Help with Gaming PC Spec

dilatory · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:00

So I'm moving from a 24" iMac to building a PC. I'm out of date with hardware and specs really.

Games I will mainly be playing include Dota2, SC2, Skyrim, Dues Ex, potentially BF3 with a view to playing Borderlands 2 next year also.

I've also read that ATI are no longer the go-to for GPUs, so I've looked at perhaps a 560ti and an SLI ready mobo for adding a second in the future...

I'm a bit lost really, if anyone fancies speccing me a gaming PC my budget is approx £1000, I've got keyboard, mouse, headset and speakers etc, but need monitor and OS.

I'm not a benchmark junkie, and can cope without playing everything at ultra.

iBSOD · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:07

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 OC Twin FrozR III Power Edition 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 OC Twin FrozR III Power Edition 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £215.99
(£179.99) £215.99
(£179.99)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £169.99
(£141.66) £169.99
(£141.66)
Iiyama Prolite X2377HDS 23" Premium IPS Panel Widescreen LED Monitor - Black Iiyama Prolite X2377HDS 23" Premium IPS Panel Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £161.99
(£134.99) £161.99
(£134.99)
Asus P8Z68-V Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £114.98
(£95.82) £114.98
(£95.82)
Corsair Carbide 500R Midi Tower Case - Black/White Corsair Carbide 500R Midi Tower Case - Black/White £93.98
(£78.32) £93.98
(£78.32)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.99
(£66.66) £79.99
(£66.66)
XFX Pro 650W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply XFX Pro 650W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £74.99
(£62.49) £74.99
(£62.49)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £68.99
(£57.49) £68.99
(£57.49)
Antec Kúhler H2O 620 CPU Watercooler (Socket Intel LGA 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AMD AM2 / AM3 / AM2+ / AM3+) Antec Kúhler H2O 620 CPU Watercooler (Socket Intel LGA 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AMD AM2 / AM3 / AM2+ / AM3+) £44.99
(£37.49) £44.99
(£37.49)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £39.95
(£33.29) £39.95
(£33.29)
LiteOn IHAS124-19 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM (Version B - with new Firmware) LiteOn IHAS124-19 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM (Version B - with new Firmware) £15.98
(£13.32) £15.98
(£13.32)
Sub Total : £901.52
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £14.75
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £183.25
Total : £1,099.52

Pohly · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:11

iBSOD said:
Could probably get away with a cheaper PSU

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI GeForce GTX 580 OC Twin FrozR II 1536MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card MSI GeForce GTX 580 OC Twin FrozR II 1536MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £374.99
(£312.49) £374.99
(£312.49)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £169.99
(£141.66) £169.99
(£141.66)
MSI Z68A-G45-G3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard MSI Z68A-G45-G3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £114.98
(£95.82) £114.98
(£95.82)
Corsair Carbide 500R Midi Tower Case - Black/White Corsair Carbide 500R Midi Tower Case - Black/White £93.98
(£78.32) £93.98
(£78.32)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.99
(£66.66) £79.99
(£66.66)
Antec High Current Gamer 750W Quad Rail '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply Antec High Current Gamer 750W Quad Rail '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £76.98
(£64.15) £76.98
(£64.15)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £68.99
(£57.49) £68.99
(£57.49)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £39.95
(£33.29) £39.95
(£33.29)
Sub Total : £849.88
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 20.00% VAT : £172.48
Total : £1,034.86

you forgot the monitor and os

Surveyor · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:13

Pohly said:
you forgot the monitor and os

No, he included an OS and forgot the monitor

dilatory · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:15

Wow thanks for fast reply! Would you advise dropping gpu a bit to squeeze monitor in there?

Pohly · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:19

OcUK GeForce GTX 560Ti 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£195.95
(£163.29)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail
£169.99
(£141.66)
MSI Z68A-G45-G3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard
114.98
(£95.82)
Dell ST2220M 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black
£99.95
(£83.29)
XFX Pro 850W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply
£89.98
(£74.98)
Corsair Carbide 400R Midi Tower Case - Black
£79.99
(£66.66)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050)
£79.99
(£66.66)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002)
£68.99
(£57.49)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX)
£39.95
(£33.29)
LiteOn IHAS124-19 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM (Version B - with new Firmware)
£15.98
(£13.32)
Sub Total : £796.46

Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout)

Shipping : £19.10

VAT is being charged at 20.00%

VAT : £163.11

Total : £978.67

forgot cpu cooler if you are going to oc

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-001-CS&groupid=701&catid=57&subcat=1395

good cpu and gpu powerful psu for crossfire etc

Pohly · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:19

Surveyor said:
No, he included an OS and forgot the monitor

oh yeh

iBSOD · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:21

I edited my post like 5 times

Surveyor · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:25

iBSOD said:
I edited my post like 5 times

I noticed

dilatory · 4 Dec 2011 at 11:29

That's ace, thanks for your help guys, and prompt replies!

dilatory · 4 Dec 2011 at 15:09

So based on information, going to try

MSI GeForce GTX 560Ti OC Twin FrozR II 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £189.99 1 £189.99
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £141.66 1 £141.66
Asus VH242H 24" Widescreen LCD Multimedia Monitor - Black £114.99 1 £114.99
Asus P8Z68-V Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £95.82 1 £95.82
XFX Pro 850W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £74.98 1 £74.98
Corsair Carbide 400R Midi Tower Case - Black £66.66 1 £66.66
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £66.66 1 £66.66
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £57.49 1 £57.49
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £33.29 1 £33.29
Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £19.16 1 £19.16
LiteOn IHAS124-19 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM (Version B - with new Firmware) £13.32 1 £13.32

Does everything look okay here? I figured I'd OC the CPU as soon as I get it, and look to getting a second 560ti in the future...

Pohly · 4 Dec 2011 at 15:11

dilatory said:
So based on information, going to try

Does everything look okay here? I figured I'd OC the CPU as soon as I get it, and look to getting a second 560ti in the future...

looks great to me good luck

beejjacobs · 4 Dec 2011 at 15:22

dilatory said:
So based on information, going to try

Does everything look okay here? I figured I'd OC the CPU as soon as I get it, and look to getting a second 560ti in the future...

That PSU is a bit overspecced for that rig, even with 560TI SLI 750W would be enough, so save some money:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-047-CS&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=

Or even this if you're not bothered about modular:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-004-XF&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=

dilatory · 4 Dec 2011 at 15:27

Ideal, saves me a bit of cash. I thought the 850 would be safe for upgrades, but if the 750 will do SLI too then save on the power bill xD

beejjacobs · 4 Dec 2011 at 15:36

850 is recommended for GTX580 SLI, but 560s are bit less power hungry.

(Also, power supplies don't draw what they are rated for all the time, it's just the maximum they can handle. so in reality the power bill between the 750 and 850 will be small if any)

Pohly · 4 Dec 2011 at 16:33

beejjacobs said:
That PSU is a bit overspecced for that rig, even with 560TI SLI 750W would be enough, so save some money:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-047-CS&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=

Or even this if you're not bothered about modular:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-004-XF&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=

save money yet the corsair is more expensive :S and the 750w is only £10quid cheaper just stick with the 850 it will last longer and be more efficent becuase it wont run near its max .

beejjacobs · 4 Dec 2011 at 16:56

Pohly said:
save money yet the corsair is more expensive :S and the 750w is only £10quid cheaper just stick with the 850 it will last longer and be more efficent becuase it wont run near its max .

Oops, the 750W XFX one is cheaper though (the non modular one i recommended) and with a GTX560Ti a 750W will be no where near max, and will support SLI