Help me cut costs. I'm at $997.57

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Ber_Z

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Sep 1, 2013
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I'd like to shave of a few bucks here and there, if possible. I'm pretty set on the CPU and the GPU. SSD, not so much, but I picked this one because it has the least reviews of people saying ZOMG MINE DIED AFTER 4 MONTHS.

Suggestions appreciated. I don't want to buy anything that doesn't have decent reviews.

(P.S., with the case I have, is there some way to add a camera SD card reader?)
(P.P.S., I will not be overclocking (obviously) so I assume the PSU is sufficient. it had decent reviews. Let me know if I am mistaken.)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H87M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($64.29 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($122.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($265.91 @ Newegg)
Wired Network Adapter: StarTech ST100S 10/100 Mbps PCI Network Adapter ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-L4S-10AB-GP 60.9 CFM 140mm Fan ($7.98 @ Outlet PC)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-L4S-10AB-GP 60.9 CFM 140mm Fan ($7.98 @ Outlet PC)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Plus 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($18.49 @ Amazon)
Total: $997.57
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-02 01:12 EDT-0400)
 
Solution
Novuake
Overall. This is what I would suggest.
You end up with a better SSD, much better RAM, better motherboard AND a better PSU.

You can save some more by getting a cheaper chassis, but that is just personal preference, so I won't be changing that.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-HD3 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($71.24 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Newegg)...
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Novuake

Novuake

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Aug 27, 2011
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Drop the network adapter and 2 chassis fans, both are unnecessary. The board has a LAN card and the case comes wiht fans already.

Change out the PSU to this one :
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1550sxxb9
Its cheaper and better, also provides more wattage.

You can save a lot on the SSD by getting this : http://pcpartpicker.com/part/ocz-internal-hard-drive-vtr125sat3128g
Its cheaper by a lot.

Here is a slightly better board as well.
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gab85mhd3
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Aug 27, 2011
14,308
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56,960
Overall. This is what I would suggest.
You end up with a better SSD, much better RAM, better motherboard AND a better PSU.

You can save some more by getting a cheaper chassis, but that is just personal preference, so I won't be changing that.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1yXZc/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-HD3 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($71.24 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($265.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($45.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($18.49 @ Amazon)
Total: $902.58
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-02 01:26 EDT-0400)
 
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Solution
B

Ber_Z

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Sep 1, 2013
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Thanks! I'm not sold on that mobo-- it has no reviews on Amazon. The SSD has 20x 1star reviews on newegg out of 69 total compared to 16 out of 300+, seems risky. I appreciate the tip about the adapter, and the case only comes with 2 fans but has slots for 5 so I wanted to ensure I am utilizing that... for $20 it seems worth it to have another front intake and a top exhaust.
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Aug 27, 2011
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Really no necessary for all those fans on your build, but that's up to you.

As for the SSD, you REALLY should not trust newegg reviews. The OCZ Vector actually uses higher quality and more reliable NAND flash and a much faster controller than the Samsung. So no added risk involved.
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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This man makes a good point! Epic deal on the PSU.
Not a big fan of Plextor, but hey, its not bad at all.
 
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B

Ber_Z

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Sep 1, 2013
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I'm all ears to suggestions, but if you can't trust the reviews, what can you trust?

Essentially how much wattage should I shoot for? The 750 seems somewhat overkill, though I could be wrong.
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Aug 27, 2011
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REAL reviews, not USER reviews.
Reviews from TRUSTED sources like Toms and Anand and many others.

As for wattage, 500w is more than enough, BUT, since that 750 is the same price as the 550 I suggested. Get it. :D
More wattage is never a bad thing, its all about price.
 
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B

Ber_Z

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I'm all in favor of that, if Toms and Anand have long-term ownership reviews based off of 6+ months or 1+ year of use. I may be looking in the wrong place for reviews if such as that exists apart from amazon and newegg.
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Yeah makes sense, get your scepitcism. Techreport is doing a longegivity test, keep an eye on them. :D
But the point is IN DEPTH reviews take a look at the quality of components used such as the flash and controller and general build qualirty,
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Jip, they buy and take their limited knowledge experience and rate it after like a day, rarely any longer.
And every product you buy has a chance of dying.
 
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Ber_Z

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Gotcha, thanks.

What then, do you think, could be AN explanation for a "superior" product receiving worse reviews and higher reported failure rates from an essentially randomized selection of end users?
 
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Novuake

Novuake

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Not so random at all... :D Its hard to explain.
 
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realchaos

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It's only 69 reviews, and remember that not everyone who buys the product writes a review. That being said, lets say there's two groups of people. Group A buys the OCZ Vector and is happy with it. Group B buys the OCZ Vector and it fails, so they are unhappy with the product.
Now who's more likely to write a review on Newegg? Group A to express their love, or Group B to express their anger?
Maybe like 10-30% of Group A will write a review, but all of Group B will write a one star review because it's the only way to express their hatred.
 
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Ber_Z

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Right you are.


My question is, what difference is there between the OCZ Vector and the Samsung that makes a greater percentage of unhappy OCZ Vector buyers write a review, as compared to the percentage of unhappy Samsung purchasers? Are OCZ Vector buyers simply more vocal than the Samsungers?

Essentially, I fail to understand what evidence presents itself that demonstrates that Unhappy Consumers of Product A will be more likely to respond than Unhappy Consumers of Product B, when for all intents and purposes, the products are very nearly similar except, of course, in build quality and longevity.

And it is a fairly commonly held thought that you can gain almost perfectly accurate survey results from even a 100 person selection.

Just some thoughts.
 
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