So I've finally decided to build a rig of my own and am fairly new to this in depth pc stuff, so basically I'm looking for advice as to what are the bet options for me. here's what I've come up with so far; Budget: About £800 not including monitors, keyboard or mouse, speakers etc. looking to keep it all below £1000. Main uses of intended build: An all rounded system, mostly general usage browsing, music etc. but with the occasional game, mostly RTS. Whilst i only play a few games on my pc i don't want to be getting to the point in 1/2 years time where i have to play everything on medium graphics, not looking for ultra fine detail but rounded edges are nice. Parts required: everything bar those mentioned above. (mouse, keyboard, speakers) Previous build information (list details of parts): Nada, first build Monitor resolution: This is one of the sections im stuck on. There's so many options and i don't have much of clue. Looking for 2 monitor set-up about 22-23" for gaming on an xbox + pc and what not, looking to spend about £100-150 on each. so advice here as to recommended brands/modles, screen types and resolutions would be much appreciated. Storage requirements: About 500GB, not a big horder of photos etc. Also would like SSD for Boot and popular games, do i need 120GB or is 60GB enough? will you be overclocking: Yes and no, im not interested in OC to 4.5GHz+, but want to get the most out of my CPU so possibly 4.0GHz. Any pointers here? Any motherboard requirements: Ok so here's the bit where i'm most stuck! I realise i need one to suit my CPU but what's the difference between them all! sorry for being a newbie. Help would be great here. Graphics: Another part of the build im stuck at, so many to choose from! but i have been recommended to spend a bit more on the GPU for my uses. so therefor looking to spend about £150-£170 here, been looking at the gtx 660, but there's like a 1000 different variations and i've no idea. here's something a bit more readable.... i've put this together so as to get an idea of it all.. http://www.scan.co.uk/savedbasket/26cc6a5d5e3249cbb6156e2647270a3c The PSU is also something I'm unsure about, i know it's better to spend more but again i have no idea as to different types or brands. If you guys would like any more info please just shout and i'll add more. ok thanks for looking, sorry if my first post is terrible but any help would be much appreciated, Thanks!
Hello and welcome to the forum. Just had a look at the basket and it looks fine to me except the following: SSD: Samsung SSD 830 128GB PSU: Corsair Professional Series HX650 RAM: DDR3 1600MHz I hope this helps. You can also look here for more information: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/buyers-guide/2012/08/31/pc-hardware-buyer-s-guide-august-2012/3
hi, and thanks, best give that a read then! That's not the actual PSU i as looking at, http://www.scan.co.uk/products/cool...e-with-side-window-with-coolermaster-elite-50 but i couldn't add this to the basket due to availability. Do cooler master PSUs come with a good rating?
I will suggest buy case and PSU seperately. I have two Cooler Master PSUs and they run fine but I will get the Corsair which is highly recommended on this forum. What resolution you game on?
2 months ago my sig cost me £760 excluding the 500gb hdd as that was salvaged, you could upgrade to a 3570k for overclocking for £800 and reduce the ssd size and add the hdd for £800 although 256gb is plenty, my hdd just contains a backup of the ssd at the moment Your basket looks great but for overclocking I have heard the i30 can get noisy so maybe a different one like the enermax ets t40 , it is a bit bigger so check clearance but it supports 200w+ with the one fan and that fan is dead silent.
Shah; thanks for the advice on the psu but i just can't justify putting £100 into it. i can always upgrade at a later date as for the resolution my current monitor is running at 1920 x 1080 but I've no idea what's best or recommended. atc95; i am looking at the 3570k but won't be overclocking very high, i simply don't need it. but good advice thanks. yeah i've looked at that cooler too and it has good reviews but it doesn't seem to match the i30 cooling wise, and like i said i won't be OCing very high and noise isn't a big deal for me. (i'll have the turtle beaches on most of the time )
Cooler Master psus are fine for what you pay. I've had a few over the years although I preferred my Enermax, Antec and Corsair ones. I see a lot of people recommending pumping money in to the psu, but as long as you're not buying some generic junk (and you preferably recognise the brand name) you'll be well served. Also, look for reviews for the one you're interested in before you click 'checkout'.
Never ever save money on the power supply! That's the most important part in your computer. If it fails, it may take the rest of your system with it. Power supplies bundled with cases are usually the very cheapest units. The unit you're looking at has a voltage selector implying no active power factor correction -- an alarming sign of terrible quality. Maybe this review of a cheap power supply changes your mind? http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=324 If you can't justify £100, at least take a look at £50-70 power supplies. You won't get 80 Plus Gold efficiency though.
Ha now that's a review. thanks for showing me that, had a little giggle. i was never planning on skimping on the PSU just like you said, if that goes then everything else is at risk. but again £100 just isn't within my budget for a PSU, i'd much rather get a capable one at £50-60 and spend a bit more on the GPU. Thanks all the same.
Well I think you can get a very good PSU within your budget of ~£800. Maybe look at Scan today only deals. Also if you have 20 posts on this forum you get free delivery from Scan! Edit: I don't think at 1080p you will need more GPU power... You can always upgrade next year...
Hummm shall have to put more consideration into this . Ahh that's fantastic news. I was planning on buying parts as I got the money but scan have delivery charge. Thanks for that
It can get pretty confusing the first time From the basket you've linked to, it looks pretty good. Some comments I would have: You might as well opt for 1600MHz RAM - that motherboard doesn't support 1866 and it would just get throttled down. Corsair Vengeance is good though. Cheap and high performance. Consider going for a 1TB or 1.5TB disk instead of a 500GB one. They're much better value for money, and currently only ~£10 dearer than a 500GB unit. I'd also recommend opting for the Samsung SSD as noted by shah. You'll be fine as long as you pick a PSU from a reputable brand like Corsair, Antec, Cooler Master etc. The CX600W that you have in your basket is actually a very good one for the money, it's what I've got in my PC just now. Hope that helps!
Yeah it is . I'm especially stuck on mono choice. I find there's few differences between ones at similar prices. Some interesting points though. After looking around a bit more your right in saying I only need 1600mhz. Anything higher seems unnecessary. OK I really don't need more than 500gb (I think...) I haven't looked much but for an extra Tenner or there abouts may as well! I've actually just purchased a 630w be quiet! L8. I hope I made the right choice but it had good reviews and is semi modular. So should be good. Thanks very much.
While this advice is true generally, you're overstating the issue at hand massively. I mean that review you quoted is for one of those £15 500W PSUs you can get off eBay, not a £50 Corsair unit like the OP has in his basket. I honestly think you need to do your research before giving advice so emphatically. I know you mean well but you can't afford to misinform people. The CX600 is a great, stable, reputable PSU that is perfect for his build. He really doesn't need 80 plus gold with his £800 budget, it isn't an all-star build (like modular, individually braided cables, whisper quiet at all loads, 80 plus gold efficiency and all that) rather a cost effective one where it's best to focus money appropriately. Not to mention that 600W is massively overkill anyway and he'll be running at half load and under basically all the time. To prove my point here is the review from the very same site you linked (johnnyguru) for the CX430 PSU, the very same family as the CX600: www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=239 And as you can see it bags a recommended award. Good advice, however the Samsung 830 is no longer available (and won't be in future) so that may be a problem. Also the PSU, while excellent for an enthusiast, is IMO overkill for what he needs, I'd stick with the CX600. Not modular, but you can afford to save money there whilst not affect the system performance/stability/lifetime at all. Plus it is well known to be perfectly stable and good quality. You may lose out on quietness but that isn't the focus in this build. Edit: @OP hope you got a good price on the Be Quiet!, definitely a fantastic PSU without doubt. Will last you a long time!
Sorry, I should have been clearer. Threads can get a bit confusing at times. I was replying to this post:
Yes it should. Was only stressing about PSU as it and case are the only things you will use with several upgrades. Do it right the first time and get the most out of it
yeahh and thanks for the help, appreciate it. i keep thinking i can always go cheap here then upgrade later but with a pc one "cheaper" component bottle necks the rest of it...so YOLO
