New Gaming Rig

scwba06

scwba06

scwba06

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Joined
5 May 2012
Posts
878
Hi, im new to the forums and the custom build arena. Id be grateful if anybody could help me find a compatible system.

Must have specs:

CPU: Top spec i5 Ivy Bridge
Mobo: Asus p77 sabertooth
RAM: Min 8gb (please help with make/specific type)
Hard drive 1: 120gb SSD (please help with specifics)
Hard drive 2: at least 1TB fairly fast HDD (doesnt have to break the bank just be reliable)
GPU: GTX 580 (or recommend better alternative)
PSU: 650w modular (possibly overkill but intending on an o/c rig, please advise)
Cooler: good quality fan (ie sabre) or liquid, please advise
Case: please help, need one to fit the above that also looks good
OS: Windows 64 bit (open to suggestions on version)

No need for a soundcard.
With the above specs what size screen could I run? im thinking 22"/23" 1080p HD LCD, could do with recommendations.
Looking to o/c as much as possible

Many thanks
 
YOUR BASKET
1 x VTX3D HD 7950 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card - AMD 3 for FREE Promotion £299.99
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £170.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT128M4SSD2) £94.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £84.98
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £74.99
1 x Cooler Master Silent Pro Modular 700W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £69.98
1 x Cooler Master HAF 912 Case - Black £52.99
1 x Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CML8GX3M2A1600C9) £39.95
1 x Corsair A50 High-Performance CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £22.20
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £1,021.63 (includes shipping : £10.50).



This will easily run on a 24" screen and even a 27" screen, but a 24" is generally considered the better option for gaming at 1080p.

Stoner81.
 
Space Monkey said:
Do you have a budget in mind?
Click to expand...

Not really, anything under 2k but not looking at spending unnecessarily, was largely looking at a budget focused on £250 GPU.

I'm mainly looking for a rig that can maintain decent fps on high res settings at 1080p. I'm not talking ultra high settings with enhanced gfx for skyrim, just a rig that will be able to handle top titles for a good year at least.

Thanks stoner, may I ask why the 7950? I read somewhere that the nvidia equivalent has the slight edge on it.

How much would it be for the ocuk guys to o/c it up to 4.5ghz? Would that cooler handle it?
Is 750w not overkill? I was under the impression a similar system could run on 500w at stock
 
I picked the 7950 because I didn't have a budget to work to at the time, the A50 is an awesome cooler and will handle the over clock fine. It is best imho to have a more powerful PSU than what you think you will need to allow for extra hardware later like SLI/Crossfire video cards or more HDD's etc.

With a budget of £2,000 though I can do some heavy tweaking...

YOUR BASKET
1 x EVGA GeForce GTX 680 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (02G-P4-2680-KR) £439.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 256GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT256M4SSD2) £178.99
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £170.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77X-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £104.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £74.99
1 x Cooler Master Silent Pro Modular 700W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £69.98
1 x Cooler Master HAF 912 Case - Black £52.99
1 x Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CML8GX3M2A1600C9) £39.95
1 x Corsair A50 High-Performance CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £22.20
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Total : £1,265.64 (includes shipping : £10.50).


  • Better motherboard.
  • Larger SSD for OS and applications etc.
  • Top of the range GTX680 video card (this thing will run everything maxed out for years at 1080p).
  • Still kept the 700 watt PSU since it is on a superb offer and is modular.
Stoner81.
 
Thanks stoner, didn't think I'd be able to get a 680 in a rig for under £1500.

Sorry if I sound dumb but what's the difference between those 2 mobos? Had a friend reccomended the Asus p77 sabertooth that's why I was leaning towards it. Agree with the increase in ssd size, same friend mentioned at least 10% of boot drive should be kept free at all times
 
The second one allows both SLI and Crossfire (the first only allows Crossfire) so this means that whatever video card you pick you can add another later on if you want to for a boost in performance though gaming at 1080p this will take a while ;)

As for the Sabertooth motherboard... personally I don't like Asus I know people who have had a lot of issues with boards from Asus (though this board might be fine) as a result I steer clear of Asus products. Gigabyte on the other hand have never ever faltered with me in any way so hence why I recommend them, also if my memory serves me right the second board is known to be a good over clocker (though I could be wrong on that) in that you get lower temps and higher clocks. The Sabertooth is also £180 on OCUK compared to £104 for the Gigabyte one, other folks here can give you more information on Asus boards than I ;)

Put simply if I was buying a new machine with that sort of cash then that is the sort of spec I would be looking to buy I can't give a higher recommendation than that really :p

Stoner81.
 
Last edited:
Thanks Stoner, il do some mobo research, the last time I was anywhere near helping build a system, dual core processers had just been launched and AMD were top dogs.

Yeah a lot of my friends have had problems with Asus products in the past but as these were mainly laptops (budget ones at that) I was willing to give them a chance. But yeah as you said, if your spending that kind of dollar you want the most reliable parts you can get. Thanks again
 
You hit the nail on the head there with a single word... reliable. Gigabyte boards have been absolutely rock solidly reliable for me hence why I recommend them. The single biggest and best piece of advice I can give you is to take your time and do plenty or reading and research with the amount of money being spent you want the best kit possible... hell everybody does no matter how much is being spent.

Perhaps spend some time reading other "spec me" threads and see what other people put together and see what you like the look of and go from there :) you can always come back here to ask questions :)

Remember the only stupid question is the one which you don't ask ;)

Stoner81.
 
Yea I've just read a very informative review of gigabyte mobos in the motherboard forum. Thanks, im in no rush and the more time
I spend choosing, the cheaper things will be and the more cash il have anyway. Thanks for your time. I think my biggest concern is with cable management/ buying a case that won't fit everything in it, was considering paying for the ocuk team to build it for me
 
That is certainly an option but you do get more for your money if you build it yourself, the case I chose for you has good cable management ;)

Stoner81.
 
I'm going to start getting in parts for my rig. Ive been doing a bit of research but a noobs idiot proof summary on what order to buy parts in would be very welcome.

Decided to go with Stoner's recommended mobo
Upgrading Ssd to Corsair performance pro 120gb
Case- not sure yet possibly silverstone raven rv03, cooler master cm 690ii, cm storm trooper

Will do more research on coolers
 
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