Hi there!
I'm about to overhaul the PC I built back in 2009/10 and I need some advice on the motherboard, case, and CPU cooler that I have chosen for my build to go with the components that I've already selected in my price range. Excluding a copy of Windows 7, my budget is $700 (very tight, can't spare any more than that) so I'll be using my current GPU and PSU with plans to upgrade the graphics card in the future (though it will be a while) and the PSU if absolutely necessary.
All prices are in AUD and are based on the pricing found on Umart.com.au.
Items I already own:
GPU: Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 260 Super Overclocked (factory OC)
PSU: Corsair HX-650 ATX Power Supply, 120mm fan
RAM (NEW): Corsair Vengeance CMZ16GX3M4X1600C9 16GB (4x4GB) 1600MHz DDR3 CL9 Performance with XMP 1.3
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Items I've decided on:
CPU:
Intel Core i5 2500K Processor LGA1155 3.3GHz
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Cost: $230
HDD:
Seagate SATA3 2TB 7200RPM Barracuda 64mb Cache
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Cost: $117
Items I'm still contemplating:
Motherboard:
Asrock Z77-EXTREME4-M Z77/4 x DDR3/2 x PCI-E3.0/4 x SATA3/4 x USB3.0/HDMI/D-Sub/DVI-D/7.1CH/GBLAN/RA
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=177&bid=6&sid=89540
Cost: $126
Case:
CoolerMaster RC-922XM-KKN2 HAF Black USB3.0 (PREFERRED)
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=1391&bid=6&sid=93772
Cost: $150
OR?
Antec Nine Hundred Two v3.0 (ALTERNATIVE)
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=207&bid=6&sid=71307
Cost: $131
Cooler: I'm seriously open to suggestions here; I've never bought a CPU cooler before and I don't even know how to tell if this will even fit.
Thermaltake ISGC-400 Multi Socket CPU Cooler
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=185&bid=6&sid=90960
Cost: $61
Will the cooler fit properly in one of the above cases without obstructing airflow?
Total cost:
With Antec case: $665 - $35 of budget remaining.
With CoolerMaster HAF case: $684 - $16 of budget remaining.
The reason that I bought so much RAM is that I frequently use various rendering and editing programs and the RAM has become a necessity. I will be overclocking the CPU to 4.0ghz+ so the after market cooler is also necessary. Furthermore, I'm a gamer so I'm frequently playing high graphics games (including the upcoming Guild Wars 2 which I want to be able to run on high settings in all major cities/war zones). Finally, I've already got a monitor, mouse, keyboard, and headset, so none of these things need to be taken into account.
If anyone has any better suggestions then feel free to let me know. However, please don't suggest an SSD drive or new graphics card because they're simply out of the question.
Thanks for the help.
-Inc.
I'm about to overhaul the PC I built back in 2009/10 and I need some advice on the motherboard, case, and CPU cooler that I have chosen for my build to go with the components that I've already selected in my price range. Excluding a copy of Windows 7, my budget is $700 (very tight, can't spare any more than that) so I'll be using my current GPU and PSU with plans to upgrade the graphics card in the future (though it will be a while) and the PSU if absolutely necessary.
All prices are in AUD and are based on the pricing found on Umart.com.au.
Items I already own:
GPU: Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 260 Super Overclocked (factory OC)
PSU: Corsair HX-650 ATX Power Supply, 120mm fan
RAM (NEW): Corsair Vengeance CMZ16GX3M4X1600C9 16GB (4x4GB) 1600MHz DDR3 CL9 Performance with XMP 1.3
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Items I've decided on:
CPU:
Intel Core i5 2500K Processor LGA1155 3.3GHz
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Cost: $230
HDD:
Seagate SATA3 2TB 7200RPM Barracuda 64mb Cache
https://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=6
Cost: $117
Items I'm still contemplating:
Motherboard:
Asrock Z77-EXTREME4-M Z77/4 x DDR3/2 x PCI-E3.0/4 x SATA3/4 x USB3.0/HDMI/D-Sub/DVI-D/7.1CH/GBLAN/RA
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=177&bid=6&sid=89540
Cost: $126
Case:
CoolerMaster RC-922XM-KKN2 HAF Black USB3.0 (PREFERRED)
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=1391&bid=6&sid=93772
Cost: $150
OR?
Antec Nine Hundred Two v3.0 (ALTERNATIVE)
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=207&bid=6&sid=71307
Cost: $131
Cooler: I'm seriously open to suggestions here; I've never bought a CPU cooler before and I don't even know how to tell if this will even fit.
Thermaltake ISGC-400 Multi Socket CPU Cooler
https://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=185&bid=6&sid=90960
Cost: $61
Will the cooler fit properly in one of the above cases without obstructing airflow?
Total cost:
With Antec case: $665 - $35 of budget remaining.
With CoolerMaster HAF case: $684 - $16 of budget remaining.
The reason that I bought so much RAM is that I frequently use various rendering and editing programs and the RAM has become a necessity. I will be overclocking the CPU to 4.0ghz+ so the after market cooler is also necessary. Furthermore, I'm a gamer so I'm frequently playing high graphics games (including the upcoming Guild Wars 2 which I want to be able to run on high settings in all major cities/war zones). Finally, I've already got a monitor, mouse, keyboard, and headset, so none of these things need to be taken into account.
If anyone has any better suggestions then feel free to let me know. However, please don't suggest an SSD drive or new graphics card because they're simply out of the question.
Thanks for the help.
-Inc.