Best Configs - MicroATX Gaming Build

[jpishgar]

Our editorial team has selected the top builds submitted by users for our Best Configs feature. Please vote on your favorite of the following builds:

Proximon

EVGA P55V 120-LF-E651-TR LGA 1156 Intel P55 Micro ATX
i5-655K
ZALMAN CNPS10X Performa
TX-2
Mushkin Blackline DDR3 1600 CL7
Silverstone TJ08-B
Antec TP-650
2 x ASUS ENGTX460 DirectCU/2DI/1GD5 GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB
WD Caviar Black 750GB
Sony DVD drive

Link to Build

obsidian86

SILVERSTONE SG07-BW Black Aluminum / SECC Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case 600W 80+ Bronze Certified / Single +12V rail Power Supply
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB
ASUS M4A88T-I Deluxe AM3
MSI N470GTX
AMD Phenom II X4 955
h50
Corsair Force CSSD-F60GB
Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 204-Pin DDR3

Link to Build

kokoryba

Athlon II 4x 2.8 GHz
MSI / AMD 760G / mATX
4GB ram DDR3 1066 low latency 7-7-7-20
RADEON HD 5770/ 1GB / 128-bit
2x Samsung SATA II 320 GB(640 total) 7200 RPM 16MBcache(32 total)
mATX Mid Tower / Black / with 350W power supply
DVD LG 22x black Sata, LightScribe support

Link to Build

 

[duk3]

I don't think they were picking parts to the same budget...

 

[Onus]

Proximon wins on performance.

 

[RazberyBandit]

Wouldn't that performance have been even higher with a similarly priced i5-760, though?

 

[Proximon]

Wouldn't that performance have been even higher with a similarly priced i5-760, though?

Depends on the game. In most games you are going to find that the two stock CPUs have very close scores. Not enough difference to worry over.

However, those two cores with an unlocked multiplier and good cooler will dominate the 760 once a simple overclock is done. The i5-760 is not going to keep up with the 655K once you try to overclock it.

Obviously any game that uses all 4 cores will do better with the 760.

Would I build it? No, I don't build for today only. A good CPU should last a while, like 4 years. It's just the nature of the competition... all the TH SBMs and the CPU and GPU monthly articles focus on what the best part is TODAY.

I also believe that the majority would like to OC as long as it's easy for them. Unlocked processor multipliers are very easy.

 

[RazberyBandit]

I was just thinking that for the price, why not grab the quad?

Sure, stock clocks are slower, but the extra cores are there for games that will make use of them, as well as to take on background apps and services in games that only load up two cores. Double the L3 cache could come in handy in some cases as well. And the 760's can OC pretty well, too. It's just not quite as simple due to the locked multiplier.

 

[Proximon]

You're right. But when I made the build, I thought the competition would come down to FPS, and I felt like the 655K would provide the slight edge in the majority of games.

As it turns out the judging is way more subjective than that

 

[dndhatcher]

As it turns out the judging is way more subjective than that

With peoples names next to the builds, it can be more of a popularity contest than technical exercise.

For the next one I would like to see:

1> The rules more clear

2> The "technical staff" (whomever that is) massage the final voting builds to level the playing field. Make it "builds inspired by" instead of the cut & paste with all the varying formats and amounts of description.

3> the voting be blind so its based on the parts listed, not the forum name of the presenter.


No matter who wins this time, it will be better than the last one. Hopefully next time it gets even better.

 

[Proximon]

Great ideas!

 

[lp231]

From the 3 systems picked, it's was clear Proximon has a easy win.

 

[g00fysmiley]

I know there's already alot of catagories but i'd love to see mITX builds maybe alternate the small form factors periodically? i wanna build an itx platform myself but am likely gonna go with mATX due to lack of performance reviews on components jsut alot of it works or doesn't work type stuff

 

[obsidian86]

proximon would win in fps stakes but im sure mine would be faster overall but congrats anyway proximon good show

 

[Proximon]

I'm looking forward to the next round when we'll have some clearer rules

 

[jpishgar]

This topic has been desticky in top of the forum by Jpishgar