New build advice

[evandyk]

Approximate Purchase Date: Ready to pull the trigger any time

Budget Range: Pretty flexible. Would love to stay under $1000.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Light gaming, some photo and video editing, watching stuff. A little of everything, general home usage.

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Plan to use ncix.com and their assembly service probably

Country of Origin: Canada

Parts Preferences: No preference, willing to pay a little more $ for quality if you have suggestions.

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200

Additional Comments: I don't have the need for the most powerful computer, but need it to look nice and last (will probably recycle it as a HTPC some time in the future. And I do like things to be snappy, if only to make my wife jealous that my computer is faster than hers...

Here is what I put together, based on the advice I've been reading here (all prices from yesterday at NCIX):


Antec NSK1480 mATX Mini Desktop Case Silver Black 1X5.25 2X3.5INT 350W In Stock $124.99

ASUS P8H67-M LE REV3.0 mATX LGA1155 PCI-E16 PCI-E4 2PCI DVI HDMI VGA Sandy Bridge B3 Motherboard $107.41

Intel Core i5 2500 Quad Core Processor LGA1155 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB In Stock $204.99

Diamond Radeon HD 5570 650MHZ 1GB GDDR3 2XDVI HDMI PCI-E Video Card In Stock $59.99
After Rebate

ASUS DRW-24B1ST 24X SATA DVD Writer OEM Black In Stock $27.99

OCZ Agility 3 60GB 2.5IN SATA3 Sandforce SF-2281 SSD Solid State Disk Flash Drive In Stock $122.25

Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA3 6GB/S 7200RPM 64MB Cache 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM In Stock $79.99

Mushkin Enhanced Silverline Stiletto 8GB 2X4GB PC3-10666 DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 Dual Channel Memory Kit YES* $60.13

Will get Windows 7 OEM.


An alternative for the case is:

Antec NSK1380 mATX Cube Case 1X5.25 3X3.5INT W/ 350W Earthwatts PSU BLACK/SILVER In Stock $115.45


I guess my questions are:

1. Will everything work together?
2. Do these case choices raise any concern about fitting everything in, or heat problems?
3. Is the 350W power supply big enough for it?
4. Is that the right graphics card? I thought it was a good fit for the small case to minimize heat and power needs, while still meeting what are my basic needs (I currently play games - mostly Civ V and COD2MW - at 1280X800 and low/med settings on my 23" monitor, so am just looking for an improvement on that).

5. Since putting a black DVD drive in that case will be a bit ugly, can anyone recommend a different drive that would fit better??

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

 

[striker410]

Well, nice job! it's a nice build.

However, I would change a few things.

-Drop to an i3-2100. Save $80, don't lose any speed. It's WAY fast for what you need.

-Upgrade GPU to a 5670. It's stronger, only costs $10 more. If you want even more power, look to a GTS 450 or 5770. Only $40 or so more and will MAX MW2 (bleh) a that res for sure. Not sure if the PSU has the cable for it though.

-Grab a Blu-Ray drive. They are cheap enough to make it worth while if you like HD movies.

And yes, that power supply is plenty.

Thats about it!

 

[shane799]

Get a bigger SSD, 60 GB holds one, or two games and Windows. You will wish you bought a larder drive later. I do!

Your choice of GPU means you will be resticted to playing TETRIS. If you think you may actually want to game on you computer spend some more money.

 

[striker410]

Get a bigger SSD, 60 GB holds one, or two games and Windows. You will wish you bought a larder drive later. I do!

Your choice of GPU means you will be resticted to playing TETRIS. If you think you may actually want to game on you computer spend some more money.

A 60GB SSD is meant for speed. With the prices we have nowadays, 60GB is a good choice. Notice he still has a normal HDD for storage?

Actually, at that res the 5570 or 5670 would be able to play BC2 on medium at 45FPS easily. It's very low res, so the CPU is the part that matters.

 

[evandyk]

I'm playing now at 1280, but my monitor goes to 1920X1080, so I'd like to take advantage of that. But I usually don't get around to playing anything until it's a year or two old, so I'm never playing the most demanding games.

I'm happy to spend more money on the card, as long as it's something that will fit in my case with that PSU. Would the GTS 450 or 5770 cause problems?

 

[striker410]

Well, Just did some research. No go, doesnt have a 6 Pin PCI-e cable which is needed for GTS 450/5770.

Check out the Silverstone Sugo. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163171&cm_re=silverstone_sugo-_-11-163-171-_-Product It's not as sexy, but they sell an aluminium version for like $30 more and I figured you didn't care THAT much.

You could also pair this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163112&cm_re=silverstone_sugo-_-11-163-112-_-Product with this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371033&Tpk=antec%20380 For a very potent rig and not have any worries.

 

[evandyk]

I like the second option better. But is that the same power supply as this case?

http://www.ncix.ca/products/?sku=41816&vpn=NSK2480&manufacture=Antec

Believe it or not, I did more research on the case than any other part. I've got to justify the $1000, and a pretty case goes a long way...

 

[striker410]

Yes, that is the same power supply. It also looks like the case has 4 PCI expansion slots, so a GTS 450 or 5770 would fit quite well.

 

[evandyk]

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to configure a new one with your suggestions (with the second Silverstone case and the 5770) and post as a new thread with a more descriptive title to see if anyone else weighs in.

 

[evandyk]

I got tired of thinking about it, so went to a computer store in the neighbourhood. They are putting it together for me in the Antec NSK2480 (most parts are the same except the RAM, which is now Corsair Vengeance). Total was $910 built and installed with a GTS 450 (but no SSD). Best part is no week-long wait

 

[striker410]

ahh, you shoulda built yourself. But hey, how's it run?

 

[evandyk]

I've never done it before. It's something I think I'd enjoy if everything went well, but don't have much patience for troubleshooting if it doesn't. Maybe next time....

Runs like a dream, compared to my last computer - although I haven't done much yet other than installing software. And I get points for handing my old one down to the wife.

 

[striker410]

Ahh, well that's good. I'm glad everything worked out.

 

[evandyk]

Best answer selected by evandyk.