Specs for a £800-900 Computer

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 19:36

Hi,

I'm looking for a computer on around a £800 budget.

I will use the computer for 3D graphics and video rendering (+gaming).

I know that for a computer for video rendering/editing people normally look at above the £1000 mark but I cannot afford that.

i7 is obviously desirable but in some benchmarks the i5 keeps up with it, and sometimes even beats it, so I'm at a loss.

I am also confused on the graphics card. Lots of benchmarks seem to conflict. I was looking at the 6950 or a 560 Ti but I honestly have no idea.

And I would love a case that has the space behind the motherboard for cables, as it makes them tidy which I like (doesn't everyone?).

Monitor is not needed.

Window 7 is needed.

Thanks for reading, I know I am being quite demanding for my budget and I understand that compromises may have to be made. I have tried to provide as much information on what I want as possible, because I hate vague posts so I try not to inflict them on other people. So any advice?

EDIT: I'll build it myself, it will be my first time, but I have spoken to people and they say that it isn't hard.

Thanks,
Smithy

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 19:41

if its too much money, this 5850 will drop it closer to nearly £800 - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-259-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1711

BriT · 11 Apr 2011 at 19:42

nevermind lol

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:03

stulid said:
if its too much money, this 5850 will drop it closer to nearly £800 - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-259-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1711

Thanks, TBH I don't know how you come up with these they are amazing. Only 1 issue though, I steered away from the 480 as my room is very hot and apparently the 480 will turn it into a sauna. Would replacing it with a 6950 be a huge issue? Or could a custom cooling solution be an option?

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:04

BriT said:
nevermind lol

Haha he always beats other people. lol

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:05

Smithy0115 said:
Would replacing it with a 6950 be a huge issue? Or could a custom cooling solution be an option?

Straight swap, but if your gaming isn't to intense how about the 5850 thats currently £107, 5870 for £150?

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:09

stulid said:
Straight swap, but if your gaming isn't to intense how about the 5850 thats currently £107, 5870 for £150?

I'm not sure what intense gaming warrants?

Also I assume the SSD would be the boot drive, so would that only affect boot times?

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:10

Smithy0115 said:
I'm not sure what intense gaming warrants?

Also I assume the SSD would be the boot drive, so would that only affect boot times?

boot times. game loading times, program start up times. etc

5870 vs 6950 = http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/294?vs=293

what size monitor/resolution do you have?

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:13

stulid said:
boot times. game loading times, program start up times. etc

5870 vs 6950 = http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/294?vs=293

what size monitor/resolution do you have?

Whoa, didn't realise the 5870 and 6950 were so similar. Looks like its a 5870 for me. Why would the SSD affect game loading times, I thought they were stored on the HDD?

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:15

Smithy0115 said:
Whoa, didn't realise the 5870 and 6950 were so similar. Looks like its a 5870 for me. Why would the SSD affect game loading times, I thought they were stored on the HDD?

Install windows and 4-5 of your favorite games/apps on the SSD, thats about what a 60GB SSD can store.

Use the HDD for general storage.

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:21

stulid said:
Install windows and 4-5 of your favorite games/apps on the SSD, thats about what a 60GB SSD can store.

Use the HDD for general storage.

Would it be worth the £100 premium? Could I add later? Does Windows 7 let you install it twice so I could install it onto a normal HDD now and then install it on a SDD once I get one?

Hope it made sense,
Smithy

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:22

You can add it later no problems.

Just install windows on it, do all the drivers etc, and then format the other HDD to become a storage drive.

simples

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:27

stulid said:
You can add it later no problems.

Just install windows on it, do all the drivers etc, and then format the other HDD to become a storage drive.

simples

Thanks! That £110 5850 is extremely tempting and taking away the SSD leave it at around the 720 mark. That seems like a deal to me, I suppose I could always Crossfire later.

Thanks for all the help,
Smithy

stulid · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:32

Smithy0115 said:
Thanks! That £110 5850 is extremely tempting and taking away the SSD leave it at around the 720 mark. That seems like a deal to me, I suppose I could always Crossfire later.

Thanks for all the help,
Smithy

You need a different motherboard that can run both PCI-E slots at identical speeds, and a slightly beefier PSU that has four PCI-E connectors(2 per card)

The spec posted before was really just a single card type system.

Smithy0115 · 11 Apr 2011 at 20:36

stulid said:
You need a different motherboard that can run both PCI-E slots at identical speeds, and a slightly beefier PSU that has four PCI-E connectors(2 per card)

The spec posted before was really just a single card type system.

Ohh, modular. Always liked the look of those. I think it'll be worth the extra money to future-proof it (if you can even do that with Intel and their sockets) at least a little.