Are these parts adequate for my new custom-made PC?

DownloadFailed · 2012-09-04, 08:48 PM

Hello, all. I am constructing a new gaming PC by hand-picking parts and not buying a pre-built rig. I have compiled a list of parts that I currently plan on purchasing:

*Nvidia Geforce GTX 550 Ti
*1 500GB HDD
Corsair Obsidian Series 650D case
ASRock Z77 MoBo
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W power supply
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB RAM
Seagate Barracuda 1TB HDD
(*Carrying over from current rig)

Total cost: $732.94, well within my range
So, is the combined price worth it (i.e. would it be more beneficial to get a pre-built PC like this one or this one)? I've done quite a bit of research myself, but I have doubts. If there's a cheaper alternative that will still get me the power I'm looking for, then I'm all for it. I'd love to hear your thoughts/opinions on my current selection.

Goku · 2012-09-04, 09:32 PM

Looks good over all. Only part I would change is the ram to this. You won't really see any benefit from having such high clocked ram. That 550 Ti will be able to hold its own till you get a new video card too.

Vancha · 2012-09-04, 09:51 PM

Mobo: I'd bring it down to the Z75 Pro3. I'm pretty sure all you lose is SSD caching (using an SSD as the cache for your HDD instead of as a separate drive, I doubt you'll miss it).

I'd change the PSU to a different brand, with a lower capacity (500-550w, let me know if you need suggestions).

The only other questions would be what you want vs what you need. Do you need the additional HDD space? Otherwise you could get a nice 128GB SSD for $10 more (the $10 you saved on the mobo). Same with the case. Are you getting it because you like it and want to splash out (cases being able to house multiple rigs over the years)? If so, that's cool, but it's way beyond what you need if necessity is all you're concerned with.

Rbstr · 2012-09-05, 11:55 AM

I think SSD caching is pretty cool and I think it helps a lot in PS2 given the terrain streaming. Plus it's a no-pain upgrade you can do in the future. Just get the SSD and plug it in then turn on the feature. Of course you don't need Intel's solution to do it and I'm not familiar with its advantages/disadvantages compared to one of the systems you can buy.
If you're in budget just fine that $10 bumps you up to a better part...which may just be worth it on its own.

Vancha · 2012-09-05, 01:20 PM

Or you could just install it on the SSD and avoid the downsides of SSD caching.

Rbstr · 2012-09-05, 01:51 PM

And what do I have to uninstall to do so?
Caching is seamless and continuously adaptable to usage habits. It's a brilliant feature if you don't want to compromise usability.

Vancha · 2012-09-05, 02:14 PM

Nothing. It's not your drive?

You say it yourself, caching has to adapt, things that aren't in the cache are slow. That's not seamless. Why bother with it now that 128GB/256GB SSDs are the norm? No one needs a cache that size.

Rbstr · 2012-09-05, 03:27 PM

That question is obviously rhetorical: I've got full terabyte disks. If I've got a 128gb for boot I've got to continually shuffle things around. Because, if I don't put it on the SSD, what was the point in the first place?

I can deal with Skyrim or my old Borderlands install booting up "slow" the first time when I leave it alone for months or a year. But downloading it again? That's hours.

The cache is absolutely seamless. There's no management involved. In fact, it can speed up a greater number of programs per size, because it doesn't need to put the whole thing on it.

Half a tb is about what I'd need right now. Shelling out $400 for that, yeah right.

Vancha · 2012-09-05, 04:10 PM

Originally Posted by Rbstr

That question is obviously rhetorical: I've got full terabyte disks. If I've got a 128gb for boot I've got to continually shuffle things around. Because, if I don't put it on the SSD, what was the point in the first place?

I can deal with Skyrim or my old Borderlands install booting up "slow" the first time when I leave it alone for months or a year. But downloading it again? That's hours.

The cache is absolutely seamless. There's no management involved. In fact, it can speed up a greater number of programs per size, because it doesn't need to put the whole thing on it.

Half a tb is about what I'd need right now. Shelling out $400 for that, yeah right.

Ah right, I see the problem. You're only supposed to put the things with significant load time on the SSD. Things like music, videos and such can stay on the HDD.

Isn't booting up "slow" the first time a seam? I think I'd definitely consider a noticeable drop in performance a seam.

As for your needs, maybe they aren't everyone's needs.

DownloadFailed · 2012-09-05, 04:54 PM

Originally Posted by Vancha

Mobo: I'd bring it down to the Z75 Pro3. I'm pretty sure all you lose is SSD caching (using an SSD as the cache for your HDD instead of as a separate drive, I doubt you'll miss it).

I'd change the PSU to a different brand, with a lower capacity (500-550w, let me know if you need suggestions).

The only other questions would be what you want vs what you need. Do you need the additional HDD space? Otherwise you could get a nice 128GB SSD for $10 more (the $10 you saved on the mobo). Same with the case. Are you getting it because you like it and want to splash out (cases being able to house multiple rigs over the years)? If so, that's cool, but it's way beyond what you need if necessity is all you're concerned with.

Yeah, SSDs aren't really much of a consideration for me for the time being. Sure the speed is wonderful, but they're just so pricey for so little space provided. I guess I don't really need a whole TB more of HDD space either, I could settle for 500GB. I'll mainly be using it to store games (cause I have several hundreds of GBs of games...) but 1 TB is excessive. I was attracted to the case after I saw a product demonstration video of it. The features it has seem really quite useful, like the holes used for easy wire organization, the easily removable front plate for dusting, and the HDD docking system. The window is a secondary thing, but it is admittedly a plus. And like you said, I could easily re-use it as I upgrade/build rigs in the future cause it is quite spacious. I'll think some more about the case. And regarding the other MoBo, looks like the only thing missing from the Z75 is an IR Header. I assume that's the SSD caching.

What PSUs would you recommend?

Thanks, Goku, for the RAM suggestion. That's saved me a few bucks.

Edit: The cheapest 500GB HDD I can find that has a decent review is only $10 less than the 1 TB HDD. Doesn't seem worth it to cut the capacity in half for a mere $10.

Vancha · 2012-09-05, 05:04 PM

You might as well get a cache if you don't fancy an SSD. Either way it'll be one of the most noticeable differences you can make. It's the "going black" of the computer hardware (alongside 120hz monitors).

From cheapest to most expensive (all have free shipping)...

PC P&C Silencer MK III 500w 80+ Bronze (MIR)

Seasonic M12II 520w 80+ Bronze

Rosewill Capstone 550w 80+ Gold

They're all modular too, so you avoid the cabling mess.

DownloadFailed · 2012-09-05, 05:30 PM

Originally Posted by Vancha

You might as well get a cache if you don't fancy an SSD. Either way it'll be one of the most noticeable differences you can make. It's the "going black" of the computer hardware (alongside 120hz monitors).

From cheapest to most expensive (all have free shipping)...

PC P&C Silencer MK III 500w 80+ Bronze (MIR)

Seasonic M12II 520w 80+ Bronze

Rosewill Capstone 550w 80+ Gold

They're all modular too, so you avoid the cabling mess.

Thanks for those. With a few of these edits to my list, I'll be saving $30. Probably gonna keep the case. Also, the PSU I chose has a 15% off special until the 10th, and I plan to have at least ordered the parts by then. I'm pretty happy with this set up. Building it is gonna be great fun. Also, thanks Vancha and Rbstr for all the other help you gave me in my previous thread where I couldn't decide on what processor to go with.

Rbstr · 2012-09-05, 07:06 PM

As far as PSUs I think it's a good idea to go as efficient (80+ bronze<silver<gold<platinum) as you can at the right wattage and budget. You save money in electricity (though it is fairly small) and the system should be cooler and quieter.
But it doesn't matter much, you're fine with any of them.

Modular cabling is great if you're likely to fiddle with the inside bits or care about interior aesthetics.

A decent case will last you forever. ATX has swatted down challengers before and it's not likely, in the medium-term, that videocards are going to get bigger or that the heat output will get much greater either.

and regarding the other MoBo, looks like the only thing missing from the Z75 is an IR Header. I assume that's the SSD caching.

Nah, it uses a SATA port like any other HD, it's on the chip and in software.

Originally Posted by Vancha

Things like music, videos and such can stay on the HDD.

Ah, I see the problem, you don't know shit about what I've got on my computer, or playing willing ignorance. FFS, you're smarter than this. Games and other programs plus files I want accelerated reach 300+ gb easily. And I don't even have that much stuff...something like BF3 is 25gb.
It's, foremost, a question of efficiency. I can get a tb HD and a cache for the price of the insufficient 256gb SSD. Reap most of the benefit with everything you've got and no fiddling compared to prioritization and active storage maintenance.

Be pedantic with "seamless", if you want.

Vancha · 2012-09-05, 09:25 PM

Yeah, I was being cheeky. I think we just have different priorities. I like reliability and consistency - not opening up X in a few months and wondering why it's going so slowly. I'd rather shift around the games I'm playing at the time to a dedicated drive and know it'll be consistently fast and I'd rather things I'll only do once be fast (moving files, compressing/extracting, installing etc.)

The fact that an SSD cache will only speed up frequently used programs and the fact that it does it's own thing, as opposed to a dedicated SSD which does what you want, when you want, means I can't recommend it over an independent SSD to someone who'd need to ask. Having said that, I realize no one asked, so whatever.

And yeah, I have to be pedantic, sorry. I'd be pissed if I was told something was seamless (i.e. expecting an SSD cache to make my HDD perform identically to an SSD), and ended up discovering it wasn't. It wouldn't matter if it was just us arguing crap, but when it could decide how someone spends a decent amount of their money...