Building a PC for my friend...It's done, but could it be better?

[Failadinh]

Hi!

A friend and I are helping our "Clue-less when it comes to pc building" friend to build a PC.
Hes budget is max 1250 $.

We're done - Here is the list of the items.

GeForce GTX 660 GPU
AMD Black Edition FX 4130
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX650 V2
Seagate Momentus TX ST95005620AS 500gb
Asus M5A78L AM3+ Motherboard
Cooler Master Elite 430 mid-tower
G.skill Ares Low Profile DDR3 1866MHz 2 x 4GB
Zalman CNPS 7X LED cpu-cooler
And some random DVD-reader

This in total will cost 923.52 $. So we will got alot of money.
Is this alright or do you guys think we need some or something better.
!Keep in mind! My friend is not a OC guy. Don't come up with something too fancy.

Leave a comment

Peace out!

[chazus]

1) You're gimping an otherwise nice computer with a crippled CPU. Get an Intel, at the very least.
2) Get DDR3 1600. It's cheaper.

Can you list the prices of the parts? Where do you live? It seems like $925 is... kind of a lot for a system of that power.

EDIT: I just priced out those exact parts. Without the OS, it came to $700. With it, $800. So I'm trying to figure out where $100 is disappearing to on your build.

[MrKnubbles]

Have you considered a solid state drive?

[jmacphee9]

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/700?vs=701

that link should help alot, keep in mind that is the fx 4300 not the fx 4130 black, im not sure the difference between the two amds, but its a for sure that it wont make up that difference.

[Failadinh]

1) You're gimping an otherwise nice computer with a crippled CPU. Get an Intel, at the very least.
2) Get DDR3 1600. It's cheaper.

Can you list the prices of the parts? Where do you live? It seems like $925 is... kind of a lot for a system of that power.

EDIT: I just priced out those exact parts. Without the OS, it came to $700. With it, $800. So I'm trying to figure out where $100 is disappearing to on your build.

I'm Danish, and shit cost alot more here than other places in the world.
Heres the list of the prices

GeForce GTX 660 GPU - Costs 297 $
AMD Black Edition FX 4130 - Costs 147 $
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 - Costs 115 $
Seagate Momentus TX ST95005620AS 500gb - Costs 101 $
Asus M5A78L AM3+ Motherboard - Costs 90 $
Cooler Master Elite 430 mid-tower - Costs 71 $
G.skill Ares Low Profile DDR3 1866MHz 2 x 4GB - Costs 66$
Zalman CNPS 7X LED cpu-cooler - Costs 39 $
And some random DVD-reader - Costs 29 $

Re 1) Why should I change the CPU?
Re 2) There really isn't that big of a price change there.



---------- Post added 2013-01-11 at 09:07 AM ----------

Have you considered a solid state drive?

I don't see any problems with the current one.

[MrKnubbles]

I don't see any problems with the current one.

The SSD is just going to load the OS and games much faster.

[jmacphee9]

The SSD is just going to load the OS and games much faster.

^^
ssd's are amazing if you have money left to put in the build.

i would personally get a different processor/mobo though before the ssd though.

[MrKnubbles]

SSDs are running about $1 per GB at the moment where I am. If you find any less than that then snatch it up. Also, chaud recently posted the setup of the month.

[Failadinh]

I see your point, but I think this one is fine, since its a SSHD a hybrid.

---------- Post added 2013-01-11 at 09:19 AM ----------

^^
ssd's are amazing if you have money left to put in the build.

i would personally get a different processor/mobo though before the ssd though.

IDD they are, but since the one I found is SSHD, I think it's fine. Also SSD in Denmark cost to freaking much 128GB for 160 $

Also what CPU and Motherboard should I get?

[chazus]

Re 1) Why should I change the CPU?

Any AMD in general will be worse. But that particular CPU is notably worse for gaming. It's considered a lower end 'budget' cpu, and $1200 is not 'lower end budget'

Re 2) There really isn't that big of a price change there.

$15 is $15 for no performance increase. Technically, 1600 would be better, lower timings.

I don't see any problems with the current one.

If you can afford it, an SSD makes a huge difference for just using the computer. I got my first one a few months ago, and will never, ever be able to own a computer without one ever again (until something better comes out). Not only that, by Hybrid drives have proven to be not all that great.

[Failadinh]

Any AMD in general will be worse. But that particular CPU is notably worse for gaming. It's considered a lower end 'budget' cpu, and $1200 is not 'lower end budget'
Re 2) There really isn't that big of a price change there.
$15 is $15 for no performance increase. Technically, 1600 would be better, lower timings.

If you can afford it, an SSD makes a huge difference for just using the computer. I got my first one a few months ago, and will never, ever be able to own a computer without one ever again (until something better comes out). Not only that, by Hybrid drives have proven to be not all that great.

Alright, So I should get another CPU which means another Motherboard. What would you recommend?

About the RAM, Im gonna note it down.

[chazus]

Are you paying in USD or DKK? It's hard to base a system off budget when it's difficult to pin down the budget. It SOUNDS like you should be asking for an $800 system, if things cost more there, and you're using USD.

---------- Post added 2013-01-11 at 12:26 AM ----------

This is what I was GOING to recommend. I guess you'll have to take those parts, and determine what you can get for them there, but it ought to come out about $1200 USD over there.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Zalman CNPS7X LED CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G43 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($103.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($131.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($269.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($82.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $883.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-11 03:25 EST-0500)

[Failadinh]

Are you paying in USD or DKK? It's hard to base a system off budget when it's difficult to pin down the budget. It SOUNDS like you should be asking for an $800 system, if things cost more there, and you're using USD.

---------- Post added 2013-01-11 at 12:26 AM ----------

This is what I was GOING to recommend. I guess you'll have to take those parts, and determine what you can get for them there, but it ought to come out about $1200 USD over there.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Zalman CNPS7X LED CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G43 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($103.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($131.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($269.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($82.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $883.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-11 03:25 EST-0500)

Damn. Looks very good. I'm paying in DKK, I'm afraid I can't buy this on the website you recommended since the shipping and specially taxes is going to be, to damn high! But I'm sure I can find it somewhere in Denmark ofc. Can't thank you enough.

[chazus]

If you're going to skimp on costs somewhere, I'd probably drop it to i5-3470 first (since he wont be overclocking). A GeForce 660 (non-ti) can run most games on High or Ultra still. After that, I suppose you could drop the SSD, but I honestly use to say "Nay" to SSD's because they provide no gaming performance as far as FPS... however the quality of life improvement SSDs have made in just USING my computer (Which is to say, I use my computer more hours a day than I play games) is just.. amazing. Reboots take 15 seconds. Wow loads in 8 (from desktop, to Orgrimmar).

[Failadinh]

If you're going to skimp on costs somewhere, I'd probably drop it to i5-3470 first (since he wont be overclocking). A GeForce 660 (non-ti) can run most games on High or Ultra still. After that, I suppose you could drop the SSD, but I honestly use to say "Nay" to SSD's because they provide no gaming performance as far as FPS... however the quality of life improvement SSDs have made in just USING my computer (Which is to say, I use my computer more hours a day than I play games) is just.. amazing. Reboots take 15 seconds. Wow loads in 8 (from desktop, to Orgrimmar).

Pretty insane, idd. I love SSDs but they just cost to much in Denmark, but we'll see about it!

Again thank you.

[neuk]

Is there a law that says you can only buy stuff in Denmark. SSD €89.99 http://lb.hardwareversand.de/Solid-S...+6Gb+s.article I built my sons PC and used this German site to get the parts. It's the cheapest I found when buying a complete system. The shipping to Ireland was only €18 for the lot. The shipping to Denmark would be cheaper I bet.

Edit: shipping to Denmark is €9.99

[Failadinh]

Is there a law that says you can only buy stuff in Denmark. SSD €89.99 http://lb.hardwareversand.de/Solid-S...+6Gb+s.article I built my sons PC and used this German site to get the parts. It's the cheapest I found when buying a complete system. The shipping to Ireland was only €18 for the lot. The shipping to Denmark would be cheaper I bet.

Edit: shipping to Denmark is €9.99

The thing is that, if I buy something from germany, I gotta pay some in taxes, so in the end its gonna end up in the same price anyway.

[stalkerzzzz]

You don't have to pay extra taxes as long as both countries are part of the EU.

[Deleted]

Depending on what he wants to play and on what settings, i wouldnt get the SSD but a better cpu/gpu.

simply put, better graphics but more loading times (and windows will feel a bit sluggish if you are used to an SSD that is)
Or
Lower graphics but lower loading times and a fast start up of windows.

I myself would go for better graphics etc.

[Toffie]

Theres no point buying from germany, the price is exactly the same in Denmark.
90+10 = 750 kr

http://www.pricerunner.dk/pl/36-2759...menlign-Priser