New Gaming Build Advice

[SuperBee]

Hi, this will be my first build. So I'm not 100% on everything I have so far. So I'm just looking for advice.

I'm planning on reusing my current AMD 965 BE. And maybe my 1TB Seagate Barracuda HD. I'm not really sure about the PSU, I put that one in cause it seemed like the right thing. Also the case I've seen people say about the lack of USB 3.0, been looking at the Zalman Z11 Plus. Too be honest I'm not really sure about any of it, although I've been looking around and feel like the HD7950 is the best card for me.

I'm using a 1920 x 1080 monitor. Machine is for gaming mainly.

Part Picker List - http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/GLma

I'm not really bothered about where I purchase the parts.

Thanks

 

[excella1221]

> The 965 BE has a good chance of being a bottleneck to the 7950, make sure to OC that.
> Drop the overpriced motherboard, it's all gimmick and marketing.
> Get low profile RAM unless you want to go through hell when installing the EVO.
> The Gigabyte 7950 has a better custom cooler and is cheaper too, so unless you really want the ASUS, get that.
> If you're reusing the 1TB HDD, why are you getting another 2TB? Might wanna invest on an SSD instead.
> A much better PSU. 750w is overkill anyway, even 650w is, but the headroom is nice.
> The HAF912 is a great casing, but yes it's already showing its age. Though if you have no stuff that has USB 3.0 anyway, you won't need the front panel support. If ever you find yourself with a USB 3.0 device in the future, the 990FX Extreme3 would have some at the back.

Here's a little revision from me.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.99 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: ASRock 990FX Extreme3 ATX AM3+/AM3 Motherboard (£85.67 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£39.99 @ Dabs)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£63.59 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (£239.75 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case (£64.04 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£67.20 @ Aria PC)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222AB DVD/CD Writer (£16.25 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £601.48
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-01 15:15 GMT+0000)

 

[SuperBee]

Thanks. I realised as I was looking around at other cases the USB 3.0 doesn't bother me. I wasn't really sure about the motherboard, so thanks for the alternative. Also is the Cooler fine, I remember seeing it recommended everywhere when I was buying the 965.

 

[excella1221]

Yup, I consider it the best entry-level cooler in the market.

 

[SuperBee]

I realised I don't need to get an optical drive so I save about £15 would going for this PSU be a better idea in terms of it being modular

XFX 650W XXX Semi Modular - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/650w-xfx-xxx-p1-650x-xxb9-hybrid-modular-85-eff-80-plus-bronze-sli-crossfire-eps-12v-quiet-fan-atx-v

 

[SuperBee]

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/GPfW

I ended up "re-doing" the system. I did look at the 8320 but was wondering wheter I really need it for just gaming, also do I really need the 990FX or could I go for a 970 motherboard?

 

[g-unit1111]

> The HAF912 is a great casing, but yes it's already showing its age. Though if you have no stuff that has USB 3.0 anyway, you won't need the front panel support. If ever you find yourself with a USB 3.0 device in the future, the 990FX Extreme3 would have some at the back.

I have a HAF 912 and it's a great case. USB 3.0 on the front is nice but if you don't need it then it's not an issue. The European HAF 912 Plus is pretty nice as well.



On that budget I wouldn't get an AMD FX, you could definitely get an Intel i5 - that would be a better CPU for gaming.

Here's what I would suggest:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£161.99 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£101.98 @ Dabs)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£39.99 @ Dabs)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£98.59 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (£253.50 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case (£46.99 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£65.98 @ Dabs)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (£12.85 @ Aria PC)
Total: £781.87
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-01 23:53 GMT+0000)

I went a little over budget but that will be a far better system in the long run.

 

[excella1221]

^ I can +1 this.

The above build I gave was under the fact that you were gonna re-use the Phenom. If you're thinking of replacing the motherboard and CPU anyway, go Intel for a pure gaming build.

I'm not sure why the slightly more expensive Sapphire was chosen instead though.

You can probably cut corners by getting a non-OC and non-SLI/CF motherboard + CPU combo.

 

[SuperBee]

Yeah, I've endes up going all over the place with parts I want to get. Is that i5 the best cpu avaliable for gaming?

I also saw you changed the case was that just to bring down the price abit?

 

[excella1221]

For a multiplier unlocked CPU, yes. If you're not going to OC though, an i5-3350P or iy-3470 would be just as good.

 

[SuperBee]

If I said my budget could goto £900 would there be any upgrades worth it to this build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£161.99 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£25.45 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£101.98 @ Dabs)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£39.99 @ Dabs)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£98.62 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (£253.50 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case (£64.04 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£65.98 @ Dabs)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (£12.85 @ Aria PC)
Total: £824.40
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-02 13:33 GMT+0000)

 

[Hazzacanary]

PCPartPicker part list: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/GYGI
Price breakdown by merchant: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/GYGI/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/GYGI/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£161.99 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£25.45 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£101.98 @ Dabs)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£39.99 @ Dabs)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£98.62 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card (£296.15 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case (£64.04 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£65.98 @ Dabs)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (£12.85 @ Aria PC)
Total: £867.05
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-02 14:20 GMT+0000)

Upgraded the 7950 to a 7970.

 

[SuperBee]

I'm wondering about storage for the PC, I currently have a Seagate Barracuda 6Gb/s 500GB and 1TB. Currently my OS is on the 500GB (I've only used about 250GB of this including the OS(I won't be moving this from my current system)) and mainly games on the 1TB one. I don't feel I'd really use a SSD for more than the OS and Internet browsers and smaller programs, so is it really worth getting an SSD, in both usage terms and monetary. £100 for 128GB seems like a bad deal to me when you can get 3TB for £90. Would getting a smaller SSD like 30/40GB, then a say 500 HDD for programs?

Also OS, I thought I had a Win 7 disk but I don't so, is Windows 8 really that bad?

 

[excella1221]

An SSD essentially speeds up the overall performance of the system when the OS is installed, but it's really up to the consumer if it's worth it. Personally, I don't think I can build another system(for myself, at least) without one.

Windows 8 isn't as bad as people make it out to be, but again personally, I'd just stick with 7.

 

[SuperBee]

Well I gotta while to think and work out things like that, still 3 months till I can afford it, forgot to mention the time span earlier.

I've been looking at the PSU, I'm wondering wheter I need the 650W, Overclocking is something I could consider in the future but even then do I need the extra 200W, I feel a 550W would be better (http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1550sxxb9) but I don't really know that much.

Is that XFX HD7970 the best one at the lower end price range for the 7970.

I've been looking at how long it will take to actaully get the parts to build and I've thought about dropping the 7970 from the whole order, and sticking my current HD5770 in, until I can get enough to buy the 7970 separately. As far as I'm aware changing video cards in a fairly short time is not a issue, its just the large difference in power consumtion the two cards are, would that create some form of instability when swapping from the 5770 to the 7970? This also means I'd be willing to possibly spend more to buy a better? version of the 7970.

I'd also like to say thanks to everyone who has replied, you've helped me and also opened my eyes to this strangely good feeling of building a PC, thank you.

 

[Hazzacanary]

Get the 650W and, rather than buying a new video card quickly, run two in xfire.