1. #1
    Grunt Illumine's Avatar
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    Informed opinions on this budget pc build for WoW please

    Hello,

    I have been given this build by a friend to be able to play world of warcraft decently and would like some opinions please before I buy it. I will answer the questions in the sticky to help describe what I need:

    Budget - £500

    Resolution - 1920 x 1080 (can go to 1440 x 900 I suppose to stay within budget if required)

    Games / Settings Desired - world of warcraft on at least high settings during raids

    Any other intensive software or special things you do (Frequent video encoding, 3D modeling, etc) - nope, just world of warcraft

    Country - United Kingdom

    Parts that can be reused - My 1TB hard drive, monitor, keyboard, mouse and probably windows 7

    Do you need an OS? - no

    Do you need peripherals (e.g. monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc)? - no

    The build is as follows:

    MoBo: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3
    CPU: AMD FX 4300 Black Edition Quad Core Processor AM3+ (overclocked to 4.4ghz)
    RAM: Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz 2x4gb
    GPU: GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB
    HDD: WD 1TB (already own)
    PSU: OCZ CoreXStream Series 500W
    Case: not sure what to get?

    Total so far without case: £401.09

    Thank you very much in advance for your opinions!

  2. #2
    Umm..The way you typed it it sounds like the friend is selling it to you..

    FX-4300 is weak, overclocked or not its a weak CPU, yeah decent for WoW but weak nonetheless.

    If the friend isnt selling it to you make that FX-4300 to a FX-8350 and the build is solid.

    Also change that PSU to something else, OCZ has a bad rep with its power supplies.

    Case, get whatever case has at least 1 frontal USB 3 , thats the only criteria for a case nowadays thats not meant for a high specced system, aka requiring cable management and good airflow.

  3. #3
    Moderator chazus's Avatar
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    Why not Zoidberg?

    A smidge over budget, but an utterly bangin system for the price. You could downgrade to an XFX 450w and still be fine for overclocking. OC, at full load will only do about 350w, for stress testing purposes. Gaming will likely only pull about 250, so a 450w XFX is dandy (and surprisingly cheaper, at £35)

    PCPartPicker part list
    CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£146.94 @ Amazon UK)
    CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
    Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G45 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£83.00 @ Ebuyer)
    Memory: PNY XLR8 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£40.49 @ Amazon UK)
    Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card (£146.00 @ Ebuyer)
    Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case (£41.99 @ Amazon UK)
    Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£51.98 @ Dabs)
    Total: £510.40
    Gaming: Dual Intel Pentium III Coppermine @ 1400mhz + Blue Orb | Asus CUV266-D | GeForce 2 Ti + ZF700-Cu | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 | Whistler Build 2267
    Media: Dual Intel Drake Xeon @ 600mhz | Intel Marlinspike MS440GX | Matrox G440 | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 @ 166mhz | Windows 2000 Pro

    IT'S ALWAYS BEEN WANKERSHIM | Did you mean: Fhqwhgads
    "Three days on a tree. Hardly enough time for a prelude. When it came to visiting agony, the Romans were hobbyists." -Mab

  4. #4
    Deleted
    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£146.94 @ Amazon UK)
    CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.49 @ CCL Computers)
    Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£69.83 @ Amazon UK)
    Memory: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£50.97 @ Amazon UK)
    Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB Video Card (£130.00 @ Ebuyer)
    Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case (£41.99 @ Amazon UK)
    Power Supply: XFX 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£34.99 @ Maplin Electronics)
    Total: £499.21
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-28 00:35 BST+0100)

    Much better performance. Overclockable however you can get rid of the CM Evo Heatsink, to save £25, but overclocking will be limited then.

    @chazus, missing the £25 on the heatsink for some reason and the RAM is 1.65v, not really recommended.
    Last edited by mmocca5d152c38; 2013-06-27 at 11:40 PM.

  5. #5
    Moderator chazus's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Notarget View Post
    @chazus, missing the £25 on the heatsink for some reason and the RAM is 1.65v, not really recommended.
    Yeah, the EVO was brought over from a US build and I assumed it carried, but.. apparently not? And I didn't see the 1.65v ram. There are 1.5 variants for £47. I updated the build here, with the 660, but the total comes to £513. I don't know if going from the 650ti Boost to the 660 is worth it or not.
    Gaming: Dual Intel Pentium III Coppermine @ 1400mhz + Blue Orb | Asus CUV266-D | GeForce 2 Ti + ZF700-Cu | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 | Whistler Build 2267
    Media: Dual Intel Drake Xeon @ 600mhz | Intel Marlinspike MS440GX | Matrox G440 | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 @ 166mhz | Windows 2000 Pro

    IT'S ALWAYS BEEN WANKERSHIM | Did you mean: Fhqwhgads
    "Three days on a tree. Hardly enough time for a prelude. When it came to visiting agony, the Romans were hobbyists." -Mab

  6. #6
    Grunt Illumine's Avatar
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    Thank you very much for the advice!!

    My friend wasn't trying to sell to me he just found an 'overclocked hardware bundle' on scan. It seems he was quite far out on what I could get for my money though!

    I didn't even look at Intel i5s as I thought they would be out of my budget with a good graphics card as well. I think the OCZ PSU was picked because it came with a 3 year warranty but I will definitely swap with the recommended XFX as I understand that a bad power supply can ruin the rest of the pc?

    If I were to find a cheaper case so that I can fit in the 660 into budget I would also need to get the 550w power supply instead of 450w right?

    Thanks again

  7. #7
    Moderator chazus's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Illumine View Post
    I think the OCZ PSU was picked because it came with a 3 year warranty but I will definitely swap with the recommended XFX as I understand that a bad power supply can ruin the rest of the pc?
    Most decent PSU's actually come with a 5 year. And to be clear, there is a difference between 'bad' and 'poor quality', in that a poor quality one has a higher chance of going bad, or simply not doing what it's supposed to, and yes, damage can occur from time to time.

    If I were to find a cheaper case so that I can fit in the 660 into budget I would also need to get the 550w power supply instead of 450w right?
    Naw, the 450w ought to do fine. People like to have overhead sometimes, but there really isn't a huge purpose to it. Technically PSU's will degrade a little over time, but as far as I'm aware, most people replace or upgrade their system before that's ever a concern (~3-4 years)
    Gaming: Dual Intel Pentium III Coppermine @ 1400mhz + Blue Orb | Asus CUV266-D | GeForce 2 Ti + ZF700-Cu | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 | Whistler Build 2267
    Media: Dual Intel Drake Xeon @ 600mhz | Intel Marlinspike MS440GX | Matrox G440 | 1024mb Crucial PC-133 @ 166mhz | Windows 2000 Pro

    IT'S ALWAYS BEEN WANKERSHIM | Did you mean: Fhqwhgads
    "Three days on a tree. Hardly enough time for a prelude. When it came to visiting agony, the Romans were hobbyists." -Mab

  8. #8
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    Copenhagen UK? Just kidding just I saw your location in the build request and avatar.

    Btw if you pick the 450W unit (which is fine) get the one from my build, yes there is a difference. (you want the P1-450S-XXB9 not the P1-450S-X2B9)

  9. #9
    Grunt Illumine's Avatar
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    Not long moved to UK

    Thanks very much for the pointers. I will definitely go with this build. Thanks for clarifying the power supply too

  10. #10
    Grunt Illumine's Avatar
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    So sorry to come back and open this thread again after two weeks but embarrassingly I have only just got around to purchasing this and a few of the components have changed price or become unavailable

    I would greatly appreciate some pointers again with the things that have changed:

    The cpu has gone up by around £25 - Is it still the best option?

    I was going to choose the better graphics card but it seems that specific one is now only available from dabs and is 'on order with no confirmed delivery date' and I would really like to order it all tomorrow. Should I just go with the recommended 650 Ti Boost or is there an equally good 660 for a similar price to the first one that is available now?

    Most importantly the recommended psu is no longer available as far as I can tell and I am not sure which other psu around that price range to trust

    Regarding the case recommendation - I don't really like the 'plain' look of that case.. Would this one be an adequate replacement?: Zalman Z9 Plus Midi Tower Case. It doesn't have usb3 I think but is it really necessary?

    Thanks in advance again.. I will definitely buy the computer tomorrow if I can get some help on these questions and then I can stop pestering you guys
    Just smile and wave boys, smile and wave

  11. #11
    Deleted
    How is this? is the extra cost an issue? Yes the CPU is worth it for sure.

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£167.99 @ Aria PC)
    CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£17.99 @ Amazon UK)
    Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£65.57 @ Amazon UK)
    Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory (£50.97 @ Dabs)
    Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card (£149.99 @ Novatech)
    Case: Zalman Z5 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case (£38.99 @ Novatech)
    Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£37.97 @ Dabs)
    Total: £529.47
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-14 23:47 BST+0100)

    What do you think of this case then? Comes with front USB 3.0, if you have no need for or any USB 3.0 then no it doesn't matter. If you prefer the Z9 instead go for it.

    If you can stretch the budget a little I would recommend this combo instead:

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card (£161.99 @ Aria PC)
    Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£49.86 @ Scan.co.uk)
    Total: £211.85
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-14 23:40 BST+0100)

    The 7870 XT is only slightly behind 7950 (~15%) performance wise and quite good considering only £162. This combo would definitely give you more performance for longer but if the cost is an issue the 660 will be fine.

  12. #12
    Pandaren Monk Klutzington's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Notarget View Post
    How is this? is the extra cost an issue? Yes the CPU is worth it for sure.

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£167.99 @ Aria PC)
    CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£17.99 @ Amazon UK)
    Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£65.57 @ Amazon UK)
    Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory (£50.97 @ Dabs)
    Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card (£149.99 @ Novatech)
    Case: Zalman Z5 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case (£38.99 @ Novatech)
    Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£37.97 @ Dabs)
    Total: £529.47
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-14 23:47 BST+0100)
    I 1000% agree with this build. You do not need anything stronger than a 650 ti boost for WoW.

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