first build. Need opinions

Zachary Luong

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Jun 10, 2013
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so this is my build:
case: NZXT Phantom Enthusiast USB3.0 Full Tower Case
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-022-NX&groupid=2362&catid=35 : £105

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 M Intel Z77
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-061-AK&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=2261 : £100

graphics cards: KFA2 GeForce GTX 660TI EX OC 2048MB GDDR5
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-032-KF&groupid=701&catid=1914&subcat=2379 : £230

cpu cooler: Alpenföhn K2 Mount Doom CPU Cooler
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-020-AL : £60

sound card: Asus Xonar DS 7.1
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SC-006-AS&groupid=701&catid=11 : £40

Hard drive: standard 64 gb ssd and 1tb sata
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-336-WD : £80
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-047-CS&groupid=1657&catid=2101&subcat=2102 : £70

fan(this is just for eyecandy but opinions are welcome :D ) :
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FG-008-AE&groupid=701&catid=2331 : £12


Total: £697

i already own an i7 myself, i have 8gb corsair RAM and i have a CM 500w psu that im currently using.
Im planning to upgrade my pc this summer since my old GPU and mobo are incompatible, my goal is to run farcry 3/ battlefield 4 on high/ultra with 40 -> 60 fps.

I am not planning on overclocking at all.

Is there any improvement needed to be made to this build?
Also does SSD a big deal for a system because for 64 gb of storage it's quite expensive
I can only spend <£100 more.

P.S: this is my first build and first question so please dont be too hard on me XD
 
Solution
Heh... What ill post you will probably shock you...

P.S do you use your desktop on wireless internet? or wired?

A rough list http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1573m for £693, even replacing the power supply in order to run the graphics card.

It will literally max out Far Cry 3 on 30 fps at the absolute highest settings. Best you will get on a single card, even the $1000 dollar GTX Titan only manages 37 fps.

The case is a smaller version of the original one you picked.

The motherboard, has space to run a second card for upgrade space in 3-4 years... and will take a 'k' version later on if you decide you want to overclock and even if not you can still later upgrade to an ivy bridge processor and it will finally take full use of your RAM...

drtoast

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May 10, 2013
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I dont understand what makes your mobo obsolete... whats the current model? which i7 do you have.

That case is... Pretty big... certainly oversized if thats all your putting in... What do you need the soundcard for at that price bracket you wont notice any difference over the 7.1 already built in to the motherboard...

And a SSD will increase boot times, potentially to as low as 10seconds.... but that depends on the drive model. but at that size thats all it will do as you wont fit many... if any games on it.
 

Zachary Luong

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I've never looked at AMD(everyone i know says nvidia > AMD because of Physx and something else i can't remember :p)
but thanks, i'll consider that.
 

Zachary Luong

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I tried to look for the mobo model online but i can't find(also tried with aida64, it doesn't show the mobo's name), sorry about that.
but my pc looks like this:
http://h20386.www2.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=C3A53ET&opt=ABU&sel=PBDT

my uni gave me this pc and the mobo can't fit dual slot/dual fan cards(most of gddr5 are) so i think it might be obsolete :p.

to fit a dual slot card, my case needs one more slot to the right and even if it has, there's little to no space between my GPU and my CPU cooler(which is to the right of my GPU).
sorry about my crappy english, i will try to get some pictures soon.

For the case, i have plenty of room in my flat but if you say so then i will look for another case.
Is this one ok?
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-074-NX&groupid=2362&catid=35.

I will buy the SSD for system files then.

Finally, thank you very much man, saved me £40 on the sound card <3
 

Zachary Luong

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Jun 10, 2013
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You are getting all of my attention.
The word should be incompatible not obsolete sorry, fixed.
 

drtoast

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Try Belarc advisor, that should be able to find your motherboard, I had the same trouble with mine.

Are you intending to overclock your CPU?

If not

Whats the rough temperature of the room you keep your PC in?
 

Zachary Luong

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my room temp should be 20 - 22 C
Board: Hewlett-Packard 0AACh
Serial Number: CZC83267CP
Bus Clock: 1333 megahertz
BIOS: Hewlett-Packard 786F1 v01.04 07/18/2007
got it
 

drtoast

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If you not overclocking (just spotted it in the first post) :p, then you can save yourself money on the CPU cooler too, as well as get a lower grade motherboard, you can save another £40 there.

Whats your RAM frequency at?
 

drtoast

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Decent Standard... they can be recycled, your motherboard was making them underperform :p

I'll be back in ten, things to do IRL, then ill chip bits off an run parts down
 

Zachary Luong

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http://www.amazon.co.uk/Compaq-Convertible-Minitower-3-4GHz-Windows/dp/B004Y41BXI/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370910505&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=hp+compaq+8100+elite
this is it
full information
it is Sandybridge not Ivy
old stuff
mine didnt include the graphics card
 

drtoast

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CM 500w PSU... CM for CoolMax or Cooler Master?

Also, how much space do you need? for the same price as that 1tb drive, would you be interested in a 750gb SSHD, Solid state Hybrid. Not as fast as a SSD, Faster than HDD

I should also ask, what resolution is your monitor, and do you plan on upgrading it soon? (larger res, lower performance, 1080 or 1200 are normal HD displays)
 

Zachary Luong

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i think 750gb sshd floats my boat because i will mostly spend it on games and movies, i do make music and programs but those wont take much space.

my current screen is this one :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Acer-S240HLbid-widescreen-monitor-Backlight/dp/B005QVZ79C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370912923&sr=8-1&keywords=lcd
but it's really old
so im planning on buying this :
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-051-BQ
1920 × 1080 res is probably the highest i ever need.

Oh and its cooler master elite 500w.
 

drtoast

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Heh... What ill post you will probably shock you...

P.S do you use your desktop on wireless internet? or wired?

A rough list http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1573m for £693, even replacing the power supply in order to run the graphics card.

It will literally max out Far Cry 3 on 30 fps at the absolute highest settings. Best you will get on a single card, even the $1000 dollar GTX Titan only manages 37 fps.

The case is a smaller version of the original one you picked.

The motherboard, has space to run a second card for upgrade space in 3-4 years... and will take a 'k' version later on if you decide you want to overclock and even if not you can still later upgrade to an ivy bridge processor and it will finally take full use of your RAM, the i7-2600 is limited to 1333.

Alternatively you can loose both those features for a saving of about £40-50 ish

If you've been using wireless, you will need a new wireless adapter, but they are usually around £30 (easiest to match against your router)
Wired? no problem, plug it in, install the drivers and away you go.

I'm assuming your re-using a 64bit version of windows 7? otherwise it would be worth upgrading to it. a 32bit OS wont handle the RAM.

Feel free to add your eye candy fan if it will fit :L

If you really want a SSD, you could choose a cheaper case + mobo and probably afford a 64 / 128gb.

I also added a CD/DVD read+writer... it doesnt match the colour scheme of the case but, that can be easily catered for in budget.
 
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Zachary Luong

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Should i upgrade to windows 8 64bit(non pro)?
So i don't need to upgrade my stock cpu cooler?
But this list u picked for me blown my mind
 

drtoast

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Windows 7 home premium (64 bit) or better will handle all the RAM of that system.

If you have that your fine (provided you still have the cd and licence key)

Personally, I dislike Windows 8 but my opinion was formed trying to use the beta version before they removed the tablet UI (metro UI is it called?)

Performance wise... Some current games have severe issues/ wont work at all on it. Other titles gain maybe 5fps at most... You wouldnt see a difference running Far cry 3 on it. So It's personal preference

Stock CPU cooler is fine if your not overclocking. It is after all designed for cooling that CPU. You can replace it if you want, but I wouldnt spend much more than £20 on it... which might be worth doing, take a look when you take your old pc apart, make sure to dust the fan blades, while holding them still. But just check the thermal paste hasn't dried out. If it has, then its... £8 for more paste? Might as well stretch to a cheapish cooler.

Plus the case is already running 3 fans for you.

And of course at the very least you want an anti-static wristband (about £4?) to assemble your parts (move from box to case without putting down) or add an anti-static mat (prices vary with size) to make a safe area you can put parts down in.
 

drtoast

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If it sets your mind to ease, my current old pc (about to retire it) is running with stock cooler covered in half a centimetre of dust, no case fans in a room that averages 19 degrees C, and it doesnt push past 63degrees.

Of course it doesnt have a graphics card in -.-

But that card already has twin fans, and the three case fans will also help compensate for that :p

And No DUST! lol
 

Gennaios

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its physx and cuda cores but for gaming its to a big deal!the 7950 performs way better than the 660 (FPS difference) and has +1gb of vram!in case you dont use the card for rendering that is your best choice trust me!
 

Zachary Luong

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Thanks man but Drtoast already gave me an awesome build
I think i will be working on video games as soon as i graduate so i think nvidia is the way to go