System Builder Marathon, Q1 2013: $800 Enthusiast PC

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Test System And Benchmarks

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Q1 2013 $800 Enthusiast PC Test Settings
Row 0 - Cell 0 Default Configuration Overclocked
Motherboard ASRock Z77 Pro3: LGA 1155, Intel Z77 Express Unchanged
Processor Intel Core i5-3570K: 3.4 GHz Base Clock Rate, 3.8 GHz Turbo Boost, 6 MB Shared L3 Cache 4.4 GHz @ +0.085 V
Memory Crucial Ballistix Tactical BLE2KIT4GD31608DE1TX0: DDR3-1333 CL 8-8-8-24 1T at 1.5 V XMP Profile: DDR3-1600, 8-8-8-24-2T
Graphics PowerColor PCS+ Myst Edition AX7870 2GBD5-2DHPPV3E : 2 GB GDDR5 @ 6,000 MT/s, GPU @ 975 MHz (Boost) GDDR5 @ 6300 MT/s, GPU @ 1,150 MHz (Boost), Power @ 120%
Hard Drive Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002, 500 GB, 7,200 RPM, 16 MB Cache, SATA 6Gb/s Unchanged
Optical Samsung SH-224BB: DVD Burner Unchanged
Case Xigmatek Asgard II B/B Unchanged
Power Antec Neo Eco 520C: 520 W, ATX12V v2.3, 80 PLUS-Certified Unchanged
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Q4 2012 $1,000 Enthusiast PC Test Settings
Row 0 - Cell 0 Default Configuration Overclocked
Motherboard Gigabyte DA-970A-D3, Socket AM3+, AMD 970 Chipset Unchanged
Processor AMD FX-8350 (Piledriver): 4 GHz Base Clock Rate, 4.3 GHz Maximum Turbo Core, 8 MB Shared L3 Cache 4.33 GHz @ 1.3375 V
Memory Mushkin Enhanced Blackline: DDR3-1600, 2 x 4 GB (8 GB) Dual-Channel Desktop Memory Kit 1866 MT/s 9-9-9-24-1T @ 1.6 V
Graphics Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 GV-N670OC-2GD: 2 GB GDDR5 @ 6,008 MT/s, GPU @ 1,058 MHz (GPU Boost) GDDR5 @ 7,012 MT/s, GPU @ 1,137 MHz (GPU Boost) Power @ 112%, +1 mV
Hard Drive Hitachi GST Deskstar 7K1000.C: 1 TB, 7200 RPM, 32 MB Cache, SATA 3Gb/s Unchanged
Optical Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE: 22x DVD Burner Unchanged
Case Rosewill Redbone Unchanged
Power Corsair CX600: 600 W, ATX12V, EPS12V, 80 PLUS-Certified Unchanged

And here are the benchmark details:

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Benchmark Configuration
3D Games
Battlefield 3 Version 1.0.0.0, DirectX 11, 90-sec. Fraps "Going Hunting" Test Set 1: Medium Quality Preset, No AA, 4X AF, SSAO Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset,  4X MSAA, 16X AF, HBAO
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Version 1.6.89.06, Version 1.5.26.05 (June), 25-Sec. Fraps Test Set 1: High Preset, No AA, 8x AF, FXAA Enabled Test Set 2: Ultra Preset, 8x AA, 16x AF, FXAA Enabled
Far Cry 3 Version 1.04, 50-sec, Fraps "Ananaki Village"Test Set 1: High Quality Preset, No AA, Standard Alpha, SSAO Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset,  4X MSAA, Enhanced Alpha, HDAO
F1 2012 Version 1.2, Direct X 11, Built-in Benchmark Test Set 1: High Quality, No AA Test Set 2: Ultra Quality, 8x MSAA
Audio/Video Encoding
HandBrake CLI Version: 0.98, Video: Video from Canon EOS 7D (1920x1080, 25 frames) 1 Minutes 22 Seconds, Audio: PCM-S16, 48,000 Hz, Two-Channel, to Video: AVC1 Audio: AAC (High Profile)
iTunes Version 10.4.1.10 x64: Audio CD (Terminator II SE), 53 minutes, default AAC format
Lame MP3 Version 3.98.3: Audio CD "Terminator II SE", 53 min, convert WAV to MP3 audio format, Command: -b 160 --nores (160 Kb/s)
TotalCode Studio 2.5 Version: 2.5.0.10677, MPEG-2 to H.264, MainConcept H.264/AVC Codec, 28 sec HDTV 1920x1080 (MPEG-2), Audio:MPEG2 (44.1 kHz, Two-Channel, 16-Bit, 224 Kb/s) Codec: H.264 Pro, Mode: PAL 50i (25 FPS), Profile: H.264 BD HDMV
Productivity
ABBYY FineReader Version 10.0.102.82: Read PDF save to Doc, Source: Political Economy (J. Broadhurst 1842) 111 Pages
Adobe Photoshop CS6 Version 13 x64: Filter 15.7 MB TIF Image: Radial Blur, Shape Blur, Median, Polar Coordinates
Autodesk 3ds Max 2012 Version 14.0 x64: Space Flyby Mentalray, 248 Frames, 1440x1080
7-Zip Version 9.28, LZMA2, Syntax "a -t7z -r -m0=LZMA2 -mx=5" Benchmark: THG-Workload-2012
WinRAR Version 4.2, RAR, Syntax "winrar a -r -m3" Benchmark: THG-Workload-2012
WinZip Version 17.0 Pro, Best Method, ZIPX Benchmark: THG-Workload-2012
Synthetic Benchmarks and Settings
3DMark 11 Version: 1.0.1, Entry, Performance, Extreme Suite
PCMark 7 Version: 1.0.4, System, Productivity, Hard Disk Drive benchmarks
SiSoftware Sandra 2012 Version: 2012 SP5c-1872, CPU Test = CPU Arithmetic / MultiMedia, Memory Test = Bandwidth Benchmark
Don Woligroski
Contributor

Don Woligroski was a former senior hardware editor for Tom's Hardware. He has covered a wide range of PC hardware topics, including CPUs, GPUs, system building, and emerging technologies.

63 Comments Comment from the forums
  • DragonClaw
    The table outlining the components of the build. It should read 800$ and not 1000$, I think?
    Reply
  • abbadon_34
    guessed they reused the previous template, sure it'll be fixed soon and people will wonder what we're talking about
    Reply
  • mayankleoboy1
    Although we're going to miss the snappy boot-up times and almost-instant application launches the solid-state drive enabled, we probably won't be penalized too much in the benchmark results.

    And therein lies the problem with benchmarks.
    An enthusiast PC, without a SSD boot drive?
    Reply
  • manitoublack
    That's a great value PC there. Would be hard pressed to think of a more compelling combination for the money. Well done.

    Reply
  • qTrueno
    The heat sink breaks easily but it is a good cheap solution, as long it doesn't break.
    Reply
  • ipwn3r456
    If this machine were at $1000 budget, might as well add a 128GB SSD, and replace the HD 7870 to a HD 7950.
    Reply
  • butremor
    "Overclocking

    Overclocking the Core i5-3550K is"
    Reply
  • ARICH5
    i think you couldve found a cheaper z77 solution and squieezed in a 64mb cache hdd
    Reply
  • dudewitbow
    ipwn3r456If this machine were at $1000 budget, might as well add a 128GB SSD, and replace the HD 7870 to a HD 7950.

    there would be marginal performance boost from switching from a 7870 LE(nerfed 7950, heck can call it a 7930 and it would be partially correct in a way) to an actual 7950. Though its likely the outcome for the 1k budget coming up next.
    Reply
  • abhijitkalyane
    I really wasn't expecting the AMD chip to be so close to the i5. I'm a bit surprised. The power consumption figures look bad for the FX though.
    Reply