The PC Build Thread

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Tachyon said:
Anyone care to comment on PSU's? Am looking to build a fairly high end machine (as noted previously) and here are the specs again:

Asus P8Z77-M @ R1 516
Intel Core i5 3570k @ R2 620
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB DDR3-1600MHz Module x2 @ R1 592
700W ATX Power Supply @ R853
(Will update these to replace with Haswell soon)

Am seeing some different pricing @ pcint for corsair units:

650W ATX Power Supply Corsair - R 678
750W ATX Power Supply Corsair - R 1,366

Seems like an awfully big difference in pricing for 100W. What would you say is a minimum requirement and what other factors to look out for? ..given for eg. the ridiculous price of electricity in this country
Click to expand...

I bought a 700W Huntkey PSU for R755 recently to accommodate my new HD7970 and it's been running perfectly. Solid build quality, and I'm used to Coolermaster PSU's.

I'll comment on your specs when they're updated. Obviously an i5-3570K at that price is silly. What video card are you going with? Why are you getting 16GB of RAM? I've got 2x4GB Corsair Vengeance and I don't think utilisation has ever gone anywhere near capacity, even with the occasional Windows 8 memory leak. I have the 3570K, the aforementioned RAM, a Powercolor HD7970, 128GB Transcend SSD, Gigabyte Z-Series M/B with a 27" Samsung monitor @ HD res and 60Hz, and every single game on the market runs maxed out with healthy framerates. Just bear that in mind when building your 'high end' machine.
 
Bryn26 said:
I bought a 700W Huntkey PSU for R755 recently to accommodate my new HD7970 and it's been running perfectly. Solid build quality, and I'm used to Coolermaster PSU's.

I'll comment on your specs when they're updated. Obviously an i5-3570K at that price is silly. What video card are you going with? Why are you getting 16GB of RAM? I've got 2x4GB Corsair Vengeance and I don't think utilisation has ever gone anywhere near capacity, even with the occasional Windows 8 memory leak. I have the 3570K, the aforementioned RAM, a Powercolor HD7970, 128GB Transcend SSD, Gigabyte Z-Series M/B with a 27" Samsung monitor @ HD res and 60Hz, and every single game on the market runs maxed out with healthy framerates. Just bear that in mind when building your 'high end' machine.
Click to expand...

Where did you get the huntkey from and is it a mission to install it yourself? No video card at this stage as I can't afford it but will do so in a month or two. I work with photoshop and 3D software so I thought 16GB would be helpful but you may be right. Also just waiting it out a bit to see which decent mobo's support Haswell..
 
Tachyon said:
Where did you get the huntkey from and is it a mission to install it yourself? No video card at this stage as I can't afford it but will do so in a month or two. I work with photoshop and 3D software so I thought 16GB would be helpful but you may be right. Also just waiting it out a bit to see which decent mobo's support Haswell..
Click to expand...

Got it from a local shop - Computer Bits & Pieces. I needed it urgently, so I phoned all the reputable PC shops in town. The PSU was incredibly quick and easy to install. You just unplug everything, unscrew the old PSU and slide it out. Reverse procedure to install the new one. Took 10 minutes max.
 
Tachyon said:
Where did you get the huntkey from and is it a mission to install it yourself? No video card at this stage as I can't afford it but will do so in a month or two. I work with photoshop and 3D software so I thought 16GB would be helpful but you may be right. Also just waiting it out a bit to see which decent mobo's support Haswell..
Click to expand...

I do a lot of music recording and I bought 16GB of RAM for myself. The difference from 4GB to 8GB to 16GB was most definitely noticeable. If you can afford to get 16GB, go for it.
 
Tachyon said:
Anyone care to comment on PSU's? Am looking to build a fairly high end machine (as noted previously) and here are the specs again:

Asus P8Z77-M @ R1 516
Intel Core i5 3570k @ R2 620
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB DDR3-1600MHz Module x2 @ R1 592
700W ATX Power Supply @ R853
(Will update these to replace with Haswell soon)

Am seeing some different pricing @ pcint for corsair units:

650W ATX Power Supply Corsair - R 678
750W ATX Power Supply Corsair - R 1,366

Seems like an awfully big difference in pricing for 100W. What would you say is a minimum requirement and what other factors to look out for? ..given for eg. the ridiculous price of electricity in this country
Click to expand...

Tachyon said:
Where did you get the huntkey from and is it a mission to install it yourself? No video card at this stage as I can't afford it but will do so in a month or two. I work with photoshop and 3D software so I thought 16GB would be helpful but you may be right. Also just waiting it out a bit to see which decent mobo's support Haswell..
Click to expand...

Try this 700W Raidmax: http://www.nivo.co.za//buy~raidmax.blackstone.700.watts.power.supply.rx.700ac.~p36857 Good price, solid performance.

I've been using mine for 4 years now, and it's still going strong. Buddy of mine also bought one and he says he has no problems.

Installation is easy.
 
Any recommendations on a mobo for an i5 4670k cpu?

Also, how would one setup a gaming machin using SSD and normal drives.. would you install the OS on the SSD and games on your HDD's?

Thanks
 
Tachyon said:
Any recommendations on a mobo for an i5 4670k cpu?

Also, how would one setup a gaming machin using SSD and normal drives.. would you install the OS on the SSD and games on your HDD's?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I'd go with a Gigabyte Z-series motherboard for the kickass bios and build quality. Just go to rebeltech.co.za and look for Haswell Gigabyte boards.

To really appreciate SSD performance your games should be on the SSD. 99% of my games are in Steam, so I have backups of all my games on another hard drive, and only keep games installed on the SSD as I play them. I generally have around 30GB free on the SSD most of the time, so this method works fine for me.
 
Have a few questions on deciding on a monitor for gaming:

1) How big is the difference between 1080p and 900p?

2) Do I really need a 2ms response time or will 5ms do?

3) Monitors bigger than 20" seem to sharply increase in price. Should I wait for a special or go for a sub-21" monitor?

I understand that the questions above are probably more opinion based, but any thoughts will do.
 
Dade Murphy said:
Have a few questions on deciding on a monitor for gaming:

1) How big is the difference between 1080p and 900p?

2) Do I really need a 2ms response time or will 5ms do?

3) Monitors bigger than 20" seem to sharply increase in price. Should I wait for a special or go for a sub-21" monitor?

I understand that the questions above are probably more opinion based, but any thoughts will do.
Click to expand...

There is only one monitor I'd recommend - the Samsung 27" LED. You can get one for R3.5k if you search Price Check.

To answer your questions:
1) HD resolution should be the minimum any decent desktop monitor is capable of.
2) 2ms is so common that there's no need to compromise on 5ms.
3) A monitor smaller than 20" is just tiny. Your monitor is a huge part of your computing experience - it's what you look at. It's worth investing in a good one.
 
Found two decent monitors in my price range.

Can anyone provide some clarity on the difference between the 22EA53V (R1596) and the 22EN43V (R1424).

Which should I go for?
 
Hi guys

I’m in the process of deciding on a new computer – mainly for gaining but not into overclocking. Looking at the following specs from Wootware:

• CPU – Core i5 – 4670K 3.4GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,795 or
• CPU – Core i5 – 4430 3.00GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,249
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• CPU cooler – Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo Turbo ed – R463
• Motherboard – Asrock H87 PRO4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R1,359 or
• Motherboard – Asrock Z87 Extreme4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R2,116
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• RAM – G.Skill F3 – 1600C9D-8GAB 8GB – R839
• GPU - PowerColor AX7870 – R2,399
• HDD – Seagate 1Tb – R799
• Power supply – XFX 550W – R699
• Chassis – Coolermaster RC-370 – R469
• LG optical drive – R199
• Microsoft Windows 8 6 -4Bit - Single Language, DSP - R1,064.00 Install - R100
• Assembly – R190

Now, depending on the CPU/motherboard combination, the total will be between R10,800 and R12,100, which is close enough to my original R10,000 budget. So I guess the main considerations will be relating to the CPU/motherboard combination. Any other
advice, however, would also be welcome.

Thanks in advance
 
Hi guys

I’m in the process of deciding on a new computer – mainly for gaining but not into overclocking. Looking at the following specs from Wootware:

• CPU – Core i5 – 4670K 3.4GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,795 or
• CPU – Core i5 – 4430 3.00GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,249
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• CPU cooler – Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo Turbo ed – R463
• Motherboard – Asrock H87 PRO4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R1,359 or
• Motherboard – Asrock Z87 Extreme4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R2,116
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• RAM – G.Skill F3 – 1600C9D-8GAB 8GB – R839
• GPU - PowerColor AX7870 – R2,399
• HDD – Seagate 1Tb – R799
• Power supply – XFX 550W – R699
• Chassis – Coolermaster RC-370 – R469
• LG optical drive – R199
• Microsoft Windows 8 6 -4Bit - Single Language, DSP - R1,064.00 Install - R100
• Assembly – R190

Now, depending on the CPU/motherboard combination, the total will be between R10,800 and R12,100, which is close enough to my original R10,000 budget. So I guess the main considerations will be relating to the CPU/motherboard combination. Any other
advice, however, would also be welcome.

Thanks in advance
 
stipp said:
Hi guys

I’m in the process of deciding on a new computer – mainly for gaining but not into overclocking. Looking at the following specs from Wootware:

•CPU – Core i5 – 4670K 3.4GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,795 or
•CPU – Core i5 – 4430 3.00GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,249
How much of a difference are there between these two?
•CPU cooler – Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo Turbo ed – R463
•Motherboard – Asrock H87 PRO4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R1,359 or
•Motherboard – Asrock Z87 Extreme4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R2,116
How much of a difference are there between these two?
•RAM – G.Skill F3 – 1600C9D-8GAB 8GB – R839
•GPU - PowerColor AX7870 – R2,399
•HDD – Seagate 1Tb – R799
•Power supply – XFX 550W – R699
•Chassis – Coolermaster RC-370 – R469
•LG optical drive – R199
•Microsoft Windows 8 6 -4Bit - Single Language, DSP - R1,064.00 Install - R100
•Assembly – R190

Now, depending on the CPU/motherboard combination, the total will be between R10,800 and R12,100, which is close enough to my original R10,000 budget. So I guess the main considerations will be relating to the CPU/motherboard combination. Any other
advice, however, would also be welcome.

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...

Why are you being charged for labour? No one does that anymore. Also, building the rig is the best part of buying one. The cheaper CPU isn't unlocked and is noticeably weaker. I'd recommend a Gigabyte Z-series motherboard over Asrock. You have no need for that CPU cooler.

If you have sufficient existing components, perhaps stagger your purchases so that you can afford to add an SSD and upgrade the HD7870 to an HD7970. I have the Powercolor HD7970 from Wootware and it's an absolute beast.
 
stipp said:
Hi guys

I’m in the process of deciding on a new computer – mainly for gaining but not into overclocking. Looking at the following specs from Wootware:

• CPU – Core i5 – 4670K 3.4GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,795 or
• CPU – Core i5 – 4430 3.00GHz LGA 1150 Quad Core Haswell – R2,249
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• CPU cooler – Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo Turbo ed – R463
• Motherboard – Asrock H87 PRO4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R1,359 or
• Motherboard – Asrock Z87 Extreme4 LGA 1150 Haswell – R2,116
How much of a difference are there between these two?
• RAM – G.Skill F3 – 1600C9D-8GAB 8GB – R839
• GPU - PowerColor AX7870 – R2,399
• HDD – Seagate 1Tb – R799
• Power supply – XFX 550W – R699
• Chassis – Coolermaster RC-370 – R469
• LG optical drive – R199
• Microsoft Windows 8 6 -4Bit - Single Language, DSP - R1,064.00 Install - R100
• Assembly – R190

Now, depending on the CPU/motherboard combination, the total will be between R10,800 and R12,100, which is close enough to my original R10,000 budget. So I guess the main considerations will be relating to the CPU/motherboard combination. Any other
advice, however, would also be welcome.

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
I agree with what Bryn26 said. A better GPU will help a lot and SSD will make a world of difference. Also, building it yourself is a whole lot better! Makes you feel proud and excited!

CPUs - The 4670K is better, and will have a lot better resale value!
CPU Cooler - Get the Cooler Master Hyper 212X rather, it's the new one and costs almost the same. I got mine Yesterday for a nice overclock :D
Motherboard - I'll also suggest the MSI gaming series mobo
PSU & RAM & HDD - no problems there, can always add bigger HDD's later and a SSD, so to get you started the 1TB will be fine.
Chassis - Get something that you will keep for longer, like the Corsair 300R (which is an excellent case and at a very good price). Spend a bit more now and then you won't have to upgrade it for the next few years.
GPU - Save up for HD7950, GTX760, or HD7970, don't get the HD7870 (it's a good card, don't get me wrong) it won't compliment that i5 4670K. I've got the HD7870 Myst (LE) and I'm looking at the GTX770 or GTX760 (for SLI later). Took me quite a while to upgrade where I am now. What I realized is, if you spend money on good components now (like the CPU cooler, Case, PSU, RAM), you only have to really look at that when there is something revolutionary available (like DDR4).
 
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