PC Decision

[Jayden7]

(I posted this in another section that I think may have been the wrong section so I'm reposting it here, please help me out here I'm desperate guys.)

Cheers everyone,

For weeks I've been searching for a new gaming PC, one that really gets the job done and can handle everything tossed at it. Yes, i know making my own rig is easier then i think and costs less but I just dont really want to run the risk of screwing anything up or doing something wrong that will jeopardize the system.

Anyways, I've come across these two systems that have caught my eye. Now, wether or not they are good choices is why I'm here...I'm hoping for some input and opinions on these and what you guys suggest (change, add parts, ect.).

I'd really appreciate any help, I'm really at my wits end here, never realized how stressful it is to find a good gaming PC with all these components and parts to add, I'm a total noob with what certain parts do and whats good or not.

Here they are guys.

PC #1:
Velocity Micro Edge Z55
(from Velocity Micro website)
Base Price: $1699 > After Additions/Changes: $1684

Case: GX2-W Silver - Velocity Micro Classic Aluminum Case - Full Sized chassis with side window
Wheel Kit: None
Power Supply: 850 Watt Corsair® Power Supply - Nvidia® SLI™Certified
Case Lights: Double Blue Cold Cathode Chassis Light Kit (+$40.00)
Motherboard: Asus® P8Z68-V Intel® Z68 based chipset, ATX Motherboard
Processor: Intel® Core™i7-2700K processor, quad 3.50GHz cores, Hyperclocked™to 4.9GHz (REQUIRES Liquicool 6) (+$50.00)
CPU Cooling: Velocity Micro™LiquiCool™6 Fluid Cooling System - Powered By Asetek (+$70.00)
DDR3 Memory: 4GB DDR3-1333 Dual Channel Memory (2 x 2048mb)
PCX Video: 1GB NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 560, GDDR5, PCI-E 2.0
Video Cooling: None
Video Tuning: Basic 3D Video Performance Tuning & Optimization
TV Tuner: None
Monitor: None
Audio: On-Board Integrated High Definition 7.1 Channel Sound
Speakers: None
Hard Drive 1: 1TB 7200rpm SATA 300 w/NCQ
Hard Drive 2 :1TB 7200rpm SATA 300 w/NCQ
Optical Drive 1: Lite-On Blu-ray Reader, DVD-RW/CD-RW Drive playback software included
Optical Drive 2: None
Media Reader: Integrated 8-in-1 Flash Memory Media Reader
Network Adapter: Integrated 10/100/1000MBps Gigabit Ethernet Network Adapter
Network Adapter 2 or WiFi Adapter: None
WiFi Router: None
Modem: None
On-Line Gaming Accelerator: None
Bluetooth: None
Operating System: Genuine Microsoft® Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit w/ SP1
Productivity Software: None
Games Tribes: Ascend $60 Promo Pack - Free with this system!
Security Software: None
Internal Cables: Standard SATA and IDE Cables
Keyboard: Velocity Micro™Slim Multimedia Keyboard - Black, USB
Mouse: Velocity Micro™Optical Mouse - Black, USB
Network Cable: None
Digital Camera: None
Power Protection: None
Assembly: Immaculate custom hand wiring for ultimate air flow, assembled in Richmond, Virginia, USA
Quality Assurance: Individual custom testing for complete system stability, signed by the system builder and QA inspector
Documentation: Velocity Micro manual, driver disks, and accessory pack
Installation: None
Warranty**: 1 Yr Standard Parts & Labor Ltd Warranty, Lifetime Regular Business Hour Support, 1 Yr Depot Repair
Upgrade Plan: Lifetime Upgrade Plan allows you to return your system for maintenance, upgrades, and tuning
Instant Coupon: Summer Sales Event Instant Coupon! Expires soon! (-$175.00)

PC #2:
CyberPower Gamer Infinity 8800 Pro SE
(from CyberPower website)
Base Price: $1529 > After Additions/Changes: $1912

CARE1:Ultra Enhanced Packaging Solution - Protect Your Dream System During Transit [+19]

CARE2: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis - Minimize Cable Exposure, Maximize Airflow in Your System [+19]

CAS: Azza Genesis 9000 Full Tower Gaming Case w/ 2 x 230mm fans, 4x Easy Swap HDD, Dual Power Supply Support, & front USB 3.0 Port (White Color [+0])

CASUPGRADE: Flexible LED Interior Light Strip [+19] (Blue Color [+0])

CD: LG UH12LS28K 12X Blu-Ray Player & DVDRW Combo Drive (BLACK COLOR)

CD2: None

COOLANT: Standard Coolant

CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-3820 Quad-Core 3.60 GHz 10MB Intel Smart Cache LGA2011 (All Venom OC Certified)

CS_FAN: Default case fans

ENGRAVING: None

ENGRAVING_MSG: None

FA_HDD: None

FAN: Asetek 510LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Enhanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA) (Single Standard 120MM Fan)

FLASHMEDIA:None

GLASSES: None

HDD: 2TB (2TBx1) SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 64MB Cache 7200RPM HDD (Single Drive)

HDD2: 500GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [+77] (Single Hard Drive)

IEEE_CARD: None

IUSB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports

KEYBOARD: Pixxo KA-75W1 Destroyer Series 2.4GHz Wireless Keyboard & Laser Mouse Combo [+0]

MEMORY: 16GB (4GBx4) DDR3/1600MHz Quad Channel Memory (Corsair XMS with Heat Spreader)

MONITOR: None

MONITOR2: None

MONITOR3: None

MOTHERBOARD: * (3-Way SLI Support) GIGABYTE X79-UD3 Intel X79 Chipset Quad Channel DDR3 ATX Mainboard w/ UEFI DualBIOS, Dolby Home Theater 7.1 Audio, GbLAN, USB3.0, SATA-III RAID, 4 Gen3 PCIe X16, 2 PCIe X1 & 1 PCI

MOUSE: None [+0]

NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network

OS: Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit Edition)

OVERCLOCK: Extreme OC (Extreme Overclock 20% or more) [+49]

POWERSUPPLY: 1,000 Watts - Standard Power Supply - SLI/CrossFireX Ready

RUSH: RUSH!!! READY TO SHIP IN 3 BUSINESS DAYS [+69]

SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT

SOUND:* ASUS Xonar DG 5.1 Channels PCI Xonar DG Sound Card [+29]

SPEAKERS: None

TEMP: None

TUNING: None

TVRC: None

USB: External USB 3.0 4-Port Hub [+29]

USBFLASH: None

USBHD: None

USBX: None

VIDEO: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 2GB 16X PCIe 3.0 Video Card (Major Brand Powered by NVIDIA)

VIDEO2: NVIDIA GeForce GT 610 1GB 16X PCIe Video Card [+54] (Major Brand Powered by NVIDIA)

VIDEO3: None

WNC: PCI Wireless 802.11n 150Mbps Network Interface Card [+19]




So what you guys think? If they're trash let me know, any suggestions/opinions are EXTREMLY appreciated, really want to get back into my gaming! Again thank you very much for any help guys.

 

[azeem40]

Both of those are overpriced and crap, no offense. Better off buying each part and asking NCIX to assemble it.

 

[DavidY]

Neither. You can always specify (or have someone here do it) a computer system for a certain budget and then have an online computer dealer build it for you (find a company that price matches the lowest prices found). Here in Canada, it typically costs one ~$50 for PC assembly and OS installation/testing.

Dave

 

[Jayden7]

That actually sounds like a good idea, the asking someone here part.

Think you could tell me where to ask it on here? My budget is 1500 roughly give or take, pretty much what I want is a PC that handles everything thrown at it on max settings no problem.

Thanks btw for the response, been waiting freaking weeks for help.

 

[azeem40]

He said ask an online dealer, not someone here. 😛

 

[l0v3rboi]

Just repeating what has been said. Both are overpriced. Here is a build that will be better in terms of price and performance:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dmC2
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dmC2/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dmC2/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($30.98 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Radioactive 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($109.95 @ B&H)
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($91.32 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 500R White ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.18 @ Mac Connection)
Power Supply: XFX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($89.13 @ Amazon)
Total: $1283.50
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-07-29 18:29 EDT-0400)

 

[azeem40]

If you don't like White, the 500R also comes in Black.

 

[Jayden7]

You dudes are great, so nice to finally get some freaking responses lol.

Anyways, will the Black case affect the build or is it compatiable? I saw that they were different prices so was just curious if they were different.

I guess this build I'll go with if you guys agree with it. So what would be the next move in terms of having an online company assemble this build? No knowledge with this stuff so bare with me.

 

[azeem40]

Same case, just Black, so no. You can go to your local computer store and ask them to build it.

 

[l0v3rboi]

The only difference between white and black is the color. The white one is more expensive because of the simple fact that it is white and hence is more exotic.

I think the easiest way to do it is to contact a dealer's customer service and inquire about PC-building service. At NCIX and Memory Express here in Canada, they do it for $50. Make sure the dealer you choose does price-matching so if you find a cheaper part from a different store, they will match it.

 

[Jayden7]

Unfortunately it seems NCIX and Memory Express doesn't ship to the US. There's a NCIX US site but from the looks of it they don't have a PC builder like the Canada site does.

 

[DavidY]

Unfortunately it seems NCIX and Memory Express doesn't ship to the US. There's a NCIX US site but from the looks of it they don't have a PC builder like the Canada site does.

That PC builder at NCIX.ca isn't as good as it was in the past. I bypassed it and just started to add components to the shopping cart that you want in the build with any pricematches (links and lower pricing) and then add a PC assembly and OS testing fee. If there is no assembly/testing fee, they won't build it for you (or may be this is not an option in the US like it is in Canada).

Dave

 

[Jayden7]

Could you guys recommend another site that you know of?

 

[l0v3rboi]

You can ask a small, local shop to build your PC for you. Just buy the parts online and when they are delivered, get them to do it. Of course provided that they are quoting a reasonable price.

There is also an option of you, building it yourself. Here check out these videos by Newegg.com on how to build a pc. I learned how to build mine just by watching it:
Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPIXAtNGGCw
Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_56kyib-Ls
Part 3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaVBsXEiok

 

[tbhizzle]

building your own is not that hard. for me it was watching a bunch of videos like loverboy said and i got through it on a Saturday. the longest part was installing windows. physically building it was just screwing in the motherboard and plugging everything else into it
look into building it you self, not that hard.

 

[Jayden7]

Ok guys, been busy with work hence the no reponses. I've decided that I'm going to just build it myself after thinking everything over....let's hope it goes well and easy as everyone says.

Here's the build suggested above, just wanted to repost it incase you guys had second thoughts about a part(s) before i started ordering everything:



CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($30.98 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Radioactive 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($109.95 @ B&H)
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($91.32 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.18 @ Mac Connection)
Power Supply: XFX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($89.13 @ Amazon)


It's possible to overclock with this setup right?

 

[l0v3rboi]

Yup looks good. You can overcock and SLI in the future. If you don't plan to SLI however, just drop the PSU to an XFX 550W PSU.

 

[Jayden7]

Hey guys, sorry for no response in a while, real busy with work on top of waiting for PC parts.

So few days ago I finally received the final part, for the most part everything is looking awesome. Only problem is it turns out i need an adapter for the molex wire which is attached to the led fans. Waiting for that to come from Micro Center, I did next day shipping so should have it real soon. At the moment I have only one chassis fan going so I'm trying not to use it much until I get the adapter. I'd like to take a picture of it all once i get it 100% complete to show you guys!

It's coming out really nice, just bought a 23" monitor today at best buy as well, I've really moved up a notch with my PC gaming let me tell you lol. I'll update you all once adapter arrives and installed.

Again thanks for all the help, I'm very happy with everything.