Need feedback on possible PC build

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XVinny84X

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Aug 27, 2014
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Hi all,

It's been a while since I have last upgraded my PC, not to mention building one from scratch, but after 9 years of great service, time has come to put my Alienware (yes original one, before it was bought out by Dell) to rest.

I have been playing around adding and removing parts and below is what I came up with. Truth is I am not as up to speed as I would like to be anymore and need some help from more active PC builders. My go to website is Newegg and below you can find my build. I will be using my current HD (1TB) and DVD burner along with extra mini power supply (350W I had to buy for my later GPU alone that fits nicely in one of the front slots=)), so I added parts I thought I would need.

I am also a firm believer in AMD, so unless you know of better AMD processor than I have selected, please don't bring Intel into this (not trying to be rude, just saying I have no interest in it;-)). Same goes for GPU, much prefer Nvidia to Asus as that is really all I've known so far...

My budget as you can see is around $1,500. Could be a bit more or a bit less, but trying to keep it within a $100 or so. Trying to upgrade PC for gaming as I do play some games here and there, but it will mainly be for HD movie editing and burning said movies on blu ray . Any help or feedback would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Here it is since link didn't work. Sorry about that.

1 Cooler Master HAF X - High Air Flow Full Tower Computer Case with Windowed Side Panel and USB 3.0 Ports Cooler Master HAF X - High Air Flow Full Tower Computer Case with Windowed Side Panel and USB 3.0 Ports
Item #: N82E16811119225

1 GIGABYTE GA-990FXA-UD3 AM3+ AMD 990FX + SB950 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard GIGABYTE GA-990FXA-UD3 AM3+ AMD 990FX + SB950 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813128514

1 ASUS ROG STRIKER-GTX760-P-4GD5 G-SYNC Support GeForce GTX 760 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card ASUS ROG STRIKER-GTX760-P-4GD5 G-SYNC Support GeForce GTX 760 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Item #: N82E16814121878

1 CORSAIR CXM series CX750M 750W ATX12V v2.3 SLI CrossFire 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply New 4th Gen CPU Certified Haswell Ready CORSAIR CXM series CX750M 750W ATX12V v2.3 SLI CrossFire 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply New 4th Gen CPU Certified Haswell Ready
Item #: N82E16817139051

1 AMD FX-8350 Black Edition Vishera 8-Core 4.0GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W Desktop Processor FD8350FRHKBOX AMD FX-8350 Black Edition Vishera 8-Core 4.0GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W Desktop Processor FD8350FRHKBOX
Item #: N82E16819113284

1 SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD256BW 2.5 SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD256BW 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Item #: N82E16820147193

1 CORSAIR Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 Desktop Memory Model CMY16GX3M2A1866C9R (Red) CORSAIR Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 Desktop Memory Model CMY16GX3M2A1866C9R (Red)
Item #: N82E16820233536
 
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numanator
So the r9 280 is roughly on par with the gtx 760, the r9 280x is a step above the 760 and is on par with the gtx 770, the r9 290 is on par with the gtx 780.

The AMD Radeon cards are pretty good (i have had both amd and nvidia cards), only difference I noticed between the 2 when i had my AMD card was that the AMD software wasn't as good at letting me know when there were new driver updates. In general the AMD cards give you similar performance for cheaper but consume more power.

The sweet spot for gaming on a 1080p monitor/tv is the gtx 770 or r9 280x with the gtx 760 and r9 280 still being very good. I have a gtx 760 and don't have problems with any games but I also don't expect max fps at max settings.

For the OS, I have heard good...
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XVinny84X

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Aug 27, 2014
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I updated my original message with actual components that I think matter most in this case. Hopefully that will work for you and other willing to pitch in with their opinions. Thanks so much! I tried doing pc part picker, but they don't even have my CPU (not black edition anyway). Sorry!
 
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numanator

numanator

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Nov 14, 2013
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I would probably do something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($152.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($140.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($459.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF X ATX Full Tower Case ($151.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1364.91
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-27 13:10 EDT-0400

The 4 gb gtx 760 is generally considered a waste since the 760 does not have the GPU power to utilize the 4gb VRAM. I am pretty sure all fx-8350 are black edition. You can save $30 or so by adding amazon in as a merchant but that is up to you.

-Mobo I went with Asus due to personal brand preference, gigabyte is a good one too.
-GPU the gtx 780 offers quite a bit more power over the 760, the gtx 770 is also a good option for around $320
-PSU I generally stay away from the corsair CX series due to their low quality capacitors and high chance of failure at high heats. Seasonic makes great quality PSUs and I can personally vouch for the MII12 series as it is what I have. 600w+ is more than enough for this build.
 
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XVinny84X

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Aug 27, 2014
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Thanks for the info on GPU. I didn't even know that! I did look at the 3GB one you mentioned, but currently at $600, it would be like paying almost half of total for GPU alone. Any other suggestions closer to $300-$400 mark?

I would also much rather go with 16GB RAM as I will need the memory for video processing and such and I've heard those programs (not sure which one I will end up using yet) require a lot to run smoothly. Plus it will look nice going for the whole red and black vibe;-)

As for CPU I did compare it and it looks like difference, while minimal, is there between standard and black edition. BE are usually overclocked out of the box and I think handle further adjusting better than standard versions.

I will take your advise on PSU though as I don't know much about Corsair and SeaSonic is a bit cheaper anyway.

While we're at it, which OS should I go with. I have been using Windows Vista for ages, so not sure at this point if Windows 7 or 8 (8.1 NOW??) is better?
 
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numanator

numanator

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Nov 14, 2013
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XVinny84X

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Aug 27, 2014
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Is Radeon better, worse or about on par with NVidia cards? I really want better card, but that one seems just tad bit expensive. I know it's on sale now, but I am not buying PC right this minute (might not even get it until next week actually, there is no rush and labor day sale is coming;-)), but at normal price it's $200 more than the one I have selected. Maybe I should just go with GTX 760, but 3GB of Ram instead of 4 since it's not even relevant? And what about OS, any recommendations/tips there?

Edit: How about this card I found? Seems like a copy of the one I had in my build, but with 3GB?

SUS DirectCU II R9280-DC2T-3GD5 Radeon R9 280 3GB 384-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121867&cm_re=gtx760-_-14-121-867-_-Product
 
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numanator

numanator

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Nov 14, 2013
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So the r9 280 is roughly on par with the gtx 760, the r9 280x is a step above the 760 and is on par with the gtx 770, the r9 290 is on par with the gtx 780.

The AMD Radeon cards are pretty good (i have had both amd and nvidia cards), only difference I noticed between the 2 when i had my AMD card was that the AMD software wasn't as good at letting me know when there were new driver updates. In general the AMD cards give you similar performance for cheaper but consume more power.

The sweet spot for gaming on a 1080p monitor/tv is the gtx 770 or r9 280x with the gtx 760 and r9 280 still being very good. I have a gtx 760 and don't have problems with any games but I also don't expect max fps at max settings.

For the OS, I have heard good things about windows 8.1 but I am still on windows 7 since I haven't upgraded my PC in a few years.

Edit: if you are looking for the best performance per dollar, r9 280 or r9 280x are the way to go. Only reason I went for the gtx 760 when I bought it was because the AMD prices were inflated due to the cryptomining craze last year.
 
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XVinny84X

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Aug 27, 2014
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Ok, I will wait for labor day sale with all of the cards (have about 5 of them added right now - GTX760 & 780 along with RX280, 280x and 290 that you recommended) and see how much discount I will have on each. I might just get the cheaper RX280 like you said and once I have more money upgrade to some solid GPU in a year or so. Also, I guess I will go with Windows 8.1 then, though it might take some getting used to. Thanks for all the tips!
 
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