Help building a new PC needed? £1000 budget!

[SuperMorto]

Hi all,

I need a little helkp building a new PC, its been a while since I was up to date with the current tech on the market so was wondering what your ideas are for building a new PC tower?

I have a few things first:

I have my monitirs, 3 of them, 2x FullHD Sharp TV's and a Dell monitor, so I need 2 good cards, that will run 3 monitors.

I have my Razor Blackwidow keyboard and Razor mouse.

So all I need is a shit hot tower.

Im not to fussed about flashy lights, just the hardware.

And windows 7 operating system. Not sure if professional or home is best, im still on XP now. And im sure I can get it for about £60.

That leaves £940

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Morto.

[SuperMorto]

Oh and another thing, I would like a solid state HDD for the operating system :)

[SuperMorto]

Oh and just realised this should be in the Tech forum, can the mods move it for me? Thanks,

Morto.

[Hamma]

Moved!

[Goku]

Please answer the questions in this thread (http://www.planetside-universe.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37183) in that format. I'll help you out once you do.

[Traak]

go to Newegg.com. spec and balance in dollars, will cost about the same in pounds. Then buy the stuff in the UQ. (you don't have a kingdom, a king is usually required for that.)

[SuperMorto]

Firstly thanks for the reply folks :)

here are the questions answered.....

1. What is your budget and does that include shipping/taxes?

Total budget is £1000

2. Where do you live?

United Kingdom (Durham)

3. What do you need this computer to do (like gaming, Photoshop, and so on)?

Run 3 monitors at full HD - stream PS2, Record PS2, edit videos, run multiple progs at any one time, edit music, edit all other media (like images etc)

4. What parts will you need for the computer? Please list what parts specifically.

The tower and internals only

5. Are you reusing any parts for this computer? If so please say what parts.

N/A

6. What kind of monitor/resolution do you have or want to get to use for the computer?

2 Sharp Full HD TVs @ 1824x1028, 1 Dell running @1280x1024, I may purchase a 3rd Sharp for a 3rd monitor.

7. Do you have a legit OS? If so what OS and is it 32-bit or 64-bit?

I will need a new copy of the operating system you recommend, im guessing Windows 7?

8. What are you looking for the motherboard to have feature wise? Like SLI, Crossfire, Firewire, USB 3.0, Sata 6.0 Gb/s, and so on.

Whatever is more efficient for the requirements of the system.

9. Any plans to overclock the CPU or GPU?

No

10. What kind of time frame are you planning on ordering these parts?

Before Christmas

Thanks again :)

Morto.

[Goku]

Before Christmas as in wanting to get in on the deals around that time period?

[SuperMorto]

built and done..... in the next few months.....

[Goku]

built and done..... in the next few months.....

I can't really recommend anything till you know within a couple weeks of ordering the computer. Any recommendations done lets says 6-8 weeks from now likely will not be the same by then.

[SuperMorto]

All im after is some advice m8, like do I need a i7?, do I need 2 graphics cards?, so I need 16 or 8 gb of ram? It seems your advice is based on pricing not tech?.....

[SuperMorto]

I not really into price wars.... I just need to know what will work well together, for the apps I need?.....

[Goku]

Well thats what I mean. Bulldozer and Sandy Bridge - E are coming out by Christmas time. There is a high possibility of new AMD graphics cards coming out that will trump anything currently on the market. Any advice I give you at this point in time will likely not be up to date. Price is major yes, but with new tech coming it throws everything out the window. To be honest prices have for the most part been stagnant the past year unfortunately. Thats why I do not want to piece together a new build only to have to redo a new one when you are really ready to order. Piecing builds together over a period of months is not the way to build a computer either.

[SuperMorto]

Thanks m8, but all I want is something that will cope with my requirements. Im not to fussed on what is the latest model. I can get systems with the i7 for about £700, but I want the best bang for my buck (£) currently.

So whatever is good just let me know m8, and ill go out and but it.

Im more than sure the i7 extreme is the best on the market, if im worn correct me, but if this is the case, then ill build something round that....

morto.

[SuperMorto]

Whatever you think right now will do, if I order later I will adjust, Im just not sure what is good anyomore. So the help will be great.

So if you had £1000 what would you buy right now for my needs?

thanks,

Morto.

[Goku]

Going off the top of my head you should be able to fit this in:

Intel Core i5 2400/i7 2600 due to no plans on overclocking
Intel H61/H67 due to no plans on overclocking
Crucial M4 128GB
1TB Samsung F3 HDD
GSkill 2x4GB DDR3 1333 MHz
HD 6970 or GTX 570
Windows 7 Home 64-bit
A good brand 650W PSU
Plenty of good options for a case from the CM 690 II to RV-02

If you are even considering multi monitor you will likely have to stretch your budget by £350 to allow for another GPU and better PSU.

[SuperMorto]

Going off the top of my head you should be able to fit this in:

Intel Core i5 2400/i7 2600 due to no plans on overclocking
Intel H61/H67 due to no plans on overclocking
Crucial M4 128GB
1TB Samsung F3 HDD
GSkill 2x4GB DDR3 1333 MHz
HD 6970 or GTX 570
Windows 7 Home 64-bit
A good brand 650W PSU
Plenty of good options for a case from the CM 690 II to RV-02

If you are even considering multi monitor you will likely have to stretch your budget by £350 to allow for another GPU and better PSU.

Cheers Goku,

that will give me a good base to start looking, so all these will work together with multiple progs running at one time?

thaks again for you time :)

[Goku]

Yes all of them will work flawlessly together.

[SuperMorto]

Thanks for your time Goku, and thanks for the other post about up and coming tech.

You have given me a good idea of what to look for and I appreciate your time :)

And when my new PC arrives ill be sure to update you with some feedback :D

[Traak]

If you are familiar with theinquirer.net, keep your finger on that pulse to see when new CPU platforms/dies are going to be launched, and when new GPU's are about to get out to retail.

This will help you not invest in the Old Technology minutes before the New Better Lower-Power-Consumption Far Faster Architecture came out. Ask me how I know.

Having established that a certain thing, such as the three-digit i7 CPU's are not going to go out of vogue seconds after you buy them, you can then find the best balance of price and performance.

The motherboard will often last longer than your CPU/GPU combo, so invest in a very good motherboard, as it will allow you to get decent overclocking settings available that will allow you to maximize whatever you do buy, with the RAM, GPU and CPU. Think of the motherboard as the foundation.

Next thing is the power supply. Nothing in your computer works without it. A bad power supply can toast a good computer. Make sure you have the wattage to handle your envisioned system.

You will notice, as you price out CPU's, that the very top of the line is usually dramatically more expensive than others of the same maker that are within ten percent of being identically priced. Take advantage of this, and save some money by not going for the i7 Extreme for example.

GPU's are usually hotly competitive, so prices for yesterday's champ fall off a cliff soon after today's reigning king is crowned.

Comb the review sites, and find out what is doing well, and find out if twin cards in SLI/Crossfire that are relatively cheap cards can run with single-card solutions that are of the same or greater price. If a single card will give you close to the same bang-for-the-buck, then get one. That way, as prices continue to fall, you can swiftly upgrade your GPU power by buying a second one later.

Similarly with the RAM. If your motherboard has four RAM slots, populate it with two sticks of RAM, one in each channel. This way, future upgrades with then-cheaper RAM, will result in twice the RAM without having to toss the existing RAM in the trash to make way.

If you don't have the dosh for a solid-state drive, get a hybrid with 500GB of platter plus 4GB of Flash RAM for a nice balance of price versus performance. If your motherboard supports RAID, a few smaller drives in RAID 0 can deliver a LOT more speed than one big drive. If you can afford three small drives, plus a backup, you can run RAID 5, which has speed plus data safety, whereas RAID 0 is all speed, and if you lose one drive, you lose everything on both. With RAID 5, if you lose on drive, you slap in a replacement same-spec drive, and the data is rebuilt by the remaining drives.

Get some cheap-as-chips DVD drive, whatever will allow you to load your software.

Get a budget Sound Blaster or whatever sound card. There are very inexpensive offerings that take a little bit of the load off the CPU for sound, and sound better, too.

I hope you already have a monitor. If not, better smaller and sharp than big and blotchy. You can always sit closer, but you can't improve the picture quality.

Get a mouse that has enough buttons on it that you rarely, if ever, have to move your hand off the mouse and home position on keyboard. If you mouse with the left hand, the numeric pad, with its linear-aligned keys, is your home spot.

The case needs to have adequate airflow to cool your toys, and fit everything in it without blocking airflow internally.

A rigid mouse "pad" like the SteelSeries rigid plastic pads with the rubber texturing applied to the underside are great for mousing accuracy, far better than cloth/rubber pads of yore. Shop, though, not all SteelSeries pads have the monolithic rigid plastic with textured rubber sprayed on the underside.

And there you have it.

As you balance your "sliders" between price in one spot and price in another, you will be able to see how much of what you can afford.

Future upgrades would include more RAM, another GPU card, a Network Interface Card that is made for gaming, and will prioritize gaming traffic, and, of course, the CPU.

The bus speed of the CPU will be important. Better to pay a bit more for a higher bus speed, so any RAM you buy today will not bottleneck your future, possibly faster-bus-speed CPU by operating at a lower bus speed. Bus speeds now are 1066 and 1333 MHz, for the Intel offerings.

Pricing things on Newegg.com

Motherboard: This motherboard comes with a 20GB SSD included, so you can cram Windows, Planetside, and whatever other stuff you want to be as fast as possible, and then have a regular jumbo HDD for the Other Stuff.

GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3-iSSD LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Number of Memory Slots: 4×240pin
Memory Standard: DDR3 2133/1866/1600/1333/1066
PCI Express 2.0 x16: 2 (single at x16, dual at x8)
Onboard Video Chipset: None
Model #: GA-Z68XP-UD3-iSSD
Item #: N82E16813128505
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
$239.99
$229.99 with Rebate
Free Shipping

This processor has the Sandy Bridge architecture.
Intel Core i7-2600 Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600
Series: Core i7
L2 Cache: 4 x 256KB
L3 Cache: 8MB
Manufacturing Tech: 32 nm
Model #: BX80623I72600
Item #: N82E16819115071
$299.99

RAM: Notice the low CAS latency of 7. Two sticks of RAM, enables two more later
ushkin Enhanced Redline 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model 997000
Cas Latency: 7
Voltage: 1.65V
Multi-channel Kit: Dual Channel Kit
Timing: 7-8-7-24
Model #: 997000
Item #: N82E16820226203
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy
$99.99

Power Supply: this one is ready for crossfire (thus SLI) so it has all the power you need now, plus no straining and brownouts in the future, so to speak.

750 Watts

OCZ ZS Series OCZ-ZS750W 750W ATX12V v2.2 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Performance Power Supply
Fans: 1 x 135mm double ball-bearing fan
Main Connector: 20+4Pin
+12V Rails: Single
PCI-Express Connector: 2 x 6-Pin, 2 x 6+2-Pin
Model #: OCZ-ZS750W
Item #: N82E16817341049
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
was: $109.99
$99.99
$74.99 with Rebate

Video card: Prioritized price on this, because it has the greatest impact on game enjoyment
ASUS ENGTX580 DCII/2DIS/1536MD5 GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) 1536MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Chipset Manufacturer: NVIDIA
Core Clock: 782MHz
Stream Processors: 512 Processor Cores
Effective Memory Clock: 4008MHz
Model #: ENGTX580 DCII/2DIS/1
Item #: N82E16814121429
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy
$499.99
$469.99 with Rebate
$7.87 Shipping

Solid State Drive: Affordable speed, SATA III interface, which is the NEW interface for storage, faster than SATA II, so your interface isn't choking your fast data from your solid state drive.

This drastically reduces data flow bottlenecks. Use this one to store applications that need speed, such as the OS, Planetside, your voice comms you may use aside from PS voice comms, your sound card software, you get the idea.

Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
$54.99
Cache: 32MB
Parts: 2 years limited
Labor: 2 years limited
Model #: ST31000524AS
Item #: N82E16822148697
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy


Sound:
$99.99
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional 70SB088600002 7.1 Channels PCI Express x1 Interface Sound Card
Audio Chipset: X-Fi
Sample Rate: 96KHz
Digital Audio: 24-bit
SNR: 109dB
Model #: 70SB088600002
Item #: N82E16829102019
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

So you can hear directional sound, and analyze threats based on direction. This one is extremely valuable in a FPS, especially if you are using AA, as airplanes announce their direction of attack long before they are near because their sound distance is so much further than other vehicles. These are not ultra-powerful, but the directional capability can save your spawn/life/kill streak.

Creative Inspire T6160 50 Watts 5.1 Speakers
Satellite RMS Power /ea: 6 Watts
Subwoofer RMS Power: 20 Watts
Frequency Response: 40Hz - 20KHz (Overall)
Signal to Noise Ratio(SNR): >75dB
Model #: 51MF4105AA002
Item #: N82E16836116049
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

Blu-Ray reader
SAMSUNG Black Blu-ray Combo SATA Model SH-B123L LightScribe Support - OEM
12X BD-ROM
16X DVD-ROM
2 MB Cache
Also does regular DVD's and CD's.

Case:

COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Advanced RC-932-KKN5-GP Steel ATX Full Tower Compucase Case with USB 3.0, Black Interior and Four Fans-1x 230mm front RED LED, 1x 140mm rear, 1x 230mm top, and 1x 230mm side
With Power Supply: No
Power Supply Mounted: Bottom
With Side Panel Window: Yes
External 5.25" Drive Bays: 6 (without the use of exposed 3.5" drive bay)
Model #: RC-932-KKN5-GP
Item #: N82E16811119160
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$159.99

I always go for the highest-level OS I can, the little perks it includes can save me quite a bit of money on extras, and it is my interface with the computer, so I figure I might as well make it as pleasant as possible.

Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-bit - OEM
Disclaimer: Use of this OEM System Builder Channel software is subject to the terms of the Microsoft OEM System Builder License. This software is intended for pre-installation on a new personal computer for resale. This OEM System Builder Channel software requires the assembler to provide end user support for the Windows
Version: Ultimate
System Requirements: If you want to run Windows 7 on your PC, here's what it takes: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver Additional requirements to use
Packaging: OEM
Model #: GLC-01844
Item #: N82E16832116997
Return Policy: Software Standard Return Policy
$189.99

But, you can go for some basic Windows if you like.

Even with Vista, the Photo Stitch feature I got as a result of having Vista Ultimate allowed me to create some gigantic stitched images, which expanded the capability of my camera to take vast scenes in great detail. I just figure the OS is something, like the motherboard, I don't like to skimp on.

So, there you have it, you can slide the quality/price/feature sliders up and down to get this all under your budget cap.

Or you can just work some overtime, and spend one less night out on the town. Once you know what to shop for, which is a result of just reading, watching, and learning, you will know a good price/feature ratio at a glance, and be able to minimize how much money you waste on stuff that is on the verge of being replaced by something that is more future-proof.

In general:
-USB 3.0,
-SATA III, aka SATA 6.0Gbps,
-Nvidia GPU: 580 series
-AMD GPU: HD 6000 series
-Blu-Ray DVD drive
-SSD, Solid State Drive, either included with motherboard or one you get it separately.
-RAM that has enough speed/latency to be useful beyond your present CPU. New CPU that has a higher RAM bus speed will require RAM that can clock to that speed.
-Lower CAS latency on the RAM is better. If you have two brands of RAM for a given price, and one of them has a latency of 12, the other 7, well, guess which one is better.

Edit: Oh, and a cooler for the CPU. Many of the better coolers use a liquid inside heat pipes that transfers heat more effectively to the cooling fins where the fan is mounted.

Thermaltake Frio Overclocking-Ready Intel Core i7 (six-core ready) & i5 Compatible Five 8mm Heatpipes Dual 120mm Fans Intel & AMD Universal CPU Cooler CLP0564
Type: Fan & Heatsinks
RPM: 1,200 - 2,500 RPM
Air Flow: 101.6 CFM (Max.)
Noise Level: 20 - 43 dBA
Model #: CLP0564
Item #: N82E16835106150
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$57.99
Free Shipping

[SuperMorto]

Shit the bed Traak, thats a fantastic post, not sure if it was a copy and paste or not, but with both your help I will be well on my way to building a super computer.

Good news is I have all the components (minus the tower) like, keyboard, mouse, mouse mat, monitors, 5.1 headset etc etc. So all my cash can go into the guts.

[Traak]

...Traak, thats a fantastic post, not sure if it was a copy and paste or not, but with both your help I will be well on my way to building a super computer.

Yeah, I finally figured out that you were actually looking for a more detailed answer, more of an instruction set with explanations than just generalities.

Good news is I have all the components (minus the tower) like, keyboard, mouse, mouse mat, monitors, 5.1 headset etc etc. So all my cash can go into the guts.

I found the components on Newegg.com and cut and pasted what I found into place. But the writings are from my years of being a computer hot rodder. I even used Prestone yellow antifreeze for my coolant in my liquid-cooled tower computer, because the stuff that Koolance provided scummed-up with some kind of biogoop after a while. The Prestone sure didn't. And it looked GREAT glowing yellow in the pale-blue Chernobyl light of my cold cathode fluorescent light. (which puts out enough UV to really make fluorescent colors pop).

If you want to keep with the Vanu theme, you can have purple cold cathode lights in your case, and some clear fans that are lit with green LED's.

Like the fictitious Italian warplane of WWII that had a swivel seat so the pilot could switch sides in mid-war, you can always just have a switch to change your case lighting to red or blue and yellow as you play on different empires.

[Goku]

Traak there is a lot wrong with that build. You should not be doing pricing via Newegg as Super is form the UK.

The ram is overpriced. I got a 8GB DDR3 kit for $35 just last week.

Motherboard will not serve his purposes at all. He stated no overclocking, so hes spending money on a overclocking board for no reason. You are better off getting a regular SSD as a boot drive verse using the intel SRT too.

The 2600 does not help in gaming, its only nice to have if you have the left over budget. To top it off you got him a regular version and not a K one, so he will not even be able to overclock.

Really no reason to be using a 580 at his resolution. Better off with a 570 or 6970.

Wasting more money by using Ultimate offers him nothing verse what you can get from Premium.

I like people giving feedback on builds and all, but next time please format it better. Just put in the component then put in the address using the web tool and the price next to it. No reason to post all the extra stuff in there as it is hard to read through.

SuperMorto here is a build from Overclockers UK:

OcUK ATI Radeon 6950 2048MB GDDR5 - £199.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-147-OK)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz - £175.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-360-IN)
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB - £145.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-009-CR)
Silverstone Raven 2 RV02B Full Tower Case - £129.98 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-065-SV)
MSI P67A-G45 - £89.98 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-169-MS)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit - £79.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SW-127-MS)
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX 650W - £73.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-037-CS)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB - £43.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-082-SA)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 - £37.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-094-KS)

Total: £977.90 (VAT included) + £13.75 = £994.40

You had room in your budget, so I went for a 2500K and P67 instead. It was about an extra £40, but it is worthwhile if you even overclock a year from now. You can get that to at least 4.5 GHz and last you a few extra years. The K series Sandy Bridge CPUs are very easy to overclock as well. Feel free to switch to another case that fits your taste too. That is as good as it is going to get given your budget I think unless things change if you end up ordering in a month or two.

[Traak]

Traak there is a lot wrong with that build. You should not be doing pricing via Newegg as Super is form the UK.

He can price similarly wherever he is, and find what the local prices were.

The ram is overpriced. I got a 8GB DDR3 kit for $35 just last week.

Did it have a latency of 7? Was it 2 sticks of 4GB so he could put in 2 more later?

Motherboard will not serve his purposes at all. He stated no overclocking, so hes spending money on a overclocking board for no reason. You are better off getting a regular SSD as a boot drive verse using the intel SRT too.

The reason I liked this board was future-proofness, for future, higher bus speeds, USB 3.0, SATA 6.0 Gbps, and the included SSD. Nice set of features and price. But, like all this stuff, it is an example, not a set-in-stone thing, by any means.

The 2600 does not help in gaming, its only nice to have if you have the left over budget. To top it off you got him a regular version and not a K one, so he will not even be able to overclock.


Really no reason to be using a 580 at his resolution. Better off with a 570 or 6970.

With 2-3 monitors?

Wasting more money by using Ultimate offers him nothing verse what you can get from Premium.

I specifically stated that was my preference, and that he might not find it necessary. And Ultimate does have features that Premium does not. So you are incorrect.

Further, by putting the full sprecs of each item, he could see the entire thing on this page.

This is how I shop.

I look at my budget, and see what is available, add it to my cart, and watch the tally as it goes.

Then, after filling my cart with whatever I need to get the job done, I see if I have gone over the budget.

If so, I decide on whether some stuff can wait, other stuff can be spec'd at a lower level.

If I notice, for example, a really good motherboard with built-in SSD is going to cut a substantial amount of cost off of having a good motherboard without a built-in SSD, plus and additional SSD, I can just kill two birds with one stone and get the motherboard with the SSD, and use the price difference for a far larger platter HDD that can also back up my stuff that may be on my SSD.

If I notice that the amount of RAM I want will be two slow, I can spec less ram that is faster, and wait for prices to drop so I can add more later.

Definitely, an overclockable CPU is great. If you ever overclock your CPU. I tweak everything I can, CPU, RAM timings, GPU, and networking.

However, if you know you will never, ever overclock your computer, then a motherboard that has whatever bus speeds available that might be cooked up at Intel in the future is also a good choice.

I definitely like to shop known name brands for video cards, so the one I buy today, I can add another to tomorrow, and the company will still exist. Same with the RAM. RAM that can go further up the bus speed scaled than what my CPU is at today is more future-proof than the cheapest sticks of RAM I can find that are lucky to be able to make it to today's RAM bus speeds.

And, as I make my choices, I look for whether my video card has the latest DirectX capability, as the next year's games will be coming out to match that. If I have a video card that only does DirectX 10, I lose the extra visual goodies that DirectX 11 would offer.

I look for future-proofness, scalability, and manufacturer's reputation.

Future-proofness usually involves having the latest socket for the CPU, latest USB speed, latest SATA speed, and latest DirectX capability with the video card.

Scalability: If I can get one very-high-quality, very-high-speed item, and then add an identical one later, I have just scaled my computer's capabilities up with ease.

Manufacturer: Usually the thing that rings the bell that something is of questionable quality is some unknown name. Then the fact that it claims to be in possession of X speed, but at X/2 price. I don't really want to deal with some unknown manufacturer (or, repackager, more accurately) so I will be more likely to not have problems and regrets, RMA's and time spent without a functioning computer.

I will go to the CPU section, look at the most expensive CPU that uses the latest architecture, then scroll down to the cheapest. Usually, you find a huge price drop between the top-line CPU and the almost-right-at-the-top CPU. I see how much percentage of performance or features I can expect. Does this CPU have 8MB of Level II cache, or only 6MB? If it's only ten bucks more for more cache, or a lot more speed, or, as Goku pointed out, overclockability, then I can prioritize that, instead of saving the ten bucks.

For video cards, I settle on how many monitors I want, and how many I want to be using to view the same thing at the same time. Does this video card even have the ability to run three monitors? And at what level of detail and graphic quality?

Having established that, I can then see how expensive or cheap a DX11 monitor is that can do that.

Storage: How badly do I want speed? In my case, very badly, as the hard drive has been THE bottleneck in system performance (as far as lag spikes, which are spots during which the HDD grinds you down to ridiculously slow framerates as it searches for info and presents it). I don't just want a single SSD, I want multiple SSD's in RAID zero configuration, for even MORE speed, or three in RAID 5 for speed and data security, or the two in RAID 0 backing up important data to a third, inexpensive HDD.

I usually start out with the Woo Hoo high-price gaming machine, then slide the prices down to where I find the best balance of performance, scalability, and reliability that I want to buy at that price range.

But, Goku's suggested motherboard will automatically detect overclockable limits of your hardware, so, in effect, it can self-overclock, so with that CPU and MoBo, you would have the benefits of overclocking, without having to manually tweak every single setting.

It's like a self-tuning car. Might win you over to the overclocking idea :)

[Goku]

He can price similarly wherever he is, and find what the local prices were.

That does not help him. People posting threads here say their needs and give a budget. If you want to help go to the site of the user's country in order to do so.

Did it have a latency of 7? Was it 2 sticks of 4GB so he could put in 2 more later?

Latency and speed ratings have nothing to do with performance these days.

The reason I liked this board was future-proofness, for future, higher bus speeds, USB 3.0, SATA 6.0 Gbps, and the included SSD. Nice set of features and price. But, like all this stuff, it is an example, not a set-in-stone thing, by any means.

You cannot future proof any computer. No matter how hard you try. You can have useful features, but you will not get beyond that. Most boards come with USB 3.0/SATA III anyway. Why should a user get a 20GB SSD is beyond me. A 128GB one will allow a user to actually put a decent amount of apps and games on the SSD.

With 2-3 monitors?

A GTX 580 cannot run three monitors. With Nvidia you need SLI in order to achieve this. Only AMD cards can do 3 way monitor gaming with a single card.

I specifically stated that was my preference, and that he might not find it necessary. And Ultimate does have features that Premium does not. So you are incorrect.

To the typical user there is no need for Professional or Ultimate. No reason to recommend it as a result. If the user knows what they need they will know to go for that OS.

Further, by putting the full sprecs of each item, he could see the entire thing on this page.

That does nothing to help. Only adds a huge long post to the thread and clutter. You are better off linking the item to the webpage instead.



^^^

[SuperMorto]

Cheers guys for all the comments, but to cut a long story short I may buy a system from this site, could you have a good look and see if the pricing is good, or are they taking my eyes out?

Cheers, remember the budget is £1000

Falcon Computers: http://www.falconcomputers.co.uk/generic/website.asp

[Goku]

I never have seen that site before to be honest. If you are looking for someone to build your rig I suggest checking out overclockers.co.uk . Those guys seem pretty good with their prices from the builds I have done there and from what I can tell a good rep too.

You can do a configuartion from these systems here (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/productlist.php?groupid=43&catid=1951). I did a quick pricing of a 2500K and 6970 build with the price coming to around £879. Take a look and tell me what you think.

[SuperMorto]

I never have seen that site before to be honest. If you are looking for someone to build your rig I suggest checking out overclockers.co.uk . Those guys seem pretty good with their prices from the builds I have done there and from what I can tell a good rep too.

You can do a configuartion from these systems here (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/productlist.php?groupid=43&catid=1951). I did a quick pricing of a 2500K and 6970 build with the price coming to around £879. Take a look and tell me what you think.

you wont have, they are my local pc superstore (apart from PC world) i was just wondering if thier prices were any good? also ill take a look at OC, and the o9ther site you gave :)

thnx again

[Goku]

Ok I see. I guess what it comes down to then is the price for assembly. The pricing on the components look roughly the same to me over all. At least if you have issues with the PC you can bring it right back to that local shop.

[Vancha]

Also, Scan.co.uk (http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware).

Overclock.co.uk (http://www.overclock.co.uk/)
Yoyotech.co.uk (http://www.yoyotech.co.uk/new--inc--3.php)
Memoryc.com (http://www.memoryc.com/)

Various places might have better deals on particular items, or have something no where else has.

[SuperMorto]

Guys im going to build my own then at least I know whats going in it.

Could some of you cool guys check this setup for me and see if it works?

Windows 7 64 bit Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004Q0PT3I/ref=asc_df_B004Q0PT3I5294733?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004Q0PT3I) £70.74

Tower Falcon (http://www.falconcomputers.co.uk/generic/website.asp?dept=79&page=productDetail&liwCode=100012606) £70

CPU Falcon (http://www.falconcomputers.co.uk/generic/website.asp?dept=81&page=productDetail&liwCode=100029371) £250

Motherboard Dabs (http://www.dabs.com/products/gigabyte-ga-x58a-ud3r-lga-1336-x58-ddr3-atx--sata-6gb-s--usb-3-0--6M5F.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=product+search&utm_content=Q200) £154

Ram Amazon £132

Power eBuyer (http://www.ebuyer.com/235519-ocz-750w-fatal1ty-series-semi-modular-psu-ocz750fty-un?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products) £70

All I need to know is, would all this work together?

I can sort the graphics card's out when I get more shinys? :)

Thanks again :)

Morto.

[SuperMorto]

SuperMorto here is a build from Overclockers UK:

OcUK ATI Radeon 6950 2048MB GDDR5 - £199.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-147-OK)
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz - £175.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-360-IN)
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB - £145.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-009-CR)
Silverstone Raven 2 RV02B Full Tower Case - £129.98 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-065-SV)
MSI P67A-G45 - £89.98 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-169-MS)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit - £79.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SW-127-MS)
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX 650W - £73.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-037-CS)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB - £43.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-082-SA)
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 - £37.99 (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-094-KS)

Total: £977.90 (VAT included) + £13.75 = £994.40

You had room in your budget, so I went for a 2500K and P67 instead. It was about an extra £40, but it is worthwhile if you even overclock a year from now. You can get that to at least 4.5 GHz and last you a few extra years. The K series Sandy Bridge CPUs are very easy to overclock as well. Feel free to switch to another case that fits your taste too. That is as good as it is going to get given your budget I think unless things change if you end up ordering in a month or two.

screw it, im going with this build, but with a few modifications. thanks again to both of you, your help has helped me a shit tone! :)

Ill post my changes and see if they work, also noticed the prices have went down a little.

[SuperMorto]

Im going crazy here, what if I went down the AMD route?

[Goku]

You will burn in hell.

What modifications do you need to my build? That was a few weeks ago so it maybe a bit dated.

For a mobo get this one (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-198-MS) since the other one is no longer there

[Traak]

I think you would be better off with the Intel. AMD has yet to produce anything that can beat the Intel offerings lately. They used to offer more performance and better price. Now they can't compete on performance, so they just lower their price to where it will compete based on that with some of the lower-level Intel chips.

Reviews have not been kind to even the absolute latest AMD Bulldozer chips, so you are doing okay with Intel. Perhaps in the next generation, AMD will pull it out of the hat, but who knows?

[SuperMorto]

I think im going Intel. Its seems the best option for me.

Now this post is the one you ne3ed to watch ill update it with what im going to buy so keep your eyes on it guys and ill help you out whenever I can.

Case I know will be this one = Falcon (http://www.falconcomputers.co.uk/generic/website.asp?dept=79&page=productDetail&liwCode=100012606) £ £69.95
(inc VAT)

Windows = Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004Q0PT3I/ref=asc_df_B004Q0PT3I5294733/?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004Q0PT3I) £ £70.74

Processor = Overclockers (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-368-IN) £155.99 inc VAT MAYBE?

Motherboard = Overclockers (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-198-MS) £ 94.98 inc VAT

Ram =
Power=

[Goku]

Not meaning to knock the case, but I think that is lower quality compared to other cases out there.

See if you can find any of these for a good price:

$70 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112238) - Lian Li Lancool PC-K58W ATX Case
$90 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112235) - Lian Li Lancool PC-K56 ATX Case
$90 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216) - Cooler Master CM690 II Advance ATX Case
$90 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154) - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$100 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112099) - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$100 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197) - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$110 (http://www.amazon.com/Whisper-Black-Power-Aluminum-Computer/dp/B001H9ALF2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1295436362&sr=8-1) - NZXT Whisper WHI - 001BK ATX Full Tower Case
$110 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112251) - Lian Li PC-60FN ATX Case
$110 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112249) - Lian Li PC-7FN ATX Case
$120 (http://www.amazon.com/Velocity-GX2-W-Silver-Classic-Aluminum/dp/B00292BQRI/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1273830564&sr=1-13) - Velocity Micro GX2-W Silver Classic Aluminum Case with Side Window
$127 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352002) - Fractal Design Define R3 Black ATX Case
$140 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146067) - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001WT White Full Tower ATX Case
$140 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146068) - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001BK Black Full Tower ATX Case
$140 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112304) - Lian Li PC-9F ATX Case
$143 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146073) - NZXT Phantom PHAN-002OR Black Finish w/Orange Trim Full Tower ATX Case
$150 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139003) - Corsair Graphite Series 600T ATX Case

[SuperMorto]

Not meaning to knock the case, but I think that is lower quality compared to other cases out there.

See if you can find any of these for a good price:

the case just means im going for something I like. ill check your list out, but im not after anything to costly. /but I will look. Its the processor needs im after cheers Goku.

[Goku]

CPU looks good. I am going out for a bit. Don't freak if no one responds for a bit lol.

[SuperMorto]

CPU looks good. I am going out for a bit. Don't freak if no one responds for a bit lol.


ARRRGGGGGGG!!!! Dont go dont go!!!!! :eek:


Enjoy whatever your doing :) ;)

[SuperMorto]

CPU looks good. I am going out for a bit. Don't freak if no one responds for a bit lol.

One thing i need to be able to do is record PS2 in full HD, will this be possible with this CPU?

[Goku]

One thing i need to be able to do is record PS2 in full HD, will this be possible with this CPU?

Yes it should be no issue at all.

[Bags]

FYI goku, this case just got deactivated on newegg. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139003&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=5414526&SID=skim19668X770041X376aec4df1bfb61a21c8f9a0807c1 0d1)

This one too. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112249&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=5414526&SID=skim19668X770041X20ba8460e77c9e1ab8d3e420e5f95 62f)

And this one. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352002&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=5414526&SID=skim19668X770041X2433754101ab31ece29639397e522 32b)

[Goku]

Thanks Bags!

[SuperMorto]

guys this is the build:

thanks for all your help!

I managed to squeeze a little more out the pocket,

And its only possible with your help!

My new PC

Windows 7 home Premium
Case - Anubis
Proccesor - Intel i7 2006k 3.4Ghz x4 Cores.
MotherBaord - Gigabite GA-Z68XP-UD3P
RAM - 16GB DDR3 1600Mhz Cosair Vengeance + £60
GCard - GTX 580
HDD - 1TB
Power PSU = Cool Master Gaming PSU 750
SSD - 64GB = £80
Total = £1389.95

[Goku]

My only part I don't like about the build is the cooler master PSU. They aren't known for quality units whatsoever.

[SuperMorto]

My only part I don't like about the build is the cooler master PSU. They aren't known for quality units whatsoever.

thanks Goku, but im squeezing the pocket as much as i can, so ill change it at the next available time. ill get a few weeks out of it. See me through XMas, then ill replace it.

[Goku]

That sounds like a good idea. Hate to see the system blow up due to the PSU is all.

[SuperMorto]

That sounds like a good idea. Hate to see the system blow up due to the PSU is all.

nah its cool m8, cheers for the warning :)

[SuperMorto]

My system has went out the window!! Reason is my van went down the other day, so its needs £700 worth of repairs. And it had £550 2 weeks ago. So it looks like it will be a i5. :(

[Goku]

Sorry to hear Super. The 2500K is still a great CPU. If you want an i7 in the future just drop in a Ivy Bridge one when they come out in April.

[SuperMorto]

Sorry to hear Super. The 2500K is still a great CPU. If you want an i7 in the future just drop in a Ivy Bridge one when they come out in April.

And that would go in the same socket?

Also do you think ill be able to stream 1080p with the i5?

Thing is the shop has an i5 system in the case I want, I have the last case in the shop with my name on it. Im just not sure the i5 will do what I need it to do, plus its the 2.8 version, not sure what that means.

[Goku]

Yes it is going to be 1155 as far as I know the vast majority of boards will support it.

It shouldn't have any trouble streaming 1080p either. I think that bottleneck would be more of a hard drive and internet one.

[SuperMorto]

Yes it is going to be 1155 as far as I know the vast majority of boards will support it.

It shouldn't have any trouble streaming 1080p either. I think that bottleneck would be more of a hard drive and internet one.

Cheers once again Goku,

You can check my internet speeds here LINK (http://www.planetside-universe.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38060)

The idea of that CPU sounds fantastic. Just with my van needing work I was going to go for a smaller system. Im just worried as I dont know much about performance, my XP system is maxed out and ive had it for years so im rusty.
But the place where I was going to buy my dream machine is doing a i5 sytem with 4gb ram etc etc, for £680. Its built and its in the case I want. Now if what you say about the new chip is rite, I might just go for that, but what I dont want to do is find the system cant handle what I need and then have to upgrade the mobo ram and CPU.

So hope you dont mind the brain picking :)

Thanks again,

[Goku]

What kind of streaming are you trying to accomplish here? Have you attempted this on your current setup at all? If so how did it turn out?

[SuperMorto]

What kind of streaming are you trying to accomplish here? Have you attempted this on your current setup at all? If so how did it turn out?

Im on my laptop atm, but my current PC is:

Windows XP
SP3 3GB of ram,
TV = SHARP Full HD TV,
Proccesor = Intel Core Duo (Conroe),
GCard = Zotac GTX 460,
Mobo, not sure.

To be fair I tried everything on it, couldnt get a good stream going. But since my attempt I have upgraded my internet connection. that could of been the main fault. This is why im here, im not sure on any of it.

Plus that system is full of programmes, and has been running for 3 years with no re-install. And I dont want to re-install as I have way to much stuff on there and it would take me weeks to re-install it all.

Oh and the streaming im trying to accomplish is 1080p PS2, with some fancy intros and outros.

Something of high quality. But if I can get away with a good stream with my current system, then i might just use it untill I can get the pennies together for a monster. (the one for £1400) with upgraded GPU after few months.

[Goku]

The internet bandwidth is the largest factor I think. What was your previous caps?

[SuperMorto]

The internet bandwidth is the largest factor I think. What was your previous caps?
If you mean old BB speed it was:

DW 2mb
UP 0.5

Thanks again.

[Goku]

Those numbers in your other thread is what you have now? If so your old speed was very limiting. No way you can upload 1080P on just .5 mb line.

[SuperMorto]

Those numbers in your other thread is what you have now? If so your old speed was very limiting. No way you can upload 1080P on just .5 mb line.

So what about my old system, you think it could stream a good rez? Even if its not 1080p.

And i did try everything on the last connection, but could never get it even looking remotely good.

[Goku]

To be perfectly honest I am not 100% sure. Best way is to try it out or look up more stuff on this. I am no expert on streaming games while playing live, but I would expect as long as the system isn't already being over worked by the game it should be doable.

[SuperMorto]

To be perfectly honest I am not 100% sure. Best way is to try it out or look up more stuff on this. I am no expert on streaming games while playing live, but I would expect as long as the system isn't already being over worked by the game it should be doable.

been looking m8, things are going ok on the streaming front, but my case is still sitting in a shop. The funds are slowly coming together, so should be up and running before Christmas! :D

[SuperMorto]

Guys PC has been ordered:

£1400 pennies :D dead on budget (btw budget changed after thread was started!).

Case = edit* http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/hiper_anubis_case/img/2.jpg

Preccessor = Intel I7 2600k 3.4 4xCores.
Motherboard = GByte GA-Z68XP-UD3P
GCard = GTX 580Amp
Ram = 16GB
SSD= 120GB
HDD = 2TB Fast SATA II
PSU (will change this at first chance)
DVD etc etc bla bla, :D

Cant wait, this will be a monster compared to what I have now.

thanks again folks for all you help :D

[inigma]

are you sticking with the stock intel cooler? and what case is it?

[Goku]

AMD is coming out with new cards that will be faster then the GTX 580 next week and likely cheaper. Oh my.

[Traak]

Loo'in' f'rw'rd t'that.

[SuperMorto]

AMD is coming out with new cards that will be faster then the GTX 580 next week and likely cheaper. Oh my.

Time is the only thing you really have. Money is not.

[Goku]

Time is the only thing you really have. Money is not.

Reviews are out and the card is at least 20% faster then a 580 and even more so in the current crop of DX11 games. If you want the best go for that especially since it is the same price as a 580 and it has 3GB of VRAM vs 1.5 GB.

[Traak]

http://www.planetside-universe.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37207&page=2

[SuperMorto]

How bad is that, I have to sit next to it until tomorrow :(

http://www.planetside-universe.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=223&stc=1&d=1324741243

[SuperMorto]

Still its sits beside me................ Its 00:25, but I will resist.

Merry XMas.

Also if you thought I spammed before wait till I have a SSD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You guys are so fucked.

[Traak]

How bad is that, I have to sit next to it until tomorrow :(

http://www.planetside-universe.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=223&stc=1&d=1324741243

Dang, dude, that's like spending your honeymoon with your fat wife in Pattaya.

edit: but knowing that the divorce papers are already signed!

[SuperMorto]

Its alive its alive!!!!!!

http://www.twitch.tv/planetside2

[SuperMorto]

Guys this thing is ballistic!! I love it!