Critique my build! and help with cpu choice :)

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
Z

zconner33

Honorable
Apr 22, 2012
12
0
10,510
Hey guys, I am in the process of picking out parts for my first ever build, and I need help choosing a cpu/mobo combo. The two that I am looking at are the Intel 2550k and the AMD FX 8120. I would probably pair the Intel with a Biostar TZ77XE3 MOBO, and I am planing to pair the AMD with a Biostar TA990FXE MOBO. The rest of my build is as follows:

Graphics Card: EVGA superclocked Nvidia GTX 560

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 rpm internal hard drive

Memory: G. Skill Ripjaws X series 8gb (2x4gb) (DDR3 1600 for Intel / 1866 for AMD)

PSU: Corsair Builder Series CX600

Case: NZXT Phantom ATX Full Tower (Red)

Monitor: ASUS VS Series VS228H-P 21.5"

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO

Both the AMD combo and the Intel combo are about the same price, so money isn't a big deal. So i guess what I am asking is which processor is more future-proof and will perform better in games and highly-demanding engineering software? Another question is if i go for the Intel combo, should I wait it out for Ivy Bridge, and if so, why? In addition, are there any major bottlenecks within the build that I am overlooking, and how would I go about fixing them?

Any other suggestions are also welcome. Just keep in mind I have a budget of around $1200. Thanks!!!
 
teh_gerbil

teh_gerbil

Honorable
Apr 9, 2012
515
0
11,060
For FullHD gaming, you're sinking some good money into the other system, at this point in time, the best for gaming is the i5 2500k.

Your choice goes like this:

$200 for 8 core AMD CPU
$180 for USB 3.0 high end AMD mobo

$380
=100% performance


Or.

$300 for i5 2500(k)
$200 for mid level i5 mobo

$500
=150% performance

So, for a single full HD monitor, I would reccomend the latter, especially as games become more visually enhanced (I presume you want to keep for a few years) then you will still maintain decent enough FPS well into the future, as the i5 is much faster than the equivalent FX series and will not be a limiting factor for gaming in the future, allowing you to upgrade your GPU for (hopefully) years to come.

There will be an argument over this, FX vs Intel, but the simple fact is they COST more, they PERFORM better.

Edit: I noted your budget, what's your favourite website for deals, amazon NCIX etc and your country so that we can price up a good deal. Note, the i5 will most likely go over that, for reasons stipulated above, will be a better long term investment.
 
xaira

xaira

Distinguished
Aug 6, 2008
2,384
0
19,960
some interesting things are around the corner for gpus and inel cpus so i say get everything except the gpu and cpu, wait 30 days, then get the cpu and gpu, or you could just get the intel combo, scale back on the cpu and get a better gpu
 
J_E_D_70

J_E_D_70

Splendid
Mar 21, 2012
7,294
59
30,290
Yup - stand by for news on IB and whatever nVidia is announcing soonish.

And the i5-2500K is only $220 on newegg and no reason to spend more than ~$180 on a Z77 mobo from Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, or ASRock. You could spend less for a mobo but you get what you pay for.

Better check the clearance of that RAM with the 212 Evo unless you plan to put the fan as pull or as a push turned toward the top. Not sure there.

You don't have a really large PSU (i.e. no SLI) or make mention of wanting a large water cooling setup so wonder if you really need a full tower. Could save some money there and get something like the 410 (similary appearance to the Phantom).

Think you're looking at being ~100 over budget but it would be worth it IMHO.
 
Z

zconner33

Honorable
Apr 22, 2012
12
0
10,510
Thanks for the suggestions! I am from America and I plan to do all my shopping from Newegg. Both of the builds I listed are at just under $1200 all pricing them from Newegg. So I'm guessing the general concensus here is wait for ivy bridge before I buy anything?
 
L

lpiotoole

Distinguished
Apr 30, 2011
91
0
18,630
Wait and see what the reviews are like for ivy bridge, there are rumoured, JUST RUMOURED, problems with them like overheating,so you should you wait for IB to release and if the reviews are bad go with the i5 2500k because the price of that will drop when IB is released anyway :)
 
W

willard

Distinguished
Nov 12, 2010
2,346
0
19,960

Sorry to burst your bubble, but they aren't rumors. It's been quite clear for weeks now that Ivy Bridge has serious heat issues (90C+ on the H100) when overclocked, both with the engineering sample and retail boxed CPUs.

As far as the OP is concerned, the 8120 is garbage compared to the 2500k. Not even a contest, the 2500k beats it at everything. Get either the 2500k (if you want to overclock) or the 3570k (if you don't plan to overclock) when it launches. Beats anything AMD has to offer. Don't let the AMD fanboys swing you with benchmarks where the framerates are GPU limited so they can hide the 30% lead the 2500k has over the fastest processor AMD has ever made.

It's like saying "Hey, you only need a $150 CPU, but go ahead and pay $250 for it because in cherry picked benchmarks it looks as good as Intel's $200 CPU." It's fanboyism at its best. If you're going to point to GPU bound benchmarks as a reason not to buy the 2500k, you'd better be suggesting a Phenom II instead.

There is no reason not to get the best bang for your buck. The 2500k has legendary bang for your buck, while Bulldozer has legendarily bad bang for your buck. Don't buy into the hype about them being 8 core (they're not). Get an Intel chip, you'll be happy you did.
 
Z

zconner33

Honorable
Apr 22, 2012
12
0
10,510
Cool so I think I'm definitely going for Intel, but I just need to decide to wait for Ivy Bridge or not. Also, are there any MOBOs anyone would recommend for the I5 under like $170? (pref. z77)
 
Major_Trouble

Major_Trouble

Distinguished
Jun 25, 2007
713
11
19,165
Why have you listed the GTX 560 and not a GTX 560ti? That would then split into 1GB, 2GB and even the 448 core models. The GTX 570 is a good suggestion but still fairly expensive compared to the ti's. Have not seen a real drop in price now the GTX 680s are out but maybe in the not to distant future from the rumours.

One thing to also seriously consider would be a smallish (100-120gb) SSD as your boot drive. They really do put some zip in any system. Once you've had one you don't want to go back.
 
T

tractorntrainguy

Honorable
Apr 1, 2012
21
0
10,510
Without more detail on the "engineering software" it's hard to justify going one way or the other.

What is it? Does it support more than four cores? Is it coded to utilize one CPU type over the other?

Games are easy, get video card that runs faster than you need today. If new game come out that don't run fast on it, buy another and tie them together. My son has my old PC with an Intel CPU and a decent video card. ALL his games run at frame rates he's happy with. I offered him a second card to boost performance but he didn't need it ... today.

I don't like your drive choice if you applications are disk intensive. My personal computer has an SSD for boot and software. A "standard" for data. I would suggest a raid array of smaller drives if you need high performance. SSDs are still a bit flaky for heavy apps.

Only 1600 DDR3? I would go with a minimum 1866 if I were building a $1200 system.

I do play games but I do a lot of video encoding and my lowly FX4100 at 4.1Ghz. blows through my work faster than I need.
 
Z

zconner33

Honorable
Apr 22, 2012
12
0
10,510
Well I don't believe the engineering software is really a big deal, I am just about to begin an engineering major and I heard its somewhat demanding but it shouldn't be any problem.

I am going for ddr3 1600 because anything higher is considered overclocking for sandy bridge and most of the Intel mobos from what I've read, but I could be wrong.

I was thinking about an ssd but idk if I can fit it into my budget :/

I was thinking the same thing about the 560 ti as well, and I think the 560 should be able to power through anything I need.

As far as the mobo, I'm thinking the asrock extreme4 now, due to better reviews and reliability.
 
rglaredo

rglaredo

Honorable
Mar 26, 2012
170
0
10,690


http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.864966&cm_sp=DIY_PC_Combos-_-864966-_-Combo

just add windows 7 ..and be done ..I did the same but changed the case from a thor to a corsair 500r .., got a 500gb cuda instead of the 1tb, and replaced those memory stics to some munchkin 16gb for 90 some bucks and got me ansrock board the gen3 i should have kep the thsi asus

 
Major_Trouble

Major_Trouble

Distinguished
Jun 25, 2007
713
11
19,165


Do try and squeeze the SSD into your budget you won't regret it, even if it's the smaller 60GB variety. Would take some file management but the speed gains are so worth it.

There can't be much in the way of price difference between the superclocked 560 and a vanilla 560ti, which you can easily overclock yourself with MSI Afterburner. I know which one I would prefer to have.
 
Z

zconner33

Honorable
Apr 22, 2012
12
0
10,510
Alright guys so here's my current build!

Processor: Intel I5 2550k

Mobo: asrock z77 extreme 4

Memory: 8gb G. Skill ripjaws x series ddr3 1600

Hdd: seagate barraccuda 7200 rpm 1Tb internal hard drive

Ssd: crucial m4 64gb internal ssd

Graphics card: EVGA superclocked gtx 560

Psu: xion axp-700k14xe (700w / 80+ bronze / 5 eggs on Newegg)

Case: nzxt phantom 410

CPU fan: cooler master hyper n 520

Monitor: asus vs228h-p 21.5"

OS: Windows 7 home premium
 
S

sarinaide

Splendid
Jul 14, 2011
3,820
0
22,960
1] 2500K / Z68 cost more than a 3570K and Z77, lucid MVP makes a difference in gaming so if you are not on a sandy already or on a low end sandy, then a Ivy is far more practical than going with soon to be redundant tech.

2] The real world gaming experience between the 2500k at $220 and 8120 at $180 is so over exaggerated in a callous manner, factor in the FX8120 pretty much trashing the 2500K in high thread count performance really makes the choice tricky if you can accept the Zambezi for what it is. Also a high end 990FX board can be bought for as low as $180, that gets you mainstream on the Intel platform.

So if you are asking me if your rig is good enough; Yes

I would maybe look into a better Graphics card where the net gains will be noticed more. If it means lowering on the Motherboard and losing the SSD then go for it, a Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 is a good feature rich board for $100, saving the extra $70 on a SSD, if you take a $360 vs $500~ setup plus factor the above, you will have enough for a HD7950, my opinion is that a FX 8120 / HD 7950 thumps a 2500K with GTX 560 without any doubt.
 
R

Robi_g

Distinguished
Jan 28, 2012
510
0
19,010
ASrock extreme 4 Z77 motherboard
i5 2500k / 3570k(or whatever the new one is)
RAM is good, GPU is good, get an SSD (60GB boot drive)
I wouldn't go with biostar for a motherboard
 
rglaredo

rglaredo

Honorable
Mar 26, 2012
170
0
10,690
60gb for windows 7 is to little ..at least 90 ...you need more than 60 after patches and downloads of drivers etc etc etc etc i have 90 gb ssd munchkin brand and already have 30 some left and I'm not done with the drivers ...everything else is on a separate drive (500gb cuda) going to get another 90 gb ssd for just diablo and gw2 ..so far warhammer wrath of heroes game is entertaining enough ..
 
J_E_D_70

J_E_D_70

Splendid
Mar 21, 2012
7,294
59
30,290
Fully patched Win 7 with adobe reader, flash, etc takes approx 26 GB. I have it on a 30GB partition with 4 GB free. So your SSD should be sufficient along with a games or two on it.

Unless you need really high overclocks grab the 3570K in a week. You can still get 4.2GHz or so with reasonable temps and power consumption.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom