Rate this build //suggestions

[Ishanx]

I built a virtual rig going by the suggestions given in the last thread I made and this is it: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/C3we

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive

Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card

Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case

Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply

Monitor: AOC E2243FWK 21.5" Monitor

Keyboard: Razer Arctosa Wired Standard Keyboard

Mouse: Steelseries Kinzu

It comes to around ~1,371 USD [prices are higher in India, I don't know why.]

Any suggestions on how I can make it even cheaper without harming the performance too much? I want the best ****ing performance-to-price ratio, haha.

[LaP]

If its for gaming i don't understand why you spend more on the cpu than gpu.

My rule of thumb is cpu price = 2/3 gpu price.

This is a rather expensive setup for what this gpu can do.

[Ishanx]

If its for gaming i don't understand why you spend more on the cpu than gpu.

My rule of thumb is cpu price = 2/3 gpu price.

This is a rather expensive setup for what this gpu can do.

What CPU do you recommend?

EDIT: And, do you have a better GPU in mind? A better CPU-GPU combination?

[threetonesun]

Are you going to overclock? If not, you can skip the CPU cooler, knock the i5 down to a lower i5 (or i3) and go to a business class motherboard.

[Livin in a box]

I'd say that CPU is fine, but maybe you could look at a 7950? I don't know how much more that would be in India, but it would certainly provide a very large improvement.

[Ishanx]

Are you going to overclock? If not, you can skip the CPU cooler, knock the i5 down to a lower i5 (or i3) and go to a business class motherboard.

Will Overclocking make a big difference? I am not tech-illiterate and so if OCing is worth the trouble and extra buck, I might just do it.

Can you give me a specific model for an i3/i5?

[Ishanx]

I'd say that CPU is fine, but maybe you could look at a 7950? I don't know how much more that would be in India, but it would certainly provide a very large improvement.

I would but it would increase the price by a lot.

[threetonesun]

Will Overclocking make a big difference? I am not tech-illiterate and so if OCing is worth the trouble and extra buck, I might just do it.

Can you give me a specific model for an i3/i5?

People will have differing opinions about this, but if you've never done it in the past, I don't know that a $200+ i5 is the best place to start.

The i3-2125 is a good processor. Use the stock cooler (unless you find out you need a better one, but you probably won't), and look at the costs of H77 or B75 motherboards. They might not be worth the downgrade, but I don't know how the prices spread out in your market.

[Ishanx]

Updated: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/C4f6

[LaP]

What CPU do you recommend?

EDIT: And, do you have a better GPU in mind? A better CPU-GPU combination?

Well i have not look at the market enough lately to make any definitive recommendation. My PC is 3 years old and i dont plan to upgrade for another year. Rocking an old overclocked i5 750 and its still more than enough.

The only thing i know is i never spend more on the cpu than gpu when it comes to a gaming system. I would downgrade to the less expensive core i5 specially if you plan to overclock one day (you can run it stock for a while until its not powerful enough). But i've not read reviews so it might not be a good idea. That PSU looks expensive to me. You could downgrade the case too. It's an awesome case but expensive. I dont know the price where you live though. You might want to skip SSD for now too if you are short on money and add one later. ssd are great but 60gb is hardly worth it imo. It will speed boot but you wont even be able to put anything but the os and some apps on it.

I would upgrade to at the very least a 7870 or a 660oc or something like that. Preferably even a 7950 or a 660ti if you can but it might be too expensive.

I would not downgrade the mother board too much. It's a vital part of the system and a good mb is the basis of a good system.

[tim_s]

1: i5 is ideal, current games can run 4 threads at a time.

2: Uprate the GPU to a Nvidia 600 series at least take advantage of on-board Physix

3: Your mother board Extreme 4 is primarily taking advantage of the on-board video from the i5, which you are not using anyways - drop down to the Pro 3.

[threetonesun]

I would not downgrade the mother board too much. It's a vital part of the system and a good mb is the basis of a good system.

Unlike Ivy Bridge, most of the Sandy Bridge boards will work fine.

1: i5 is ideal, current games can run 4 threads at a time.

2: Uprate the GPU to a Nvidia 600 series at least take advantage of on-board Physix

3: Your mother board Extreme 4 is primarily taking advantage of the on-board video from the i5, which you are not using anyways - drop down to the Pro 3.

1) i5, sure, but it doesn't have to be the k series. Also the 2125 can do 4 threads. I've not seen any gaming comparisons between a low end i5 and a newer i3, but I suspect they'd only be a few fps apart.

2) The 660 is probably at the best price point for him now

[Luc2k]

I would suggest an AMD alternative with an FX-6300 and a ASRock 970 Pro3 board. At stock the FX might be slower in most games than the i3, but it's faster in almost everything else and you'll be able to overclock it to compensate (unlike the i3). On top of that, the cash difference can be put towards a better GPU, which makes a bigger difference when it comes to games. I don't know what the prices are in India but performance-wise it should be something like this 7850<660<=7870<660Ti<=7950.

Another thing I'm not sold on is the monitor. How much does this LG cost in India? I can't give you much advice here because I'm not up to scratch, but if you're going for 1080P go for 23".

[Ishanx]

Well i have not look at the market enough lately to make any definitive recommendation. My PC is 3 years old and i dont plan to upgrade for another year. Rocking an old overclocked i5 750 and its still more than enough.

The only thing i know is i never spend more on the cpu than gpu when it comes to a gaming system. I would downgrade to the less expensive core i5 specially if you plan to overclock one day (you can run it stock for a while until its not powerful enough). But i've not read reviews so it might not be a good idea. That PSU looks expensive to me. You could downgrade the case too. It's an awesome case but expensive. I dont know the price where you live though. You might want to skip SSD for now too if you are short on money and add one later. ssd are great but 60gb is hardly worth it imo. It will speed boot but you wont even be able to put anything but the os and some apps on it.

I would upgrade to at the very least a 7870 or a 660oc or something like that. Preferably even a 7950 or a 660ti if you can but it might be too expensive.

I would not downgrade the mother board too much. It's a vital part of the system and a good mb is the basis of a good system.

1: i5 is ideal, current games can run 4 threads at a time.

2: Uprate the GPU to a Nvidia 600 series at least take advantage of on-board Physix

3: Your mother board Extreme 4 is primarily taking advantage of the on-board video from the i5, which you are not using anyways - drop down to the Pro 3.

Unlike Ivy Bridge, most of the Sandy Bridge boards will work fine.

1) i5, sure, but it doesn't have to be the k series. Also the 2125 can do 4 threads. I've not seen any gaming comparisons between a low end i5 and a newer i3, but I suspect they'd only be a few fps apart.

2) The 660 is probably at the best price point for him now

I would suggest an AMD alternative with an FX-6300 and a ASRock 970 Pro3 board. At stock the FX might be slower in most games than the i3, but it's faster in almost everything else and you'll be able to overclock it to compensate (unlike the i3). On top of that, the cash difference can be put towards a better GPU, which makes a bigger difference when it comes to games. I don't know what the prices are in India but performance-wise it should be something like this 7850<660<=7870<660Ti<=7950.

Another thing I'm not sold on is the monitor. How much does this LG cost in India? I can't give you much advice here because I'm not up to scratch, but if you're going for 1080P go for 23".

Okay, these are the processors available to me: which one do you recommend?

[tim_s]

Unlike Ivy Bridge, most of the Sandy Bridge boards will work fine.

1) i5, sure, but it doesn't have to be the k series. Also the 2125 can do 4 threads. I've not seen any gaming comparisons between a low end i5 and a newer i3, but I suspect they'd only be a few fps apart.

We are only talking the difference between physical cores and hyper-threading but yes my point is - as a decent simple to follow guide i5 will do the job but an i3 is a possibility.

2) The 660 is probably at the best price point for him now

Good range - ti edition would be fantastic.

[tim_s]

[/size]

Okay, these are the processors available to me: which one do you recommend?

What OS are you looking to run?

I would go for the i5 personally but the wife has the Bull Dozer - with a decent GPU you will be fine either way.

[Ishanx]

What OS are you looking to run?

I would go for the i5 personally but the wife has the Bull Dozer - with a decent GPU you will be fine either way.

Aren't the i5's last generation though? I'll be running Windows 7/8 64-bit

[Luc2k]

Everything is at least a generation behind except the AMD A10. Boy, that is a sh*tty selection.

[Ishanx]

Okay, so here is the nicest configuration I have managed to make so far: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/C5lh minus the CPU and MB.

I need someone to give me a good MB+CPU for that ^ so that the price stays low and I get the most out of my GPU.

[Luc2k]

I'd probably go with the FX 4100 for now and plan for an upgrade when the improved Piledriver hits some time this year, otherwise it's the FX 8120. The motherboard I've already suggested. Why only those CPUs?

You'll need a bigger PSU, at least a good 550W.

[Ishanx]

I'd probably go with the FX 4100 for now and plan for an upgrade when the improved Piledriver hits some time this year, otherwise it's the FX 8120. The motherboard I've already suggested. Why only those CPUs?

You'll need a bigger PSU, at least a good 550W.

Like this?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/C5Ha

[Luc2k]

Like this?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/C5Ha

Yeah, but change the Asus for the Gigabyte and use the difference for the 620W PSU variant.

[tim_s]

Aren't the i5's last generation though? I'll be running Windows 7/8 64-bit

Well this is how I would break it down.

The CPU is not the major concern, it can be a problem if the performance is too low but you can get away with either the i5 or FX 8120. The i5 has less cache and the FX 8120 has more cores but also an older instruction set. The key reason for my choice would be the upgrade ability you have IF you use a socket combination that leaves you open to Intel vs AMD.

You might enjoy the 8-cores at a later stage but games are not using this many threads yet.

IF you do go for the FX 8120 than I would recommend Windows 8 as the operating system has better support for 8-cores.

[Ishanx]

Thanks everyone! :)

[LaP]

You don't have anything else than Seasonic ? I don't know about where you live but here Seasonic are expensive borderline overpriced imo. They make good psu but when you need to spend 100$ for a 600W psu ...

There's other good less expensive brand around. My psu is by ocz. Bought it 4 years ago and working perfectly with an overcloked system. It was if i remember corectly 20$ or 30$ less expensive than equiv Seasonic.