650W ATX Modular SLI Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650HXUK) £99.99
(£85.10) £99.99
(£85.10)
Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black £88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £84.99
(£72.33) £84.99
(£72.33)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £45.99
(£39.14) £45.99
(£39.14)
Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM3) £37.99
(£32.33) £37.99
(£32.33)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
(£11.91) £13.99
(£11.91)
Sub Total : £894.51
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.75
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £158.60
Total : £1,064.86
 
Guys,

thanks so much for the replies.

Are AMD back in the game (performance/reliability)? The last time I bought a machine, Core 2 Duo was the king, and AMD were no where to be seen. Is this still the case?

Cheers
TM
 
AMD are good for the price, and if your on a budget, then they make sense.

however, if you have the money, the intels are generally better, it does depends what the system is used for of course.

personally i would go for an i7, they are pretty good with virtualisation, plus they can take more ram (upto 24gb)
 
Edited my initial gibberish out - thought it was a gaming machine that you where after!!!! doh

Virtualisation = i7 based with hyperthreading would be the way to go
 
Last edited:
The memory kits I suggested are decent value for money and make sure you buy a micro ATX motherboard (such as the one in my first post) if you want that Lian Li case.
 
AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £152.74
(£129.99) £152.74
(£129.99)
HIS IceQ 5 Turbo ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (Includes Dirt 2 Full Game) HIS IceQ 5 Turbo ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (Includes Dirt 2 Full Game) £146.86
(£124.99) £146.86
(£124.99)
Corsair Force 60GB F60 2.5" SATA-ll Solid State Drive (CSSD-F60GB2-BRKT) Corsair Force 60GB F60 2.5" SATA-ll Solid State Drive (CSSD-F60GB2-BRKT) £140.99
(£119.99) £140.99
(£119.99)
OCZ Reaper Low-Latency 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 12800C6 (1600MHz) Dual-Channel (OCZ3RPR1600C6LV4GK) OCZ Reaper Low-Latency 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 12800C6 (1600MHz) Dual-Channel (OCZ3RPR1600C6LV4GK) £94.99
(£80.84) £189.98
(£161.68)
Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black Lian Li PC-V351B Aluminium Cube Case - Black £88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) DDR3 microATX Motherboard Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £84.99
(£72.33) £84.99
(£72.33)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 EcoGreen 2TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD203WI) Samsung SpinPoint F3 EcoGreen 2TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD203WI) £84.59
(£71.99) £84.59
(£71.99)
Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650TXUK) Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-650TXUK) £59.98
(£51.05) £59.98
(£51.05)
Akasa AK-CC017 Freedom Tower CPU Cooler (Socket AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366) Akasa AK-CC017 Freedom Tower CPU Cooler (Socket AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366) £28.99
(£24.67) £28.99
(£24.67)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
(£11.91) £13.99
(£11.91)
Sub Total : £844.34
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £149.95
Total : £1,006.79
 
^^
spec above


might want to change a few things to knock the price down a bit maybe a cheaper ssd or ripjaw ram if your on a very tight budget, 5770 surports dx11 and sould be fine as long as you dont play any very graphic intensive games, 8gb ram remove ssd if you want 16gb and add 2 more sticks of the ocz reaper, micro-atx board will fit in case but might be worth checking if the cooler fits in as well (check sizes)
 
thanks Freddie, appreciate your help.

I'm not too worried about the fastest ram, so long as it's reliable - as i don't think the expense would be something I would notice from a performance perspective, and I won't be overclocking.

Cheers
TM
 
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