I5-750 Build -- Need the greenlight

[boxter987]

Use: Mainly gaming @ 1920x1080 on a 24 inch.

Already have: CD-RW, DVD-RW, Dual Tuner Card, 5in1 Media Reader, Keyboard, Mouse

How does it look? Any suggestions? Thanks.

 

[MadAdmiral]

Here's a better build for a little bit more:

CPU/Mobo: i5-750 and Asus P7P55D-E Pro $345
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $110
GPU: HD 5870 $390
PSU/Case: Antec 900 and TruePower 750W $165 after rebate

Total: $1,010

Or a better one (slightly worse than the above) for even less:

CPU/Mobo: X4 955 and Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4 $243 after rebate (with a free game)
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $110
GPU: HD 5870 $390
PSU/Case: Antec 900 and TruePower 750W $165 after rebate

Total: $908

Or an equivalent build for a lot less:

CPU/Mobo: X4 955 and Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4 $243 after rebate (with a free game)
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $110
GPU: HD 5850 $285
PSU/Case: Antec 900 and TruePower 750W $165 after rebate

Total: $803

 

[boxter987]

Wow. So now it looks like the moneybags is making me order a prebuilt because he wants to it be "hasslefree".

tl,dr:

Who is a good source in the US [via web is fine] to order this computer prebuilt from?

 

[MadAdmiral]

You should show him the article that was posted a day or two ago on the front page about Dell using hardware they knew was faulty and then replacing failed parts with the same faulty hardware. I generally consider prebuilt to be less hassle free than homebuilts.

As for good places to order, they're all pretty bad. They'll all overcharge you, use low quality parts and provide crappy service.

 

[banthracis]

AVAdirect and Puget are probably the best fully customizable sites. Maingear, digital storm are also good, but can't specify exact parts.

AVA direct using custom desktop configurator is probably cheapest. (not custom gaming as in that configurator, they have some stupid price premium on same exact same parts)

Check BBB.org and resellerratings pages from places before you order.

 

[boxter987]

Well, thanks to Admirals story and a bit of being a"punk", I got my way.

The only compromise is that I have to get the parts from a local store so that he can "talk to someone physically". We don't have a Microcenter or Fry's, so that leaves CompUSA.. not the best, but it will suffice.

Whatever, it's good enough, regardless, this means:

They do not sell the 5850 in store, only the 5770 and below.. so I will be going with the evga gtx 470. Toms list it only one notch above the 5850 but I have heard it is hot. Thoughts?

I have a 1tb caviar black already, so my list of parts seem to be:

Mobo: Undecided

Ram: The best I saw in store was patriot 4gb 1333 (10000 PC). Sufficient?

Video: GTX470 branded by EVGA

CPU: i5-750

Case: Haf922? Thoughts?

Thanks.

I'm also gonna have to add in a windows copy to make him happy.

So, total should be under 1200, or about that with tax.

I guess I'm just asking advice on the specific parts, but I don't need someone to come in a praise newegg's combos. I wish, but I have to compromise with CompUSA.

Thanks!!

 

[coldsleep]

There are still CompUSAs out there? Crazy.

The 470 is perfectly fine, strange that the 5850 isn't sold though, as it competes at basically the same price point. I could understand it if they didn't have the $400+ cards, but $300 is still reasonable.

Mobo - basically anything that say it does CrossFire/SLI at 8x/8x is the way to go, if you want to CrossFire/SLI in the future. 16x/4x is pretty sub-optimal. EVGA, MSI, and ASUS are the top brands, but I'll admit I haven't really been looking at P55 boards for a while.

Patriot RAM is fine, though at 1066 or 1333 MHz, pay more attention to the CAS Latency (or CL) rather than the speed (in MHz). The lower, the better.

Lots of people around here like the HAF 922. It's roomy and is reportedly nice to build in. I think they're ugly, but that's just me.

Power Supply? Make sure to get something that's Active PFC & 80+ certified. Probably want 550-650W for the 470, or 750+ if you plan to SLI in the future.

 

[boxter987]

Okay, I'm taking all the advice into consideration and I'm going to continue to search through the night to make sure every part is reliable [especially since I plan to be OCing on air]

Two new questions, with many more to follow, I'm sure:

As far as CPU coolers go, I plan on OCing up to maybe 4.0 if I'm feeling spiffy, but atleast 3.6 (my i5-750). Will I need an aftermarket cooler?

And also, as far as cases go, I really have no freaking idea which one to pick. CompUSA seems to carry all of the major cases such as Haf932,922, etc.. but I also saw this one and it interested me: http://www.compusa.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4177133&CatId=1842
Is that too geeky?
Can anyone else throw out a few suggestions? Thanks.

Still working on a detailed part list, I'll post it up a bit later... girlfriend is making me take a PC break.

 

[coldsleep]

The CM 690 gets some recommendations around here, and that nVidia branded version is actually cheaper at compusa than at newegg. By and large, I think that cases (much like keyboards & mice) are up to personal preference once you get beyond the cheapo ones that are obviously low quality.

Other cases that I've seen recommended (I haven't worked with any of them myself, and I'm going to assume a $50-125ish price range.):
Thermaltake V9 - 2 big 230mm fans as a bonus
NZXT Tempest + STALKER download
Thermaltake Element G
Coolermaster Storm Sniper

And then it starts to get a little spendy.

And really? You're asking about whether part A or part B is "too geeky" in a homebuilt computer forum? Either way, the answer is yes.

Yes, get an aftermarket cooler if you plan to overclock. You can probably get by with a .2-.3 GHz overclock on the stock cooler, 3.6 is still .4 GHz beyond the stock turbo clock.

 

[boxter987]

I'm having a hard time finding a suitable mobo for the i5-750.
There are so many it is hard to weed out a good one. I wouldn't mind it looking nice either... My focuses are: 16x/8x atleast for SLI. Also USB 3.0 and SATA 6/s would be preferred. Overlocking friendly is a plus.. but also not trying to break the bank.


Very helpful my man. I'll definetly look into it and post some more Q's later tonight.

 

[coldsleep]

You're not actually going to get 16x/8x. P55 mobos only offer 16x/- and 8x/8x (as far as Crossfire/SLI-friendly configs). I am also pretty certain that USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s are [strike]not available on P55[/strike] very uncommon on P55.

Going to take a quick peek, but I've mostly avoided 1156 builds, as I determined that they weren't for me a number of months back. My expectation is that a good P55 mobo is going to run about $150 at newegg, possibly more at CompUSA.

The cheapest 8x/8x USB3/SATA 6Gb/s 1156 mobo that I can find is:
ASUS P7P55D Pro for $190.

 

[MadAdmiral]

EDIT: coldsleep got here first. I second the P7P55D-E Pro.

 

[coldsleep]

Yeah, hard to tell based on CompUSA's site if that was the regular or the -E. The specs look like the -E, but...CompUSA. They have like 3 or 4 on there described as Asus P7P55D*.

 

[boxter987]

http://www.compusa.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5570286&csid=ITD&body=MAIN#detailspecs

This one? Looks nice.. just trying to verify

 

[boxter987]

Hmm wait,..

PCI Slots: 2


PCI Express X1 Slots: 3


PCI Express X16 Slots: 1

-.-

 

[coldsleep]

Yeah, I wasn't trusting CompUSA's website. I actually took the model name, plugged it into newegg, and then turned around and tried to match it up with CompUSA.

 

[boxter987]

That douche in the video said it had 16x/16x as well, so it seems really shady to me..
And then, Newegg says " 2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (single at x16 or dual at x8 / x8 mode)" which seems to be less fishy.

Well, atleast I know when I walk in tomorrow, I'll have it all written down to double check that the physical BOX has my requirements:
x16 and 8x/8x for SLI.. 6/s sata.. usb 3.0...

The boxes should be accurate.. hopefully..

 

[coldsleep]

I'm sure the box will be correct, as long as you don't get a returned/open box mobo.

Good luck, sorry you have to deal with a physical store, but hopefully it all works out.

Presumably they can special order one for you if they don't have it in stock, I hope. Let us know how it goes.

 

[boxter987]

As far as buying a new copy of windows, which version should I go with?
32bit or 64?

home, proffessional, or ultimate...?

 

[coldsleep]

Win7 64-bit for certain. It appears that an OEM copy of Home Premium can be had for $110 at CompUSA, which is what I would go for.

Check out this comparison and see if you find anything in Pro or Ultimate that you need. Most users don't need the additional features. I'd only recommend Pro if you need to join an Active Directory domain from time to time. And I'll pretty much never recommend Ultimate unless you need encryption and don't want to use freeware such as TrueCrypt.

 

[boxter987]

Yea, and I don't need "xp mode" because I plan to partition my 1tb wd caviar to dual boot win 7 / xp.

I am almost sure on every aspect.. minus the mother board. Many options and their website is iffy.. I guess I will have to figure it out for myself and hope for the best. Worst that happens is I find one I like, and newegg it on one of their computers to check the reviews.

i hear that patriot ram says 9-9-9-24 but can be tuned to 7-7-7-20? If it pans out, that would be nice..

 

[boxter987]

OKAY, so check it out...

This is the tentative shopping list for tomorrow.

What do you think? Any suggestions for changes, or additions?

I wish I could squeeze in a boot SSD but I don't think that's in my budget range..

Especially since I am most likely going to try to get BF:BC2 also, which is another $50..

 

[coldsleep]

Looks good.

I'd actually be surprised if you needed XP for anything, everything I've tried on Win7 seems to run just fine. But don't let me stop you from dual-booting.

If you can find the Asus motherboard mentioned above, I think you'll be fine. In the long run, I'm not sure it's a dealbreaker if you can't get 8x/8x, there's always the option of upgrading to a newer, better next-gen card when you decide you need to CrossFire. (Unless you decide that within the next 6 months or something.)

I have those exact fans, like them a lot.

If you're going for looks, the V8 is nice, but if you're just looking for performance, www.frostytech.com rates the Zaward Vapor 120 higher, and it's less expensive.

The V8 should come with paste, but I guess you can check that when you get there.

 

[boxter987]

Yes I think I am going to stick with the V8 just because it has a window on the case.

Well, I won't be going crossfire 'cause I'm going Nvidia, but SLI maybe down the road..

Will those fans be able to be contolled by: http://www.compusa.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6044658&Sku=A406-1134

or do I have to find specific fans?

 

[coldsleep]

The fan controller will be fine. Coincidentally, I also have that fan controller. Man, I need to take pictures of my new rig.

Right, duh, SLI. It's late.