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Core i5 build advice
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09-09-2009 11:05pm#1I'm looking for a bit of advice I have on two possible build options. Phenom II X3 or Core i5. Is the Core i5 worth the extra €70? I plan on using this for gaming and pretty much whatever else I can throw at it.
Update: I've decided I may as well just go with the Core i5 build. I do plan on this lasting a few years.
Is the PSU good enough? I'm going to overclock the CPU (apparently it OCs very well) and plan on adding a second 4870 when I get a new 21" monitor at some later stage.
Any other comments about better/cheaper/incompatible stuff is appreciated!
(Prices from HWVS)0
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I'm looking for a bit of advice I have on two possible build options. Phenom II X3 or Core i5. Is the Core i5 worth the extra €70? I plan on using this for gaming and pretty much whatever else I can throw at it.
Update: I've decided I may as well just go with the Core i5 build. I do plan on this lasting a few years.
Is the PSU good enough? I'm going to overclock the CPU (apparently it OCs very well) and plan on adding a second 4870 when I get a new 21" monitor at some later stage.
Any other comments about better/cheaper/incompatible stuff is appreciated!
(Prices from HWVS)
As mentioned: the psu is rubbish. Look at the corsair range of psus: nothing fancy or bling, but they provide stable power and they have modular models.
A radeon 4890 is more than enough to drive a 21" monitor. Crossfire and SLI are a waste fo time unless you have at least a 24"/30" screen.
It is not a magic bullet that makes games twice as fast, at most you will get a 33% increase in SOME games. If a game does not support SLI/crossfirefire you end up having a gfx card sitting on it's ass generating heat and noise and doing nothing. Case in point: ARMA2, fastest card atm is the radeon 4890 over the 4870x2 as the game only sees x1 4870 form the 4870x2....
I would skip crossfire personally, waste of money most of the time unless you hardcore play a game that supports it properly and are playing on a huge screen.....
Ram is fine: you only need a dual channel kit for core i5 anyhow.
Would stick with the core i5 and over clock a little, should be as fast as an i7 and even faster in some games: there is no HT enabled on the i5s which mean they run faster in some games....0 -
Thanks for your input guys.
I know the Core i5 is probably overkill for gaming but I really just want to have a quad core processor (typing this on a singe core machine
).
I've swapped out the PSU for something decent. I was going to go for a budget build at the start but have decided I may as well put a bit of money into this. Again, I know the PSU is probably overkill without 4870x2 -- I do plan on using this on a 32" HDTV and seeing how that works.
I've swapped out the WD HDD for a Samsung which I'm told is slightly faster for the same price.
Final Question: I literally have no idea which of the following three motherboards to choose from; all basically the same price with the same features. Help?
MSI P55-CD53
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/_/articledetail.jsp?aid=27747&agid=1305
Gigabyte GA-P55-UD3
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/_/articledetail.jsp?aid=28275&agid=1305
ASUS P7P55D LE
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/_/articledetail.jsp?aid=27946&agid=13050 -
Wow, just to have the option of Crossfire is expensive (another €40 on a Mobo and the same again on a PSU at least!). Let's just stick with a single HD4890 and a slightly OC'd Core i5.
A 600W PSU, which apparently can pull 700W no problem in reviews, is more than enough for that, right?
Changed around a few parts; does this look like a good build?
(I'm assuming Rechner - Zusammenbau is "Assembly") ^.^
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Farcear wrote:I believe the 4870 is fine with a 6- and 8-pin connection but just double checking, it seems as if the 4890 does require two 8-pin connections. Hmm.
Eh? A HD4890 uses less juice than a HD4870 and I've never seen one that needed 6+8pins PCIe, much less 8+8! Even a HD4890X2 would not have needed that (as the hungrier HD4870X2 is only 6+8). AFAIK only the "GTX299" (two GTX285's sandwiched, only one out is the Asus MARS) and ATIs overvolted MARS-beater "HD4895X2" (which was scrapped AFAIK) needed 8+8. Both the single-GPU HD4870/90 have 6+6pin PEG power connectors.A 600W PSU, which apparently can pull 700W no problem in reviews, is more than enough for that, right?
Oh god... I think I just got sick.
The SXS600 is tripe. Go to the RMA section of OCZ's website for some cheap laughs. Unless you own one, that is
It was an okay cheapo PSU in the day, but over three years later its got poor efficiency, poor reliability, mediocre build quality and severe ripple issues past the halfway point. Which eats components
What res is that HDTV? Many cheaper 32"ers have HDMI ports but are only actually 1280*720 or 1366*768, not 1920*1080! You don't need much to drive those. The 1080p versions are still fine with one HD4890 mind - no major need for a second card in CF unless you have a insane 2560*1600 unit or somesuch. And those don't come in a 32" format :P You could say that the affordable nature of the HD4890 has greatly devalued the need for CF/SLI across even the upper end of the mainstream - bear in mind that the HD4890 is level-pegging with nVidia's second-strongest single-GPU card and is the only high-end card not stressed to hell and back so you can OC them quite handily to take on a full-blown GTX285. A card that needs more than a 900-950MHz HD4890 to run at even 1080p is probably badly coded to start with! :P
Aside from the PSU the build is excellent - DDR3 kit is a bit pricey but memory in general has gone up a lot recently. Given the dearth of decent mid-range PSUs I'd recommend pushing the budget up to get a 550W Basiq Plus or Corsair. Probably a hair more 12V power than the old SXS anyway! And better in every other department - build, reliability, efficiency... You get the idea
Question: All things being equal would a 750W PSU use more power (thinking of ESB bill) than, say, a 500W PSU?
Good question. Not such a simple answer. PSUs convert AC to DC. In the process they muck it up a bit and the waste turns into heat and has to be expelled. PSUs are designed to be the most efficient at around 50% of their maximum operating capacity, and be marginally efficient (in the case of modern and/or good ones "marginal" means >80% efficient) at 20% and 100% of said rated capacity. Below 20% they get pretty inefficient, and past 100% they exceed their own specs and quickly worsen until one of the overload sensors trip and the unit goes into protective shutdown (or in the case of naff units, explodes).
So... If you were running a 500W PC and both PSUs were the same 80Plus efficiency then the 500W PSU could still run it, it just wouldn't enjoy it (~600W at the wall). The larger PSU would be a fair bit closer to its magic halfway mark and would waste less electricity than the 500W unit (~560W at the wall). So it makes more sense. By this logic once the PC dropped below ~375W of juice the 750W PSU would be running at optimum. But closer to ~250W the 500W PSU would be at optimum (~270W) and the 750W PSU, running at 33% capacity, would be just a little more wasteful (~280W). Once the PC is down idling at 100W however the 500W PSU would be ~80% efficient (~125W) and the 750W PSU, down at 13% capacity, will lose its head a bit (~135W) as modern PSUs don't really worry about efficiency below 20% capacity, as they're not raked over the coals about it by the 80Plus commission. Guess 80Plus don't realize we now have modern power-saving components in our PCs that can idle at eff-all power draw :rolleyes:
But the above assumes a fact that could only exist in theory - both PSUs have identical efficiency curves. In real life not all PSUs are born equal. Some actually try to stay efficient below 20%. Others are 85-90% efficient across their 80Plus range. Yet others don't even rate 80Plus certification as they have issues getting over 79% efficient at any point (eh, FSP?)
In general you should try to get a PSU that would be 50% efficient when you're gaming depending on your component choices. So its a bit of research, a bit of guesswork and a lot of sticking to good brands that run more efficiently and don't explode very often
As for which PSU is quantifiably better, the (theoretical) 500W or the (theoretical) 750W? I'll stick my tongue out and say "horses for courses" :P0 -
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Great minds think alike.
Coincidentally...
Although I have a feeling the PSU section will just end up being a collection of links to X-Bit :rolleyes: They seem to be the only guys who actually test power consumption levels of individual components professionally!0 -
On the point of a sticky; I found: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/257075-31-guide-choosing-parts to be helpful when looking to pick up stuff.
@solitaire: Thanks for that! The SXS600 scored fantastically in the reviews i read when it first came out. I may just go with the Corsair 650W just to future-proof and, anyway, this entire build is more than I need anyway.
I was going to get this from HWVS but, for the peace of mind that comes from having a local English-speaking, easy-to-pay retailer, I'm going to go with Komplett. Marginally more expensive but I save on delivery (can collect) and the reviews seem ok. Anything that doesn't work, I can just return under my statutory 7-day "cooling off period" for goods and services purchased on the internet.
I just hope I don't destroy this thing when I try and assemble it myself!!!
Komplett have no Socket 1156 coolers!?![:\](https://www.boards.ie/resources/emoji/confused.png ":\")
http://www.komplett.ie/k/kl.aspx?bn=105470 -
granted kompletts cpu cooler selection is usually total crap: to be fair socket 1156 cpu coolers are practically nonexistant atm.
It will a few more weeks for some half dacent ones will be out.
So it's horrbile stock push pin intel cpu cooler for you!
The stock Intel will do the job, once you manage to fit the bloody thing properly to the motherboard which will take several attempts......
I hate push pin cpu cooler and I'm you will too pretty soon;).0
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