Final component check

[gx240]

I'm just about to get a system, but I want to do one final check and make sure everything is compatible and I haven't accidentally selected any bad parts. Here's what I'm looking at:

Processor Intel® Core™ i5-3570K
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Memory 16 GB [4 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory (G.Skill)
Video Card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti - 2GB
Power Supply 500 Watt - Corsair CX500 V2
SSD 240 GB Intel 330

And a couple quick questions:

The difference between the 660 Ti 2GB and 650 Ti 2GB seems to be about $100. Is it worth the cost?

Is the 500W power supply going to be sufficient? Should I upgrade to the 650W or 750W Corsair?

I don't know SSDs that well. Is that Intel decent, or should I go with a Kingston or Corsair instead?

[Xl House lX]

I'm just about to get a system, but I want to do one final check and make sure everything is compatible and I haven't accidentally selected any bad parts. Here's what I'm looking at:

Processor Intel® Core™ i5-3570K
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Memory 16 GB [4 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory (G.Skill)
Video Card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti - 2GB
Power Supply 500 Watt - Corsair CX500 V2
SSD 240 GB Intel 330

And a couple quick questions:

The difference between the 660 Ti 2GB and 650 Ti 2GB seems to be about $100. Is it worth the cost?

Is the 500W power supply going to be sufficient? Should I upgrade to the 650W or 750W Corsair?

I don't know SSDs that well. Is that Intel decent, or should I go with a Kingston or Corsair instead?

Everything looks like it would work well together to me.

1. The difference between the 660 Ti and the 650 Ti is worth the upgrade imo.
2. I have a 660 Ti in my old machine, I think the 500w PSU will probably run the machine, I would check with Nvidia or the company you bought the card from to see power requirements.
3. Any SSD will run good imo, the difference in speeds between them is hardly noticeable.

[Deleted]

I'm just about to get a system, but I want to do one final check and make sure everything is compatible and I haven't accidentally selected any bad parts. Here's what I'm looking at:

Processor Intel® Core™ i5-3570K
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Memory 16 GB [4 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory (G.Skill)
Video Card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti - 2GB
Power Supply 500 Watt - Corsair CX500 V2
SSD 240 GB Intel 330

And a couple quick questions:

The difference between the 660 Ti 2GB and 650 Ti 2GB seems to be about $100. Is it worth the cost?

Is the 500W power supply going to be sufficient? Should I upgrade to the 650W or 750W Corsair?

I don't know SSDs that well. Is that Intel decent, or should I go with a Kingston or Corsair instead?

Drop 8 gig of ram and use that money to get a better graphics card. The gcard is one area you dont want to skimp, where as memory is an easy cheap later upgrade if you really must have 16gb

[gx240]

2. I have a 660 Ti in my old machine, I think the 500w PSU will probably run the machine, I would check with Nvidia or the company you bought the card from to see power requirements.

Well Nvidia officially says the "Maximum Graphics Card Power" is 150W and the "Minimum System Power Requirement" is 450W. So it's fairly close. Should I upgrade to the Corsair 650W just to be safe?

[LiquorIsQuicker]

Might be best to pick up a 650 Watt Psu just in case. Also Intel is notorious for overpricing their SSD's while skimping out on build quality, reliability and speed. For about 30 dollars more you can pick up a Samsung 840 pro 256gb that will most definitely outperform the Intel 330 240gb.

[Xl House lX]

Well Nvidia officially says the "Maximum Graphics Card Power" is 150W and the "Minimum System Power Requirement" is 450W. So it's fairly close. Should I upgrade to the Corsair 650W just to be safe?

Thats up to you, I say you'd be fine with the 500w PSU but maybe you should look at a 650w for future proofing purposes.

[gx240]

Drop 8 gig of ram and use that money to get a better graphics card. The gcard is one area you dont want to skimp, where as memory is an easy cheap later upgrade if you really must have 16gb

It looks like I can drop the memory down to 8GB and replace the GTX660 Ti 2GB with a GTX 670 2GB for about the same cost. Is that probably a better option?

Intel is notorious for overpricing their SSD's while skimping out on build quality, reliability and speed. For about 30 dollars more you can pick up a Samsung 840 pro 256gb that will most definitely outperform the Intel 330 240gb.

How do the Corsair and Kingston SSDs compare to the Intel and Samsung?

[Deleted]

It looks like I can drop the memory down to 8GB and replace the GTX660 Ti 2GB with a GTX 670 2GB for abou thte same cost. Is that probably a better option?

definately, dropping 8gb ram wont have any impact on your performance for games but upgrading to the 670 will definately see a bigger fps increase across the board

[Kunisan]

It looks like I can drop the memory down to 8GB and replace the GTX660 Ti 2GB with a GTX 670 2GB for about the same cost. Is that probably a better option?



How do the Corsair and Kingston SSDs compare to the Intel and Samsung?

For SSD, Samsung all the way, trust me. If not for speed then for reliability.
A friend of mine bought two different types SSD's that he had issues with and blue screen weekly.

Yes, sure, absolutely, most SSD companies have gotten their SSD's good now, but a big point is that Samsung is as far as I know, the only SSD creator that makes every single part inside the SSD themself, no one else does. Maybe Intel does, not sure on that, can't be bothered to check it right now.

Either way, back when the 830 series was new, I recommended my friend to buy that one, and he did.
Not a single blue screen over one year after, never an issue, the SSD simply works and gives top speed.

Like another person in this thread said, Samsung 840 pro, where the pro is the key, in my opinion, the best SSD on the market right now.
Get the 256 GB one and you'll have full speed, the lower capacity one has less write speed, albeit you probably won't notice much difference, you probably won't have to change it for many years to come, depending on how crazy the SSD market or HDD market in general moves forward.

Though it needs to be said, a few SSD companies still has some issues with their SSD's, and a lot of the Sandforce type SSD's has had various issues.

I'm not what you'd call a Samsung fanboy, but for SSD, the choice is simple, when it's time for me to upgrade in the future, I won't think twice, that's for sure.

---------- Post added 2013-03-16 at 08:48 PM ----------

In 2013, I suppose 8 GB is useful though but you have absolutely NO need whatsoever for more then 8 GB ram if all you are gonna do is gaming and daily tasks in general, you won't ever get near to spend all that RAM.

I have had 8 GB ram in my computer going like 5 years now, it's starting to get a bit dated my rig. The highest I have ever gotten is like some 70-75% memory used.
Unless you plan on having 50 website tabs up while at the same time keeping up 2 different games, but what's the point?

On graphics cards, I would suggest a 660 TI, for sure, or even a 670.
A 650 is quite a bit weaker, a 660 should boost the fps nicely depending on how decently optimized the graphics engine of the game you are playing is.

The cpu you've chosen is perfect for what you need at least, for PSU, I don't know, but I personally would not touch a PSU that has less then 600 watts of power when buying a new computer in this day and age.

Just my 5 cents.

[Deleted]

I assume this is a pre-built system?

For the SSD Samsung 830, Samsung 840 or Crucial M4 if they have either of those. If they don't and there is Intel I'd pick that up even if it's slightly more expensive.

500W is fine but if there is a TX version instead (650) then switch to that, not for the power but the quality. actually the CX500 V2 is "only" 408W (34A).

[slimj091]

I'm just about to get a system, but I want to do one final check and make sure everything is compatible and I haven't accidentally selected any bad parts. Here's what I'm looking at:

Processor Intel® Core™ i5-3570K
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Memory 16 GB [4 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory (G.Skill)
Video Card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti - 2GB
Power Supply 500 Watt - Corsair CX500 V2
SSD 240 GB Intel 330

And a couple quick questions:

The difference between the 660 Ti 2GB and 650 Ti 2GB seems to be about $100. Is it worth the cost?

Is the 500W power supply going to be sufficient? Should I upgrade to the 650W or 750W Corsair?

I don't know SSDs that well. Is that Intel decent, or should I go with a Kingston or Corsair instead?

the 660ti is miles beyond a better card than the 650ti, and with your cpu the 650ti would be a big bottleneck.

---------- Post added 2013-03-16 at 08:19 PM ----------

Drop 8 gig of ram and use that money to get a better graphics card. The gcard is one area you dont want to skimp, where as memory is an easy cheap later upgrade if you really must have 16gb

you missed that he is getting a quad channel kit for a dual channel board. if his heart is set on 16gb it would be better to get a 8GB X2 kit.

[gx240]

you missed that he is getting a quad channel kit for a dual channel board. if his heart is set on 16gb it would be better to get a 8GB X2 kit.

I'm lost. What is quad versus dual channel exactly? You don't mean the actual number of memory slots on the motherboard, right?

[Kunisan]

I'm lost. What is quad versus dual channel exactly? You don't mean the actual number of memory slots on the motherboard, right?

Read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-c...y_architecture

A motherboard or mainboard if you will in this era is either dual channel or quad channel, mostly.

Meaning, if it's dual channel, the best performance you'll gain is by using two dual channel memory sticks that works together.

Some motherboards has quad channel, meaning you need 4 memory sticks of the same type, meaning that all 4 sticks works together.

Quad channel memory is more or less a gimmick though as it doesn't really give you more performance over dual channel, it's just how it is.

If you buy a dual channel motherboard, buy either 2 x 4GB to get 8 GB total ram, or 2 x 8 GB to get 16 GB total ram, though 8 GB sticks cost a bit more.

If you buy a quad channel motherboard, buy 4 x 2 GB sticks to get 8 GB ram, or 4 x 4 GB sticks to get 16 GB ram.

Most ram come in dual or quad channel kits when you buy them nowadays anyway, the thing you need to check though is if your motherboard is dual or quad channel, and no, you cannot change it on a motherboard, it's either dual, or quad, for most motherboards today.


Edit: You also have triple channel memory, though I feel it's just a bit silly that one, merely my opinion.
Those will be 3 sticks of ram working together so you either have 6 GB or 12 GB ram, though I think less motherboards today has triple channel memory.

I believe all socket 2011 motherboards has quad channel only, though I might be mistaken =)

[Deleted]

I'm lost. What is quad versus dual channel exactly? You don't mean the actual number of memory slots on the motherboard, right?

No quad channel is different to having 4 memory sticks. Intel's socket 2011 supports quad channel memory, in crude terms in means accessing data from 4 channels rather than one. Your platform, socket 1155 supports dual channel memory, accessing data from only two channels. It means faster performance, but in real world terms it doesn't make that much difference in gaming.

For your system it is optimal to have 2x4GB or 2x8GB of ram sticks to take advantage of this feature.

[gx240]

For your system it is optimal to have 2x4GB or 2x8GB of ram sticks to take advantage of this feature.

Ok that makes sense, but would would happen if you put in 4x4GB? Would it just run with degraded performance?

[Kunisan]

Ok that makes sense, but would would happen if you put in 4x4GB? Would it just run with degraded performance?

Pretty much, yes. Todays motherboards are made for use with either dual, triple or quad channel memory, so putting a quad channel memory kit into a motherboard that supports dual channel isn't really that useful.

Buy a kit with two 8 GB sticks, problem solved, easy!

I would seriously urge you to just do a bit reading on the wikipedia link I linked, here's a relink:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-c...y_architecture

It carefully explains how everything surrounding multichannel ram memory works.

Edit: You can also buy two dual channel kits, but that quickly can become a bit expensive, seeing as the dual channel motherboards do have 4 slots, two of each has the same color.
That way you can buy two 2 x 4 GB dual channel kits and get 16 GB ram that way while still utilizing dual channel memory on all 4 sticks of ram, as far as I know.

---------- Post added 2013-03-16 at 10:30 PM ----------

It really isn't all that complicated, Intel® Core i5-3570K is a cpu that is used on socket 1155, 1155 does not support quad channel memory, meaning you will lose speed by not utilizing dual channel ram.

Dual channel memory is in NO way inferior compared to quad channel, just fyi.

[slasher0161]

Just a couple of quick things.
Check the ram is low profile (I really can't see the need for 16gb of ram either but that has already been said).
No aftermarket cooler yet an i5-3570k? If your intending to overclock get an aftermarket cooler (hyper 212 evo works well, just need to check it will fit your case).
Just stay away from the corsair cx series, not only is their actual potential less than on the label but they are known to fail.

[Kunisan]

Just a couple of quick things.
Check the ram is low profile (I really can't see the need for 16gb of ram either but that has already been said).
No aftermarket cooler yet an i5-3570k? If your intending to overclock get an aftermarket cooler (hyper 212 evo works well, just need to check it will fit your case).
Just stay away from the corsair cx series, not only is their actual potential less than on the label but they are known to fail.

I second that one, hyper 212 evo is great for what it does, and for the price, it's quite cheap and cools the cpu well.

It's no Noctua NH-D14, then again that one costs A LOT more so, ya.


Edit: Either way, I'm signing out of this thread, I have helped the OP as much as I possibly can so, hope you figure things out and get a good computer together!

[slimj091]

Read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-c...y_architecture

A motherboard or mainboard if you will in this era is either dual channel or quad channel, mostly.

Meaning, if it's dual channel, the best performance you'll gain is by using two dual channel memory sticks that works together.

Some motherboards has quad channel, meaning you need 4 memory sticks of the same type, meaning that all 4 sticks works together.

Quad channel memory is more or less a gimmick though as it doesn't really give you more performance over dual channel, it's just how it is.

If you buy a dual channel motherboard, buy either 2 x 4GB to get 8 GB total ram, or 2 x 8 GB to get 16 GB total ram, though 8 GB sticks cost a bit more.

If you buy a quad channel motherboard, buy 4 x 2 GB sticks to get 8 GB ram, or 4 x 4 GB sticks to get 16 GB ram.

Most ram come in dual or quad channel kits when you buy them nowadays anyway, the thing you need to check though is if your motherboard is dual or quad channel, and no, you cannot change it on a motherboard, it's either dual, or quad, for most motherboards today.


Edit: You also have triple channel memory, though I feel it's just a bit silly that one, merely my opinion.
Those will be 3 sticks of ram working together so you either have 6 GB or 12 GB ram, though I think less motherboards today has triple channel memory.

I believe all socket 2011 motherboards has quad channel only, though I might be mistaken =)

quad channel boards can run in quad channel (obviously), triple channel, and dual channel setups. dual channel boards will still only be dual channel even with 4, or 3 dimm's of ram installed. in plain speak you will get less performance out of your ram if you install 4 dimm's of ram in a dual channel board compared to 2 dimm's of equal capacity.

---------- Post added 2013-03-17 at 08:44 AM ----------

hyper 212 evo's are great, but the stock fan is okay for minor overclocking. the only real drawback is that they tend to be on the loud side.