Have build. Cant decide on a Motherboard/GPU/OS.

skuch

Honorable
Nov 3, 2012
71
0
10,630
I'm building my first build. i have most of this list bought. but i can not decide on a motherboard, GPU (thinking 7850 or 7950), or which version of windows 8 (dont know what OEM means). any help would be appreciated.

The motherboard i would like to keep under 150$.
The OS i would prefer Windows 8. just dont know what version.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.60 @ Newegg)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Case: NZXT Source 210 Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: CoolMax 700W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($24.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $426.53
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-20 00:25 EDT-0400)
 
Solution


Well wherever you saw that OEM is for upgrading only, that article is wrong. OEM can be used for a fresh install too. Anyways it all depends on your choice for the interface of windows. Windows 8 does start up faster, although if you're used to windows xp like me, it does get a bit annoying. Hoped this helped.
If you are only ever going to use one graphics card then the Asus M5A97 R2.0 is a great board and costs less than $100 .
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-motherboard-m5a97r20
Most people will never need more than a single graphics card anyway so it seems illogical to pay for a more expensive board just to include the possibility you might someday want to SLI or crossfire . And usually by the time you do its cheaper to buy a newer generation of graphics card that performs better anyway .

You definitely dont need Win 8 pro . Its no faster but has a few additions that are useless to a home user . Buy Win 8 64 bit oem . [actually there is no such product but many stores label it this way ]

If you dont have the coolmax psu already then dont buy it . They are not exactly renowned for the high quality of their psu's

A radeon 7950 or nVidia GTX 760 . The gigabye windforce models are quiet running and cool
 

RazerZ

Judicious
Ambassador
This build has a great cost to performance ratio. I was looking at your build and changed the parts that were either low quality ( Cool Max PSU ), or replaced parts that have the same specs for a cheaper price.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 EXTREME4 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case ($21.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $653.91
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-20 01:12 EDT-0400)
 

skuch

Honorable
Nov 3, 2012
71
0
10,630
Okay so the Asus M5A97 R2.0, Gigabyte 990fx UD3, or the asrock 970 extreme4* I will most likely only have 1 GPU. I might OC a little on the CPU. I just worry about buying a cheap quality board and it breaking.
 

RazerZ

Judicious
Ambassador


The AsRock extreme4 is well known as being a quality board for overclocking, so you don't need to worry about it breaking.
 

skuch

Honorable
Nov 3, 2012
71
0
10,630
ill have to do research to finalize my pick between win 7 or 8. but will OEM versions work on a bare drive? i do not have an older version of windows at all. i believe i saw somewhere that OEM is only for upgrading. and thanks razerz you helped my pick my motherboard :)
 
Oem versions are identical to retail versions . Only the license is different . OEM till win 7 can be installed on ojne computer and never transferred to a new computer . Retail can be shifted to a new computer once its uninstalled from the first

Now the good news . There is no such thing as Win 8 oem [ despite the way some websites sell it ] . The license is now a " home user license" and you can shift it to a new build with a total of three installations .


GET Win8 64 bit
Its easy to customize to behave like 7 with a free program called classic shell
 
PS I have the Asrock extreme4 . Its a decent budget board especially considering it has a 990X chip set in it [ and not the 970 as the name suggests] .

But still if you are going to use only one graphics card then I would use the ASUS M5A97 R2.0 . It has better heatsinks on the VRM's , better voltage control , is generally a higher quality and runs cooler
 

RazerZ

Judicious
Ambassador


Well wherever you saw that OEM is for upgrading only, that article is wrong. OEM can be used for a fresh install too. Anyways it all depends on your choice for the interface of windows. Windows 8 does start up faster, although if you're used to windows xp like me, it does get a bit annoying. Hoped this helped.
 
Solution