Gaming PC Build - Need some advice

[Shojiki]

Hi Guys,

This is my first post at TH so please be gentle!

I'm looking to build a new gaming rig for myself, and am looking at a budget of around £1500 ($2270). Was hoping someone here could give me some advice?

It's been a while since i built a system so i'm a little out of the loop when it comes to the latest hardware.

So far, i've decided i want to get a Radeon 5970HD GPU as it seems to be the fastest single slot card on the market. I'll probably aim to crossfire with another one in the future but this will do for now.

Other than this, i have no idea where to start with selecting the right motherboard, CPU and RAM to ensure i have minimal bottlenecks.

I've been looking at the i7 930 cpus and it seems the top end is roughly £800. As much as i'd like that, it doesnt leave alot to spend on the rest of the PC, and i'm sure it's overkill for gaming anyway!

As for RAM, i have little knowledge on that, other than i'm hoping to get at least 6Gb of it. I'm also not sure where to start with the case, PSU and cooling.

Finally, i'm considering an SSD hard drive, but only if it is going to make a big difference in performance for the money.

Can anyone advise a poor wayward soul on what direction he should be taking?

A list of suggested components would very much be appreciated, but any info i can get would be a great help. I'm not too concerned about the optical drive, monitor, keyboard or mouse as all these things can be taken from my old PC. I really want to just spend my money on the critical parts.

Again, thanks in advance to anyone who takes the tiem to help out, if you need any more info, please just let me know

Paul

 

[Shojiki]

Sorry i should have read before posting! Below is the template questions and answers for requesting help with a new build!

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: As soon as possible!

BUDGET RANGE: £1500

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, pure and simple

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, mouse, monitor.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Just the cheapest and preferably in the UK. Unless importing works out cheaper.

PARTS PREFERENCES: Again, not fussed as long as good quality and decent price.

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe but not critical

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Yes, in the future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: This will probably be hooked upto a 32 inch LCD TV. So 1080p??

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Quietness is always preferred but not if it's going to cost me £100s on a liquid cooling system!

 

[Somebody_007]

I take it you're living in england right?

If so here is my reccomendation

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/179863

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/193596

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173804

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/164951

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/187981

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/164785

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/219208

total:1455

The case is up to personal preference I just picked one that's good quality and cheap. If you don't like it(I don't btw looks horrible IMO) tell me and I'll find you another one.

Will you overclock? if so we need to find you a better cooler. If not you don't actually need the expensive mobo I suggested.

 

[Shojiki]

Wow, thanks for the quick response!

I do indeed live in England, would you suggest that's the best priced website as well?

To be honest, it's doubtful i will overclock, assuming the stock speeds are good enough to last me at least a couple of years. So if you can recommend a cheaper motherboard, which in turn would allow me to spend a little more on other bits, i'm all ears.

 

[Somebody_007]

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/195332

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/195331

In terms of performance all the boards I mentioned are very good The only thing that sets them apart are some features which are mostly for OCing.

ud3r: Adequate cooling, and everything else you need really

ud5: better cooling, lots of debug light and led for if your system doesn't boot, power switch and reset switch, more power to the cpu, dual lan, and thats about it

ud7: Almost the same as the the ud5 exept for: even better cooling, built in waterblock, insane amount of power to the cpu

So if you aren't planning on heavy OCs the ud3r will do really.

 

[Shojiki]

I think, from what you've said, the ud3 should be ample for my needs. Would you suggest upgrading the cpu or RAM any more with the extra i'll be saving?

Sorry for all the questions!

Current build with somebody_007's advice:

GPU: XFX HD 5970 Black Edition 2GB DDR5

CPU: Intel i7 930 2.8GHz Socket 1366 8MB L3 Cache

HDD: Samsung HD103SJ Spinpoint F3 1TB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 32MB Cache

PSU: Corsair 850W HX Modular PSU

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Intel X58 (Socket 1366) DDR3 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard

RAM: OCZ 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 Reaper Triple Channel Kit

Case: Coolermaster HAF922 Windowed Version bundled with FREE Coolermaster TX3 CPU Cooler

Anyone else have any views on this or has somebody_007 got it down to a tee?

Btw, i couldn't see an HDMI port on the GFX card, though it does say it supports HDMI. Will i need an adaptor for that, and if so, am i going to be able to get sound through it?

 

[Somebody_007]

I wouldn't upgrade the cpu or ram. The next CPUs costs 200-300 more and have no big advantages over the 930. And as for the ram the one I listed is already very fast and upgrading further will cost you a lot for virtually no real world difference.

I would invest the extra in a good gaming keyboard/mouse. Otherwise in the case and cooler. Or maybe an ssd.

 

[Somebody_007]

I think the card comes with an adapter for hdmi. But I don't think you can get sound of that even if your card supports hdmi natevliy like my 470gtx. I think you have to get your sound from the motherboard directly or a sound card.

 

[Shojiki]

Wicked, thanks for your help

Based on the spec you suggested, i've found a prebuilt system for a decent price at overclockers UK. It's called an Ultima Vanquish, just needs the gfx card swapping for a 5970 and i'm away.

Saves alot of hassle for not much extra cost!

 

[Somebody_007]

I checked it out and it seems to be a pretty good deal. A 4.0ghz OC with warrenty, a better case and cooler, slightly slower ram though but you won't notice it.

I wouldn't swap out the gpu for a 5970 though. A 5870(which is included) will max out any game on a 1900X1080 screen. And if you want more poer adding another 5870 is cheaper and more powerful than a 5970.

 

[Shojiki]

Cool thanks for the advice.

Dual 5870s instead then!

Time to order!!

 

[Somebody_007]

Have fun

 

[Somebody_007]

Btw you knoe you still need an OS right?

 

[Shojiki]

Hehe yeah, i work for an IT support company so have access to many OSes