Gaming computer advice :)

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  JohJoh on 21/05/2013 - 22:13

  CPU: Great CPU, I hope one day to follow the Intel path too.

  Liquid cooling: Not too sure about a beginner using it and building with it. Although, I've never used it nor built with it but I think i remember reading some posts being against recommending a beginner with it.

  Motherboard: I'd personally get an ASUS as I believe GIGABYTE to be 2nd best up against ASUS. Also, I've had a couple of GIGABYTE motherboards fail on me before.

  SSD: Good. Although, I've read that SSDs don't affect gaming too significantly as they do out of games. Not too sure if you knew that or not, otherwise do some research on SSDs in gaming.

  Memory: I still think 16GB is overkill these days unless you have a particular reason to get it. I recommend 8GB around still.

  Also, check out http://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc. Especially look in the sidebar. :)

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  Jam0864 on 21/05/2013 - 22:40

  +3

  You need to spend more proportionally on your GPU for a gaming computer. Spend less on the motherboard, cooling, case and RAM, and use that money on more GPU.

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  Phesto on 21/05/2013 - 22:42

  +4

  Drop the CPU cooler and drop down to 8gb ram. Spend the money you saved on a 7950/7970.

  Looks good apart from that.

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  camzorocks on 21/05/2013 - 22:58

  You'll be able to play anything :)!

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  idonteven on 21/05/2013 - 23:31

  Everything is good except for the 16GB RAM (you don't need that much, esp for gaming pc. 8GB will suffice). And for you are cheaping out on your most important aspect (GPU). Go for the 7900 series or wait for nVidia to release the 700 series (which is soon).

  An SSD will improve game load time if you decide to install onto them or use an SSD for intel SRT which is what I do with my ssd (google what intel SRT is and thank me later).

  Good luck!

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  klumsybot on 22/05/2013 - 00:57

  Looks sexy, consider the 7870xt which performs very close to a 7950 for not much more

  H100 is a good cooler but often outperformed by the cheaper noctua D14 at a lower noise level.

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  scrimshaw on 22/05/2013 - 01:02

  +2

  Suggested changes:

  Drop the motherboard to a Asus P8Z77-M $105 or AsRock Z77-Extreme4 $119
  Halve the RAM to 8GB — 16GB is overkill for gaming.
  Drop the PSU to a Antec High Current Gamer 520w
  UPGRADE the video card to a Radeon 7870 Tahiti LE, or 7950 or a GTX 670 (possibly best to buy this after the GTX 700 releases and see if there is any change in pricing)
  Consider Noctua NH-D14 air cooler instead.
  Why just 1 TB? I'd Consider a 2TB HDD Caviar Green or Barracuda for storage. It doesn't cost that much more…

  You probably won't want to use dual graphics cards if you want your computer running quiet and cool. Just go with a single card setup (less hassle with micro-stutter and game compatibility issues, less heat, less power draw)

  You can forget about Blu-Ray if you're not going to use the computer for watching BD media. You're probably going to um, legally download them anyway, right? :)

  • 

    klumsybot on 22/05/2013 - 01:22

    Z77 Extreme4 has terrible MOSFETs (D-PAK) and the extreme3 is actually better with power delivery. Otherwise if OP plans no xfire the Pro3 or Pro4 also have better MOSFETs

    P8Z77-M is ok, but ensure you don't get the pro, lots of problems with that board. If you wanted Asus but still the option of crossfire check out the P8Z77-V LK, or the straight P8Z77V.

    GTX770 is a GK104 chip which looks supiciously like a GTX680 (until we know the clocks). I predict everything GTX770 and lower will just be a rebrand or a slight adjustment of performance.

    • 

      Yummy500 on 22/05/2013 - 11:58

      +1

      The gtx 770 IS a 680 (and we do know the clocks). Everything else below should be a rebrand but 1 tier down (ie. 760ti is a 670). However, I don't think he wants to pay for a graphics card double the price of his initial intention

  • 

    samfisher5986 on 22/05/2013 - 11:25

    +1

    Corsair PSU's are generally a lot better then Antec PSU's though… There are lower end corsairs available.

    • 

      bereta91 on 22/05/2013 - 20:02

      +1

      That's what I have heard from people. Also they said it was more reliable… I had one generic one before and it blew up after a year of usage (low usage)

• 

  _Bruce_ on 22/05/2013 - 07:17

  +1

  Intel CPU Intel CPU Core i5 3570K Ivy Bridge 6MB Cache (up to 3.8GHz) LGA 1155 BX80637I53570K Quad-Core Processor $235.00

  Fine, but I would drop down to the i5 3470. Are you really going to over clock? Why? It won't make any difference in any game today. Ask yourself:
  - Are you just doing this for fun?
  - How much do you want to pay for this fun?
  - Are you prepared to take on the risk?

  Liquid Cooling Corsair H100i Liquid CPU Cooler $145.00

  See above, just use stock cooling on a 3470.

  Intel Motherboards Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H Intel Mainboard - LGA 1155 $159.00

  See above, a B75 board will have the exactly same performance for under half the price (no overclocking).

  Internal Desktop Drives Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM 32MB SATA3/2 $73.70

  As mentioned, 2/3 TB drives make more sense now.

  Solid State Drives (SSD) Samsung 840 120GB (MZ-7TD120BW) 2.5" SSD $95.00

  No problems, but 240GB drives are pretty cheapish currently to fit more games on it. It was mentioned that these don't help games much, that is true for in game, but they really help starting and loading times.

  Internal Drives Lite-On 12x BluRay Combo - IHES312(BLACK) $62.00

  Fine if you want Blu-Ray

  Desktop Memory Corsair 16GB (4x4GB) Vengeance DDR3 1600MHz CL9 (CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9B) $125.00

  As mentioned, you aren't going to need all this.

  Cases (no PSU included) Corsair 500R - Black $143.00

  This is just preference

  Power Supplies Corsair HX650 V2 650 Watt 80 PLUS Gold $139.00

  As mentioned, can probably drop this down a little.

  Graphics Cards Asus RADEON HD7870-DC2-2GD5-V2 Cool & Quiet Performance $269.00

  At the very least get this instead:
  http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&c…
  Cheaper and faster. The arguments for a 79x0 are mixed, they don't give you huge improvements for the money (but better spent that the rest of the expense removed above).

  • 

    samfisher5986 on 22/05/2013 - 11:26

    +3

    Seriously why say this.

    Overclocking can definitely make a difference in gaming today.

    Maybe not for you, but for specific games, emulators and if you are using a 120hz monitor with a high end video card.

    Then there are all sorts of non gaming tasks as well as overclocking will mean your CPU will be the best for longer.

    Remember not all games are coded very well, some don't even make good use of multiple cores.

    • 

      klumsybot on 22/05/2013 - 11:35

      Agreed, skyrim is an example of a game which is very responsive to high CPU clocks. It doesn't respond very well to multiple cores.

• 

  bereta91 on 22/05/2013 - 20:03

  THANKS everyone for the great advices !!!!!

  It looks like I have a lot to fix :), I will get my mind to compromise some of the components and maybe post a second discussion and see how it goes :)!!!

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  imcold on 23/05/2013 - 00:03

  I have a corsair 500r, case not by choice, but it happened to be like my 3rd choice as the other 2 cases i wanted was not available. I best describe it as flimsy which i read about before i bought it. Its highly recommended you dont move this case around since it will break easily. The sides are not flat, you can easily push it in when your carrying it around , if you lean it against your chest, it will pop back out but when it happens it will leave bend marks on the side of your case. You have to carry it around like a baby otherwise it will break so no fast lifting, etc.

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  dasvenson on 23/05/2013 - 11:55

  If you do go down liquid cooling just make sure you have enough room in your case for the extra fans and radiator to be mounted.

  I have an Antec Nine Hundred (which by the way is a fantastic case and would reccommend) but when I installed by liquid cooling radiator on the back of it, the fans and radiator came out so far that it hit the fan in the side panel. So I got to kind of jam it in whenever I take the side off.

  Just a thought…

• 

  equinoxxx on 23/05/2013 - 17:28

  +1

  If you're going to go the Samsung SSD get the "Pro" version its faster
  http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&c…

  I've got a Crucial M4 128gb myself and its awesome.

  http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&p…
  http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/crucial_m4_128gb_ssd_re…

  Good luck in your build! :)

  Oh PS and I've also got a AsRock Z77-Extreme6 and it rocks.

• 

  TheDusty on 23/05/2013 - 17:41

  We are using the Coolermaster Eve 212 on 2 x I7-870 and one x I7-3770 and unless you are looking at heavy overclocking I would recommend them for the $35 price and performance.

  http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&p…

  Far better than stock without being overpriced.

• 

  Lucky13 on 11/06/2013 - 15:57

  Kind of based on this thread Ive made up my own gaming pc. I dont know if anyone could have their opinion on it. Its the first time Ive done this. Thanks in advance :)

  Intel CPU Core i5 3470 Ivy Bridge 6MB Cache (up to 3.6GHz) LGA 1155 BX80637I53470 Quad-Core Processor
  CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
  Asus P8Z77-M Intel Mainboard - LGA 1155
  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM 64MB SATA3
  LG Blu-Ray Reader & DVD/CD Burner (CH12LS28)
  G.Skill DDR3 8GB (1x8GB) PC3-12800 1600MHz RipjawsX (F3-12800CL10S-8GBXL)
  Cooler Master Elite 430 - PSU Included
  Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 770 (N680SO-2GD) - WINDFORCE 3X 450W

  $1,205.49 at Centrecom
  $1,164.00 at MSY

  • 

    Lucky13 on 11/06/2013 - 17:02

    Also I guess something to add.. am I going to have problem running a $500 graphics card on this system. Will there be any issues?? Thanks

• 

  cpho on 11/06/2013 - 17:06

  Hi Bereta,
  Im also building one too :)
  Since you're on OzBargain, I'm going to assume you want the best bang for buck, and avoid the frivolities?

  in that case, I'd recommend the following changes:
  CPU - Fine if you're planning to overclock it, otherwise opt for the non-K version

  Liquid Cooling - Unless you're going to do some heavy overclocking, I'd ignore the liquid cooling, and get a CPU fan if you need the cooling

  Motherboard - I'd avoid the Gigabyte, because of the many, many problems it has, and get an MSI Z77A-G43, or if you don't need the full ATX, consider getting an mATX (again, changable depending if you want to overclock or not).

  Internal drives is up to you, I'd think that if you were going to put your OS on the SSD, then a 7200rpm HDD might not be as important. A 5400rpm should be fine for running programs and such if you put your "most popular" on your SSD.

  RAM - Now, RAM is slightly controversial. I don't believe in fancy RAM. I don't think you'd need a Corsair Vengeance for the sake of having the huge-ass heatsinks. Unless you plan to overclock the RAM, (not recommended), I'd stick with the generic sticks. RAM is RAM. As for your 16gb, unless you plan to run Photoshop intensively, I'd say 8gb is plenty for gaming. I's recommend the 2x4gb Patriot Signature.

  Case and PSU should be fine.

  Graphics Card - I'd point you in the direction of this, because for an additional $30, you can have ]better performance](http://www.hwcompare.com/12502/geforce-gtx-670-vs-radeon-hd-…), for a lower power consumption, PLUS the free game :D

  Now, I haven't added up the total, because I'm not sure what you want to do. I'd recommend not overclocking, and getting the 3570 non-K, or even upgrading to a Haswell. Don't overclock, because there's no point. My brother got the 3570K and overclocked it, and he couldn't tell the difference. Also, by not overclocking, you can skip the water cooling, get a fan CPU cooler and getting the H77(m) motherboard will also be cheaper, cheaper still if you get the mATX.
  I'd get less RAM, and put the money to the better graphics card, especially if it's for gaming because games mostly inflict their burden on the GPU, and less on RAM.

• 

  Splashtash on 11/06/2013 - 19:02

  Anyone know a laptop selling with these specs?(for a decent price?)

  -8 gig ram
  -128 SSD
  -FULL HD at least 14" sc size
  -2 gig graphics
  -i5?/i7

  • 

    Mastermind on 12/06/2013 - 10:19

    You might want to define "decent"

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  debonheure on 18/06/2013 - 16:19

  Just go i5 3570, no need i5 3570K for overclock, any decent 8gb ram, any mb, any anything as long they are cheap… Then spent the rest of money of AMD GPU they are more value for money. I guarantee you can play all games with their graphics maxed out.