Needadvice on a new system

[Bubba669]

i'm looking to spend no more than $280 on a new motherboard and processor.

so far i'm considering

Asrock z68 extreme3 gen3 lga
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271

paired with

Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115077

or

ASUS M5A99X EVO AM3+ AMD 990X http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131754

paired with

AMD FX-4100 Zambezi 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103996



I'm going to be using it for watching videos and gaming mostly. I would also like suggestions on how big a power source i would need to run for these. I'm using my radeon hd 6570 2gb video card till i get more money for a different one.

I've been reading alot about motherboards and processors the last few days and my mind feels like mush now....Please help.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

the intel cpu and motherboard will give you much better performance.
The psu depends on what graphics card you want to run in the future. in your current build a simple 300w-400w power supply could run it.

 

[RedChief6]

I\i5 2500k all the way! no i3

 

[azeem40]

He can't fit those on his budget. I'd go with the i3, as it has better core performance than any AMD CPU out.

 

[Bubba669]

the intel cpu and motherboard will give you much better performance.
The psu depends on what graphics card you want to run in the future. in your current build a simple 300w-400w power supply could run it.

I think eventually I'll get a gtx 570. It's seems like one of the best one out...and the intel board is "future-proof" to a certain extent,right?

 

[Bubba669]

He can't fit those on his budget. I'd go with the i3, as it has better core performance than any AMD CPU out.

Is AMD's Piledriver series going to be as good as promised? I've heard that the Bulldozer are sub-par.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

I think eventually I'll get a gtx 570. It's seems like one of the best one out...and the intel board is "future-proof" to a certain extent,right?

i would skip the 570 and get a gtx 6xx series card or amd 7xxx series card. the motherboard is "future-proof" to a certain extent. It will be able to run ivy bridge which should be more powerful than piledriver unless it improves on bulldozer by leaps and bounds. right now though the i3 2120 is more powerful than any amd processor when it comes to gaming.

 

[boiler1990]

i would skip the 570 and get a gtx 6xx series card or amd 7xxx series card. the motherboard is "future-proof" to a certain extent. It will be able to run ivy bridge which should be more powerful than piledriver unless it improves on bulldozer by leaps and bounds. right now though the i3 2120 is more powerful than any amd processor when it comes to gaming.

+1. I run an i3-2120 + 560Ti and get great performance. Maybe a GPU upgrade is in order, since that's what's limiting me

 

[azeem40]

I cannot recommend waiting for AMD's new CPUs.

 

[boiler1990]

I cannot recommend waiting for AMD's new CPUs.

What, you mean MOAR CORES AND MOAR GHZ won't fix the problem???

 

[Bubba669]

I'm thinking maybe getting a
GTX 550ti

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=356682&csid=_23

or

Sapphire Radeon HD 7750

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2042280&CatId=7387


but that means would need a larger PSU any suggestions?

 

[boiler1990]

I'd be leaning towards the 7750 just based on the performance improvements in the higher end cards (haven't looked at any benchmarks between the two - would obviously be the sensible thing to do).

What sort of PSU are you looking at right now? I'd say about 400W is all you need with a good brand - the 7750 doesn't draw any more than 150W (AMD is stupid and doesn't post power consumption/TDPs like NVIDIA does, but it only requires one 6pin connector which means 150W max is delivered to the card).

 

[Bubba669]

i'm thinking a CORSAIR Builder Series CX500 V2 500W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027 for my psu. i know it is overkill right now.

also, what do you guys think of Thermaltake CLP0579 Contact 30 CPU Cooler http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6680856&RSort=4&csid=ITD&body=#CustomerReviewsBlock but i dunno if it'll fit on the asrock z68 extreme3 gen3

and i think i'll go for the 7750

 

[azeem40]

What, you mean MOAR CORES AND MOAR GHZ won't fix the problem???

Trolol.

 

[boiler1990]

i'm thinking a CORSAIR Builder Series CX500 V2 500W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027 for my psu. i know it is overkill right now.

That's probably a good PSU for now - Antec's stuff isn't any cheaper, and the CX series (while not the best) is pretty good overall. Better than most of the crappy PSUs you can find in that wattage range. I own 2 Corsair PSUs and love them - won't consider another brand for my performance PCs.

also, what do you guys think of Thermaltake CLP0579 Contact 30 CPU Cooler http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6680856&RSort=4&csid=ITD&body=#CustomerReviewsBlock but i dunno if it'll fit on the asrock z68 extreme3 gen3

You don't really need this at all - your CPU will be plenty cool with the stock heatsink (I mean, if it didn't work, why would they bother to include it). They're actually pretty quiet too, so you most likely won't hear it over your case fans.

I mean, you can always buy another heatsink, but it doesn't make a lot of sense to do so in this case.

 

[Bubba669]

sounds good. thank you for all your input.

 

[azeem40]

i'm thinking a CORSAIR Builder Series CX500 V2 500W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027 for my psu. i know it is overkill right now.

I own 2 Corsair PSUs and love them - won't consider another brand for my performance PCs.

I prefer XFX over Corsair.

 

[boiler1990]

Consider XFX and Corsair (TX, HX, and AX models) are both OEMed by Seasonic, they're really the same at heart

 

[azeem40]

I chose XFX cuz they are cheaper.