Please help with 1st build

Ineedhelpplease said:
"Supports ATI® Quad-GPU CrossFireX™ Technology" Does this mean I could put a second Gfx card in some day, if I wanted? I don't think I would be likely to but interested to know.
Click to expand...

This depends on the particular motherboard, just because it has two PCI-E 16X slots, doesnt mean it runs both slots at the same speed (giving each card an equal share)

Motherboards that do it properly are,

ASUS PRO
Gigabyte UD4
MSI GD55/65

there are more, but cost more money.

Ineedhelpplease said:
It seems my best choice of graphics card is the 5850 as the cheaper option and the 6950 (again is Asus ok?) if I spend a bit more. Is the extra £60 worth it in terms of performance and the length of time it will remain useful?
I noticed no one is recommending nvidia cards, yet I had thought them to be pretty good cards from my initial research. Are there none worth considering for my set up? Maybe I shouldn't risk introducing more options!! :D
Click to expand...

Yep, the 5850 is the best low end card for you, the 6950 1GB is this much faster,

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/295?vs=331

I didnt put a Nvidia GPU in for the reason being the GTX560ti is slower than the 6950 1GB or 2GB, the GTX80 at £190 is an extremely powerful card ( it will need a 900w PSU if you wanted SLI), I would pick the GTX480 over all the other cards.

Ineedhelpplease said:
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) - Do you think this is a good buy at £38.99?
Click to expand...

This HDD is currently on special offer today only,

just pick the cheapest between it and this when you are looking to order - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-248-SE&groupid=701&catid=14&subcat=1279
 
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Thanks again for all the advice.

I have just spotted this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-119-MS Clearly there are evil forces at work to temp me to up the budget once again!! At £20 more than the 1gb version what do you think?

Stulid, When you say you would buy the GTX480 above all the other cards do you mean above the other nvidias or all cards including ATI? It looks like it might be overkill for my needs at the moment.

I don't think I am likely to bother with 2 graphics cards. It seems to me there are always going to be single cards that do the job well enough so I am not going to spend extra on a board that has that feature.

Has anyone else heard bad things about Asus boards? Maybe I have been just unlucky in what I have read but there seem to be a fair few posts along the lines of "My motherboard detonated and melted my face. Yes, its an Asus!" or "My motherboard kidnapped my famliy. Yes, its an Asus!!" Im exagerating but you know what I mean. I suppose because I know so little about motherboards I am clinging on to anything I hear that helps narrow it down. Maybe I should just go for that Asus you recommend?

Is it just the MSI version of the 6950 that can be "flashed" to a 6970? Is that something I could do easily?

Thanks again......:)
 
Ineedhelpplease said:
Thanks again for all the advice.

I have just spotted this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-119-MS Clearly there are evil forces at work to temp me to up the budget once again!! At £20 more than the 1gb version what do you think?
Click to expand...

If you can afford it, why not, there will come a time the extra Vram makes a difference.

Ineedhelpplease said:
Stulid, When you say you would buy the GTX480 above all the other cards do you mean above the other nvidias or all cards including ATI? It looks like it might be overkill for my needs at the moment.
Click to expand...

Yep. other anything else, its got raw grunt, I prefer Nvidia drivers, I find them just better.

Ineedhelpplease said:
Has anyone else heard bad things about Asus boards? Maybe I have been just unlucky in what I have read but there seem to be a fair few posts along the lines of "My motherboard detonated and melted my face. Yes, its an Asus!" or "My motherboard kidnapped my famliy. Yes, its an Asus!!" Im exagerating but you know what I mean. I suppose because I know so little about motherboards I am clinging on to anything I hear that helps narrow it down. Maybe I should just go for that Asus you recommend?
Click to expand...

There are more complaints with ASUS P67 boards than other ones it seems, just a quick browse of the motherboard section shows this.

Ineedhelpplease said:
Is it just the MSI version of the 6950 that can be "flashed" to a 6970? Is that something I could do easily?
Thanks again......:)
Click to expand...

Yes.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18221844
 
Hi

Thanks again, Stulid. I had almost made my mind up to go with the ATI 5850 as an alternative to the gtx 460 if I went budget but now I think it will be worth it to spend a bit more and have a longer lasting card (and after all my hard work I do think I will deserve to see some high quality graphics:D) That means I think the 6950 might be best as I cant really find anything else in the same performance range that doesnt cost more.
Are you saying the ATI drivers could be a problem? I can only find the 560 on the Nvidia side that seems comparable to the 6950. Is this right? 560 is more expensive so I dont think it is on the cards.

Powersupply - I read it doesnt have many connectors in a review. It has 13. Is this a problem for my set up?

I am really lost on the motherboard selection. I will avoid Asus but I could do with advice. Is the one in my selection below ok? will it work with the rest of my components? Anything it should have that it hasnt? Anything it has that I dont need to pay for?

Is there anything I need to consider with RAM? I will go with the 4gb but is the one in my selection ok? is there much to choose between different makes and models?

Ok, this is what I am looking at at the moment although this is the hopeful version. I think I might have to go with the 1gb 6950 really but just getting a feel for it. I suppose this is what I want to buy but I need to consider the added cost of windows7.
I think a bit of hard thinking is in order for me tomorrow, to decide what my budget limit is.

Well maybe its time to take stock. My original requirements are to play all my current games at high settings (Left 4 dead2, oblivion, the witcher, etc) but also be ok for a good few years down the line. I am looking at Battlefield 3 and Skyrim and games I want this to be able to handle well ( I know they are not out so dont know specs). Do you think I have got it about right or is it maybe not up to the task? Or have I got carried away and listed things that are more powerful and expensive than necessary?

Your basket
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 Twin FrozR II 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 Twin FrozR II 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £199.99
(£166.66) £199.99
(£166.66)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor with FREE Operation Flashpoint Red River Game Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor with FREE Operation Flashpoint Red River Game £155.99
(£129.99) £155.99
(£129.99)
Gigabyte P67A-UD3-B3 Intel P67 Chipset (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** Gigabyte P67A-UD3-B3 Intel P67 Chipset (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** £105.20
(£87.67) £105.20
(£87.67)
Coolermaster HAF 912 Plus Case - Black Coolermaster HAF 912 Plus Case - Black £58.99
(£49.16) £58.99
(£49.16)
OCZ StealthXStream 2 600W Power Supply OCZ StealthXStream 2 600W Power Supply £50.99
(£42.49) £50.99
(£42.49)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £43.99
(£36.66) £43.99
(£36.66)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £35.99
(£29.99) £35.99
(£29.99)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£14.99) £17.99
(£14.99)
Sub Total : £557.61
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £114.02
Total : £684.13

Anyway, sorry for rambling on again. I think I will order in the next day or so so just want to get it right. It is a lot of cash to spend!

Thanks again
 
 
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I think you did well on your spec, stulid has already pointed out some minor tweaks to improve it.

The gfx card scene is confusing. I have seen versions of the 5870 going for the same price you are paying for the 6950 Frozr II. Seeing as the 6950 just tops it and is a newer generation card that would be my choice. The frozr III is only £10 more and has higher clock speeds anyway never mind the flashing stulid mentioned.

Good luck with the build, any problems you know where we are.

p.s nice touch coping a game for free too btw ;)
 
Hello again.

Thanks for the advice. I think I am almost there now and I plan to order the parts tonight if I can sort out my last few decisions.

I think I will go for that MSI board that supports SLI/crossfire, stulid. Although I don't really think I am likely to use 2 GPUs you never know and I think it is good to get a solid motherboard with lots of features so i keep more options for the future.

For the Graphics card I am set on the 6950 2gb version, but which one?

This one is a bit cheaper than the Frozr11 and appears to be almost identical but flashable - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-119-MS so that is in.

I think this is the final spec. Just need to add windows.

I will be back on in a bit and then i think the order will be placed unless anyone can see any prblems. Does everything definitely work together? Exciting, yet scary!

Your basket
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card MSI ATI Radeon HD 6950 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £191.99
(£159.99) £191.99
(£159.99)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor with FREE Operation Flashpoint Red River Game Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor with FREE Operation Flashpoint Red River Game £155.99
(£129.99) £155.99
(£129.99)
MSI P67A-GD53 Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** MSI P67A-GD53 Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** £109.99
(£91.66) £109.99
(£91.66)
OCZ StealthXStream 2 600W Power Supply OCZ StealthXStream 2 600W Power Supply £50.99
(£42.49) £50.99
(£42.49)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £43.99
(£36.66) £43.99
(£36.66)
Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £42.98
(£35.82) £42.98
(£35.82)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £35.99
(£29.99) £35.99
(£29.99)
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA Lightscribe ReWriter (Black) - OEM Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA Lightscribe ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£14.99) £17.99
(£14.99)
Sub Total : £541.59
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £110.82
Total : £664.91

Cheers
 
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Looks great. Really is down to the gfx card now. Note the twin fans on the msi Frozr III, the one you spec has the reference blower sytle fan (this design is usually pretty loud!). The Frozr is clocked higher anyway but would expect it to OC better with the different cooler.

You could OC the card you spec'd of course it's just the fan speed will rise and so will the noise. Really is down to you fella to decide based on cost and what you can live with.

Good luck with it all
 
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This is so very difficult. Every single option always has a better one just £10 pound ahead.!
Considering I started with a £600 budget and I somehow managed to ignore the cost of Windows entirely I don't know if I can go with the more expensive card. I didntplan on spending more than £130 on a graphics card when I started out! Haha!:D The noise does bother me though. Would there really be much noticable improvement in the higher card? How loud is loud?

Maybe I should consider the windows and hard drive bundles to save money? Do they mean I can't remove Windows from that one hard dive?
 
You can also consider this - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=gx-130-ms - http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/msi/gtx_560_twin_frozr_ii/23.html

The windows bundle is sensible if your trying to save money, and you can reinstall windows as many times as you want, OEM means its tied to the motherboard.

So you get this,

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
MSI GeForce GTX 560Ti Twin FrozR II 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £164.99
(£137.49) £164.99
(£137.49)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor with FREE Operation Flashpoint Red River Game £155.99
(£129.99) £155.99
(£129.99)
MSI P67A-GD53 Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** £109.99
(£91.66) £109.99
(£91.66)
Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit £68.40
(£57.00) £68.40
(£57.00)
Options applied to the above product:
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £32.99
(£27.49) £32.99
(£27.49)
OCZ StealthXStream 2 600W Power Supply £50.99
(£42.49) £50.99
(£42.49)
Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £42.98
(£35.82) £42.98
(£35.82)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £35.99
(£29.99) £35.99
(£29.99)
Sony Optiarc AD-5260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £15.98
(£13.32) £15.98
(£13.32)
Sub Total : £565.25
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £13.75
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £115.80
Total : £694.80


Hopefully this price is more convenient? the GTX560ti offer ends before 09.00hrs tomorrow, or if the remaining 8 are sold.
 
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Thanks, Stulid. I'm glad you are still awake!

That price is better although the introduction of a new graphics card option may well melt my brain before the night is out:confused:

I think I might press ahead with the mighty 6950 2gb. I imagine having double the memory must make it quite a bit faster?

That windows bundle does make the cost a bit less painful but is the hard drive that comes with it any good? It loos to be slower and have half the cahe as the samsung i had. Would that have any noticable effect?
 
Ineedhelpplease said:
Thanks, Stulid. I'm glad you are still awake!

That price is better although the introduction of a new graphics card option may well melt my brain before the night is out:confused:

I think I might press ahead with the mighty 6950 2gb. I imagine having double the memory must make it quite a bit faster?

That windows bundle does make the cost a bit less painful but is the hard drive that comes with it any good? It loos to be slower and have half the cahe as the samsung i had. Would that have any noticable effect?
Click to expand...

The HDD wont have any effect that you will notice, yes the other drives such as Samsung F3 and Seagate 7200.12 are faster, but not by much, the other two get specced all the time as they are actually cheaper if you didnt need the bundle.


Is the 2GB of ram useful? this now depends on the resolution you want to game at? and the extra ram will last longer if any games come out with bigger more detailed textures, you can see in that Techpowerup review how the GTX560 drops back from the 6950 2GB at resolutions of 2560X1600

Is the £30 difference enough?

Extra fuel on the fire - http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2011/04/14/kfa-gtx-560-ti-1gb-ltd-oc-review/3 - thats an overclocked GTX560ti compared against a series of cards including a reference 6950 2GB like the MSI.
 
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Ok. I will go with the bundle to cover Windows and the hard drive.

That just leaves the seemingly impossible choice of the graphics card.

There seem to be loads of price/performance combinations. I have got stats overload! I think I need to take a moment to assess but timer is ticking on that offer. I think I am going to have to risk letting it pass and sleep on it.

This is more stressful that I imagined!:D

Thanks so much for all the advice, Stulid. It is really appreciated. in fact I can't believe how quickly I've gone from deciding to do this to having nearly everything sorted. It's just this pesky graphics card.

I am torn between keeping the cost down and paying that little bit more to give it a longer life and perhaps better perfomance now. I need to remember that I didnt want to get caught up too much in paying more for a bit more power when the cheaper one might be capable of everything I need.

This comparison http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/331?vs=330 suggests the 560 is quite similar or even less speedy than the 6950 1gb so I thought the 2gb would be much better and the flashing to 6970 thing would surely make it even better. But then there are other things like you showed me that say the 560 is way better. It is impossible haha.
 
Well I didnt know/realise the cost was getting so much for you, perhaps you should take stock and get the price down with the GTX560ti, which will last lots of years im sure.

What is the size/resolution of your screen?

You could put the £30 difference towards an graphics card upgrade in 5 years time.

The other option is to see what the weekend deals bring tomorrow at 09.00hrs, you may get lucky, you may not.
 
Its not so much that the cost is getting too much. More that now I'm nearly at the point of being ready to buy it all I'm getting the worry that I might regret some of my choices if i rush them.

My monitor is an old one and is likely to be upgraded toward the end of the year so its probably not worth taking into account but i think it goes up to around 1920 by 1+++something.

I think I will call it a night and see what the morning brings. Nearly there!!

Thanks again for putting up with my questions and giving such helpful advice.
 
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