PC Build Advice/Review Thread

[Caiyuo]

Might seem like kind of a weird question, but I'm trying to put together a budget build and waffling between an i3 and a better graphics card or an i5 and something dirt cheap. What kind of applications can I expect noticeable weakness in with an i3? Should it not be a concern if I'm not doing a lot of video encoding?

[Treble]

Potentially stupid question, but after reading the overview site for the P8Z77-V mobo...
http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Int...Z77V/#overview

This WiFi Go system, is that a wireless card already built in or something? Could I use it to connect to the internet through my router or is it just for remote control with wireless devices?

[Isiolia]

Might seem like kind of a weird question, but I'm trying to put together a budget build and waffling between an i3 and a better graphics card or an i5 and something dirt cheap. What kind of applications can I expect noticeable weakness in with an i3? Should it not be a concern if I'm not doing a lot of video encoding?

Outside of a couple low-power exceptions, desktop i5s are true quad core CPUs, whereas i3s are dual core with hyperthreading (in laptops both i3s and i5s are dual core). I would say in general that it'd depend on how much the particular application is taking advantage of multiple cores. If you're talking games, I'd expect more to be taking advantage of more than two cores as time goes on, given how common CPUs with four (or effectively four) cores are now.

The "video encoding" rationale rings a lot more true with >4 cores (or hyperthreading on four cores a la i7).

Anyway, while it doesn't include an i3, this article may prove interesting if you're building a gaming rig.

This WiFi Go system, is that a wireless card already built in or something? Could I use it to connect to the internet through my router or is it just for remote control with wireless devices?

It's built-in WiFi plus DLNA software.

[Treble]

It's built-in WiFi plus DLNA software.

Neat. Something I can use should it be unfeasible to thread a line through the whole house. Thanks!

[Stromgarde]

Looking to upgrade my boot disk to an SSD, ~300GB flavor. Was planning on going with this, but wanted to get a second opinion or two before pulling the trigger. Thoughts?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820147135

[Weeks]

Samsung 830 is the go-to recommendation for any situation where power efficiency isn't the overriding concern.

[Isiolia]

Looking to upgrade my boot disk to an SSD, ~300GB flavor. Was planning on going with this, but wanted to get a second opinion or two before pulling the trigger. Thoughts?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820147135

I put one of those in a friend's build (that I spec'ed out) about a week ago. Quite nice.

[Caiyuo]

What are the upgrade kits that you can buy them with for btw?

Outside of a couple low-power exceptions, desktop i5s are true quad core CPUs, whereas i3s are dual core with hyperthreading (in laptops both i3s and i5s are dual core). I would say in general that it'd depend on how much the particular application is taking advantage of multiple cores. If you're talking games, I'd expect more to be taking advantage of more than two cores as time goes on, given how common CPUs with four (or effectively four) cores are now.

The "video encoding" rationale rings a lot more true with >4 cores (or hyperthreading on four cores a la i7).

Anyway, while it doesn't include an i3, this article may prove interesting if you're building a gaming rig.

Thanks, that gives me more to think about. So hard to settle on what to spend for a new computer lol

[Nitsuki]

So i dono if this is the proper topic to ask this, i'm on my phone tho, but i'm getting really mad right now. One of the main reason's i upgraded to my i5, was cuz my 1080p mkvs were stuttering on my main display and my big screen as well (720p on big screen). My vids still stutter on my big screen only, not the main one, so i'm assuming that the codecs are all bad. I got the k-lite codec pack but i really want to know what the proper codecs are that i need so i can run the 1080p vids without stuttering on the second display (big screen), especially hi10p stuff.

[Jojimbo]

How long ago did you install them and what media player are you using? Could try uninstalling them and using CCCP + MPC that comes bundled with it.

[Nitsuki]

I use the mpc that was bundled w/ the k-lite, i think i may uninstall it and use cccp, but it was reinstalled like a week ago when i finished reinstalling windows. I use to use vlc and vlc was too glitchy but the vids never stuttered, they only stutter w/ mpc which bugs me cuz i like it.

[Isiolia]

What are the upgrade kits that you can buy them with for btw?

The Samsung 830s? There are two levels of retail packaging - a barebones kit with just the drive and a CD with some tools on it (here), or the whole "upgrade kit" like the one linked to that has cables/screws/5.25" adapter, and a copy of Norton Ghost. Things you might want or need if installing the drive as an upgrade in a desktop - older case without an SSD mounting location, duplicate your existing drive to it, etc.

Usually the basic/"laptop" kit is about $20 cheaper, but for some reason Newegg is listing it for more at the moment, most likely due to auto-adjustment (it was under $200 when my friend bought it a couple weeks ago).

[Caiyuo]

Neat! Thanks for that.

[Caiyuo]

I use the mpc that was bundled w/ the k-lite, i think i may uninstall it and use cccp, but it was reinstalled like a week ago when i finished reinstalling windows. I use to use vlc and vlc was too glitchy but the vids never stuttered, they only stutter w/ mpc which bugs me cuz i like it.

The stuttering sounds weird for just changing monitors, but uninstall k-lite and go with cccp as Jojimbo said. Plenty of guides around for that and troubleshooting between different anime fansub groups, too.

[SubzeroDiabolos]

It's time I build a new PC. I been wanting for a while to upgrade GPU but I never did, and now i'm saying fuck it and it's overdue.

My current build:

Spoiler: show

Processor: AMD phenom II x4 3GHz
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-MA785G-UD3H
GPU: Radeon HD 5850
4 GIG ram

What I'm currently looking into:

Spoiler: show

Case
Mobo
CPU
Memory
HDD

A review that i've seen alot about CPU is that it needs an higher end heatsink and fan than what it comes with.
As for the power supply, I know my 500w medium range won't handle it so i'm going to need a new one. I'm open to suggestions as I know fuck all about PSU. I run 2 monitors the computer and the casing's fans.

Another thing i've read on but not sure what to do with it is that for the GPU, alot of them are tagged as PCI.e 3.0 16x. My motherboard is only 2.0. Is this significant?

The GPUs I was looking into are RADEON HD 7950 but the bad reviews are telling me it's not a good purchase.

The other is GeForce GTX 570 but I have no knowledge of that brand, and I don't know how it compares to the radeon series. If anyone would be as kind as to tell me on a 10 scale how much of an upgrade it is to a radeon 5850, that'd be nice. I paid about the same amount (350$) for my card, years ago. I'm not going to pay that again if it's only a slight upgrade.

All in all that's about it. I'm planning on recording with fraps, so hopefully it'll allow me to game at max settings and record at the same time.

Thanks for anyone who reads this and helps me decide cheers.

[Adajer]

As a note to everyone microcenter is selling i5 3570k's FOR $189 AND i7 3770k's for $289 and $50 off select z77 motherboards when purchased with either of said cpus.

@subzero I would go to microceneter and go i5 unless you are set on amd.
You are trying to buy a triple channel kit of ram, both amd and intel current gen mobos run dual channel. I would also go for 1600mhz speed ram.
Case is based on your own preference so i wont go there.
500w is enough to power any system. newer gpus and ivy bridge cpus are very low wattage.
HDD - if you really want to spend $215 on a hard drive. meh. there are lots of SSDs priced at or below 1gb/$.
GPU- do not buy anything from any older generation with a $350 budget. go either 7950 or 660ti. for around $400 you can get a 670. Almost everyone recommends evga nvidia cards but I dont. I would not buy any card with a reference/1 fan blower cooler. they typically run hotter and achieve lower clock rates than MSI, Asus, and gigabyte cards (and sapphire for amd) with 2/3 fan cooling solutions. Some might argue that evga's support is better. But if they sent you a functional product you shouldnt need the support in the first place. Thats my opinion anyway

[RKenshin]

@Subzero: Intel is the superior choice right now, for just about anything you plan to do (particularly graphic related).

The best [realistically priced] option of which is the i5 3570k:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16819116504

And yeah, you typically should use something other than the stock fan. So long as you don't plan to overclock, you really don't need anything too serious, but it's still best to have something other than the stock fan. Example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=3938566&SID=


As for memory, I'd opt for a 2-pair or 4-pair of ram; never heard good things about 3-sticks. You'd probably be pretty safe with one or two pairs of these:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16820147096

As far as your storage drive, if your budget is $200 I'd recommend a SSD+HDD combination over just a single high-RPM HDD. Something like these two, with the SSD being the boot drive + some games, and the HDD for everything else:
http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-In...rds=crucial+m4
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036Q7MV0/?tag=pcpapi-20

GTX is a very solid, high-preforming graphics card. The 570 in particular does very well, and probably is the best bang for your buck right now.

PCI slots are backward/forward compatible. Of course though, if you do choose Intel you'd need an Intel MB... something like the following (disclaimer: my MB knowledge is lacking):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131837

I think that you should be OK with a 500W power supply with the assumed setup, so long as you're not planning to SLI or RAID. But I'd double check on a PSU calculator site.

All of the above are just examples though, don't have to follow the parts I linked above as if written in stone. Just there to give you a general idea.

EDIT: Ahhh Adajer, beat me to it... pretty much on the same page as him though!

[SubzeroDiabolos]

Mixed signals on the GPU :/

Anyway, revisited build (AMD route is a personnal preference)

Clicky.

The HDD is alot smaller, but for now it'll do. I'll add another one later on as RKenshin suggested.

[Jojimbo]

Can't view that page, try using pcpartpicker.com instead (it can find the cheapest stores for the item in your country, use the drop down in top right).

EDIT:: http://pcpartpicker.com/ca/p/gFIp

As said above, Intel is the way to go unless on a very tight budget or something. The cooler listed can get a 3570k to 4.4Ghz maybe 4.5 which is a pretty decent OC. To get 4.6-4.8GHz you need big air coolers like NH-D14 or Phanteks PH-TC14PE.

MB is pretty good for it's price, can support SLI/CF and a decent OC (might want to get this if you get one of the big air coolers)

Make sure your memory modules are multiples of the ram channels your mb/cpu have, pretty much all modern boards are dual channel (so 2 or 4 sticks work best), SB-E on X79 MBs is quad channel (4, 8 etc) and the old X58 boards were triple (3, 6 etc). Using incorrect number causes it to run in single channel mode which will be slower. RAM in that build is almost the best you can get period, and especially so for the price. It can OC to 2133MHz at 1.5v with good timings as well.

SSDs are pretty nice in any build that's going be used for every day purposes, Samsung 830, Crucial M4 and Intel 520(?) are good reliable brands, Intel > Samsung > Crucial in terms on reliability although most don't go intel as they are slower and more expensive. 128GB can fit OS + programs + a game or two. Went with WD Black as they current make some of the best HDDs.

HD 7950 is best bang for buck card you can get for a high end build atm, needs to be OCed to reach it's full potential but can out perform a GTX 670. Picked that card because it was cheap and had an aftermarket cooler, the Sapphire OC cards are pretty good as well.

750W PSU, should allow for CF 7950s if you want a future upgrade. Corsair is pretty high quality and they HX series is 80+ Silver and fully modular. You could get a cheaper 550-600W if you plan to stick with a single card.

Case, just something I picked out, looks kinda similar to one you picked I guess but is better. Has a more features and cable routing options for same price (cable routing and rear cutout can make a huge different to usability)

[Adajer]

I really dont advise going with any non current gen gpu. 660 ti is almost twice as powerful as the 570, uses 2/5 of the power or less, and runs cooler. I'm not sure if the older cards have adaptive vsync capabilities or not. oh yeah i really forgot to point out all gtx 660 ti's, 670,s and 680s come with a free copy of borderlands 2. cant beat that with a vegetable.