First Build. CAD and gaming. Advise please

[jamam]

Hey guys, I'm looking to build my first computer and was hoping someone would be kind enough to give some advise and opinions.

My budget is £900 (including tax and shipping to the UK). I am only looking for the tower for now, I will be sorting new monitors at a later date (i will hopefully be running duel monitors)

I am want it for CAD modeling (solidworks, autocad), Photoshop, InDesign, and a fair amount of gaming. I would like the option of SLI in the future if possible.




Here are the main components of the rig i had in mind-


Case: Thermaltake element T
http://www.pcupgrade.co.uk/productdetails.asp?productid=8578&categoryid=463

Motherboard: ASrock z68 Extreme4 Gen3
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005FE52X6/ref=asc_df_B005FE52X66404741?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B005FE52X6

CPU: Intel Sandybridge i7-2600K
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004FA8NOQ/ref=asc_df_B004FA8NOQ6404741?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004FA8NOQ

GPU: MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-gtx-560ti-oc-twin-frozr-ii-40nm-4008mhz-gddr5-gpu-880mhz-shader-1760mhz-384-cores-plus-bf3-g?utm_source=google+shopping&utm_medium=google+shopping

RAM: Corsair vengeance 8GB 1600MHz CL9 DDR3
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9-1600MHz-Vengeance-Memory/dp/B004CRSM4I/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1328057016&sr=1-1

PSU: Unsure ATM, i was looking at the Coolmaster Silent Pro 700W, Modular. I'm currently unclear of the advantages of different PSU's.
http://www.ebuyer.com/147047-coolermaster-silent-pro-700w-modular-psu-single-12v-rail-with-50a-rs-700-amba-d3

PSU cooler: Unsure, possibly Cooler Master HYPER N520
http://www.expansys.com/cooler-master-hyper-n520-cooler-190135/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=base&ito=1701

HDD: Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB, SATA II, 720 RPM, 32MB cache
http://www.ebuyer.com/173804-samsung-hd103sj-spinpoint-f3-1tb-hard-drive-sataii-7200rpm-32mb-cache-hd103sj?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products



Any alterations or advise on how well this would suit my needs would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks

 

[kajabla]

Z68 Extreme3, for sure. The Extreme4 won't get you anything except, maybe, a slightly higher maximum overclock, and you don't need to worry about that. Your money will be better spent elsewhere.
CPU cooler: Hyper 212 EVO, £23
I'd get low-profile RAM with similar specs. Those heatsinks don;t do anything, and they may get in the way.
Here's a really nice 750W PSU for Ti SLI, £89: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/750w-xfx-xxx-p1-750b-ukb9-psu-88-eff-80-plus-silver-sli-crossfire-eps-12v-fan-atx-v22

Note: add a disc drive.

 

[Tavo_Nova]

well if you don't care about brands then an amd phenomii x6 1090t is good for you if not then the i7 2600K is good. go for ASUS z68 mobo if not the MSi z68A-gd 80 G3 mobo will do well for you, i use one my self except on my i5 2500k, go for the g.skill ripjaws 8gb (2x4gb) 1600mhz cl9 ram they should perform well, and advice is get 16gb ram, on my i5 2500k, while doing work and multi tasking with other stuff, my memory usage goes to 13-15gb depending on what i do so well i you only do like cad only without doing anything else while waiting to render, then i suggest an 8gb ram is good enough

 

[kajabla]

Oh, right. Get 16gb.

"If you don't care about brands"? What if you care about performance? The 2600K is firmly, reliably better than the 1090T.

 

[jamam]

Thanks for the replies. Good call on the Extreme 3, kajabla, i could use the money i save on that to get 16G of ram.

 

[cbrunnem]

well if you don't care about brands then an amd phenomii x6 1090t is good for you if not then the i7 2600K is good. go for ASUS z68 mobo if not the MSi z68A-gd 80 G3 mobo will do well for you, i use one my self except on my i5 2500k, go for the g.skill ripjaws 8gb (2x4gb) 1600mhz cl9 ram they should perform well, and advice is get 16gb ram, on my i5 2500k, while doing work and multi tasking with other stuff, my memory usage goes to 13-15gb depending on what i do so well i you only do like cad only without doing anything else while waiting to render, then i suggest an 8gb ram is good enough

1090t isnt in the same league as the 2600k

 

[jbheller]

Hey guys, I'm looking to build my first computer and was hoping someone would be kind enough to give some advise and opinions.

My budget is £900 (including tax and shipping to the UK). I am only looking for the tower for now, I will be sorting new monitors at a later date (i will hopefully be running duel monitors)

I am want it for CAD modeling (solidworks, autocad), Photoshop, InDesign, and a fair amount of gaming. I would like the option of SLI in the future if possible.




Here are the main components of the rig i had in mind-


Case: Thermaltake element T
http://www.pcupgrade.co.uk/productdetails.asp?productid=8578&categoryid=463

Motherboard: ASrock z68 Extreme4 Gen3
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005FE52X6/ref=asc_df_B005FE52X66404741?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B005FE52X6

CPU: Intel Sandybridge i7-2600K
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004FA8NOQ/ref=asc_df_B004FA8NOQ6404741?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004FA8NOQ

GPU: MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-gtx-560ti-oc-twin-frozr-ii-40nm-4008mhz-gddr5-gpu-880mhz-shader-1760mhz-384-cores-plus-bf3-g?utm_source=google+shopping&utm_medium=google+shopping

RAM: Corsair vengeance 8GB 1600MHz CL9 DDR3
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9-1600MHz-Vengeance-Memory/dp/B004CRSM4I/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1328057016&sr=1-1

PSU: Unsure ATM, i was looking at the Coolmaster Silent Pro 700W, Modular. I'm currently unclear of the advantages of different PSU's.
http://www.ebuyer.com/147047-coolermaster-silent-pro-700w-modular-psu-single-12v-rail-with-50a-rs-700-amba-d3

PSU cooler: Unsure, possibly Cooler Master HYPER N520
http://www.expansys.com/cooler-master-hyper-n520-cooler-190135/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=base&ito=1701

HDD: Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB, SATA II, 720 RPM, 32MB cache
http://www.ebuyer.com/173804-samsung-hd103sj-spinpoint-f3-1tb-hard-drive-sataii-7200rpm-32mb-cache-hd103sj?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products



Any alterations or advise on how well this would suit my needs would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks

You could save a hundred dollars buying an i5-2500k instead of the i7.

Use the money to change your video card to an msi gxt570 twin froza.

If you can afford it, get a reasonable sized good quality SSD for your system driver. The corsair 120 GT drive is good. I have built 4 machines with them lately, but there is lots of other choices at around $200 that will make your system fly.

 

[cbrunnem]

^hes going to be rendering and things like that... = i7

 

[phamhlam]

Stick with Corsair RAM. i7 2600k is perfect. Get a Crucial M4 128GB SSD. Your current hdd is your bottleneck. Crucial M4 cost $160 on tiger direct.

 

[kajabla]

An SSD would be nice, yes.

 

[jamam]

How easy would it be to buy a SSD in the future (say 2-3 months time) and then swap my system drivers and OS to that? also, would installing a game to a SSD improve the game performance? I appreciate the help guys. Thanks.

 

[kajabla]

It wouldn't be that easy if the HDD ended up with more data than the SSD can hold. I recommend saving yourself the hassle and getting the drive now.

Installing programs to the SSD, from games to the OS, improves their launch times and speeds up whatever operations they need that access lots of data. In games, this means that they'll launch much more quickly and their levels will load much more quickly. Other programs will launch quickly too, and everything in the OS will go a little more snappily (not just boot).

When I booted from my old HDD, I'd have to wait a solid minute and a half after getting to the desktop before being able to do anything. Now I get to the desktop thirty seconds faster and that hang time is reduced to about two seconds.

 

[cbrunnem]

How easy would it be to buy a SSD in the future (say 2-3 months time) and then swap my system drivers and OS to that? also, would installing a game to a SSD improve the game performance? I appreciate the help guys. Thanks.

If you wantbto buy a ssd later i would partition your hard drive in your new build with one partition only having the thing you would want on your ssd. Like your os and some programs. That way when you buy your ssd all you have to do is clone the right partition and your set.

 

[kajabla]

^If you really can't afford the SSD now, that's the way to go.

 

[jamam]

Thanks very much. I think i'll just dip in to my savings and get a SSD now and save myself the hassle.

 

[Why_Me]

Thanks very much. I think i'll just dip in to my savings and get a SSD now and save myself the hassle.

Something to think about. You could always use the ondie vid for now until the new Nvidia PCI-E 3.0 cards come out...I believe their due out next month. That would save you some money for now and give you a chance to get one of those new cards when they come out.

 

[jamam]

Hmmm. is there any word on how much the 3.0 are expected to cost? i cant find anything online. I have budgeted £200 ($315-ish) for my graphics card so I image they would be out of my price range.

 

[jamam]

Also, would i need to wait for ivy bridge to take advantage of PCI-E 3.0?

 

[Why_Me]

Also, would i need to wait for ivy bridge to take advantage of PCI-E 3.0?

Yep. A Gen 3 board...Asus, Asrock, MSI, Gigabyte, etc... as long as it's a Gen 3 board that supports PCI-E 3.0, an Ivy Bridge cpu, and a PCI-E 3.0 vid card. AMD has there's out already, and Nvidia's PCI-E 3.0 cards are due out any moment.

http://www.asrock.com/microsite/PCIe3/overview.html <--- a quick and simple look at PCI-E 3.0

 

[jamam]

Thanks, the link is very helpful. AMDs looks awful pricey, i think i'll have to stick with with a 2.0 and see how i get on. Still not fully decided on which though.

 

[kajabla]

Hold on. Nvidia's new cards will be good because of their new architecture, not because of their PCI 3.0 capability. No graphics hardware that currently exists can max out a PCI 2.0 x8 lane (in SLI, that is), and I doubt that any but the very best Kepler card (690?) will come anywhere close.

 

[cbrunnem]

Hold on. Nvidia's new cards will be good because of their new architecture, not because of their PCI 3.0 capability. No graphics hardware that currently exists can max out a PCI 2.0 x8 lane (in SLI, that is), and I doubt that any but the very best Kepler card (690?) will come anywhere close.

im 99% positive modern cards can saturate x8 but pcie3 x8 is the same speed as pcie2 x16

 

[kajabla]

I know it is. Provide evidence, please.