Judge my build

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
T

thenerdstation

Honorable
Nov 17, 2012
11
0
10,510
Custom gaming rig. Any tips on what i have would be great. I'm looking at an absolute maximum price at $1,000. Here's what I've got:

CPU i5 3570k:http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2373004&sku=I69-3570K
Mobo Asus Z77 Extreme 3 : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157330
Memory G.SKILL Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231460
Graphics Galaxy GeForce GTX 660 GC : http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4368424&sku=G458-0668
Power OEM 700W Power Supply: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1554174&sku=U12-41531
Case NZXT Guardian 921:http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6805048&sku=YYAP-105862
Liquid cooling Corsair Hydro Series H60: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7335485&sku=C13-2527
OS Windows 7 ( I already own)
64 Gb SSD for OS and applications
1TB HDD for games and other shtuffs like zat.

Any pointers? How am I doing? (this is my first build)
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
thats an awesome build .....
But i'd suggest that u browse more for better gfx cards....
There are a helluva bang for buck cards available....
Try more nvidia cards and even look for the radeon counterparts...
I simply cant suggest u one single name.....coz there are many.....!!!
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Hey. first of all, that power supply unit is garbage. I wouldn't let it anywhere near electricity.

Secondly, do you really need water cooling? Air cooling is cheaper, less noisy and more effective.

Thirdly, for such budget, the graphics card is seriously too underpowered.

Fourthly, faster RAM for higher price isn't useful at all - it will not improve the speed of the PC.

Lastly, I'd get a better motherboard.

Everything else seems nice. I've adjusted your list a bit, tell me what you think:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($33.99 @ Mac Mall)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($126.47 @ NCIX US)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($37.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($379.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Guardian 921 RB ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.74 @ Mwave)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1003.14
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-11 01:58 EST-0500)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
good build for the most part. dump the psu and get a decent 1. you dont want to run a $1000 on a $30 psu you want a seasonic/ coolermaster/corsair or similar. and 550w is enough. the motherboard is also a bit of a lame duck. yes it has lots of pci-e slots but there limited by the cpu to x8 if you run 2 gfx and x4 if you decide to run more.
you would be better off either saving a bit of money and getting a board with less slots or spending the same on better quality solid state caps and the likes again with less pci-e slots.
most people make this mistake and buy a motherboard that is way beyond there needs. buying them with features like trifire when they will only ever have 1 or maybe 2 at most gfx cards they literally just throw and extra 50 bux at it for a feature there never gonna use.
the best place to save money is the motherboard. you can get some very good quality basic boards for 70bux with 1 pci-e 16 slot and put the extra 50 they just saved into a higher end gfx card.
so yeah figure out what you need and stick to it... if your thinking you will just go sli/xfire in a couple of years then just get a board with 1 pci-e 16 slot because when it comes time to add that second card it will likely be more efficient to buy a better card and sell the old 1 to recoup some of the costs. making the new card even more attractive.

other than them 2 basics its not a bad build. although i would consider scrapping the ssd until you can afford a 250gig 1. the small drives just run out of room very quickly and some earlier models on high profile brands dont last very long anyway.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote


Cheaper? In general, yes. Less noisy and more effective? I think not. There are some high-end air coolers that would perform better than the H60 specifically, but that is due to the larger heat-sinks and fan combination. In general, water-cooling is far better as water has a higher heat capacity than air. This higher capacity allows the fans to spin at a lower speed than they would need to with air, thus being quieter.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote


If you rig the H60 with a 2nd fan for push/pull config, it's actually better than cost-comparable air coolers so this isn't exactly true. Noctua and Silver Arrow are the 2 that cool equally well as that config, and both come out to more than the cost of the H60 plus the cheap extra fan in most regions.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Well, there are many air coolers that perform similarly at lesser price.

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/corsair_h60/4.htm

And it isn't silent either.

42198.png
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Those cooling configs aren't tested in push/pull. Pull/pull h60 (or h80 for that matter) is the cooling equivalent of the silver arrow and noctua, and usually the h60 costs a bit less.

And I never said that one was more quiet than the other. That's determined more by exactly how high your OC is and what you have to run your fans at, than by difference in hardware. If you OC over 4.5 you're not going to have many quiet cooling solutions regardless of air or closed loop.

For me, I got the H60 cheaper than silver arrow and the lower profile of the cooling block has made modding my case's internals significantly easier. No one's insulting your computer's cooler, but there are decent reasons for either. Air cooling doesn't have potential internal tube degradation, for example.

Neither air nor closed loop compare to custom water loops however.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
What i would do is:
Change my ram to 1600mhz.
Bump up my SSD to a 128gb (with such a powerful computer you're going to put some games in it)
Upgrade my GPU to a GTX 660ti or 670
Change my PSU to a 550w+ from a trusted brand like seasonic or corsair
Swap the h60 cooler for a 212 evo (but that's just what i personally prefer)
I think i would invest a bit more in the motherboard. I bought an Asus P8Z77-V Pro myself and im glad i did. Never had any issues with it.

But again, this is what I would do, it doesen't mean it's the only good solution.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote


He should be fine on the mobo. Asrock makes really stable platforms for sandy and ivy. Back in the early days of sandy bridge, Asrock was the only company making mobos that didn't have quirks (gigabyte), randomly fried out (evga and msi), or cold boot issues (asus). I agree with everything else you said though.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote

Completely agree, but 750w is complete overkill for that system unless he wants to buy a pair of 670's. 500w is more than enough for any single GPU system.
I reccommend the seasonic s12II 520w
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seasonic-power-supply-s12ii520bronze


Cheaper, yes. Less noisy, generally no. More effective generally no. A high end air solution is better than a low end water solution, but that's where the comparison ends.


Agreed


agreed for the most part.


I can only assume you're unfamiliar with the asrock board. Saying the gigabyte is a better board doesn't make any sense. I'm not sure why you'd reccommend a boad with a 6 phase voltage regulator (and no heatsink) over a board with an 8+2+2 regulator and hefty heatsinks that is $20-30 cheaper!

The extreme4 tied with the gigabyte board you're reccommending in tom's review, and the only differences between the extreme3 and 4 is the number of usb 3.0 & sata 6gb ports, and a pcie x1 slot.

good luck!
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Thanks guys for all of your help!

I forgot to mention that i am also buying a 100$ monitor, so my actually budget is only 900$... :/ im thinking of sticking to the GTX 660 with that kind of budget. Any suggestions on that?

The psu was just a retarded choice, shouldn't have even considered it. Hows this one?
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4278583&sku=C13-2760

Definitively going with a 1600 ram now, no need for a 1866.

I found a different mobo with even MORE PCI E x 16 slots!!! 😛 it was 20 bucks cheaper anyway
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7382078&sku=E145-2133

going to stick with the 64 gb ssd. I cant afford to go any higher.

sticking with the H60, but will buy another fan in the future when I want to OC

Anymore helpful tips are greatly appreciated!
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I agree 100% with HEXiT (12-11-2012 at 08:01:09 AM) post.
- Normally there's always something, but his post is spot on IMHO and that's rare on Toms Hardware.

As for the GTX 660 being a 'great card', I think that is a bit of a stretch.
- The GTX 660 Ti is a good card, the GTX 670 is a better card and the GTX 680 is a 'great' card.
- The GTX 660 (non Ti, non OC) is a good mediocre card, but for a USD$1,000 build you should be spending ~$350 on the video card if it is a gaming build.

Get the GTX660 Ti at least!
- http://www.hwcompare.com/13296/geforce-gtx-660-vs-geforce-gtx-660-ti/
- It's at least +25% faster when push comes to shove during the heavier action.

Does the EVGA Z75 mobo support SLI, or just CrossfireX?
- Kinda important as it looks like you're purchasing an NVIDIA GPU based video card...
 
Upvote 0 Downvote


Don't use HWCompare, it's inaccurate. GTX 660 Ti around 10-15% faster than GTX 660.

Also, it's not $1000 budget. More like $750. Don't forget about him having to fit the monitor into the budget too, and total budget is $900.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
My suggestion is get a gtx670 or 7950 and a lower resolution 1080p monitor if you want your build to last for future games...lower resolution=less gpu power required to play a game at the same fps at higher resolution.. and also get a decent corsair or seasonic psu..
 
Upvote 0 Downvote


I think that there's enough VRAM on those 2 cards to keep them relevant up to 1920x1200 for another generation beyond their first cycle, but you raise an excellent point that people rarely ever think about.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I'm not to worried about a single card being slightly outdated. My plan is once I am a few years into college is to buy another 660ti and SLI it. Itll be cheaper down the road and will have the same performance as a 680. If I start to lag out on some games I plan to OC.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote

ORRRRRRRRRRRR you could just get a 7950 for just as much and have better performance .-.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom