System Builder Marathon, Q3 2013: $1300 Enthusiast PC
Memory, Hard Drives, And Optical Drive
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR3-1600 Memory Kit
With 9-9-9-24 timings at 1600 MT/s, Corsair's Vengeance kit isn't the most aggressive one we've featured in the System Builder Marathon, but we're banking on capable overclocking. This dual-channel, 8 GB set of modules sells for $70 on Newegg.
Read Customer Reviews of Corsair's Vengeance 8 GB Kit
System Drive: Samsung 840 Series 120 GB SATA 6Gb/s SSD
Instead of using a 64 GB SSD, which is barely enough for an operating system and a few applications, we're outfitting this quarter's PC with a more realistic 128 GB repository. Samsung's 840 is a proven performer, and the 120 GB version is reasonably priced at $100 on Newegg.
Read Customer Reviews of Samsung's 840 Series 120 GB SSD
Hard Drive: Western Digital Blue 1 TB 7200 RPM Hard Drive
With a larger, more expensive SSD storing more of our performance-sensitive software, we'll save a few bucks on user data by swapping out our Caviar Black drive for a slower Caviar Blue model. Specification-wise, we aren't giving anything up with this 1 TB, 7200 RPM model armed with 64 MB of cache. But its $70 price tag is notably lower.
Read Customer Reviews of Western Digital's Blue 1 TB Hard Drive
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/RSBS DVD Burner
With our budget already pushing the $1300 limit, we picked the lowest-priced DVD burner we could find. Surprisingly, the cheapest option was a retail (and not an OEM) package. Samsung's SH-224DB/RSBS fills in nicely.
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chaospower I think this just shows that you don't really need more than a GTX 760 if you play on the most popular resolution of 1080p. Look how small the benefits of an Haswell are, compared to the 650$ build (HALF THE PRICE!) in games that mainly rely on GPU power.Reply
Overclocking haswell is a waste of money considering the amount of money you need to invest in a good MB and a good cooling, only to reach a rather tame 4.3ghz OC...
Just buy the cheapest I5 you can buy and pair it with a GTX 760, if you play on 1080p, I doubt you'll be disappointed. -
DelightfulDucklings The more I look at these the sadder I am about the overpriced parts I have to pay for in New Zealand :( Nevertheless, another good article, keep it upReply -
bemused_fred 11591176 said:"64 GB of cache"
I'd have that hard drive for $70 if it was true. :P
I thought it was only....32 on the blue models. :p -
Larry Bob This is a complete waste of money. You spend way more on the 4670K than you would on a 3570K, and a really expensive motherboard, then you pair it with a crappy CLC where even a 212 Evo or Respire T40 would do better. You then WAY overpay on the graphics card when a 7970 offers exactly the same performance (according to Tom's research) for $60+ less.Reply
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persuse the vengence ram Worst chip in all the model and brands !Reply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313399
Team Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB)DDR3 2400 best P/p memory with same price better choice.
and corsair H50 not is better whan aircooler.
the Phanteks PH-TC12DX or V6GT with same price range the beat performance.
for ssd i,m recomend Kingston HyperX 3K 120G with same price and beter speed.
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Novuake Good choice in PSU. Odd choice in motherboard. Does not provide THAT much for 200$.Reply
But most importantly, HORRIBLE choice in cooling. But ok... -
MANOFKRYPTONAK This is old tech... We nee some new stuff! Can't wait to see amds new cards, and nvidias response. Also Intel supposedly has an eight core haswell-e coming:)Reply