Upgrade + new build - thoughts?

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abhijitkalyane

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Aug 24, 2010
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I'm planning to upgrade my existing system and re-purposing the older components into a living room HTPC style system.
My existing build:
CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 435 (2.9 GHz) used at stock
Mobo: Asus M4A78LT-M LE (760G/SB710)
RAM: Hyundai 4GB (2x2GB) @ 1333MHz
GPU: Sapphire HD6950 1GB (Stock frequencies)
Cooler: Stock
PSU: Corsair GS600
Case: NZXT Gamma
HDD: Hitachi 1TB (@7200RPM) + Seagate 2TB (@7200RPM) - don't know exact model numbers.
OS: Win 7 Home Premium (retail)

New build:
CPU: Intel i5 3570K
(Planning to overclock CPU)
Mobo: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
RAM: G.Skill 16GB (2x8GB) @ 1600MHz (F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL)
GPU: Sapphire HD6950 1GB (reused from older build, stock frequencies, no plans to overclock)
Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo (please suggest if I should change to something better than this)Update: I'm considering Corsair Hydro H40 as well.
PSU: Corsair GS600
Case: Corsair Carbide 400R
SSD: Samsung 840 250GB
HDD: Seagate 2TB (@7200RPM)
OS: Win 7 Home Premium (retail) from the old build

Re-purposed HTPC build:
CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 435 (2.9GHz) used at stock
Mobo: Asus M4A78LT-M LE (760G/SB710)
RAM: Hyundai 4GB (2x2GB) @ 1333MHz
GPU: Forsa Geforce GT630 1GB DDR3 (low profile card)
Cooler: Stock
SSD: Kingston 64GB V200
HDD: Hitachi 1TB (@7200RPM)
ODD: LiteOn iHBS312 Blu-ray Burner
Case: Antec Minuet 350
PSU: 350W 80+ (Bronze) Included with case
OS: Linux (probably Ubuntu)

I use the PC mostly for gaming (@1920x1080) and some surfing, etc., I intend to use the new HTPC for media and light gaming. I already have an LCD screen, which I may or may not change. Even if I do, my gaming resolution should still remain 1920x1080.

I would like to get opinions on the builds in general and the choice of cooler for overclocking in particular.

Thanks!

P.S.: I have not linked any of the parts because I don't stay in the US. I'll probably end up buying most parts, if not all, from brick and mortar stores.
 
Solution
PlanarX999
If you want 16GB, then take it, no harm on any component whatsoever, Hyper 212 Evo enough to push to 4.5GHz Ivy Bridge, only with good fan, but Xigmatek Dark Knight II Night Hawk definitely better than Hyper 212 Evo.
CM V8 is a very good cooler, make difference if four fan installed, but will make it more bulkier and heavier for extreme 4 to handle, asrock not a very durable board, could be bend.
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PlanarX999

PlanarX999

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May 20, 2013
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Very well, just before i come to this thread, i made a very interesting build call midgard warrior, then I adjust and I call it The Dark Knight, most part feature in black.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($217.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek Dark Knight II SD1283 Night Hawk Edition 89.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($69.30 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($439.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1192.20
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-23 05:04 EDT-0400)

You can stay with your card if you want to, but your card won't last much longer.
16GB RAM is overkill for gaming, 8GB is ideal.
 
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abhijitkalyane

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Aug 24, 2010
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The similarity in the builds is amazing :)

Right now, this is all my budget permits :) I might upgrade later, probably next gen from AMD/nVidia, since I'm only a generation behind (I realize that this gen has seen huge improvements in performance).

I really have to go for this upgrade, since I don't see the point of upgrading any other component with poor old Athlon in the middle of it all, that would simply bottleneck everything else.

As for RAM, I agree that 16GB is overkill for a gaming machine, but there was an article in lifehacker or somewhere that said that more RAM can help SSD life. I'll try to dig up the article and post a link. Either way, more RAM never hurts right?

Also, do you think the CM 212 Evo CPU cooler will give me enough room to overclock?
Update: The Corsair Hydro H40 is available at a decent price. How does it fare against the 212 EVO?
 
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PlanarX999

PlanarX999

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May 20, 2013
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If you want 16GB, then take it, no harm on any component whatsoever, Hyper 212 Evo enough to push to 4.5GHz Ivy Bridge, only with good fan, but Xigmatek Dark Knight II Night Hawk definitely better than Hyper 212 Evo.
CM V8 is a very good cooler, make difference if four fan installed, but will make it more bulkier and heavier for extreme 4 to handle, asrock not a very durable board, could be bend.
 
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abhijitkalyane

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Aug 24, 2010
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Yeah, bendy mobos are the reason I'm a little skeptical to go for bulkier Coolers. How about Corsair Hydro H40? Does it fare any better than 212 EVO? It's available at a reasonable price.

Update: Not sure if Xigmatek will be available here, but will keep an eye out.
 
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PlanarX999

PlanarX999

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May 20, 2013
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Nothing good about that, even air cooler, dark knight II came close to Antec H2O 920 Extreme mode or H80i, pick xigmatek dark knight, not regret for its light weight and efficient cooling. One question, price of H40?
 
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PlanarX999

PlanarX999

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May 20, 2013
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Get the Evo then, i wish i can suggest something better like NZXT Havik 120 or 140 or even Zalman 10x Performa if you can get it cheap in your place. Antec H20 620 is water cooling kit and most recommend by me; two scythe typhoon fan push/pull configuration beat corsair H60 with same fan.
 
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