Advice for new build [UK] - £2000 budget

[kurosagi01]

Or you have free scan next day delivery on spending over £20 i would go for scan

[Techtu]

Originally Posted by kurosagi01

Or you have free scan next day delivery on spending over £20 i would go for scan

Since when is this?

[KieX]

Well this was based on Kurosagi's, but 1600MHz ram with low cas are much better than 2000MHz ram if you want to keep the OC steady with 200bclk. I'd also opt for RAID 0 with SandForce SSD's and change the case for 600T which has better airflow for a 580 than the 700D. 1Kw PSU for you future upgrades. I realise I missed the optical drive, but it's not going to tip the scale much more.



EDIT: Free delivery? how? even on my screenie it's charging £13

[InnocentCriminal]

Wish I had £2k to spend on a rig... stupid GF takin' all my monies. *Shakes fist!*

If it has to be air cooled I'd definitely say look at the Silverstone FT02R-W - I can't say it's too much tastes but apparently it's f'ing awesome at air cooling. One thing about it though is that it is far better looking than any HAF case.

[IggSter]

WOW, so many replies while I was out.......thanks everyone!

Well it seems the general concensus is shop around - and even tho I'm lazy, you have convinced me

With regard to the 980x cpu - I really did consider that but I'm not sure I could make use of 6 cores (The most demanding game I play atm is ARMA2)

One item I really do want to get is the OCZ IBIS SSD mainly because of its insane transfer rates (2-3 times the perfomance of the fastest SATA SSDs). I know its stupidly expensive but IMHO the biggest bottleneck in any decent PC is reading/writing from storage. (And we all now how much of a PITA re-installing windows/apps/games is).

It will take me a while to read through all the options that have been suggested, but I will post back shortly with an updated shopping list.

Right now my gut feeling is:

i7 950: (I tend to agree this is the sweet spot and is I can get to 4Gig+ I will be very happy)

Noctua cooler

6 GB DDR RAM: I will need to investigate further, I'm a noob when it comes to RAM - I also believe I have to be careful when it comes to RAM height as it can interfere with cooler installation.

OCZ IBIS

2 x 1TB Spinpoint F3 mirrored for storage.

Corsair 1000w PSU (to support GTX580 SLI in future)

GTX580 (Does anyone know of after market coolers that are available?)

Case....hmmmm, still not 100% sure

MOBO....again I'm really not sure, I would rather spend more on this as it really is the backbone of the PC and is probably the hardest thing to upgrade)

[IggSter]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

Wish I had £2k to spend on a rig... stupid GF takin' all my monies. *Shakes fist!*

If it has to be air cooled I'd definitely say look at the Silverstone FT02R-W - I can't say it's too much tastes but apparently it's f'ing awesome at air cooling. One thing about it though is that it is far better looking than any HAF case.

Thanks for the link - I really like the look of that case, and I totally agree the HAF cases are not the best looking - thats why I was considering the Corsair range. I will defo look at some more reviews for the Silverstone.

[KieX]

Originally Posted by IggSter

Thanks for the link - I really like the look of that case, and I totally agree the HAF cases are not the best looking - thats why I was considering the Corsair range. I will defo look at some more reviews for the Silverstone.

I'm using two FT02's and I can definitely say they're incredible. I have a very hot room with my crunching/folding computers, and the temps with FT02's are much better than the HAF's I used before. They look stunning too, if you have one, it'll probably be for a long time. Found if you remove the top grill you can drop temps 10C further (well in my room at least). Highly recommended!

From what you've said, that you prefer IBIS SSD and quad i7, I think it should make the FT02 stay withing budget.

[IggSter]

OK, this is where I've got to now, for the main components at least. Price £2,073.90



Thanks for all the comments and advice so far....please keep them comming

[KieX]

Originally Posted by IggSter

OK, this is where I've got to now, for the main components at least. Price £2,073.90



Thanks for all the comments and advice so far....please keep them comming

Looks good man. The FT02 also has the 180mm Penentrator fans from the looks of it which is great. (I had to upgrade mine for extra monies )

I think you're pretty much sorted with that

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by IggSter

OK, this is where I've got to now, for the main components at least. Price £2,073.90



Thanks for all the comments and advice so far....please keep them comming

So you've taken my advice on the MOBO,Im jealous allready

I dare to say however,that you can find a better case than the Silverstone model and still save about £60 on it..what about this one?
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...atid=7&subcat=

[InnocentCriminal]

Originally Posted by Rado D

So you've taken my advice on the MOBO,Im jealous allready

I dare to say however,that you can find a better case than the Silverstone model and still save about £60 on it..what about this one?
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...atid=7&subcat=

Personally I don't believe the HAF X to be better at air-cooling than the FT02 tbh, aesthetically... well, that's a different thing.

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

Personally I don't believe the HAF X to be better at air-cooling than the FT02 tbh, aesthetically... well, that's a different thing.

Well,I cant judge the air cooling performance on the Silverstone,since I never had that particular model our fella picked,in fact I never had any Silverstone.What I can tell you is that I have the older HAF 932 and it does have very good cooling performance.I dont think that the Silverstones price difference is worth it in battle against the HAF X,especially if you consider much more room in HAF X

[InnocentCriminal]

Originally Posted by Rado D

Well,I cant judge the air cooling performance on the Silverstone,since I never had that particular model our fella picked,in fact I never had any Silverstone.What I can tell you is that I have the older HAF 932 and it does have very good cooling performance.I dont think that the Silverstones price difference is worth it in battle against the HAF X,especially if you consider much more room in HAF X

You do make a very valid point in regards to the price difference. The additional money saved could go towards components of greater worth.

[Tatty_One]

Originally Posted by KieX

but 1600MHz ram with low cas are much better than 2000MHz ram if you want to keep the OC steady with 200bclk. I'd also opt for RAID 0 with SandForce SSD's and change the case for 600T which has better airflow for a 580 than the 700D. 1Kw PSU for you future upgrades. I realise I missed the optical drive, but it's not going to tip the scale much more.

EDIT: Free delivery? how? even on my screenie it's charging £13

Not true in my expereince, the i7 architecture just loves bandwidth, far more so than latency, there are 101 sources out there to support that so i won't bore you with them, as to helping stability with the overclock.... you may be right in some circumstances, however I run at 4.2gig with fairly obscene memory speeds without issue....... however, to be fair to you, I think much of what you have said is appicable but perhaps more motherboard dependant rather than chip dependant if you get my meaning. I have owned 5 different x58 boards and some of them do support what you are saying, however without changing the chip, it can be amazing how much more you can get between one good board and another.

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

The additional money saved could go towards components of greater worth.

Maan,I wish I also had £2000 budget for a new baby

Shame that a world of computers can be an bottomless pot where you just throw your money and you never get 100% satisfied,cos the very next day you've spent a fortune on you new baby,there is something more powerful that makes your eyes sparkle

For instance,when I've finished my last rig,I've stopped on about £1300.It was June 09..since then,my MOBO cost £169 instead of £230,my case..well its actually holding its price....but since then Its my 3rd case on the same build,3rd VGA,3rd CPU cooler,2nd LCD,any few more extras...where am I getting..I dont know

No for serious,the worst thing is that for the money you've spent on your last rig a while ago,now you can get much much more...never ending circle

[Nokiacrazi]

Wheres the best place in the UK to buy computer parts from?

I have seen e-buyer and scan, but honestly, scan isn't that cheap and e-buyer only has a few things cheap, like cases, fans, processors...

[thunderising]

Seriously, don't buy now, wait for Sandy Bridge, else the moment you buy this 2000 thingy, it'll be worth 1000 after Sandy's release

[pantherx12]

Originally Posted by Nokiacrazi

Wheres the best place in the UK to buy computer parts from?

I have seen e-buyer and scan, but honestly, scan isn't that cheap and e-buyer only has a few things cheap, like cases, fans, processors...

Aria.co.uk Kustompcs specialtech.co.uk ebuyer scan ebay and chilledpc.co.uk

It's best to shop around using all of these sites getting the various sales and offers available to each site.

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by Nokiacrazi

Wheres the best place in the UK to buy computer parts from?

I have seen e-buyer and scan, but honestly, scan isn't that cheap and e-buyer only has a few things cheap, like cases, fans, processors...

overclockers.co.uk has some great deals...but I had some terrible customer services experience with them....for me the best of the best for customer services is novatech.co.uk,while they cant keep up with prices o most items,if the price difference isnt too high I'll still go for them..but they have items cheaper then others..you know,its best to compare,research and after all,if you are working on a build,you dont need to buy everything from one place.

[pantherx12]

Kustom pc have good service, I've cancelled things willy nilly no problem, had to call them once and got no answer but got a call back in 15 minutes, maybe they just had nothing better to do but I like to think they have good care lol

[InnocentCriminal]

Originally Posted by Rado D

overclockers.co.uk has some great deals...but I had some terrible customer services experience with them....for me the best of the best for customer services is novatech.co.uk,while they cant keep up with prices o most items,if the price difference isnt too high I'll still go for them..but they have items cheaper then others..you know,its best to compare,research and after all,if you are working on a build,you dont need to buy everything from one place.

Exactly the same situation here. OcUK can suck my nuts - Novatech, I'd rather pay that little bit more (on certain products) and get good customer service than pay through the nose and get nothing.

I must admit, OcUK do (how I don't know) manage to get some interesting deals, but saying that so do Aria and Aria's customer service has been pretty good, can't say I've ever had any negative experience with them tbh.

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

Exactly the same situation here. OcUK can suck my nuts - Novatech, I'd rather pay that little bit more (on certain products) and get good customer service than pay through the nose and get nothing.

I must admit, OcUK do (how I don't know) manage to get some interesting deals, but saying that so do Aria and Aria's customer service has been pretty good, can't say I've ever had any negative experience with them tbh.

LOL here's my old post quote about customer services at overclockers

I dont know why its with me,but (I wont name the retailer) despite a lot of good feedback from other customers,every time I order something expensive from them,it comes with problems..so I just stick to my GTX 470 for now..But read this story,when I ordered my little baby GTX 470...Well I wanted to order a HD 5850 really in that time,cos here in UK it would cost about £250,while a cheapest GTX 470 around £350,,So I've picked a nice Asus HD 5850 and upon placing the order on the retailers website,the stock indicated 10+..so I paid and paid extra for next day,before 12am delivery...Imagine my excitement..I jumped out of bed about 8 am next morning,cos I couldnt sleep I was so waiting for my new baby..prepared everything,you know drivers utilities and so on
And I was waiting and waiting and waiting..9am..11am..noon..about 1pm I was allready pissed off my girlfriend was pissed off that Im not going out and wasted my morning..so with furry I've picked up the phone and was ready to kill trough it..You know how long it takes until you get to talk to someone on the helpline.that just elevated my anger.so when I've finally moved in the queue and was connected with the operator after giving him my order info,guess what he told me....Yeah,bingo,item out of stock!!...son of a ....!!I told myself thats enough!!After I asked him kindly(LOL) that why the hell nobody sent me even one bloody email that this is to happen which would save me from a lot of anger and wasted time and lot of other things..I was asked to pick a different card,but they wont be able to refund the cost of the delivery...what???am I hearing right while I've just wasted another fiver on my mobile phone credit???Dude you got the guts Im telling you...I've ordered something you had in stock,but you actually had not,paid extra £15 for quick delivery.wasted half of my day and nerves and you are telling me that you cant refund the delivery cost for something I even did not get????son of a ....!!!Now listen to me carefully dude,you will sort out for me a full refund otherwise I'll kill you over the phone you hear me???...no I did not really say that but in the end I managed to get the full refund...Now will you call me a fussy customer after such a shitty experience??

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

I must admit, OcUK do (how I don't know)

They must obviously take large stock on each item,thats how they manage the lower prices

[InnocentCriminal]

Originally Posted by Rado D

They must obviously take large stock on each item,thats how they manage the lower prices

Yeah, it'd make sense as that's really one of the only ways you can do it. I hate 'em! Your experience with OcUK is very similar to mine, but I won't derail the thread, I think the OP gets the idea with OcUK.



I was thinkin' OP - you might as well just purchase a PCIe SSD for your current rig enjoy the benefits of the blistering speed and then watch as the GFX prices lower when the new ATi card(s) are released and Sandy Bridge (LGA1155).

Stating that, if you do hold out until next year VAT is increasing by 2.5% bringing it up to 20% which is bollocks! It's going to be a really difficult deciding, unless you already have.

[Rado D]

Originally Posted by InnocentCriminal

a PCIe SSD f

Yeah I've seen then too,is it still OCZ the only brand doing them?I like the idea that you stick it right to the MOBO and it meant to be really fast,a lot faster than a classic SSD..there may be one problem however,you know that by current way of the MOBO layout(any brand) the PCI slot is wether covered by the VGA card or it too damn close which could cause heat problems on the PCI SSD card.