Building First Comp (and 8 years since my last)

[sixpercentninja]

Hi all,

Would appreciate any input/advice. I basically build a new comp every 7 or 8 years (lawl) without upgrades in between, as I simply don't have the time/money to constantly change parts.

So I've come to that period where I'm building a new comp again, and everything is new again to me after being out of the loop for so long.

So far, this is what I've managed to purchase/have:

CPU: Intel i5 3570K
GPU: nVidia GTX 670
HDD: Western Digital 1TB
RAM: 16GB Patriot

This has added up to be about $750 so far.

Still to go: SSD, MOBO, PSU, Heat Sink, BluRay Player, and a Case.

I do NOT need a monitor, keyboard/mouse/speakers.

My budget is about $1300 to $1600. I do NOT plan to upgrade once built, I do NOT overclock, I am MOSTLY a gamer/casual user. Lastly, some of my biggest problems from my last computer have been stability and reliability issues (I'm a comp-breaker. Even Macs will crash when I use them).

I'm looking for reliable and STURDY parts - my last comp was badly put together in that the GPU was so heavy/big that it often disconnected from my Mobo and caused crap loads of problems.

Whew okay so, the next parts I'm researching/buying are the SSD and Mobo. Two areas I'm very unfamiliar with and am begging for help.

For SSD, I'm leaning towards Samsung (a trusted friend of mine advises against OCZ, as he's had problems with it before...though he does say they've mostly resolved it).

Question: Should I go for the Samsung 840 Pro 64 GB or 128 (or even 256?). Any feedback would be great on the brands, prices, and size.

For MOBO, I'm pretty clueless. My last MOBO had MANY problems including connection reliability issues with my GPU (GPU was too heavy and would physically dc'd from it). Also, it had so many built-in security measures that I would often fail to boot up at the slightest disturbance (if the power source was slightly under, for instance)

Question 2: What is a reliable, sturdy MOBO that is, above all, compatible with my i5-2570K (I imagine lots of responses for this as I'm sure the i5-2570K is a popular model)?

Thanks again

 

[manofchalk]

Well, gotta admit that 8yrs is a long time to expect a machine to work. The PSU should be replaced after ~4yrs.

SSD: Samsung 830 or OCZ Vertex 4, 128GB or larger. Both are quite good and are fairly reliable. Would lean towards the Samsung for its faster read speeds, which is what an SSD does mostly. But for Write speeds the Vertex 4 is unparalleled.

AsRock Z77 Extreme4
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H
ASUS P8-Z77-V LK
Those are all fairly good boards that will support Crossfire/SLI and can overclock your overclock capable CPU. All are roughly the same in terms of features.

 

[sixpercentninja]

Really appreciate the feedback. A couple of things:

-Haha maybe that's why my MOBO fails to boot every now and then? Had no idea PSUs die/need to be replaced ??

-Samsung 830, not 840? It's true saving money is always nice, but from my own rough calculations I should be able to afford the 840 series and still be around $1300 - $1600?

-For MOBO, I've definitely seen the three you listed a most suitable. I guess my question then is, what are the key differences between them? I believe I read somewhere one has more USB ports, whereas the other one has Wifi...etc?

As well, I also did hear the AsRock brand is not as reliable....>_>;

One more thing, I won't be Crossfiring/SLI-ing for sure. One GPU is enough for me.

 

[manofchalk]

Yep, the capacitors inside the PSU wear out over time and usage.

You could get the 840. Reason the 830 is still recommended is because the 840 wasn't seen as enough of an upgrade.

Old AsRock boards were pretty horrible, though in this generation (900 and Z chipsets) they have really lifted their game. Nowadays they are a big competitor to the likes of Gigabyte and ASUS.

As I mentioned before, the feature set amongst those boards is pretty much the same. Its really just going to come down to which one has more USB and fan headers.
Hardware wise, the only big thing is that the ASUS has two less SATA ports and the AsRock has onboard power buttons.
Software wise, the ASUS has better fan controls in the BIOS.

At this point you could just pick whichever looks better (Gigabyte IMO, though it clashes with my red colour scheme) and not make a bad decision.

 

[nondy]

if your not planning to overclock might as well ditch the Intel i5 3570K and try to get a i5 with lock multiplier, just my 2 cents

 

[sixpercentninja]

Bump for the day crowd.

And thanks manofchalk. Do you also have any take on what kind of PSU/HS/Case I should get?

nondy: yeah...I should probably learn how to OC, huh ><;

 

[manofchalk]

Given the parts chosen so far, would do with a 650W unit unless youv changed your mind about Crossfire/SLI, then get 750W. Get a unit from Seasonic, Corsair, or XFX. All of them will be at least 80+ Bronze and if you want you can get them modular as well.

CPU heatsink will depend on how far you are going to overclock. If you arent going to be pushing that 3570k beyond say 4.4Ghz, then a Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO will be plenty. Beyond that and I recommend jumping straight to the top and get a Noctua NH-D14 or a Corsair H100.

Case is largely personal preference, you have to like the look of it after all. The Coolermaster HAF series, NZXT Switch/Phantom series and any Corsair unit are all very good cases and cover pretty much any aesthetic you could want. Pick the one you like and fits your budget.

 

[sixpercentninja]

Thanks for all the input.

One more question, and it's a silly one but, so my last comp, the GFX card (the 8800GTX) was so big and heavy, it didn't hang on to the MOBO and computer case very well. In fact it would come loose easily.

Can anyone testify this motherboard will HOLD ON to the GTX 670 well?:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128546&Tpk=GIGABYTE%20GA-Z77X-D3H

Or is the sturdiness really more dependent on the case and the case's screws?

 

[sixpercentninja]

Oh shoot sorry, one more thing, should I get an SSD with an upgrade/installation kit, or is that not necessary at all?

Sorry for double post

 

[manofchalk]

Never used the board myself, but its gotten alright reviews so I cant imagine something like that happening.
If you get a good quality case, then wouldn't see the case supporting the GPU being an issue.

I think an installation/upgrade kit is just a 3.5" to 2.5" adapter so you can use HDD bays for your SSD. All the cases I recommended have 2.5" SSD support out of the box, so wouldn't worry about it.

 

[sam_p_lay]

+1 to manofchalk's 830/Vertex 4 SSD recommendations. Only thing I'd add is that it was the 840 that was a letdown, whereas the 840 Pro is the fastest consumer SSD you can buy. The Pro is pricey, but if you're happy to spend a bit more then it's as good as it gets.