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"I Need a New PC!" 2014 Part 1. 1080p and 60FPS is so last-gen and your 2500K is fine

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kennah

Member
That's okay I don't plan on OCing the 780 and won't attempt the CPU for quite some time. I hear Silverstone is working on a bigger sfx PSU but they are taking their time and getting it right before they release a final commercial build.
Yeah. We are following those developments closely in the Compact Splash Brotherhood Thread on overclock :)
 
Source games, no problem. For bf4, the benchmarks on the net shows you can play at 1440p/60 on medium setting with 770 2gb. The amount of vram won't give it much boost.

Thanks for the help. I really appreciate it. I'm hoping the gsync will adjust for anything less than 60fps and I'll get another 770 or a better single gpu later.
 

Chucker

Member
I haven't looked through the whole thread, but I have 460gtx that is bottlenecking my rig. Would the 750ti just released be a decent refresh for me? I try not to go over $200 and that 460 had been a war horse for me.

Thanks PCGAF.

Got a 2500k, 8 gigs of corsair vengeance ram, an ssd. Would go into more detail but I'm at work.

Edit: my current card.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133326

Bumping from a day or so ago, any thoughts? If the 750ti is a decent upgrade I'll get that since I know my 460 has to be on borrowed time by now.
 
I'm conflicted wat PSU to get Seasonic 860w Platinum $209 (tax and shipping not included)
Or
Seasonic 1050w Gold its $198 including shipping and tax

I just want to get a good PSU that will not blow up in 6 months
 
Okay guys, after all the new suggestions in this thread I'm currently on this build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($236.48 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($79.80 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($75.23 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.17 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card ($166.61 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 350D MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($96.73 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.86 @ Amazon)
Total: $813.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-20 21:05 EST-0500)

I would get a cheaper case but I absolutely LOVE the look of the 350D, and I don't want to compromise.

Any other ideas, suggestions? Thanks again!

I'm very close to pulling the trigger on this.

Any particular reason for you getting the 750ti?
 
Any particular reason for you getting the 750ti?

I was told it was the best price to performance value currently... Am I wrong?

This looks good. The 4670k is a great CPU and if you are ok with overclock should give you a lot of headroom for future performance.

You have a solid machine that is just one part (GPU) from becoming a fantastic machine.

With proper cooling I can overclock the CPU on that motherboard, correct? I'm confused by some comments earlier.
 

thespot84

Member
I'm conflicted wat PSU to get Seasonic 860w Platinum $209 (tax and shipping not included)
Or
Seasonic 1050w Gold its $198 including shipping and tax

I just want to get a good PSU that will not blow up in 6 months

are you running SLI or more with power hungry cards? 1050 seems overkill
 
You need a z87 chipset motherboard to OC, so no you can't OC without a different motherboard.

Is there a z87 micro-ATX board in the $75 range? I'm having trouble finding one.

And at this point I'm so over budget I might as well just get the better GPU.

Edit: Jeez, that GTX 760 is $100 more. :(

See anything in my build where I could shave off a little? I do like the case, but I just want something sorta quiet, and I'm not overly attached to micro ATX.
 

DarkFlow

Banned
Is there a z87 micro-ATX board in the $75 range? I'm having trouble finding one.

And at this point I'm so over budget I might as well just get the better GPU.

Edit: Jeez, that GTX 760 is $100 more. :(
Sadly they start at about $100. If you don't care about OC, don't bother.
 

GHG

Member
Any word on when the gtx 790 is dropping? I can't work out whether to go for a pair of 770 4gbs in sli or wait for that.

Any opinions? Should I just wait?
 

jfoul

Member
Is there a z87 micro-ATX board in the $75 range? I'm having trouble finding one.

And at this point I'm so over budget I might as well just get the better GPU.

Edit: Jeez, that GTX 760 is $100 more. :(

See anything in my build where I could shave off a little? I do like the case, but I just want something sorta quiet, and I'm not overly attached to micro ATX.

Well, you could always wait a couple weeks and try to grab a Radeon 265 for $149 MSRP.
 

DarkFlow

Banned
Any word on when the gtx 790 is dropping? I can't work out whether to go for a pair of 770 4gbs in sli or wait for that.

Any opinions? Should I just wait?
Well I've heard it's going to be $1000+, so you could always get a titan black!
 

sono

Member
This is a very helpful thread.

If I read the spreadsheet correctly for 4K gaming build the GPU advice is
2x GTX 780 3GB
2x R9 290x 3GB (+$200)
2x GTX 780 Ti (+$500)

so that is SLI mode - ?

If they all are 4K capable options what is to choose between the three please ?

thank you
 
Posting from the new rig. Thanks for the help everyone. I love that I can play Star Citizen at more than 20fps now. :p

Also, having a 1TB SSD is so worth it. I'll bring over the 1TB HDD from the old machine in a few days once I know this machine is stable, which I'll use for my media, but for now all of my games and apps are going to the giant SSD. Yum.

Going to wait to do OC'ing until the fan splitter comes since one of my case fans had to be unplugged so I could get both radiator fans in. Everything is running really cool too. Was running around Star Citizen at max settings for 10 minutes and CPU was at 44C and GPU was around 75C. With the extra case fan blowing towards it, I think I'll be able to OC it just a tiny bit.
 
So, changing to a BIOSTAR Hi-Fi Z87W motherboard, the Corsair Carbide Series 200R case, and Gigabyte GTX 760 is actually LESS than my original build.

Sounds good, right?
 

Hazaro

relies on auto-aim
oJyEivKh.jpg


Well, PC GAF I went and did it! Here are my parts meant for a rig that's going to be in my entertainment center and viewed from my couch on my 1080p 50 inch plasma HDTV.

Thanks to mkenyon I was able to piece together a rig that I will be happy with for some years to come. It's not perfect but I will most likely add/change things as time goes by.


CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Seidon 120V 86.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Purchased For $49.99)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $104.99)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Purchased For $139.99)
Storage: Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($94.18 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (Purchased For $435.00)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Gold 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro - 64-bit (64-bit) (Purchased For $20.00)
Total: $1189.13

The case I went with was the RVZ01. I bought it at Tiger Direct with 2 day shipping for around $95.00. I also bought PP05-E flat flex wires for my SFX G PSU for around $25.00 on Amazon. My 780 gtx I snagged off of eBay for $435.00. The processor/ram/mb I picked up at Micro Center here in Cincinnati and the cheap OS off of reddit.

Overall I spent a little over $1300.00 for my build.
Very nice all around.
Would love to see pics.
I was told it was the best price to performance value currently... Am I wrong?

With proper cooling I can overclock the CPU on that motherboard, correct? I'm confused by some comments earlier.
750Ti is worse value than the 650 Ti Boost 2GB, but it's OOS everywhere now and the 750 Ti replaces it. Still a good value. 760 is really nice though if you can swing it and fits in much more nicely overall. You should do ittttttt.
This is a very helpful thread.

If I read the spreadsheet correctly for 4K gaming build the GPU advice is
2x GTX 780 3GB
2x R9 290x 3GB (+$200)
2x GTX 780 Ti (+$500)

so that is SLI mode - ?

If they all are 4K capable options what is to choose between the three please ?

thank you
Yes those are dual card setups. SLi and CrossFire. Make sure you get a mobo that is compatible to support SLi if you go nVidia.
You choose based on what you can afford and currently the 290X's are about 4x as much unless you live outside the US, so...
So, changing to a BIOSTAR Hi-Fi Z87W motherboard, the Corsair Carbide Series 200R case, and Gigabyte GTX 760 is actually LESS than my original build.

Sounds good, right?
Yes!
 

GHG

Member
Well I've heard it's going to be $1000+, so you could always get a titan black!

Heh... the Titan Black has poor performance for the money. A 780ti overclocked will do much better for the fraction of the money. I'm just trying to figure out how far off the 790 is and whether its worth waiting for. If it performs well compared to a pair of 770's then money isn't the main issue.
 

LordAlu

Member
Nearing the final stretch of my first build, and now the case fans are stumping me. As usual the manual is no help.

My case has three fans... One of them has a cable with a plug that has 3 slots and is labeled tkg 2510... The other two fans also have this same plug, but with an additional molex plug jutting out the side of it.

My motherboard has no place for any of these. I guess I could plug the two that have molex plugs into my power supply, but that still leaves that last fan with just that 3 slot thingy...

Oh and on my mobo, all the sysfan spots are 4-pin.
You can plug all your fans into the motherboard. Ignore the molex connectors on your two fans - they are there in case you don't have enough ports on the motherboard for your 3-pin connectors, and although your fans are 3-pin they will still connect to the 4-pin plugs just fine. The sockets on the motherboard will be notched at one side to allow the 3-pin connector to slot in, like so:

DBCE7D7D74819B7BC287C7A93EED64D831CA56EE_lis.jpg
 

KTT

Member
Awesome... Okay with these deals I'm pulling the trigger.

Thank you all for the help! It was desperately needed... Last time I built a computer (my current rig) it was 2007!

Same here. Had a Q6600, 2900Pro and 4GB of DDR2. And it was a beast when I built it!
 
Okay I just made the purchases for the following build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($236.48 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Biostar Hi-Fi Z87W ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($106.41 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($82.23 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($123.61 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($268.73 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.11 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.86 @ Amazon)
Total: $936.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-21 04:45 EST-0500)

I spent nearly $100 less than that total. Still $400 over my initial budget, but what are you going to do? PC gaming is inescapable as an enthusiast.

Edit: Had two different memory sets listed! Woops!
 

DarkFlow

Banned
Okay I just made the purchases for the following build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($236.48 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Biostar Hi-Fi Z87W ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($106.41 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($75.23 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($82.23 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($123.61 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($268.73 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.11 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.86 @ Amazon)
Total: $1011.66
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-21 04:27 EST-0500)

I spent nearly $100 less than that total. Still $400 over my initial budget, but what are you going to do? PC gaming is inescapable as an enthusiast.
You need one more thing. Cpu cooler http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099. You can't OC without it, Haswell runs hot hot hot.
 

kharma45

Member
Okay I just made the purchases for the following build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($236.48 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Biostar Hi-Fi Z87W ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($106.41 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($82.23 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($123.61 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($268.73 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.11 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.86 @ Amazon)
Total: $936.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-21 04:45 EST-0500)

I spent nearly $100 less than that total. Still $400 over my initial budget, but what are you going to do? PC gaming is inescapable as an enthusiast.

Edit: Had two different memory sets listed! Woops!

I've more changes to suggest yet for even better value for money build

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Biostar Hi-Fi Z87W ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($98.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($76.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($82.95 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($249.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $853.38
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-21 05:04 EST-0500)

You can save another $10 on the RAM too http://pcpartpicker.com/part/kingston-memory-khx1333c9d3b1k28g
 

DarkFlow

Banned
Honestly I think I might just get a Corsair H60.

Edit: I did... fuck it.

Also, it's funny. I went from Haz's budget build, to his good build, to now his excellent build... Over the course of 2 days.
It's a drug man. I went from thinking I'd just slightly upgrading, not overclocking to now I'm running a i5 @ 4.3Ghz and OCing my GTX 780.
 
I've more changes to suggest yet for even better value for money build

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Biostar Hi-Fi Z87W ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($98.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($76.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($82.95 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($249.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $853.38
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-21 05:04 EST-0500)

You can save another $10 on the RAM too http://pcpartpicker.com/part/kingston-memory-khx1333c9d3b1k28g

He apparently already made the purchases though.
 
I have narrowed my GPU choice down to:

  • R7 260X, or
  • GTX 750 Ti

I was about to make the final decision when I read about the R7 265.

Should I just wait for this now and see what UK prices will be like?
 

davepoobond

you can't put a price on sparks
well i started putting the hardware together. about 3 hours later and i'm still not done, but i've got most of it in.

couple things i did:

didn't realize i had to put offset screws in the case, so i was screwing the motherboard into the case, but stopped when i realized it was too hard to find the holes. apparently the how-to guide i was watching in preparation already had these in the case and was not even mentioned at all so i wasn't aware, really.

i ended up putting 3.5" HDD screws into the motherboard, so i ended up having to reseat it 3 times when i finally got the right screws. the second time was because the IO shield had a tab in the middle of one of the ports.

put too much thermal compound on the CPU, ended up wiping away some with a card and spreading it out a little bit, then putting the heatsink on the CPU and pushing down to spread out the compound a little more.

and i was trying to figure out how to put the bracket on the thing, i got thermal compound on my hands. first time i put the bracket on, the little pin wasn't seating correctly so the screws weren't reaching the offsets. i eventually figured out how to put it in.


i'm in the middle of cable management and plugging everything in. the video card and my 2 other pci cards are still in their boxes. i realized i need to buy another SATA cable for my hard drive (i thought it would come with one, guess not)

i plugged in my back fan into the "CPU_OPT" fan plug (hopefully that's okay, things i've read said it should be fine), and the two top fans into 2 of the 3 fan plugs on the mobo. i'm planning on putting the big side fan on the last switch.





not so much of a disaster, but i'd rather not have had to replicate the motherboard screwing in 3 times :p. I got a few scratches, too.

i gotta figure out where to plug these last remaining random things, and then i might be able to turn it on and mess with BIOS a little.
 

kharma45

Member
He apparently already made the purchases though.

Whoops.

I have narrowed my GPU choice down to:

  • R7 260X, or
  • GTX 750 Ti

I was about to make the final decision when I read about the R7 265.

Should I just wait for this now and see what UK prices will be like?

Out of those two the 750 Ti.

Price wise for us a good 750 Ti seems to be £120, but for £10 more I'd grab the R9 270 out of any of those above (the 750 Ti and the 260X). It's a much quicker card.

The 265 could be a good price for us though too, I've seen €132 touted so should be sub £120 for us. Just depends what price it is when we get it.
 
Whoops.



Out of those two the 750 Ti.

Price wise for us a good 750 Ti seems to be £120, but for £10 more I'd grab the R9 270 out of any of those above. The 265 could be a good price for us though too.

I am really trying to penny pinch on the build as it is a frivolous second build so that me and my partner can play online together.

I am going to swap out the card for a 670 once the 800's arrive (taken from our main PC).
 

kharma45

Member
I am really trying to penny pinch on the build as it is a frivolous second build so that me and my partner can play online together.

I am going to swap out the card for a 670 once the 800's arrive (taken from our main PC).

Out of the two then the 750 Ti then would be better than the 260X without knowing what the 265 will launch at here.

Going used could be an option too.
 

Bydobob

Member
Seems like a really good price for 8GB, but should I pass on it since it's just one stick? Or does that not really matter? Thanks guys.

I can only tell you what I found with 2 x 8 coming from a single stick. It made a significant difference to some games (Crysis 3 and Arma 3) and almost no difference to others (Ass Creed 4, Metro LL and Planetside 2). Framerate on C3 and A3 was a lot more stable with less dramatic drops while peak was the same. I've heard of similar performance gains in BF4 going from single to dual (https://battlelog.battlefield.com/bf4/de/forum/threadview/2955065670133117270/) so enough to suggest it is well worth it.
 
Out of the two then the 750 Ti then would be better than the 260X without knowing what the 265 will launch at here.

Going used could be an option too.

Looking at my build...

I think I will go for the 750 but will not do anything concrete until Monday. Is there any word as to when the 265 will be out? I had a quick look but nothing stood out.
 

DarkFlow

Banned
So I forgot to show off my Handy work from this thread. Sorry for the crappy pic, I used my Nexus 7 to take one just now while I was plugging the case fans into the MB. I'll try to use my Nikon 1 later for some better ones.

sQTnrvQ.jpg


That's the best cable management you're going to get out of me!

Also the parts are
4670k
Gigabyte GA-Z87-HD3
Gigabyte GTX 780OC Rev 2
And my old HAF 912 for the case.
 

kharma45

Member
Looking at my build...

I think I will go for the 750 but will not do anything concrete until Monday. Is there any word as to when the 265 will be out? I had a quick look but nothing stood out.

Would be handier to link it but whatever. I don't see how looking at it will affect my recommendation to have a look at a used one.

Anyway, you need to change that PSU. Overpriced and there is better for less. Same for the RAM. Look to the XFX 550w for ~£50 and there is yellowy Crucial RAM for £60 which is lower profile.

Again, I still advise to consider looking at used GPUs as an option. Could nab a bargain.
 

Delt31

Member
guys - thoughts on the following build, with focus on whether that CPU is good enough when paired with a rather good card (gtx 670)?

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Quad-Core Processor 3.4 GHz
Chassis: Corsair Graphite Series Steel Silver 600T Mid-Tower Computer Case
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LGA 1155 Intel Z77
DVD Drive: Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive DRW-24B1ST (Black)
RAM: 8GB DDR 3 1600 MHz
Graphics Card: EVGA GeForce GTX670 FTW 2048MB GDDR5 256bit SLI Ready Graphics Card
Power Supply: Corsair Professional Series AX 850 Watt ATX/EPS Modular 80 PLUS Gold (AX850)
CPU Cooling: Corsair Hydro Series H80 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler (CWCH80)

I can get this for 500 used. good deal? Is the CPU future proof enough? Thats my only concern. I have the storage from my old rig FYI
 
Would be handier to link it but whatever. I don't see how looking at it will affect my recommendation to have a look at a used one.

Anyway, you need to change that PSU. Overpriced and there is better for less. Same for the RAM. Look to the XFX 550w for ~£50 and there is yellowy Crucial RAM for £60 which is lower profile.

Again, I still advise to consider looking at used GPUs as an option. Could nab a bargain.

Thanks for the guidance.

Is this PSU okay: http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1550sxxb9
 

Ty4on

Member
I can get this for 500 used. good deal? Is the CPU future proof enough? Thats my only concern. I have the storage from my old rig FYI
I don't think anyone has been able to make the i5s be a bottleneck in any game so far. It should do great with with the 670. The title says your 2500K i5 is fine after all :p

Edit: Only downside is the GPU is a blower, but the FTW 670 were the best 670 blowers (stock ones rattled). Looks like a great deal!
 
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