New build

[mjf]

NEW i5 PC Build to upgrade 2nd PC

Motherboard AsRock H97M-Pro4
PSU Antec Antec Neo Eco 80+ Bronze 620W
CPU Intel i5 4590
CPU Cooler CoolerMaster Hyper D92
Thermal Paste Artic Silver 3.5gm
RAM GSkill Ripjaw-X 1600 16GB Kit
SSD Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB
HDD 1 WD Blue 1TB
HDD 2 WD Blue 1TB
Case Corsair CC400R
Speakers Logitech

I have the OS, GPU, monitor etc. The GPU is a GTX750. The user does a bit of gaming.

Does anything stand out as a bad choice? I'm not really happy using the Intel stock cooler. The case was the most uncertain choice.

 

[AddRAM]

The motherboard and the PSU.

How much do you want to spend for a motherboard ?

I`d upgrade the card to a 960.

EVGA - Products - EVGA GeForce GTX 960 4GB SuperSC ACX 2.0+ - 04G-P4-3966-KR

 

[linnemeyerhere]

Overall looks to be a nice solid build. I have zero experience with the WD blue's, I've settled in on Seagate Baracuuda 2TB drives as my basic storage drives and 3 and 4 tb versions for high capacity storage. For speedy basic storage a WD black. We are right around the corner from really cheap ssd storage so if it was me I would suggest 2-3 tb and opt for something with 7000+ rpm and 64gb cache.....but that's just me.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

I don't know anything about the case. Overall, the components look OK. Following are just comments.

That's quite a low power GPU; 55 watts TDP if I read the specs right at Geforce.com.

If it is nonetheless adequate for the games that the user wants to play, I'd think that you may be able to do a a bit better on the power supply. Maybe something in the 400 to 550 watt area with a higher 80+ rating, perhaps modular and higher efficiency for similar money. I don't think that Antec is modular? Is noise a factor for this user?

Perhaps the Seasonic G series. Or the highly efficient Coolermaster V450/V550/V550S:

Cooler Master V550S with 3D Circuit Design Review | techPowerUp


Here's a review of the cooler:

Coolermaster Sound Level Measurements: Which Heatsink is Quietest? - Hyper D92 FrostyTech Review

I guess it ships with two 92 mm fans. Normally, I'd try to find something with a single 120 mm fan. The Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO has been the go-to inexpensive cooler for the last few years. It might save you a few bucks, but I don't know how it compares to the D92 re heat and noise.

Samsung personally makes me a bit antsy due to continued bad reports about customer service and RMA if that should ever become a factor. No issues with performance on the 850, though.

I'd generally agree with the WD Blues if you don't need 2 TB or larger drives. Not likely you'd notice the difference from Blacks for storage purposes. I think the difference is mostly in warranty.

 

[Mellon Head]

I've used WD blue drives for a while, and they perform quite well. I have no qualms about buying them at all.

They do have a shorter warranty than the black series though.

 

[mjf]

The motherboard and the PSU.

Thanks everyone for the response. I'm a bit restricted by the local supplier.

@AddRAM can you give more details.
I thought this PSU was built by Seasonic for Antec and is an 80+ bronze.
As to the motherboard. I know this is a "basic" motherboard but it appears to have all the features I seem to need and again it's the "poorer cousin" from Asus and I don't want to overclock.
The user (my son) may upgrade his GPU at some stage at his expense! A PC for his studies is more important than his gaming stuff. I want a PSU that could deal with a GPU upgrade but only one.

@ ignatzatsonic
I wanted a Cooler Master 212 EVO or 212x cooler but the local supplier isn't selling it anymore.

In terms of noise. I do want a reasonably quiet system. When the CPU is going flat out I'd expect increased CPU fan cooler noise.

I appreciate the comments. Bad choice comments are really appreciated.

 

[mjf]

A possible mod to the build:
Motherboard: Asus H97-pro
PSU: Antec HCG Modular 520M

This ups the price a bit. Is it worth it?

 

[ThrashZone]

Case is an interesting choice,
Do you really need 4 slots on the front top ?

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Antec High Current Gamer HCG-520M 520W Power Supply Review - Legit ReviewsAntec HCG-520M Review

Above is a test of the new PSU. Looks complimentary, but not ecstatic.

Both it and the old one are Seasonic-manufactured.

Traductor de Google

Above MAY be a review of the old PSU.

I haven't read the reviews; you may not gain anything but modularity?

The motherboards have the same chipset; one is ATX, one is micro ATX. Do you need ATX for any reason or any feature found on the higher priced board that is not on the lower priced board?

Normally, I wouldn't think full ATX is needed for a mid-level gaming/all-purpose system, but I'd defer to any reviews you can find that refer to build quality. One may have inferior build quality compared to the other. ATX boards generally sell for considerably more money than micro ATX boards of the same quality, so I wouldn't assume full ATX is a step up for most users.

I'm on ATX and thinking of going micro for my next build. It seems difficult to spend over say 160 for a micro board, yet there are plenty of full ATX boards well beyond 200 and even 300. My suspicion is that the profit margin on full ATX is much higher and that full ATX boards are more subject to marketing drivel, glitz, and hype to justify the elevated price.

Does your vendor have a web site or menu of components?

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I would look for a MOBO that doesn't waste two slots on PCI unless you have some older PCI cards you can't replace. Pretty much everything now is PCI-e.

A single 2TB Black wouldn't cost much more than two 1 TB Blues plus you would get a five year warranty instead of the two year warranty on the Blues. A single HDD is simpler to backup than two HDDs. Two 2TB Greens aren't very expensive and will work well for backups (they are what I use).

 

[mjf]

I would look for a MOBO that doesn't waste two slots on PCI unless you have some older PCI cards you can't replace.

I agree LF but many motherboards seem to continue this trend and I don't know why.
I'm moving back a bit to my original specs.....maybe. I have to make a decision sooner or later and use one of my 2 remaining W7 licenses.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I would look for a MOBO that doesn't waste two slots on PCI unless you have some older PCI cards you can't replace.

I agree LF but many motherboards seem to continue this trend and I don't know why.
I'm moving back a bit to my original specs.....maybe. I have to make a decision sooner or later and use one of my 2 remaining W7 licenses.

They include the PCI slots since there are still people who have working PCI cards, especially sound cards and dial-up modems. Many of those old PCI sound cards were pretty good and can hold their own against the newer ones. However, there are plenty of good MOBOs in the same price range that will replace those PCI slots with PCI-e x1 slots (the old PCI was the bandwidth equivalent of PCI-e x1).

I know what you mean about remaining Win 7 licenses. I have two retail licenses—one Ultimate and one Home Premium—gathering dust.

 

[mjf]

Does your vendor have a web site or menu of components?

Sorry I didn't get back but have read and appreciate the comments. This is the supplier I typically use
MSY-The name you can trust-More than 17 yrs In IT industry-Nationalwide branches serve you & offer the best IT price everyday

I think the PSU options I have are good quality and modular isn't that important with a decent case to hide unwanted cables. As to the case I'm still unsure.
Mother board is pretty much between (Australian $):
- AsRock H97M-Pro4 - $109
- Asus H97-Pro - $158

Admittedly the AsRock is micro but seems to get really good reviews. I've used a basic AsRock before and it's still going strong.

 

[GeneO]

Overall looks to be a nice solid build. I have zero experience with the WD blue's, I've settled in on Seagate Baracuuda 2TB drives as my basic storage drives and 3 and 4 tb versions for high capacity storage. For speedy basic storage a WD black. We are right around the corner from really cheap ssd storage so if it was me I would suggest 2-3 tb and opt for something with 7000+ rpm and 64gb cache.....but that's just me.

Blues are great drives and have the same reliability as the WD blacks (have same specs on component lifetimes, even though the warranty period is different). The 1 TB blue are one platter and are pretty fast: 190 MB/s peak on the outer edge of the platter and 142 MB/s average. I have 3 of these running on my system now and several other on my families for quite some time with no issues and great performance.

Seagate pretty much suck in my book. Their data center enterprise class drive are all right, but hteir consumer drives have high failure rates in general.

Another good option are the HGST (Hitachi) drives. But they are more expensive than the WDC Blues and I don't think you buy much for that.

 

[GeneO]

The motherboard and the PSU.

Thanks everyone for the response. I'm a bit restricted by the local supplier.

@AddRAM can you give more details.
I thought this PSU was built by Seasonic for Antec and is an 80+ bronze.
As to the motherboard. I know this is a "basic" motherboard but it appears to have all the features I seem to need and again it's the "poorer cousin" from Asus and I don't want to overclock.
The user (my son) may upgrade his GPU at some stage at his expense! A PC for his studies is more important than his gaming stuff. I want a PSU that could deal with a GPU upgrade but only one.

@ ignatzatsonic
I wanted a Cooler Master 212 EVO or 212x cooler but the local supplier isn't selling it anymore.

In terms of noise. I do want a reasonably quiet system. When the CPU is going flat out I'd expect increased CPU fan cooler noise.

I appreciate the comments. Bad choice comments are really appreciated.

Well the 212 wouldn't do then IMO. It can cool fairly well at high loads, but that is because the fans run at high rpm and are noisy. You might look at Noctua solutions, but they are a bit pricey. What kind of loads are you expecting?

 

[GeneO]

Does your vendor have a web site or menu of components?

Sorry I didn't get back but have read and appreciate the comments. This is the supplier I typically use
MSY-The name you can trust-More than 17 yrs In IT industry-Nationalwide branches serve you & offer the best IT price everyday

I think the PSU options I have are good quality and modular isn't that important with a decent case to hide unwanted cables. As to the case I'm still unsure.
Mother board is pretty much between (Australian $):
- AsRock H97M-Pro4 - $109
- Asus H97-Pro - $158

Admittedly the AsRock is micro but seems to get really good reviews. I've used a basic AsRock before and it's still going strong.

Fractal design cases are a good bang for the buck.

If you are not going modular, pay careful attention to the depth of the backside of the case where you will route the cables. PSU cables are relatively stiff, especially for non-modular PSU, so it isn't easy to route the cables without ample space.

 

[mjf]

Thanks for the feedback Gene. The system won't let me give you a tick.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

Funny as all my hdd issues have always been with 2.5" WD and I like WD drives as well but I have to tell you I'm running about equal numbers of both WD, Hitachi and Seagate in 3.5" and I've had zero issues with any of them and it all boils down to purpose and cost. I believe we are literally just months away from seeing the hdd manufacturers shaken to their very core with the new ssd platforms cost to performance ratios and larger than 1-6 tb sizes.

 

[mjf]

My final build:
Mobo: Asus H97-PRO
CPU: i5 4590
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S
PSU: Corsair RM550
Case: Corsair 300R
DVD/Blu Ray combo: Pioneer BDC-207-DBK OEM
RAM: GSkill RipjawsX (1600) 2x8GB
SSD: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB
HDDs: WD Blue, 1TB, Seagate 1TB (old/existing)
GPU (old existing): GTX750

I consider it a good mid range general purpose/gaming PC. The graphics card can be upgraded but I'm not paying for it. At least that is what I tell my son who is the new owner.

 

[ThrashZone]

Nice build
Wire management could be better but a good starter system