New Build? (Noise / Performance)

PaulM · 13 Mar 2013 at 14:51

Hi,

I currently have a system I built in 2009 after getting advice from here (Antec P182, Intel Q9550, Noctua NH-U12P, Asus P5Q Pro, 4GB DDR2, 260 GTX 216, Corsair TX 650W). I'm still happy with it and recently added a Samsung 830 SSD, but I've been moving around a lot recently and the size of the P182 is becoming an annoyance. This has me considering a Mini-ITX build, e.g:

I haven't checked if the CPU cooler would fit yet

I use the computer for software development, animation (hobbyist) and medium-light gaming.

Would this be a worthwhile upgrade over what I have at the moment (ignoring the form-factor)? My other main concern is I'm pretty fussy about noise, the current build is very quiet and I wouldn't like to end up with a noisy computer, is this likely to be noisier than the current build?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

dacads · 13 Mar 2013 at 14:55

I would recommend a XFX 650w as they are made by Seasonic and silent to my knowledge.

Although why are you buying cooler, PSU and SSD again?

Other noise sources will be cooler, GPU and case fans so as long as they are near quiet you will remain satisfied

Doomedspeed · 13 Mar 2013 at 14:59

Mini itx is a good space saver, so not a bad idea. I have a few issues/improvments.

You have said that you havnt checked whether the CPU cooler will fit, im pretty sure it won't. The socket on that board is really close to the pci-e slot. So a big cooler and graphics card won't fit together.

The best cooler you can get for that board at a reasonable price is the H60. If you use the OCUK tech labs version you can pick yourself some low noise fans..

The graphics card isn't great, id personally go for a 7850, they can be picked up for a similar price. A much better card.

The RAM and modular PSU are good. Though 650w isn't really needed, 500w will do.

PaulM · 14 Mar 2013 at 22:20

Thanks for the replies, I'll change the cooler for a H60 and probably the graphics card to a 7860.

If I build a complete new system I'll give the old build to a friend, that's why I'm not using any parts from the old build (my current PSU isn't modular either, I'd definitely want a modular one for a Mini-ITX build).

Doomedspeed · 14 Mar 2013 at 22:30

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £173.99
1 x Samsung 250GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD250BW) £131.99
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 Gigabyte Z77N-WIFI Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Mini ITX Motherboard £94.99
1 x BitFenix Prodigy Mini-ITX Cube Case - Midnight Black £69.98
1 x Silverstone Strider Plus 500W Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (SST-ST50F-P) £67.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Black 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory Kit (KHX16C10B1BK2/16X) £59.99
1 x OcUK Tech Labs - Corsair H60 Performance Intel Liquid Cooling Solution (Socket 1155 / 1156 / 1366) £39.95
1 x Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound (8g) £8.99
1 x Akasa AK-FN058 Apache Black Super Silent 120mm Fan - 4 Pin PWM £9.98
1 x Akasa AK-FN058 Apache Black Super Silent 120mm Fan - 4 Pin PWM £9.98
Total : £811.88 (includes shipping : £11.75).

honosuseri · 15 Mar 2013 at 11:59

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £173.99
1 x MSI HD 7850 OC 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Cards with Tomb Raider & Bioshock PC Games £164.99
1 x Plextor M5 Pro 128GB Extreme Series Solid State Drive - (PX-128M5P) £99.95
1 x Gigabyte Z77N-WIFI Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Mini ITX Motherboard £94.99
1 x BitFenix Prodigy Mini-ITX Cube Case - Midnight Black £69.98
1 x BeQuiet Pure Power L8 530W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply - With 120mm Silent Wing Fan Built in £66.95
1 x Kingston HyperX Black 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory Kit (KHX16C10B1BK2/16X) £59.99
1 x **B Grade** Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 32MB Cache - OEM £45.00
1 x OcUK Tech Labs - Corsair H60 Performance Intel Liquid Cooling Solution (Socket 1155 / 1156 / 1366) £39.95
- 1 x Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound (8g) £8.99
- 1 x No Fan Required £0.00
- 1 x No Fan Required £0.00
2 x Corsair SP120 Quiet Series High Pressure Low Noise - Single Pack £13.99 (£27.98)
Total : £852.76 (includes shipping : FREE).

Gone over your original budget but you do cop games with the GPU to help make up for that. You can use MSI afterburner to overclock the GPU higher and also set a custom fan speed profile to get the noise at a level you are comfortable with.

Better SSD although smaller in capacity, I worked in a 1TB storage HDD cheap too. Look forward to seeing what you settle on and maybe some pics of the build complete

ArchAndroid · 15 Mar 2013 at 15:48

If you're not partisan to any team, the 7850 is much more powerful than a 650Ti.