Help! First build. £800ish[$1300] budget. -UK

[maxsg]

Hi folks! First time pc builder here, ready to have my hardware cherry popped. After browsing a while and reading a lot of mixed reviews about Cyberpower comps, I figured i'd take the plunge and build my own. Would appreciate any suggestions!


Approximate Purchase Date: this week (the closer the better)

Budget Range: £800(roughly 1300USD) after rebates; before shipping

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Photoshop(hi-res files), listening to music, casual gaming, watching youtube/movies.

Are you buying a monitor: Yes (small secondary monitor)

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Ebuyer.co.uk

Location: Inverness, Scotland

Parts Preferences: Nvidia

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: No

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200 (Secondary monitor doesn't need to be large, 17" maybe?)

Additional Comments: Already purchased a case (Corsair Carbide 300r) and keyboard/mouse.

Why Are You Upgrading: Unfortunately my '08 Macbook is showing its age. Large files in PS are lagging an awful lot. I'm also quite excited to go back to a desktop running windows.


Here's what I've compiled so far:

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor (£157.87 @ CCL Computers)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£26.65 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD65 (G3) ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£127.92 @ Amazon UK)
Memory x2: Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory (£27.97 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£49.98 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£74.99 @ Ebuyer)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card (£239.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply (£44.50 @ Ebuyer)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.96 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Corsair Carbide 300r @ Ebuyer (£71.93)
Total: £861.73 ($785.97 from US merchants)

Here’s a link to the pc part picker list using uk merchants and here is one with American equivalents. I’m afraid we don’t get as good value for money over here

If there’s anyway to make this post more u.s-friendly please let me know. Ideally I'd like to get the cost of this build to around £700-800.
Are the components that I've selected a bit expensive/overkill for my needs? I've just sorta picked them from what reviews I've read online. Super resolution gaming isn't a must. I'd be happy to play most games on mid settings (LoL, Teamfortress, maybe the new Borderlands game) My main focus is working with a lag-free photoshop (I heard that photoshop is designed to run better with Nvidia that it will with AMD?)
Any help would be greatly appreciated as I haven't the foggiest as to what I'm doing. Last time I fiddled with a computer was 7 years ago sticking a 6800gt in to my parents dell pc!

Thanks
-Max

 

[g-unit1111]

That's a good start but here's what I would suggest - you should be going with the 3570K and a Z77 motherboard with 1600MHz RAM. Also the 7950 is a better choice than the 660TI. On a low budget like that I'd skip the SSD for now and add it in later.

Try this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£149.99 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9B SE2 37.9 CFM CPU Cooler (£36.56 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£100.02 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£59.99 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£76.94 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (£303.20 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: NZXT Phantom 410 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case (£79.69 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£70.16 @ Ebuyer)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer (£13.98 @ Novatech)
Total: £890.53
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

 

[maxsg]

Thanks for the feedback! Did a bit more research and turns out with cs6, amd/nvidia doesn't matter much so switched out for 7950. What do you think?

Couple questions if you dont mind. I was eyeing up a z77 gigabyte mobo and wondering what you thought?

Also what would be the difference between getting larger Corsair ram and this G.skill ram, or this G.skill ram? Does the latency make much of a difference?


This is where I'm at so far(took out the case):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£149.99 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9B SE2 37.9 CFM CPU Cooler (£36.56 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£104.12 @ Scan.co.uk)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£59.99 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£76.94 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (£266.14 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£70.16 @ Ebuyer)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer (£13.98 @ Novatech)
Total: £777.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Thanks again for the help.

 

[g-unit1111]

Couple questions if you dont mind. I was eyeing up a z77 gigabyte mobo and wondering what you thought?

My last three motherboards have all been Gigabyte (one 990FX, one Z68, and currently a Z77). They make good products.

Also what would be the difference between getting larger Corsair ram and this G.skill ram, or this G.skill ram? Does the latency make much of a difference?

Latency doesn't make that much of a difference - the heat sinks will. Get the G.Skill Ares or low profile Vengeance to avoid any issues with your cooler.