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New build gaming/media ready to launch.

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    #2
    U_Fig
    Registered Users Posts: 893 ✭✭✭U_Fig


    I realised I don't want to bother overclocking. Silence is probably my top priority so low power is all good. Hence the card and the ivy bridge. This is for a gaming/media pc.

    you might not want to overclock now but by getting an overclockable CPU now you will have the option of grinding a bit of extra performance in a few years time by overclocking then and per-long the useful life of your system.. Also GPU's tend to be quite noisy...can't comment on that exact one but mine is the loudest part of my system by far..
    The motherboard: Could I choose a better one? Should I spend more or less and why?

    that particular motherboard not rated highly...

    if you decide to go for a k-series CPU get a z77 either ASRock Z77 Pro4, Sockel 1155, ATX] this board will give you the option to overclock and the option to crossfire by adding a second graphics card to gain more performance in the future should you need to.

    if you want to save some money and get a ASRock Z77 Pro4-M, Sockel 1155, mATX which is the same board as above but it's a smaller form factor...you'll loose the PCI slots but still have 4 PCIe slots and can crossfire.. it's pretty much the same but smaller..

    if however you choose not to get a k-series CPU you can go for this board ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP, Sockel 1155, ATX or this board ASRock B75 Pro3, Sockel 1155, ATX..there isn't much difference between these boards apart from the B75 not supporting RAID... the B75 is designed for businesses... from reviews I've seen the H77 is a bit better board but the B75 is a good board i have one in my HTPC
    Is the fan powerful enough? Again any better or cheaper candidates.

    by fan i'm going to assume you mean PSU (power supply) ... yes 430 should be fine buy if you are planning to overclock bump it up to about 530w-550w and if you plan to crossfire go to about 600w.. that PSU is good tho i have a be quite 300w for my HTPC and it's really quiet... an alternative if you want to save a few €'s is Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 450W it''s highly recommended here and it's quiet from what I've heard
    I'm set on the 7870 but which brand should I get. Worth it to get an OC version?

    the 7870 is a great card... and overclocks well... if you get a z77 board you will be able to overclock in the bios (you may be able to do this on the others boards not sure) so getting an OC card isn't really necessary but generally the will come with better coolers and for 7870 i'd personally go with the Saphire you have or the MSI twin frozer... the OC version will give a little bit more oomph out of the box without having to manually overclock it..
    Any issues with the hard drives or ssd? I had thought about getting a single 256GB ssd for the quietness but thought that might be limiting and risky,

    i'd deffo recommend an SSD..prob best bang for buck is 128gb boot drive with a HDD for storage..you can go for 256gb drive but best of both worlds is what i'd do.. also that SSD you have is prob the best one to get
    I want to keep this cheap and get stuff later on if I need. I was close to getting the K version of the chip but think I will stick with stock clock. Will the stock fan do the job? Too noisy?

    see above for the k-series bit...intel stock fan is quite noisy... aftermarket fans that are most recommended here are Thermalright HR-02 Macho Rev.A (BW) one of the best air coolers around...not too sure about the noise i don'y have one someone else may be able to comment on that.. deffo quieter that the stock one or this one ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 13 Pro bit cheaper but still a good air cooler...both can be difficult to install and i cn't comment on the noise of either...if you are not overclocking you won't need anything like this tho..a cheaper one would do
    When they say they clock speed is 3.3ghz but then got to 3.8ghz can I set that or how does that happen?

    intel turbo boost technology....basically the cpu is quad core... so what it does is shuts down some of the cores and bumps up the GHZ on the other remaining cores. so if you have an application that only uses 2 cores...it can shut down 2 cores and increase performance on the other 2 cores..


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    #3
    Terry Ryaner
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 24 ✭Terry Ryaner


    Great thanks for that, I will take some of that on board.

    Part of my plan is to link up the pc to my Full Hd Plasma screen for gaming and HD Films. Would the HDMI output come from the graphics card or from the motherboard? WOuld sound and surround sound be included in a single HDMI output?


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    #4
    U_Fig
    Registered Users Posts: 893 ✭✭✭U_Fig


    Terry Ryaner wrote: »
    Great thanks for that, I will take some of that on board.

    Part of my plan is to link up the pc to my Full Hd Plasma screen for gaming and HD Films. Would the HDMI output come from the graphics card or from the motherboard? WOuld sound and surround sound be included in a single HDMI output?

    both will have HDMI...but usually the HDMI on the GPU would be used as if you plug it into the motherboard you'll be using integrated graphics not dedicated one... you could use the motherboard one say if your GPU is loud and you wanted to use the integrated graphics for watching a movie..

    also as far as i know HDMI does support up to 7.1 surround sound....not too sure how you'd go about setting it up...have a look on Google....the motherboard will usually have 5.1 or some have 7.1 if you can't get it working..


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    #5
    Terry Ryaner
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 24 ✭Terry Ryaner


    Last one. Are there any internal leads or power leads that I should stick onto the order now or will they come with the various parts.


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    #6
    U_Fig
    Registered Users Posts: 893 ✭✭✭U_Fig


    i'm not 100% sure..you may need an extra SATA cable and all power supply's will come with German 2 prong plug so you'll need a 3 prong plug...an old kettle lead or something would work.. the rest should come with the parts but i can comment...most cables can be bought locally if you miss on on one anyway.. you should be ok


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    #7
    Terry Ryaner
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 24 ✭Terry Ryaner


    Right that is ordered....slight bit of buyers remorse. Did I really need to speand €930 on a new pc? Oh well, It has been 15 years since I had a decent pc for its time.


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    #8
    U_Fig
    Registered Users Posts: 893 ✭✭✭U_Fig


    Terry Ryaner wrote: »
    Right that is ordered....slight bit of buyers remorse. Did I really need to speand €930 on a new pc? Oh well, It has been 15 years since I had a decent pc for its time.

    this is more than a decent pc it's a very good pc..what did ya go for in the end?


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    #9
    Terry Ryaner
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 24 ✭Terry Ryaner


    I was set on getting the non overclocked version of the gear but for the extra 50 quid I specced it up for the next two years. K version with Z77 motherboard and the 550w version of that fan you recommended. I'm absolutely allergic to noise so I hope its quiet. If it is then I might start giving it more juice.


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