New office build and casual gaming

FlyingPig

FlyingPig

FlyingPig

Associate
Joined
10 Jul 2011
Posts
711
Location
London
My build is from 2011 and it's getting on a bit. Currently experiencing random reboots that probably have to do with either the CPU, RAM or PSU. Don't really have the time to get to the bottom of it so I'm thinking of just getting a new system.

What I have:
- Logitech solar keyboard
- Hazro 1440p monitor (still very happy about this one)
- 1 TB HDD
- 250 GB SSD
- GTX 970 (upgraded a few years ago from 570)
- Motherboard P67A-GD53 (MS-7681)
- i5 2500K CPU (overclock removed)
- OCZ PSU 700W Stealth Xtreme
- 8GB RAM

What I need:

OCuK to assemble a base system as I can't be asked and am probably unable. The idea is I plug in my hard drives and GTX 970 in there and get up and running. Only using the desktop for office work, some Photoshop and some flight simming (recently started X-Plane 11, which is how I discovered how unstable my system has become during gaming).
This means I probably need a new case, something fairly small and more portable than the current Coolermaster case. Am open to a mini ATX but unsure if that will house the GTX 970 and have a stable enough PSU. What CPU is recommended these days? Been out of the loop. I guess 16 GB or RAM won't hurt.

Not sure about budget, but hoping I can keep my costs down.
 
FlyingPig said:
My build is from 2011 and it's getting on a bit. Currently experiencing random reboots that probably have to do with either the CPU, RAM or PSU. Don't really have the time to get to the bottom of it so I'm thinking of just getting a new system.

What I have:
- Logitech solar keyboard
- Hazro 1440p monitor (still very happy about this one)
- 1 TB HDD
- 250 GB SSD
- GTX 970 (upgraded a few years ago from 570)
- Motherboard P67A-GD53 (MS-7681)
- i5 2500K CPU (overclock removed)
- OCZ PSU 700W Stealth Xtreme
- 8GB RAM

What I need:

OCuK to assemble a base system as I can't be asked and am probably unable. The idea is I plug in my hard drives and GTX 970 in there and get up and running. Only using the desktop for office work, some Photoshop and some flight simming (recently started X-Plane 11, which is how I discovered how unstable my system has become during gaming).
This means I probably need a new case, something fairly small and more portable than the current Coolermaster case. Am open to a mini ATX but unsure if that will house the GTX 970 and have a stable enough PSU. What CPU is recommended these days? Been out of the loop. I guess 16 GB or RAM won't hurt.

Not sure about budget, but hoping I can keep my costs down.
Click to expand...

I know you said not sure about budget, but what's a rough price you're aiming for?
 
southernorth said:
I know you said not sure about budget, but what's a rough price you're aiming for?
Click to expand...

I'm a bit torn. On the one hand, I'm thinking if I can keep the 970 and accept it as "good enough", would I not be able to keep this around 500-600 GBP? Could go up to a grand if need be but then it'd have to tick me over another 4-5 years.
 
Been reading up a bit and was surprised to see AMD is back... Looks like they present the best value and their range might be a nice step up from the trusted 2500K.

How about something like this:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £811.08
(includes shipping: £11.10)



​
 
I would recommend waiting for the CPU + motherboard bundle below to come back into stock:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £614.11
(includes shipping: £13.20)



  • Very quiet and high-quality case, includes 2 140mm fans
  • Well rated, highly efficient PSU with a 5 year warranty
  • As all RAM prices are terrible, basically the cheapest RAM OCuk have for this speed. I would highly recommend specifically shopping around for RAM, as OCuk's prices are not competitive at all.
  • Finally, buying that motherboard + CPU together gives you 3 free games:
https://promotion.asus.com/en/uk/Ryzen

Either keep them, or sell them for £60 to further reduce the cost.



This option would allow you a much bigger GPU upgrade - 1070ti/VEGA 56. These two graphics cards would run games at 1440p much better than your current 970.​
 
Last edited:
FlyingPig said:
Thanks for that. I forgot the power supply. I contacted OCuK and that CPU will only be in stock again end of November. Too late for me. What about the Gigabyte motherboard and the 8 core CPU from this bundle?

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £440.48
(includes shipping: £10.50)



​


Overkill?
Click to expand...
It's a nice bundle, but you don't qualify for the ASUS bundle. Also, for gaming and most light-multitasking you wouldn't notice much difference going to a 1700 from a 1600. So yeah, it is overkill.



But if you were set on a 1700, this bundle qualifies for that ASUS deal:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £763.15
(includes shipping: £13.20)



​


You could also consider some different RAM as Ryzen can be quite fussy about which type can run at full speeds and overclock well. The set below is good:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £227.69
(includes shipping: £8.70)



​
 
Thanks. Much to think about. Qualifying for the games deal would be a nice bonus, though not essential. That motherboard doesn't seem to have the best reviews out there so would be a bit nervous about it, although for my needs it's probably perfectly fine.
Scary how much RAM costs these days...
Might just order this all tomorrow. With OCuK assembling I guess it'll amount to around 800 GBP, which isn't bad. Probably best to upgrade GPU later on, proper gaming at 1440p would be nice at some point.

Just one final question: how will Windows behave when it recognises a new motherboard and CPU? (I used to have Windows 7 and then upgraded to 10, so have a licence).
 
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