New Build Advice

[_syn_]

Hi All,

i posted back in July for a spec, but as with most of the pc's i build have a serious case of indecision. Its been over 4 years on my current setup so i'm thinking its time to retire it.

This is my current spec which is used in a dual monitor setup for gaming mainly, with the odd bit of development.

Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366)
Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler (Socket LGA1366/LGA775)
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 Intel X58 (Socket 1366) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard
EVGA GeForce GTX 570 HD 2560MB GDDR5
Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 650W ATX2.2 Modular SLi Compliant Power Supply
Coolermaster Storm 'Scout' Gaming Case
Samsung 840 Series Pro 256GB SSD
CORSAIR CMX12GX3M3A1600C9 12GB (3 x 4GB) (one stick failed so down to 8GB)

ive added a few components to the basket below, as i feel its a good starting point. still haven't decided if i will re-use the graphics card for now or replace straight away. Budget is in the region of £1000.

i am planning to retain the hard drives & SSD in the new build, may even add an extra TB or two for storage.


The last time i upgraded the graphics card i had a hard time finding one that would fit without taking a hacksaw to it. i've heard that the version in the basket below has a removable hard drive cage to solve this issue (anyone back that up?).

Which leads me to the PSU, its around 4 years old now would it be worth re-using or going for a new one. i may, at some stage go for a SLI or crossfire setup so not sure that 650w will cut it, do i need to go for 800w or more?

Any ideas?

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i7-4770K 3.50GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £275.99
1 x Gigabyte Z87X-UD4H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £163.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD316G1600HC9DC01) £109.99
1 x Antec High Current Gamer 750W Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (0-761345-06223-7) £99.95
1 x CM Storm Scout II Advanced Gaming Case - Black £94.99
1 x Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU Cooler £26.99
Total : £786.00 (includes shipping : £11.75).

 

[oceaness]

The PSU you've got will power anything you want except SLI/Xfire. I'd say there's nothing wrong with continuing to use it.

But if you did want to upgrade this is on an excellent this week only offer and would allow you to SLI or Xfire £7 more but gold efficiency, so it'll cover the extra within a couple months of use.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Seasonic G series 750w '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £107.99
Total : £118.49 (includes shipping : £8.75).



With regard to the rest of the spec.

I think the 4770K is probably a bit overkill, though some say HT can be beneficial with SLI/Xfire.

16gb of memory is definitely excessive unless you use your computer to render large scenes or host a server.

How about something like this and then whatever graphics card/s you fancy:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - OEM £191.99
1 x Seasonic G series 750w '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £107.99
1 x MSI Z87-G43 Gaming Series Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £99.95
1 x CM Storm Scout II Advanced Gaming Case - Black £94.99
1 x Phanteks PH-TC14PE CPU Cooler - Red £69.98
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLD38G2400HC11CDC01) £65.99
Total : £651.41 (includes shipping : £17.10).

 

[_syn_]

Thanks for the response!

i have gathered from similar posts the debate regarding i5 vs i7. its certainly worth considering although i would certainly lean towards the retail versions for the extended warranty and spare cooler.

Ill take a look at the MSI motherboard as i'm a little stuck in my ways with gigabyte as its been rock solid for my last build.

ill admit i haven't seen a massive hit since i dropped down from 12gb to 8 so take your point that 16 is a little excessive

 

[oceaness]

I think it's a bit of a catch 22.

The 4770K is good if you've got 2 graphics cards but you'll blow the budget with the 2 graphics cards and a 4770K lol

You are absolutely right about retail versions, usually not much more and the extra warranty and spare cooler is always good

I haven't had a look but I'm sure they'll be a few reviews of the board around somewhere.

I think generally you're fairly safe with Gigabyte, Asus or MSI.

 

[_syn_]

ill have a dig around those are pretty much the motherboards brands i would consider.

Also i noticed you suggested an alternative cooler, id seen the cooler master cooler suggested in another thread but don't know a massive amount about it.

Anyone got any suggestions on Graphics cards to compliment any of the above? by the looks of it I have around 300 left from the budget for a single card (may add a second at a later date).

 

[oceaness]

Only reason I picked those particular components was for the theme. They all seemed to tie in nicely together.

The hyper 212 tends to be the go to cooler for good budget cooling, but there are considerably better coolers out there. The Noctua D14 is one of the best. I believe the Phantek I speced is also a top cooler as well, I just picked that one specifically cause it matched the theme