New estimate from computer guy, what do you think?

[JackoDaddy5]

My wife was going to get me a setup from her computer guy at work, and this is what he came back with as an updated estimate over the one he had given us a few months ago.

I see the video card as the gtx 460, and that strikes a bell from another thread of mine. Is there a better, faster, cooler running version that we should be looking at? And is this setup going to run cool enough to be on running for 15 hours straight or what not?

He says this 'new' i-5 runs faster than the old i-7, and I remember the discussion about overclocking, which we probably will NOT be doing, so is this overkill, or is it nice enough that we just get it and run with it?

I would like all opinions, and advice... I am terrible at computer building and would love all the help I can get before I drop the cash on this just trusting one opinion. I'm a 'second opinion' type of person

>>>>>>>>
Intel® DH67GDB3 i3/i5/i7, Motherboard
INTEL Core i5 2500K Quad Core 3.3GHz 6MB LGA1155 CPU
Corsair H60 CPU Liquid Cooling (775,1155,1156,1366,AM2,AM3)
CoolerMaster Mid Tower Case
2 - Kingston DDR3 1333MHz MEMORY-4GB - Lifetime Warranty
EVGA nVidia GeForce GTX 460 PCI-E 1GB (2-DVI/H) Video
Western Digital 500GB RAID Edition 16MB 7200 RPM SATA 2 Hard Drive
Kingston 96GB SNV425 SSDNow Series 2.5" SATA Connector Drive
Microsoft Keyboard & Optical mouse Desktop USB - Black
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium w/64Bit Media
INTEGRATED Intel Gigabit Lan
INTEGRATED SOUND
LiteOn DVDRW SATA 24x+/-, 8x+/-RW, 12x+/-R 16x48x24x48 Black
Seasonic 80Plus 500Watt Power Supply

All new systems covered for three years from date of our Nor-Tech invoice.
Shipping charges may apply. All labor for replacement of defective parts is covered for one year
from the date of your Computer Guy invoice

$1440
>>>>>>>>>


Thanks for looking.

~Chris

 

[kosinas]

yes the "new" i5 is faster and cheaper then the "old" i7,
also the CPU liquid cooling is usless if you don't plan to overclock, just use the stock fan.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Ok, so what if we don't 'plan' to overclock, but I really get into this thing, and we end up doing it anyways. Is it worth its value that we might as well keep it on, or completely not worth it.

 

[kosinas]

get the COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus if you want to overclock, best "bang for you buck"
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&cm_re=hyper_212%2b-_-35-103-065-_-Product

 

[RetiredChief]

For HSF: Hyper 212+ for about $45 will cover a mild to medium OC on the I5-2500K

SSD - I think that is one of the lower end ones. I would look for a 120 Gig Sata III SSD and pair it with a single WD black 1 tB drive.

GPU - This really depends on what games you want to play.
Here is a link that you can look @. I picked Crysis, but other games and expected Frame rate are shown.
http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-review/21

Approx cost of parts from newegg $1100 +/- 50 (ballbark estimated did not really itemize. This is for UPGRADED SSD & w/Hyper 212+ HSF

Added: On HSF - Even if you do not overclock get the Hyper 212+ - The stock HSF SUCKS you do not need the H70 water cooler. If you want a Better Air cooler, get the Zalman 9900Max - Does a great job (not the Best) But does look good.

 

[genghiskron]

hes giving you a h67 board instead of a p67 board, which will prevent you from overclocking (for the most part). This makes the extra money you pay for the "K" useless, and makes the liquid cooler pretty useless as well. It seems his updated build has a downgraded graphics card (i believe it was a gtx470 last time), and a cheaper processor (although faster). He has added in a SSD ($170, and not one id recommend).


Again, i dont think its terrible deal, but dont think this guy (or i guess nor-tech) is doing you any favors. If i were your wife's computer guy, id be perfectly happy to discuss parts with you, thats the point of having a custom built computer (you can get a better prebuilt computer +better ssd for about the same price, but only 1 yr parts/labor).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227324
+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148348&cm_re=c300-_-20-148-348-_-Product

anyways, I think you can get a better deal from cyberpowerpc, but i have no idea how their quality or customer service is, or if in the long run youll end up with a better or worse overall experience (theres a cyberpower section of this forum, so you may want to check it out). That is really what you have to think about in the long run, and alot of that depends on how miserable you are when your computer doesnt work, and how often your wife has to deal with this guy from work, and if he'll be offended if you dont take the offer. I also have no idea what the costs are like for a small computer company. Im sure it seriously hurts their profit margins when they have to make good on a warranty, so the quoted price really may be fair.

 

[mdd1963]

Liquid cooling is a waste of money, IMO...

He should be able to assemble the rig around an Asus P8P67 mb for at least $400 less, I would think...

 

[RetiredChief]

For $999
Intel 2nd Gen Core i7 4.6GHZ Overclocked Barebone - ASUS P8P67 Pro B3 Mobo, Intel Core i7-2600K, 8GB DDR3 RAM, CoolerMaster HAF 922 Case, Ultra 750W PSU, CoolIT ECO Liquid Cooling, 4 Free Game Coupons

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=281624&sku=B69-9015 GAME

You would still have to add GPU ($150) and does not look Like it comes with Operating system ???

And No I would not buy - Just an Example of what's out there.

 

[omnipanzer]

It's Pretty comparable to a cyberpower after shipping.
genghiskron made a great catch as well make sure your getting a P67 if you are pairing it to a 2500K.
I know nothing about SSD's but I'd listen to these guys on it as well.
I'd say you are not getting ripped off but not a bargain either.

 

[cburke82]

Cooling alos has alot to do with what case is used. It says CM Mid tower...that could be any of what 10-15 cases. So I would ask him what case he will use. If your not OCing the processor just get the 2500 i5 no need for the 2500k. Also just use the stock fan no need for extra fan if your not over clocking. If there is room and decent airflow in the case and your not over clocking this it should run just fine like that. AMD cards tend to run cooler so depending on the games you want to play and the size of the case if you think there would be heat issues you might consider a AMD card, that might also save you some cash as well. Seems to me with those changes he would be able to shave another $75-100 off the price with no performance impact what so ever .

If the parts are around $1100 on newegg $1400 is not to crazy of a mark up as long as your not paying extra for parts you dont need. And if this guy is at your wifes work what is the possible shipping cost for? Also if your not comfortable building this yourself a 3 year warantee that only covers labor for 1 year mine as well be a 1 year because if he is charging $50-75 per hour after 1 year to fix it that could add up, so I would ask him what the per hour rates are after one year.

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

Ok for gaming it is hard to beat the 2nd generation Intel® Core™ I5 2500K. I do have some questions/concerns on the original build. You have an H67 board in it, just so you know the H67 chipset will allow you to overclock the on-processor graphic but not the core clock speed of the processor. So if you are planning to overclock the processor you would want to go with a P67 board. Also you really don’t need a water cooling solution to overclock the Intel Core i5 2500K, heck I have heard of people hitting over 4GHz with the stock heatsink.
As far as SSD the reliability of the Intel SSD 320 is very hard to beat and it has very good performance.


Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

 

[JackoDaddy5]

ok.... here I'm going to show my computer knowledge.. what is an SSD, and why is one brand recommended over another. I could look online for what an SSD is, or does, but somebody here might as well just explain it quick, while you are educating me on what the brand difference will be

Thanks a TON guys, this is great, I love the feedback, and learning these things.

 

[cburke82]

ok.... here I'm going to show my computer knowledge.. what is an SSD, and why is one brand recommended over another. I could look online for what an SSD is, or does, but somebody here might as well just explain it quick, while you are educating me on what the brand difference will be

Thanks a TON guys, this is great, I love the feedback, and learning these things.

SSD stands for solid state drive. So it has no moving parts like a hard drive does. These are much more expensive wile giving you much faster load/read/write times. These will not give you better performance wile doing things like playing games though they will give you shorter load times between levels. They will give you shorter boot times and programs will open faster and such but will not run any different wile open with th exception of saving files and such.

I personaly dont feel they are worth it but some people swear by them, for me they are way to expensive for something that will not directly effect perfomance.

 

[kronic_1]

I have to say everyone here seems to be giving good info BUT

The Big Question Is WHAT do you want to do with IT ??

If Gaming The 460 is a Joke
IF NOT Gaming the 460 Is WAY Overkill
Everyones right about the 2600k pointless getting the k series if you are not overclocking exspecily with the motherboard he has suggested

Personaly Id Go For
Asus or Gigabyte Board
AMD 1090t x6 cpu
any good brand 600w Powersupply corsair,huntkey,gigabyte ect
4Gigs DDr3 1600 gskil,corsair,ozc,ect
Hd 6870-6950 Overkill if your not gaming id drop the power supply to 500 and get a 5670 graphics card if thats the case
SSD a waste of time and money unless your building a extreame pc/ server/thin client setup
Go for a WD 2 terrabyte green instead or 2 of them
Haf 922 or 912 case
will work out cheeper and be more powerfull to boot

 

[JackoDaddy5]

It will be mostly for gaming. WoW, Rift, Crysis, Elder Scrolls 5 when it comes out. The original estimate had the GTX 470. Is there a 500 series that is that much more worth it to pay that much extra for it? Or is the 470 going to be good enough?

So say I won't be doing any overclocking. I'm not comfortable with it, and don't know enough about it to run a system like that. I do need to keep some of the parts similar, since that is just what their company runs with. What would some of you suggest?

i5-2500, or do I go with the i5-2500k anyways, just because of cost and speed compared to something else?

What about this h67 vs p67?

gtx470 (or is there a better nvidia for comparable price, 500 something model?)

I suppose I need to check with him to make sure, but do you see that being 8gigs of ram, and not just 4? The 2 in front of it makes me think its 2 of those setups, which would be 8gigs.

What do we do if we don't need the SSD? Just scrap it, or is it something that we can really make use of in the future, or something that needs to replace it?

Do we scrap the liquid cooling altogether and go with whats there?

If any of you get really board, you could throw together a couple 'Estimate' looking posts like the one in my first post That would give me something to look at as far as what all I would need together. I don't know when you say the SSD is useless if I have to replace it with something else, or if it is just a side piece, scrap the liquid cooling and... then what? Replace it with something else, or just scrap it?

I guess I see all these posts, and I can see the points individually, I just have trouble relating them together, and putting together my own setup using the information provided.

I do want to build a computer right the first time, and not have trouble with it later, good board, great graphics card, plenty of cooling, plenty of ram, practical components.

This is still fun for me, thanks guys, sorry if I'm 'that' guy right now haha.

 

[genghiskron]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227322
cheaper, better for you needs. if youre worried about quality you can get a full 2 year warranty and still be way under the other estimate.

 

[RetiredChief]

H67 = Integrated IPG, No OC. P55 vs versa, No IGP but can OC
Z68 (comes out mid May (arround 11 May) = H67 + P67 capabilities.

 

[omnipanzer]

IMO

GTX 470 > 460 * the 460 will play everything you are playing but the 470 is a little more future-proofed.

No overclocking = 2500 w/ h67 so you can at least boost your video encoding. That will make it more well rounded for entertainment purposes if you are not strait up gaming enthusiast and not willing to wait for the Z68 chip set.

for same reason ditch the SSD and WD 500gb. I'm going to guess you could Get a 1tb Caviar Black system drive and a 2tb green drive for your storage (I personally warehouse a lot of data between dvd rips and mp3s) for close to the same amount.

If he is not willing to get you a cheaper after market cooler just stay with the H60 as it can extend the life of the product (and it looks cool).

8 gigs of RAM is good

the rest is fine.

Based solely on what you are saying this is what I would go with but a lot of it is personal preference.

 

[addison]

Liquid cooling is a pain becuase it needs to be changed every 6 or year like the tubing it also can lead up to a disaster if there is a leak and your pc is done, air cooling is much easy to build and easy to change or clean. The specs are great excpet for Liquid cooling and the video card I reccomend is a 650 watt psu and a ati 6850.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Ok, so me being clueless again... what does the h67 vs p67 vs z68chipset refer to? I'm going to put together a potential package and post it here just thinking what I'm getting out of this...

 

[addison]

Dude, Research is the first thing you should do BEFORE building a computer. I built my first PC when I was 12 with NO help it could MAX out WoW and was like beast it had a geforce 6800 in it. It's junk bow plus we aren't the peaople who will tell you EVERYTHING about computers. Building a pc is good but at least research.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

I'm researching here. You are more than welcome to not post, or not help if you don't like the questions I'm asking. Everybody is, but I prefer to research and ask people who know about the details and systems.

Sure I can learn on my own what each component does, but I like to know what works best with others based on these knowledgable people who have experienced it, or who know more about it than I.

I'm happy you could build your computer when you were 12, when I was 12, computers weren't part of households. I had a set of army men and hot wheels cars, and that's it.

 

[addison]

A computer is easy to build don't pay attention to the chip set, Just learn to build it very easy. Private message me and I can teach you. Though I HIGHLY reccomend do NOT liquid cool it's a pain to instal and pain to change plus it can leak and your rig will never work.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Is there a SIGNIFICANT benefit to using the GTX 560 over the 470? If i go with the i5-2500, will that be plenty for the gtx560, or would it be better to go with the i5-2500k. Or just go with the i5-2500 and gtx470.

I've read about the z68 being like both the h67 and and p67 combined, allowing you to overclock the onboard graphics. Is that necessary for what I want to do with it? Do I just tell him to get a p67 because I won't make full use out of a z68?

 

[JackoDaddy5]

I've taken that liquid cooling idea thing from a couple different people, and am all but over it. If it's just an added expense, and won't be needed for my setup, then I won't be getting it. I don't like the idea of having to change the tubes or leak. I'd add an extra fan if I needed it before the liquid.