Newcomer to building PC's - In need of some help please.

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Joined
1 Apr 2010
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10
Hey OCUK Users,

I am in need of some help/advice about my buy list for my new PC. It's a Mid-range/High-spec set-up which I am looking to spend no more than £650 on. I have a set-up already made up but I need to make sure that everything is compatible and that it will actually work well.

Bearing in mind I already have a two 500GB hard-drive's to go in and Windows 7 HE, here is the rest of the set-up:

  • Avenge Power Black Tornado ATX Case
  • Asus M4N72-E Motherboard
  • 2x XFX ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB GDDR5 (CrossFire)
  • 4 GB PC8500 / DDR2 1066 240 Pin Memory
  • Corsair TX 850W ATX SLI Compliant Power Supply
  • AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition 3.20GHz (Socket AM3)
  • Zalman CNPS8700-LED CPU Cooler

My major concerns are:

  1. Motherboard/CPU compatibility.
  2. The power supply is sufficient.
  3. Good CPU cooler, and advice on any better.
  4. If the XFX HD 5770 is worth getting compared to other brands.
  5. I know I need thermal grease for the CPU/Cooler. What other leads/accessories will I need?.

Thanks in advance for any advice given. Like I say, complete newcomer to building PC's but I have good knowledge of PC components from fitting new GPU's and other misc PCI-e cards.

Cheers! :D
 
Hello and welcome to the forums :)

Looking at the cpu support list the board can take the cpu - check the BIOS rev.
The PSU is overkill, you can go down to the Corsair 650w and less.
The cpu cooler in my mind is average and would spend a little more and go for the Arctic freezer or Titan.
The Motherboard can not utilise Crossfire only SLI.

Done a quick spec below:

Product NameQtyPriceLine Total
GX-215-SP_60.jpg
Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 5850 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card£220.99
(£188.08) £220.99
(£188.08)
CP-244-AM_60.jpg
AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £135.99
(£115.74) £135.99
(£115.74)
MY-181-OC_60.jpg
OCZ Obsidian 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 Dual Channel (OCZ3OB1600LV4GK)£89.99
(£76.59) £89.99
(£76.59)
MB-366-AS_60.jpg
Asus M4A79XTD Evo (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard£88.99
(£75.74) £88.99
(£75.74)
CA-031-OC_60.jpg
OCZ ModXStream Pro 600w Silent SLI Certified Modular Power Supply£59.98
(£51.05) £59.98
(£51.05)
CA-160-CM_60.jpg
Coolermaster Elite 335 Case - Black£29.99
(£25.52) £29.99
(£25.52)
FG-000-AR_60.jpg
Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 Pro PWM CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2)£18.99
(£16.16) £18.99
(£16.16) Sub Total : £548.88Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout)Shipping : £11.75VAT is being charged at 17.50%VAT : £98.11 Total : £658.74
 
Send ocuk a webnote and ask.

How about a nice game to play on your new pc? Below is one with a copy of MW2.
 
Just as a follow-up. Ended up going for a cheaper alternative instead. Keeping my motherboard and upgrading everything else.

So my motherboard is an Acer RS780HVF and this is what I ordered:

  • XFX ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
  • Patriot 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 Dual Channel (PDC24G8500ELKR2)
  • AMD Phenom X4 Quad Core 9850 2.50GHz Black Edition (Socket AM2)
  • OCZ StealthXStream 500w Silent Power Supply
  • Coolermaster Elite 335 Case - Black
  • Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler
  • Akasa AK-455 Thermal Compound

For just over the £400 mark. Incredibly reasonable price. Cheers for all the help again.
 
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