EPTa1's Sandy Bridge SC2 Builds
PREFACE
Sandy Bridge CPUs, introduced at the beginning of this year, represents the best of Intel's design prowress to date. The CPUs significantly outperform both past Intel and AMD chips alike. Because of their raw performance across all price tiers, they are exceptional choices for Starcraft II, a game that relies heavily on the CPU for performance. So why is there a guide dedicated directly to these CPUs? As stated above, these chips are the cream of the crop. But don't take my word for it, check out these reviews and benchmarks for the Core i7-2600, i5-2500, i5-2400, and i3-2100:
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![[image loading]](http://techreport.com/r.x/sandy-bridge/sc2.gif)
![[image loading]](http://www.legitreviews.com/images/reviews/1501/starcraft.gif)
![[image loading]](http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/graph4083/35050.png)
![[image loading]](http://media.bestofmicro.com/2/X/280041/original/StarCraft2.png)
![[image loading]](http://static.techspot.com/articles-info/353/bench/Gaming_01.png)
THE CPUS
There are a myriad of Sandy Bridge CPUs available, but we'll be focusing on three for this guide. These selections represent the best bang for buck in the Sandy Bridge family:
Core i3-2100
The 2100 is Intel's entry level Sandy Bridge part. It is technically a dual core CPU, and since SC2 primarily takes advantages of two CPU cores, this processor is more than adequate for gameplay. It shines because it runs a very fast speed - 3.1ghz. Also, it does come with Hyperthreading, a way to utilize all the power of the processor by creating 'virtual cores' to spread out the workload across the whole chip, allowing you to gain some performance in multithreaded applications like movie creation and streaming. It's the cheapest of the family, and also runs the coolest.
Do note this processor cannot be overclocked by the user.
Core i5-2400
The 2400 runs in the middle of the pack. It is also a 3.1ghz cpu at stock speeds, but it has Turbo functionality, which increases that speed to 3.4ghz, a free 300mhz overclock. The 2400 is a true quad core processor, so it is very fast in content creation, and a good choice if you might want to stream one day. The 2400 usually sells for around $190. The bigger brother of the i5-2400 is the i5-2500, which represents a 200mhz increase in stock speeds, and a much higher Turbo speed of 3.7ghz; however, the real-world performance difference between the 2400 and 2500 is negligble and the end user will never notice the difference. The money saved can be spent on other components.
Do note this processor cannot be overclocked by the user.
Core i5-2500k
The bigger brother of the 2400. I just told you I'm not going to recommend this cpu, so why is it here? Technically, this isn't the same CPU. The -k suffix indicates the processor can be overclocked by the user (with the proper motherboard). The particular importance of this is that many users are easily achieving 4+ghz speeds with these chips. That is a massive improvement over stock speeds and the first processor of its kind to reach those speeds in the hands of the average joe. Because of those overclocks, the 2500k represenst one of the fastest desktop CPUs you can purchase. The 2500k can be found for a bit under $230.
Recommendation
- If you are on a budget, the Core i3-2100
- If you want better streaming performance and have some more room in your budget, the Core i5-2400
- If you want the best and are comfortable with overclocking, the Core i5-2500k
MOTHERBOARDS
Intel provides several chipsets for motherboards. It can become confusing for the average user to understand the motherboard landscape due to the limitations Intel puts on the chips. I'll go over the general features of the chipsets and motherboards:
- H61
- Entry level, valued priced
- These boards are usually 'barebone', meaning they don't have additional features found on higher priced boards, and usually lack additional heatsinks to help cooling of other components
- Only 2 RAM slots; limits your upgrading capability down the road as you'd have to replace your ram sticks rather than just adding more.
- No SATA6 support, meaning you can't take advantage of high-speed Solid State Hard Drives (some manufacturers may add SATA6 support though a third-party solution, and may drive the price up, and hard drive performance may vary)
- No USB3 support (as above, manufacturers may add support through third party solutions, but may drive the price of the board up)
- Cannot overclock the CPU
- H67
- Value to mid pricing levels
- May come with additional features not found on H61 boards, and some boards may have additional cooling capability
- 4 RAM slots (2 on some models)
- SATA6 support
- Most motherboards do come with USB3; some lower priced H67 boards may not have USB3
- No overclocking of the CPU
- P67
- Mid to high range pricing
- 4 RAM slots, SATA6, USB3 found on virtually all boards
- Less expensive boards will not have additional heatsinks
- Overclocking enabled
- Z68
- Mid to high range pricing
- Same features found on P67
- "Hydra" software*
The primary difference between them lies in the ability for the user to overclock their CPUs. If you want to overclock, you require a CPU with a -k suffix, and a P67/Z68 motherboard. Any other combination of chipsets and cpus will not allow you to overclock.
Lastly, all Sandy Bridge CPUs come with a built-in video card (GPU) on the CPU itself. These GPUs are not very powerful and are not recommend for even SC2. You will notice H61/H67 motherboards come with video output ports (VGA, DVI, HDMI), these boards can use the built-in GPU found on these processors. P67 boards cannot use the built-in GPU and so do not have these ports.
* Z68 boards can use the built in GPU and using the "Hydra" software, allows the Sandy Bridge GPU to accelerate movie encoding software while you game at the same time.
Currently, there is no streaming software optimized for Hydra.
Recommendation
- H61 boards are for meant for strict, low budgets. Be wary that these boards may have quality issues. Based on their lack of features, and fluctuating prices of H67 boards, these are often a last resort option.
- H67 boards are generally recommended, but may be a bit more costly than H61 boards. Always look for combo savings to equalize the cost between H61 boards. Be wary that some boards may lack features. If you are not planning on overclocking, get an H67 board.
- P67 boards are recommend for users not on a tight budget, and will be overclocking their CPUs.
- Z68 - The only way I'm going to recommend this is if you believe one day, there will be streaming software optimized for Hydra. I don't see that happening in the foreseeable future, so stay away, unless a particular board happens to be on sale/cheaper than an equivalent P67 version.
Manufacturers
- ASUS
- Generally high quality boards with many features
- Wide selection of boards across price tiers
- Graphical, easy to use UEFI BIOS
- Carry a slight price premium, but I feel they are the premier option for motherboards.
- Gigabyte
- Build quality comparable to ASUS
- Slightly better pricing, but be wary of features on some models
- No graphical BIOS
- MSI
- Wide motherboard range and pricing
- Graphical BIOS
- Not as popular as Gigabyte, Asus options
- ASRock
- Originally a budget-orientated offshoot of Asus
- Not many models
- Cheaper than other manufacturers, beware of quality issues
Always make use of website tools to find best sellers, user reviews to find what boards may have quality issues, and combo pricing to find good deals!
AUXILLARY INFO
For information on other components, their general performance, and reputable brands, see The Computer Build Resource Thread. The thread has hundreds of replies and great current information on what people are buying. Check it out if you're stuck!
VIDEO CARDS
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Starcraft 2 isn't the most graphically demanding game. It does look pretty at max details, and you don't need to spend hundreds of dollars on a top tier card to achieve that. Many inexpensive cards can run the game very well at 1920x1080. Do note however, turning on anti-aliasing on these less powerful cards will reduce your performance significantly.
- Budget - $100 to $120
- Radeon 5770
- Radeon 5830
- Geforce GTS 450 (Overclocked editions)
- Mid Range - $160 - $200
- Radeon 6850
- Geforce GTX 560
- Upper Ranges - $200+
- Radeon 6950
- Geforce GTX 560 Ti (Overclocked editions)
- $300+
- Radeon 6970
- Geforce GTX 570
Recommendations
Budget
- The Sapphire Radeon 5830 is the best bang for buck at $110 (May 22)
- The EVGA GTS 450 Superclocked, followed by the Gigabyte GTS 450 at $115 (May 22)
- The Sapphire Radeon 5770 rounds it out at $120
Mid
- XFX 6850 at $167 (May 22), followed by other numerous 6850 cards at $170
- EVGA GTX 560 at $190 (May 22)
Upper
- EVGA GTX 560 Ti at $230 (May 22)
- Gigabyte 6950 1GB at $237 (May 22)
$300+- Whatever's on sale!
HARD DRIVES
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Starcraft 2 benefits significantly from SSDs (Solid State Drives). Their super fast access times and read rates mean Starcraft 2 loads radically faster over traditional hard drives.
If you are thinking about an SSD, consult this guide at Anandtech for a ranking of drives. The workload in that review does include the loading of SC2 (among a myriad of other tasks). Please note - SSDs are not for budget builds, as even lower capacity drives cost upto 4x as much as traditional drives.
If you are looking for a budget build, the Samsung F3/F4 are among the best drives you can purchase. They provide the best storage-performance-price ratio of any traditional drive on the market. Do note the Samsung drives may not be available at every retailer, thus the Western Digital Black models are my next suggestion; they offer better performance in some cases but are usually a bit more expensive. Again, watch for pricing on these components and buy whichever is cheaper.
POWER SUPPLIES
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You don't need super powerful PSUs; please look at this page. This review has a listing of the most powerful video cards available on a system with the most power hungry CPU available. The power draw is for the entire system. The GTX 580, a very power hungry card, tops out at around 400 watts. Find a power supply that's on sale, has good reviews, and has enough connections for your system.
OTHER COMPONENTS
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There are a myriad of manufacturers and models you'll find for other components - cases, memory, dvd drives, etc. Its hard to directly recommend one product due to wild pricing fluctations you find with these components, so a great tip I tell everyone - use customer reviews to your advantage. Find products with a lot of reviews, that usually means a lot of people are buying them! And read the reviews too, for example - there might be a defect showing up in new shipments of the product that recent reviews will expose. As recommended above, check out The Computer Build Resource Thread to ask questions if you're stuck.
ON THE BUILDS, PRICING
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The builds below do not include a monitor or operating system, or peripherals such as mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc. Budget accordingly.
The prices found below are general prices found at the time of writing. They are meant to give you an idea on the types of components and power you'll be getting for your money, rather than recommending specific products.
There may be sales or combos that may significantly lower the pricing. If you're thinking about local retailers, some components below may not be specifically available; just get what's comparable. Buying at multiple retailers will incur a higher overall shipping cost, though - its often cheaper to buy at one retailer as they'll ship everything in one box for savings. Lastly, big and heavy items like cases and monitors will incur significant shipping costs due to their bulk (if no Free Shipping offers are available); buy these locally if it'll save you money on shipping. Do the maths to find what's best for you.
The US store Microcenter usually has Intel CPUs at a significantly lower cost than online stores; if you have one in the area, I'd definitely recommend checking them out.
The builds are primarily based on Newegg. Newegg offers a wide selection of components and competitive pricing, but important for here, they have a 'Wish List' system that allows you to create builds to send to others for review. I'm not endorsing that you 100% buy from Newegg (they are a good choice); as I explained above, explore all your options to see what's best for you.
On to my builds!
(USD Prices, Newegg)
Again, these builds are just a guideline on pricing of components and what you'll get for your money. Always consider the alternatives if budget allows, or if you're not happy with something, like the cases for example.
*** UPDATED: May 17th
Read: + Show Spoiler +
I've updated the builds with new motherboard options. The original ASRock was seeing some bad reviews and after a sad story with a member here at TL, I'm not going to recommend it anymore.
i3-2100 build replaced with ASUS P8H67-M LX
Combo'd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.638749
You lose out on USB3 with this selection but the price remains low.
i5-2400 build replaced with ASUS P8H67-M LE
Combo'd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.642630
This board is the same family as in the cheaper build above, but comes with USB3.
If you think might want this board with the i3-2100, here's the combo page: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.642585
i3-2100 build replaced with ASUS P8H67-M LX
Combo'd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.638749
You lose out on USB3 with this selection but the price remains low.
i5-2400 build replaced with ASUS P8H67-M LE
Combo'd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.642630
This board is the same family as in the cheaper build above, but comes with USB3.
If you think might want this board with the i3-2100, here's the combo page: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.642585
i3-2100 Build - $500
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=12584234
Notes: + Show Spoiler +
The entry level build now features a quality ASUS board based on the H67 chipset; it comes with native SATA6 ports incase you might want a speedy SSD in the future. See the above updated spoiler regarding USB3.
If you need more storage space, add or replace the hard drive with this Samsung 1TB or WD Caviar Black 1TB. The case is very cheap at $30, but as always, get what looks best for you.
If you need more storage space, add or replace the hard drive with this Samsung 1TB or WD Caviar Black 1TB. The case is very cheap at $30, but as always, get what looks best for you.
i5-2400 Build - $700
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=15843492
Notes: + Show Spoiler +
This build is very similar to the 2100 build, because the 2400 cannot be overclocked.
The price of the case is raised to $50 to allow for a higher quality case; the case is well featured, but as always, get what best interests you.
RAM is upped to 8GB, a more powerful video card has been added, and the power supply upped a bit as well in the case you'd want to purchase a better video card down the road.
This CPU will run a bit more hotter than the one above and the cooler will be a bit more noisier; if you think you'd want a third party heatsink, consider the Hyper 212.
If you need more storage space, add or replace the hard drive with this Samsung 1TB or WD Caviar Black 1TB.
If you want to add a more powerful graphics card, consider the GTX 560 Ti, or Radeon 6950.
The price of the case is raised to $50 to allow for a higher quality case; the case is well featured, but as always, get what best interests you.
RAM is upped to 8GB, a more powerful video card has been added, and the power supply upped a bit as well in the case you'd want to purchase a better video card down the road.
This CPU will run a bit more hotter than the one above and the cooler will be a bit more noisier; if you think you'd want a third party heatsink, consider the Hyper 212.
If you need more storage space, add or replace the hard drive with this Samsung 1TB or WD Caviar Black 1TB.
If you want to add a more powerful graphics card, consider the GTX 560 Ti, or Radeon 6950.
Build i5-2500k - $ ??
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=15843532
Notes:+ Show Spoiler +
So you want to build a computer with the 2500k so you can overclock the hell out of it. Great! The build provided at the link is the lowest I would consider; but for such a high end build, I'm sure some of you are planning larger budgets for a more fully featured computer. Let's examine the components:
CPU: 2500k (No Notes)
RAM: 8GB (No Notes)
DVD: (No Notes)
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Motherboard: The P8P67-M Pro is a comparibly inexpensive board that carries the P67 chipset, which allows you to overclock. It's main features are the extra heatsinks, as compared to other cheaper boards. This board also enables SLI/Crossfire. Alternatives are MSI P67A-G45 (Larger ATX-sized, $10 cheaper), ASRock P67 Extreme4 (ATX-Sized, beefier heatsinks, more peripheral options, $10 more). From there, you get more expensive boards, which are larger ATX-sized versions of the mATX boards. Get them if you think you'd need more expansion slots for things like sound cards or multiple video cards ... if you want the best of the best for truly high overclocks.
Video Card: The video card is the most variable option of the build. You can purchase a cheaper card like the 6850 to cut the price of the build by upto $75, or get even more powerful cards like the 6970 or GTX 570 by adding another $100. The 6950 runs in the middle of the pack and is a fairly fast card for SC2, and this XFX comes with a lifetime warranty. Alternatives include XFX 6850 ($75 cheaper, much less performance), XFX 6970 and GTX 570 (~$100 more).
Hard Drive: I would highly consider an SSD for this build. My recommendations as follows: The best bang for buck, Crucial C300 64GB (350MB/s read, 70MB/s write) $135. Note thie drive is about 55GB after formatting.
High reliability, Intel 510 120GB (450MB/s read, 200MB/s write), $285.
Cream of the crop, OCZ Vertex 3 120GB (550MB/s read, 500MB/s write), $300. I highly recommend a large storage drive to keep backups of your SSD drive in the case of drive failure.
Power Supply: Alternatives: XFX 650w, in the case you want additional PCI-e connectors for SLI/Crossfire. Please refer to The Computer Build Resource Thread for a listing of reputable brands, and to ask questions regarding specific models. For PSUs, you're looking for high efficiency ("80+ Plus Bronze" and up), enough connectors for your components (such as 2 PCIe connectors for powerful video cards), and things like silent fans as well. PSUs vary wildly in pricing so watch out for sales!
Heatsink: The Coolermaster Hyper 212 is an excellent heatsink. It is very inexpensive at $35. If you find the fan is a tad loud for your tastes, consider a quiter fan. The Noctua NH-U12P is a beefier and quiet alternative. The Prolimatech Megahalems is the largest and most expensive heatsink I will recommend, and you'll need to purchase a fan seperately.
Case: The Coolermaster 371 is an inexpensive case that supports long video cards, plain and simple. There is a plethora of cases across all price ranges that offer different looks and features. Buy what you like ... its what you'll be staring at for the rest of your life!
CPU: 2500k (No Notes)
RAM: 8GB (No Notes)
DVD: (No Notes)
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Motherboard: The P8P67-M Pro is a comparibly inexpensive board that carries the P67 chipset, which allows you to overclock. It's main features are the extra heatsinks, as compared to other cheaper boards. This board also enables SLI/Crossfire. Alternatives are MSI P67A-G45 (Larger ATX-sized, $10 cheaper), ASRock P67 Extreme4 (ATX-Sized, beefier heatsinks, more peripheral options, $10 more). From there, you get more expensive boards, which are larger ATX-sized versions of the mATX boards. Get them if you think you'd need more expansion slots for things like sound cards or multiple video cards ... if you want the best of the best for truly high overclocks.
Video Card: The video card is the most variable option of the build. You can purchase a cheaper card like the 6850 to cut the price of the build by upto $75, or get even more powerful cards like the 6970 or GTX 570 by adding another $100. The 6950 runs in the middle of the pack and is a fairly fast card for SC2, and this XFX comes with a lifetime warranty. Alternatives include XFX 6850 ($75 cheaper, much less performance), XFX 6970 and GTX 570 (~$100 more).
Hard Drive: I would highly consider an SSD for this build. My recommendations as follows: The best bang for buck, Crucial C300 64GB (350MB/s read, 70MB/s write) $135. Note thie drive is about 55GB after formatting.
High reliability, Intel 510 120GB (450MB/s read, 200MB/s write), $285.
Cream of the crop, OCZ Vertex 3 120GB (550MB/s read, 500MB/s write), $300. I highly recommend a large storage drive to keep backups of your SSD drive in the case of drive failure.
Power Supply: Alternatives: XFX 650w, in the case you want additional PCI-e connectors for SLI/Crossfire. Please refer to The Computer Build Resource Thread for a listing of reputable brands, and to ask questions regarding specific models. For PSUs, you're looking for high efficiency ("80+ Plus Bronze" and up), enough connectors for your components (such as 2 PCIe connectors for powerful video cards), and things like silent fans as well. PSUs vary wildly in pricing so watch out for sales!
Heatsink: The Coolermaster Hyper 212 is an excellent heatsink. It is very inexpensive at $35. If you find the fan is a tad loud for your tastes, consider a quiter fan. The Noctua NH-U12P is a beefier and quiet alternative. The Prolimatech Megahalems is the largest and most expensive heatsink I will recommend, and you'll need to purchase a fan seperately.
Case: The Coolermaster 371 is an inexpensive case that supports long video cards, plain and simple. There is a plethora of cases across all price ranges that offer different looks and features. Buy what you like ... its what you'll be staring at for the rest of your life!
OVERCLOCKING
Google is your friend.
The GPU test they ran had above 100FPS (150, even), and having a standard 200/200 army stresses it much less.![[image loading]](http://www.xbitlabs.com/images/cpu/core-i5-2500-2400-2300/slide-5.png)
