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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. |
On March 06 2012 14:23 LukeSkywalkah wrote:
Building my own computer for the first time. Need some help. Finally branching off of macbook!
What is your budget?
$800-$1200
What is your resolution?
1920x1080
What are you using it for?
Mostly gaming and browsing the web! Streaming, SC2, Diablo 3, Dota2, Skyrim.
What is your upgrade cycle?
Around 2 years or so!
When do you plan on building it?
3-4 weeks from now.
Do you plan on overclocking?
Honestly, I don't know. I want too but I don't know too much about it!
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes I do!
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
If it is necessary, yes!
Where are you buying your parts from?
Most likely NewEgg and Fry's if somethings are cheaper there!
Have you looked at the Newegg Combo Deals? You can get a i5-2500k, GTX 560 Ti 2GB, 8GB RAM, Gigabyte Board, Cooler Master case & PSU and 500GB HDD for roughly 800$. That would leave you with 400$ for a monitor and OS. If you are a student, can you get a cheap copy of Win7? Also, you would have to look at the motherboard and see if it fits your needs. Add a Dell UltraSharp 22'' for 240$ and you are good to go.
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On March 06 2012 14:23 LukeSkywalkah wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Building my own computer for the first time. Need some help. Finally branching off of macbook!
What is your budget?
$800-$1200
What is your resolution?
1920x1080
What are you using it for?
Mostly gaming and browsing the web! Streaming, SC2, Diablo 3, Dota2, Skyrim.
What is your upgrade cycle?
Around 2 years or so!
When do you plan on building it?
3-4 weeks from now.
Do you plan on overclocking?
Honestly, I don't know. I want too but I don't know too much about it!
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes I do!
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
If it is necessary, yes!
Where are you buying your parts from?
Most likely NewEgg and Fry's if somethings are cheaper there!
$1056 before mail in rebates, shipping, and other fees:
Overclockable but not SLI capable (SLI is not necessary for 1080p unless you want to max every single game on market. Since your primary concerns are Starcraft II, Diablo 3, and Dota 2 - doing SLI would be a waste of money).
Don't get barebone kits from Newegg, they're all generally terrible.
Intel Core i5 2500k & Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO @ $250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.845064
Sapphire Radeon HD6870 & GSkill Ripjaws 2x4GB 1333MHz @ $204 ($194 after mail in rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.851281
Asrock P67 Pro3 @ $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157230
Coolermaster HAF 912 @ $60 ($50 after mail in rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
Rosewill Capstone 450 @ $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182066
Crucial M4 128GB @ $170
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148448
Seagate Barracuda 500GB @ $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148767
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 x64 @ $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986
DVD Burner @ $17
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151244
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Need some motherboard advice. Building my first computer, and planning on getting the cpu and motherboard from microcenter, due to their insane in-store discount, and the rest from newegg.
Planning to get 2500k, and a z68 motherboard with some overclocking, not sure how far I'm going to take it, probably not too far. Probably going with the Corsair 500r case, so would prefer a motherboard with front usb 3.0 header. Not planning to SLI. Will probably run a 2 drive raid 1 for data and an SSD for boot/games. So don't think I will need more than the standard 4+2 sata ports. Given that, of these choices, should I just get the cheapest, which would be the p8z68-V (non-pro)? Also, if I can be talked out of needing the front USB header, then I can probably just get the p8z68-V LX (http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0371775) and save $40. Or not. What do you guys think?
Asus p8z68-V gen3 - http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0378096
Asus p8z68 pro gen3 - http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0378094
Asrock gen 4 extreme - http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0373373
Also, I'm well aware that ivy bridge is coming out soon, but the improvements and new chipsets don't seem worth waiting on.
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ASUS P8Z68-V is the best option there. It's identical to that of the P8Z68-V Pro minus two SATA ports and maybe some minor differences with ports that aren't worth mentioning.
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Could you give me some advice about passive cooler? I wanted to buy a silent cpu cooler( ive got an i5-2500 and dont want to OC). So i thought passive cooler are the most quiet but i am not sure how good do they cool compared to good active cooler
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Passive just means there are no fans, which means it would be absolutely silent. You can just buy any of the heatsinks from Noctua or Thermalright and use it without a fan.
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On March 07 2012 04:28 brainox wrote:
Could you give me some advice about passive cooler? I wanted to buy a silent cpu cooler( ive got an i5-2500 and dont want to OC). So i thought passive cooler are the most quiet but i am not sure how good do they cool compared to good active cooler
Silent PC Review is the place to go for that kind of info. I wouldn't personally suggest going completely passive, though. I'd say go with a good quality air cooler, with a good quiet fan, and manually set the fan values in BIOS. Really, a CPU fan inside the case is better for cooling than case fans and a passive cooler, for noise/performance.
Even just a little bit of directed airflow, from a low fan speed, will be a HUGE improvement in thermals, and if it's at 700-800 RPM, it's pretty much guaranteed to be quieter than your GPU anyways, unless you use a custom BIOS to shut the fans off in 2D mode.
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I'll reiterate what JingleHell said. Right now I have two fans in my computer: one in the power supply which is pretty quiet (and pulling in air from the bottom of my case, so its pretty insulated), and one on the CPU cooler, no case fans. The heatsink is an HR-02 Macho, and I've set the fan to its lowest setting through the BIOS. Cools great, very quiet. This turned out to be significantly quieter & cooler than running the HR-02 passive (which it is designed for) with a single case fan (cooler because the fan is directly on the heatsink, quieter because the fan is excellent). The third source of noise in my computer is my hard drive, but I rigged up a suspension system with an elastic band salvaged from old pajamas (kind of a fun project, haha), so vibration noise is pretty reduced.
Now I don't have a sound-dampening case, and there are three sources of noise, but most of the time I have to pay conscious attention to be able to hear the computer. So I wouldn't obsess with completely passive.
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I'm currently looking for a custom pc. Not 100% sure if I'll build it myself, but most likely I will.
Answers to the questions:
Budget: around 800 euro's w/o the OS
Resolution: 1920x1080
What am I using it for: SC2, streaming and I want to be able to play new games, mostly FPS games, at a decent quality
Upgrade cycle: This is my first time custom building a pc, so I'm not yet sure. Probably when I can't play the games I want to play on the frequency I want to play them on anymore, which is dependent on my setup. Will most likely be 3-5 years or something like that
OC'ing: Will be the first time as well, but I think I will start OC'ing after purchasing the build
Furthermore, i'm looking to upgrade to crossfire/SLI once I move out and live on my own, since I've got 2 monitors now allready (parents are divorced) I'm buying my parts from alternate.nl atm, but I might move to a cheaper place if they have everything I need.
So with this information I've tried to put a good setup together, looking at a whole lot of sites etc. Please tell me if there is some obvious mistake in here, or if some parts quality/price isnt that good. Parts I'm not as sure about/still debating of getting which are in italic
Parts I'm currently thinking of getting:
CPU: Intel core i5-2500k
CPU-cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 EVO
Motherboard: This I'm debating quite a lot. What do you guys think is better, a Z68 or P67?
GPU: Also debating this one. Should I get a AMD Radeon 6850 or 6870?
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB
PCU; Probably just some 600W one, so I can have some space for the future crossfireX upgrade.
I'm also thinking of getting a 120GB SSD for my OS + games and a 500 GB HDD/External hard disk (connected by USB3.0) Is this a good idea or not?
I'd love for some criticism to come my way
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That case seems a bit cheap, but has good reviews. Have you tried it before? And the motherboard? Why that one?
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BUDGET: Roughly $600-700
RESOLUTION: 1920x1080
USES: Gaming mostly and I want to stream as well (League of Legends + SC2 and D3 when it comes out)
UPGRADE: Few years, when I can't stream or play games on it anymore
BUILD TIME: As soon as you nice people help me out, getting on Newegg
OVERCLOCK: Probably not. Don't know what it means, so most likely.. no. I've never set up a stream before so I don't know how much of a toll that takes on a computer
NEED OS: Yes (the single use ones are cheaper right? should I get that or just a regular one?)
SECOND GPU: Don't know what the use of it is, no.
BUYING FROM: Newegg, unless you know of a better place
Also, not part of the budget, but if you know of programs that help with streams (xplit I hear) or any other useful stuff, can you PM me where I can find the forum for that on here? I'm sure you guys have threads about that stuff already, and I don't wanna clutter it up! Thanks all!!
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On March 07 2012 08:33 LukeSkywalkah wrote:+ Show Spoiler +That case seems a bit cheap, but has good reviews. Have you tried it before? And the motherboard? Why that one?
HAF912 is inexpensive but I wouldn't consider it cheap. There are your standard intake and exhaust fan included, dust filters included, there are cable routing holes, no sharp jagged corners, and the panels aren't flimsy. But I guess not including thumbscrews, not having a black interior, and not having gourmets is sort of cheap. So if you want to invest in a nicer case than you can do so. Some nicer cases include the Corsair 550D, Fractal Design Define R3, and Antec P280.
Asrock P67 Pro3 is an inexpensive but good board. If you're looking for something specific than you should mention it. You can invest in a more expensive motherboard but you won't make use of it since you're a first time overclocker. Similar offerings at $100 aren't as good as the Asrock.
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On March 07 2012 08:45 skyR wrote:Show nested quote +On March 07 2012 08:33 LukeSkywalkah wrote:+ Show Spoiler +That case seems a bit cheap, but has good reviews. Have you tried it before? And the motherboard? Why that one? HAF912 is inexpensive but I wouldn't consider it cheap. There are your standard intake and exhaust fan included, dust filters included, there are cable routing holes, no sharp jagged corners, and the panels aren't flimsy. But I guess not including thumbscrews, not having a black interior, and not having gourmets is sort of cheap. So if you want to invest in a nicer case than you can do so. Some nicer cases include the Corsair 550D, Fractal Design Define R3, and Antec P280. Asrock P67 Pro3 is an inexpensive but good board. If you're looking for something specific than you should mention it. You can invest in a more expensive motherboard but you won't make use of it since you're a first time overclocker. Similar offerings at $100 aren't as good as the Asrock.
Yeah I will stick with the HAF912. Well I don't mind spending a little extra on a motherboard. How do you feel on Asus motherboards?
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ASRock pro3 is a solid board. You won't have to worry about it unless you plan on going crazy with the overclocking.
For reference I have a ton of shit hooked into one all overclocked and some overvolted and it holds up perfectly fine.
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On March 07 2012 05:37 Morpheus.EU wrote:+ Show Spoiler +I'm currently looking for a custom pc. Not 100% sure if I'll build it myself, but most likely I will. Answers to the questions: Budget: around 800 euro's w/o the OS Resolution: 1920x1080 What am I using it for: SC2, streaming and I want to be able to play new games, mostly FPS games, at a decent quality Upgrade cycle: This is my first time custom building a pc, so I'm not yet sure. Probably when I can't play the games I want to play on the frequency I want to play them on anymore, which is dependent on my setup. Will most likely be 3-5 years or something like that OC'ing: Will be the first time as well, but I think I will start OC'ing after purchasing the build Furthermore, i'm looking to upgrade to crossfire/SLI once I move out and live on my own, since I've got 2 monitors now allready (parents are divorced) I'm buying my parts from alternate.nl atm, but I might move to a cheaper place if they have everything I need. So with this information I've tried to put a good setup together, looking at a whole lot of sites etc. Please tell me if there is some obvious mistake in here, or if some parts quality/price isnt that good. Parts I'm not as sure about/still debating of getting which are in italicParts I'm currently thinking of getting: CPU: Intel core i5-2500k CPU-cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 EVOMotherboard: This I'm debating quite a lot. What do you guys think is better, a Z68 or P67?GPU: Also debating this one. Should I get a AMD Radeon 6850 or 6870?RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB PCU; Probably just some 600W one, so I can have some space for the future crossfireX upgrade. I'm also thinking of getting a 120GB SSD for my OS + games and a 500 GB HDD/External hard disk (connected by USB3.0) Is this a good idea or not? I'd love for some criticism to come my way
Get a 6870.
Z68 has a few extra features over P67 such as SSD caching (not that useful), Quick Sync (probably useless for you), IGP capabilities (useful if your GPU suddenly dies or you want to use it for a monitor - otherwise useless), and Lucid (switches between IGP and GPU to save power, basically useless). Just get an inexpensive one if you're a first time overclocker. If you're looking to do CrossfireX than Asrock Z68 Extreme3 and MSI P67 G45 / Z68 G45 are three inexpensive boards that come to mind. Though I wouldn't suggest going the multi-GPU upgrade route since in three years, your card is going to be hard to find or a newer card will offer the same / better performance at roughly the same cost while consuming less power and producing less noise / heat.
You don't want any 600w power supply as some are shit. Antec Neo Eco 620 and Earthwatts 650 are usually inexpensive options.
Just get an internal drive, unless you need to move the HDD around regularly.
On March 07 2012 08:44 BreakBad wrote:+ Show Spoiler +BUDGET: Roughly $600-700 RESOLUTION: 1920x1080 USES: Gaming mostly and I want to stream as well (League of Legends + SC2 and D3 when it comes out) UPGRADE: Few years, when I can't stream or play games on it anymore BUILD TIME: As soon as you nice people help me out, getting on Newegg OVERCLOCK: Probably not. Don't know what it means, so most likely.. no. I've never set up a stream before so I don't know how much of a toll that takes on a computer NEED OS: Yes (the single use ones are cheaper right? should I get that or just a regular one?) SECOND GPU: Don't know what the use of it is, no. BUYING FROM: Newegg, unless you know of a better place Also, not part of the budget, but if you know of programs that help with streams (xplit I hear) or any other useful stuff, can you PM me where I can find the forum for that on here? I'm sure you guys have threads about that stuff already, and I don't wanna clutter it up! Thanks all!!
You have to buy an OEM copy of Windows, it's not like you have a choice given your budget. A retail copy of Windows would be a quarter of your budget and it doesn't make much sense to purchase a retail copy anyways since OEM copies can be re-used if you wanted to and we'll probably be on Windows 9 by the time you need to build a new configuration.
Intel Core i5 2400 & GSkill Ripjaws 2x4GB 1333MHz @ $221
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.850897
Sapphire Radeon HD6850 @ $140 ($125 after mail in rebate) (w/ promo code SAPP305, ends 3/12)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908
Asrock H61M-VS @ $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157241
Coolermaster HAF 912 @ $60 ($50 after mail in rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
Corsair CX430V2 @ $38 ($28 after mail in rebate) (w/ promo code EMCNGNJ22, ends 3/7)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026
Seagate Barracuda 500GB @ $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148767
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 x64 @ $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986
DVD Burner @ $17
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151244
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On March 07 2012 09:10 Medrea wrote:
ASRock pro3 is a solid board. You won't have to worry about it unless you plan on going crazy with the overclocking.
For reference I have a ton of shit hooked into one all overclocked and some overvolted and it holds up perfectly fine.
Yeah I guess you guys are right. And it is my first time overclocking. I'll just go with that motherboard then. I'll be able to run games on ultra and stuff with that setup you think?
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On March 07 2012 08:44 BreakBad wrote:+ Show Spoiler +BUDGET: Roughly $600-700 RESOLUTION: 1920x1080 USES: Gaming mostly and I want to stream as well (League of Legends + SC2 and D3 when it comes out) UPGRADE: Few years, when I can't stream or play games on it anymore BUILD TIME: As soon as you nice people help me out, getting on Newegg OVERCLOCK: Probably not. Don't know what it means, so most likely.. no. I've never set up a stream before so I don't know how much of a toll that takes on a computer NEED OS: Yes (the single use ones are cheaper right? should I get that or just a regular one?) SECOND GPU: Don't know what the use of it is, no. BUYING FROM: Newegg, unless you know of a better place Also, not part of the budget, but if you know of programs that help with streams (xplit I hear) or any other useful stuff, can you PM me where I can find the forum for that on here? I'm sure you guys have threads about that stuff already, and I don't wanna clutter it up! Thanks all!!
You have to buy an OEM copy of Windows, it's not like you have a choice given your budget. A retail copy of Windows would be a quarter of your budget and it doesn't make much sense to purchase a retail copy anyways since OEM copies can be re-used if you wanted to and we'll probably be on Windows 9 by the time you need to build a new configuration.
Intel Core i5 2400 & GSkill Ripjaws 2x4GB 1333MHz @ $221
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.850897
Sapphire Radeon HD6850 @ $140 ($125 after mail in rebate) (w/ promo code SAPP305, ends 3/12)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908
Asrock H61M-VS @ $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157241
Coolermaster HAF 912 @ $60 ($50 after mail in rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
Corsair CX430V2 @ $38 ($28 after mail in rebate) (w/ promo code EMCNGNJ22, ends 3/7)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026
Seagate Barracuda 500GB @ $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148767
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 x64 @ $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986
DVD Burner @ $17
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151244[/QUOTE]
TYVM for the quick answer! I'll look into everything you said! You rock
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Oh forgot the total, it's $711 before mail in rebates and shipping.
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On March 07 2012 09:17 LukeSkywalkah wrote:Show nested quote +On March 07 2012 09:10 Medrea wrote:
ASRock pro3 is a solid board. You won't have to worry about it unless you plan on going crazy with the overclocking.
For reference I have a ton of shit hooked into one all overclocked and some overvolted and it holds up perfectly fine. Yeah I guess you guys are right. And it is my first time overclocking. I'll just go with that motherboard then. I'll be able to run games on ultra and stuff with that setup you think?
Yea but if you want to go bonkers on super sampling and all that you might have some troubles.
TL doesnt recommend hardware for maxing out these things because they add little visual impact but often have enormous overhead costs.
So short answer: yes.
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On March 07 2012 09:22 Medrea wrote:Show nested quote +On March 07 2012 09:17 LukeSkywalkah wrote:On March 07 2012 09:10 Medrea wrote:
ASRock pro3 is a solid board. You won't have to worry about it unless you plan on going crazy with the overclocking.
For reference I have a ton of shit hooked into one all overclocked and some overvolted and it holds up perfectly fine. Yeah I guess you guys are right. And it is my first time overclocking. I'll just go with that motherboard then. I'll be able to run games on ultra and stuff with that setup you think? Yea but if you want to go bonkers on super sampling and all that you might have some troubles. TL doesnt recommend hardware for maxing out these things because they add little visual impact but often have enormous overhead costs. So short answer: yes.
Another question if you don't mind. If I am willing to upgrade to i7 2600k, would it be worth it?
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EPT
