New Build - Please Advise

[Guest]

Thinking about this build:

Case - Casecom 6788 Black Mid Tower Case with Full Black Interior/Exterior 120mm Blue LED Front Fan
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172779

Motherboard - Asus M4A785TD-V EVO 785G Socket AM3 onboard DVI VGA HDMI 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/169532

CPU - AMD Athlon II X3 440 3.0GHz 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 Retail Box Processor
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/191955

CPU Cooler - Could someone please find me a cooler that is compatiable with the processor and motherboard as I couldn't find one

Power Supply Unit - OCZ Stealth Xtream 500W PSU - 1x PCI-E 6/8pin, 2x SATA 12cm Fan
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135159

Memory - Crucial 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz/PC3-10600 Ballistix Memory Kit CL7 (7-7-7-24) 1.65V
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/179278

Graphics - Asus GTS250 512MB DDR3 DVI VGA HDMI Out PCI-E Graphics Card WOW Edition
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/220308

HDD - Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 16MB Cache - OEM
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/146252

Optical Drive - Samsung TS-H653G DVD-RW SATA Optical Drive - OEM
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/227080


Does this all look ok? All compatible with eachother. Just want a mid-range gaming PC that can play SC2 on high settings.

Feel free to change anything so long as the price doesn't go too high.

Thanks

 

[Guest]

Also, what is the cheapest price for Windows 7 Home Premium in the UK?

 

[Silvune]

Yea good choices across the board - all compatible. The case you chose will prevent you from buying a large tower cooler. Which is fine if you aren't going to be OCing a large amount, in which case either of these would be my suggestion: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev. 2 £16 or Coolermaster Typer TX3 £18.

The only way I know to save any money on the retail price of Win 7 is if you are or know a student.

 

[danman12]

change the gtx250 to a radeon 5770 to get a big increase in graphics and performance, for about 40 euro more.(get the 512mb version and save a little $, but the 1gb is worth it)
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/231359

this is also a better psu, as it is 80+ certified and 430w is enough for your build
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/120376

other than that, it all looks ok

 

[bret987]

Thanks mate, I'll get the 5770 instead.

EDIT: Sorry Silvune, just saw your post, thanks a lot.


PS: Won't be purchasing for a couple of weeks yet so more input and critique is welcome

 

[asteldian]

Personally, for £5 more I would get the G Skill 1600mhz RAM.
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/180490

Also, what resolution are you playing at?

If you play at high resolution or plan on doing so in the future then you may consider spending an extra £25 on the motherboard that has Crossfire capabilities (the mobo you picked would run Xfire at x4/x4 which would cripple performance of cards). Also your mobo is a bit expensive, there are cheaper non XFire boards available. But below is an XFire one
Asus M4A79XTD EVO - £90
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/search_results.php?sortby=&groupid=&search=Asus+M4A79XTD+EVO

or you can buy it at scan
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-M4A79XTD-EVO-AMD-790X-AM3-PCI-E-20(x16)-DDR3-1333-1600-1800-SATA-3Gb-s-ATX

or novatech
http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/prods/Components/Motherboards/AMDAM3AMDChipsetMotherboards/90-MIBAJ0-G0EAY00Z.html

Whichever has cheapest shipping.
Of course the problem is you would then want a more power PSU. Like the XFX 650W at £69.99
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/191826

 

[batuchka]

I felt that Asus 785G is a tad overpriced and if u dun need IGP (u hit a discrete) hit an Asrock 770
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/174597
and hit a better case with better cooling options/PSU? StealthXtreme line not 80+ btw

 

[sub-80]

I don't know about the graphics card, its not the card but the brand. Ive never heard any great reviews about asus graphic cards. I know all brands carry the same specs, but some brands have side features that makes them great.

Havent seen the asus gts info, so no judgement, yet!

 

[bret987]

What does "80+" mean??

Is it important?

 

[bret987]

Sorry for double post, wouldn't let me edit.

For gaming purposes would it be worth getting a quad core processor rather than that tri-core?

 

[teddyjai0614]

think you should get a 700w psu since they're cheaper now

 

[asteldian]

80+ is the efficiency lvl of a PSU, and in general it is the sign of a good (or at least reasonable) quality.
phenom II x4 955 is great, but when on a budget, the tri core is an excellent choice

 

[bret987]

This is now what I am thinking after some changes that people suggested and it comes just under my £500 budget.

Case - Casecom 6788 Black Mid Tower Case with Full Black Interior/Exterior 120mm Blue LED Front Fan
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172779

Motherboard - ASROCK M3A770DE 770 Socket AM3 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/174597

CPU - AMD Athlon II X3 440 3.0GHz 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 Retail Box Processor
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/191955

CPU Cooler - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro rev 2 Socket 775, 1156, 1366, AM2, AM3 Heatpipe CPU Cooler
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/176157

Power Supply Unit - OCZ Stealth Xtream 500W PSU - 1x PCI-E 6/8pin, 2x SATA 12cm Fan
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135159

Memory - G-Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 Ripjaw Memory Kit CL7(7-8-7-24) 1.65V
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/180490

Graphics - XFX HD 5770 1GB DDR5 Dual DVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Graphics Card
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/231359

HDD - Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 16MB Cache - OEM
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/146252

Optical Drive - Samsung TS-H653G DVD-RW SATA Optical Drive - OEM
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/227080

 

[asteldian]

Looks a pretty fine build to me

 

[danman12]

well, it looks like a very decent low-budget build. good job.

 

[bret987]

I'm thinking. For gaming would it be worth going to 1920x1200? I'm currently trying out my 28" TV and it looks great. However would I have to upgrade anything because of the higher resolution? ( I would be connecting it by HDMI btw)

 

[coldsleep]

Solely for SC2, the 5770 will be fine at 1920x1200. For FPS games, it's not going to be as great, but they should play with lowered details.

With an overclocked i7-920, the 5770 gets an average of 45 fps on ultra details and 60 fps at high details, even if you knock off 1/3rd for having a less fancy processor (probably excessive), you're still at 30+ fps, which is quite playable for an RTS game.

As a note, SC2 doesn't display more screen area with higher resolutions, just more pixels/detail.

 

[bret987]

Also, which Windows 7 do I get. They're both Home Premium but look different and I have no idea?!

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173791
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/175067

 

[Silvune]

One is an upgrade edition, which you would use on a PC that already has a Windows OS on it. So you probably want the OEM version.

 

[coldsleep]

The second one is an upgrade edition, usually used if you're already running XP or Vista on the machine.

The first one is 64-bit OEM, which is what most people go with. It's a full install disc, the only caveats are that you're not able to use the license on a new computer (if you get a different motherboard, you will usually have to call up Microsoft and see if they'll give you a new key). You're also not able to call up Microsoft directly for help with OS support, but I don't know anyone that has had to do that...I just google the answer myself.

 

[bret987]

Sorry........ another question

With that case and the components would it be worth be getting a fan to go on the back or side or both? (Keeping in mind it already has a 120mm fan on the front.

Thanks

 

[Silvune]

Personally I would want a fan in the rear and on top. However unless you're getting the cheapest fans available then you could probably get a more expensive case with more fans included for the price.

 

[bret987]

Just checking over everything because i'm getting the parts later in the week. As its my first build i'm quite nervous and I want everything to be perfect before I buy.

Couple of other things:
1) Is 4GB RAM enough for gaming?
2) Do I need to buy any cables etc or are they included? Eg, do you usually get a SATA cable with the optical/Hard drve?
3) I've noticed the Optical drive is SATA and the HDD is SATA II. Does this matter? Do they both have the same cable and plugs?
4) Will this build support Windows 7 64b?

Finally. Once I have the PC built and installed Windows 7 OS, in what order should I install the drivers? (Mobo, GPU drivers etc)

 

[Silvune]

1) Yes 4GB is plenty for gaming.
2) You usually get two sata cables with a motherboard, you can check the actual number that comes with your motherboard by either a. checking the picture on newegg that shows what's included in the box b. checking a review of the motherboard c. perhaps if you go to the product page of that motherboard it will say somewhere, altho I haven't found this in my experience
3) No, it does not matter, you are correct that the same cable and plugs will work.
4) Yes.

I didn't bother installing drivers for particular things with my build, I just let Windows 7 do it. Altho obviously installing the most up-to-date video card drivers is a good idea for the boost in performance that can be provided.

 

[bret987]

Ooh, turns out I have another £200 to spend which brings my budget up to £700/750.

How much better would a £700 build be compared to the £500 one? Would there be a great difference? Or would I be better off keeping the £200?