PC build 900euros/1,200$/750pounds - help needed - beginner

[Robotmutt]

Hi,

I have been playing games a lot recently and was looking to invest my money in a good/worth the price custom built pc as it seems to be better doing and funner. Also this means the possibility of customization and removal of certain parts in the future. I am not very experienced in this sector and require assistance and suggestions. I have about 900euro/ $1,200/750pounds to spend. I do not mind whether it slightly exceeds my money limit, I am looking for the best build I can get with that money NOT including any monitors/peripherals .etc. I have looked at PCPartPicker and do not have much of a clue where to start, I've looked at videos and have the general idea of what I need - I would prefer Nvidia over ASD. Whatever suggestions and must haves will be a great help! I am not sure what the average price for each component should be and how to balance everything out. Not to forget, I do little work, only microsoft word .etc. I will also be watching bluray films, at the moment I have a DVD drive to use and plan to buy a bluray drive in the future, I don't mind whether it is included in the overall build for the moment. At the moment I play Rust, DayZ, Metro, Bioshock, Borderlands, Skyrim and a whole list of similar games quite similar. I will also be looking to keeping this for 2 years or more and be playing games such Titanfall and possibly other mainstream games.

 

[Robotmutt]

Processor: i5 4440
http://www.amazon.it/Intel-BX80646I54440-Processore-i5-4440-Haswell/dp/B00EF1G8XI/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395787277&sr=1-2&keywords=intel+i5+haswell

motherboard: asrock h81
http://www.amazon.it/Asrock-H81M-ITX-scheda-madre/dp/B00EOBXQW0/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395787411&sr=1-2&keywords=mini+itx+1150

ram: corsair 8gb,
http://www.amazon.it/Corsair-240-pin-SDRAM-Scheda-memoria/dp/B004CRSM4I/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395787666&sr=1-1

SSD: sandisk ssd, 128gb
http://www.amazon.it/SanDisk-Memoria-Solido-lettura-scrittura/dp/B007ZW2LY4/ref=sr_1_11?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395787980&sr=1-11

HDD: wd blue, 1tb
http://www.amazon.it/Western-Digital-WD10EZEX-Caviar-HardDisk/dp/B0088PUEPK/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395788059&sr=1-3

gpu: msi gtx780 (a very good cooler by the way)
http://www.amazon.it/Western-Digital-WD10EZEX-Caviar-HardDisk/dp/B0088PUEPK/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395788059&sr=1-3

Case: corsair obsidian 250d
http://www.amazon.it/Corsair-Obsidian-Sichtfenster-Mini-ITX-Netzteil/dp/B00HFRTF5W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395706921&sr=8-1&keywords=Corsair+250D+Mini+ITX+Tower+Case

PSU: very good brand (xfx) has the wattage you need and 80+ bronze
http://www.amazon.it/dp/B004RJ8EKI/?tag=pcp06-21


total: i rounded it to 570 euros, which seems a bit low. you should double check my math just in case, im not too comfortable with foreign currencies. i mightve messed something up

I have spoken to my technicians and have showed them the build on amazon, they pointed out I need more than 550W psu as the video card used 500W, also to reduce the memory to 'low profile' otherwise I will have issues later on if I buy a cpu cooler. On pcpartspicker I am putting everything together and a warning comes up whenever I add an SSD to the build: http://it.pcpartpicker.com/parts/partlist/
I have not yet picked a psu although I am thinking to change the corsair 250D to the Bitfenix prodigy and that will leave me a small amount of money to buy an optical drive and the OS the technicians said it is no problem they will make a copy for me. So all I need now is to find out what's wrong with the SSD and motherboard? And pick a good psu for similar price (70-90euro) which is 650W or 700W.

 

[jshoop]

can you copy the permalink? the url doesnt allow me to see what you have. i'll look for a psu, i forgot how much power the 780 will use. the bitfenix prodigy is also a good case, they have lots of colorful options too. i'll see if i can find some low profile ram too

 

[jshoop]

heres a power supply, not the best quality but it should be fine. there aren't many choices for high quality brands that arent really expensive.

http://www.amazon.it/Corsair-CP-9020061-EU-Modular-Supply-Builder/dp/B00ALK1TPE/ref=sr_1_61?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395862163&sr=1-61&keywords=power+supply

 

[jshoop]

http://www.amazon.it/Corsair-Vengeance-1600MHz-Profile-CML8GX3M2A1600C9W/dp/B005DKZK84/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395862427&sr=1-2&keywords=low+profile+ram

this doesn't have a large heatsink, so it should work good

 

[Robotmutt]

http://www.amazon.it/Corsair-Vengeance-1600MHz-Profile-CML8GX3M2A1600C9W/dp/B005DKZK84/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1395862427&sr=1-2&keywords=low+profile+ram

this doesn't have a large heatsink, so it should work good

That psu is the exact one I looked at, here is the memory I found and I think the technicians recommended:
http://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B00569K7LM/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A11IL2PNWYJU7H

Also here is the permalink:
http://it.pcpartpicker.com/p/3gSkv

The memory you linked me to on amazon does'nt exactly have a seller :/ It's not amazon selling it, so I'm not entirely convinced.

 

[jshoop]

the one i posted was the same kind but white. go with the black ones cause they have a better seller.

as for the error, i think i know what the problem is. i think it assumes your gonna have a disc drive, which would bring the total to 3 sata ports. i think your gonna need a different motherboard, or drop the ssd or disc drive

 

[jshoop]

http://www.amazon.it/Asus-H81I-PLUS-ASUS/dp/B00EJZ8RZW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1395864285&sr=8-3&keywords=mini+itx+1150+motherboard

here is a replacement, its a little more expensive but has 4 sata ports. 2 are at a slower speed, but you would put the disc drive on the slower ones and the hard drive/ssd on the faster ones

 

[Robotmutt]

the one i posted was the same kind but white. go with the black ones cause they have a better seller.

as for the error, i think i know what the problem is. i think it assumes your gonna have a disc drive, which would bring the total to 3 sata ports. i think your gonna need a different motherboard, or drop the ssd or disc drive

If I drop the disk drive how do I install windows? Sounds like a stupid question but I honestly don't know 😛 I think it would be worth keepind the SSD as that tends to be highly recommended I've seen on internet. As for changing the motherboard I'm not sure, will that be a problem? Or is there something else out there I can get but I'm guessing I'd have to spend more?

 

[jshoop]

what do you mean will it be a problem? are you asking using the different motherboard or the sata port issue? and you can install windows using a usb drive, but the the usb has to be empty and formatted for the operating system. you can ask the tech people about it, they can probably explain it better than i can. but would you need a disc drive for other things?

 

[Robotmutt]

what do you mean will it be a problem? are you asking using the different motherboard or the sata port issue? and you can install windows using a usb drive, but the the usb has to be empty and formatted for the operating system. you can ask the tech people about it, they can probably explain it better than i can. but would you need a disc drive for other things?

I was wondering if changing the motherboard would be much of a problem for the entire build. The new one you linked me to is only 7euros more so it's not exactly over the top, is it still good quality or would I only need to buy it if I have an SSD, Hard drive and optical drive? Atm I'm not looking to buy an optical drive otherwise I'm going over my budget but I might, if I do then I guess I have to the buy the other motherboard. If one sata port is slower is that a big downfall and how will it affect the optical drive? If it does not change much then I will probably consider buying it so later on when I get a bit more money I can buy an optical drive.

 

[jshoop]

if you arent looking for an optical drive, you can stick with the motherboard chosen now, and if you need to run a disc or something you can buy a usb disc drive. its still the same quality, just has a few more sata ports. the speed isnt as fast, but you wont see a difference in speed with a disc drive.

if you want to have all three components inside your case, (hdd, ssd, and disc drive) you will need to get that motherboard. overall, changing the motherboard won't affect anything else in the build

 

[Robotmutt]

if you arent looking for an optical drive, you can stick with the motherboard chosen now, and if you need to run a disc or something you can buy a usb disc drive. its still the same quality, just has a few more sata ports. the speed isnt as fast, but you wont see a difference in speed with a disc drive.

if you want to have all three components inside your case, (hdd, ssd, and disc drive) you will need to get that motherboard. overall, changing the motherboard won't affect anything else in the build

Sounds good! I guess the build is practically complete now, just need to decide which motherboard and whether to add an optical drive depending on the motherboard I choose! By the way I changed the corsair 250D to the Bitfenix prodigy black older version as I save 33euro which is used for the psu.

 

[jshoop]

thats another great looking case. provides you with lots of room for future upgrades, you can even make a custom water cooling loop inside it (pretty expensive but looks awesome, somewhat complicated though)

for the motherboard, id go with the asus one, it has the option to add an optical drive inside the pc if you want to. also, it has a usb 3.0 header for your front panel usb 3.0 on the prodigy, the asrock doesnt have one i just checked.

im still a little iffy on the power supply, its a little too low quality for such a high quality build in my opinion. im gonna look around for one thats the same price, if i can't find one that one will do fine, i just worry a little about it

 

[jshoop]

i would ask the tech people if they have any suggestions, but thats gonna be the best your gonna get i think. even for a more expensive one, they aren't as much better as you would imagine

 

[Robotmutt]

i would ask the tech people if they have any suggestions, but thats gonna be the best your gonna get i think. even for a more expensive one, they aren't as much better as you would imagine

Yeah I know what you're saying, I'll speak to them again tomorrow (as it is almost night here). Hopefully I'm able to find a good quality one for same price, even 650W is good so yeah keep that in mind if you're looking. Are there any particular companies I should look for which are good for psu's?

 

[numanator]

Seasonic make the best (IMO) but are often a bit more $$$, XFX, Corsair (CX/builder series has chinese capacitors so avoid if you can but they are pretty cheap), Antec, Silverstone all make good PSUs.

If you want more info on good PSUs check out this thread, all tier 1, 2, and 2b PSUs are good

http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

 

[Robotmutt]

Seasonic make the best (IMO) but are often a bit more $$$, XFX, Corsair (CX/builder series has chinese capacitors so avoid if you can but they are pretty cheap), Antec, Silverstone all make good PSUs.

If you want more info on good PSUs check out this thread, all tier 1, 2, and 2b PSUs are good

http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

Thank you very much numanator!

 

[jshoop]

yes, follow numerator's list, it has all the best brands and that link was what i was using to judge the quality. the cx series is middle of the road, thats why i was worried

for wattage, 650W should be enough for a single gpu system without overclocking, but im not sure with the 780. i'll look around and see how much you would need

going off this thread: id say you wont need a 750W, usually those aren't recommended. theyre too little for 2 gpus and too much for 1.

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

using that link, i got 430W, so as long as there are enough amps on the 12v rail (the techs can look at that, its just saying that the psu can provide enough power on the connector to the gpu) id say a 550W or 600W will be fine.

from the asus and nvidia website, they say the maximum wattage the 780 can use is 300W, which sounds about right. so id say a quality 550 to 600W psu will do

 

[Robotmutt]

yes, follow numerator's list, it has all the best brands and that link was what i was using to judge the quality. the cx series is middle of the road, thats why i was worried

for wattage, 650W should be enough for a single gpu system without overclocking, but im not sure with the 780. i'll look around and see how much you would need

going off this thread: id say you wont need a 750W, usually those aren't recommended. theyre too little for 2 gpus and too much for 1.

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

using that link, i got 430W, so as long as there are enough amps on the 12v rail (the techs can look at that, its just saying that the psu can provide enough power on the connector to the gpu) id say a 550W or 600W will be fine.

from the asus and nvidia website, they say the maximum wattage the 780 can use is 300W, which sounds about right. so id say a quality 550 to 600W psu will do

Ok looking good, so basically the 780 won't use anymore than 300W? Because the specs say it uses 500W :/ I didn't get the 12v rail part, all of this I'll need to be able to translate into italian and my italian isn't the best 😛 Also a quality 550W/600W will be of similar price to the older one (60-90euros)?

 

[numanator]

Pretty much the GPU companies overstate the system wattage because people buy bad quality PSUs and they don't want the card to take the blame for the power supply.

Some that I would buy:

Seasonic Bronze 620w Non-Modular
http://www.amazon.it/Seasonic-S12II-620-BRONZE-SS-620GB/dp/B003BIEOCI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395875322&sr=8-2&keywords=seasonic

Seasonic Bronze 620w Semi-Modular
http://www.amazon.it/Seasonic-SS-620GM-M12II-620Bronze/dp/B003BIEOBY/ref=pd_sim_sbs_pc_10?ie=UTF8&refRID=19BZR49004ZWR80HMDMX

XFX Pro 650w Non-Modular
http://www.amazon.it/XFX-P1-650S-NLB9-Core-Edition-Alimentazione/dp/B0045L5LGI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395875246&sr=8-1&keywords=xfx+650

 

[jshoop]

those are quality psu's, if you can go for it get the semi modular one. because you are in a smaller case the cables will obstruct airflow. however, the bitfenix progidy is a pretty large case for the form factor (mini itx) so you will be able to hide away the unused cables of the non modular psu

 

[Robotmutt]

What does modular and semi modular mean?

 

[numanator]

Modular means that instead of having all the cables already attached to your power supply (non-modular), you plug in whatever cables you need for your particular setup which means that in the end you will have fewer extra cables floating around in your case which can sometimes restrict airflow.

Semi-Modular means that some cables are hardwired in (like the cables to power the motherboard) and others are modular (like cables to power hardrives)

So rather than having 3 cables to power hardrives and only using one, you would only plug in the one cable you need.

 

[Robotmutt]

Modular means that instead of having all the cables already attached to your power supply (non-modular), you plug in whatever cables you need for your particular setup which means that in the end you will have fewer extra cables floating around in your case which can sometimes restrict airflow.

Semi-Modular means that some cables are hardwired in (like the cables to power the motherboard) and others are modular (like cables to power hardrives)

So rather than having 3 cables to power hardrives and only using one, you would only plug in the one cable you need.

Ah ok I get it So semi-modular is recommended? Or is it down to preference?

 

[numanator]

Since you have a small form factor build i would definitely recommend a semi modular or fully modular psu to keep good airflow through the case since it won't have as much room.