pc builder suggestions?

Artur Foden

Hello

Ive got a bit of money saved and plan to throw it away on a new gaming pc, but being inexperienced in actually building PC's I would prefer to find a site that would build it for me and ship it here.

something a bit like this: http://www.thedigistore.ie/


Any suggestions? I would only feel comfortable buying a gaming pc from a website that is recommended

Would appreciate any replies.

Thanks

Serephucus

Copy this and answer as many questions as you can. It'll help a lot with what to recommend.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056397753

99% of the time, it's cheaper to build it yourself. However, hardwareversand.de - the site virtually everyone uses here - will build it for you from whatever components you want (can help you here too) for an extra €20. Alternatively, anyone here would happily build it for the same, or free.

Artur Foden

edit: thanks a lot for the link! I would like to built it myself, but don't want to risk it



1. What is your budget? [€800] (1000 at a pinch)

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Gaming] (bf3, skyrim, all the regular ones)

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? [Yes] (windows 7 64 ultimate if possible)

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? [no, has out of date hardware and would like to give it a way or use it as day to day pc]

5. Do you need a monitor? [Yes]

5a. If yes, what size do you need. [any, probably 19'']

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? [n/a]

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [nope should be ok there]

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? [Yes] (willing, but as I said I would prefer to just get it built and shipped to me by a recommended website, I am happy to just keep to stock speeds)

8. How can you pay? [Credit card probably]

9. When are you purchasing? [whenever, probably not within a week though]

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? [Dublin 2] (hopefully will manage though!)

Serephucus

Right, well at the very least, list the hard drive of your old computer. They're tripled in price recently, so you might want to re-use that.

Item|Price
Total build cost: €855.82 + €30 shipping
Intel Core i5-2500K Box, LGA1155|€185.73
ASRock P67 Pro3 (B3), Sockel 1155, ATX|€81.59
ASUS EAH6950 DCII /2DI4S/1GD5, AMD Radeon HD 6950, 1GB, PCI- Express|€224.16
Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 550W|€52.07
MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit SB-Version Englisch|€83.30
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9|€36.70
ASUS VS228H|€125.45
Xigmatek Asgard, ATX, ohne Netzteil, schwarz|€31.61
Samsung SH-222AB bare schwarz SATA|€15.21
Rechner - Zusammenbau|€20.00


The above will do you nicely, assuming you do have a hard drive you can re-used, and should allow you to play BF3 on High at 60FPS, or Ultra at 30-40FPS.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2011/11/10/battlefield-3-technical-analysis/4

I've included a 22" 1920x1080 (Full HD) monitor, as well as Win7 Home Premium (I very much doubt you'll need the features that Ultimate offers, unless you're routinely booting from networked or virtual HDDs, for example) There's also a processor in there that's an absolute monster when it comes to overclocking, though if you're going to try for any sort of moderate OC, you'll want a better cooler than the stock one.

Artur Foden

Fantastic response, and that price is perfect. I think I will reuse my HDD as you recommend, as it was fairly expensive at the time and shouldn't be to complicated to connect.

If I was inclined would that system be compatible with a nVidia card? I ask only because I am quite comfortable with them having used them pretty much exclusively up to now. Though that 6950 looks suitable enough for my needs

Sorry for all these questions, I really don't understand computers all to well.

IrishMetalhead

just thaught i should meantion most of us on here are willing to build it for you for free as it's a hobby for most of us so theres more then likely someone in your area willing to build it for you

Edit: also if your looking to go the nvidia route rather then amd then you'd want to be looking for a 560ti which is pretty much the nvidia equivilant to a 6950, personally i'd preffer the 6950 but mainly because most of my games are optimized for amd, now don't be getting a non ti version of the 560 as it's a much slower card so just remember that

IrishMetalhead

Heres what I'd recommend btw (pretty much the same as serephucus's recommendations except i replace the 6950 with a 560ti, added a cpu cooler and changed the case to much nicer one)

Item|Price
Total build cost: €861.25 + €30 shipping
Intel Core i5-2500K Box, LGA1155|€185.73
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 13 Pro(Sockel 775/1155/1156/1366/754/939/AM2/AM2 +/AM3/AM3+/FM1)|€22.30
ASRock P67 Pro3 (B3), Sockel 1155, ATX|€81.59
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9|€36.70
Club3D GeForce GTX 560-Ti CoolStream OC Edition, 1024MB DDR5|€189.39
Samsung SH-222AB bare schwarz SATA|€15.21
Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 550W|€52.07
MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit SB-Version Englisch|€83.30
ASUS VS228H|€125.45
Cooler Master 690 II LITE Midi-Tower - PURE Black Edition, ohne Netzteil|€69.51


also i removed the build service as someone here will more then likely do it for you for free like myself (if you can get down to arklow that is)

(edit: should point out that I'm well experienced aswell as it's been a hobby of mine for the last 3 years and have built many PC's before)

akazzz

I highly suggest a GTX 560 Ti instead of 6950 if you're gaming at that resolution.

its cheaper and in some games faster than a 6950

Serephucus

IrishMetalHead's build is spot-on.

If you're looking for a case with a window - I've never liked the 690, don't ask me why - this might be another option for you.

http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?adp=0&aid=49496&agid=631&apop=1

IrishMetalhead

Serephucus wrote: »

IrishMetalHead's build is spot-on.

If you're looking for a case with a window - I've never liked the 690, don't ask me why - this might be another option for you.

http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?adp=0&aid=49496&agid=631&apop=1

actually since you pointed it out i'm gonna post several different cases ranging between €60 to €70 so he can choose which one he likes the styling the most on as everyone is different in this catagory:

http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=48896&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=49192&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=29472&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=49496&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=27501&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=38379&agid=631
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=51849&agid=631

Serephucus

Oh god, that INWIN one is hideous. The Fractal Design would get my vote.

IrishMetalhead

i thaught the same about the inwin but there are people who like the completely outragiously aggressive look so thats why i thaught i'd include it just in case

akazzz

Fractical design FTW out of all those.

But if money isn't an option HOTTTT !

Serephucus

White = fail, but that case is lovely. One of the best looking cases (if not the best) available at the moment, IMO.

Artur Foden

akazzz wrote: »

I highly suggest a GTX 560 Ti instead of 6950 if you're gaming at that resolution.

its cheaper and in some games faster than a 6950

They both look good but I think I will go for the GTX 560, but thanks everyone for the suggestions

Regarding cases I'm not a fan of that inwin one, it's too messy really.
My favourite out of all of them is probably the white Corsair actually, and will keep an eye on that and the fractal design and Xigmatek Midgard cases.

thanks for sharing all of those

Serephucus

The 600T is also in black, if that helps any.

Also: If you're getting the 560, make sure it's the GTX 560 Ti. There is a non-Ti version, and it's not nearly as good.

IrishMetalhead

just thaught i'd post more case in the 600t budget aswell if your willing to spend that high to give you more options:

NZXT Phantom:
White: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=38374&agid=632
Black: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=38376&agid=632
Black & Orange: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=51811&agid=632
Pink (for the lulz): http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=51820&agid=632
Red: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=38375&agid=632
White & Red: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=51819&agid=632

Corsair Cases:
650D: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=48720&agid=631
600T: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=39001&agid=631
600T White: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=47538&agid=631

Antec Twelve Hundred V3:
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=23012&agid=631

Silverstone SST-FT01B-W Fortress:
Silver: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=28602&agid=631
Black: http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=28603&agid=631

Coolermster HAF X:
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=36698&agid=632

RedCedar

IrishMetalhead wrote: »

Heres what I'd recommend btw (pretty much the same as serephucus's recommendations except i replace the 6950 with a 560ti, added a cpu cooler and changed the case to much nicer one)

Item|Price
Total build cost: €861.25 + €30 shipping
Intel Core i5-2500K Box, LGA1155|€185.73
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 13 Pro(Sockel 775/1155/1156/1366/754/939/AM2/AM2 +/AM3/AM3+/FM1)|€22.30
ASRock P67 Pro3 (B3), Sockel 1155, ATX|€81.59
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9|€36.70
Club3D GeForce GTX 560-Ti CoolStream OC Edition, 1024MB DDR5|€189.39
Samsung SH-222AB bare schwarz SATA|€15.21
Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 550W|€52.07
MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit SB-Version Englisch|€83.30
ASUS VS228H|€125.45
Cooler Master 690 II LITE Midi-Tower - PURE Black Edition, ohne Netzteil|€69.51

also i removed the build service as someone here will more then likely do it for you for free like myself (if you can get down to arklow that is)

(edit: should point out that I'm well experienced aswell as it's been a hobby of mine for the last 3 years and have built many PC's before)

Hi IrishMetalhead

I'd be very interested in this for my son who is looking for a pc that has nvidia geforce 560.
I'd be happy to pay the extra to have it built and go to pick it up.
Also I don't have a monitor or hard drive or any or peripherals for it.
How much would I be looking at, all in and how long, approx, would this all take?

regards

John

IrishMetalhead

take me a day to build it anyway and probably an extra day if you want me to do a 24hr stability test on it, to add a 500gb HDD you'd be looking to spend an extra €100 which is steep but thanks to the thailand floods theres not alot anyone can do about it apart from buying one used, the monitor posted there has onboard speakers so no need to buy speakers for it, a decent gaming mouse goes for around €30 or €40 so it's probably cost you an extra €140 at the most, as for a keybaord your better buying on of those locally as you'll need it to be the irish\uk qwerty layout.
For your order to go through and be delivered it should only take a week or two at the most if all goes well.

Edit: correction it dosn't have onboard speakers but that shouldn't be a problem as speakers are fairly cheap can be just picked up in argos and such or alternativly you could just wait for this monitor to come back in stock, which is slightly cheaper and built in speakers:
http://www4.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=44477&agid=1648

Artur Foden

Hey, sorry to be a necromancer by reviving this thread.

I'm going to order the pc you guys have recommended above at the weekend there, so that should be good. and thank you all very much for the advice and recommendations

I think I'll end up going for the Cooler Master case ( http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?adp=0&aid=36698&agid=632&apop=1 )

i was wondering if anyone could recommend a good HDD to go with all of that?
I looked at this one, but I'd just like to check with you guys
http://www3.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=28152&agid=689

edit: put in the link for the one I was looking at, the Samsung f3, based on this review.
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/storage/2009/10/06/samsung-spinpoint-f3-1tb-review/10

thanks

Monotype

That's an external hard drive. You could disassemble it and install it in the computer.
Here's the internal ones.
http://www3.hardwareversand.de/articlesearch.jsp?agid=686&search.reset=1&search.sKey=

It's hard to recommend any when they're all so dear. Just don't get an IDE one or a laptop one. Avoid getting 5400 RPM or "green" drives as they're a bit slower.

The alternative is to get a solid state drive - extremely fast but less capacity (and expensive, not temporarily like the hard drives).
http://www3.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=46110
You could add hard drives later when prices come back down.

Artur Foden

Sorry i posted the wrong link, that was not the one I meant to post! will edit in the correct one once ive found it again. what a fool

thanks for that link, Monotype. would any of those HDD on that page be compatible?

Monotype

Yeah, the F3 is one of the fastest HDDs. Good buy apart from the sickening price compared to a few months ago.

All the SATA ones are compatible. The ones listed as ATA or IDE are are the old interface and not compatible with most new boards.

Artur Foden

Apologies to bring this thread back up from the depths, mods please delete this if you like.

I just got my PC parts, and I have a quick question regarding thermal paste, I just need to be sure.

The CPU cooler I got (thanks for the recommendation) apparently comes with some thermal paste already applied

http://www.arctic.ac/en/p/cooling/cpu/3/freezer-13.html

Will that be sufficient or should I invest in some more thermal paste and apply it to the CPU myself? I'm guessing not but as I said, I just want to be sure.

thanks for the help

Serephucus

MX-4 is great thermal paste. If I was telling you to get some, it probably would be MX-4 or IC Diamond (and there's really not much difference, unless you're getting into high overclocks, anyway.)

ShadowHearth

Artur Foden wrote: »

Apologies to bring this thread back up from the depths, mods please delete this if you like.

I just got my PC parts, and I have a quick question regarding thermal paste, I just need to be sure.

The CPU cooler I got (thanks for the recommendation) apparently comes with some thermal paste already applied

http://www.arctic.ac/en/p/cooling/cpu/3/freezer-13.html

Will that be sufficient or should I invest in some more thermal paste and apply it to the CPU myself? I'm guessing not but as I said, I just want to be sure.

thanks for the help

if paste already applied, then dont touch it and bolt on your cooler.

if paste is not applied and you get paste in a tube, then apply it yourself. ussually the one supplied is good enough, not much difference between them anyway.

as for applying paste... its a timeless debate. some people just make a small drop and then bolt on cooler, this way preasure will spread the paste. ( i did that )

some prefer apply paste and then spread it with Credit card for example.

Monotype

If you spread it, it's likely that you have too much and you might end up with air bubbles. Best to follow the manufacturer instructions if you choose to use your own. What you have is fine but if you were building a few setups or changing/reattaching heatsinks regularly, you'd have to get some.

Serephucus

There's a few videos on Youtube* that will show you different methods. Long story short, the X method seems to be the best. (Make an X shape with very thin lines of thermal paste) it can be difficult though as a lot of thermal pastes aren't viscus enough for it to work right.

*Search for "how thermal paste spreads" and you'll get them.

Artur Foden

Thanks for all the advice, I stuck the cpu cooler on there no problem, the paste was already applied fortunately. Will remember the above posts in future if I have to ever apply thermal paste myself.

Everything is pretty much installed now, going to bring it to a friend tommorow who will wire it together for me. can't wait to turn it on!