Another build evaluation/opinion thread

[DLI]

Hey guys,

I am planning a build and just whipped up this list based off the pcper hwlb + my own tweaks to some of the component selection.

I am trying to keep it around $1k but still be high to ultra high performance. As far as the graphics, I want low-mid to mid-mid level. Nothing killer or more than $110. I don't play much right now but I have been known to dip into TF2, Portal, Red Faction, and some C&C titles. I'd like to run those on my 2x 22" displays at, lets say, 60fps?

EDIT: Hey guys, thanks for the responses. Sorry I did not follow the format, I forgot to look for one in the forum sticky posts/announcements.

What are you planning to do with this computer?
- Photoshop, web design, email (outlook, large inboxes), intensive web browsing (multiple windows, various browsers, 10+ tabs each), SOME gaming (TF2, Red Faction, C&C, maybe BF2 down the road, ECT.) -- I am not a gamer and this is not meant to be a "gaming rig" -- I just want decent game performance when I do play. This is meant to be a well-rounded and highly capable Workstation. I edit video every few years too lol.

What is your budget?
$1100. I already have a copy of Windows 7, keyboard, speakers.
I would like new: 22" monitor and mouse

Are you from the United States or a different country?
United States

Wherever you may be from, does the store that you are planning to order from have a website?
I like to work with Newegg, Amazon, and Tiger Direct

Do you have any specific requests with the build?
Just the most power for the buck. Multi-tasking (web browsing + blu-ray ripping + downloading data + music playback) is a big priority. I think I would like a quality Full Tower case, so things aren't cramped and I have room to upgrade/expand later (i.e. my next build in maybe 4 years).

Do you plan on overclocking?
No.

Would you prefer the build to be particularly small?
No.

Would you prefer the build to be particularly quiet?
Yes.

In general, do you prefer this to be a computer that you can spend money on now and let it rest, or a box built for continuous upgrading?
Spend money on now and let it be.

Do you ever plan on utilizing NVIDIA's SLI or AMD's CrossfireX technologies?
No.

(OPTIONAL) Have you already looked at or considered any parts (it's okay if you haven't)? If so, please list your top 1-2 choices for each category.
[CPU] Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz LGA 1155
[Motherboard] ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155
[Memory] G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3
[Hard Disk] Corsair Force Series GT 240GB SATA III
[GPU] HIS H677FN1GD Radeon HD 6770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5
[CPU Cooler] ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2
[Case] Corsair Obsidian Series 800D
[Disc Drive] LITE-ON Black Internal 12X Blu-ray
[Power Supply] OCZ ZS Series 750W 80PLUS Bronze
[Mouse] GIGABYTE GM-M7700B
[Monitor] (Nothing selected yet)

 

[Mjolnir]

Get a Z77 Extreme 4. A I5 3570k. That case is way to expensive for your total budget. Consider another case at a lower price range.

For a gaming rig, not enough is being spent on a gpu. With the money saved from the case, Pick a HD 7850 2GB. Far better option.

Consider the Hyper 212 EVO for your cooler. Will get you around 4.2ghz on the I5 3570k before heat starts to take over.

PS where are you buying from? where are you located?

 

[Knufire]

Hey, welcome to OCF!

When trying to recommend a build to you, there's some information that's extremely helpful for us to know. If you could answer these few short questions, we'd be happy to help!

• What are you planning to do with this compuer? Please be as specfic as possible.

• What is your budget?
  
  1. Does this include a copy of Windows?
  2. Does this include peripheals (a keyboard, monitor, mouse, speakers, etc.)?
• Are you from the United States or a different country? Are you ordering from your own country or from across borders?
  
  1. Wherever you may be from, does the store that you are planning to order from have a website? It's okay if it isn't in English, we can manage.

• Do you have any specific requests with the build?
  
  1. Do you plan on overclocking? If yes, do you have a specific goal in mind?
  2. Would you prefer the build to be particularly small?
  3. Would you prefer the build to be particularly quiet?
  4. In general, do you prefer this to be a computer that you can spend money on now and let it rest, or a box built for continuous upgrading?
  5. Do you ever plan on utilizing NVIDIA's SLI or AMD's CrossfireX technologies? These features, with a compatible motherboard, allow a user to link multiple identical graphic cards together for added performance. In real world terms, this lets you buy a second identical graphics card down the line as a relatively cheap and easy way to gain a fairly large boost in performance. However, this requires buying a SLI/CFX compatible motherboard and PSU now, which may result in slightly higher initial cost

• (OPTIONAL) Have you already looked at or considered any parts (it's okay if you haven't)? If so, please list your top 1-2 choices for each category. If you've only picked out a few of the below, just list those.
  
  • CPU
  • Motherboard
  • RAM
  • Graphics Card
  • Power Supply
  • Case
  • Hard Drive
  • Solid State Drive (optional)
  • Mouse (if necessary)
  • Keyboard (if necessary)
  • Monitor (if necessary)
  • Speakers/Headset (if necessary)

Once again, thank you in advannce for taking the time to answer these, and I hope you enjoy your stay at OCF!

 

[trents]

Yeah, I agree, the cooler you chose is not a good one anymore and the Hyper 212+ evo is a much better choice if your case is wide enough to accommodate its height. Also, you don't mention anything about a PSU and that is a critical foundation element in a system.

 

[wingman99]

+1 Purchase ASRock Z77 Extreme 4 I5 3570k and for a cooler Thermalright TRUE Spirit 140 will do much better than the Hyper 212.

 

[Mjolnir]

+1 Purchase ASRock Z77 Extreme 4 I5 3570k and for a cooler Thermalright TRUE Spirit 140 will do much better than the Hyper 212.

Only reason I didn't mention the Thermalright is his/her location. If for example; they're in Aus. It's hard to find here. US is a completely different story. And Yes I overlooked the PSU :O.

Lian Li PC-K9WX Black with window consider that for a case OP. I'm sure knufire approves . Looks simple and sleek much like the 800D and has a window as well =).

 

[DLI]

Hey guys, thanks for the responses. Sorry I did not follow the format, I forgot to look for one in the forum sticky posts/announcements.

What are you planning to do with this computer?
- Photoshop, web design, email (outlook, large inboxes), intensive web browsing (multiple windows, various browsers, 10+ tabs each), SOME gaming (TF2, Red Faction, C&C, maybe BF2 down the road, ECT.) -- I am not a gamer and this is not meant to be a "gaming rig" -- I just want decent game performance when I do play. This is meant to be a well-rounded and highly capable Workstation. I edit video every few years too lol.

What is your budget?
$1100. I already have a copy of Windows 7, keyboard, speakers.
I would like new: 22" monitor and mouse

Are you from the United States or a different country?
United States

Wherever you may be from, does the store that you are planning to order from have a website?
I like to work with Newegg, Amazon, and Tiger Direct

Do you have any specific requests with the build?
Just the most power for the buck. Multi-tasking (web browsing + blu-ray ripping + downloading data + music playback) is a big priority. I think I would like a quality Full Tower case, so things aren't cramped and I have room to upgrade/expand later (i.e. my next build in maybe 4 years).

Do you plan on overclocking?
No.

Would you prefer the build to be particularly small?
No.

Would you prefer the build to be particularly quiet?
Yes.

In general, do you prefer this to be a computer that you can spend money on now and let it rest, or a box built for continuous upgrading?
Spend money on now and let it be.

Do you ever plan on utilizing NVIDIA's SLI or AMD's CrossfireX technologies?
No.

(OPTIONAL) Have you already looked at or considered any parts (it's okay if you haven't)? If so, please list your top 1-2 choices for each category.
[CPU] Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz LGA 1155
[Motherboard] ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155
[Memory] G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3
[Hard Disk] Corsair Force Series GT 240GB SATA III
[GPU] HIS H677FN1GD Radeon HD 6770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5
[CPU Cooler] ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2
[Case] Corsair Obsidian Series 800D
[Disc Drive] LITE-ON Black Internal 12X Blu-ray
[Power Supply] OCZ ZS Series 750W 80PLUS Bronze
[Mouse] GIGABYTE GM-M7700B
[Monitor] (Nothing selected yet)

 

[Mjolnir]

Format is just Knufires thing. Its not forum-based lol.

Why go such a huge case for a single card system? Personally I'm a fan of smaller cases.. Here's my build. Especially if you don't want to OC.. I see little point grabbing a K model. Etc etc. I use the TJ08-E which is the brother case to this one. In a sense. Love it. For single-GPU systems; it's perfectly capable. I'm sure knufire will find a better build with combo deals and such. Note I haven't included a monitor.




Asrock Pro 4-M
Asrock H77M

Pro 4-M is easily more than enough.. H77M is the same. For a non-overclocker who wants to save a few bucks; the H77M is fine. I've got a friend who used it and it runs great with his i5 3550.

 

[wingman99]

If he is not going to overclock he does not need a cpu cooler it comes with one from intel.

 

[DLI]

If he is not going to overclock he does not need a cpu cooler it comes with one from intel.

I imagine the stock one is not necessarily QUIET or much efficient in case I do try to bump the Mhz a little down the road, No?

I mean I don't have plans for that but I really don't expect the stock cooler to be much of anything worth using long term? Who actually does that? lol

 

[Mjolnir]

Lots of people. Lol. Some people OC on it too.

I included the TX3 Hyper cooler just because its a quieter solution than the intel stock; and for 20 bucks for a nicer cooler and quieter solution; I think it's worth it. I've used the TX3 Evo (Couldn't find it on newegg) for a friends i5 2400. IBT maxed out at 59 degrees on the hottest core. Without getting loud at all really. Sounds fine to me.

DLI; in that case; change the i7 3770 to a i7 3770k if you do ever wanna bump it.. Though 4.ghz is easily done on stock/low end cooling; because you usually (note; usually) only need its stock voltages to hit that multi.

I still stand by my small-style case build. The PS07 has decent airflow; and is quieter than the TJ08-E (I'd assume) because of the front door. The front door will also help block noise from other components as well.

 

[wingman99]

+1 if in the future you might overclock purchase i7 3770k and ASRock Z77 Pro4-M LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX has all the overcloking options you need.

 

[Knufire]

Do you live nearby a Microcenter?

Also, do you not need a hard drive? Or you don't need more than 240GB of space?

Assuming no Microcenter:

 

[DLI]

There is a Microcenter not too far from me.
I checked out both the 800D and Cooler Master HAF there a few months ago.

Sorry guys, I am not looking for a Micro motherboard or a Mid-size ATX case.

I think I would like big so I can keep it around more long-term. In the past I've gotten cheap cases and they get boring, old, and dusty quick. I will also avoid anything with a built-in fan controller -- the ones which come built-in to the mid-tower cases are cheap. No lights either. Just simple, big, clean, strong and with a window.'

Also, I am not sure I need to be spending extra money on an Ivy Bridge processor. I will research what benefits it has over the same socket and speed Sandy Bridge part.

HERE IS A QUESTION: Would I be foolish to consider an AMD FX-8150 Zambezi instead of messing around with this Intel stuff...?


Thanks for all you've submitted so far.

 

[Knufire]

I've found that, if you're air cooling, you really don't need anything bigger than a mid tower. You're making an assumption that full tower means better quality than mid tower, and that's completely wrong.

The thing is, at your budget, an expensive case just isn't worth it. Your money is better spent on performance. All a case is a metal box to hold your stuff in. Several people in these forums don't even bother with a case, just run it straight out of the motherboard box, lol. No need to give it more importance than it deserves.

 

[DLI]

I've found that, if you're air cooling, you really don't need anything bigger than a mid tower. You're making an assumption that full tower means better quality than mid tower, and that's completely wrong.

The thing is, at your budget, an expensive case just isn't worth it. Your money is better spent on performance. All a case is a metal box to hold your stuff in. Several people in these forums don't even bother with a case, just run it straight out of the motherboard box, lol. No need to give it more importance than it deserves.

True. But I am thinking about water cooling later. I used to water cool in a Chieftec many years ago. I sold it when I got tired of the 120v water pump. Now I see we have 12v pumps in abundance!

But yeah I'll keep what you are saying in mind. Thank you!

 

[Knufire]

I'm doing a new recommendation, trying to fit in a "high quality" mid-tower. Is this case to your liking? Lian-Li is known for having some of the highest quality cases. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112337

Also, do you not need a hard drive? Not fitting a 240GB SSD in there, not in that budget. Only reason the last recommendation was in budget was because I missed a Bluray player.

The Bulldozer architecture isn't that high performing. It's not a true octocore (performs like 8 cores on integer calculations, performs like a quad with FLOPS). Worth it if you know that your uses are integer calculations and are threaded for eight cores.

Ivy Bridge is 3-5% faster than Sandy Bridge at equal clock speed, but brings PCIe 3.0.

 

[DLI]

I think I see what you done there Knufire... Thanks for posting. I'll look it over more carefully and consider it in the morning. Your build is pretty good though. Is that processor Ivy Bridge??

This is hard decision for me. See my 2nd attempt below. It is missing the monitor, mouse, and case.
I think my only concern from your build would be that OCZ Agility SSD.... not so hot about the OCZ series. I already made a step down from Samsung to Corsair. What do you know/think about performance loss from Corsair GT to OCZ Agility?

Thanks!

 

[Knufire]

With SSDs this fast... you won't be able to tell the difference without benchmarks. You probably can't even tell the difference between my Vertex 2 and the Samsung 830. The Agility 3 series is being sold as such low prices right now, it's a steal.

2xxx is Sandy Bridge, 3xxx is Ivy Bridge.

CPU/Motherboard from Microcenter, dirt cheap.

 

[DLI]

I'm increasing the budget to ~1300. I really don't want to have to come back to replace compromised stuff with what I really wanted later.