Techno-Noob out of his depth...

HannibalBarca

HannibalBarca

HannibalBarca

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Joined
5 Mar 2015
Posts
37
Hey all,

So I'm planning on buying a new gaming computer, with a maximum budget of just over 1500 pounds (that's including all of the bells and whistles, office and monitor and keyboard and mouse etc.), was wondering if anybody could tell me if this was a decent way to go:


Case: VitFenix Shadow Tower
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor
(Stage1 Overclock)
GPU: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 G1 Gaming 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Mobo: Gigabyte Z97X-Gaming 5 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard
Cooling: Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler
RAM: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-17100C11 2133MHz Dual Channel Kit - Black/Red (HX21C11BRK2/8-OC)
Hard Drive: Kingston HyperX 3K SSD 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (SH103S3/120G) / Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD


I do have one major question, when I go to save this in my basket, in the overview it says "Networking Not Selected"; does this mean it won't have wireless internet? Because I want it to, but when I go back there doesn't seem to be a category to select for it...

Any input would be greatly appreciated
 
I will have to research the motherboard more closely;

I'm also curious about the cooler - on the regular gaming pc configurator water cooling isn't put as an option (I've been told the h80I is a generally good one); will the fan cooling options on the configurator I saw service me alright?
 
lee32uk said:
Is this a pre-built system ?
Click to expand...

This is on the overclockers' configurator. When I said in the title that I'm a techno-noob, I meant it. This'll be the first serious gaming computer I've ever had, and I'm looking for help because I'm still struggling with what all of the specs mean in terms of their translation to performance.
 
The cooler will be fine for the setup, gets good reviews :)

You will need to add a wireless card, whether you chose a USB or PCI variant- do you know what router your using?

Hello and welcome to the forum :)
 
Welcome to the forum Hannibal,

Straight off - there are newer and better cases now, including from BitFenix. The Shadow can get toasty. No vents on the top panel, nor side, and poor front ventilation for intake. If you really fancy it, it'll be fine just not the best you could get for the money, imo.

Second, don't pay for an overclock that you can easily learn to do yourself. Also, overclocks can fail at any moment despite you paying for them. So it's a luxury I wouldn't pay for.

Third - don't use the website configurator. Pick out the parts you want, or choose a spec someone posts, and post your basket in Customer Services, and ask them to build it. You get a bit better for your money that way I've noticed.

To display your basket here, visit these links and download the most suitable for you (I use the Chrome version) -

http://ocuk-shopping-cart-to-forum-converter.googlecode.com/git/INSTALL.htm

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/ocuk-shopping-cart-viewer/empfloiadabicdlgahhamannadefhehj


As for wireless, just pick out the network adapter you want (card/USB or Powerlines) and add it too. Because that motherboard doesn't bring wireless.
 
Thank you all for the welcome and the advice;

When I try to install the chromse version of that app it keeps redirecting me to install chrome, despite that being the browser I'm viewing it on :'(

Here's a copy of the basket I'm looking at at the moment:

OcUK Gamer Xi - Intel Haswell Midi Tower Gaming PC Configurator OcUK Gamer Xi - Intel Haswell Midi Tower Gaming PC Configurator £1415.12
(£1179.27) £1,415.12
(£1,179.27)
Options applied to the above product:
- Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
- BitFenix Shadow Tower Case - Midnight Black
- Eset Smart Security AntiVirus and Internet Security - 1 PC 1 Year License
- OcUK Value AT/ATX "Kettle Plug" 2 Meter Mains Cable
- No Headset Option (Zero Cost)
- MicroLab M1910 64W RMS 5.1 PC Speaker System
- BenQ GL2460 24" Widescreen LED Slim Bezel Monitor - Black
- Mouse Not Selected
- Keyboard Not Selected
- Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler
- Gigabyte Z97X-Gaming 5 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard
- Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail
- Stage 1: Overclock of CPU - 10% Overclock (Proceesor speed x1.10)
- Case Mods Not Selected
- Networking Not Selected
- Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614)
- SuperFlower Golden Green HX 550W "80 Plus Gold" Power Supply - Black
- No Sound Card Upgrade
- OcUK Value Blu-ray / DVDRW combi SATA - OEM
- Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD
- Kingston HyperX 3K SSD 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (SH103S3/120G)
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 G1 Gaming 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
- Kingston HyperX 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-17100C11 2133MHz Dual Channel Kit - Black/Red (HX21C11BRK2/8-OC)
Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 x32/x64 English - (PKC) Product Key Card (MRS-79G-03549) Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 x32/x64 English - (PKC) Product Key Card (MRS-79G-03549) £104.99
(£87.49) £104.99
(£87.49)
CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle - USB Keyboard & Mouse CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle - USB Keyboard & Mouse £34.99
(£29.16) £34.99
(£29.16)
Sub Total : £1,295.92
Shipping cost based on delivery to the UK with:
UPS Access Point
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £8.00
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £260.78
Total : £1,564.70

This was through the configurator;

RJC: The configurator doesn't offer a section to add it, it just says after I've added to basket that it isn't there

Danny75: I wasn't sure about the overclock, I clicked it for the same reason I don't want to build my own comp, is it that easy to do without risking the life of the machine I buy?

For your second point: If I were to pick out the parts piecemeal and then ask them to build it, would I still be able to get an extended warranty on the end result? I have a bad track record with tech in general (a number of devices have unexpectedly imploded on me - no, that's not hyperbole, they literally imploded) so I want a path that still affords some degree of security.

Would somebody be able to advise me in the build above? It was said that the case was a tad anachronistic by this point; I would greatly appreciated recommendations on pretty much every aspect of my build, I've kind of put it together on the fly but I really don't understand the quality of the components as compared with others on the market
 
As mentioned by Danny, you can ask ocuk to build you a system to your own spec.

YOUR BASKET
1 x KFA2 GeForce GTX 970 OC Silent "Infin8 Black Edition" 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **WorldWide Exclusive** £289.99
1 x Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £187.99
1 x IIyama Prolite E2473HS 24" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £119.99
1 x Asus Z97 Pro Gamer Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £107.99
1 x Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 x32/x64 English - (PKC) Product Key Card (MRS-79G-03549) £104.99
1 x EVGA SuperNova G2 750W '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £94.99
1 x Phanteks Enthoo Pro Mid Tower Enthusiast Case with Window £89.99
1 x SK Hynix 256GB SSD SH910A SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (HFS256G32MNB-2201A) £84.98
1 x MicroLab M1910 64W RMS 5.1 PC Speaker System £84.95
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £77.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £66.98
1 x Pioneer BDC-207DBK 8x BluRay ROM / DVDRW SATA-II Optical Drive - Black (OEM) £46.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLRED38G2400HC11CDC01) £44.99
1 x CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle - USB Keyboard & Mouse £34.99
1 x TP-Link 450Mbps Wireless N Dual Band PCI Express Adapter (TL-WDN4800) £26.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Black Heatpipe CPU Cooler PWM - 120mm £19.99
Total : £1,484.78 (includes shipping : ).

 
HannibalBarca said:
When I try to install the chromse version of that app it keeps redirecting me to install chrome, despite that being the browser I'm viewing it on :'(
Click to expand...

Hmm, not sure what the issue there might be. You could also take snapshots of your basket and upload them here if it's easier, so that someone can confirm all is in order before you purchase. Customer Services will also advise you I'm sure, if they are going to build it for you.


HannibalBarca said:
Danny75: I wasn't sure about the overclock, I clicked it for the same reason I don't want to build my own comp, is it that easy to do without risking the life of the machine I buy?
Click to expand...

It is, especially a mild overclock like the one you were going to pay £20 for (that can be spent on something else, or saved). It's just a matter of upping the Vcore (safely - read about your CPU's limits) a little and changing the multiplier, and saving and exiting the BIOS. 90% of the time that's all it takes. Any questions you can post in the Overclocking & Cooling section or 8Pack's sub-forum.


HannibalBarca said:
For your second point: If I were to pick out the parts piecemeal and then ask them to build it, would I still be able to get an extended warranty on the end result? I have a bad track record with tech in general (a number of devices have unexpectedly imploded on me - no, that's not hyperbole, they literally imploded) so I want a path that still affords some degree of security.
Click to expand...

Yes, but post in the Customer Services forum and get confirmation anyway. The average build fee is reportedly around £60 (I did a test earlier on with two identical specs similar to yours, through the configurator and then separately, and the latter method saved £50 compared to the former, even taking into account the £60 build fee). I don't know why that happens, or sometimes happens, but that's why I advise you not to use the configurator.


HannibalBarca said:
Would somebody be able to advise me in the build above? It was said that the case was a tad anachronistic by this point; I would greatly appreciated recommendations on pretty much every aspect of my build, I've kind of put it together on the fly but I really don't understand the quality of the components as compared with others on the market
Click to expand...

Well, take Lee's spec for instance. It has certain improvements where it counts (e.g. larger SSD) and can handle a second video card with the 750W PSU unlike the first spec, which can be a good upgrade in the future and extend the gaming performance/life of your rig. The case is also very good and would probably be my choice as well for your budget (and taking into consideration everything else you need). The monitor has an extra year's warranty + HDMI.

I tweaked Lee's and your spec a bit to come up with an i7-K option. Don't know if you'd prefer that to the 5.1 speakers. The i5-K would be fine for gaming alone. The i7-K is 500MHz faster at stock and has hyperthreading.


YOUR BASKET
1 x MSI Z97S SLI Plus - Devil's Canyon Core i7 4790K OEM CPU & Motherboard Bundle **£35 OFF** £336.97
1 x EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SSC rev2.00 ACX 2.0 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (04G-P4-3975-KR) £289.99
1 x IIyama Prolite E2473HS 24" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £119.99
1 x Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 x32/x64 English - (PKC) Product Key Card (MRS-79G-03549) £104.99
1 x SK Hynix 256GB SSD SH910A SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (HFS256G32MNB-2201A) £84.98
1 x SuperFlower Golden Green HX 750W "80 Plus Gold" Semi-Modular Power Supply - Black £82.99
1 x Phanteks Enthoo Pro Mid Tower Enthusiast Case without Window £79.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614) £77.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD £66.98
1 x Pioneer BDC-207DBK 8x BluRay ROM / DVDRW SATA-II Optical Drive - Black (OEM) £46.99
1 x MicroLab FC360 45W 2.1 Speaker System - Black £46.99
1 x TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLRED38G2400HC11CDC01) £44.99
1 x CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle - USB Keyboard & Mouse £34.99
1 x Linksys AE3000 Adapter Dual Band N USB Adapter £22.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Black Heatpipe CPU Cooler PWM - 120mm £19.99
Total : £1,488.47 (includes shipping : £22.20).



Add £60 or so depending on the quote OcUK give you and that would be the total.

Are you going to use the BluRay at all, and do you have the software, as I think that model comes without it?
 
Heya, thanks for all the replies, it's a great help in making head'n'tails of the matter :)

Okay, so I've been looking at the suggestions you guys made,

1. I've been torn between i5 and i7 and gtx 970 and 980 for a while now; given that the most demanding things my computer will need to do is game, mostly strategy and rpg titles, I was kinda thinking going the upper two would be overkill. I could very theoretically splurge on one or both but would prefer to save the money; would I really see any significant benefit from spending extra on them (I know I sad my max budget was just upwards of 1500, that's more of a desired budget, I could go higher if there's a compelling argument to do so).

2. I've seen different versions of the gtx 970 posted at pretty much the same price; being noobish to the extreme, I don't really understand what differentiates them. Would someone be able to explain that?

3. I'm still in two minds about the cooling. A mate of mine is insisting that anything less than watercooling is a mistake, and yet on this and other forums I've been universally advised to get a cheaper air cooling system; again, is it worth it to the components' longer term longevity to get water cooling or will that be a wasted extra with what I need?

4. mrbazmondo: alas, this is not an option. Where I'm living at the mo, the internet is my landlord's who lives in a separate flat, so no running a cable, Hence wireless being a very important deal for me.

Otherwise, the builds you guys have suggested look good enough to me, when it comes to the case and mobo etc. I know little enough, just want stuff that'll all work well together.

So here's my amended build at the mo:

KFA2 GeForce GTX 970 OC Silent "Infin8 Black Edition" 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **WorldWide Exclusive** : £275.99

Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail: £187.99

IIyama Prolite E2473HS 24" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black: £119.99

Asus Z97 Pro Gamer Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard: £107.99

Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 x32/x64 English - (PKC) Product Key Card (MRS-79G-03549): £104.99

EVGA SuperNova G2 750W '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply: £94.99

SK Hynix 256GB SSD SH910A SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (HFS256G32MNB-2201A): £84.98

MicroLab M1910 64W RMS 5.1 PC Speaker System: £84.95

Phanteks Enthoo Pro Mid Tower Enthusiast Case without Window: £79.99

Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614): £77.99

Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD: £66.98

Pioneer BDC-207DBK 8x BluRay ROM / DVDRW SATA-II Optical Drive - Black (OEM): £46.99

TeamGroup Vulcan RED 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz Dual Channel Kit (TLRED38G2400HC11CDC01): £44.99

CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle - USB Keyboard & Mouse: £34.99

Eset NOD32 AntiVirus - 1 PC 1 Year License: £26.99

TP-Link 450Mbps Wireless N Dual Band PCI Express Adapter (TL-WDN4800: £26.99

Raijintek Themis Black Heatpipe CPU Cooler PWM - 120mm: £19.99

Sub Total : £1,256.47
Total : £1,507.76

Sorry for this monolith of a post, any feedback very greatly appreciated.
 
The i5-K will be fine. If you ever add a second GPU, then the i7-K would cope a bit better but the i5 will be no slouch.

The air cooler will be fine for a modest overclock such as the one you wanted (and actually a little more than that). Something like 4.2GHz. It all depends on the voltage your particular chip will require. The less voltage per clock, the more you can overclock even with a cheap air cooler. Think of it this way - if you were going to splurge on a water cooler, then you may as well get the i7-K at 4.GHz stock/4.4GHz turbo which would be cooled no problem by that air cooler you've picked out at stock voltages. I'm not trying to change your mind on the i5-K, just giving you my opinion regarding spending money on a water cooler for this build.

The cost of the video card you're going for will change Monday morning or when the remaining 19 on offer (at time of writing) are sold, so you could purchase a unit sharpish to get it at that price, and then send an email or phone OcUK to ask them to hold it for you as it's for them to build (and then post in Customer Services).

Everything looks okay, just check with OcUK about the BluRay and whether it will require software (which I don't think is cheap).
 
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