First time pc builder

[paulstung]

Si I'm not sure if this is the right place for this,Im looking into building a mid range gaming pc.I am just in the early stages ov planning and this is my first attempt at any kind ov list,can somebody advise if this is ok or total crap.
MB/Asrock,278 extreme 3 gen 3 3.30mxz,6mb cach
P/i5 2500k unlocked
Rom/corsair vengeance 8gb 1600mxz
Graphics/Asus gtx 560ti diect 11 top 1gb
dvd drive/asusdrw-24 b3st sata 24x +-
HD/seagate baracuda 7200rpm 1tb sata
ssd/corsair 60g novo series 2 read 2700rpm write 2400rpm 128mb cache
PSU/xpf p1-850-nl b9 pro850w core edition
Case/unsure on this maybe as a treat the Thermaltake level 10 as it looks great but pricey.Please feel free to slate any ov my ideas as it is only a very early thought in my head,and it is my first attempt ov a self build.

 

[paulpicks21]

What's your budget for the build?

Looks ok, I would ditch the corsair Nova ssd, its an older generation one, I would go for a crucial M4 instead.

When are you looking to build? The new Ivybridge Intel CPU's are due to be released in the next couple of weeks (motherboards are already out Z77) so it might be worth waiting to see how good they are.

Paul.

 

[Andreas W]

Si I'm not sure if this is the right place for this,Im looking into building a mid range gaming pc.I am just in the early stages ov planning and this is my first attempt at any kind ov list,can somebody advise if this is ok or total crap.
MB/Asrock,278 extreme 3 gen 3 3.30mxz,6mb cach
P/i5 2500k unlocked
Rom/corsair vengeance 8gb 1600mxz
Graphics/Asus gtx 560ti diect 11 top 1gb
dvd drive/asusdrw-24 b3st sata 24x +-
HD/seagate baracuda 7200rpm 1tb sata
ssd/corsair 60g novo series 2 read 2700rpm write 2400rpm 128mb cache
PSU/xpf p1-850-nl b9 pro850w core edition
Case/unsure on this maybe as a treat the Thermaltake level 10 as it looks great but pricey.Please feel free to slate any ov my ideas as it is only a very early thought in my head,and it is my first attempt ov a self build.

I have read that intel's SSD have the lowest fail rates and live the longest out of the SSD that exists. And if your not planing on using SLI or Crossfire you can get a PSU with lower watt since that would be cheaper, and I would go with a modular since it just make it all much cleaner in the case, they cost more but imo it's worth it. And for chassi as long as it has an open backplate it helps a lot if your going to install a aftermarket cpu cooler, youtube have a ton of chassi reviews so you can check some of them out there.

As for PSU brand I would go with Corsair, using 1 and having no problems at all what I can see, and they are making individual sleeved cables now that you can buy that saves you a ton of time, and really adds to the look.

PSU Accessories - Power Supply Units

 

[whs]

Here is a superb SSD for little money: Newegg.com - Mushkin Enhanced Chronos MKNSSDCR60GB 2.5" 60GB SATA III Asynchronous MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

And Andreas is right, Intels are very robust but not cheap.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

If you go with a case with ample room behind the mobo and good wire pass through's with rubber grommets then you can save some money with a non-modular PSU but please go with a quality brand such as Corsair, Seasonic, Thermaltake, Coolermaster and I'm even hearing good things about discount brands such as Kingwin. I agree the Crucial M4 is excellent. I would look to any of the Corsair mid tower cases as a great compromise without giving much up if anything! Really like the 600, 500 and 400 series.

Corsair CC-9011011-WW Carbide Series 400R Mid Tower Gaming Case - ATX, mATX, 4x Ext 5.25 Bays, 6x Int 3.5 Bays, 2x 120mm White LED Fans, 1x 120mm Fan, 2x USB 3.0 and 1x FireWire Front Ports at TigerDirect

Corsair Special Edition White Graphite Series™ 600T Mid-Tower Case - ATX, Micro ATX, 4x Ext 5.25, 6x Int 3.5, 2x 200mm Fans, 1x 120mm Fan, 4x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0, 1x IEEE 1395 Front Ports, CC600TWM-WHT at TigerDirect

Corsair CC-9011012-WW Carbide Series 500R Mid Tower Gaming Case - ATX, mATX, 4x Ext 5.25 Bays, 6x Int 3.5 Bays, 1x 200mm and 2x 120mm White LED Fans, 1x 120mm Fan, 2x USB 3.0 and 1x FireWire Ports at TigerDirect

http://biz.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4256917&CatId=2535

 

[Wishmaster]

Some good cases to look into:
Newegg.com - Corsair Carbide Series 400R Graphite grey and black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Gaming Case

Newegg.com - Corsair Carbide Series 500R Black Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Really depends on budget, but these are IMO a good place to start.

I have the 600T and love it. Lots of room, and excellent cable management inside.
This will have a similar interior design.

The 600Ts will come in at around $159USD for Black, and $10 more for the white.


On the SSD, I know many want the faster SATA3 drives. But, I think something like a 80GB Intel 320series is a good drive for the OS.

If you are going to set up your main SSD for only the OS/apps, then a 64 or 80GB is all you need. I would recommend doing this too as there are many advantages.
For me, the biggest is that making backup Images is faster as well as fast complete restores.

The Intels do have a Rep for being the most dependable/reliable, but in the case of the 320series 80GB or 40Gb SSDS, they are also slower than the Crucial M4s for example. But, as a OS/app drive you will never notice the difference, save for a benchmark run.

Thats not to say the M4s are a bad choice. Excellent drives.
I just find I like the Intels better. I feel ... safer, more secure, and trust it more I guess you could say for the OS.. Just a opinion though.

My opinion is also a bit shaded as I got burned with OCZ drives in the past. Switched to Intel and never looked back. But, to be completely fair, those were also OCZs first Gen Vertex drives. Much has changed since.

 

[paulstung]

Thanks for the advice guys.To settle the first question about when I am going to be building it well it's not going to be for at least 3 months,I'm going to be buying everything bit by bit,and budget not sure yet to be honest,I'm saving still and as it is going to be bought bit by bit it doesn't really matter..I will look into ssd's a bit more that is one component,I haven,t really looked that much into.Case choice regarding the level 10 is a bit extremeand the corsair has constantly been mentioned here,and from other research,they do seem to be very easy to work with,with good toolless features,and nice cable management.I was on youtube for about 7 hours yesterday and I quite like the look ov the stormtrooper case,is this any good?Also I think I am going to go with my first choice ov boards with the Asus sabertooth,. I will definatley look into the ivybridge cpu,Ive herd it mentioned a few times .The power supply also another item that Hasn't been researched as yet,but one that keeps popping up is the gold series 80,not sure on full name but it is the one that uses 80% ov the total drawn power,to operate the rig.Cheers again guys,you have given me a lot more to think about /

 

[ignatzatsonic]

I wouldn't recommend buying parts "bit by bit" because if something you buy in April is defective, you may not know that it is defective until July when you actually start assembling the parts. Your supplier might not allow you to return something that is 3 months old. Stockpile your money and do your research and buy all at once when you actually intend to build it.

I think Ivy Bridge is socket 2011?? If so, you would need to buy a socket 2011 motherboard. So, you can't really decide on a motherboard until you have decided on a processor.

Regarding the PSU: a basic system with the 2500k, a few hard drives, 8 GB of RAM, an optical drive, a motherboard, and a monitor won't use over 150 watts, even when pushed hard. That same system with a 560ti will use less than 400 watts when pushed hard and under 300 most of the time. Unless you are planning on using 2 video cards, get a quality brand (Seasonic, XFX, Corsair) in the 500 to 600 watt range. Most PSU brands do NOT actually make the PSU--they are supplied by contract and made by any of a relatively few manufacturers. Many brands out there are junk. The 80% certification is desirable because it will save you a few dollars a year in electricity, but the certification is NOT a guarantee of high quality.

 

[pparks1]

The Intels do have a Rep for being the most dependable/reliable, but in the case of the 320series 80GB or 40Gb SSDS, they are also slower than the Crucial M4s for example. But, as a OS/app drive you will never notice the difference, save for a benchmark run.

The Intel drives never blow anybody away with their benchmarks (sequential read/sequential write), but they are great with random I/O which is what your computer does more than anything else. I own a couple of Intel SSD's and am very happy with them. And like you said, aside from a benchmark test, you will likely never see the difference.

I'm not a big fan of OCZ myself. Seems like they have had lots of problems in the past. And the controllers keep changing, for example, I think the OCZ vertex 4's have moved away from Sandforce and are using Indiilinx again.

 

[paulstung]

Thaks all for your replies.Ive been doing a lot more research and have decided to go with a z series motherboard ivy bridge ready,When are the actual cpu's due for release?

 

[linnemeyerhere]

I would settle in on your case and premium PSU first as these will outlast the CPU and mobo and some of the other parts many times over if purchased properly. I would suggest the premium Corsair cases as this was a learning curve for me as well as purchasing far to little a PSU for where this hobby was going to take me. I would suggest 800watts to 1000 watts and as mentioned you can save by going with non or semi modular design because you'll be able to hide all the unused cables if there are many behind the mobo. Then purchase the optical player and the cpu cooler, case fan upgrades including controller or other devices. Leaving the Mobo, CPU, Ram and SSD/HDD's for when they hit a sale or the last push as you've made your final choice.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

When are the actual cpu's due for release?

I think the first batch of Ivy Bridge processors will be released at the end of this month.

 

[pparks1]

I would settle in on your case and premium PSU first as these will outlast the CPU and mobo and some of the other parts many times over if purchased properly.

This depends upon the type of user and upgrader you are. I "always" leave my previous computer intact, and either give it to another family member in the house or dedicate it to another purpose. Therefore, every new computer for me involves a new case, new power supply, etc. There is no advantage whatsoever in buying ahead in this case. I instead would recommend getting what really fits the budget now and replacing it later if need be as needs and budget demand.

I would suggest 800watts to 1000 watts

I wouldn't suggest anywhere near 1,000 watts..unless you are going to run a pair of very beefy high end video cards. Otherwise you won't ever need it. Most SLI setups run just fine on 750-850 watts. Save money on going overboard with a power supply. Instead, spend your money on a QUALITY power supply. I'd rather have higher quality than higher wattage.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

The advice above keeps case manufactures and power supply makers very happy. But everyone is entitled to his or her opinion. It is my opinion that with future needs unknown, the extra spent now to not have to purchase a new PSU later is in fact smart money. This coupled with the added protection of the 2-5% output loss that the average power supply losses annually, this buys you future proofing. But if cooking your mobo or GPU is your bag with a PSU that starves it's components of power, runs hot and is loud then be my guest, it keeps the manufacturers very happy. Regarding the case that's a pure subjective, if you trade your car in every two years to get the new spoiler or wheel package then maybe investing in a quality case isn't for you. But if you can live with its design for the long haul then purchasing more case of higher quality will as well pay off in the long run. Hey but what ever choice you make will be the right one for you at that moment. If in time some of the wisdom from us comes to bare then that's great.

 

[pparks1]

But everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

Absolutely, and I wasn't saying your advice was bad. We just have a different outlook on the subject.

It is my opinion that with future needs unknown, the extra spent now to not have to purchase a new PSU later is in fact smart money. This coupled with the added protection of the 2-5% output loss that the average power supply losses annually, this buys you future proofing. But if cooking your mobo or GPU is your bag with a PSU that starves it's components of power, runs hot and is loud then be my guest, it keeps the manufacturers very happy.

But if you are somebody like me and won't actually put more hardware into this same machine, having the extra power in a power supply may never get taken advantage of. Regardless of what I build today, I will replace the whole thing and leave todays machine functional. So, if I were to overbuild to "futureproof", it would most likely just be a waste of money...as I most assuredly would buy again. Not to mention, there is the present value/future value of money consideration. In this case, 3-4 years down the road, technology will change, things will improve and prices will drop. Why spend even more for what's "state of the art today", when I can save money today and see what my options are 3-4 years from now when the landscape changes.

And while I am here; I absolutely HATE the term futureproofing. Spending more today, in no way guarantees your computer will be more relevant in the future. Back in the day, I bought a Q9550 quad core CPU, while the QX9750's existed for nearly 3x the price....now..3 years later....both CPU's are slow compared to anything available today. I would be more or less just as outdated today with either CPU.

I'm not concerned one bit about cooking my mobo or having my power supply running hot and loud. I have a nearly 3 year old computer running a Corsiar HX620 and it's solid as a rock. Was a great purchase 3 years ago, and is still way more power than my PC needs, even after putting in my 580 GTX GPU to replace my aging Nvidia 9800GTX+.

Regarding the case that's a pure subjective, if you trade your car in every two years to get the new spoiler or wheel package then maybe investing in a quality case isn't for you. But if you can live with its design for the long haul then purchasing more case of higher quality will as well pay off in the long run.

I do appreciate a nice case. I run an Antec P182 case myself and am happy with it (although it is a big too big in retrospect). But in a year or so, when I build a new computer to replace my current rig, I don't want to scrap the current rig. It's still a great machine and would make a great desktop for my wife, my kids or a new Linux workstation. So, I will leave it exactly as is, and will buy myself an all new machine from the ground up. My previous desktop was built in a lovely Antec Sonata II case and is currently my Linux box. And my previous Linux box, was also in a lovely Antec Sonata II case and is currently my home file server. I do build for the long haul, in fact they stay nearly the same for their entire lifespan...except maybe for a harddrive and/or video card.

 

[Wishmaster]

In regards to power supllies I also agree go with a quality brand. Its the heart of everything, dont skimp here. but at the same time, do not go overboard either. Corsair, Seasonic, Antec are some good choices.

And you do not need a huge wattage one. As already mentioned, a good quality 650 will be more than enough power for any single GPU system you build, with plenty of power to spare. And it will be capable of powering some lower end multi GPU systems.

A quality 750 will run most higher end dual GPUs.

In many cases, depending on your build a 550 or so will be more than enough.

Theres only 2 reasons you need a 1000W PSU.
1) You want to run 3 high end/high power draw GPUs. I/e Triple SLi GTX 580s.
2) The PSU is a off brand and needs the higher wattage to try and keep up with the name brand 550-650 watters

Ive had Corsairs in the past and been happy with them. Built a few machines with Antecs and no issues there either.
But my personal favorite has to be the Seasonics. Seriously a quality PSU there, and a joy to build with. I'll certainly stick with them in the future.

I went with the Seasonic X750, not because I needed that much power currently, but because I wanted a option for SLI in the future.

--That being said from what Ive seen the newer Corsair AX series PSUs are basically a Seasonic X series with some minor changes/improvements and a Corsair badge on it. If so, those should be pretty excellent as well.

 

[Andreas W]

In regards to power supllies I also agree go with a quality brand. Its the heart of everything, dont skimp here. but at the same time, do not go overboard either. Corsair, Seasonic, Antec are some good choices.

And you do not need a huge wattage one. As already mentioned, a good quality 650 will be more than enough power for any single GPU system you build, with plenty of power to spare. And it will be capable of powering some lower end multi GPU systems.

A quality 750 will run most higher end dual GPUs.

In many cases, depending on your build a 550 or so will be more than enough.

Theres only 2 reasons you need a 1000W PSU.
1) You want to run 3 high end/high power draw GPUs. I/e Triple SLi GTX 580s.
2) The PSU is a off brand and needs the higher wattage to try and keep up with the name brand 550-650 watters

Ive had Corsairs in the past and been happy with them. Built a few machines with Antecs and no issues there either.
But my personal favorite has to be the Seasonics. Seriously a quality PSU there, and a joy to build with. I'll certainly stick with them in the future.

I went with the Seasonic X750, not because I needed that much power currently, but because I wanted a option for SLI in the future.

--That being said from what Ive seen the newer Corsair AX series PSUs are basically a Seasonic X series with some minor changes/improvements and a Corsair badge on it. If so, those should be pretty excellent as well.

I would personally go with a corsair but that is mainly because I have 1 already and no issue with it at all even after 4 years of usage and if something works I stick wit h the same brand. And I just love what corsair have started selling now and that is the full sleeved kit they sell now for most of their PSU saving a huge ammount of time if your into that kind of things and some of the sleeved extensions out there cost quite a bit also.

 

[Britton30]

In three months there will be many new and different hardware out. Settling on most anything now won't help when you buy, other than a power supply, They rarely change too much.
In three months Ivy Bridge will have had several tests done and there will be a slew of new boards to run them. Intel has yet to bring out their complete new chip set line too.

Many fast changes happen in the graphics side of thing too, a nVIDIA 680 may be so-so in three months and there could even be DDR4 DRAM out.

 

[essenbe]

In three months there will be many new and different hardware out. Settling on most anything now won't help when you buy, other than a power supply, They rarely change too much.
In three months Ivy Bridge will have had several tests done and there will be a slew of new boards to run them. Intel has yet to bring out their complete new chip set line too.

Many fast changes happen in the graphics side of thing too, a nVIDIA 680 may be so-so in three months and there could even be DDR4 DRAM out.

I agree with all of that. If you buy the newest CPU, motherboard or graphics card today, it will be second generation in 6 months. I think it just depends on where you are. Some people are extreme enthusiasts and end up rebuilding every 6 months or so. Most people buy a computer and use it until their needs outgrow the computer's capability or the parts wear out. At that point you can decide whether to upgrade or rebuild. Unless you are an extreme enthusiast, just buy the components that you figure will meet your needs for the next few years. It really does not matter if it is the latest and greatest technology. Even if it is, it will be outdated in 6 months.