Another "I'm buying this today, please look at it and throw me some pointers" thread

[Filed]

Hey, this is my first time actually posting in the computer section after lurking around for a few weeks. This is the setup I have gone for:

CPU:
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz LGA1155 6MB

gfx:
PNY GeForce GTX 560 Ti 850MHz 1GB PCI-Express HDMI OC1 Edition

Mobo:
Gigabyte Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA1155 Intel Z68 DDR3 ATX

HD:
Samsung 1TB Spinpoint F3 7200rpm SATA 3Gb/s 32MB

Power:
OCZ Technology 750W ZS 80+ PSU

Case:
Antec 300 Three Hundred Case Black

Cooling unit:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Cooler Heatsink

RAM:
Patriot Memory 8GB (2x4GB) Division2 G2 Series 1600MHz DDR3


I have been trying to figure out the following, but am still unsure:

1) Does the power unit have enough connections on it to support my setup? Also, is 750W a bit overkill?

2) I am also debating buying another monitor to use dual screen setup, is the 1.5GB GTX 580 suitable for this?

3) Price, £660, I'm sure this is a decent price of this setup. But anything reccomended eg: change of mobo for whatever reason (I'm not up to speed on which mobo I should be getting etc) would be helpful!

Thanks for reading guys, it was a pleasure reading through users posts on other threads, I only hope I can get the same quality of posts diverted into mine!

All the best

[Deleted]

I'm not too hot on Hardware myself. But i'm guessing people will recommend a better PSU, from what i've read the cheaper PSU's just are not worth it (possibility of failure / frying components) when your spending £££ on a new setup. Take a look at the Corsair or Antec one's, and look for an 80+ rated one too.

[Keller]

the GTX 580 has a fairly low Price/Performance Ratio, would 2 cards be a problem? and what will you use the PC for? a 6950/560ti is pretty much enough to play everything on 1 screen. Unless you're using 2 or more screens you dont need that much oomph. You could ofcourse get a single card and later buy another 1 and get a better mobo with 2 slots.

Also, To your second question: it will be more then enough. You're not gonna game on both screens, right? (Even if you are 1.5 is still enough.)

[Deleted]

Not heard about "KFA2".
I've got an Artic Freezer 7 and... it's alright. At least for a cooler without a backplate. I would recommend getting at least a CM 212+ for such a build.
You can cut the PSU down to 600W (single card) or up it to 800W (for 2 cards). I'd alo recommend going for a more well known brand - Corsair is to recommend.
Up the memory to 4Gb x2 G.Skill Ripjaws 1600Mhz.

[Deleted]

IMO, everything's fine expect PSU.
This 1 would be better: http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair...refs=367860000

[Simonzi]

A 750w PSU should not be that cheap. The PSU Maky linked is a good call. If you're trying to get away with the bare minimum for a PSU, the Corsair CX600 is a tad cheaper, at 49.99. If you're already at your max budget, bring the card down from a 580 to a 570, and get a better PSU than the one you linked.

[Deleted]

Yeah i never heard of KFA2, hope you've done your research on em, and also the card since i know there definetly are better gtx 580's out there.
Also for PSU, i would go with Maky's suggestion unless you plan on expanding with a second 580 in the future for SLI, then i'd get a 850 watt still same series PSU.
Also your case seems fairly small, you sure there is room for everything in there?

Other than that everythign else seems fine to me! :3

[Deleted]

1) Does the power unit have enough connections on it to support my setup? Also, is 750W a bit overkill?

2) I am also debating buying another monitor to use dual screen setup, is the 1.5GB GTX 580 suitable for this?

1) 750W might be a little overkill but no need to go lower, but that PSU is most likely a horrible bomb. add 50 pounds to PSU budget and get at least silver rated power.
2) yes it is.

[Deleted]

Don't waste that much money on a 580. Purchase a good SSD instead and downgrade to either 560 or even 460 (you can always buy a second card of any of those and run SLI if you think your performance tweaks). But 580 is just such a waste.

[Deleted]

But 580 is just such a waste.

/facepalm

[Deleted]

Don't waste that much money on a 580. Purchase a good SSD instead and downgrade to either 560 or even 460 (you can always buy a second card of any of those and run SLI if you think your performance tweaks). But 580 is just such a waste.

I really can't understand why someone would sacrifice shitloads of fps (30%+?) just to have faster loading times

[Filed]

I've decided to stick with the 580 GTX simply because I've ran SLI in the past and it's given me nothing but ballache sadly, I realise I'm paying so much extra for a "premium" product, but since I can get it while under my budget (£850) I am going to stick with it.

I have replaced my RAM in the OP with Corsair Memory 8GB (2 x 4GB) Vengeance DDR3 1600MHz DIMM 240-pin CL9 Red (Its cheaper in red than black, so whatever!)

As for PSU, OCZ Technology PSU, ModXStream Pro, 700W - UK is my choice as it keeps me under my budget. The reviews arnt bad either! (I have a 820W sat at home (Currently in student housing) which set me back £65. I think I'll end up using that as soon as my dad rings me about the spec's

Thanks for the comments guys, greatly appreciated!

[Orkela]

OCZ, Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, and Coolermaster seem to all be pretty good rated PSUs.

[taekvideo]

I really can't understand why someone would sacrifice shitloads of fps (30%+?) just to have faster loading times

That really depends on the game... the difference between a 560ti and a 580 is most often ~0% (assuming 60fps capped by 60hz monitor), unless it's a very graphics intensive game.
And if you really want extreme performance like that, you'd be much better off spending $300 on a pair of 6870's in crossfire, which would absolutely blow away a single 580 costing $420.

[Deleted]

That really depends on the game... the difference between a 560ti and a 580 is most often ~0% (assuming 60fps capped by 60hz monitor), unless it's a very graphics intensive game.
And if you really want extreme performance like that, you'd be much better off spending $300 on a pair of 6870's in crossfire, which would absolutely blow away a single 580 costing $420.

or he could buy the 580, enjoy its awesomeness with 60 fps in even most graphic intensive games, then when it starts to become old upgrade with a second 580 for a good bit cheaper ( which wont be long considering the 600 series its on its way).

[Kouki]

Hey, this is my first time actually posting in the computer section after lurking around for a few weeks. This is the setup I have gone for:

CPU:
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz LGA1155 6MB

gfx:
KFA2 GeForce GTX 580 772MHz 1536MB DDR5 PCI-E HDMI

Mobo:
Gigabyte Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA1155 Intel Z68 DDR3 ATX

HD:
Samsung 1TB Spinpoint F3 7200rpm SATA 3Gb/s 32MB

Power:
Best Value 750W Black PSU 12CM Dual 12v CE PFC Model 750UB

Case:
Antec 300 Three Hundred Case Black

Cooling unit:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 CPU Cooler

RAM:
Corsair Memory 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1333MHz 240-pin DIMM CL9


I have been trying to figure out the following, but am still unsure:

1) Does the power unit have enough connections on it to support my setup? Also, is 750W a bit overkill?

2) I am also debating buying another monitor to use dual screen setup, is the 1.5GB GTX 580 suitable for this?

3) Price, £820, I'm sure this is a decent price of this setup. But anything reccomended eg: change of mobo for whatever reason (I'm not up to speed on which mobo I should be getting etc) would be helpful!

Thanks for reading guys, it was a pleasure reading through users posts on other threads, I only hope I can get the same quality of posts diverted into mine!

All the best

I would rather you use the i7 2600, or the k version.

The video card is fine, And yes it can run a few monitors, However i prefer AMD cards for multi monitors.

I would switch the motherboard to the Asus P8Z68 Deluxe.

Seagate And Western Digital Hard drives are my favorites, as long as your drive is sata 3.
With the Z68 boards you should get a ssd as well. The Z68 can use the ssd as cache memory for the other hard drive.

850-1000w power supply with a good rating so you can upgrade more video cards in the future, something with 2+12 volt lines.

The case could be an antec 900, its not a giant case, but room for growth, and is under 100 bucks.
Or you can splurge and get an Antec 1200, Or Coolermaster HaF-X.

The Cpu cooler is good, But id Go with A Noctua NH-D14.

Your ram is nice, you could save on ram by going with Kingston, or Patriot. you wont notice much in a difference.

[Deleted]

I would rather you use the i7 2600, or the k version.

I would rather you don't misinform the OP. The i5 2500k and the i7 2600k are EQUAL in games.

[Deleted]

I would rather you don't misinform the OP. The i5 2500k and the i7 2600k are EQUAL in games.

---------- Post added 2011-08-09 at 11:52 AM ----------


Yes, let's pick a 1000W for a system that needs around 500W. Good call. Even with a two card setup it won't pull more than 860W.

They are about equal, yes, the i7 is ~100 euro's more expensive and hardly any better. The extra onboard GPU is usefull for video editting and such, and is absolutely not required for gaming. As such, if you don't plan to do anything other than gaming + the usual, don't go for the i7.

As for 1000w, holy shit overkill. Tbh, get a 550-600w with bronze certificate and your set, don't go dual-gpu if your not planning on going dual screen.

[Filed]

I have no need for hyperthreding, I do not think it is worth the money. I'll be stiucking with the i5-2500k

As for graphics cards, I've knocked it down to a 560 - Simply because I shouldnt base past experiences with SLI configs and 560 is more than enough for what I want to run for now, saving me an easy £150 (Which can be used later on if I ever want/need a SLI configuration)

I'll be getting a 800W simply because of the reason above also.

As for SSD's I will be looking into them in the future when they are cheaper. The mobo I have selected has the capability for that.

I have switched the RAM to PATRIOT RAM, same specs as before, same price but the RAM size itself is much smaller, so fitting in the ooler should not be a problem anymore.

---------- Post added 2011-08-09 at 01:00 PM ----------

I will update within the hour of my final choice (Hopefully), I really dont want to dream about motherboards and processors again tonight lol.

[ProfessorTjc]

Everything is fine other then the Processor... It's garbage. Go towards the AMD processor side they have cheaper processor and are amazing for the price.

Mod Warning: Post more constructively.