New Build with 670GTX/560GTX

[brettly]

Hi techlads,

Just after your opinions on a new build i have yet to give the go ahead on but will be in a cpl of days. Im like an older gamer (43), been playing games most of my life (some console) and am looking to have this build for the next 2-3yrs without updating. Im not exactly spec minded when it comes to computers and what works and what doesnt, but im after a system that will play any game at the highest lvl and keep me interested for a while..

Heres the quotes i have received (wth discounts)

System 1:

1x Core I5-3550, 3.3ghz, Quad Core, Integrated graphics
1x Gigabyte GZ-X7/ 450W PSU
1x 500GB SATAII 7200rpm HDD
1x 4GB DDRIII 1333Mhz (1x4gb)
1x H61 Intel motherboard 1155
1x Nvidia GTX560 1GB PCI Express
1x DVD-RW SATAII
1x Windows 7 Home Premium

Price : $1049au

System 2:

Exact same specs as system 1 but with a 650W PSU (instead of the 450W) and Nvidia GTX670 2gb (instead of the GTX560)

Price : $1419au

I have had my fair share of desktops over the yrs, the last puter was very old running intel core 2 3.0ghz and a 9600GT card. It got a virus and needed a re-install but the case was in vbad shape also so basically wasnt worth saving. Just like to know what is best for the $$ and would i need more ram?..better mobo? etc. I preferably dont want to update the gfx card later but thats technology and sometimes cant be avoided.

cheers.
Brett

[silapakorn]

GTX670 is far better. GTX 560/570/580 are no longer a reasonable choice once 670 entered the market (unless you can get 2nd hand cards at ridiculously low prices). I used 580 for a couple months and switched to 670 immediately when it's available. The difference between 670 and 580 is noticeable, which means that the difference between 670 and 560 must be HUGE.

I also recommend i5 3570K so you can OC it to get more power in the future (when you can afford a more decent CPU cooler, that is).

[Zubasa]

Since you can afford a GTX 670, than it is the clear choice hands down.
A GTX 560 is not enough for many games at max settings even on launch, let alone today.

[brettly]

Originally Posted by Zubasa

Since you can afford a GTX 670, than it is the clear choice hands down.
A GTX 560 is not enough for many games at max settings even on launch, let alone today.

yea..do understand, i thought as an option to get the 560 now and upgrade at a latter date, but obviously that depends on many things such as wot resolution/games played etc..

Was looking at playing BF3 and simulations(upcoming) with triple screen monitors (iracing) therefore the 560 would be draging the chain.

[Crap Daddy]

H61 is the entry level Sandy Bridge mobo. Is it an Intel board? Check if it has Ivy support, might need to have a Sandy CPU to flash an Ivy compatible BIOS. I would suggest you look into some H77 boards. For the GTX670 a 500W PSU is enough.

[brettly]

does say intel on it?.. next one up is the DA-H77M-D3H intel 1155 at $40 more ..does that determine SLI mode or running 2 cards?

[Crap Daddy]

H61 is the chipset, you didn't specified the board manufacturer, Intel also makes boards.
The DA-H77M-D3H is a Gigabyte board but neither your first choice the H61 whatever manufacturer nor the Gigabyte board support SLI. For that you will need a P67/Z68 Sandy Bridge or Z77 Ivy bridge chipset. For a budget build (no OC, one GPU) the H77 is suitable (micro ATX) like this one:

ASRock H77M LGA 1155 Intel H77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB...

[brettly]

Originally Posted by Crap Daddy

H61 is the chipset, you didn't specified the board manufacturer, Intel also makes boards.
The DA-H77M-D3H is a Gigabyte board but neither your first choice the H61 whatever manufacturer nor the Gigabyte board support SLI. For that you will need a P67/Z68 Sandy Bridge or Z77 Ivy bridge chipset. For a budget build (no OC, one GPU) the H77 is suitable (micro ATX) like this one:

ASRock H77M LGA 1155 Intel H77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB...

thanx for that crap daddy, my reference and the people doing the build is here ..under "build your own",no mention of the P67 or Z68

[Crap Daddy]

Build your own. That way you can choose your components better. It seems that shop has very limited options. How far you can go with your budget?

[gopal]

Crap Daddy is right!
You will need an H67 atleast

[brettly]

Originally Posted by Crap Daddy

Build your own. That way you can choose your components better. It seems that shop has very limited options. How far you can go with your budget?

1400 max

[gopal]

THis is the wrost build your own wab site i have even seen!
Well you can check this priceguide.in
But the prices are in INR you can convert it in $ by divide ing it to 56

[brettly]

is this mobo ok? does say SLI ready and crossfire, anything after that seems to be getting more expensive

[INSTG8R]

Originally Posted by brettly

is this mobo ok? does say SLI ready and crossfire, anything after that seems to be getting more expensive

Not a bad budget board. Just be aware it's mATX(small form factor)

[brettly]

Originally Posted by INSTG8R

Not a bad budget board. Just be aware it's mATX(small form factor)

Yea ok, what does that exactly mean?

[INSTG8R]

Originally Posted by brettly

Yea ok, what does that exactly mean?

It's a no frills mATX board. Tho it is a "full featured" Z77 chipset as opposed to the H77 chipset previously suggested so higher quality than the Asrock.

[Clubber_Lang]

Brettly....if you are using a full sized case....go with a full sized board....ATX sized. The mATX sized boards are a lot smaller and guys are using them in really small cases , such as HTPC's. Powerful little MoBo's.....but if you are using a full sized case....get the full size MB.......more room to play around on.

Also....the GTX670 hands down over even 2 - 560's. In fact , in most games the 670 will beat a set of 560's in Sli. You can check out a bunch of game bench's and you'll see that a single 670 will in fact match or beat a set of 560 cards in Sli.

Future proofing a little with a 670 as well. Use one now.....and in a year from now if you need / want more power.....pick up another one.

BTW....brings me back to a MB option.....get one that will do Sli and one that is well recommended in the forums. I would recommend checking out the Asrock Extreme series boards , along with Gigabyte , Asus and a few others.

[gopal]

Gigabyte GA-Z77P-D3
THis Mobo is als good

[Zubasa]

Also check out the Biostar board review, looks to be a damn good board for the money.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/B..._review/1.html

[brettly]

Thanx for all the info lads..just give the go ahead on this build..

1xCore i5-3570K, 3.4GHZ Quad UNLOCKED
1xGigabyte GZ-X7/650W Aywun PSU
1x500GB SATAII 7200RPM HDD
2x4GB DDRII 800MHz (2x2GB)
1xGigabyte GA-H77M-D3H Intel mobo 1155
1xNvidia GTX670 2gb PCI Express
1xDVD-RW SATAII

Total: $1540 (didnt need to get windows 7 because had that already)

I know probably a little too much, and doing it myself would have been cheaper but i seriously dont have the time for that. Should i upgrade the CPU to i7? Is it necessary? Use a better SLI mobo? Was looking at using this computer for the long term and he did say using 2x GTX670 i would need a 800W PSU..Case is Thermaltake (i dont know model)..what about coolers? Can i install those myself?..is it necessary?

Anyways..i give the deposit tis morning and looking forward to picking it up . He said inform him if i wanted to change things. the GTX 680 would have push the price up to the 1800 mark..bugger that

Brett

[gopal]

Well if you can get a i7 then get that but i5 will do just fine

[brettly]

So i cant infact overclock the CPU with that motherboard, i would need the Z77MX instead (50$ more). Is overclocking the CPU an added benefit for fps in games?
I guess getting it now is better than later.

[gopal]

Originally Posted by brettly

So i cant infact overclock the CPU with that motherboard, i would need the Z77MX instead (50$ more). Is overclocking the CPU an added benefit for fps in games?
I guess getting it now is better than later.

Yes, You can get more fps by ocing your CPU

[Raw]

Originally Posted by brettly

Thanx for all the info lads..just give the go ahead on this build..

1xCore i5-3570K, 3.4GHZ Quad UNLOCKED
1xGigabyte GZ-X7/650W Aywun PSU
1x500GB SATAII 7200RPM HDD
2x4GB DDRII 800MHz (2x2GB)
1xGigabyte GA-H77M-D3H Intel mobo 1155
1xNvidia GTX670 2gb PCI Express
1xDVD-RW SATAII

Total: $1540 (didnt need to get windows 7 because had that already)

I know probably a little too much, and doing it myself would have been cheaper but i seriously dont have the time for that. Should i upgrade the CPU to i7? Is it necessary? Use a better SLI mobo? Was looking at using this computer for the long term and he did say using 2x GTX670 i would need a 800W PSU..Case is Thermaltake (i dont know model)..what about coolers? Can i install those myself?..is it necessary?

Anyways..i give the deposit tis morning and looking forward to picking it up . He said inform him if i wanted to change things. the GTX 680 would have push the price up to the 1800 mark..bugger that

Brett

I think you will be very happy with this system using the 670.
I have experience using the 460 GTX, 570 GTX, 570 GTX SLI and now the 670 GTX.
The 670 GTX is just a very fast card and reasonable in price. It runs pretty cool and doesn't use too much power.

I really liked my EVGA 570's but they were a bit dated and only 1GB cards. But they were also fast as heck in BF3, single or SLI, in High Mode.
I had the 570 Classified models which are highly overclocked from the factory. The only reason I upgraded to the 670's was because of EVGA's Upgrade Plan. It cost me about $100.00 each card to get the better cards and I went for it.

But now with the 670 GTX I am playing BF3 Ultra Mode and getting slightly better fps and at stock settings, no overclock, using just one card. Stock settings equals less heat and longer life.

As I only use a 24" monitor I don't bother using my second 670 GTX card in this system, there is no benefit.
As far as a 680 instead of the 670...I don't think it's worth the extra money. That's just my opinion, of course.
A few fps difference in some games doesn't make sense to me for the money. I can always overclock the 670 to match the 680 easily enough if I want to.

Bottom line...the 670 GTX is a fantastic graphics card and you won't be sorry you bought one. Have fun.

[brettly]

Originally Posted by Raw

I think you will be very happy with this system using the 670.
I have experience using the 460 GTX, 570 GTX, 570 GTX SLI and now the 670 GTX.
The 670 GTX is just a very fast card and reasonable in price. It runs pretty cool and doesn't use too much power.

I really liked my EVGA 570's but they were a bit dated and only 1GB cards. But they were also fast as heck in BF3, single or SLI, in High Mode.
I had the 570 Classified models which are highly overclocked from the factory. The only reason I upgraded to the 670's was because of EVGA's Upgrade Plan. It cost me about $100.00 each card to get the better cards and I went for it.

But now with the 670 GTX I am playing BF3 Ultra Mode and getting slightly better fps and at stock settings, no overclock, using just one card. Stock settings equals less heat and longer life.

As I only use a 24" monitor I don't bother using my second 670 GTX card in this system, there is no benefit.
As far as a 680 instead of the 670...I don't think it's worth the extra money. That's just my opinion, of course.
A few fps difference in some games doesn't make sense to me for the money. I can always overclock the 670 to match the 680 easily enough if I want to.

Bottom line...ther670 GTX is a fantastic graphics card and you won't be sorry you bought one. Have fun.

Thanx Raw, im pretty sure i will be after coming from a 9600GT card. I will be using a 32' 1080p screen with hopes on a bigger screen (40') later so just verifying what is best.
So you wouldn't recommend a Z77 board? I know there is risks etc when overclocking but to further its life-span cant be a bad thing.