A few questions on a new build

[Crazyboy1432]

Well, this is the first time I'm going to build my own gaming rig from the ground up, though I've built other computers for various reasons (friends, college, etc.) in the past. I had a few questions about my build though...

First, here's the parts list:

ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K

Kingston HyperX 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C9D3/4G

Western Digital WD VelociRaptor WD3000HLHX 300GB 10000 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

...And I already have a Full ATX Tower, as well as a placeholder PSU and GPU (Antec 500w, and a GTX 460 1GB SC)

Later on, I plan on getting a more powerful PSU and trying an SLI setup with the best bang-for-buck cards I can find.


So... First, how well would users more experienced than me say this will tackle current/near future games? Graphics Card pending, will I max Crysis? Far Cry 3?

Currently, I'm a student and I know for a fact I can obtain a 64-bit Windows 7 OS for free. The problem is, it's the holidays, I wanna run games with this new build and I have no way to go on campus and go through all hoops to obtain it until classes start back up in about a month. I do, however, have a 32-bit Windows XP WME laying around that I could use. Will this cause any issues at all, disastrous or no, with my build as is?

Will there be thermal paste pre-applied to the CPU and do/should I get some to put on it?

Thanks in advance

 

[o1die]

Your build will be adequate for some games; you can upgrade your video card later. The stock Intel heatsink comes with a pad; do not waste your money on thermal grease. You can also use windows xp for awhile; be sure to save the motherboard cd for windows drivers. Xp doesn't provide any. Your power supply is also adequate; no need to upgrade unless you use two cards in sli or crossfire mode.

 

[djosbun]

If you're buying an Ivy Bridge CPU, then why aren't you getting a Z77 motherboard? Look at the Asus P8Z77-V LK mobo.

 

[Crazyboy1432]

Your build will be adequate for some games; you can upgrade your video card later. The stock Intel heatsink comes with a pad; do not waste your money on thermal grease. You can also use windows xp for awhile; be sure to save the motherboard cd for windows drivers. Xp doesn't provide any. Your power supply is also adequate; no need to upgrade unless you use two cards in sli or crossfire mode.

Okay, cool. Yeah, I still have all that stuff for XP, I've done numerous reformats. There are actually 3 identical XPS 400's in my house so at one time I had three sets of OS and Driver disks. By adequate, is there any bottlenecks or components I should change/rethink before the build other than the card? My plan was to buy a solid card a little later and then SLI it a while after that, so I've also been looking at PSU's but that's down the road a little.

If you're buying an Ivy Bridge CPU, then why aren't you getting a Z77 motherboard? Look at the Asus P8Z77-V LK mobo.

Uhhh... Well, I don't really know. I searched around for good mobos and the one I picked had all the features I was looking for, was good brand and wasn't too expensive so that's why I chose it. Is there something special about the Z77's that is a huge deal that I goofed up and overlooked?

 

[jonjonjon]

i would consider replacing the VelociRaptor with a 128GB ssd. you can always add another 500GB or 1TB hdd on later if you need more storage.

and i agree get a Z77 over a Z68 mb. no need to spend $180 on a mb unless there is some specific feature that you need.

also looks like the ram model number is for only 1 stick of 4GB ram. you should get a pair so you can take advantage of the duel channel. for $30 you can get 2x4GB 1600 cas 9 memory.

 

[Crazyboy1432]

i would consider replacing the VelociRaptor with a 128GB ssd. you can always add another 500GB or 1TB hdd on later if you need more storage.

and i agree get a Z77 over a Z68 mb. no need to spend $180 on a mb unless there is some specific feature that you need.

also looks like the ram model number is for only 1 stick of 4GB ram. you should get a pair so you can take advantage of the duel channel. for $30 you can get 2x4GB 1600 cas 9 memory.

Hmmm, how much would the price jump if I went with the smaller SSD over the VelociRaptor? I remember looking at SSDs but not finding one I liked the price-to-storage ratio on (things are pricey for sure).

Also, how big a difference would there be between 1x4GB and 2x2GB RAM speedwise? The Mobo I have picked only has 4 RAM slots and I wanted to give myself the room to expand to 16GB total eventually. Is this a mistake/waste?

 

[jonjonjon]

the VelociRaptor you listed is $129.99 from newegg. for $15 more you could get the 128GB kingston ssd and the 500GB seagate. the kingston ssd uses asynchronous nand and a sandforce controller. if you wanted a little better ssd you could get the M4 or M5S. imo any 128GB ssd and a 500GB hdd is much better then a VelociRaptor.

Kingston SSDNow V+200 120GB - $89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820239374
and a 500GB hdd for $54.99
http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=63468&vpn=ST500DM002

or you could get a 128GB Crucial M4 or Plextor M5S for ~$110.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148529
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820249024

 

[Crazyboy1432]

the VelociRaptor you listed is $129.99 from newegg. for $10 more you could get the 128GB kingston ssd and the 500GB seagate. the kingston ssd uses asynchronous nand and a sandforce controller. if you wanted a little better ssd you could get the M4 or M5S. imo any 128GB ssd and a 500GB hdd is much better then a VelociRaptor.

Kingston SSDNow V+200 120GB - $89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820239374
and a 500GB hdd for $54.99
http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=63468&vpn=ST500DM002

or you could get a 128GB Crucial M4 or Plextor M5S for ~$110.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148529
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820249024

Most intriguing... Does the SSD work the same as an HDD? Like, does it plug in the same way and does it require anything special or is it like installing an HDD only far better?

 

[jonjonjon]

yea it acts just like a regular hdd. you would install windows and other programs on the ssd. then use the regular hdd to store your files like movie, photos and large files. depending how much much stuff you install some games could go on the ssd and others would go on the hdd. watch the video below to see why everyone recommends a ssd.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/solid-state-drive-work-tests,3064-12.html

 

[Crazyboy1432]

yea it acts just like a regular hdd. you would install windows and other programs on the ssd. then use the regular hdd to store your files like movie, photos and large files. depending how much much stuff you install some games could go on the ssd and others would go on the hdd. watch the video below to see why everyone recommends a ssd.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/solid-state-drive-work-tests,3064-12.html

Whoah! That was awesome! Do programs need to be installed to the SSD to run that fast?

 

[jonjonjon]

yea the os and program would need to be installed on the ssd. 128GB is enough where you should be able to install everything you need on the ssd and keep the less important files/games on the regular hdd. since the os is on the ssd general windows tasks will all be faster.

i would suggest getting a 2x4GB ram for $35 if you can. 8GB is the sweet spot. you probably wont ever need 16GB but it is nice to have the option open in the future.

something like this for $35 after the promo code.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148544

 

[Crazyboy1432]

Best answer selected by Crazyboy1432.