Spec check

[unclelonghair]

Was going to just upgrade my GFX card, but the rest of my PC is showing it's age now, so thinking about a complete upgrade.

Thinking about this:

Cooler Master CM-690 II Advanced USB3.0 Dominator Case - Black 79.98
OCZ ZT 650W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply 79.99
Gigabyte Z77-D3H 89.98
i5 3570K 179.99
Antec Kúhler H2O 920 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler 84.98
Samsung Green 8Gb (2x4Gb) DDR3 53.99
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive 99.95
Sapphire HD 6950 OC "Dual Fan Edition" 2048MB 169.99
Total 838.85

Anywhere I could save some money, or get better performance for the same money? I could reuse my existing case and psu to save some cash if necessary or put into a better GPU/more memory, but would like a smaller case and a modular psu. I already have a Blu Ray drive and additional storage HDD's.

Main use is watching downloaded TV, movies etc and general surfing, plus some gaming (online stuff - planning to play TSW on release).

Thanks.

 

[RJC]

everything will work together, just couple of options;

The Samsung memory is nice but slightly expensive, the memory below is slightly cheaper:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-132-CR&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1517

And the retail CPU is around £10 more which offers 3 years warranty, cooler and a fancy box.

GPU: 7850:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-295-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=411

Comparison:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/510?vs=549

 

[unclelonghair]

So this would be a better choice?

Cooler Master CM-690 II Advanced USB3.0 Dominator Case - Black 79.98
OCZ ZT 650W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply 79.99
Gigabyte Z77-D3H 89.98
i5 3570K Retail 189.95
Antec Kúhler H2O 920 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler 84.98
Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 38.39
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive 99.95
Sapphire HD 7850 2048MB GDDR5 191.99

Total 855.21

Is the cooler choice a good one, or could I get similar performance from a cheaper air cooler like this? http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-038-AR&groupid=701&catid=57&subcat=1395

 

[Doomedspeed]

So this would be a better choice?

Cooler Master CM-690 II Advanced USB3.0 Dominator Case - Black 79.98
OCZ ZT 650W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply 79.99
Gigabyte Z77-D3H 89.98
i5 3570K Retail 189.95
Antec Kúhler H2O 920 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler 84.98
Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 38.39
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive 99.95
Sapphire HD 7850 2048MB GDDR5 191.99

Total 855.21

Is the cooler choice a good one, or could I get similar performance from a cheaper air cooler like this? http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-038-AR&groupid=701&catid=57&subcat=1395

Yes, that spec is better.

The all-in-one coolers are good, though i prefer air coolers. [the only reason i have a H50 is there is no space for a big air cooler]

The one you suggested is good and will give you decent results when Overclocking. Though if you a looking a bit more high end, the K2 is the 'daddy' of air coolers. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-020-AL

 

[unclelonghair]

My only worry about the monster air coolers is the strain they put on the motherboard/clips. I had the clips fail on an Arctic Cooling 7. My thoughts on going for one of the all-in-ones was that it takes a lot of the weight off the motherboard, and should make it easier to maintain a good contact between the heatsink and cpu, or is this not an issue?

 

[Doomedspeed]

My only worry about the monster air coolers is the strain they put on the motherboard/clips. I had the clips fail on an Arctic Cooling 7. My thoughts on going for one of the all-in-ones was that it takes a lot of the weight off the motherboard, and should make it easier to maintain a good contact between the heatsink and cpu, or is this not an issue?

I've never experienced the Strain with air coolers personally or through my friends, so i didn't consider it. Obviously, you have had this happen, so it is worth learning from that experience.

All-in-ones are great but can be quite loud a not offer much over a mid-priced air cooler, though it does free up a bit of space and obviously put less strain on the clips.

If you feel happier going with an all-in-one, go for it. You won't miss much and you'll have peace of mind, win-win, right?

 

[olivier renault]

Gigabyte UDH series boards are extra rigid. Not to mention very good.

Water cooler units are usually bes served with custom fans, and are useful in small cases. But to be fair, you don't need a monster cooler. My pick would be the Thermalright True Spirit 120, but there are loads that perform well and dont weight a ton. The Megahalems, True Black, VenomousX, although relatively meaty wont cause problems to motherboards. Or even the big ones. They mounting brackets are designed to spread the load, although moving the case about, it is best to remove the lump of metal, or at least secure it.