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My build's a tad expensive - where would you cut down?

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  • Gaming
  • Computers
  • Build
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April 8, 2014 6:46:21 AM

So, I'm about to start building my new system, and after a long research I've come up with the parts I'd like to have. But running the number, I figured that I stretched my budget a little too much.

The use of the computer is intended for gaming, streaming while gaming, photoshop editing, and some rendering, but not too much. The main expectation I have from my computer is to deal as well as possible with new computer games, considering the budget restrictions.

I will not be overclocking my computer.

The system I'm considring at this moment:

CPU: Intel i-7 4770 (3.4 gb, 1150s, haswell, not the K version) [423$]
CPU fan: Scythe Ashura SCASR-1000 [53$]
MB: ASUS H87-Pro [163$]
RAM: G.skill 2x8gb Ripjaws-X (1600, CL9-9-9) [214$]
GPU: Sapphire R9 280 (3gb, dualboost) [420$]
HDD: WD 2TB Caviar black [217$]
SSD: Samsung 840EVO 120gb [134$]
PSU: SeaSonic 620W (80+ Bronze Active PFC 12cm) [107$]
Case: CoolerMaster HAF 912 (mid ATX) [113$]
and a DVD RW as well. [33$]

The budget: This build costs in my country the equivilent of 1880 USD. I would like to buy a machine costing around 1720 USD. This means I need to cut 160 UDS (~115 Euros) from this build. I don't HAVE to get to my target price, but I figure I could get at least a bit closer.

So, masters of computer building, your tips and advises would be appreciated much. Is there any part that is an overkill compared to the rest of the machine? In general, do you find this build stable, or did I do a lousy job?

Obviously any ideas about changing a component to a more desirable one, even within the same price range, would be awesome!


Thanks!

More about : build tad expensive cut

a b 4 Gaming
April 8, 2014 6:50:52 AM

get a i5 (k), lower to 8gb ram total, get a z87 board.
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April 8, 2014 6:53:14 AM

You can shave ~$20 with a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO cooler, & ~$65 with a Gigabyte GA-Z87-HD3 mobo
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April 8, 2014 6:55:17 AM

Also I would agree, get an i5 if it's just mainly for gaming & little editing
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April 8, 2014 7:28:47 AM

Won't downgrading to i-5 limit my ability to upgrade in the future?
Difference between Z87 and H87 is solely that Z87 allows overclock, isn't it? I am not planning on overclocking my machine, do you still find the Z87 board favorable? Same goes with the (k) of the processor. If not overclocking, do you still think I should take the (k) version?

beyond that, do you find this a well made build? do you find any of the components overpriced?
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April 8, 2014 7:35:51 AM

You won't gain much of a big boost in performance going with an i7 if you're not going to be taking the most advantage out of it. I find the H87 board you have is a bit overpriced, with an i5-4670k & the Z87 board I linked you can do a minor OC (very, very easy!) OR just leave it the way it is and STILL be able to upgrade to a 280X OR 290X and then be able to reap extra benefits of a beefier GPU (R9 290X), but it's up to you. I'd go with an H87 & i5 and still get great performance compared to a 4770 & a $160 mobo. & even if you don't go with the 280x/290x you still saved about ~$150-$200+ :)  The (k) version simply gives you that option to add performance without need to buy a totally new CPU.
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April 8, 2014 7:36:58 AM

Your ability to upgrade should not be restricted by getting an i5 processor, there isn't really any difference between an i5 and i7 if your mostly using it for gaming. i5 processor's are good for games, and i7 processors are good for video rendering, and other things of that nature.
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a b 4 Gaming
April 8, 2014 7:47:43 AM

The Core i7 can be worth it for video rendering and streaming.

You don't need a $50 CPU cooler since you're not going to overclock. The motherboard doesn't really need to be that expensive either; there are cheaper H87 boards, and you could also look at a B85 board.

The rest of the system looks okay, but some of the prices seem quite extraordinary. $420 for an R9 280? Ouch.
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April 8, 2014 7:48:54 AM

Ok sounds reasonable enough for me.
Changing the i-7 4770 haswell to i-5 4670k will saves me 83$, which is pretty cool.
Changing the ASUS h87-pro with Gigabyte Z87-HD3 actually makes it 2$ more expensive here.
But both these changes sounds fair enough, and I will implement them.
I would still like to cut down around 83$, now I'm looking to other suggestions put here.

About the ram - is 16 seriously an overkill? I was under the impression that it's quite important to have more than 8.. You find it better to cut down in memory size of ram rather then speed?
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a b 4 Gaming
April 8, 2014 7:52:04 AM

only need 16 gb if you do video or something similar, or you like running multiple large spreadsheets/programs at the same time. 8 is the sweet spot for gaming.

how much is the GTX 770 cost compare to the 280?
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April 8, 2014 7:52:45 AM

Sakkura, I will be capuring video and streaming. Do you think I should stick to the i-7 then?
I'll look into cheaper CPU coolers.
I figure my mobo is still too expensive. I'll look into other models that are available around and are cheaper.
And about the GPU - yeah, this is the cheapest one around. my only alternative is to switch to nVidia GTX760, which will save me some money but will hinder performance.

BTW - thanks for the help :) 
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Best solution

April 8, 2014 7:53:39 AM

avneraggy said:
Ok sounds reasonable enough for me.
Changing the i-7 4770 haswell to i-5 4670k will saves me 83$, which is pretty cool.
Changing the ASUS h87-pro with Gigabyte Z87-HD3 actually makes it 2$ more expensive here.
But both these changes sounds fair enough, and I will implement them.
I would still like to cut down around 83$, now I'm looking to other suggestions put here.

About the ram - is 16 seriously an overkill? I was under the impression that it's quite important to have more than 8.. You find it better to cut down in memory size of ram rather then speed?


I will be TOTALLY honest. I have 16GB ram, it never goes past 5GB of usage.... The ONLY time you need more ram is when you're doing extremely heavy video processing, which would be found inside a workstation computer made mainly for rendering and photo-editing for a company or business. You really only need 8GB of ram @1600-1866mhz (anything faster is purely for showing off/fun/ or benchmarking ram speeds) aside from that there is no noticeable difference. BUT if you get into 4k gaming, then ram will be used much, much more. With 4k textures will need even GPU's that have ATLEAST 4GB+ to run medium textures but that's another topic of discussion :]
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April 8, 2014 7:59:55 AM

I found a pre-made build that is in my price range. Do you think it's a better one then what I've made? I costs 1683$ here.

CPU: Haswell 4770k 3.5
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 CO CPU Fan
mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z87-HD3
GPU: EVGA GTX760 Dual ACX 2GB
RAM: G.Skill Aegis 2x8GB DDR3 1600Mhz
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD2003FZEX 2TB
SSD: Sandisk SDSSDP-128G-G25 128GB
PSU: SeaSonic 520W Modular 80+ Bronze Active PFC 12cm Fan
Case: CoolerMaster HAF 912 Mid Tower
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April 8, 2014 8:00:36 AM

Since you're not going to OC, I don't see why you would need an aftermarket cooler at all. Boxed unit will be plenty at stock speeds. I've OC'd on stock coolers, and kept safe temps. Not a monster OC, but still an OC.

There's another ~$50.
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