New Build, Revisions Needed

[Justin_]

Hi, long time lurker, first time poster. Before I answer the standard questions, I have a list of some things planned out, and need help with some others. My budget isnt terribly limited, but I want to buy 'everything' now, and not have to worry later.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. Gaming, surfing, etc.

2. What YOUR budget is. 800-1000, I have another thousand but I wish to spend that elsewhere.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from: USA

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. I'm going with an Intel system this time around.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts: Optical drive, Hard disks.

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads: I've done this.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds: Mild Overclocking.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with: For now, 1680x1050. I'll update my moniter some point in the future.

9. WHEN do you plan to build it? Within the next 1-2 weeks.

What I have so far.

CPU: Core i7-860
MB: Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3
Ram: G.Skill Ripjaws 4GB (not sure if I should get 4 or 8 GB)
SSD : Intel X25-M 80GB

I looked at some of the other threads, and I think I like the i7 860 combo.

What I'm not sure of:
Case: Antec 3 Hundred
GPU : XFX HD5770
PSU: OCZ ModXStream 500W
Cooling: Megahalem

I'll likely buy the first 4, though I'm not sure if I should use 8GB Ram or 4GB. I do use various applications, but I'm mainly curious because I want to buy everything now and not later. I won't have the time and money to upgrade within the next 2 years, so I'd like this one to last 3+ years easily.

I need help choosing a case, psu, cooling device, and video card. I play all sorts of games (when I can that is), ranging from flash games, to heavy 3D games. I will have a chance to upgrade my moniter within the next few months, so I'd like something that'd play the latest games with adequate eye candy. As for cooling, cpu, case, I'd like something that's quiet as possible, but doesn't have to be silent. I'm also trying to minimize dust and things of that nature.

Thanks for reading. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Reincus]

Go with 4MB.

Build looks good.

Most tower coolers perform within a few degrees of each other, a lot of people on this board will recommend the Hyper 212+, it's cheap and effective (but a pain to install, I understand).

You may need a GPU upgrade w/i the next 3 years, depends on your personal need for eye candy.

 

[yh125d]

Drop the megahalems for something smaller. It's a good cooler but a pain to install. Something lke a xigmatek S-1283 of the aforementioned 212+ will be more than adequate for mild OCing


The Antec 300 is a good case, I love my old one. An alternative is the Cooler Master RC-690


I'd drop the i7 860 for an i5 750, and stretch the 5770 to a 5850. With an 860/5770 you have a lot of CPU and not that much GPU. i5/5850 would be better balanced

 

[mfenn]

Agree with yh125d. You'll need to decide for yourself whether or not you want stronger gaming performance at the cost of a weaker CPU, or vice verse. Also consider that a GPU is much easier to upgrade than the CPU.

I would go with 4GB (2x2GB) of RAM now. If you feel the need to upgrade in a couple of years, dropping in another 2x2GB kit would be a snap.

 

[modestninja]

Drop the megahalems for something smaller. It's a good cooler but a pain to install. Something lke a xigmatek S-1283 of the aforementioned 212+ will be more than adequate for mild OCing


The Antec 300 is a good case, I love my old one. An alternative is the Cooler Master RC-690


I'd drop the i7 860 for an i5 750, and stretch the 5770 to a 5850. With an 860/5770 you have a lot of CPU and not that much GPU. i5/5850 would be better balanced

The Megahalems is a super-easy cooler to install on a new build, so I wouldn't drop it for that reason. If you think the Megahalems is hard, try installed the Mugen 2. Anyway, if you're going for a mild OC, then the best value out there is the 212+. The performance isn't too far off of the Megahalems and it's way less expensive.

I definitely agree that the i5 750 / 5850 combo will do better in games than the i7 860 / 5850 combo.

Also, do you have a Microcenter or Frys near you? You can save a decent chunk of change with a Frys combo or picking up either CPU at MC.

 

[Justin_]

Thanks for the responses.

I don't have a Fry/Microcenter near my location, so I'm going to be ordering the components online. Is the PSU adequate? I'm positive I won't be doing a Xfire/SLI setup anytime in the near future. Thanks again for the advice on the cooler.

I do have extra $ to spend, so I could do the 860/5850, but is the performance great enough to warrant it? I could go with 750/5770, or any combination of choices. Once I set it up, I'm not planning to tinker/upgrade for a while (unless something pops up that requires it).

 

[mfenn]

Thanks for the responses.

I don't have a Fry/Microcenter near my location, so I'm going to be ordering the components online. Is the PSU adequate? I'm positive I won't be doing a Xfire/SLI setup anytime in the near future. Thanks again for the advice on the cooler.

I do have extra $ to spend, so I could do the 860/5850, but is the performance great enough to warrant it? I could go with 750/5770, or any combination of choices. Once I set it up, I'm not planning to tinker/upgrade for a while (unless something pops up that requires it).

In that case, go with the 5850 for sure. It's good value and you won't need to upgrade for a while.

The 750 will serve you well, but the 860 is a little faster. It's not necessary for gaming and general usage though (unless your general use includes encoding and heavy content creation work).

 

[yh125d]

Thanks for the responses.

I don't have a Fry/Microcenter near my location, so I'm going to be ordering the components online. Is the PSU adequate? I'm positive I won't be doing a Xfire/SLI setup anytime in the near future. Thanks again for the advice on the cooler.

I do have extra $ to spend, so I could do the 860/5850, but is the performance great enough to warrant it? I could go with 750/5770, or any combination of choices. Once I set it up, I'm not planning to tinker/upgrade for a while (unless something pops up that requires it).

I think 750/5850 is best. 5770 is too slow to rely on not wanting an upgrade before too long, especially with a monitor upgrade. 5850 would last considerably longer before feeling slow enough to upgrade. 5770 to 5850 is a very big jump, and the 5850 is worth it imo.

As for i5 750 vs 860, the main differences is the 860 has a slightly higher stock speed (which you should be OCing a little anyways) and HT (which isn't needed for games or gen. use.). OCing is just as easy on either chip

 

[Justin_]

Ok, After looking at a few more reviews, and following the advice given here. I think I'm going to go with the following:

CPU: Core i5-750
MB: Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3
Ram: G.Skill Ripjaws 4GB
SSD : Intel X25-M 80GB
Case: Antec 300
GPU : XFX 5850
PSU: OCZ ModXStream 500W
Cooling: Cooler Master Hyper 212+

Total cost : $1140

Thanks for the help, I'll let you all know how it went after everything arrives and is put together. (I haven't take the plunge yet, but I probably will tonight or in the morning.)

 

[Justin_]

Ok,

Everything came in and I've put everything together. I must say I'm very impressed. When I spoke of silence earlier, I did not know it would be this silent. I had to make sure I had the fans running because it doesn't sound like its on.

The only thing I had a problem with is the video card. Catalyst drivers (any revision) will make W7 'stick' at the loading screen. The logo will animate, but it will not load (1 hour tested). I had to place the DVI connector in the 2nd slot before it would act normal, any ideas why that may be?

I changed my memory multiplier to 8.0 and the Bclk to 200 to get the memory running at 1600 MHz, but that gave me a 4.0 GHz (4.2 @ 21 ratio), and a Vcore of 1.36 idle. I don't know what's acceptable voltage, so I set everything back to defaults. I didn't test anything under load, so what should I shoot for when going for a ~3.4-3.6 GHz overclock?

Thanks for all the help, this build was enjoyable both building and using it.