EPTComputer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread - Page 393
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
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OuchyDathurts
United States4588 Posts
On October 14 2014 01:31 Cyro wrote: You might be happy with just a 970 instead of your 570, maybe new CPU/mobo (for Haswell) or new CPU/mobo/RAM in the future (for Skylake) http://anandtech.com/bench/product/1350?vs=1351 Upgrading is definitely worth it, even if you did a brand new build and replaced most of the performance important stuff you'd keep the case, probably the PSU, the RAM (unless you waited for ddr4 skylake in ~1-1.5 years), the SSD (even if you got a new one of higher speed and potentially capacity), maybe the HDD, maybe the h50 (though they're not actually very good) etc also to note, if you don't have current GPU overclocked, there is a pretty much free ~15% performance increase from tweaking a 970/980 because stock clocks are relatively low for Maxwell, out of the box, the factory OC'd models run about 1300mhz but it's common for them to do around 1500 on stock voltage with some hitting 1600 on 1.25v (but usually mid 1500's) - and the performance scales pretty linearly with core clock speeds for them, which is nice (that's not always the case for GPU's) I never OCed this 570 because it runs a bit on the hot side stock. Also OCing my 750 was scary as fuck lol. It's the first time I ever OCed, had a guide, but I still didn't really understand everything. However OCing it has gotten me a TON of extra mileage so it was absolutely worth it. I figured I'd rather see this computer go to someone since it's perfectly fine which would mean having to keep it basically operational. Like I said it can currently run anything without issue. So would a ~$1200 rebuild actually get me ~$1200 in better performance to be worthwhile in your opinion? Personally, I'm kind of in the not really camp since the processor runs at or faster than newer non OCed CPUs I don't know how much I'm really going to gain there, the GPU is older but I opted for the 2.5GB version, etc. Feels like I'm kind of stuck in between it's too good to replace, but it's not good enough to upgrade unless you get a new mobo/processor/etc. I don't actually follow hardware performance and stuff so maybe I'm just wrong. I'll defer to you guys on the issue. | ||
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
Personally, I'm kind of in the not really camp since the processor runs at or faster than newer non OCed CPUs No it doesn't, an i5 4690 runs at ~3.8ghz under 4-core load and that's like 30% faster at least than your CPU at 3.7ghz - i don't know exact numbers :D GHZ isn't a measure of performance. For a task using one for core example, a Haswell CPU at 3ghz can be about as fast as a Piledriver CPU at ~5ghz. Your CPU was two major gens ago so there's a big upgrade to make there I'l take a look at pricing soon. You can probably rebuild. | ||
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OuchyDathurts
United States4588 Posts
On October 14 2014 07:00 Cyro wrote: No it doesn't, an i5 4690 runs at ~3.8ghz under 4-core load and that's like 30% faster at least than your CPU at 3.7ghz - i don't know exact numbers :D GHZ isn't a measure of performance. For a task using one for core example, a Haswell CPU at 3ghz can be about as fast as a Piledriver CPU at ~5ghz. Your CPU was two major gens ago so there's a big upgrade to make there I'l take a look at pricing soon. You can probably rebuild. Alright, well if it was you and your money what would you do, or would you not do anything for another 6 months+ as the gains aren't worth the price tag. Generally speaking when it is time to build a new computer I'd rather spend some more money and make it as future proof as possible. Rather not buy a meh component that needs to be upgraded in a year or two. | ||
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
GPU's, the only thing likely to change in 2 to 3 years from now is pricing, since we just got 970 (which is probably affordable) | ||
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Firkraag8
Sweden1006 Posts
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
On October 13 2014 22:49 OuchyDathurts wrote: Why do you want to upgrade? What do you want to achieve with the upgrade? Good question lol. It runs everything I need it to run now, might not max every game out but it does an admirable job generally. It's a few years old, some components are older was just entertaining the idea. Though I don't want to waste money if its not warranted. + Show Spoiler + What is your budget? 1200-1300 What is your monitor's native resolution? 1920x1080 dual monitors 23" What games do you intend to play on this computer? What settings? DotA 2, Arma 3 Mods, Random steam games, MMOs (if any that don't suck ever come out). Highest possible I guess but I'm not a graphics whore. What do you intend to use the computer for besides gaming? Just basic stuff. Watching streams and videos, surfing the net, POSSIBLY streaming but like a 15% chance that ever happens at best Do you intend to overclock? Absolutely Do you intend to do SLI / Crossfire? Maybe down the road once the GPU isn't hacking it. Do you need a monitor or any other peripherals and is this part of your budget? New mouse and hard mouse pad (RGB LEDs a plus) If you have any requirements or brand preferences, please specify. Nvidia, EVGA preferred. At least name brand non sketch memory and PSU If you have any retailer preferences, please specify. Newegg, Microcenter in my area, Amazon Prime for shipping available, any reputable retailer is fine though. Sorry i forgot/didn't read a few things. Specifically mainly the waiting til christmas and microcenter that both change stuff (day to day deals, but microcenter often has cheap cpu's and cpu+mobo combo's and i'm not sure how that applies to you or what is available ATM) I made this new build on Newegg/Amazon if you are interested in something like this - PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg) CPU Cooler: Thermalright HR-02 Rev.A(BW) 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($55.00) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg) Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($81.99 @ Newegg) Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($111.99 @ Newegg) Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($369.99 @ Amazon) Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg) Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 450W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg) Total: $1088.93 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-13 22:54 EDT-0400 (Swap CPU cooler for this, it wasn't available on pcpartpicker: http://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-True-Spirit-140-Power/dp/B00IYEEOMO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1413253928&sr=1-1&keywords=true spirit 140 ) There are a few kinda luxury choices in there but no way to save significant money without significantly altering the build (like no CPU overclock capability) - SSD is 256GB because it's cheap these days and 128 is somewhat limiting, everything else is at least "great" tier. EVGA, at least until they release the FTW edition 970, makes the worst custom model (below gigabyte, msi, asus, maybe more) so i skipped over that. There are a few nice cases around $120 like the NZXT H440 (for quiet high airflow) or the Corsair Air 540 (for just higher airflow with less regard to noise dampening) but for a lot of people that's seen as just wasting $50. That 300r seems pretty capable (coming stock with 2 front intake fans, 1 exhaust, fitting long GPU's, 170mm tall CPU cooler, having extra fan slots including at least one for side panel) and a single 970 with a good case will run great, there isn't that much need to worry about it. For mouse, it's a much more personal choice, there is a mouse thread here and you can look for mouse shells that you like, which sensors are ok etc. If you're not picky, most "gaming" mice are suitable - but if you are, or want sensor performance near the best, a lot of them are not very good options. Anything with 3310 sensor is a pretty safe bet, while anything with a sensor that isn't optical is probably bad Take note that the Gigabyte 970 says Windforce on it. That's a mis-label, there are now two gigabyte 970's, one of them is called the G1 Gaming (that was released first, everyone kinda tagged Windforce onto it because that's what gigabyte called their previous GPU's with similar cooler) and that G1 Gaming card is better - but there is a second one a bit cheaper but also lower tier called the Windforce edition now. If you wanted to save money over the G1, the "MSI Gaming" is probably best. Note the quotes there also, there are several cards per brand and names are a bit similar edit: On October 14 2014 11:53 Firkraag8 wrote: Just get a haswell with a maxwell for 1200 and be happy you can play anything you wish for years. psh, $1200?  This is AMERICA, land of the free hardware :D | ||
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Craton
United States17272 Posts
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Firkraag8
Sweden1006 Posts
On October 14 2014 12:00 Cyro wrote: psh, $1200? This is AMERICA, land of the free hardware :DOn October 14 2014 12:14 Craton wrote: You gotta supersize your order and get two of 'em. And here in communist Sweden we instead split one in two.. | ||
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OuchyDathurts
United States4588 Posts
On October 14 2014 12:00 Cyro wrote: Sorry i forgot/didn't read a few things. Specifically mainly the waiting til christmas and microcenter that both change stuff (day to day deals, but microcenter often has cheap cpu's and cpu+mobo combo's and i'm not sure how that applies to you or what is available ATM) I made this new build on Newegg/Amazon if you are interested in something like this - PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg) CPU Cooler: Thermalright HR-02 Rev.A(BW) 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($55.00) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg) Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($81.99 @ Newegg) Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($111.99 @ Newegg) Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($369.99 @ Amazon) Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg) Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 450W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg) Total: $1088.93 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-13 22:54 EDT-0400 (Swap CPU cooler for this, it wasn't available on pcpartpicker: http://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-True-Spirit-140-Power/dp/B00IYEEOMO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1413253928&sr=1-1&keywords=true spirit 140 ) There are a few kinda luxury choices in there but no way to save significant money without significantly altering the build (like no CPU overclock capability) - SSD is 256GB because it's cheap these days and 128 is somewhat limiting, everything else is at least "great" tier. EVGA, at least until they release the FTW edition 970, makes the worst custom model (below gigabyte, msi, asus, maybe more) so i skipped over that. There are a few nice cases around $120 like the NZXT H440 (for quiet high airflow) or the Corsair Air 540 (for just higher airflow with less regard to noise dampening) but for a lot of people that's seen as just wasting $50. That 300r seems pretty capable (coming stock with 2 front intake fans, 1 exhaust, fitting long GPU's, 170mm tall CPU cooler, having extra fan slots including at least one for side panel) and a single 970 with a good case will run great, there isn't that much need to worry about it. For mouse, it's a much more personal choice, there is a mouse thread here and you can look for mouse shells that you like, which sensors are ok etc. If you're not picky, most "gaming" mice are suitable - but if you are, or want sensor performance near the best, a lot of them are not very good options. Anything with 3310 sensor is a pretty safe bet, while anything with a sensor that isn't optical is probably bad Take note that the Gigabyte 970 says Windforce on it. That's a mis-label, there are now two gigabyte 970's, one of them is called the G1 Gaming (that was released first, everyone kinda tagged Windforce onto it because that's what gigabyte called their previous GPU's with similar cooler) and that G1 Gaming card is better - but there is a second one a bit cheaper but also lower tier called the Windforce edition now. If you wanted to save money over the G1, the "MSI Gaming" is probably best. Note the quotes there also, there are several cards per brand and names are a bit similar Awesome, thank you very much sir. I'll probably come back just to get the double check around christmas before I pull the trigger in case anything has changed. I'd keep my SM Storm Stryker for my new build. I like the case, has pretty good air flow and all. I'd just put my old components into some decent cheap case to give to whoever, or make them get their own case I guess since they're getting a decent computer for most general home use for free lol. I HAD thought about going mental and doing full liquid cooling for a project, but its a complete waste of time and money. But I might try and throw as many nice (White) fans in my case as possible to keep it super cool. I'm not completely tied to EVGA, but I do like their lifetime replacement policy (on certain models). Maybe other manufacturers have stepped their game up over the years though. Mouse wise, microsoft intellipoint was the best mouse ever. I have a Roccat Kone now for the ability to make the lights purple to match my Ducky Shine purple. I've had quite a few mouses over the years, they're very personal so I'll probably go to microcenter and pull them out of boxes to test drive them. Been looking at a G502 but the light isn't purple (plz make lights RGB people!). My biggest issue has been skates dying way too quick. I do have the Microcenter replacement policy on this mouse which means I can just exchange it for any equal value mouse no questions asked, so I'll probably take advantage of that. On a related note, hard surface pad where the texture doesn't wear down...is that even a thing? Are rosewill power supplies good? I've never bought the brand, before it always seemed like bargain basement stuff so I avoided them. If they can be trusted that's fine, thats one component that I really hate cheaping out on because so much can go wrong. Anyone's standard HDD's better than the rest now days? Have to replace mine. 1TB at the very least, 2TB is probably over kill, but we've all said that in the past. Again, thank you very much, I appreciate it | ||
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
On a related note, hard surface pad where the texture doesn't wear down...is that even a thing? Not really, and i think the best mouse sensors prefer cloth anyway. Not 100% sure. You can replace most/all mouse feet at a pretty low cost, AFAIK Power supplies are not manufactured by Rosewill, Corsair etc - they just rebrand stuff. That means some units are very bad and others very good and you can't really know without looking at good reviews - the Capstone series is very good quality with a 7 year warranty Full liquid cooling is pretty cool (lol pun not intended), but the performance gains just are not there right now unless you have multiple flagship-tier (~300w) GPU's. Haswell CPU's don't benefit very much from it (if you can afford a water loop, there's no excuse to take a weaker CPU like an fx8320-9590), and with something like a single 970 you can effortlessly keep it cool with air, so you don't gain much unless you're looking to cool effectively with as little noise as possible. For liquid cooling: Cheap (on money, space taken up, etc) Effective Quiet ..pick two | ||
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OuchyDathurts
United States4588 Posts
On October 14 2014 13:32 Cyro wrote: Not really, and i think the best mouse sensors prefer cloth anyway. Not 100% sure. You can replace most/all mouse feet at a pretty low cost, AFAIK Power supplies are not manufactured by Rosewill, Corsair etc - they just rebrand stuff. That means some units are very bad and others very good and you can't really know without looking at good reviews - the Capstone series is very good quality with a 7 year warranty Full liquid cooling is pretty cool (lol pun not intended), but the performance gains just are not there right now unless you have multiple flagship-tier (~300w) GPU's. Haswell CPU's don't benefit very much from it (if you can afford a water loop, there's no excuse to take a weaker CPU like an fx8320-9590), and with something like a single 970 you can effortlessly keep it cool with air, so you don't gain much unless you're looking to cool effectively with as little noise as possible. For liquid cooling: Cheap Effective Quiet ..pick two Ah, good to know, thanks. You can replace skates, if I didn't have that Microcenter warranty that's ridiculously liberal I'd probably go that route. But since I can just trade it in and pay any difference I'll use it since I have it. Cloth pads get weird and sweaty, spill something and they soak it up. I didn't use a pad for over a decade, but I finally started wearing through the finish of my desk so I had to get one. Since my desk is hard I went with a hard pad so it felt as similar as possible. The cooling was going to be totally asthetic really. I wanted to make the inside of the case glow green and have purple cooling that looked like veins so it looked like a baneling. I do like making stuff so it would be a project, but it's not worth it, would just be a labor of love thing. Its rendered even MORE pointless with the fact the left side of my computer where the window is sits against my desk so you can't see inside even if you wanted to lol. You've been super helpful, I'll stop asking questions :D | ||
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
Ask away and i'l give a good answer if i can if not, somebody else might | ||
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OuchyDathurts
United States4588 Posts
On October 14 2014 13:38 Cyro wrote: I just keep a cloth/towel thing on my desk and wet it with hot water (then squeeze most of it out) and rub over stuff like keyboard, mouse, mousepad etc quite often, probably a few times a day if i'm using PC a lot. Also good for dealing with sweaty hands, food, etc Ask away and i'l give a good answer if i can if not, somebody else might Just more didn't want to take up all your time. I always write long winded posts lol. I'm always curious about stuff, but things might change in the next 2 months that makes information relevant now less relevant down the road. I get super sweaty hands gaming (and FREEZING hands in the winter). Cloth just gets like weird and clammy. Maybe I'll go cloth, I dunno. I'll try and keep an open mind lol. I just use clorox wipes if things get dirty. | ||
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GeneralStan
United States4789 Posts
On October 13 2014 22:49 OuchyDathurts wrote: Alright, to build, to upgrade, to wait till later down the road? Current computer plays everything I want to play now. With games like Star Citizen down the road am I going to need to do something? If I do a new build I don't even know what I'd do with my current computer, but she's still a trusty rig. Regardless a new HDD is in order since this one can make some sketchy ass noises lol. Components wouldn't be bought till around Christmas, presents come first, but if something is mega stupid cheap on Black Friday/Cyber Monday I might pull the trigger for a part or 2. If a full blown rebuild is in order I'll probably have to get a new cheap case to transfer the old components into and give it so someone, I dunno. Any help appreciated, thanks! What is your current build? CPU: i5-750 OCed @ 3.7ghz Cooling: h50 liquid cooler Mobo: Gigabyte P55A-UD3 RAM: 8GB DDR3 (no idea the speed) GFX: EVGA GTX 570 2.5GB PSU: Think its 1000w, bought it off a friend forever ago Case: CM Storm Stryker Storage: Intel x25-m 120GB SSD Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB (sounds like it's not long for this earth) What is your monitor's native resolution? 1920x1080 Why do you want to upgrade? What do you want to achieve with the upgrade? Good question lol. It runs everything I need it to run now, might not max every game out but it does an admirable job generally. It's a few years old, some components are older was just entertaining the idea. Though I don't want to waste money if its not warranted. What is your budget? A few hundred. What country will you be buying your parts in? USA If you have any brand or retailer preferences, please specify. Newegg, Microcenter in my area, Amazon Prime for shipping available, any reputable retailer is fine though. If upgrading isn't worth it see spoiler below for rebuild questions. + Show Spoiler + What is your budget? 1200-1300 What is your monitor's native resolution? 1920x1080 dual monitors 23" What games do you intend to play on this computer? What settings? DotA 2, Arma 3 Mods, Random steam games, MMOs (if any that don't suck ever come out). Highest possible I guess but I'm not a graphics whore. What do you intend to use the computer for besides gaming? Just basic stuff. Watching streams and videos, surfing the net, POSSIBLY streaming but like a 15% chance that ever happens at best Do you intend to overclock? Absolutely Do you intend to do SLI / Crossfire? Maybe down the road once the GPU isn't hacking it. Do you need an operating system? Yes, windows 7 preferred Do you need a monitor or any other peripherals and is this part of your budget? New mouse and hard mouse pad (RGB LEDs a plus) If you have any requirements or brand preferences, please specify. Nvidia, EVGA preferred. At least name brand non sketch memory and PSU What country will you be buying your parts in? USA If you have any retailer preferences, please specify. Newegg, Microcenter in my area, Amazon Prime for shipping available, any reputable retailer is fine though. You should wait, imo. the longer you wait the more you get for your money, so if you have no particular need / desire to upgrade now, don't. That being said, it does sound like Star Citizen is a beastly rig tester (GTX 460 bare minimum, jeeeeez), so you'll probably want an upgrade for that. At at least try it on your current rig and see who it fares. That being said, you'll have no regret upgrading later on if your performance is not satisfactory | ||
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GeneralStan
United States4789 Posts
On October 13 2014 06:41 Durak wrote: Helping a friend put together a computer. I need some help picking out parts. Budget Up to $1500 total but probably more like $1200. I am thinking ~$900 for the computer and then the rest for a monitor. Do you need a monitor or any other peripherals and is this part of your budget? Monitor as mentioned above. What is your monitor's native resolution? No monitor yet. 23" or 27". He doesn't play games competitively nor does photo editing so I'm not sure what he needs. What games do you intend to play on this computer? What settings? He'll play whatever AAA titles come out most likely. Doubt he cares about anti-aliasing but looking at high settings. What do you intend to use the computer for besides gaming? Word processing and movie watching. Do you intend to overclock? I can overclock it before handing it off to him. I understand how to do it generally but I haven't done it before. Do you intend to do SLI / Crossfire? No Do you need an operating system? I plan to get him a Win 8 key. What country will you be buying your parts in? Canada If you have any retailer preferences, please specify. Any online retailer is fine. I'm familiar with NCIX, Memoryexpress, and Newegg. As for storage, Crucial MX100 256GB and a 1.5 or 2TB mechanical drive would suffice. Also, unless we need a big case for the videocard or aftermarket CPU cooler for overclocking, I really like the Corsair 350D mATX. You guys are awesome; Thanks for any help! I'll post in the TL Monitor Thread if you guys don't want to worry about that part of it. ![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/iY9i8jA.png) I stuck to your exact parts / desired specs as close as possible. Ended up being a shade under $1000 before shipping, so a little above your $900 budget. I think it's worth stretching to get up to a GTX 970. I also think the Haswell i5 is a worthwhile investment. If I was going to try to find something to trim, I think your storage requirements and case are a little pricey. I already cut back from a 1.5/2 TB (on newegg anyway, the 2 TB is less expensive than 1.5TB anyway) to a 1 TB HDD to get it under $1000. If you had to get it down to $900 you could always scale back on graphics, but this seems like gtx 970 level budget. You can also pick up a perfectly nice case for $50 or so to save yourself a few pennies. That's what I've got though | ||
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MysteryMeat1
United States3292 Posts
~700$ trying to not spend more than that What is your monitor's native resolution? gonna buy a monitor during black friday What games do you intend to play on this computer? What settings? Some light gaming but mostly video editing What do you intend to use the computer for besides gaming? video editing Do you intend to overclock? no Do you intend to do SLI / Crossfire? no Do you need an operating system? no operating system or software required at all, I get them all free through my parents Do you need a monitor or any other peripherals and is this part of your budget? I'm doing some video editing and was planning to hook it up to my TV but i have been advised against doing that so I'm going to need a monitor. Will probably be buying this around black friday as monitors go super cheep during this week If you have any requirements or brand preferences, please specify. no brand preferences, but I'm trying to get into video editing What country will you be buying your parts in? Seattle Washington USA If you have any retailer preferences, please specify. probably gonna get a lot of stuff off of newegg. I'm a bit hesitant to post this now, as i wont be buying the parts for another month and i know these builds will be outdated during the sales that is hopefully during thanksgiving/christmas time frame but if you could give me some stuff to look at i would be very grateful! | ||
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Cyro
United Kingdom20322 Posts
That being said, it does sound like Star Citizen is a beastly rig tester (GTX 460 bare minimum, jeeeeez) A gtx460 is pretty bad nowadays. Isn't a 750 better in pretty much every way? And that's like.. bottom of the line entry level. @above build: Don't get EVGA 970 | ||
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Incognoto
France10239 Posts
On October 15 2014 14:23 GeneralStan wrote:+ Show Spoiler + On October 13 2014 06:41 Durak wrote: Helping a friend put together a computer. I need some help picking out parts. Budget Up to $1500 total but probably more like $1200. I am thinking ~$900 for the computer and then the rest for a monitor. Do you need a monitor or any other peripherals and is this part of your budget? Monitor as mentioned above. What is your monitor's native resolution? No monitor yet. 23" or 27". He doesn't play games competitively nor does photo editing so I'm not sure what he needs. What games do you intend to play on this computer? What settings? He'll play whatever AAA titles come out most likely. Doubt he cares about anti-aliasing but looking at high settings. What do you intend to use the computer for besides gaming? Word processing and movie watching. Do you intend to overclock? I can overclock it before handing it off to him. I understand how to do it generally but I haven't done it before. Do you intend to do SLI / Crossfire? No Do you need an operating system? I plan to get him a Win 8 key. What country will you be buying your parts in? Canada If you have any retailer preferences, please specify. Any online retailer is fine. I'm familiar with NCIX, Memoryexpress, and Newegg. As for storage, Crucial MX100 256GB and a 1.5 or 2TB mechanical drive would suffice. Also, unless we need a big case for the videocard or aftermarket CPU cooler for overclocking, I really like the Corsair 350D mATX. You guys are awesome; Thanks for any help! I'll post in the TL Monitor Thread if you guys don't want to worry about that part of it. I stuck to your exact parts / desired specs as close as possible. Ended up being a shade under $1000 before shipping, so a little above your $900 budget. I think it's worth stretching to get up to a GTX 970. I also think the Haswell i5 is a worthwhile investment. If I was going to try to find something to trim, I think your storage requirements and case are a little pricey. I already cut back from a 1.5/2 TB (on newegg anyway, the 2 TB is less expensive than 1.5TB anyway) to a 1 TB HDD to get it under $1000. If you had to get it down to $900 you could always scale back on graphics, but this seems like gtx 970 level budget. You can also pick up a perfectly nice case for $50 or so to save yourself a few pennies. That's what I've got though I'd get the XFX Core 450W if you have it or the Capstone 450W. The CX430 is OK for small web-browsing / office builds, less good if you're going for a gaming rig. Even if Haswell and Maxwell don't draw a lot of power, you should spend $10-20 more to get a good PSU. I'd skimp on the case here and get something like a Cooler Master N200 to save money though that's just me. I guess the 350D looks nice enough. I would still consider the N200 just because it's such a nice case for $57. http://www.ncix.com/detail/cooler-master-n200-matx-18-84140.htm Another case you should get your friend to look at is the NZXT S340, which is actually a pretty nice case for a rig such as this one. At $80 I think it's better than the 350D. Normally I would also recommend the Fractal Core 3500 however it's actually a bit too expensive at NCIX. http://www.ncix.com/detail/nzxt-source-340-atx-steel-ad-100441.htm Review: Maybe look into price matching though. | ||
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decafchicken
United States20078 Posts
On October 14 2014 12:00 Cyro wrote: Sorry i forgot/didn't read a few things. Specifically mainly the waiting til christmas and microcenter that both change stuff (day to day deals, but microcenter often has cheap cpu's and cpu+mobo combo's and i'm not sure how that applies to you or what is available ATM) I made this new build on Newegg/Amazon if you are interested in something like this - PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg) CPU Cooler: Thermalright HR-02 Rev.A(BW) 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($55.00) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg) Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($81.99 @ Newegg) Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($111.99 @ Newegg) Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($369.99 @ Amazon) Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg) Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 450W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg) Total: $1088.93 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-13 22:54 EDT-0400 (Swap CPU cooler for this, it wasn't available on pcpartpicker: http://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-True-Spirit-140-Power/dp/B00IYEEOMO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1413253928&sr=1-1&keywords=true spirit 140 ) There are a few kinda luxury choices in there but no way to save significant money without significantly altering the build (like no CPU overclock capability) - SSD is 256GB because it's cheap these days and 128 is somewhat limiting, everything else is at least "great" tier. EVGA, at least until they release the FTW edition 970, makes the worst custom model (below gigabyte, msi, asus, maybe more) so i skipped over that. What would the step down from this build be? I.e. what would be the "good" tier choices vs "great"? Would you still get an aftermarket cooler with a 4690 (or 4690k) if you weren't overclocking? | ||
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