When using this resource, please read FragKrag's opening post. The Tech Support forum regulars have helped create countless of desktop systems without any compensation. The least you can do is provide all of the information required for them to help you properly.
PSU started doing a death rattle last night. Read that I can use some motor oil to lube it up, but that it's demise is inevitable at this point. I've been really impressed with Corsair recently and since the OPs endorsed their PSUs, I quickly did some researched and bought one last night. CMPSU-750HX for $126.99. Definitely think it's probably a bit overkill for what I want my system to be + Show Spoiler +
CPU I5-2500K Mobo ? RAM ? GPU NVIDIA - GeForce GTX 460 1GB GDDR5 PCI Express Graphics Card (Existing) PSU CORSAIR CMPSU-750HX 750W RT (Just ordered) Case NZXT LEXA-NP Black/ Silver (Existing) Sound Card Razer AC-1 (Existing) SSD (SATA) Intel X25-M 80Gb (Existing) HDD (SATA) WD20EARS 2TB (Existing) Extra Fan COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065
Anyway, I know it's probably a bit overkill but I thought with the rebate the price wasn't too bad and I liked the idea of trying out a modular PSU. Any thoughts?
Anything above 650w is overkill for a single gpu system, you can load as many hdd's and oc crap off 650w and avoid cold boot issues. 750w i assume is for sli? As far as getting an AX it's just saying the HX is an older design with older effectiveness, personally i wouldn't get such a nice psu unless i was going to oc, or have a heaver gpu in the case.
On March 11 2011 03:48 Anjuu wrote: But wouldn't the AX series be even more overkill and overpriced?
You're already paying $142 so paying an extra $20 for 7 years warranty (as opposed to 5), fully modular (as opposed to semi modular), and fanless operation (under 50% load) isn't that big of a deal.
@semantics - I want the ability to go dual GPUs but probably won't do this for at least a year or so. I tend to buy things +1 above what I need just in case.
@skyR - I was including the $15 off for the rebate (I'm religious about filling those dumb things out). So would $35 more make all the things you listed worth it?
Hmmm, just saw this SS-400FL which is definitely in the same price range but my first impression was the wattage seems lower than what I'd want. I know Wattage isn't the end all be all and it's more about amps but couldn't tell you more than that. Also, I think that the gold certification in general means that the 400Watts this unit kicks out will be more reliable and stable than something that was just made to get to the 400 watt stat.
I've been helping a friend do a build, and his last component is his mother board.
As far as I can tell, there is no real difference in features (other than one pci-ex16 slot, so no SLI or crossfire for the MSI board) between the 3 entry level p67 boards from MSI, Gigabyte, and ASUS, which means that the MSI board being $20 cheaper is the best option. Can anyone refute that? As an aside, the rest of his build was an i5-2500k and an EVGA GTX 460. He's not gonna do SLI or anything like that, so two pci-e slots aren't actually necessary
The HX series is also gold certified but Corsair labeled it as Silver.
You said you had SLI in mind in the future so 400W isn't going to cut it.
Whether its worth it or not is totally up to the individual but personally I wouldn't spend over $100 on anything other than a Seasonic X or Corsair AX series.
On March 11 2011 04:18 KOFgokuon wrote: I've been helping a friend do a build, and his last component is his mother board.
As far as I can tell, there is no real difference in features (other than one pci-ex16 slot, so no SLI or crossfire for the MSI board) between the 3 entry level p67 boards from MSI, Gigabyte, and ASUS, which means that the MSI board being $20 cheaper is the best option. Can anyone refute that? As an aside, the rest of his build was an i5-2500k and an EVGA GTX 460. He's not gonna do SLI or anything like that, so two pci-e slots aren't actually necessary
I have the Gigabyte model that you linked, except it is B2 not B3. It seems to work fine, but it does not have UEFI. I am considering getting another motherboard that has UEFI and SLI capabilities so I can buy another 460 if I need it in the future (Probably cheaper than buying a whole new card). Also some more expensive motherboards like the P67A-UD3P have better cooling which would probably be helpful if you're overclocking the 2500k.
I am upgrading my graphics card from a 4670 1gig. My resolution is 1920 x 1080.
My computer is Phenom II X60 (Quad core at 3.3) 8 Gigs of Ram 1 TB HDD
I am looking around 200-250 (without rebate) for a graphics card for gaming only. I want to play games like Crysis II at the best quality possible at my price point.
Hey guys, need help with a build, hope you guys can help. General situation is, I'm going off to college in the fall, but apparently around now is when PCs are cheapest, and my parents have agreed to help me buy one now. I was originally just going to go for the most powerful laptop I could find but I kept reading time and time again that a desktop+netbook/notebook combo is the best in terms of computing power.
What is your budget? Around $1300 USD, I can go maybe 100-200 dollars above that but would prefer not to. Note that I also need a monitor (and a recommendation for one would be great as well, the price should factor into the 1300 dollars) and a cheap netbook/notebook (recommendation on one would be awesome as well; I'd prefer a notebook since i hate how small netbooks are, but my main concern is the power of the desktop; if saving a couple dozen bucks on a cheaper netbook gets me a much better desktop then I'm ok with that. One notebook that I found was http://us.acer.com/ac/en/US/content/model/LX.RD502.039 It's cheap as hell and I really don't need more than that. If you guys find a better deal, I'm all for that too. However, if any of you are in college and think that I could really get by without a laptop, then I'm cool with that too. I'm willing to listen to people more experienced than me lol.
What is your resolution? I'd prefer it to be 1920 x1080, but again since I need to buy a monitor this could vary based on what monitor you guys recommend What are you using it for? Mostly gaming I guess, that would be the intensive thing. Since I'm going to be at college web browsing and word processing, etc., would also be done, but I'm pretty sure that's not a hardware limitation/factor anyway. Undecided major so I don't need anything special in terms of software/computing power.
What is your upgrade cycle? Pretty long, I want it to last as long as possible without the PC getting hopelessly outdated/unable to play games that come out (so 2-3 years minimum I guess).
When do you plan on building it? I'm in no rush, if you guys think that by holding out a couple months I'll get a better deal then I'm all for that. I'd prefer it before May but if there's a really compelling reason to wait that's not a solid deadline.
Do you plan on overclocking? Not really, not computer savvy enough to care or attempt it.
Do you need an Operating System? Yes.
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire? Uhh seeing as I'm not upgrading in the future and I doubt i'd be able to do that within my budget lol
Where are you buying your parts from? There's a Fry's like half an hour away, I also don't mind using the internet. I live in the US.
Thanks for all the help in advance. Oh, and this is also going to be my first attempt at building a PC, if you guys know of a good guide to help me through the process that would be great.
Motherboard selection is limited right now due to the Cougarpoint recall and that the B3 revision motherboards are just being shipped to retailers. I'd recommend just getting the cheapest H67 motherboard available.
The power supply is overkill but its at a good promotional price right now. if you don't intend to upgrade in the future or keep it for future builds than look into getting a less expensive power supply such as the Corsair CX430 for $40.
The above build comes to $800 before taxes (may not be applicable to you) and shipping.
With the monitor, the total comes to $1030 before taxes (may not be applicable to you) and shipping. This leaves you with around $250 for a entry notebook.
^thanks so much for the help! Would it be wise to wait for the motherboards then? Like I said, I'm really in no rush, so I'd be willing to wait if competition would lower prices or something.
Anyone have links to a guide to help me build this? lol
The above desktop build is good, but I would personally trim the cost so you can get a better notebook for maybe $400. The ones with the AMD E50 are pretty good values at least in terms of hardware specs. Particularly with notebooks, build quality, keyboard, trackpad, display, etc. are important. It's hard to get any work done on a bad notebook.
First off, I'd wait a month or two longer and look for a few deals. LGA 1155 motherboard selection is still a little scarce. Usually newegg does CPU+motherboard combos, so you can save a little more money when those become available again and when there are more motherboard options. For gaming, you can step the CPU down to a i3-2100 ($120).
For the PSU, I'd get something more along the lines of $40-45. As mentioned, the Corsair CX430 is okay, and it's at $40 ($20 AMIR).
EPT
