Help with spec

Flosi

Flosi

Flosi

Associate
Joined
23 Apr 2013
Posts
40
Howdy, new here as not done a build for ages, but getting a bit of money and need to upgrade, so I am turning to you lovely people for help.

My current situation - Running an Dell XPS 420 for a number of years, have read up on it and found that things like the case are not reusable so I figure I need a full rebuild, but will not need the CD-RW or hard drives, etc. PSU is 375W so guessing that will need replacing too with the uses I want it for. running 2 1080p monitors.

Budget - ideally around £600, can go a bit over.

Uses - Gaming with video capture, Photo and Video editing.

Pretty much the only thing I have absolutely decided is that I am after the Bitfenix Merc Alpha gaming case (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-010-BX&groupid=2362&catid=1850 ) as I need the front access to the unit for USB/headphones etc.

Not worried about overclocking just yet, but certainly something I will be loking at in several months time so would like the capability, so happy to buy heatsinks/etc later if stock will do.

Main reason I'm asking is because of the AMD/Intel arguement as I have seen numerous conflicting opinions regarding the best processor for this use, as intel seems to be being recommended for gaming rigs, but AMD seems to rate highly for the other uses I want at this price point.

Thanks for reading!
 
I really dislike the Merc cases. No USB3 ports and only the one fan included, there are better alternatives for the price to be honest.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £189.95
1 x **B Grade** Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7850 OC Windforce 2X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ Nexuiz, Sleeping Dogs & Dirt Showd (GX-100-GI) £129.95
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99
1 x GeIL EVO Leggera 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GEL316GB1600C9DC) £83.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 500w Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020059-UK) £54.98
1 x **B Grade** Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (S (HD-257-SE) £45.00
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
Total : £653.94 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Dropping to 8GB of RAM will lower the price but as you mentioned video editing I went with 16GB from the get go
 
I assume your optical & mechanical drives are SATA.


YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £189.95
1 x **B Grade** Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7850 OC Windforce 2X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ Nexuiz, Sleeping Dogs & Dirt Showd (GX-100-GI) £129.95
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99
1 x GeIL EVO Leggera 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GEL316GB1600C9DC) £83.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 500W V2 '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020047-UK) £49.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Alpenföhn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £29.99
Total : £617.84 (includes shipping : £12.50).

 
Just a tad over, CPU cooler for your future O/C...

YOUR BASKET
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-8 Eight Core 8350 Black Edition 4.00GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £149.99
1 x **B Grade** Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7850 OC Windforce 2X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ Nexuiz, Sleeping Dogs & Dirt Showd (GX-100-GI) £129.95
1 x ASRock 990FX Extreme3 AMD 990FX (Socket AM3+) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £90.98
1 x Akasa Venom 850w '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £84.98
1 x GeIL Black Dragon 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD316GB1600C11DC) **OcUK Exclusive** £79.99
1 x Phanteks PH-TC12DX CPU Cooler - Black (Socket 775 / 1150 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £44.98
1 x BitFenix Merc Alpha Gaming Case - Black £32.99
Total : £627.96 (includes shipping : £11.75).

 
 
Thanks for the responses. The hard drives are planned for upgrade at a later date as I need more storage soon anyway - the joy of playing with HD video... Will be upgrading my active ones and using the older ones for archiving.

Liking the responses so far!
 
Flosi said:
Thanks for the responses. The hard drives are planned for upgrade at a later date as I need more storage soon anyway - the joy of playing with HD video... Will be upgrading my active ones and using the older ones for archiving.

Liking the responses so far!
Click to expand...

I added the HDD and optical incase your current devices weren't sata. If you remove them from the basket you were on budget :)

You'll notice the more experienced forum speccers have moved away from the Merc case as I hinted at before. If you are open to Bgrade parts we can get you the i7 CPU

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i7-2700K 3.50GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £224.99
1 x **B Grade** Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7850 OC Windforce 2X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ Nexuiz, Sleeping Dogs & Dirt Showd (GX-100-GI) £129.95
1 x GeIL EVO Leggera 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GEL316GB1600C9DC) £83.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 500w Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020059-UK) £54.98
1 x **B Grade** Gigabyte Z68A-D3H-GEN3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 (MB-380-GI) £52.00
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
Total : £592.99 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Ok it's the Sandybridge i7 but not to be sniffed at. The Z68 was designed for sandy so when you come to wanting to OC it will be happier with that CPU in the socket. You could add a heatsink now too if you can go over £600 a little ;)

Best of luck with the build. I look forward to seeing what you settle on :)
 
Last edited:
Been speaking to people I know, looking at more bits anf peices, and falling in on the AMD side of things. Main concern now is that everyone seems to be recommending the same graphics card, but when I search the forum about it people seem to be talking about fairly major issues with them, which is a concern without a proper warranty.

Considering I am planning on overclocking at a later date, is it worth dropping the fan off the AMD build for the moment, using the stock one, and going with the following?



YOUR BASKET
1 x Sapphire HD 7870 GHz Edition 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (11199-16-20G) £179.99
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-8 Eight Core 8350 Black Edition 4.00GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £149.99
1 x ASRock 990FX Extreme3 AMD 990FX (Socket AM3+) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £90.98
1 x Akasa Venom 850w '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £84.98
1 x GeIL Black Dragon 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD316GB1600C11DC) **OcUK Exclusive** £79.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
Total : £633.02 (includes shipping : £11.75).




And with the planned future upgrades, I am considering a build thread...
 
 
Flosi said:
Been speaking to people I know, looking at more bits anf peices, and falling in on the AMD side of things. Main concern now is that everyone seems to be recommending the same graphics card, but when I search the forum about it people seem to be talking about fairly major issues with them, which is a concern without a proper warranty.

Considering I am planning on overclocking at a later date, is it worth dropping the fan off the AMD build for the moment, using the stock one, and going with the following?



YOUR BASKET
1 x Sapphire HD 7870 GHz Edition 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (11199-16-20G) £179.99
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-8 Eight Core 8350 Black Edition 4.00GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £149.99
1 x ASRock 990FX Extreme3 AMD 990FX (Socket AM3+) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £90.98
1 x Akasa Venom 850w '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £84.98
1 x GeIL Black Dragon 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD316GB1600C11DC) **OcUK Exclusive** £79.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
Total : £633.02 (includes shipping : £11.75).




And with the planned future upgrades, I am considering a build thread...
Click to expand...
The stock Cpu cooler isnt bad if you're not overclocking, however when I fitted my Noctua cooler it immediately shaved 10° off my idle temps.
 
amd is ok but intel cpus are better pound for pound something like this would be better
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £189.95
1 x HIS HD 7850 IceQ Turbo 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (H785QT2G2M) £169.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99
1 x XFX Pro 550W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £54.98
1 x Zalman Z9 USB 3.0 Midi Tower Case - Black £54.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £52.99
1 x Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C8 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (PXD38G1600LLK) £43.99
1 x Alpenföhn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £29.99
Total : £685.37



slightly over but much better than the amd equivilent
 
Leprechaun312 said:
amd is ok but intel cpus are better pound for pound something like this would be better
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £189.95
1 x HIS HD 7850 IceQ Turbo 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (H785QT2G2M) £169.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99
1 x XFX Pro 550W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £54.98
1 x Zalman Z9 USB 3.0 Midi Tower Case - Black £54.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £52.99
1 x Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C8 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (PXD38G1600LLK) £43.99
1 x Alpenföhn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £29.99
Total : £685.37



slightly over but much better than the amd equivilent
Click to expand...

It`s also way over budget. :)

Budget - ideally around £600, can go a bit over.
Click to expand...

@Flosi, can you link to the treads talking about "the major issues" with the "B" grade Gpu we have specced. Namely the GB 7850.
 
Idleman said:
@Flosi, can you link to the treads talking about "the major issues" with the "B" grade Gpu we have specced. Namely the GB 7850.
Click to expand...

There was a flickering issue which to my knowledge is sorted by updating the BIOS of the GPU itself. Doesn't hurt to update the mobo to the latest BIOS version aswell to resolve known issues with compatibilty.
 
regarding my comment about problems, this is one of them, talking about the screen going black, relating to a capacitor problem with certain batches if I am reading it right. I generally don't like the idea of getting a part without knowing it has a good amount of manufacturers warranty left on it if it has potential hardware issues, as these issues are a 'send off to fix' job rather than software.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18482055
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1850669

actually liking the MSI 7870 more as it is a better pcb colour to go with the motherboard, after all, you never know when you want to get a case with a window...
 
Flosi said:
actually liking the MSI 7870 more as it is a better pcb colour to go with the motherboard, after all, you never know when you want to get a case with a window...
Click to expand...

no no no do not get the msi 7870 i have it and have had to rma for a different brand as the fans on it are really loud, it gets to 60 degrees and they the fan speed flies up to 100% and its really loud
 
I can understand your reluctance to want to buy a"B" grade card after reading about a few peoples problems with 7850s, but sadly this can happen with any component.
You expect with any product you buy, that it will work straight out of the box as it was intended to do. But unfortunately, an unlucky few will get a faulty product, for one reason or another. So the worst that can happen, is the card could turns out to be faulty and you have to return it, an inconvenience. Which incidentally could happen with any card you buy, regardless of how much money it cost. The "B" grade comes with an OCUK 90 day warranty and then whatever Gigabyte warranty is remaining. So it is not likely that if you buy the card and it is at fault, you will lose your money.
But ultimately, the choice and the money is yours, to make and spend.
Myself, hono and others, only try to spec you a decent system to meet your requirements and your budget, to give you the best you can afford. If that means including "B" grade items which are slightly cheaper to save money to spend inother areas to achieve this, then we will do so.
And I myself, would have no hesitation in buying "B" grade, as I always look for a bargain.
Good luck with whatever you decide on.
 
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