Before buying PC please ask our advice first!

Original post by Broderss

You could always get an external DVD drive to play DVDs when you want.

Yeah that's what I do at the moment but it's a pain in the ass.

Reply 5703

Mutedmirth

11

Original post by Zorg

Upgrade version. If you're looking to go from scratch it's nearly useless to you. Nearly, because as always there are workarounds, however these are not legit. I've always opted to buy a license if only to save the headaches when it comes to updates etc.

I think i'd be happier knowing I got the licensed version rather than support workarounds that offer no support.

I've just unleashed this monster setup you've helped me put together and he's been checking compatibility, cost and dimensions and I think he's mostly happy, but always with a few questions. He's also upped my GFX and PSU with recommendation for the software I want to use with it.

My brother wants to know if you happen to know if the I5 2500 comes with a Heatsink and fan and if it does, is it worth keeping or should I look to get a better one?

He agreed with the upgrades to GFX, PSU, Case and CPU, so it now looks like this:

He also wants to know about a issue between CPU and Mo/bo and more info on it:

(Taken from Scan.Co.uk on the Intel CPU info)
"**Please note: Intel Sandybridge SATA Issue on P67 and H67 Motherboards.
There is NO Issue with Sandybridge Processors (CPU's). Only Motherboards are potentially affected.
Devices connected to SATA Ports 0 & 1 or Using the SATAIII (6Gb/s) Ports are not affected.**"

Thanks again for the help!

P.S : Brother showed me a neat online application; PSU Calculator and all this apparently comes to around 360w at 90% load? That seems quite low, to me. But then he put capacitor aging to 50% (for some reason) and put on 6 USB ports in use and it went up to 508W?

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 5704

Rakas21

21

Overclockers
Corsair Hydro H50-1 High-Performance Liquid CPU Cooler - £51
Total: £51

CCL
KFA2 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550Ti EX OC Edition 2GB Graphics Card - £136
LiteOn IHOS104-37 Blu-Ray and DVD Reader Drive - £39
Performance mouse mx - £68
Total: £243

ARIA
Gigabyte 990FXA-UD7 AMD 990FX - £192
OCZ Vertex Plus 60GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive - £70
AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 980 Black Edition "140W Edition" 3.70GHz (Socket AM3) - £120
Total: £382

SCAN COMPUTERS
Antec 1200 Twelve Hundred (V3 with USB3.0) Ultimate Gaming Case - £130
Corsair Memory XMS3 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9 Dual Channel Desktop - £55
Storm Black Edition STORM-600W 600W Power Supply (PSU) - £21
LG W2363D-PF 3D LCD Monitor 23" Widescreen 120Hz - £154
Creative sound blaster audio se 7.1 - £20
Total: £380

PC World
Logitech c910 webcam - £60
Logitech z506 speakers - £70
Hp photosmart plus all in 1 printer - £80
Wd elements external harddrive 1tb - £45
SEAGATE Barracuda Green ST31500541AS Internal 3.5" SATA Hard Drive - 1.5TB - £40
Total: £295

Total overall - £1351

Just curious what voltage the CPU can handle?

Reply 5705

Original post by Mutedmirth

Spoiler

PSU wise I'd go for this. I'm not a huge fan of the CX series from Corsair.

If you're getting the 2500, you should get the 2500K. That's the unlocked one you can overclock. Anything without a K suffix in the Sandybridge line is locked down so you can't overclock it (you can actually overclock them in a sense but the gain is tiny)
If you get the retail edition it will come with a stock heatsink. However I wouldn't recommend the stock heatsink, it's not bad but I wouldn't want to be pushing the CPU with it. If you find an OEM 2500K (Scan stocks them I think) then get a Hyper 212+ heatsink and some MX-3 thermal paste. Could always get the retail and buy a decent cooler and paste when you have £20 to spare...

Don't worry, you've got a Z68 board in your basket so that issue doesn't affect you.
The issue relates to the early revisions of P67 and H67 boards, note. nothing to do with the processors. The early revisions used a SATA socket that was shown to degrade quite quickly, Intel have since rectified this and have released a B3 revision which fixes the problem. So if you ever buy a H67 or P67 just check that it's a B3 revision :smile:

That system won't draw much more than 400W overclocked and at maximum draw. You'll be fine with the PSU I suggested. I highly doubt you'll ever utilise 500W with this system. But the extra wattage is there for room to manoeuvre if you decide to upgrade at some point.

Which calculator is he using? They're all to be taken with a pinch of salt to be honest.

Reply 5706

username387126

8

Anybody know how to get bootloader working for mac osx on hp dv6000.

Reply 5707

zxh800

Original post by Mutedmirth

x

As Zorg has suggested, a i5 2500k would be best.

On the topic of OEM vs. Retail. Remember, retail comes with 2 extra years of warranty (3 years as opposed to 1). So, the extra price may be worth the extra 2 years warranty (and the free heat sink if you don't plan to overclock immedietly).

Reply 5708

Leeshur

I can't pull up all of the proper specs now since I'm at school and they're pedantic about what sites we can use.

The PC I want costs £684 and it's for gaming. (Not hardcore, just WoW, L4D2, Dragon Age, Portal 2, Sims, GTA 4 and all that xD) on high (ultra for WoW) with solid FPS. I'm not looking for a rig that'll run Crysis at 60FPS.

Specs:

CPU: Intel i7 950 1366 2.90 - 2.93 (not too sure) GHZ
RAM: 6GB, I think it has 3 DIMM slots.
HD: 1TB
GPU: 1GB NVIDIA GTX 460 (I want to upgrade to a GTX 560 Ti at Christmas when I get the dosh) c:
My case is a Galaxy PC case - but the issue is, it's got a 450W PSU. The stock GTX 560 Ti's recommended wattage is 500, so would I need to replace the PSU or what would happen to the card?
Comes with Windows 7 installed. c:
It's got a USB3 motherboard, I can't remember the name. > o <

I'm still looking at different PC's, since I'm waiting on this guy to ring me back with specs after I asked him if he'd build my PC.

Is this a good rig? I know with Moore's Law, the stuff won't be the best in 2 years - but I think it'll be pretty solid since I'm a casual gamer rather than hardcore.
I chose an i7 because of the hyperthreading which'll give me 8 cores which should keep up fairly well for a while, right?

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 5709

Maynia

Original post by Leeshur

*speccage*

I'm going to ask my standard question re: i7s here. Do you do

a) scientific data crunching in large amounts
or
b) serious video editing in 'this is literally my job, on which my living depends' amounts?

If you do neither, knock that down to an i5 and use the money you'll save on the other parts - there is very, very little noticeable difference in games between the i5 and the i7.

As for the PSU, the first question would be 'what is it?' You might well be able to get away with a 450W if it's a good one - i5/560ti systems tend to pull about 350W under load. Remember though, the PSU is the one component that can destroy every other component - you want to be sure it's good.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 5710

jackf1337

15

Okay. Apple MacBook Pro, the one which is £999. For Uni (Music degree) with heavy use of Sibelius and Logic, as well as basic use such as word processing and web browsing. Maybe even a FIFA game too.

Yey or ney?

Also want to buy an external monitor, around 20 inch will do, budget of £100.

Recommend me one.

Reply 5711

Sarky.

6

Original post by jackf1337

Okay. Apple MacBook Pro, the one which is £999. For Uni (Music degree) with heavy use of Sibelius and Logic, as well as basic use such as word processing and web browsing. Maybe even a FIFA game too.

Yey or ney?

Also want to buy an external monitor, around 20 inch will do, budget of £100.

Recommend me one.

Nay, Apple aren't everything for music production...

As for the monitor, this is a very good deal.

Reply 5712

Original post by Leeshur

I can't pull up all of the proper specs now since I'm at school and they're pedantic about what sites we can use.

The PC I want costs £684 and it's for gaming. (Not hardcore, just WoW, L4D2, Dragon Age, Portal 2, Sims, GTA 4 and all that xD) on high (ultra for WoW) with solid FPS. I'm not looking for a rig that'll run Crysis at 60FPS.

Specs:

CPU: Intel i7 950 1366 2.90 - 2.93 (not too sure) GHZ
RAM: 6GB, I think it has 3 DIMM slots.
HD: 1TB
GPU: 1GB NVIDIA GTX 460 (I want to upgrade to a GTX 560 Ti at Christmas when I get the dosh) c:
My case is a Galaxy PC case - but the issue is, it's got a 450W PSU. The stock GTX 560 Ti's recommended wattage is 500, so would I need to replace the PSU or what would happen to the card?
Comes with Windows 7 installed. c:
It's got a USB3 motherboard, I can't remember the name. > o <

I'm still looking at different PC's, since I'm waiting on this guy to ring me back with specs after I asked him if he'd build my PC.

Is this a good rig? I know with Moore's Law, the stuff won't be the best in 2 years - but I think it'll be pretty solid since I'm a casual gamer rather than hardcore.
I chose an i7 because of the hyperthreading which'll give me 8 cores which should keep up fairly well for a while, right?

Ok, slightly confused. Is this an upgrade or a new build?

Is that a decent 450W PSU? What make and model?

If you're upgrading and already on an x58 platform doesn't look too bad. Otherwise Sandybridge is the way forward

Reply 5713

zxh800

Original post by Zorg

Ok, slightly confused. Is this an upgrade or a new build?

Is that a decent 450W PSU? What make and model?

If you're upgrading and already on an x58 platform doesn't look too bad. Otherwise Sandybridge is the way forward

This it seems. So, the PSU is probably pretty poor.

Reply 5714

jackf1337

15

Original post by Sarky.

Nay, Apple aren't everything for music production...

As for the monitor, this is a very good deal.

So what would you recommend that runs logic?

Thanks for that, awesome deal

Reply 5715

Leeshur

Original post by Maynia

No to both, but surely (not trying to be a butt, I promise <3) an i7 is the way to go since it should be able to more or less keep up with other CPU's in the future with the 8 cores?
It won't be the best, but the i5 only has 4 cores and although it has turbo-boost, I really think the i7'll benefit me better.
I want this PC to last me for a while - through uni as well, and I don't want to buy a new CPU for at least 2 years.

This is the PC:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Intel-Quad-I7-950-X58-Win-7-GTX460-1gb-1tb-6gb-Mem-Gx-/120679739905?_trksid=p5197.m7&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26itu%3DUCI%26otn%3D4%26po%3DLVI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D1271508392916249270

Original post by Zorg

This is me buying the computer straight from the people who build the machine. I don't know how to build my own bits yet.
zxh800 is referring to the case the machine comes in.

This would be better, right?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/INTEL-I7-870-DDR3-WIN-7-PC-1TB-8GB-GTX-560-1GB-GAL-/200600391460?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item2eb4b70f24

Since it's got a 600W power supply and Corsair are good, or so I've heard? Plus it's got the 560 Ti which is what I want.

I was trying to stay within the £600 - £700 limit, but I'll have to see what my mum says. Scratch that, she said it's fine.
Very frustrating since I've been looking for PC's for weeks as I'm sick of this laptop.

Thanks guys for your input, would love more if you're willing to help. c:

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 5716

zxh800

Original post by Leeshur

zxh800 is referring to the case the machine comes in.

That link is the Case + a generic 450W PSU that comes with the case from that particular retailer. Which neatly matches up with the spec mentioned earlier. Sure, it may not be that particular 450W PSU. But, if it is the one bundled with the case, it'll be bad.

Reply 5717

Original post by Leeshur

No to both, but surely (not trying to be a butt, I promise <3) an i7 is the way to go since it should be able to more or less keep up with other CPU's in the future with the 8 cores?
It won't be the best, but the i5 only has 4 cores and although it has turbo-boost, I really think the i7'll benefit me better.
I want this PC to last me for a while - through uni as well, and I don't want to buy a new CPU for at least 2 years.

This is the PC:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Intel-Quad-I7-950-X58-Win-7-GTX460-1gb-1tb-6gb-Mem-Gx-/120679739905?_trksid=p5197.m7&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26itu%3DUCI%26otn%3D4%26po%3DLVI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D1271508392916249270

This is me buying the computer straight from the people who build the machine. I don't know how to build my own bits yet.
zxh800 is referring to the case the machine comes in.

This would be better, right?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/INTEL-I7-870-DDR3-WIN-7-PC-1TB-8GB-GTX-560-1GB-GAL-/200600391460?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item2eb4b70f24

Since it's got a 600W power supply and Corsair are good, or so I've heard? Plus it's got the 560 Ti which is what I want.

I was trying to stay within the £600 - £700 limit, but I'll have to see what my mum says. Scratch that, she said it's fine.
Very frustrating since I've been looking for PC's for weeks as I'm sick of this laptop.

Thanks guys for your input, would love more if you're willing to help. c:

Neither. both are dead platforms. i.e. no more upgrades for those platforms.

There's no point in spending £700 on a PC now when a £500 PC will do. Stick in a couple of upgrades for let's say £200 for the next 3-4 years and it'll perform as good as if not better than the £700 PC in 3-4 years time.

There is no point in buying the best unless you actually need it.

Did you say you know someone who can build it for you? As in put the parts in the case etc?

Reply 5718

Leeshur

Original post by Zorg

Neither. both are dead platforms. i.e. no more upgrades for those platforms.

There's no point in spending £700 on a PC now when a £500 PC will do. Stick in a couple of upgrades for let's say £200 for the next 3-4 years and it'll perform as good as if not better than the £700 PC in 3-4 years time.

There is no point in buying the best unless you actually need it.

Did you say you know someone who can build it for you? As in put the parts in the case etc?

What do you mean by platform, is that generic for the whole thing or what?

I'm still waiting on this guy for his input, he's been ticking me off because he's been saying he'll ring me back with specsand hasn't done so. I want him to build the PC for me.

My mum works with his wife, so she'll speak to her tomorrow.

Since I don't seem to know what I'm looking for, would you mind linking me a few systems that'll do?
I really don't want AMD CPU or an ATI card. :frown:

Reply 5719