Building my first computer, need all the feedback i can get :)

[rovopio]

Building my first computer

Hi guys...

updated info so as not to make it double post will be on this post

 

[smarteyeball]

Question no 1) About being able to connect to internet wirelessly
my house is using wireless, to make my PC able to receive wireless signal what's the name of the part i should buy? is that PCI adapter above the correct part?

Yep. That's what you need for wireless.

i dont really mind the performance, i just want a quiet GPU that can fulfill my needs.

Asus Radeon HD7790 1GB DDR5 DirectCU II OC - HD7790-DC2OC-1GD5 $204

HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB DDR5 ICEQ X2 iPOWER TURBO $190

Sapphire Radeon HD7770 1GB DDR5 128 Bit VAPOR-X OC Version $157

All quiet cards, especially at idle/low load.

The DCUII cooler is the best, but the other two will fit the bill.

i hv a nagging question tho, is 7750 enough for me?

Hard to say - No idea what games you'd be playing and what you consider a playable frame rate to be. (ie Happy with avg 30, 40 or 60 fps?)

Obviously a 7750/7790 won't allow for all bells and whistles in the settings, but it should provide adequate performance.

Silverstone Strider 500w ST50F-ES = $70
Seasonic M12II-520w modular = $92

Those two would be the pick of the bunch, but pretty much any on your list will do since it's not a "Power Hungry" build you are doing.

4) About CPU Cooler

Combine with noise reduction of fractal design define R3... Do i need CPU cooler to make it quiet or does Intel CPU stock good enough?


CM Hyper 212x = $48

It's been a long time since I've used a stock cooler, but I do find them to be rather noisy.

Tbh, I haven't kept up on the latest budget coolers, (compared to a brand like Noctua which are in the top three with a price to match) but I know The 212x is a very common recommendation and a good price/performance. However most aftermarket coolers are better and generally quieter than the stock cooler. Since there will be no overclocking, performance is not the biggest worry here.

Noise wise you always have the option of either replacing the stock fan with a quieter model (if it's noisy), or using either a 5v or 7v resistor to lower the fans RPM and noise.

5) About Speaker
i never own a PC, i really have no clue regarding sound coming out from PC.
I mean, does PC have onboard sound like laptop, or do i need to buy speaker to make the PC have sound coming from it?

You will need speakers. Sound is processed by the onboard sound card on the motherboard and output through speakers. Laptops simply have small speakers built in to the chassis.

As for brand, can't help you there I'm afraid.

6) about motherboard
Not going to OC. I think im going to buy h87 instead so that i dont need to upgrade for some time.

GIGABYTE GA-H87-HD3
ASRock H87 FATAL1TY PERFORMANCE

For your needs, the H87 is the best choice.

As for the board itself, I've heard good things about the Asus and the two above. But since you're on a budget, the Asus may be over the top.

Can't say I've heard much about the MSI boards as I'm a bit biased against them. No real reason - I just am

At a quick glance, they all seem to sport the same number of sata/usb ports etc - the only difference is the chipsets on the boards.

 

[Solarstarshines]

Strong but decent GPU 7870 OR 270X

 

[rovopio]

@solarstarshines
r9 270x cost 330 usd here, didnt check 7870... thats why i didnt put those in and put the dollars tag right next to them... so you'll have an image of how much does it cost locally against its performance.
since performance is factual, but pricing here is different than say, newegg.

@smarteyeball
Case in point... after further checking i found some 7790 cards and 650ti boost to be around similar price tag with your 3 recommendations. Considering if i buy asus i hv to shell out $204, i might as well check some 650ti boost since the dollar tag isnt that different. here's the ones that similarly priced to Asus and Radeon 7790.

Zotac Geforce GTX 650 Ti 2048MB DDR5 BOOST $218

MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti 1024MB DDR5 - OC Boost $189

MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti 2048MB DDR5 - Twin Frozr / OC Boost $218

Manli Geforce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB $195

Gigabyte Geforce GTX650 Ti 2048MB DDR5 $230

Asus Radeon HD7790 1GB DDR5 DirectCU II OC - HD7790-DC2OC-1GD5 $204
HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB DDR5 ICEQ X2 iPOWER TURBO $190
Sapphire Radeon HD7770 1GB DDR5 128 Bit VAPOR-X OC Version $157

===================
Considering the pricing of 650ti boost against the $200 7790s, which cards are smart decisions to buy, in terms of quietness.

(my budget is actually around $160-$170, but considering $160 only nailed me 7770 but $220 could nailed me 650ti boost, i can justify the price leap up until $220)
the $230 650ti boost gigabyte is the only one that's stretching my budget too much (if its the quietest by a mile i'll consider it though)

So yeah, feel free to adviced me as if my budget is not $1000 tight from those cards, which ones would you rather advised / buy for yourself to buy in terms of quietness and performance ranked 1-2-3.

(the local distributor dont always have the goods, which is why i ask for 1-2-3 just in case )

===================
i only play games that gets very big exposure or story driven. in the past 3 years ive only played batman mass effect, and about to play tomb raiders on PC. thats all. i used to play medium on my low-end laptop so, high settings is fine. i dont think i even need ultra / very high.

 

[smarteyeball]

I outlined those cards solely due to noise levels. They have the best custom coolers.

However when is noise the main concern? At idle or while playing a game?

Basically all these cards will be virtually silent at idle / watching videos. It's the load (ie games) where the coolers really come into play. The reference coolers on the GTX 6xx series are pretty good too. They are audible under load, but not obnoxiously so.


I'm off to bed now, so I'll check in tmw for a proper, more detailed answer.

But for now, I would personally avoid Zotac, Digital Alliance and Manli. I'm dubious about Zotacs quality and I must admit I've never even heard of Manli. I've heard of DA, but I'm not sure of their quality. But regardless of card brand, if it works - it'll do the job.

Out of the above, I'd aim for the MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti Twin Frozr / OC Boost if I couldn't afford the gigabyte. The Twin Frozr cooler is a good one. But the Gigabyte wouldn't be different by a mile, so I wouldn't worry about missing out there.

 

[rovopio]

im going to sleep now, once i wake up, i'll reply to the thread wiht follow up questions regarding the build

 

[Solarstarshines]

Thank you for the REP also the 7790 is a decent performer when it comes to gaming Medium settings nothing High but if you want something that will do high settings

i would look for a HD 6870 or 6950 you should be able to find it with in your budget and honestly the 6950 is comparable to a 7870 ghz so i would shop around for the old series and see if you could come up

The cards i mentioned are about 2 years max in age and would suit your new build well


http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trk...RC1.A0.Xhd6870&_nkw=hd6870&_sacat=0&_from=R40


http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...1313.TR4.TRC1.A0.Xhd6950&_nkw=hd6950&_sacat=0


http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...1313.TR6.TRC1.A0.Xhd7870&_nkw=hd7870&_sacat=0

 

[rovopio]

^ no hd6000 series anymore here

I outlined those cards solely due to noise levels. They have the best custom coolers.

However when is noise the main concern? At idle or while playing a game?

Basically all these cards will be virtually silent at idle / watching videos. It's the load (ie games) where the coolers really come into play. The reference coolers on the GTX 6xx series are pretty good too. They are audible under load, but not obnoxiously so.


I'm off to bed now, so I'll check in tmw for a proper, more detailed answer.

But for now, I would personally avoid Zotac, Digital Alliance and Manli. I'm dubious about Zotacs quality and I must admit I've never even heard of Manli. I've heard of DA, but I'm not sure of their quality. But regardless of card brand, if it works - it'll do the job.

Out of the above, I'd aim for the MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti Twin Frozr / OC Boost if I couldn't afford the gigabyte. The Twin Frozr cooler is a good one. But the Gigabyte wouldn't be different by a mile, so I wouldn't worry about missing out there.

okay i rounded off my 1-2 choice into these 2

a MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti 2048MB DDR5 - Twin Frozr / OC Boost $218
b HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB DDR5 ICEQ X2 iPOWER TURBO $190
(and if there's no stock on the above) Sapphire Radeon HD7790 1G GDDR5 OC VERSION $171

*i read about HIS Iturbo feature where it's really simple (just click) to choose between Quieter / Cooler.
my question is, does all graphic cards hv their own quiet fan control assistant?

=====
between the $190 price tag of HIS radeon and the $218 msi 650ti boost, which one is the smartest decision to buy considering...
1) my original budget of $170 (stretch 20 or 50)
2) my light gaming need (1-3 times a year)
weighting performance against the price tag, is it smarter decision to stretch $50 or is it wiser to just stretch $20?

===
my logic is that, since i hv to stretch my budget to get the quiet graphic card anw, i might as well be smart about my graphic card decision.
meaning if the performance outweigh the $30 difference between the two, might as well stretch $50. but if the performance jump is minimal, i'd rather save $30.

==================================
Q2) Is 4gb enough for opening youtube, uploading videos, watching movies, and browse tens of tabs at the same time?

@smarteyeball, by quiet i mean quiet when i open youtube, UL videos, watch movies , and browse tens of tabs at the same time. Since my net speed is 0.3 mbps it takes the whole night to UL videos, thats why im looking for silent pc so my sleep wont be bothered by the fan noise.

Noisy while gaming is fine. i understand that all game machine do that. console or pc.

 

[Computer0304]

1. Why not go with GTX 760? It is a newer card and also for Nvidia cards, I recommend EVGA.
2. I have 2gb and yes, I could do all that with barely any lag.

 

[Computer0304]

You should replace the fans in the case you are getting with silent fans. I recommend getting Noctua fans.

 

[smarteyeball]

*i read about HIS Iturbo feature where it's really simple (just click) to choose between Quieter / Cooler.
my question is, does all graphic cards hv their own quiet fan control assistant?

No. Most cards fan curves are controlled by the cards BIOS. However at idle/low loads they will be minimum anyway. Usually around 23/24%.

I believe the HIS Iturbo feature is a trade off for heat vs noise under load (ie games)

, is it smarter decision to stretch $50 or is it wiser to just stretch $20?

heh heh, I'm probably the worse to ask this one but I would personally stretch to $50

The faster the card, the longer it will handle most titles at good frames and image quality.

The real benefit of non-reference cooled cards are lower temps with less noise under load. They also have the 'potential' of achieving a higher overclock should you want to. They're also cooler at idle. Acoustically though, there isn't much difference when idle between reference vs non-reference.

Q2) Is 4gb enough for opening youtube, uploading videos, watching movies, and browse tens of tabs at the same time?

Yep

@smarteyeball, by quiet i mean quiet when i open youtube, UL videos, watch movies , and browse tens of tabs at the same time. Since my net speed is 0.3 mbps it takes the whole night to UL videos, thats why im looking for silent pc so my sleep wont be bothered by the fan noise.

That would fall under the 'low load' category and as such the machine will be rather quiet. Even a reference GPU would be virtually inaudible at those levels.

This is where the aftermarket CPU cooler comes into play. The stock cooler will ramp up and down, potentially being the nosiest part of your PC.

 

[rovopio]

i see.

i will reply in a day or two with my final build, i hv some personal matter to deal with

 

[smarteyeball]

No worries mate - real life comes first. Send me a Visitor Message if you need a hand in a few days.

 

[rovopio]

okay my final draft is either...

i5-4570 3.2ghz
MSI H87I mini ITX (w/ wifi)
Corsair Vengeance Blue 1x4gb
Bitfenix Prodigy White
Noctua NH-L12 CPU Cooler for mini ITX
1xFractal Silent Series 12cm
Windows 8

OR...

i5-4570 3.2ghz
MSI H87-G43
Corsair Vengeance Blue 1x4gb
Fractal Define R3 White
Xigmatek GAIA
D-Link PCI Adapter 150 mbps for wireless
Windows 8

===
i still hv 3 questions.

1) VGA im set with 650ti boost msi twin frozr $220. other 650TIboost cost $270ish. and 7790 asus cost $200. so wth, im gonna go with msi twin frozr instead. hopefully its quiet enough.

2) im still confused about PSU. i'd like to take seasonic. no bequiet PSU here.
i could either go 520watt Seasonic M12II modular, $100 or Seasonic G-450 watt $115...
what do you guys think?

3) im still very confused what CPU cooler i should take. if i go small form factor, Noctua NH-L12 or NH-U12 cost 80 dollars. which is blowing my budget

if i go mid-tower, im not sure $38 xigmatek gaia are available. i dont wanna go CM 212 because i dislike CM distributor here. so... any quiet CPU cooler you guys can recommend for me?

throw out any brand is fine, i just prefer quiet and under $50 hehe
====================
4) also considering my initial intention to have a quiet PC... and taking into account that this is going to be my 1st build with no PC building experience, do you think it's wise to go small form factor? cable management, airflow etc. since i have to DIY.

(i dont trust the PC store to build it for me, i'd rather do it myself, no trust issues, just my country's service condition in general.)

 

[smarteyeball]

===
i still hv 3 questions.

1) VGA im set with 650ti boost msi twin frozr $220. other 650TIboost cost $270ish. and 7790 asus cost $200. so wth, im gonna go with msi twin frozr instead. hopefully its quiet enough.

Good choice. I'll eat my GPU if it's not a quiet card at idle

2) im still confused about PSU. i'd like to take seasonic. no bequiet PSU here.
i could either go 520watt Seasonic M12II modular, $100 or Seasonic G-450 watt $115...
what do you guys think?

Well the 650Ti only needs a 400W minimum, so you could feasibly get away with either. The G-450 also has a healthy 37Amp on a single 12v rail, whereas the 520 is 20a 12v1/20a 12v2. Arguably single 12v rails are better, although both will do the job.

Both are modular, so that's a moot point.

Since your PC is going to essentially be a low power, non overclocked quiet rig - The G-450 should suit your needs perfectly. The only potential downside is that if you ever want upgrade your GPU to a faster card later, you'll be kind of limited. But then, the same also applies to the 520W.

Noise wise, both would be similar at idle/low

3) im still very confused what CPU cooler i should take. if i go small form factor, Noctua NH-L12 or NH-U12 cost 80 dollars. which is blowing my budget

if i go mid-tower, im not sure $38 xigmatek gaia are available.

By going mid-tower, you both increase the cooling effectiveness and range of coolers available. Unfortunately I haven't kept abreast on low form coolers in the sub $50 bracket.

Why would mid tower eliminate the Gaia?

Do any of your local distributors have a website I could look at? Or is it a case of just stores, no websites?

I'm just trying to avoid listing all the cheap/decent coolers that are either A) Not available to you or B) End up costing much more. And aren't CM


Non Low Form Factor+: (prices are $50> US)

Artic Freezer i30
Thermaltake NIC 5
Silverstone Argon Ar01 (Same price as Gaia)
Silverstone Argon Ar03 (bigger, more $)
Xigmatek Dark Knight


Case wise I believe the Fractal R3 to be rather quiet. Generally I find that case fans are the nosiest part of an idle PC. If you find your case fans to be irritating and can't afford noctuas to replace them with, there are a few others like Nexus Real Silent fans that are almost as good.

4) also considering my initial intention to have a quiet PC... and taking into account that this is going to be my 1st build with no PC building experience, do you think it's wise to go small form factor? cable management, airflow etc. since i have to DIY.

Unless space is a major constraint, I'd personally opt for a mid-tower. Easier to manage, better upgrade path, better airflow/cooling etc

But doing it yourself is a good thing. We all spend oodles of time on cable management. The most daunting part is inserting the CPU for the first time. The pressure required always feels like you're about to break something

But when the time comes, there are plenty here (me included) who are more than happy to walk you through it.

 

[rovopio]

im concerned about cable management and i have a serious case of not being able to understand airflow regardless of having read it online... i think i could manage the CPU just fine since i've watched youtube and saw ppl did it a couple times.

-no website, just stores. i know they have xigmatek aegir, idk if they have other xigmateks or not. theres this one website that list ALL the goods ever available in the country, but they don't show whether the goods are available right this moment or not. so say a goods was available last year and the distributor decide not to import it anymore, they'll still list it on that website. thats why i doubt they have xigmatek gaia because its a mid-of-the-line goods

here's the link

please take a look at the CPU and fan cooler and let me know your no 1 and no 2 recommendations from that list, as long as its non CM, quiet, less than <$55 im good. there's a price right next to the goods name on that website, but its local currency so just consider the USD price that you know/remember of, no need to bother seeing and converting the right-side local price.

i put the link there to ask you to help me check because, unlike PSU, not every coolers are available here. c/. no artic cooler or Silverstone cooler here. they do have xigmatek, zalman, noctua, thermaltake, scythe, gelid, etc
======================
i wont upgrade my vga card for years so its a non-issue.
when i build it i'm going to put 3 or 4 hdd and 1 OS ssd right away. core i5, the msi VGA. wireless pci adapter, cpu cooler, fans, DVD drive, card reader, and plug in my 3x3.5" external HDD. based on that, how to calculate how much i need here?

eXtreme Power Supply Calculator


in a year im going to put
cheap sound card like Asus Xonar
plug in cheap <$150 2.0 speaker
in 2 years i'll probably buy <$200 amplifier or DAC...

============
i tried calculating it myself there, but i got confused on the right side part, the PCI-e columns and usb devices and stuff.

 

[rovopio]

additional info... i just read that bitfenix prodigy can fit normal size HSF... so...
i guess that means the recommendation can be anything as far as it fits a normal midtower case..

cheers,,

 

[rovopio]

Hi everybody...

@smarteyeball and @computer0304 helped me the past week.. decide to repost this in continuation of the laptop ulv thread...

so... This is going to be my 1st PC.
I'm going to put the PC in my room and it's going to be turned on the whole night some nights of the week.
So.. my biggest aim isn't performance, i like to aim for the PC to be as quiet as possible within my budget.

I went from zero knowledge regarding PC build and parts and spend the better half of the last 3 weeks googling and i hv been asking on the forum as well. I really like the looks of bitfenix prodigy and fractal define.
by aesthetics I prefer my pc to be somewhat smaller so bitfenix prodigy looks perfect, but i'm really concern about the quietness of the rig since im going to leave it on on some nights. (i'd like quiet in low load/normal load, noisy in high load is fine)

1. PC will be used for (same with laptop used but with video editing included)::
a) opening multiple tabs simultaneously and keeping 50ish tabs on idle
==> When i browse from a website home page, say a sport website homepage, i ctrl+left click 10-12 articles at the same time...
so i load 10-12 tabs at the same time, while leaving 40-50tabs open at idle normally.
b) watching 1080p movies daily that are 8-12 gib in size
c) download youtube videos / uploading videos so it'll be on all night some nights so quiet computing is my main aim
d) very light gaming (like once every 6/9 months)
e) light photo / video editing

Budget $900-1100
country South East Asia
Link to online store pricing web link
default speed for this build no OC intention at all. No SLI/Crossfire either
Monitor resolution 1080p
will be built in the next week maybe 2.

=========
here's the parts so far...

[[Fixed Parts]]
i5-4570 3.2ghz
d-link wireless pci adapter
my current intel 330 ssd
random 1tb HDD

[[Almost decide but need small input]]
PSU : which one is enough for my build?
is seasonic gold g450 enough or should i get g550 or go with Seasonic Bronze M12II-620W?

RAM :any 2x4gb RAM as long as it have blue heatspreader
=> needs input since online vendors only list price and not pictures

CPU Cooler : Noctua NH-U12P SE2 or Noctua NH-U12S (will either fit on bitfenix prodigy? i read that NH-U12S is lower?)
=> read noctua's website, NH-U12S fits all ram profile, does that mean NH-U12P doesn't?


[[Need a lot of help deciding]]
Case:
I prefer quiet, but i really like small minimalistic prodigy rather than heavy mid-tower like fractal define r3.

it's either msi h87-g43 with fractal define r3
or
msi h87i with btifenix prodigy


VGA :
yes... i've googled extensively for VGA as well, but as mentioned above.. i crash-coursed everything about PC in the last 10 days or so and replies from sevenforums help, but i still need you guys opinion to choose which ones are quiet.
even though i know generally from google it goes something like gtx 650 - hd 7770 - gtx 650ti - hd 7790 - hd 7850 - gtx 650ti boost

the pricing is based on this online store pricing. but for convenience i'd list all the VGA's that is within my budget and its price...



GTX 650
Gigabyte Geforce GTX650 2GB - GV-N65OC-2GI $185.3
Asus Geforce GTX 650 1GB DirectCU OC $176.7
MSI Geforce GTX 650 2GB - Power Edition $1,706

GTX 650Ti
Zotac Geforce GTX 650 Ti 1GB $163.2
Zotac Geforce GTX 650 Ti 2GB AMP $192.6
Manli Geforce GTX 650 Ti 2GB $171.8
Gigabyte Geforce GTX650 Ti 2GB $219.6
Gigabyte Geforce GTX650 Ti 1GB $197.5

GTX 650Ti Boost
Inno 3D Geforce GTX 650 Ti BOOST $212.3
Manli Geforce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB $195.1
Zotac Geforce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB $219.6
MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti Boost 1GB $190.2
MSI Geforce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB Twin Frozr $219.6
Gigabyte Geforce GTX650 Ti boost 2GB $228.2


Radeon 7770
AFOX Radeon HD 7770 $159.5
Sapphire Radeon HD7770 1GB VAPOR-X OC Version $155.8
Asus Radeon HD7770 1GB DirectCU V2 $187.7
MSI Radeon HD 7770 1GB Power Edition 1GD5/OC $165.6

Radeon 7790
HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB ICOOLER $165.6
HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB ICOOLER TURBO $177.9
HIS Radeon HD 7790 1GB ICEQ X2 iPOWER TURBO $190.2
Asus Radeon HD7790 1GB DirectCU II OC $204.9
Sapphire Radeon HD7790 1GB OC VERSION $171.8
Sapphire Radeon HD7790 2GB OC VERSION $214.7
MSI Radeon HD 7790 1GB 1GD5/OC $170.6
XFX Radeon FX 7790 1GB Dual Fansink $182.8

Radeon 7850
Club Radeon HD7850 1GB $214.7
Club Radeon HD7850 2GB $233.1
HIS Radeon HD 7850 2GB $220.9
XFX Radeon FX 7850 2GB 1 Fansink $224.5

-Other-
HIS Radeon HD R7 260X ICEQ X2 2GB $190.2
HIS Radeon HD R9 270 ICEQ X2 2GB $230.7


=====
- i consider myself an average non-IT background notebook user.
- I have zero knowledge about PC and/or building one before googling about these stuffs for 10 or so days prior to posting now.
So cable management on bitfenix prodigy is also a concern. should i go with fractal define R3 instead...?

Also, feel free to suggest other motherboard as long as its H87...

 

[RoasterMen]

How about these?

Gigabyte H87-D3H: GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket 1150 - GA-H87-D3H (rev. 1.x)
Asus H87M-E: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/H87ME/
MSI H87-G41 PC Mate: MSI Global ? Motherboard - H87-G41 PC Mate

 

[rovopio]

how about the casing? do you think bitfenix can be made silent? or should i go with fractal define r3 instead?

also.. how abt the vga?