Help Buying a Desktop

[Razersoda]

IMO I would get the Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H but that is my preference as I have that board and love it...

I would get a 1GHZ edition if you get a 7870

but other than that should be fine. I also have GSkill RAM in my Gigabyte board as posted above and works without errors... So you should be safe with that regard.

Best of luck! and have FUN!!! Game on gamer!

1. Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H is costs 10€ more, which is no problem, really. Why do you think that is better? Cant spot a BIG difference there.
2. In the shop where I will be buying all of my parts doesn't have 7870 1GHZ edition :O, isnt 2GB good future proof ?
3. Thanks

 

[Razersoda]

Ditto and get this fan to replace the POS that is on the heatsink...

Noctua NF-P12 Fan

Ok, I will get that CPU Cooler. Thanks.

What about the Noctua case fan? Its costs half more, is it worth it?

Edit: About Case Cooling Fans, does it matter what case I have? Could it happen that it doesnt fit? (120mm) Currently, mine is like 100mm or so? :O (not sure tho)

 

[Mars999]

I like the Noctua they are QUIET and move a good amount of air. Built better also. Should last longer...

They have case and CPU cooler fans, but the fan I posted is for CPU coolers, the NF-P14FLX is a case fan.

I just prefer Gigabyte MB's they run cooler and use less power than the Asus MB's, performance not any difference so I take the lower cost to run with the same performance.

My .02 And I don't like how Asus now isn't making their own MB's someone else is doing it for them... Gigabyte makes their own still which I like.

 

[Razersoda]

I like the Noctua they are QUIET and move a good amount of air. Built better also. Should last longer...

They have case and CPU cooler fans, but the fan I posted is for CPU coolers, the NF-P14FLX is a case fan.

I just prefer Gigabyte MB's they run cooler and use less power than the Asus MB's, performance not any difference so I take the lower cost to run with the same performance.

My .02 And I don't like how Asus now isn't making their own MB's someone else is doing it for them... Gigabyte makes their own still which I like.

Oh cool, thanks, I'll go with the Gigabyte MB then.

 

[Razersoda]

Also, one last question:
Which Thermal Paste should I use (brand), even if it matters...
I'll just give you all the names that I can get.

Arctic MX-4 Thermal Compound - 4g
Arctic MX-2 Thermal Paste - 8g
Arctic MX-4 Wärmeleitpaste - 20g
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal paste - 12 Gramm
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Paste - 3,5 Gramm
Arctic Cooling Thermal paste MX-2 Tube 30g
Deepcool Thermal paste "Silver TIM Z9" 3g, silver-grey
Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Paste

The prices range from 23&#8364; to 2.55&#8364; <- That what makes me wonder the difference.

Sorry for wasting your time with stupid questions.

 

[Mars999]

Arctic Silver 5 is what I use.... but looks like the MX-4 is the new stuff. the MX-2 is a version that has a life expectancy of 8 years... where the MX-4 probably every 4 years or when the CPU starts to heat up to much you should put fresh paste on.

 

[Razersoda]

Arctic Silver 5 is what I use.... but looks like the MX-4 is the new stuff. the MX-2 is a version that has a life expectancy of 8 years... where the MX-4 probably every 4 years or when the CPU starts to heat up to much you should put fresh paste on.

Ok thank you

 

[Revolution 11]

I don't want to be pedantic but for RAM, just get the cheapest RAM you can. Gskill is fine but I prefer Samsung's 30nm low-profile RAM. Since overclocked RAM has almost zero effect on most workloads, you can save money safely here as long as the product is from a reputable company.

Mars prefers Gigabyte mobos but I suggest you look into Asrock's line of products as well. They offer solid mobos as well. If you are going to overclock, take a look at Anandtech's mobo reviews because every product has its own quirks and niches.

For thermal paste, all of those you listed are fine. The important thing is to apply it properly (not too thick, but the paste must cover all of the area). Which application method works best is in dispute but there are many guides on it.

My favorite is this one: http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=150&Itemid=62



The important principle to keep in mind is do not simply focus on a single company because it's "good". Every company has good and bad products, you have to do the hard work to know which products are good or not and why they are. Good luck on the information overload. Hopefully you will have fun making a fast PC and save some money at it too.

 

[Razersoda]

I don't want to be pedantic but for RAM, just get the cheapest RAM you can. Gskill is fine but I prefer Samsung's 30nm low-profile RAM. Since overclocked RAM has almost zero effect on most workloads, you can save money safely here as long as the product is from a reputable company.

Mars prefers Gigabyte mobos but I suggest you look into Asrock's line of products as well. They offer solid mobos as well. If you are going to overclock, take a look at Anandtech's mobo reviews because every product has its own quirks and niches.

For thermal paste, all of those you listed are fine. The important thing is to apply it properly (not too thick, but the paste must cover all of the area). Which application method works best is in dispute but there are many guides on it.

My favorite is this one: http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=150&Itemid=62



The important principle to keep in mind is do not simply focus on a single company because it's "good". Every company has good and bad products, you have to do the hard work to know which products are good or not and why they are. Good luck on the information overload. Hopefully you will have fun making a fast PC and save some money at it too.

Okay, compare this
ASRock Z77 EXTREME6
to this
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H

The price is same, ASRock being a few euros lower

Edit: The shop where I'm buying all my parts doesnt have samsung rams? What do you think about KINGSTON? I dont know why but I have a bad feeling about it, it has the cheapest rams in the store... I will probably only save about 10&#8364; so its not a big deal really...

 

[Revolution 11]

Kingston RAM is fine. If you are worried about RAM quality, run Memtest on the RAM overnight. Most fancy RAM with heatspreaders just use the same modules as regular RAM. RAM doesn't need heatspreaders at all unless you are going to overclock it but there is little benefit to that as well. If you can only get heatspreader RAM thats fine but don't pay extra for those frills.

I would take the Asrock but I have no real loyalty to either company and both products have decent quality so the cheaper option is fine with me.

If you really want to make your computer fast, take these little savings and put it towards a SSD. I don't know much about specific brands but it would be a far better use of money than a more expensive mobo or fancy RAM. You can look at some other threads to get a feel for which SSDs are good and not.

 

[Mars999]

In my experience form building rigs for over 20years, MB's do matter to a point, some have more issues than others... I have built probably 50 rigs and of these Gigabyte, MSI, Intel and ASUS have given me for the most part no headaches.

Reason I said I like the Gigabyte was stated earlier, they use less power and run cooler by probably 5 to 10C so IMO that is a very nice addition.

Just get what you want, these are all good boards and basically personal preference.

 

[Razersoda]

Kingston RAM is fine. If you are worried about RAM quality, run Memtest on the RAM overnight. Most fancy RAM with heatspreaders just use the same modules as regular RAM. RAM doesn't need heatspreaders at all unless you are going to overclock it but there is little benefit to that as well. If you can only get heatspreader RAM thats fine but don't pay extra for those frills.

I would take the Asrock but I have no real loyalty to either company and both products have decent quality so the cheaper option is fine with me.

If you really want to make your computer fast, take these little savings and put it towards a SSD. I don't know much about specific brands but it would be a far better use of money than a more expensive mobo or fancy RAM. You can look at some other threads to get a feel for which SSDs are good and not.

ohyeah almost forgot about that... Lets say I have a 320gb harddrive and a whatever SSD, which of them should I have windows on? (currenrly on my harddrive)

 

[Mars999]

Ah WIndows should be on the SSD if possible and all your programs. The HD should just hold data, backups, music, movies

 

[Revolution 11]

Razersoda, how much space are you going to use for gaming? That will determine how big the SSD should be. Now if you are ok with game loading times, you can put your games on the HD itself and just put Windows on the SSD.

A 64 GB SSD would be enough if you are just putting system/OS files on it but with prices as low as they are, you can easily bump up to a 128 GB SSD for around $80 (here in US, your pricing may differ).

If you have a few medium-sized games, you can fit them on a 128 GB SSD. If you have a lot of games or a few games that are massive in size, you will need to cram them on a HD or get a bigger SSD.

*Be wary of OCZ SSDs. There are some forum posters who swear by these drives but usually the user is a beta tester of firmware.*