Budget Gaming Build Plan - done, but CPU too hot?

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chorb

Golden Member
Oct 7, 2005
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1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing:
Budget gaming (mainly for Diablo3). Doesn't have to run at the highest graphics settings, but would like a 40+ fps at medium settings

2. What YOUR budget is:
Under $600

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from:
good 'ol USA. Fortunate to live a few miles away from MicroCenter where I've seen the best deals

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc:
Nope, just looking for the best bang for my buck.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Antec P180 case
500GB 7200RPM HD
CD/DVD Burner
350W PSU (doubt it'll be enough)
Buying a GTX 460 from a friend for $100
Windows 7
logitech keyboard and mouse

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Default

8. What resolution will you be using?
1920 x 1080

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Within 2 weeks

Here's the rest of the parts I've priced out from MicroCenter (after rebates):
Intel Core i3 2100 LGA 1155 3.1GHz Boxed Processor $100
Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3 LGA 1155 Z68 ATX Intel Motherboard $85
ASUS 21.5" LED Backlit Widescreen LCD Monitor $149
Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 500 Watt ATX 12V Power Supply $40
Corsair XMS3 8GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) CL9 Desktop Memory Kit (2x4GB) $30
Cooler Master Hyper TX3 92mm HP CPU Cooler $22
GTX 460 from friend $100

Total with tax: $564


I'm open to changing any part, given a good reason.
 
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lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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CPU Good.

Mobo Normally I'd pair an i3 with a H67 board since it can't be overclocked anyway, but if your intention is to upgrade the i3 later on to an unlocked quad core Ivy Bridge, Z68 could make sense. However based on Gigabyte's website, that board doesn't support Ivy Bridge. If this is your plan, buy Asrock Z68 Pro3 Gen3.

Monitor You can usually newegg a 23"-24" monitor for $150. E.g. Asus VH242H $150 AR AP shipped. Asus VH238H LED $150 AR AP shipped.

PSU Cooler Master power supplies aren't very good except for their Silent Pro (Gold) series. That particular eXtreme power is particularly crap. I'd recommend Corsair CX500 V2 (~$30 AR AP).

RAM The RAM you selected is 1.65V, LGA1155 wants 1.5V.

Cooler The aftermarket cooler isn't necessary. Try the stock cooler first. If you're disappointed with the noise it makes (I've heard conflicting opinions about that), only then consider an aftermarket cooler.

GPU Good.
 
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Seattle51

Member
Feb 22, 2012
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Since you live near a MicroCenter, and they still have the $50 off when you buy the CPU and Processor together I might suggest you go with the Intel Core i5 2400 LGA 1155 Boxed Processor
and the http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0367879 with the $50 off your looking at $55 for a pretty decent mobo. No need for an aftermarker heatsink and your total bill for MOBO and CPU is around $205 which is in the same ballpark as the MOBO, CPU and Heatsink you selected......
 
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chorb

Golden Member
Oct 7, 2005
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lehtv said:
CPU Good.

Mobo Normally I'd pair an i3 with a H67 board since it can't be overclocked anyway, but if your intention is to upgrade the i3 later on to an unlocked quad core Ivy Bridge, Z68 could make sense. However based on Gigabyte's website, that board doesn't support Ivy Bridge. If this is your plan, buy Asrock Z68 Pro3 Gen3.

Monitor You can usually newegg a 23"-24" monitor for $150. E.g. Asus VH242H $150 AR AP shipped. Asus VH238H LED $150 AR AP shipped.

PSU Cooler Master power supplies aren't very good except for their Silent Pro (Gold) series. That particular eXtreme power is particularly crap. I'd recommend Corsair CX500 V2 (~$30 AR AP).

RAM The RAM you selected is 1.65V, LGA1155 wants 1.5V.

Cooler The aftermarket cooler isn't necessary. Try the stock cooler first. If you're disappointed with the noise it makes (I've heard conflicting opinions about that), only then consider an aftermarket cooler.

GPU Good.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback!

Not looking to upgrade to Ivy Bridge, so I'll take a longer look at my options for saving money on the mobo.

Good catch on the RAM voltage
 
lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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Seattle51's suggestion makes sense though. Get an i5 now if that saves you $50 on an already affordable Z68 motherboard. It'll extend the usable lifetime of the platform by quite a bit.
 
lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
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He probably doesn't need the extra features that come with z68x-ud3h (like sli/crossfire)
 
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chorb

Golden Member
Oct 7, 2005
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Seatle51's suggestion does make sense (and I've thought about it before my original post), but i just dont see the extra money being worth it to me for the upgrade from an i3 to i5.
I will not be SLI/Crossfiring, nor overclocking, nor upgrading to ivy bridge in the foreseeable future. My goal is to keep it within budget and still achieve a solid mid range system for mainly gaming for the next few years.

Thanks to Lehtv for opening my eyes to the H61/H67 mobos, looks like I can save some money there and still get the same performance (without all the extra features i wouldnt be using anyway).
 
lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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Seatle51's suggestion does make sense (and I've thought about it before my original post), but i just dont see the extra money being worth it to me for the upgrade from an i3 to i5.
Click to expand...

I thought the point was that you don't get $50 off on a Z68 the motherboard if you buy an i3, and $50 is what separates i3-2100 and i5-2400. I could be wrong on that, but if true it'd be pointless to buy i3 + H61/H67 because i5 + Z68 would cost only marginally more.
 
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steptaker

Member
Jan 18, 2012
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I just did an i3 budget build, and if I lived near a MC, I would have gone i5/z68. The added cost of upgrading cpu, p/s, gpu later isnt worth it. spend now or spend later
 
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chorb

Golden Member
Oct 7, 2005
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lehtv said:
I thought the point was that you don't get $50 off on a Z68 the motherboard if you buy an i3, and $50 is what separates i3-2100 and i5-2400. I could be wrong on that, but if true it'd be pointless to buy i3 + H61/H67 because i5 + Z68 would cost only marginally more.
Click to expand...

i5 deal from MC requires you to get the i5-2500k ($180) to get $50 off the mobo.
i5($180) + z68 ($50) = Total sum: ~$230

but keep in mind I'm not looking to overclock so the z68 is probably overkill. However, the MC deal also allows $50 a H61 mobo so I could essentially go the uber cheap route and get a H61 for $5. But then I have an unlocked i5 with a non-overclockable mobo... kind of pointless.

so i5($180) + h61 ($5) = $185

OR

i3 setup would be: i3-2100 ($100) + h61 mobo ($55). Total sum: ~$155


So the question of the night is: it worth it to spend the extra $30 for an i5-2500k over an i3-2100, in both cases using an H61 mobo?
 
lehtv

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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chorb said:
So the question of the night is: it worth it to spend the extra $30 for an i5-2500k over an i3-2100, in both cases using an H61 mobo?
Click to expand...

Definitely. That's essentially an i5-2500K for $130 or 30% more. It is however much faster than 30% faster - up to 80-90% in heavily multithreaded apps. It won't immediately and significantly improve gaming performance but since it can handle a graphics card a generation or two more powerful than i3-2100, $30 is a small price to pay for this extra longevity.

The only downside with this line of thinking is being limited to H61 i.e. losing out on USB3 and SATA 6gb/s. You could get i3-2100 and H67 for the same price as 2500K and H61. But higher processor performance would be more important to me than those two features.
 
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M

mfenn

Elite Member
Jan 17, 2010
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www.mfenn.com
chorb said:
But then I have an unlocked i5 with a non-overclockable mobo... kind of pointless.
Click to expand...

Wrong line of thinking. Remember that the i5 is a quad core whereas the i3 is a dual core. You should be thinking, "but then I have a quad core for the price of a dual core."
 
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chorb

Golden Member
Oct 7, 2005
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ended up going with the i5-2500k with H61 mobo.

MicroCenter also had a killer deal for a 60GB SSD for $35 AC/AR so picked up one of those also.

Still waiting for the monitor and GTX460SC to arrive from newegg, but the system is up and running otherwise. Thanks for the help and suggestions.
 
B

bononos

Diamond Member
Aug 21, 2011
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lehtv said:
CPU Good.

Mobo Normally I'd pair an i3 with a H67 board since it can't be overclocked anyway, but if your intention is to upgrade the i3 later on to an unlocked quad core Ivy Bridge, Z68 could make sense. However based on Gigabyte's website, that board doesn't support Ivy Bridge. If this is your plan, buy Asrock Z68 Pro3 Gen3.

.......
Click to expand...

Actually the Gigabyte z68ap motherboard supports Ivy cpus. The webpage just haven't been updated yet. The latest bios says 22nm E1 stepping cpus which are Ivy Bridge. The gold caps look nice tho.
 
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mfenn

Elite Member
Jan 17, 2010
22,400
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www.mfenn.com
chorb said:
was this one:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0368599

they had a promotion through facebook for $50 AC/AR, but when I went to the store they rang it up as $50 then gave me a MIR for an additional $15. I didnt ask any questions ;)
Click to expand...

That's an old Indilinx which isn't a great performer, but you can't really complain for $0.58 per GB.

chorb said:
just got cpuz installed and I'm noticing a what seems to be a pretty hot temp on my CPU (50+ C at idle). I've tried reseating the stock heatsink, but no difference.

http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/chorb/CPUtemp.jpeg

Suggestions?
Click to expand...

I agree with ViRGE. While that is higher than normal, it is certainly not dangerous or anything. What do the temps look like when loaded?
 
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fixbsod

Senior member
Jan 25, 2012
415
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Is noone going to say anything about the 53o c HDD temps?? That does not look safe.

To compare, my WD 2TB SATA Black is typically in the low 30s, dont think I've ever seen it above 37.
 
ViRGE

ViRGE

Elite Member, Moderator Emeritus
Oct 9, 1999
31,516
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fixbsod said:
Is noone going to say anything about the 53o c HDD temps?? That does not look safe.

To compare, my WD 2TB SATA Black is typically in the low 30s, dont think I've ever seen it above 37.
Click to expand...
Yikes! Good call. He needs to get that HDD temp down below 50C; I'd wager he doesn't have any kind of intake fan in front of the HDD bay.
 
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