New PC build advice

yatesl

yatesl

yatesl

Associate
Joined
31 Jan 2010
Posts
26
Hi all,

So, started looking at a new GPU, and that quickly spiralled in to a brand new PC.

For the record, my current PC is:

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 Black Edition 955, 3124 MHz
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA790XT-UD4P
Graphics Card: Club 3D ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Memory: Patriot Viper II Sector 5 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Case: Antec Three Hundred ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: Sony Optiarc AD-5240S 24x Internal SATA DVDRW
Network Card: Edimax 802.11g EW-7128g Wireless PCI Card
Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F4 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 Professional (OEM) (64-bit)

This is what I put together:

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Graphics Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 1046MHz 2GB PCI-E 3.0 HDMI Windforce 3X
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Case: BitFenix Shinobi Window ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply

I'd plan on using the three HDDs, OS, and possibly optical drive. For now, I've ordered the GTX 770 to put in my current machine - Will there be any major bottlenecks?

If it's not a huge upgrade, I'll end up buying the rest. However, for the price points, are there better Haswell-compatible CPUs and Motherboards?

Thanks!
 
yatesl said:
Hi all,

So, started looking at a new GPU, and that quickly spiralled in to a brand new PC.
Click to expand...

This, is how it starts, i wanted a new g-card for £120~ ended up spending nearly 700 on a new rig....its addictive once you start browsing ....you can't stop.

The only changes i would make is you dont need a 750w power supply unless you are adding a second g-card later on for sli, Secondly the motherboard isn't great i would recommend a gigabyte z77x-d3h http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-390-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=2261 supports sli but is better build quality. and finally there are some nicer cases, but it is personal choices.

also you do know that haswell is out now, you could get the newer intel chips for about 30-50 quid more, it performs about 10% better but it is your choice if your tight budget wise
 
Well my budget started off as £200 for a graphics card, but it's always "For £20 more..."

It's my first time picking out parts, but I worked out most of them from word of mouth. I'd like to future proof it, I guess - If it means spending £50 (it keeps getting worse) on a more recent CPU and motherboard, then sounds good. Case wise, I have no idea. I liked the swivel HDD bays (compared to my Antec 300...), the window (in certain ones), and the USB ports on top.

That said, I'm here for recommendations!


As I say, I might just have the graphics card for now, providing a) it fits in my Antec 300 case, and b) it isn't bottlenecked too much by my CPU and RAM.


For the record, I can get the motherboard for around £100, and the CPU for around £167. Are there decent Haswell alternatives at a similar price?
 
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the 770 shouldm't be too bottlenecked the phenom x4 is ..ok so for the time being you should be fine. for haswell this would work
YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail with FREE Grid 2 PC Game £194.99
1 x Gigabyte Z87X-D3H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £131.99
Total : £336.58 (includes shipping : £8.00).



there is about a 13 quid difference. It's still SLI compatible so if you want to get a second 770 in the future you can SLI on this motherboard. also the ram chose should work in this.
 
The way I worked it, it'd be around £30 or so, but I guess Haswell would be better in the long haul... Unless there's a completely new socket type in 4 years again.

In regards to the PSU, I don't plan on overclocking or SLI'ing, but I'd like to have the option. Do you think a CPU cooler would be necessary? I had the stock on my AMD Phenom up until a month or so ago, but just because it was really loud (which was also a recent thing)
 
yeah there will be a new socket in about 4ish years time but if you get haswell you can get the new intel chip which will come out in about 2 years time, it will be socket 1150 but will be an better. also the cooler you chose is perfect, the stock intel cooler...is awful. if the fan stops working 30 minutes later it will reach over 100 degrees and turn off.
 
If I put my buying impulses behind me, is it worth waiting for next gen consoles, for any prices etc? I mean, I've already ordered the graphics card (... although it's yet to be shipped), which I imagine is the biggest thing.

Am I right in thinking i7 is mainly for video processing, and i5 is fine for gaming?
 
Is the XL decent? I know in my current case (Antec 300), cables are going everywhere, and the mobo is quite close to the HDD bays making some plugs a pain to do.
 
Last chance for recommendations/advice please, I'm about to order (tonight or tomorrow)! I've already ordered the 770 from somewhere else (Gigabyte Windforce 3x)

YOUR BASKET
1 x KFA2 Geforce GTX 770 EX OC 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (77XPH6DV6KXZ) £339.95
1 x Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail with FREE Grid 2 PC Game £194.99
1 x Gigabyte Z87X-D3H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £131.99
1 x BitFenix Shinobi XL Full Tower Gaming Windowed Case - Black £114.95
1 x XFX Pro Series 750W XXX Edition Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £85.99
1 x Samsung SpinPoint M8 2.5" 1TB 5400RPM SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM (HN-M101MBB) HDD £62.99
1 x Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU) £43.99
Total : £991.34 (includes shipping : £13.75).



Note: The hard drive is for my PS3. I have an SSD (and 3TB drives) already. I will be using my old PC for the family, and putting the PS3's 500GB in it. 2 birds etc.
 
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Finally pulled the trigger.

Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (BLS2CP4G3D1609DS1S00CEU)
XFX Pro Series 750W XXX Edition Modular '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply
Gigabyte Z87X-D3H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard
Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail with FREE Grid 2 PC Game
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (120mm)
Fractal Design Define R4 PC Case - Black/Pearl (after research, it seem the Shinobi XL has some issues being loud)
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 1046MHz 2GB PCI-E 3.0 HDMI Windforce 3X


Thank you everyone for your invaluable advice! I hope I have no issues installing it all, and the 770 fits inside the Fractal case.
 
Great choice. Haswell i5 really is a fabulous chip, and despite various comments about it running hot . "pah". The motherboard also is great. The rest I can't comment on.
 
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