Search
Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

Any issues with this planned build?

Tags:
Last response: in Systems
Share

I’m trying to put together a 2nd system for as little money as possible while not cutting too many corners. It’ll be used for gaming and not much else. Probably F1 2011 primarily, but some Diablo 3, and various FPS as well.

I don’t need a graphics card as my main system currently runs two unlocked 6950’s, so I’m going to take one out for the 2nd system. I also don’t need an optical drive, keyboard, mouse, monitor, OS, and I’m happy to use the stock cooler. The monitor is an ASUS VW266H running 1920x1200, and the OS is 64bit Windows 7.

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K ($219.99)
Motherboard: MSI P67A-G43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard ($94.99)
PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W Modular High Performance Power Supply compatible with Intel Sandybridge Core i3 i5 i7 and AMD Phenom ($49.99)
Memory: Patriot Viper Xtreme Series, Division 2 Edition 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model PXD38G1600LLK ($47.99)
Case: COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case ($79.04)
Storage Drive: HITACHI HDS721050CLA362 (0F10381) 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive ($33.30)

TOTAL: $525.30 (the figures include some rebates, and don’t include shipping)

I’ve sacrificed some of the names I love from my first system to save money (Silverstone, Corsair, ASUS, Samsung, GSkill), but a few thoughts and rationales for why I’ve picked those components:

Sandybridge performance and overclocking are unparalleled, so I didn’t want to drop below that. I’m happy to spend most of the money on the CPU. Some of the other components can be upgraded around this, but I expect the CPU to not need an upgrade for several years.
The motherboard is the cheapest I could find that runs x8/x8 in the event that I run SLI or Crossfire in the future (likely)
Think 600W is enough on the PSU?
I could have saved more money on the Case, but I like the look, it comes with 3 case fans, and is highly rated. That’s one part that should last for a few system builds, so I didn’t want to skimp too much on it.
HDD prices are ridiculous right now, so I sacrificed some disk space, but then did find this drive for very cheap when I looked elsewhere (not newegg).

Having explained all that, is there any more money you think I could be saving? Anything wrong with the any of the components?

More about : issues planned build

Register or log in to remove

Quote:
Think 600W is enough on the PSU?


Not for dual 6950's - you want 700W minimum.

Quote:
The motherboard is the cheapest I could find that runs x8/x8 in the event that I run SLI or Crossfire in the future (likely)


MSI is certainly not my preferred choice for a motherboard vendor - I've had way too many of their boards fail on me. I typically stick with Gigabyte, Asus, or even Intel.

Quote:
Sandybridge performance and overclocking are unparalleled, so I didn’t want to drop below that. I’m happy to spend most of the money on the CPU. Some of the other components can be upgraded around this, but I expect the CPU to not need an upgrade for several years.


If you're going to overclock I didn't see a good cooler listed. That's something you will definitely want to invest in with a 2500K.

Quote:
HDD prices are ridiculous right now, so I sacrificed some disk space, but then did find this drive for very cheap when I looked elsewhere (not newegg).


I'd like to see where you got this drive - Hitachi hard drives are not that great, and for that kind of money I'm betting heavily that it's a recertified drive. I've been building and tweaking PCs since I was 15 (long time now... :lol:  ) and what I've learned from experience is that if a hardware deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If you can reuse the HD from your current build maybe try something like this:

Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 - $59.99
PSU: Corsair TX750 V2 - $94.99
Motherboard: Asrock Z68 Extreme 3 Gen 3 - $121.99
CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K - $219.99
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaw X 1600MHz 1.5V 8GB (2 x 4GB) - $44.99
Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo - $29.99

Total: $581.64

I didn't include a hard drive because if you can reuse your current HD you should definitely do so and then get a new one when the prices drop. Alternately once you get your build, you could get an SSD for an upgrade and use that as your boot drive.

@horney - RAID 0 isn't going to improve my FPS, so not really concerned with that.

@g-unit1111 - just cause I'm putting one 6950 in it doesn't necessarily mean I'll put another in it in the future for crossfire. More likely, this system will at some point get its own card, and the 2nd 6950 will go back in my main machine.

I'm not a MSI fan either. I had the ASRock P67 Extreme in there for a while, but took it out to save money. What's the scoop with the Z67 though? What are the differences between the Z67 and P67?

Am I going to notice any difference with CAS 9 memory vs CAS 8?

I didn't include a cooler as I'm happy to use a stock one. You can still get a huge overclock with just that.

Harddrive: http://www.hardwareking.net/product_info.php?currency=U...

I can't use my current hard drive - its my main PC, and its only got one harddrive. This is for a 2nd PC.


Related ressources
Ask the community

Yeah looks like a sick build, but if you are running two unlocked 6950s you may see problems on cheaper boards/chipsets, I remember someone saying somthing about having problems when the 6950s were unlocked.

Quote:
I'm not a MSI fan either. I had the ASRock P67 Extreme in there for a while, but took it out to save money. What's the scoop with the Z67 though? What are the differences between the Z67 and P67?


Main differences: P67 enables more overclocking features for the 2500K. Z68 enables onboard video, smart SSD caching and support for 3TB and larger hard drives.

Quote:
Am I going to notice any difference with CAS 9 memory vs CAS 8?


I'm not much of a RAM expert but I do know that your motherboard, by default, will run your RAM at the lowest speeds and timings it can handle. In the BIOS you can raise your RAM to the maximum speed but you shouldn't go over the stock speeds as that could potentially have dangerous consequences.

Quote:
just cause I'm putting one 6950 in it doesn't necessarily mean I'll put another in it in the future for crossfire. More likely, this system will at some point get its own card, and the 2nd 6950 will go back in my main machine.


Sapphire says minimum power requirements for the 6950 are 550W, I generally tend to go higher just to be on the safe side.
Register or log in to remove
 
Ask the community
Read discussions in other Systems categories
!