New Build Advice

[jay20aiii]

Hi guys,

I am planning to buy a new PC next week. I looked through the Gaming Bundles and Systems which look good but think I can get a better spec for cheaper by doing it myself.

I have come up with this so far:

Motherboard - Asus P8Z68-V GEN3 Z68 (Socket 1155) £144.98
Memory - Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 8GB (2x4GB) £49.98
CPU - Intel Core i5-2550K 3.40GHz £184.99
SSD - OCZ Agility 3 60GB 2.5" SATA-3 £69.95
GFX - Asus GeForce GTX 560Ti 1024MB GDDR5 £179.99
Case - Coolermaster Case CM Storm Enforcer £70.99
PSU - OCZ PSU ZS 750W 80+ Bronze £66.00
Cooler - Akasa AK-CC4008HP01 Venom Voodoo £44.99

I would like to overclock it which I have not done before. I just wondered if the mobo, cpu, cooler chosen would be ideal for this?

Would anybody reccommend any other parts in place of those I have chosen?

I plan to buy a second GFX card in the next few months and wondered if the PSU will be good enough to run the system? Or should I consider a better one?

I read something about the Mobo maybe having an overclock setting or profiles etc that would make overclocking nice n easy, is that right?

One thing that has turned me off a little is that some posts mention the first boot fails before the system kicks in on the second when using the above mobo. Is that something that is common with all/most overclocked PC's or is there a more robust Mobo I should look at instead?

P.s. I'm aiming to spend around the £900 mark if anybody would reccommend a different spec.

Any help appreciated.

Thanks,
Jay

 

[stulid]

Hi and welcome.

Im going to suggest other parts, do you have a SATA HDD for storage and a SATA DVD burner?

What resolution is your monitor?

 

[jay20aiii]

Hi, I will need a burner but I do have a few SATA II HDD's.

My Monitor is 1920 x 1080 + I intend to use my TV as a second Monitor (Just for watching videos on).

Thanks.

 

[stulid]

Heres something,


YOUR BASKET
1 x zotac geforce gtx 560ti 2048mb gddr5 pci-express graphics card £209.99
1 x intel core i5-2500k 3.30ghz (sandybridge) socket lga1155 processor - retail £167.99
1 x gigabyte z68x-ud3h-gen3 intel z68 (socket 1155) ddr3 motherboard £122.98
1 x xfx 850w xxx edition modular '80 plus silver' power supply £94.99
1 x cm storm enforcer gaming case - black £72.98
1 x crucial realssd m4 64gb 2.5" sata 6gb/s solid state hard drive (ct064m4ssd2) £69.95
1 x cooler master hyper 612s cpu cooler (socket lga1366/1156/1155/775/am3/am2+/am2) £35.99
1 x kingston hyperx red limited edition 8gb (2x4gb) ddr3 pc3-12800c9 1600mhz dual channel kit (khx1600c9d3b1rk2/8gx) £35.99
1 x ocuk 22x dvd±rw sata rewriter (black) - oem £17.99
total : £845.34 (includes shipping : £13.75).




• i5 2500k has a igp (integrated graphics processor) so you get lucid virtu+quicksync from the z68 chipset, it also gives you a simple gfx solution to use should you have a gfx card issue.

• motherboard is gen3 (with a ivybridge cpu) and supports sli/crossfire.

• modular psu makes cable tidying easier, its also made by seasonic who are one of the better makers.

• crucial ssd is faster - http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18368623

• 2gb vram with that card.

• good heatsink - http://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/cooler_master_hyper_612s_cpu_cooler_review,15.html

 

[jay20aiii]

Brilliant,

thanks for your advice.

After a bit of googling about ZOTAC I am leaning more towards the MSI GeForce GTX 560Ti OC Twin FrozR II 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card. It's a bit more expensive but i'm a bit of a sheep when it comes to Reviews and brand names.

I like what I have read regarding everything else.

I presume there is no real gain in the 3.40GHz CPU over the 3.30GHz?

Would you reccommend any extra case fans for additional cooling?

Thanks again.
Jay

 

[stulid]

I presume there is no real gain in the 3.40GHz CPU over the 3.30GHz?

These "K" chips have an unlocked multiplier, so just go into the BIOS and change it from 33X (for the 2500K, 33X100Mhz=3.3Ghz)

So you set it to 34X and thats the same core speed as the 2550K, but the chip/board/cooler is capable of more like 4.5Ghz± and its really simple to do this.

Would you reccommend any extra case fans for additional cooling?

One of the neagtive points in this review is that it has just two fans - http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/CoolerMaster/Storm_Enforcer/6.html