need help with possible new build..

Mobius 1 · 23 Dec 2010 at 11:54

ok, so this month i got given a bonus, so i've decided im probably going to build myself a new pc.

for roughly £550 excluding VAT, whats my best options?

i was generally looking at the OC bundle, 1055T AMD 6 core cpu, 4gb RAM and the motherboard for £284, as well as a 5850 (which i believe is the best buy at the moment for the power you get out of it compared to nvidia and other ati cards) for around £106. the case i was looking at was just the cheapo OCUK tsunami case which looked reasonable.

the psu i think i was looking at was the cooler master GX 550W which i think will be okay to power the system.

i dont need a hard drive as i can get the old one out my current pc..

cd drive is sorted too.

has anyone got any advice on possible different combo of specs which are better? im not as clued up as i used to be

just want to get best value for money/fastest system for my money

im intending to play most games on a 24" samsung at 1920x1080, i would assume this spec would run most games max settings?

cheers! sorry if its a bit grammatically incoherent

LiamJ · 23 Dec 2010 at 12:03

That bundle seems pretty good value. The 5850 should run even the latest games on high settings with a good FPS, so no need to worry about that.

I would suggest spending a little more on the case though. Take a look at the Coolermaster 430 if you don't want to spend too much. If you are willing to spend a little more, look at the Xigmatek Midgard, the Coolermaster 690-II Lite, or the Coolermaster HAF 912.

For the PSU, the Antec TruePower New Modular is a very good buy at less than £70.

RJC · 23 Dec 2010 at 12:06

As your looking at gaming the i5 seems to be slightly better, if your not in a hurry you could wait until 9th Jan for Sandy Bridge.

Done a Intel Build below:

Your basketProduct Name Qty Price Line Total
HIS ATI Radeon HD 6950 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £213.84
(£181.99) £213.84
(£181.99)
Intel Core i5 760 2.80GHz (Lynnfield) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail £145.00
(£123.40) £145.00
(£123.40)
Asus P7P55D-E Intel P55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 Motherboard £98.11
(£83.50) £98.11
(£83.50)
Corsair CX 500W ATX Power Supply (CMPSU-500CXUK) £44.99
(£38.29) £44.99
(£38.29)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £41.11
(£34.99) £41.11
(£34.99)
Coolermaster Elite 430 Windowed Case - Black £37.99
(£32.33) £37.99
(£32.33)
Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.98
(£22.11) £25.98
(£22.11)
Sub Total : £516.61
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £10.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £92.24
Total : £619.35

Link for a comparison: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/147?vs=191

Mobius 1 · 23 Dec 2010 at 16:08

thanks for the prompt response guys!! i'm liking the look of the i5.. i just assumed the six core cpu would have been better. was i wrong?

i was also reading the debate on the 5850 vs the 6950 and wasn't sure which to go for.

i'm going to wait til just after xmas, so will anything change til then? what is sandy bridge? the newer version of the i5?

Dark_Angel · 23 Dec 2010 at 16:22

Yes, it is...

Go into the CPU forums, I've actually got a thread there with reviews comparing it to the current I5's / I7's.

I'd say right now more than 4 cores is a waste, though that's for now and assuming you're doing no more than gaming. Intel's chips are faster than AMD (but obviously cost more for this.)