Hi. Newbie looking for advise

MK Ultra

MK Ultra

MK Ultra

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Joined
12 Jan 2013
Posts
5
First of all, I'd like to say what an excellent forum for like minded people. I've been browsing for the last couple of days and am impressed by the level of friendly help on here.

A little bit about me. I've always been into custom PC's as they just make far more sense than PC world/Currys generic overpriced tat. I built my first rig around 6years ago, an AMD Athlon machine and never looked back.

Since then, to say the least so much as changed and I've been slacking. I have little idea what is good and what is not so in today's market. Time has arrived now to build a new rig for my office, which will work with a lot of software, databases and pdf files. I've spec'd the following build but would appreciate alternative suggestions, recommendations and opinions.

FX6300 Piledriver (6 core)
Asus M5A78L-M/USB3
Corsair TX650w PSU
Corsair 60GB SSD (Force 3)
Seagate HDD 2TB (7200RPM)
Corsair H60 Cooler
Samsung Green 8gb RAM (1600)

I just wanted advise if this is a good build for an office PC? It will never game but I do plan to OC it to make the best use out of it.

Would you change any of the above? i set myself a £500 budget to build a strong reliable PC which will last me years to come regardless of how much office/software work I throw at it. (Do plan to stick on a hell of a lot of data on this machine tho). Also what would be a safe overclock level with the upgraded cooler?

Thank you.
 
Slightly over budget, but intel, and IMO, much better. this speccy also includes a case however, something you didnt add. CPU is a great processor for the cash. board comes with a free decent cooler. includes ssd and 2tb hdd. 8gb ram. 500w PSU. (you will not need 650w with no gpu, pointless. 500w is even overkill, however gives you the room to add a decent dedicated gpu and not have to worry about the psu, not to mention its value for money. its a great psu for 32 quid.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x MSI Z77A-G43 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - FREE Alpenföhn Civetta Cooler!! £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £72.98
1 x OCZ Vertex 4 64GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (VTX4-25SAT3-64G) £63.98
1 x BitFenix Shinobi USB3.0 Gaming Case - White/Blue £49.99
1 x Patriot Viper "Black Mamba" Generation 3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (PV38G160C9K) £41.99
1 x Cooler Master Elite Power 500W Power Supply £32.99
Total : £531.34 (includes shipping : £17.85).

 
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £72.98
1 x Asus P8Z77-V LX2 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 64GB 2.5 SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT064M4SSD2) £59.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Beast 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX16C9T3K2/8X) £35.99
1 x Cooler Master Elite Power 500W Power Supply £32.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Alpha Gaming Case - Black £29.99
Total : £490.43 (includes shipping : £17.10).



or as you don't need the extra power, amd option with more storage,

1 x Seagate Barracuda 3TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST3000DM001) HDD £119.99
1 x AMD A10-5800K Black Edition 3.80GHz (Socket FM2) APU Trinity Quad Core Processor (AD580KWOHJBOX) £95.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 64GB 2.5 SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT064M4SSD2) £59.99
1 x Asus F2A55-M LE AMD A55 Chipset (Socket FM2) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £49.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Beast 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX16C9T3K2/8X) £35.99
1 x Cooler Master Elite Power 500W Power Supply £32.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Alpha Gaming Case - Black £29.99
Total : £445.44 (includes shipping : £17.10).

 
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My buddy Idlemans build is nice, not keen on the other specs with that CM elite power PSU (it's not even bronze rated for efficiency) and the Merc beta case is way too basic.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £72.98
1 x Asus P8Z77-V LX2 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £41.99
1 x NZXT Source 210 Elite Midi Tower Case - Black £39.98
1 x Be Quiet! Shadow Rock Pro SR1 CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £34.79
1 x OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
Total : £502.80 (includes shipping : £11.75).



or if you want an SSD

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Plextor M5 Pro 128GB Extreme Series Solid State Drive - (PX-128M5P) £99.95
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £72.98
1 x Asus P8Z77-V LX2 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £41.99
1 x NZXT Source 210 Elite Midi Tower Case - Black £39.98
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
Total : £591.94 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Obviously over budget but you didn't put a case on your wish list. If you are intending on using an old case it probably won't be optimised for cooling. You can easily expect an OC of atleast 4.2Ghz with these components and the better case

Your PSU is OTT, the corsair SSD uses the sandforce controller which we try to avoid if we can. The samsung RAM is nice but expensive, whilst it overclocks well over 1600mhz on the 1155 socket makes no odds. The CLC cooler again is an overspend as a decent aircooler for the same price will perform better and be better value.
 
cases for me are like keyboards and mice etc, personnel choices etc, can't spec what i normally build budget pc's with as not stocked here, wasn't going to use Antec 300 as out of stock as well, and tbh the newer version is ugly "Antec GX 700 Rugged Gaming Case and over priced"
 
It's a tough one to get it all in, but this is what I've managed so far:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Plextor M5 Pro 128GB Extreme Series Solid State Drive - (PX-128M5P) £99.95
1 x MSI Z77A-G43 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - FREE Alpenföhn Civetta Cooler!! £79.99
1 x **B Grade** Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (S (HD-257-SE) £50
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Cooler Master K280 Midi Tower Case - Black (RC-K280-KKN1) £36.98
1 x Kingston HyperX Beast 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX16C9T3K2/8X) £35.99
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x Samsung SH-118AB/BEBE SATA 18x DVD-ROM (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £566.46 (includes shipping : £10.50).



Added a B grade HDD, the motherboard should some with the cables you need to connect it, if it's OEM. Case is not amazing, but looks great for a budget and you get cable management holes & grommets.
 
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Thanks for all the replies ppl.

I think you've all convinced me that an i5 is the way to go. The poster who said because this was a business PC I didn't need to OC actually had a point. Hopefully the following will be fine and thank you all once again.

Changed my order to this;

i5 3570K
Asus P8H61-MX USB3
Samsung Green 8gb 1600mhz
Seasonic 500W PSU
2TB Seagate HDD
60GB Corsair Force 3 SD
Cooler Master Elite 371 Case
4 x 12mm Case fans
Samsung Optical Drive
 
So you ignored me\us completely then?

The H61 mobo won't have sataIII ports I seriously doubt and you have kept with a SSD with the sandforce controller. Get the Crucial M4 if you want a small SSD for a reasonable price, it's more reliable. The samsung RAM is not needed and an overspend to be honest.
 
MK Ultra said:
Thanks for all the replies ppl.

I think you've all convinced me that an i5 is the way to go. The poster who said because this was a business PC I didn't need to OC actually had a point. Hopefully the following will be fine and thank you all once again.

Changed my order to this;

i5 3570K
Asus P8H61-MX USB3
Samsung Green 8gb 1600mhz
Seasonic 500W PSU
2TB Seagate HDD
60GB Corsair Force 3 SD
Cooler Master Elite 371 Case
4 x 12mm Case fans
Samsung Optical Drive
Click to expand...

Don`t know why you bothered asking for advice, that build is a waste of money.
A 3570k with a H61 mobo. :eek: what a waste.
Wrong choice of ram. :(
Elite 371 case and 4 fans,:( Corsair Carbide 200R would be much better and cheaper.
All in all, not a very well balanced build, to be brutally honest.
 
Idleman said:
Don`t know why you bothered asking for advice, that build is a waste of money.
A 3570k with a H61 mobo. :eek: what a waste.
Wrong choice of ram. :(
Elite 371 case and 4 fans,:( Corsair Carbide 200R would be much better and cheaper.
All in all, not a very well balanced build, to be brutally honest.
Click to expand...

Echoes my thoughts exactly bud. Just to make it clear you can NOT overclock with the H61 mobo!!

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Asus P8Z77-V LX2 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 64GB 2.5 SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT064M4SSD2) £59.99
1 x Toshiba (7K1000.D) 1TB SATA 6GB/s 32MB Cache - OEM (DT01ACA100) HDD £54.98
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £41.99
1 x NZXT Source 210 Elite Midi Tower Case - Black £39.98
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020046-UK) £36.98
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
Total : £527.87 (includes shipping : £12.50).



Tried to rebalance the build better with everything he has asked for, only just over budget too. He could probably afford to lose the heatsink if the budget is tight, should get 4Ghz easy enough from the stock heatsink
 
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The psu doesnt have to be bronze efficient. and I added the shinobi, not the merc alpha. That PSU is more than capable of running what he will be running and its a good manufacturer. Hes not running a gpu so why does he need an 80+ bronze?
Anyways, I totally agree. Noob looks for advice, completely ignores it and specs a half hashed system that cant overclock with an overclockable processor, getting rubbish ram in the process.
 
squarehead94 said:
The psu doesnt have to be bronze efficient. and I added the shinobi, not the merc alpha. That PSU is more than capable of running what he will be running and its a good manufacturer. Hes not running a gpu so why does he need an 80+ bronze?
Anyways, I totally agree. Noob looks for advice, completely ignores it and specs a half hashed system that cant overclock with an overclockable processor, getting rubbish ram in the process.
Click to expand...

I have eyes I can see you used the shinobi ;)

However at £50 it only has one fan, the cases Idleman and I used have two (mine was a little cheaper). I've told Zak hundreds of times why the Merc alpha/beta are a bad buy but he just specs rubbish anyway. Yes cases are personal preference but there is no excuse for getting a case with no cable management to speak of and no USB3 ports when there are cases with these features at a similar price.

The CM elite power isn't a great unit, the corsair 430W is better (efficiency does matter). I used the 450W XFX for the 5 year warranty and the fact it uses seasonic internals. The antec PSU was also good, although I'm not sure of the warranty length on it. Of course there is always a little wiggle room when spec'ing to balance things out, as my sig says infinite possibilities ;)
 
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Damn.

Sorry lads I didn't mean to ignore you. To be honest the guy at the shop recommended me half of that list^

****. Appreciate letting me know tho. Truth be told I wanted to get the local PC shop to build it for me for any warranty issues (£30 build fee but peace of mind)

So - CPU (tick)
Everything else scrap it. Am just going to order all the bits from this site now with the recommendations above. I've paid him £150 as a deposit so I guess that'l be the CPU.

How much do OC charge to build your system?

Sorry lads I didn't mean to be a ****, I wanted as much advise as possible and I mentioned some of the build lists above but guess he just said this is better/same for cheaper etc etc.
 
That was your mistake going with the local pc shop guy :p I'd see if you can get your money back if at all possible. If you are confident building it yourself you will probably save money and come out with a better system for cheaper.
 
MK Ultra said:
Thanks for all the replies ppl.

I think you've all convinced me that an i5 is the way to go. The poster who said because this was a business PC I didn't need to OC actually had a point. Hopefully the following will be fine and thank you all once again.

Changed my order to this;

i5 3570K
Asus P8H61-MX USB3
Samsung Green 8gb 1600mhz
Seasonic 500W PSU
2TB Seagate HDD
60GB Corsair Force 3 SD
Cooler Master Elite 371 Case
4 x 12mm Case fans
Samsung Optical Drive
Click to expand...

wont get much airflow with those mate ;):D:)
 
Bromhead said:
That was your mistake going with the local pc shop guy :p I'd see if you can get your money back if at all possible. If you are confident building it yourself you will probably save money and come out with a better system for cheaper.
Click to expand...

I'm fine with the hardware, what slots into where but he last time I did it was 6 years ago. RAM sticks are easy. CPU I plug the system into the wall without switching the power on (I think that's right?)

The bits I struggle with is all the little wires/connections on the Motherboard. If I can save £30 and learn how to do this then I'd be happy.

Sorry I just change my mind like that, I think I will buy cpu from local guy (i5 3570k) @ £145+VAT and then buy the rest off here.

I've got plenty of good suggestions above but would really really appreciate it if anyone could point me in the direction of what goes where on the motherboard connections as that's really my major hurdle.
 
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