~ $1000 Render/Gaming PC

[NotTheBeard]

Hey all,

I was told and shown by a friend that this community was very nice and helpful to individuals just getting started on building their own PC's. I have a need to build a new PC relatively soon as my laptop is slowly beginning to die an agonizing death. I filled out the format for asking for help and if there is anything that I have left out or needs clarification, don't hesitate to ask.

Thanks





Approximate Purchase Date: This week or Next week

Budget Range: ~$1000 Before Shipping

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Rendering, Gaming, Surfing Interenet

Are you buying a monitor: No





Parts to Upgrade: None, Buying everything

Do you need to buy OS: Yes, prefer Windows 7.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: new-egg.com

Location: Chicago, IL

Parts Preferences: Depends on the part, but I haven't had trouble with AMD or

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: Yes

Your Monitor Resolution: 1600x900

Additional Comments: Would like a window on case, not required though. Running quiet is a must for where I live/work. Games, I guess Borderlands, Skyrim, the like.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: My laptop has maybe 1-2 months left on it before I say goodbye so I figured it was a good time to get something more substantial for work.






Here is an initial build I set up for this, let me know if this will even work for what I want/need or if I am just being silly and throwing random parts together.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jYWa

 

[monstersti]

sorry kinda read the post more after i posted this build :/

 

[NotTheBeard]

I own two mice and I have an extra keyboard sitting around so I don't need either of those.

This build looks really good for what I have in mind. Is it possible to upgrade the RAM at a future point with this motherboard?

 

[NotTheBeard]

$1000 is the benchmark on price I want, but if I have to spend another $50-$100 to get something that will work better, I am ok with that. Thanks.

 

[twelve25]

For $900, excluding monitor, this should perform a lot better than what you had in the OP:

I'd go i5-3570k and 8GB of RAM, ditch the 5900 RPM drive, add a 128GB SSD and a 7200RPM drive and get a Radeon 7850 instead of that 550 Ti. Also, bump the power supply up to at least 500W. I really, really doubt you need a discrete soundcard.

See what you think of this setup:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jZ9H

 

[NotTheBeard]

This may be a stupid question to ask here, but what do I gain by having the SSD in conjunction with the Hard drive?

 

[NotTheBeard]

I guess I should also have stated, my renderings are for architectural purposes first, some gaming and landscape designs second. They can become pretty realistic so anything that can help with making this process faster or smoother is what I am looking for first and foremost.

 

[twelve25]

This may be a stupid question to ask here, but what do I gain by having the SSD in conjunction with the Hard drive?

SSD are insanely fast for random access. So for booting the computer, launching apps, loading levels in games, you get a huge performance boost. But of course they are too expensive to get enough capacity to hold all of your data. I have an SSD with windows and all my programs launching from (well two actually) and then a couple 7200 RPM drives for all my pictures and videos. SSD is the best thing you can do to make a computer feel faster. I wouldn't build another system without it.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Oh alright, that actually sounds incredibly enticing to be honest. My current pc takes between 6 and 10 minutes to load up. Not a big deal, but add in the loading time for the programs I use and it gets into the 15-20 minute range at times depending on how many I need to use that day.

 

[twelve25]

My computer takes 15 seconds from the time I push the button.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Ok, new requirement, I must now have all the SSD that were made in the last 5 years!

This sounds great, I will seriously consider adding this into my build then.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Thanks for all the tips and advice guys. I will do a bit more research based on what you have shown me and post a final build tomorrow probably.

Are there any small odds and ends I should have for this? I.E. Heat Paste, screwdriver set, static discharge thingie, etc.

 

[DarkSable]

Just cuz this is turning into an epeen competition, my rig takes under 8 seconds till I log in. [I looked for a motherboard that specifically took a short amount of time to POST]

 

[Kiowa789]

Ok, new requirement, I must now have all the SSD that were made in the last 5 years!

This sounds great, I will seriously consider adding this into my build then.

I'm sorry to bud in here
SSD - Solid state drive
Also, they have a long lifetime, windows takes about 7 seconds on my work computer to boot up.
but you shouldn't demand an SSD with a limited budget. seeing on how yours is 1000$, I would wait till christmas and then buy yourself one.
buy the important good hardware now, then buy cool bits later, like a SSD.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Lol, very well. While your at it, why not post the specs on them and I can view how all these various parts work together to try and make a great PC.


Also, you make a good point Kiowa. Are all Hard drives compatible with SSD? Or should I be looking for a specific hard drive for future upgrading?

 

[Kiowa789]

OK, Time to do a bit of schooling
A solid state drive is basically a very big flash drive, they use chips rather than
platters to store data and information, they aren't as fragile as regular Hard drives,
but they can't hold as much, and if you do find a 1tb solid state drive, make sure its
not from china, because its a scam.

Normal SSD's hook up like a regular Hard drive, but they are smaller, but they usually come with a bracket that allow's it to fit in one of your internal bay's.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Thank you for the information Kiowa.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Ok, based on the advice I was given yesterday, here is what I believe will be the final build for this computer:


CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair XMS3 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DS 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Antec Neo Eco 520W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit)


Total: $1050.70



http://pcpartpicker.com/p/k4cL

 

[NotTheBeard]

Thanks a lot jrgong, that's exactly what I needed. Now I can throw that extra $30 at the case.

Edit: I am going to keep the SSD off for now unless its necessary for it to be there initially. I will ask for it for Christmas or just put aside some money from my next paycheck for it. But thanks for the help with the part choices on the video card and RAM.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Best answer selected by NotTheBeard.

 

[NotTheBeard]

Ah no worries it will be a solid build regardless should treat you VERY nicely ;D

Thanks, that's all I ask for.

 

[Kiowa789]

Glad to see you decided to wait out on the SSD.
You won't regret it.