What do you guys think of my new setup?

Eagl3ye

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Mar 27, 2015
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I've created an old thread with my first set up and got some awesome feedback! I'll be posting my new setup that I created with everyone's help. I'm creating a new thread just to get some different feedback and see what others thought. This will be my first BYO computer!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($213.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z97 Killer ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($90.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($114.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.75 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card ($172.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($66.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.75 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.95 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-140 66.0 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Asus VN247H-P 23.6" Monitor ($162.82 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($27.69 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1152.83
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-30 22:39 EDT-0400

As this is my first computer, I'm worried about things not matching up and not working...Will my motherboard, GPU, and CPU work together? What your guys thoughts about this? I planned on $1000 so I'm on the top of my budget. Thanks guys!
 
Too much RAM, get 2x4 kit, as for GPU i really have nothing to say i don't know of any within the price point that performes better, maybe a GTX 960 but that's debatable.
Just save up some money and get 2x4 RAM no need for 16 GB
considering you have to get a monitor and OS and all that you did ap retty good job
cheers 😀
 
agreed. ram is more than you need for most tasks.

you have an overclocking motherboard but a non overclocking cpu (4690k is the overclocking one)

if you dropped your ram to 8gb and went with a cheaper case you could likely make the jump up to a gtx970 and get better graphics performance.

overall i think you can probably save a little here or there if you go with parts currently on sale right now over ones not on sale (prices change quite frequently so a build good a few days ago may not be the cheapest one now).

generally speaking? no, not a bad build sans the comments above.
 
I started off with the 2x4 version of the same ram, just thought maybe 16 would be better in the long run. I might buy my brothers monitor off of him for $100. It's a LG Flatron E2260. It'll save me $70. I don't plan on OC so what should I do for a motherboard then?
 
if you dont plan on overclocking you could just get a 4690 (non k) and a h97 motherboard (if its cheaper yet still has the options you want)

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well not so much as spend more, just re-allocate the funds elsewhere. he is spending $170 now on a gpu, the gtx970 can be had for $300-330 which means he would need +130 to 150. he could save 50 bucks easy by going with 8gb ram. if he picked a cheaper case he could save another 50. by going with an h97 motherboard, or waiting for some good sales on say.. a power supply he maybe able to drop 20-30 more. ultimately if he played his cards right he might only be looking at a $0-30 increase to get a 970.

of course thats just some guestimation and based on him dropping down in some areas. that is completely up to them.

i'll reiterate again... not a bad build but it could be tweaked a little more for better performance per dollar.
 
I changed it up a little. I like the case a lot and cheaper cases don't seem to appealing to me... I'm nervous about the GPU though, on Newegg it says expect 500w. I don't know how accurate that is. And the Power supply I have is 550w. Should I up my Power Supply?? Is the H97 equivilent to the Z97 I had before just without the OC?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($213.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty H97 Killer ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($90.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.78 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.75 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280 3GB Dual-X Video Card ($172.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($66.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.75 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.95 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-140 66.0 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Asus VN247H-P 23.6" Monitor ($162.82 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($27.69 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1102.62
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-31 00:24 EDT-0400
 
i was thinking if you wanted the most bang buck you could go with something like http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Ymdc7P and just throw a few more fans in the case.

there is quite a large jump from 280 to 970 depending on what kind of graphical settings you want to run on it may be worthwhile thinking of a better card up front http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1355?vs=1332

also worth noting: you never stated if you wanted to ever run two video cards at once or not. the one i listed does not. (the one you have currently only supports amd crossfire)

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the h97 you picked over the z97... not really a point doing that unless you are saving cash by doing so. if you arent going to save any cash, just stick with the z97 version.

on a quality 550w psu you will be fine with a r9 280.

completely your choice if you want to go with the parts you selected (They would work). just trying to give you a second opinion on what would give you the most bang per buck.
 
Your GPU on your parts list. (970) says superclocked, wouldnt that be a waste if I don't OC? I guess I don't understand OC. I don't plan on using two using two GPUs. So, the sapphire would be fine? I'm torn between the SAPPHIRE DUAL-X 100373-2L Radeon R9 280 3GB 384-Bit and the MSI R9 280 GAMING 3G.
 
the superclocked version is a factory overclocked model. since it was the same price as the non overclocked model i just picked that one instead.

the 280 is honestly a mid level card at best good for only average performance. for a primarily gaming computer with an i5 its a bit of a waste to only get a 280 when you could have a 280x, 290 or 970 but that is your choice. i attached a benchmark in my previous post to give you an idea of the fps you'd be looking at and the performance differences.

my preference for brands would be asus, evga, gigabyte, xfx.....msi is not a very high end brand..

again, your call its your build.