New Build ~£700

[red268]

Hi all,

I'm looking to make a new PC after my current one died for unknown reasons. But it's getting on a bit now, so thought I'd just get a nice new one

I've already got an Antec 1200 case and DVD drive.

I use my PC for gaming and web browsing basically. I like to have the graphics settings as high as possible which at the moment isn't a problem on my 19" 'square' monitor. I'm looking to get a new monitor in the not too distant future too, a nice 1080 x 1920 screen.
(My 3870 runs Skyrim on almost max settings on my little screen, but I'm guessing it'd die trying to run a bigger screen! So a new card is needed.)

Budget is around £700. I'd stretch to a bit more if it was really worth it. Windows 7 needs to be included in the budget.

I'm completely out of the loop regarding all hardware these days.

I'm in the UK. I generally use Ebuyer, but if anyone can prove somewhere else is cheaper, then I'll happily shop elsewhere.

This is what I've come up with so far, but it's basically just a random selection!



My main concerns with what I've got there are the graphics card and motherboard, simply because I know nothing about them these days. I've always been an ATI fan tbh, but I was bitterly disapointed with the 6xxx series. Also, not sure if an SSD is a good idea for gaming as it would be constantly getting accessed, and I'm still not sure if that'd wear it out too quickly or not

Any help on what to change would be greatly appreciated!

.

[Aquinus]

It looks pretty good to me. As long as you don't need a ton of storage, the SSD will be fine. Constant reads don't degrade a SSD, but constant writing will reduce its longevity over time.

[Crap Daddy]

I'd say, if on restrained budget and gaming is major purpose ditch the SSD in favor of a better card and monitor. You might still use your old HDD. The CPU and the board are fine but you'll have to buy also a cooler for 3570K, a Cooler Master Hyper 212+ is cheap and sufficient for decent OC. As for the GPU, especially if you are used with AMD/ATI I'd suggest the 7850, a very good mid-level card:

http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/c...tf-2gd5oc.html

or from NV this one:

http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/c...50313-10m.html

Out of the box the Zotac might be marginally faster but with a slight OC the 7850 will surpass it plus it has 2GB VRAM.

[mad1394]

A 240gb ssd seems like the best deal at this time as in cost/capacity ratio.

[red268]

Fairly certain my current HDD is dead. I'm sort of fixed on getting an SSD anyway, just for my lack of patience with loading times etc. I may add a HDD for storage too. Prob one of those 2GB Sumsung 'Green' drives.

I've got a Thermalright 120 Ultra Extreme and figured I could use that as my cooler. Would I need an adaptor?

If I don't overclock, will the stock cooler be enough for the 3570K if it's used for gaming? Is it worth overclocking? I mean, I know it'd be faster! But how much does it affect power consumption and longevity of the components?

Something I forgot to mention in my OP was that it needs to be quiet! I like the 7850 that Crap Daddy mentioned due to it's aftermarket cooler which is presumably quiter and cooler than stock?

[mad1394]

Originally Posted by red268

Fairly certain my current HDD is dead. I'm sort of fixed on getting an SSD anyway, just for my lack of patience with loading times etc. I may add a HDD for storage too. Prob one of those 2GB Sumsung 'Green' drives.

I've got a Thermalright 120 Ultra Extreme and figured I could use that as my cooler. Would I need an adaptor?

If I don't overclock, will the stock cooler be enough for the 3570K if it's used for gaming? Is it worth overclocking? I mean, I know it'd be faster! But how much does it affect power consumption and longevity of the components?

Something I forgot to mention in my OP was that it needs to be quiet! I like the 7850 that Crap Daddy mentioned due to it's aftermarket cooler which is presumably quiter and cooler than stock?

Quiet systems and "stock" coolers don't mix very well
I had to replace my stock i5 2500k cooler as it was too loud for me.
Overclocking is a good option to have in the long term, as the cpu gets older, you can get give it a bit more life instead of replacing it faster.

[red268]

I've changed the GTX 560 for a 7850 from Ebuyer:

Gigabyte HD 7850 OC Windforce X2 975MHz 4800MHz 2G...

This brings my total now to just shy of £560 .... Worth the extra £60?

Will the 7850 be ok with a 1080 x 1920 screen with high graphics settings? I'm not looking for miracles, but this has got to last me a few years at least!

[Elmo]

Originally Posted by red268

I've changed the GTX 560 for a 7850 from Ebuyer:

Gigabyte HD 7850 OC Windforce X2 975MHz 4800MHz 2G...

This brings my total now to just shy of £560 .... Worth the extra £60?

Will the 7850 be ok with a 1080 x 1920 screen with high graphics settings? I'm not looking for miracles, but this has got to last me a few years at least!

1080 x 1920 or 1920 x 1080?? :O?!

[JrRacinFan]

Originally Posted by red268

Will the 7850 be ok with a 1080 x 1920 screen with high graphics settings? I'm not looking for miracles, but this has got to last me a few years at least!

It's about as performing as say a 6950 1GB/GTX560Ti, but at near 25% less power consumption (read: 600W quality psu for crossfire).

[Crap Daddy]

Originally Posted by red268

I've changed the GTX 560 for a 7850 from Ebuyer:

Gigabyte HD 7850 OC Windforce X2 975MHz 4800MHz 2G...

This brings my total now to just shy of £560 .... Worth the extra £60?

Will the 7850 be ok with a 1080 x 1920 screen with high graphics settings? I'm not looking for miracles, but this has got to last me a few years at least!

Yes. Don't know about the years though, nobody can guarantee.

[JrRacinFan]

@Crap Daddy

What's your take on his board selection? To me it seems kind of expensive for a z77 board with barely any "goodies".

I mean these would be my choices:
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H Socket 1155 VGA DVI HDMI 8.. ...

Gigabyte G1-Sniper M3 Z77 Socket 1155 VGA DVI HDMI...

[Crap Daddy]

Originally Posted by JrRacinFan

@Crap Daddy

What's your take on his board selection? To me it seems kind of expensive for a z77 board with barely any "goodies".

I mean these would be my choices:
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H Socket 1155 VGA DVI HDMI 8.. ...

Gigabyte G1-Sniper M3 Z77 Socket 1155 VGA DVI HDMI...

You are right. Being on a budget I'd take the D3H. Cheaper than the Sniper, more SATAs and any decent Z77 board overclocks well within some limits.

[JrRacinFan]

What I don't like though is the fact the OP is so close to being able to afford an x79 setup

Intel Core i7 3820 3.6GHz Socket 2011 10MB L3 Cach...
Asrock X79 Extreme4 Socket 2011 7.1 Channel HD Aud...

[red268]

Haha, yes, 1920 x 1080, whoops.

Thanks guys. I had looked at the Gigabyte D3H board, but as I said, I'm so out of touch these days it's unreal.

Jr - Not sure an i7 would benefit me? (Again, well out of the loop, so correct me if I'm wrong!)

Board swapped for D3H.

[pantherx12]

Aria.co.uk is a lot cheaper than ebuyer.

Service is better as well : ]

[JrRacinFan]

4c/8t for some kickass multitasking. If you're questioning yourself if am i5 would be enough, odds are it will be. Mainly doing this for gaming? If so check prices on 2550k, they have disabled their integrated graphics so little less wattage needed to CPU.

[Crap Daddy]

Originally Posted by JrRacinFan

4c/8t for some kickass multitasking. If you're questioning yourself if am i5 would be enough, odds are it will be. Mainly doing this for gaming? If so check prices on 2550k, they have disabled their integrated graphics so little less wattage needed to CPU.

OP specifically said the rig will be used for gaming and browsing. So I don't see any reason for getting a more expensive SB-E platform. And as for disabled IGP it's always good to have a backup if your dedicated card fails. I think the right CPU is the 3570K.

[red268]

Thanks very much for all your help guys.

I'm on the last thing now - I've decided to buy a new monitor at the same time, but I know even less about monitors than the rest!

Any suggestions?