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Hi guys!
It's been a bit back and forth, but this is what I will order unless you guys have some incredibly good counter-arguments:
• AMD Athlon II X3 445 Triple Core, 3.1Ghz
• Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Kjøler
• Cooler Master Silent Pro M500 500W PSU
• Crucial RealSSD C300 2,5" 64GB SATA 6 Gb/s
• Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H, 880G, S-AM3 AMD 880G+SB850, DDR3, Sata 6Gb/s, USB3.0, m-ATX, HDMI, DVI, 2xPCI-Ex(2.0)x16
• HIS Radeon HD 5750 1GB GDDR5 iCooler
• Kingston ValueR. DDR3 1333MHz 4GB, CL9 Kit w/two matched ValueRAM 2GB DDR3
• Lite-On DVD±RW burner IHAS124-19 SuperAllWrite, 24x8x16DVD+RW, SATA, Black
The purpose of this build is to be a HTPC that is also gameable. It needs to be small, quiet and upgradeable for longevity, and fall within a certain budget (in Norwegian currency, so it doesn't make sense to post it here). I chose to spend money on PSU, SSD and RAM this time around, and spend money to upgrade it down the line.
1) Small and quiet. 5 out of 10 possible points. It needs better CPU cooling, and a better case (I'm using a random ATX case for the initial build). I want a proper Scythe-cooler and a nice, solid mATX case, perhaps Lian Li's red cube. Pentium would be better for quietness (because of heat), but a lot more expensive and 1156 motherboards suck.
2) Gameable. 8 out of 10 points, withing the budget. 5770 would be better for sure, or even a GTX460. The 5750 is good enough for my needs, however: Gaming below 1600xwhatever its normal partner is, mostly RTS such as SC2, Civ 5 and Settlers 7. 5770 is more expensive. GTX460 is a lot noisier.
3) Upgradeable. 10 out of 10 points within the budget. The only other possibility for this would be socket 1366, but the price for the motherboards and CPUs are out of my league. Also, it's possible to buy another 5750 for SLI at 90% performance of a full 16x / 16x PCIe setup (my mobo has 16x / 4x)
The long-term plan is to upgrade to a Phenom II X4 or X6 down the line, and to seriously upgrade cooling and the case.
I feel very comfortable with this build and think it will be perfect for my needs. Posting it here to get some last-minute feedback, to see if I missed something ...
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On September 11 2010 18:23 FabledIntegral wrote:
So I don't really understand all the differences between the ungodly different amount of variants of essentially the same product. What I do know is that I'm looking to spend around $900 building my own computer.
Processor: Intel i7 @ ~$300
Motherboard: ?? (No idea! Just want a quality one, willing to pay a little extra for a better one)
RAM: 6 GB (no idea price!)
Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 460 or 465 (initially wanted one of the Radeon 5000 series but heard it has issues with SC2 from multiple people, and I would rather have a little less performance in ALL other games if SC2 ran a little smoother) @ ~$250
Power Supply: I have a 750w already in my dell xps 700 but looking up threads online apparently it isn't a high quality one... won't effective support certain other stuff, so I guess I would need a new one?
Sound Card: Don't need one
Hard drive: Just going to reformat one I already have
Case: Preferably midsize tower
Operating System: Already have a copy to be provided, Windows 7 64-bit
So I'm already at ~$550 with just the gfx card and processor, leaving me only $350 for the power supply, mobo, RAM, case... if need be I will spend an extra $100, preferably not, but I wouldn't go crazy if I did. Is it possible? Or should I downgrade to an i5? Also reading reviews on newegg sounds like I should also purchase an extra fan... no idea how much those ones cost.
Hello Integral. I don't know how much you're into hardcore research, but if you're anything like me, these links are great places to start:
- Tom's Hardware $1000 enthusiast build
TechReport $800 AMD computer
They are good starting points because they give concrete examples within your price range and explain the choices made. They don't fit your situation 100% because you already have some stuff. Hence:
You need to explain a bit more what you need/want from your computer, not just right now but a year or two ahead. Once you have that clear in your head, you can start planning and researching. Without this idea, you will flounder in the ocean of endless possibilities. Be as concrete as possible - make a bullet list.
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On September 11 2010 19:26 Born)Slippy wrote:
Hi guys!
It's been a bit back and forth, but this is what I will order unless you guys have some incredibly good counter-arguments:
• AMD Athlon II X3 445 Triple Core, 3.1Ghz
• Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Kjøler
• Cooler Master Silent Pro M500 500W PSU
• Crucial RealSSD C300 2,5" 64GB SATA 6 Gb/s
• Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H, 880G, S-AM3 AMD 880G+SB850, DDR3, Sata 6Gb/s, USB3.0, m-ATX, HDMI, DVI, 2xPCI-Ex(2.0)x16
• HIS Radeon HD 5750 1GB GDDR5 iCooler
• Kingston ValueR. DDR3 1333MHz 4GB, CL9 Kit w/two matched ValueRAM 2GB DDR3
• Lite-On DVD±RW burner IHAS124-19 SuperAllWrite, 24x8x16DVD+RW, SATA, Black
The purpose of this build is to be a HTPC that is also gameable. It needs to be small, quiet and upgradeable for longevity, and fall within a certain budget (in Norwegian currency, so it doesn't make sense to post it here). I chose to spend money on PSU, SSD and RAM this time around, and spend money to upgrade it down the line.
1) Small and quiet. 5 out of 10 possible points. It needs better CPU cooling, and a better case (I'm using a random ATX case for the initial build). I want a proper Scythe-cooler and a nice, solid mATX case, perhaps Lian Li's red cube. Pentium would be better for quietness (because of heat), but a lot more expensive and 1156 motherboards suck.
2) Gameable. 8 out of 10 points, withing the budget. 5770 would be better for sure, or even a GTX460. The 5750 is good enough for my needs, however: Gaming below 1600xwhatever its normal partner is, mostly RTS such as SC2, Civ 5 and Settlers 7. 5770 is more expensive. GTX460 is a lot noisier.
3) Upgradeable. 10 out of 10 points within the budget. The only other possibility for this would be socket 1366, but the price for the motherboards and CPUs are out of my league. Also, it's possible to buy another 5750 for SLI at 90% performance of a full 16x / 16x PCIe setup (my mobo has 16x / 4x)
The long-term plan is to upgrade to a Phenom II X4 or X6 down the line, and to seriously upgrade cooling and the case.
I feel very comfortable with this build and think it will be perfect for my needs. Posting it here to get some last-minute feedback, to see if I missed something ...
You want it small but you didn't get a mATX motherboard...? I have the hyper 212. It's a bit loud past 50%, but I guess you can replace the fan for a quieter one. It's also really big. I don't think it'll fit in a real HTPC case unless you mod it. 5750... Eh. 5770 or 4850 or GTS 250. If you go with the 4850 or 250, you can get a Corsair H50 to liquid cool your cpu and make it silent. Just some suggestions.
It's a good build, but I don't understand how it's meant to be an HTPC. It's more like a gaming pc that is also HTPCable. 
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It IS a mATX motherboard. :-) How does 4850 or 250 relate to cooling the CPU with liquid (which is my plan, by the way, down the road)??
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Oh my bad. Skipped the detail. Well saving money on your graphics card will let you upgrade the cooler to an H50. GTS 250 can do high/ultra at 1600xwhatever
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Oh, I see your point. Didn't think about that. Hmmm. I have to check to see what kind of noise a 250 brings on.
Edit: I checked, and in the current market the price difference between a 250 and a 5750 is practically nothing - $10-20 at best. And that ain't worth it 
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FabledIntegral: Agreed with the others--let us know exactly what kind of uses and future plans you have for your comp, and we can suggest parts that better fulfill those needs.
Born)Slippy: For the record, there seems to be a huge variation between noise levels in different GTX 460 models. Of course that's significantly out of your current budget though. Maybe a quieter HSF is more appropriate than the Hyper 212? Other air cooling solutions at the same price might not cool as well, but some might be less loud. I don't see any real problems though.
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GTS 450 just got released, you may want to look into that.
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Thanks to everyone that replied. I don't have anything particularly necessary such as graphic design, etc. I just want something that can run a lot of different tasks at once, and perform at peak gaming. The last gaming computer I've owned was the Dell XPS 700 which cost $2500 retail at the time, and it's lasted til now. I got it in 2007. I want another that'll last me at least 3-4 years.
One of the biggest annoyances just seem to be loading times on just about everything for me, my task manager bogs down and seems to show 100% cpu usage (or w/e usage) when I try to open like 3-4 different things at once. I assume RAM is what solves that?
I want the cheapest case possible, preferably no lights, it can be quite ugly actually, I don't give a damn about asthetics whatsoever.
This is my current powersupply, although I've read on many forums that current gfx cards are somehow limited by it when researching. The PSU is the MG309.
http://www.newpowersupply.com/dell_h750p_00_p_n_hp_w7508f3w_750_watt_power_supply_mg309_for_dell_xps_700__710__720-pr-744-c-18-p-1.html
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The H50 still needs fans (like any water cooling solution). I would also set some realistic expectations as well, as the included fan with the H50 is quite loud:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1042-page6.html
If anything, most recommended HDT/tower heatsink will outperform the H50, and be less expensive. I really only see the H50 being useful in tight cases (where space is a concern).
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hey guys what happened in the week i was gone
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Can I get some help with a build?
I've decided it's about time for a new PC.
1900x1200 resolution, would like to spend $700-850 on it (just the box and everything in it, except I don't need a hard drive or OS).
Will be used mainly for SC2, Photoshop, video editing, streaming, and the like.
I'm not an OC enthusiast but don't mind doing that if it will get me better performance at a better price.
I'm in the US, and will primarily use Newegg and Frys, but will check a wholesale option as well.
Thanks for your help!
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On September 12 2010 02:39 skyR wrote:
GTS 450 just got released, you may want to look into that.
I will check this out, I didn't know there was a 450. But I did find a recently-released fanless 5770 that scores great temperatures (60C under load, which is a hell of a lot better than other passively cooled cards I've read about):
Check out the review at tweaktown.com
I want it!
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This looks really good. Throw in pretty much any H55 motherboard and you're good to go. Gigabyte has some nice ones, as far as H55 mobos go. You can also buy P55 mobos, or X57 would be best if you can afford it (better features and upgradeability to the current top i7s). I was thinking of something extremely similar for my own build but it was too expensive unfortunately. This MSI 460 I guess is one of the (relatively speaking) quieter ones? It's a great graphics card. This build will carry you through the nights for years ahead. Well done Myrmidon
Crucial also has a 2x2 kit that works fine with Intel processors. What exactly is the difference of voltage between the kits? I mean - does a certain kit not work with Intel mobos because the voltage is too high
Edit: I see now that the link to the CPU you posted also has a mobo included, with USB3 even. Then I have nothing else to say - I'd easily recommend this very same build to friends and family.
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On September 12 2010 08:08 mav451 wrote:The H50 still needs fans (like any water cooling solution). I would also set some realistic expectations as well, as the included fan with the H50 is quite loud: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1042-page6.htmlIf anything, most recommended HDT/tower heatsink will outperform the H50, and be less expensive. I really only see the H50 being useful in tight cases (where space is a concern).
Actually I've been using the H50 for a while now and I have actually never noticed the noise coming from the fan (or any noise at all from my antec 300 rather). It does ramp up when I run Prime95 but that is to be expected.
The H50 is a pretty painless install, takes up less room (don't have to worry about RAM), looks nice, performs well, and is pretty quiet under just about every circumstance.
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The top combo there above includes a Gigabyte P55 USB3 mobo and a case. In one of the newegg comments for the RAM, somebody had a Lynnfield with that mobo, so I think the RAM should be fine (but I just realized it's 1333 and not 1600, whoops). That particular GTX 460 was cheaper than the others, but it's stock overclocked slightly and apparently runs around normal noise levels.
RAM voltage is not quite exact, just like CPU voltage. Certainly if you run the RAM outside the specified voltage, frequencies, and access timings, there is the risk of instability and/or damage. I think 1.5-1.65 V is the norm for most kits on the current generation of hardware.
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On September 12 2010 16:23 ChThoniC wrote:
Can I get some help with a build?
I've decided it's about time for a new PC.
1900x1200 resolution, would like to spend $700-850 on it (just the box and everything in it, except I don't need a hard drive or OS).
Will be used mainly for SC2, Photoshop, video editing, streaming, and the like.
I'm not an OC enthusiast but don't mind doing that if it will get me better performance at a better price.
I'm in the US, and will primarily use Newegg and Frys, but will check a wholesale option as well.
Thanks for your help!
Hi ChThonic. For $800 bucks you will be fine. You can do something similar to the i5 build we're discussing on this page. That one runs to about $900, which is above your budget. Another problem is the hard drive - you do video editing, you definitively need a mechanical one. But in this case, I think you can have it both ways. Use the same build as Myrmidon proposed, but drop the GTX 460 and instead put in:
GTS 450
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125341&cm_re=gts_450-_-14-125-341-_-Product
or
Radeon 5770
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161338&cm_re=radeon_5770-_-14-161-338-_-Product
Both for around $140, which brings you down to $760. The GTS 450 is brand new and somewhat of an unknown factor so far, but from what I've seen it should be a bit stronger than the 5770. The Radeon card, on the other hand, will carry SC2 fine in the resolution you mention (not sure about ultra details, but probably). It won',t however, carry more demanding games in full detail at that resolution - but with medium/high details it'll handle anything you throw at it. Plus, the 5770 has Eyefinity for sexy multi-monitoring, and great Blue-ray capabilities.
And then, we put in this:
Western Digital Caviar Green, 1 TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136490&cm_re=western_digital_green-_-22-136-490-_-Product
For $60 (after rebate), landing you at $820. You will then have an i5 system with a graphics card that does everything but the most extreme gaming, an SSD drive that will make your system do magic, some nice, easily-expandable storage and an excellent case to put it all in.
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On September 12 2010 16:34 Born)Slippy wrote:
Crucial also has a 2x2 kit that works fine with Intel processors. What exactly is the difference of voltage between the kits? I mean - does a certain kit not work with Intel mobos because the voltage is too high
Edit: I see now that the link to the CPU you posted also has a mobo included, with USB3 even. Then I have nothing else to say - I'd easily recommend this very same build to friends and family.
AMD boards have no problem with the 1.8V sticks or above, but the Intel boards are spec'ed at 1.65v or lower. You can see this with the early kits requiring 1.65 for cas 8. Flash forward a couple months, and you are now getting cas 7 at the same voltage, or far lower voltage while still getting cas 8 or better (G.Skill Eco series).
But with both camps now having IMC, getting cas 7 IMO is a waste. Lower voltage gives you clock headroom...but again, nothing I would waste money on.
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On September 12 2010 16:54 Myrmidon wrote:
The top combo there above includes a Gigabyte P55 USB3 mobo and a case. In one of the newegg comments for the RAM, somebody had a Lynnfield with that mobo, so I think the RAM should be fine (but I just realized it's 1333 and not 1600, whoops). That particular GTX 460 was cheaper than the others, but it's stock overclocked slightly and apparently runs around normal noise levels.
RAM voltage is not quite exact, just like CPU voltage. Certainly if you run the RAM outside the specified voltage, frequencies, and access timings, there is the risk of instability and/or damage. I think 1.5-1.65 V is the norm for most kits on the current generation of hardware.
Yeah, I noticed it was a combo a bit too late :-D It's a great bargain. God, I want to live in the States. You guys have such kickass tech shops.
I'm asking about the voltage because I see that shops differentiate between "Pentium" and "AMD" RAM, and I've also seen it mentioned that you need RAM of X voltage to match with CPU X. But I never found out exactly what they mean.
Edit: mav answered my question, thanks! The voltage makes a difference for OCing, but at stock, does it make a difference whether the voltage is higher or lower?
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EPT
