Spec/Component Check

[BCFCMike]

Motherboard; Asus P8Z77-V LX ATX LGA1155
CPU; Intel Core i5-3570 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
PSU; XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V
RAM; Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600
HDD; Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
SDD; Sandisk Extreme 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive/Disk
Graphics; Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 2GB
CD/DVD Drive; LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer

All fitting inside a Zalman Z11 Plus.

Monitor; LG 21.5" E2242C-BN LED
OS; Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit

My aim; To have a very rapid machine, and run Football Manager 2013 at it's best. Not really into PC Gaming that much, only FM really, and maybe the odd Simulator game.

Recommendations?

My budget is £700ish, so any improvements would probably have to be small...

 

[Antowns]

I can't imagine football manager needing much in terms of GPU power, but running simulators is a whole different story. Those specs look alright to me, If it were me I'd change the SSD to a different make.

 

[BCFCMike]

I can't imagine football manager needing much in terms of GPU power, but running simulators is a whole different story. Those specs look alright to me, If it were me I'd change the SSD to a different make.

Cheers for the reply bud. It's the 3D Match Engine in FM that I want to run at it's best, pretty sure that GPU is fine though. what makes would you recommend for the SSD? Don't really want an increase in price...

Also, tempted to get CPU cooler for £13.99 just to be on the safe side. I know as I won't be overclocking it, I shouldn't need a cooler, but to make it quieter, does it really make a difference?

 

[Gav_881]

everyone will tell you to get the sammy 830/840 drives or an M4

 

[Idleman]

Do you already have the case, monitor and OS, or are they to be included in your budget.
If not, then this.

YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI GeForce GTX 660 OC Twin Frozr 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with FREE Assassin's Creed III PC Game £179.99
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £59.99
1 x PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III Series 500W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply - White £59.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Thermalright True Spirit 120 REV A CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/AM2/AM3/FM1) £24.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £707.84 (includes shipping : £10.00).

 

[BCFCMike]

Sorry, should have been more clear. Everything is included my budget, including the case and monitor etc.

 

[Idleman]

With OS.

YOUR BASKET
1 x BenQ GL2250 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £99.95
1 x Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 OC 2048MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £83.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Intel Core i3-3220 3.30GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £43.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £713.29 (includes shipping : £13.75).



Without, but use Win8 Evaluation for a few months.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/jj554510.aspx

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3450 3.10GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £137.99
1 x Samsung S23B550V 23" Widescreen LED MHL Monitor - Black £129.95
1 x Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 OC 2048MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £43.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £713.30 (includes shipping : £13.75).

 

[honosuseri]

I would take the Z9 over the Z11. I actually own the Z9 plus it's a great starters case although there is now a USB3 version available.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x Samsung 120GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD120BW) £86.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) £69.95
1 x Corsair Enthusiast Series TX550M High Performance 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply (CP-9020001-UK) £59.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £666.74 (includes shipping : £12.50).



Look for a second hand 460. I've seen them on our MM here recently for £50ish. The 640 is a waste of cash, even the 650 loses to a 460.

Hope this helps

 

[Idleman]

I would take the Z9 over the Z11. I actually own the Z9 plus it's a great starters case although there is now a USB3 version available.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x Samsung 120GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD120BW) £86.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) £69.95
1 x Corsair Enthusiast Series TX550M High Performance 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply (CP-9020001-UK) £59.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £666.74 (includes shipping : £12.50).



Look for a second hand 460. I've seen them on our MM here recently for £50ish. The 640 is a waste of cash, even the 650 loses to a 460.

Hope this helps

Nice spec, just one problem. With the added cost of the 460 and a monitor, will bring the OP`s budget closer to £800 rather than his initial £700ish.

 

[BCFCMike]

Aye, I can't really go above the budget TBH :/

I was going for the 640 just because I thought it will do for now, until I have enough to splash out for something better if I end up getting caught up with PC Gaming..

 

[honosuseri]

Nice spec, just one problem. With the added cost of the 460 and a monitor, will bring the OP`s budget closer to £800 rather than his initial £700ish.

Yes this is true, I forgot to suggest using a HDTV as a monitor in my post, I do apologise. You did suggest using the windows 8 developers edition which could be used for 3 months and would help pay for a monitor in my spec.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x BenQ GL2250 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £99.95
1 x Samsung 120GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD120BW) £86.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Corsair Enthusiast Series TX550M High Performance 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply (CP-9020001-UK) £59.99
1 x Toshiba (7K1000.D) 500GB SATA 6GB/s 32MB Cache - OEM (DT01ACA050) £47.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £662.24 (includes shipping : £13.75).



My point was not to bother with the weak dedicated GPU (640). Infact he might find he is ok with the IGP for a while. He would still need to buy an OS in the new year but that spec should leave him enough cash to find a 2nd hand 460.

 

[BCFCMike]

I do have a 32" HDTV I could use for the time being, which I have been tempted by, but I like the idea of having a monitor + the tv, for watching the football etc..

Regarding the PSU you've chosen, aren't the Corsair ones quite unreliable? Or is that only a certain model?

 

[areksnumbr1sxylady]

Yes this is true, I forgot to suggest using a HDTV as a monitor in my post, I do apologise. You did suggest using the windows 8 developers edition which could be used for 3 months and would help pay for a monitor in my spec.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x BenQ GL2250 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £99.95
1 x Samsung 120GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD120BW) £86.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Corsair Enthusiast Series TX550M High Performance 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply (CP-9020001-UK) £59.99
1 x Toshiba (7K1000.D) 500GB SATA 6GB/s 32MB Cache - OEM (DT01ACA050) £47.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Xigmatek Achilles II SD1284 CPU-Cooler - 120mm (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/1366 AMD AM2/AM3/FM1) £23.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £662.24 (includes shipping : £13.75).



My point was not to bother with the weak dedicated GPU (640). Infact he might find he is ok with the IGP for a while. He would still need to buy an OS in the new year but that spec should leave him enough cash to find a 2nd hand 460.

everyone is scared of getting that PSu these days.

 

[honosuseri]

They are good units, Idleman suggested an alternative in white but it has less power. I've heard people complain about XFX too but they are seasonic made units rebranded. Obviously the people who get faulty goods are more vocal than those who have working kit.

I used a modular PSU as it is a great help when building in midi tower cases. The Z9 doesn't have a lot of space between the back of the mobo tray and the side panel so the fewer cables you have to hide the better really.

P.S

Idleman.....nvidia has new beta drivers out (310.54) if you are interested

 

[Idleman]

I do have a 32" HDTV I could use for the time being, which I have been tempted by, but I like the idea of having a monitor + the tv, for watching the football etc..

Regarding the PSU you've chosen, aren't the Corsair ones quite unreliable? Or is that only a certain model?

With your budget and what you want, I think you need to make some compromises. I would forget the ssd and OS for the moment. Just get a decent hdd and use Win8 as suggested. That would be £170 to spend elsewhere. Maybe, just use your TV, then see if you can pick up a monitor in the Christmas sales. Also, do you really need an i5 3570k? The i3 3220 is still a good gaming chip and with the GB Z77 mobo, you can always upgrade the Cpu.

 

[Idleman]

P.S
Idleman.....nvidia has new beta drivers out (310.54) if you are interested

Cheers mate, only ever update when Nvidia send me an email. Never use beta drives, much refer the finished article. But thanks anyway.

 

[honosuseri]

Cheers mate, only ever update when Nvidia send me an email. Never use beta drives, much refer the finished article. But thanks anyway.

Fair enough geez. I had no issues with the last beta drivers and they really did improve my 460s performance. I have these new beta drivers installed but yet to test in game.

 

[BCFCMike]

The reviews at various places suggest that the Sandisk Extreme SSD is more than acceptable, so I'm sticking with that rather than choosing a more high profile manufacturer at a higher price.

I've also changed the CPU to the I5-3470, just to save £20 odd quid.

I'm probably going to buy my monitor second hand or refurbished, which should also save a few quid. So I'd say I am down to about £670 (Including the OS), I have taken your suggestions onboard, but TBH, I'd prefer just to get the whole lot at the same time.

Regarding the GPU, are their any significant improvements on other cards which are only maybe a few quid more? I had a look at the 460, it's going well over £100 at retail though and TBH i'd prefer to buy all my components brand spanking new.

Order placing starts tonight

Oh, also going for the Z9 Plus as suggested.

 

[BCFCMike]

With OS.

YOUR BASKET
1 x BenQ GL2250 21.5" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £99.95
1 x Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 OC 2048MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £83.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Intel Core i3-3220 3.30GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £43.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £713.29 (includes shipping : £13.75).



Without, but use Win8 Evaluation for a few months.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/jj554510.aspx

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3450 3.10GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £137.99
1 x Samsung S23B550V 23" Widescreen LED MHL Monitor - Black £129.95
1 x Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 OC 2048MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card £89.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £43.99
1 x Zalman Z9 Plus Tower Case with Fan Controller - Black £39.95
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £713.30 (includes shipping : £13.75).

OC Seem to have raised the price to £52.99 for the Z9 Plus case

 

[honosuseri]

I'd get the screen new and the GPU 2nd hand fella. Prices have changed slightly and the offers change tomoz too.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £159.95
1 x Samsung 120GB SSD 840 SATA 6Gb/s Basic - (MZ-7TD120BW) £86.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £81.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) £69.95
1 x Corsair Enthusiast Series TX550M High Performance 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Modular Power Supply (CP-9020001-UK) £59.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX8GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Thermalright True Spirit 120 REV A CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/1155/1156/AM2/AM3/FM1) £24.98
1 x OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £14.99
Total : £659.89 (includes shipping : £11.75).



The only new GPU I would personally use is a 2GB 7850 or an nvidia 660. These GPUs are £160ish. A 2nd hand 460 at £50ish would be very capable and since you don't seem that bothered about gaming it's not a massive amount of cash to put up to allow the rig to play games.