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Does this build look ok??

- Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium - £70.85
- Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz XMS3 Memory Kit CL9 1.5V unbuffered-£34.98
- Asus P8Z68-V LX Socket 1155 Onboard graphics output 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard- £76.37
- Intel Core i3 2100 3.10GHz Socket 1155 3MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor- £89.72
- Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro rev 2 Socket 775, 1156, 1155, 1366, AM2, AM3 Heatpipe CPU Cooler- £14.99
- BitFenix Shinobi Black Mid Tower Case with Side Window- £53.75
- Seagate 500GB 3.5" SATA-III 6Gb/s Barracuda Hard Drive 7200RPM 16MB Cache- £65.00
- Crucial 64GB M4 SSD - 2.5" SATA-III - Read 415MB/s Write 95MB/s - 3 Year Warranty- £74.99
- LiteOn iHAS124 24x DVD±RW DL & RAM SATA Optical Drive - OEM Black with Nero Essentials- £14.99
- Antec TruePower New 550W Modular PSU- £59.72

Cart total inc vat: £555.36
Original post by californiadreamin
Does this build look ok??

- Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium - £70.85
- Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz XMS3 Memory Kit CL9 1.5V unbuffered-£34.98
- Asus P8Z68-V LX Socket 1155 Onboard graphics output 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard- £76.37
- Intel Core i3 2100 3.10GHz Socket 1155 3MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor- £89.72
- Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro rev 2 Socket 775, 1156, 1155, 1366, AM2, AM3 Heatpipe CPU Cooler- £14.99
- BitFenix Shinobi Black Mid Tower Case with Side Window- £53.75
- Seagate 500GB 3.5" SATA-III 6Gb/s Barracuda Hard Drive 7200RPM 16MB Cache- £65.00
- Crucial 64GB M4 SSD - 2.5" SATA-III - Read 415MB/s Write 95MB/s - 3 Year Warranty- £74.99
- LiteOn iHAS124 24x DVD±RW DL & RAM SATA Optical Drive - OEM Black with Nero Essentials- £14.99
- Antec TruePower New 550W Modular PSU- £59.72

Cart total inc vat: £555.36


Need a bit more info first. Right now though don't get the arctic cooling freezer 7 pro. You don't need it and it's not worth it - the stock cooler will be fine.

Are you planning on getting an i5-2500K or an ivy bridge CPU in the future? If you do then will you overclock? You can prob save money on the PSU. It's good but you can prob save £10 and get a perfectly good PSU.

The rest is pretty much your choice.
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 6642
Stock cooler is noisy. Gelid Tranquillo is supposed to be very good and quiet. Mine gelid is supposed to arrive Tuesday, I'll let you know how much better it is over stock. :biggrin:
Original post by alexs2602
Need a bit more info first. Right now though don't get the arctic cooling freezer 7 pro. You don't need it and it's not worth it - the stock cooler will be fine.

Are you planning on getting an i5-2500K or an ivy bridge CPU in the future? If you do then will you overclock? You can prob save money on the PSU. It's good but you can prob save £10 and get a perfectly good PSU.

The rest is pretty much your choice.


The only thing I'm going to be using it for is general home use:

-internet with multiple tabs and downloads running
-multimedia storage and viewing
-word documents/microsoft office

As I'm storing and transferring stuff I want usb 3.0 and/or esata and support for adding more internal hard drives in the future. I definitely want a modular psu as well. In the future I may switch to an i5 which is why I'm looking at the 1155 motherboard.

Things I'm not going to be doing:

-overclocking
-gaming

Other than the i3 system, I've also been thinking about this:

1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £58.99
1 x AMD Llano A4-3400 2.70GHz (Socket FM1) APU Processor (AD3400OJGXBOX) £53.99
1 x Asus F1A55-M LX AMD A55 (Socket FM1) DDR3 Motherboard £49.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) £39.98
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £29.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (TW3X4G1333C9A) £22.99
1 x Sony Optiarc AD-7280S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.98

Would that be sufficient for my needs? Will the difference between the intel and amd builds be noticeable as well?
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 6644
Original post by californiadreamin
The only thing I'm going to be using it for is general home use:

-internet with multiple tabs and downloads running
-multimedia storage and viewing
-word documents/microsoft office

As I'm storing and transferring stuff I want usb 3.0 and/or esata and support for adding more internal hard drives in the future. I definitely want a modular psu as well. In the future I may switch to an i5 which is why I'm looking at the 1155 motherboard.

Things I'm not going to be doing:

-overclocking
-gaming


Well you have to use a 1155 motherboard regardless, but you don't need the Z68 version, as that's for overclocking. You'll want one of the the H-series sandybridge (1155) motherboards. This doesn't allow you to overclock, but will allow you to use the integrated graphics. You can use the i3, i5 or i7 on these types of motherboards. Just find one with the features you want.
Reply 6645
That AMD will have better on-board integrated graphics, but if you're not gaming, there's little point. I think the i3 integrated graphics can still easily play HD video. Also AMD are dying, so not much there for future-proofing yourself. Intel uses less power too, and the upgrading to the i5 in the future will stomp all over the AMD.

The Corsair CX PSUs are good value units and will easily run those parts without a problem. But it's not modular. I have that PSU running an i5 2500K and will have a 6850 GPU next week. Shouldn't be a problem.

4GB of RAM is probably plenty, but it's so cheap you might as well go for 8GB. Prices may rise in the future.

You can't really go wrong with BitFenix cases, they're very goof at the moment.
Original post by californiadreamin
The only thing I'm going to be using it for is general home use:

-internet with multiple tabs and downloads running
-multimedia storage and viewing
-word documents/microsoft office

As I'm storing and transferring stuff I want usb 3.0 and/or esata and support for adding more internal hard drives in the future. I definitely want a modular psu as well. In the future I may switch to an i5 which is why I'm looking at the 1155 motherboard.

Things I'm not going to be doing:

-overclocking
-gaming

Other than the i3 system, I've also been thinking about this:

1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £79.98
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (ST500DM002) £58.99
1 x AMD Llano A4-3400 2.70GHz (Socket FM1) APU Processor (AD3400OJGXBOX) £53.99
1 x Asus F1A55-M LX AMD A55 (Socket FM1) DDR3 Motherboard £49.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) £39.98
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £29.99
1 x Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (TW3X4G1333C9A) £22.99
1 x Sony Optiarc AD-7280S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.98

Would that be sufficient for my needs? Will the difference between the intel and amd builds be noticeable as well?


It's not really worth the money to get amd. Intel outperforms amd at every price level.

You need a H67 mobo, Z68 is used for overclocking hence exceeds your needs. You'll also never need a third party CPU cooler or a K version CPU such as the i5-2500K. Bear in mind if you do get a H67 mobo then decide you want to get a K version CPU to overclock then you'll need a new mobo too.

Again most mobos will be fine for your needs - the asus intel one you chose has 6 SATA ports, that's more than enough in most cases. It's enough for me and I download plenty. A lot of mobos have USB3.0 so shouldn't be a problem unless you want a USB3.0 port on the front in which case you'll need a mobo with an internal USB3.0 header and a case with USB3.0 ports on the front.

OCZ ModXStream 500W Pro is a modular psu made by a respectable manufacturer selling for less than £50 on amazon.

NB: If you do get an i5 in the future a CPU you can get which you can't overclock is the i5-2500(non K version).
Reply 6647
I was thinking about getting these parts to build my own computer:

-750GB Western Digital WD7500AARS Caviar Green, 3.5" HDD, SATA II - 3Gb/s, 5400rpm, 64MB Cache, 8ms, Free-Fall

-8GB (2x4GB) Corsair DDR3 Vengeance Jet Black, PC3-12800 (1600), Non-ECC, CAS 9-9-9-24, XMP, 1.50V

-AMD FX 6100 Black Edition, Orochi Core, S AM3+, 3.3GHz, 12MB Total Cache, HT 5200MT/s, 95W

-Coolermaster Elite 430, All Black, Mid Tower Case with Side Window 120mm Front LED Blue Fan w/o PSU

-1GB Asus GTX 550 Ti, 4104MHz GDDR5, GPU 900MHz, Shader 1800MHz, 192 Cores, Dual Link DVI-I/ D-Sub/ HDMI

-Alpenfohn Brocken CPAF-005 Quad Heatpipe Performance Cooler 775/1155/1156/1366/754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3

-Asus M5A97 PRO, AMD 970, S AM3+, DDR3, SATA III - 6Gb/s, RAID SATA, PCIe 2.0 (x16), ATX

-520W Antec Neo Eco Modular PSU 82%Eff', 80 PLUS Bronze, SLI/CrossFire, EPS 12V, Quiet Fan, ATX

-LG CH10LS20.AUAU 10x Blu-ray Reader, 16x DVD±R, 8x +RW, 6x -RW, 12x RAM - OEM *

-Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit SP1, Operating System, Single, - OEM

I will be using it mostly for gaming, but perhaps for films as well. Just wanted to know if this would work okay and/or if there are any improvements to be made.

NB: I'm on a budget of £650 and this is currently ~£660
Reply 6648
Dell XPS 15z vs 14z? What are the differences other than screen size and weight?
Original post by SMed
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Original post by alexs2602
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Why all the hate on AMD? They're not as fast as Intel, but you can get a 3500 Llano (3-core) for about 60 pounds.

That's not bad considering you're probably going to have to get discrete graphics with any Intel solution. That, and AMD mobos are usually cheaper.
Original post by Nick Longjohnson
Why all the hate on AMD? They're not as fast as Intel, but you can get a 3500 Llano (3-core) for about 60 pounds.

That's not bad considering you're probably going to have to get discrete graphics with any Intel solution. That, and AMD mobos are usually cheaper.


Because performance wise intel are better than amd at every price. It isn't opinion, it's fact. Also there are new intel CPUs(that's to say intel CPUs that are not used) that are as cheap as £30. The bulldozers were a massive fail.

Edit: AMD users gonna hate.
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by Edsterr
I was thinking about getting these parts to build my own computer:

-750GB Western Digital WD7500AARS Caviar Green, 3.5" HDD, SATA II - 3Gb/s, 5400rpm, 64MB Cache, 8ms, Free-Fall

-8GB (2x4GB) Corsair DDR3 Vengeance Jet Black, PC3-12800 (1600), Non-ECC, CAS 9-9-9-24, XMP, 1.50V

-AMD FX 6100 Black Edition, Orochi Core, S AM3+, 3.3GHz, 12MB Total Cache, HT 5200MT/s, 95W

-Coolermaster Elite 430, All Black, Mid Tower Case with Side Window 120mm Front LED Blue Fan w/o PSU

-1GB Asus GTX 550 Ti, 4104MHz GDDR5, GPU 900MHz, Shader 1800MHz, 192 Cores, Dual Link DVI-I/ D-Sub/ HDMI

-Alpenfohn Brocken CPAF-005 Quad Heatpipe Performance Cooler 775/1155/1156/1366/754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3

-Asus M5A97 PRO, AMD 970, S AM3+, DDR3, SATA III - 6Gb/s, RAID SATA, PCIe 2.0 (x16), ATX

-520W Antec Neo Eco Modular PSU 82%Eff', 80 PLUS Bronze, SLI/CrossFire, EPS 12V, Quiet Fan, ATX

-LG CH10LS20.AUAU 10x Blu-ray Reader, 16x DVD±R, 8x +RW, 6x -RW, 12x RAM - OEM *

-Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit SP1, Operating System, Single, - OEM

I will be using it mostly for gaming, but perhaps for films as well. Just wanted to know if this would work okay and/or if there are any improvements to be made.

NB: I'm on a budget of £650 and this is currently ~£660


Since I'm pretty sure you've already asked for and received advice on here and ignored it I'm not going to bother offering any to you this time. All I'm going to say is I could give you a better build for £650.
Hello there, was wondering if someone can help me with a custom build pc, I can build the pc but find it difficulty with compatiility buying the parts. It would be used for watching movies and hardcore gaming. My budget is 600 pound. Thanks in advance. I don't need an OS.
Reply 6653
What about monitor, keyboard and mouse? Do you have any spare computer parts such as hard drives or optical drives?
Original post by SMed
What about monitor, keyboard and mouse? Do you have any spare computer parts such as hard drives or optical drives?


I have a standard pc at the moment, don't know if the parts are crap or good. They are the following:

Asrock n68c-s ucc motherboard,
Amd athlon 64 x2 dual core processor 4000+ 2.10ghz
4gb maxtor ram
320gb hd
Nvidia geforce 8800 ultra graphics card
2x dvd rw +/-
card reader
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 6655
Original post by alexs2602
Since I'm pretty sure you've already asked for and received advice on here and ignored it I'm not going to bother offering any to you this time. All I'm going to say is I could give you a better build for £650.


Sorry I must have missed a few posts or something, but as far as I was aware I've taken most (if not all) of the advice I've been given.
Original post by Edsterr
Sorry I must have missed a few posts or something, but as far as I was aware I've taken most (if not all) of the advice I've been given.


Fairly sure it was suggested amd is a waste of money. Although tbf doing a tally of the build I'd get now it'd cost £680~ which is obviously over. And unless you were to get a dvd drive instead of a blu ray or a cheaper HD I can't see a way of getting it below £650.

£650 is a tight budget for a gaming comp.
Original post by JirayasKonoha
I have a standard pc at the moment, don't know if the parts are crap or good. They are the following:

Asrock n68c-s ucc motherboard,
Amd athlon 64 x2 dual core processor 4000+ 2.10ghz
4gb maxtor ram
320gb hd
Nvidia geforce 8800 ultra graphics card
2x dvd rw +/-
card reader


Still need more info on the DVD rewriter, RAM, HD(For the HD and DVD rw - SATA? For the RAM DDR3?). But even then you're not likely to get a 'hardcore' gaming comp. Assuming you only reused the monitor, keyboard, mouse, OS it's still going to cost you a good £650 to get a decent build. Although if you didn't want to overclock it might be viable, just!
Original post by alexs2602
Still need more info on the DVD rewriter, RAM, HD(For the HD and DVD rw - SATA? For the RAM DDR3?). But even then you're not likely to get a 'hardcore' gaming comp. Assuming you only reused the monitor, keyboard, mouse, OS it's still going to cost you a good £650 to get a decent build. Although if you didn't want to overclock it might be viable, just!


Where do I get the rest of the info like that? Yeah I want to spend around 650 on a build. What's overclock? Yeah its sata is all I know. Even then I can't get a decent gaming machine? To play wow on full settings? How much would I have to pay? Couldn't I add stuff on extra later? Thanks in advance
I´m quite satisfied with my new PC, had no problems running Crysis 2 or Kingdoms of Amalur on the highest settings. Although I ended up spending more than I had originally intended.

Components (I know I already posted parts of this, but this is a complete list of all the parts I eventually bought) :
CM storm trooper case
ASUS P8Z68-V Pro
i5-2500k 4x3.30 Ghz
8GB Corsair XMS Ram 2000 Mhz
Geforce GTX 560 2GB
Cougar S700 Power Supply
Blu-Ray drive
64 bit Windows professional
500GB Hard drive

Total cost: ~1000€
(edited 12 years ago)