PC Build Advice/Review Thread

[Krandor]

If already have some decent fans lying around to swap out the base ones, some of the cheaper AIO coolers can work pretty well. I had a Gentle Typhoon on my back exhaust, and use that to push a Corsair H55, and it runs cool and quiet.

[Biggz]

[QUOTE=Jojimbo;5691178]What do you plan to use the SSD for? Unless you have a specific use that requires 512GB I would stick with 256GB, the 512GBs doesn't see the same speed increase that you see when going from 64 to 128 to 256 and are really expensive, would be better off either saving the money or using it for better components. I would also get a 7200rpm HDD over a Red, they are good drives but designed for use in a NAS. I don't see a GPU listed, what ones were you looking at? Oh and because noone exactly mentioned it, even if you did need an i7 you picked a SB-E 2011 socket CPU and an incompatible Z77 1155 socket MB. You can also get a Phantom 410 if you still like the looks, http://pcpartpicker.com/p/SWjE



The GPU i was looking at was ASUS GTX680-DC2-4GD5 GeForce GTX 680 4GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card. In regards to the SSD I'm able to get the 512 for around $400. The 256 isn't currently available for me to purchase at a discount. Don't really have a set budget but looking to stay under $2500.

[Jojimbo]

What monitor setup/games are you planning to play? 4GB 680 is a waste unless you planning to get at least two of them and three monitors, 2GB is enough for 1080p and if you are worried about vRAM then a HD 7970 has 3GB and can be faster at 1440p anyway. Of course there's always the Titan if your budget is really that high lol

EDIT:: Opps, got confused on who was saying what. If you are playing on a TV then just go with a 2GB 680, no point in paying extra for something that won't get used.

[Biggz]

The more replies I get the more happy I am I came here with questions. I'm obviously still clueless on how to build a good gaming rig. For a monitor i was going to use a 60" smart tv. The price difference between the 2gb and the 4gb on Newegg was like $40 so figured may as well get the 4gb. Maybe I should have just came here and said I have a $2500 budget and asked what to buy lol. Figured I would try to come in with at least some idea of what I wanted tho.

[Jojimbo]

More like $60 difference which is closer than what I thought, but even then the extra vRAM won't really help on a 1080p screen and a 7970 GHz edition is still cheaper and faster if you want the extra vRAM. Depending on how you have it set up you could always consider an mITX build, nice and small and out the way and you can even fit a Titan in it lol http://pcpartpicker.com/p/T3jQ, of course they are all pretty much sold out which sucks =/ But same build with a 7970 or 680 in it would work.

There are also rumors of a cut-down titan and maybe a refresh of some nVidia GPUs coming out in a month or so, but they are just rumors at this point.

[Gulkeeva]

Doesn't sound like rumors this time around for the Nvidia 700 series, although imma wait out for the 800 series myself.
http://www.fudzilla.com/home/item/31...-coming-in-may

also, if you plan to play games on a TV, a 670/680/7970 is good enough with 2GB Vram

Only reason you'd get dual card/titan is if your getting a new tv that can support 4K res (only about $5,000 for a 55 inch!)

I doubt you'd notice the difference in a 670/680/7970 playing at 1080p game at like 70-110fps and a titan running a 1080p game at 160-210fps, or you got some crazy eyesight imo (after some research 1080i60 which seems to be the 1080p standard for a tv is 29.97 fps max, so even those video cards can pretty much be overkill) Only a monitor could go higher FPS/quality/res/etc
Or randomly, you plan to play metro last light on max settings, then you may want to consider a titan

[Biggz]

Thanks for all the responses. Have a much better direction on what to get now. For games ill mostly be playing GW2 and FFXIV but will occasionally place some FPS like Planetside 2. Also looking forward to The Witcher 3.

[Gulkeeva]

Unsure about GW2 and witcher, but a 670/680/7970 is waaayyy... more then enough to do 30fps at 1080p, may want to look into something lower, unless like I said you plan to go 4K res tv (then go titan!) Or if you plan to go between tv/monitor I would go with any of those 3 video cards (they do FFXIV benchmark at 30-60fps at 2560x1440 also at maximum settings)

[Adajer]

I don't think Metro Last Light will be as taxing as 2033 was. 2033 wasn't terribly demanding, it was just poorly optimized for PC. The Devs said they are working on that this time around.

I am fairly sure that the 800 series will be a huge leap in performance, but I don't think I will wait another year + for it. I'll probably grab a 780, if it is reasonably priced, and sit on it for a while. It probably won't be. Might even get an 880 when those drop.

I would be good to buy what ever you need now though. Gov't looking to tax online retail purchases soon. That will put a halt to my online spending frequency.

[Kachiko]

IIRC my 3570k Hyper 212+ and 660 combo yielded temps below 50c at stock all the time. Would peak around 54c in most taxing games. My 670 pushed that up about 5c. I live in Chicago and that was around fall. Get some good airflow and you should be good. I cant say how much hotter you will get in 90f weather though.

Also, I know I suggested the C70 Case, but I hope you get something you like. This is the case that is going to be sitting on your desk for a while.

I've got great airflow: I've two double 9" window fans (windows closed so they just sit one stuff, in the room, when it's that hot), blowing air towards the door, and then another 20' floor fan, directing air out of the room. Which reminds me; I need to replace that floor fan as it's a pain to clean and pretty dusty now. =/

Also, I don't care too much about the case; it sits on the floor and does what it needs to do. The reason I thought the C70 was a preferable option was the three fans vs the 2 fans/dust collector on the other one you mentioned.

Corsair H50 won't be much better than budget air coolers either, the low end AIO units kinda suck and the high end ones are either on par with air cooling or slightly better, a lot louder and more expensive. Also that SSD is out of stock and afaik will never be restocked as it's an older SSD.

I replaced an H50 with a 212+ in my old system, before I gave it to a friend. The 212+ did a better job.

Main reason I see to use them is if your case/components can't fit a decent sized heatsink on the motherboard.

Hyper 212 it is then, and I believe the case I'm going to pick up can cover it. Oh, and thanks for pointing out that the 830 is out of stock. Looks like the Samsung840, for $249.99 is what I'll be getting, though it says laptop, Samsung's site says it works in both Desktop and Laptop, and I'm totally not used to that. o_Oa

All in all, it looks like it's going to be about $1200, which is 200 more then what I anticipated, but nothing I can't swing. Hopefully, I won't be doing this for another 3+ years or more. I'll keep an eye on the thread, just in case anyone has any further comments, and thanks again for the feedback.

[Jojimbo]

You can get it to $1000 by changing a few parts and buying some of them elsewhere, http://pcpartpicker.com/p/T8Fk would be about $1000 after taking into account the CPU+MB combo on newegg and you could save $50 by getting a good 7950 or $100 by getting the 7950 that's on offer if you wanted to, these come with more free games than nVidia cards do as well.

[Isiolia]

Looks like the Samsung840, for $249.99 is what I'll be getting, though it says laptop, Samsung's site says it works in both Desktop and Laptop, and I'm totally not used to that. o_Oa

Looks like that's just odd categorization by Newegg. The vast majority of SSDs are in the form factor of a 2.5" HDD, which is more typical for laptops than desktops - however, the SATA connections are the same either way. It's becoming fairly common for desktop cases to include a spot or two to mount an SSD, or possibly include drive rails that can fit either 2.5" or 3.5" drives. Barring that, you can use an adapter, though realistically, however it works to fit the drive in is fine.

Samsung has, in the past, had "for laptops" and "for desktops" retail packages for their SSDs (I think they do for the 840, but not the 840 Pro). In those cases, the drive is the same. The "for laptops" version is effectively a bare drive, versus the "for desktops" version that includes a cable/screws/3.5" adapter and so on for (usually) a few bucks more.

[Krandor]

A lot of cases are offering 2.5" slots nowadays (mine has 6 2.5 bays vs only 2 3.5), so most desktop kits like that aren't even needed anymore.

[Nitsuki]

Sorta wanna ask, and i can't really search the thread at work. Where can i find cheap 3.5" -> 2.5" bays for my case? I have an extra ssd that was given to me but my antec 900 only has 3.5" bays. I wanna use it just as cache memory.

[Isiolia]

This maybe - 'bout half the price of most of 'em.

Some brands just include them though, so it's possible other friends might have one sitting around.

[Nitsuki]

Funny enough, my samsung 830 ddn't bring one

[Adajer]

I got a Samsung 830 128gb. I didnt realize it came w/o a tray so I taped it to a HD tray and ordered this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817998077. It was a little bit more pricey than the rest, but it is made out of metal nd not plastic. And it can house 2 SSDs. If you want to be cheap, just tape it down.

Edit: Speaking of which, my 830 boots a lot slower now after about 6 months.

[Krandor]

^ Yeah realistically you can just stick an ssd wherever. I've seen people tape them behind motherboard trays and whatnot.

[izembo]

I got a Samsung 830 128gb. I didnt realize it came w/o a tray so I taped it to a HD tray and ordered this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817998077. It was a little bit more pricey than the rest, but it is made out of metal nd not plastic. And it can house 2 SSDs. If you want to be cheap, just tape it down.

Edit: Speaking of which, my 830 boots a lot slower now after about 6 months.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

$3.50 and metal

[Adajer]

Fits only one. I plan to get another SSD when ARR launches.

And mine looks cooler.