New build

[parsy]

Hi, I am new here but I've spent the last couple of days reading a lot of the system builds advice here and have learnt quite a bit.

I think I have a reasonable idea of what I want for my build but would love some extra advice in case I'm missing something obvious or could improve the build.


My pc will be used mainly for gaming and browsing lots of tabs.

My budget isn't set. I'm probably aiming for about 1200 euro or so but mostly I just want to build a good pc that gets value for money so if there is a good enough justification for spending a bit more or maybe a bit less I'd appreciate the advice.

I'll be buying from Ireland or the uk. Mainly that means www.amazon.co.uk or www.komplett.ie.

I like corsair and nVidia but I don't need to get them.

I will be using one 27'' monitor and my old peripherals.

I think I would prefer to run my system at the default speeds but again I'm not sure.

Monitor resolution is 2560x1440 and I hope to get at least one more 1920x1020 screen.

I would plan on building it in the next 3 weeks or so.




CPU:Core i5-4590, I've looked at the i5-4690k but I think if I don't oc it it's not worth it.
Motherboard: asrock Z97 Extreme6 I'm not really sure about this as there are so many different options with little difference between them. From reading other threads I think this might be more than I need but I'm not sure.
GPU: Radeon R9 280X I'm don't really understand the difference between the different brands here as in sapphire or vtx or any others.
Memory: 8gb of Corsair vengeance
Storage: Samsung 840 Series Pro 256GB ssd or maybe the crucial MX100 ssd as many people on this site seem to have recommended it.
A Western digital 2 or 3tb hhd
Power supply: Haven't looked into it yet.
Case: Seen a suggestion or two for the Fractal Design Define XL R2.


If any one also has a suggestion for a good 1920x1020 monitor to use as a second screen.
I'm also not sure if I need to buy a cpu cooler or if the stock cooler is fine if I'm not overclocking it.

Any and all help is appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

 

[mfenn]

Hi Parsy and welcome to the forums!

Your general idea for the build is sound, here's some specifics:

i5 4460 160e - no real need to pay 15e for 100Mhz (i5 4590)
ASUS H97M-Plus 86e - with a non-overclocking setup, you don't need to get an expensive motherboard
Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3 1600 8GB 75e
MSI R9 290 4GB 380e - the R9 290 will be more comfortable at 1440p than the R9 280X
Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 126e - I'd prefer the MX100, but Komplett.ie doesn't seem to stock it
Seagate 3TB 7200RPM 100e - You have to go up to the WD Black to get a proper 2 or 3 TB 7200RPM drive from WD, and Black pricing just isn't worth it.
Seasonic M12II EVO 620W 70e
Cooler Master N500 58e
Total 1055e

You don't need an aftermarket cooler since you're running stock, but you can pick one up to reduce load noise levels. A Hyper 212 EVO for 30 euros would be fine. This Phillips 23" 1080p monitor for 130e looks like a pretty decent basic secondary display.

 

[parsy]

Hi, first of all thanks for the reply and the welcome.

A few questions on your advice to educate myself.

Is the i5 4460 the same as the i5 4590 except for the 100Mhz difference and what would be reasonable to pay for a bump of 100Mhz?

From what I can see the only difference between atx and micro-atx is the amount of extra sata and other connections possible, is this right?

Why would you choose the crucial memory over corsair, is it just cost or is there another reason?

Could you point me in the direction of something that might be able to explain the benefit of the 290 as opposed to the 280x?

The Crucial MX100 can be got from amazon.co.uk for just under a 100euro or the Samsung Evo can be gotten for about 113euro and shipping isn't a problem. Here are the two link, unfortunately I don't know how to change their name.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00KFAGCWK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3IAEAADSYOESP
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00E391OX6/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3L3J2S7ZZAKGN

The Seagate seems like a better idea.

This has been really helpful, I'll need to do a bit more research on the cooler and monitor though.

 

[Ken g6]

Is the i5 4460 the same as the i5 4590 except for the 100Mhz difference and what would be reasonable to pay for a bump of 100Mhz?

Interesting question. If I do the math, 160e/32 (100 MHzes) = 5 e/100MHz. So it looks like 100MHz is worth about 5e.

But wait! When I look at the maximum turbo boost speeds, an i5 4460 only goes to 3.4GHz, while the 4590 goes to 3.7. A 300MHz boost is almost worth 15e - if you'll use it. Gaming doesn't tend to be single-core, with a few exceptions. Browsing does, but it's usually limited by other things like network speed. In the end, it's up to you.

From what I can see the only difference between atx and micro-atx is the amount of extra sata and other connections possible, is this right?

The only difference between ATX and mATX is the number of slots (which are usually PCIe these days, or sometimes PCI.) You'll be seeing some difference between Z97 and H97 as well, but that's basically an inability to overclock or SLI or Crossfire. SATA connections usually depend on the specific mobo, and you can usually find one of the same form factor and chipset with more SATA if you need more SATA. Same with USB and other connectors.

At least 90% of memory works just fine. More than 90% of memory works just fine if you don't care to OC it, and overclocking memory usually isn't worth it. There is the issue of memory heat spreaders hitting large CPU heat sink fans, but if you're not overclocking the CPU that's not an issue either.

The 290 is faster than the 280X. (Note the benchmarks at 2560x1440 where the 280X is close to 30FPS.) It also has more RAM, to cope with larger amounts of textures loaded to display on a large monitor like yours. Unless you only plan to game on the new, smaller monitor?

The Samsung Evo probably isn't worth the price like the i5 4590 isn't. (It's technically faster sometimes, but you won't notice.)

If you don't OC, there should be no problem using the stock cooler unless noise is a big problem for you. In which case the issue of memory heat spreaders also matters. And the GPU cooler design would also matter (2 fans are good, 3 are better, and avoid a blower which only has 1.)

 

[parsy]

All that information is really helpful, thanks and that link is great for showing the difference between the two cards. thanks.

 

[chusteczka]

From what I can see the only difference between atx and micro-atx is the amount of extra sata and other connections possible, is this right?

The maximum size of a microATX motherboard is 9.6 × 9.6 in (244 × 244 mm), but some microATX boards can be as small as 6.75 × 6.75 in (171.45 × 171.45 mm).[5] The standard ATX size is 25% longer, at 12 × 9.6 in (305 × 244 mm).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MicroATX

The smaller size of the microATX motherboard means there is less room for extra features, such as PCI-e slots, USB and SATA connections. Or the currently new features like M.2 or SATA express.

The smaller size of the microATX motherboard also allows for a smaller case.

 

[mfenn]

Interesting question. If I do the math, 160e/32 (100 MHzes) = 5 e/100MHz. So it looks like 100MHz is worth about 5e.

But wait! When I look at the maximum turbo boost speeds, an i5 4460 only goes to 3.4GHz, while the 4590 goes to 3.7. A 300MHz boost is almost worth 15e - if you'll use it. Gaming doesn't tend to be single-core, with a few exceptions. Browsing does, but it's usually limited by other things like network speed. In the end, it's up to you.

The only difference between ATX and mATX is the number of slots (which are usually PCIe these days, or sometimes PCI.) You'll be seeing some difference between Z97 and H97 as well, but that's basically an inability to overclock or SLI or Crossfire. SATA connections usually depend on the specific mobo, and you can usually find one of the same form factor and chipset with more SATA if you need more SATA. Same with USB and other connectors.

At least 90% of memory works just fine. More than 90% of memory works just fine if you don't care to OC it, and overclocking memory usually isn't worth it. There is the issue of memory heat spreaders hitting large CPU heat sink fans, but if you're not overclocking the CPU that's not an issue either.

The 290 is faster than the 280X. (Note the benchmarks at 2560x1440 where the 280X is close to 30FPS.) It also has more RAM, to cope with larger amounts of textures loaded to display on a large monitor like yours. Unless you only plan to game on the new, smaller monitor?

The Samsung Evo probably isn't worth the price like the i5 4590 isn't. (It's technically faster sometimes, but you won't notice.)

If you don't OC, there should be no problem using the stock cooler unless noise is a big problem for you. In which case the issue of memory heat spreaders also matters. And the GPU cooler design would also matter (2 fans are good, 3 are better, and avoid a blower which only has 1.)

:thumbsup: Good analysis.

To elaborate on a couple points:

- I chose the Crucial memory because it is less expensive and just as good.
- At 100e vs 113e, I'd take the MX100 over the 840 EVO.

 

[Essence_of_War]

Gaming doesn't tend to be single-core, with a few exceptions. Browsing does, but it's usually limited by other things like network speed. In the end, it's up to you.

Ken_g6, I'm not sure I agree. Gaming is strongly dependent on title/engine, but even most modern games REALLY like single-thread performance. Excepting, of course, Crysis 3, and the hard-to-replicate-but-anecdotally-asserted BF3/4 multiplayer.

That being said, I haven't seen any actual data on whether or not you'll be hitting the single-core turbo value consistently. Unless the 4590 allows you to set the all-core multiplier to 37, and I suspect it doesn't, you may well be correct on the overall value of the 4460 vs. 4590.

Edit:

- At 100e vs 113e, I'd take the MX100 over the 840 EVO.

100% concur with this. Samsung's silly RAPID has convinced otherwise sensible people that they're worth shelling out 20-30+ USD for equal capacities. I don't think it's worth the extra money.