foggy147 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Hi guys, over the next few months I am going to start purchasing bits to build my own desktop computer. Before I start I obviously need to decide what parts I will get and make sure they are all compatable with each other. My first main question is whether to choose the AMD route or the intel route? My overall budget will be around 600 without monitor,keyboard etc, purely just to build the base unit. I am wanting to build a computer that is going to beable to run pretty much any pc game to date at full settings Here is a brief outline as to the spec I am aiming for 6GB DDR 3 RAM Processor -still deciding Motherboard - depends on what processor I choose Graphics card - FX ATI Radeon 5770 HD 1GB PCI-Express 2.0 x16 Dual DVI HDMI Eyefinity 65 GB SSD SATA drive for OS 500gb hard drive ATX Case Couple of cooling case fans DVD RW or blue ray drive Semi decent sound card Wireless connectivity Any advice if this would be a good spec to play decent games and for future proof upgrading? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The-Plethora Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 I love AMD I truly do and whilst they are considerably cheaper than Intel's offerrings I still think it is worth paying out the extra, I am still on my Intel Q6600 which is my first Intel and really wanted to go over to the 6 core AMD black but performance wise I don't think it is there. For anyone on even half a budget you want to be after the new sandbridge I5 processors. 3.2GHz stock speed and 4.5GHz or higher overclock possible on air. Even if you haven't touched overclocking before as long as you can hit page up a few times in the BIOS and save you are sorted. http://www.overclockers.co.uk/pimg/CP-360-IN_400.jpg http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-360-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=1275 - Unlocked Multiplier - Lithography Process: 32 nm - Cores: 4 - Threads: 4 - Frequency: 3.30 GHz (Turbo Mode 3.70GHz) - Integrated HD 3000 (12 EUs) Graphics - Integrated Graphics Frequency: 850MHz (1100MHz Turbo) - Cache: 6 MB shared L3 - Memory Controller: Dual channel DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600 MHz - TDP: 95W - Socket: LGA1155 - Compatible with Socket 1156 heatsinks - 3yr Warranty As for graphics I have 2 5770s and they run pretty much anything but for a single card I would look at Nvidias 460 or 470 series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 http://www.dabs.com/basket.aspx?ul=1&page=/category/components-and-storage,cases--cooling-and-power/11023 Not sure if this works but a rough idea of what sort of spec, any good? TI Radeon 5770 HD 1GB PCI-Express 2.0 x16 Dual DVI HDMI Eyefinity Quicklinx:6Z1SWS | Mfr#:HD-577X-ZNFC In stock £94.99 £94.99 XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Single Rail Quicklinx:75R9WS | Mfr#:P1-650S-NLB9 In stock £65.13 £65.13 LiteOn 24x DVD-RW Internal Black SATA Retail Box Quicklinx:64YSWS | Mfr#:IHAS324-32 In stock £21.34 £21.34 D-Link 802.11g Wireless LAN PCI Card Quicklinx:43C0WS | Mfr#:DWL-G510 In stock £18.54 £18.54 Akasa Zen-Black Silent Midi ATX Case Quicklinx:49R2WS | Mfr#:AK-ZEN01V4-BK In stock £42.58 £42.58 Bundle details for the Asus P8P67 PRO & 4GB RAM £339.98 £339.98 You save £9.99 Asus Intel 2nd Generation P67 Bundle (Includes P8P67 PRO Motherboard & Core i5-2500 3.30GHz Processor) Quicklinx:79RCWS | Mfr#:ASUSINTEL-BUN04 In stock 1 £293.00 £293.00 Corsair Memory Vengeance 4GB DDR3 1600MHz CL9 XMP Quicklinx: 79V5WS | Mfr: CMZ4GX3M1A1600C In stock 1 £46.98 £46.98 Bundle details for the CTG SATA Cable Bundle £91.48 £91.48 You save £1.49 Crucial 64GB RealSSD C300 2.5" SSD SATA 6Gb/s Quicklinx:7246WS | Mfr#:CTFDDAC064MAG-1 In stock 1 £88.84 £88.84 CablesToGo 1m 180° To 90° 7 pin Serial ATA Cable Quicklinx: 63TBWS | Mfr: 81825 In stock 1 £2.64 £2.64 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 What do you want to use the system for, that needs to be the starting point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 I want it to beable to play the latest pc games and to run things without breaking a sweat. Just been looking and this is a rough idea of what I would like with everything. Good spec or not?Would everything fit together lol http://www.dabs.com/products/liteon-24x-dvd-rw-internal-black-sata-retail-box-64YS.html http://www.dabs.com/products/intel-core-i7-2600k-3-40ghz-lga1155-8mb-79QB.html http://www.dabs.com/products/asus-p8p67-pro-lga1155-intel-p67-ddr3-atx-79LN.html http://www.dabs.com/products/xfx-ati-radeon-6850-hd-1gb-pci-express-hdmi-dual-fan-79DF.html http://www.dabs.com/products/antec-300-three-hundred-case-black-6252.html http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair-memory-builder-series-cx600-600w-atx-psu-75S3.html http://www.dabs.com/products/viewsonic-vx2239wm-22--1920-x-1080--full-hd-lcd-tft-with-2ms-vga-dvi-d-hdmi-monitor-77T8.html http://www.dabs.com/products/microsoft-business-hardware-pack-wired-keyboard-and-optical-mouse-ps2-usb-41XL.html http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair-memory-vengeance-4gb-ddr3-1600mhz-cl9-xmp-79V5.html http://www.dabs.com/products/western-digital-500gb-caviar-blue-sata-300-7200rpm-16mb-42DD.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 All in all just short of a grand, is that a good price considering the spec and in terms of buying a ready made pc would it be anywhere near that spec for the money? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SupraDan24 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Foggy, have you tried Build Your Own.org? I used it about a year ago and they were very knowledgable. If you suggest a spec to them, they offer great advice on where to make changes and cater it to your needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Intel, amd is ok if your on a budget but if you can it's Intel for the win I'm possibly slightly biased as I used to work for them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 I was pro-AMD for years. I switched from Intel to AMD when the K6 came out, over 15 years ago, and I've stuck with them ever since. That is... Until the Intel Core i5 came out. Now that's one amazing bang-for-buck CPU, and - as others have stated - the overclocking potential on them is truly immense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neo2810 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Foggy, unless you really can't push to it, go Intel. They are far superior right now. The i5/i7's are in a class of their own and even if you can't afford an i7, you can push an i5 to the i7 stock level anyway with some decent air cooling. ATI and Nvidia are pretty much on a par so any of their top end cards will be more than than a match for any current games. I favour Nvidia but only through personal choice. Do yourself a favour though, don't skimp out on your PC case. I used to cram top end gear into a shitty £20 job and could only just about hold stable temps at stock speeds. I recently transplanted my components into a new Nzxt Phantom case and I've now got a Q6600 Quad running at 3.6ghz with better temps than at 2.4ghz in the old case. It makes all the difference. You can see the case here: http://www.mkivsupra.net/vbb/showthread.php?234832-Nzxt-Phantom-Case-install-complete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a98pmalcolm Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 intel all the way... I just feel as intel specialize in just chips there one to go for AMD get involved with other bits.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonytotheB Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 Intel... since the Core 2 Duo, they have shat all over AMD. Much better for everything. Spend a little more and get a lot more back I am about to build a 1366 i7 950 system Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexM Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 I used to enjoy these threads (ex-geek ). I've attached what I would put together for a gaming system with a rough budget of £600. I could not put in an SSD for that price, and I wouldn't reduce anything to get one (especially not the graphics card!). Sandy Bridge blows everything out of the water, and unless you're on a very tight budget it doesn't make sense to go for anything else. The 2500/2500K is generally considered the 'sweet spot' of the range (if you plan on using the on-board graphics or overclocking at any point, get the K, else you could get the non-K). I picked an H67 motherboard as they're slightly cheaper (and personally I intend on using the built in GPU for transcoding), I don't see the need for overclocking CPUs now as they're already ridiculously fast - but it is very easy to do if you wish to. 4GB RAM is enough for everything you're likely to chuck at it, nothing special about the kit I've selected. I doubt it's cutting edge but it's not slow either. I've gone for a Radeon 5870 graphics card, which is at the high end of the 'last-gen' product line. The new ATi range did not offer any huge improvements and performance is very similar to the 6950 for a lot less money - it's a no brainer (especially as you seem to be considering a 20"+ 1920x1080 monitor). A popular modular Antec PSU is my choice for power, and a similarly popular Antec case (which I've always found very solid), you may find other options you prefer. The Samsung F3 hard drive has always been very fast, it may have been overtaken but I'm not going review hunting for you - for £40 you can't go wrong. Optical drive and wireless cards are just whatever I happened to click on first, personally I use an optical drive to install windows and pretty much never touch it again - if you expect to use it a lot it may be worth checking out reviews. Wireless.. well I'll leave that up to you, personally I'd try and rig up an ethernet connection if you're expecting to do some online gaming. You haven't mentioned it in your previous posts but do you also need to purchase an operating system? You're looking at about £100 for Windows 7 Home Premium, which you may need to consider in your budget. Happy hunting, enjoy your build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 intel all the way... I just feel as intel specialize in just chips there one to go for AMD get involved with other bits.. Erm.. flawed logic there AMD and Intel both do chips (and chip design) and very different designs as well.. Intel atom, their arm variation... etc.. That said AMD / Intel have slightly different implementations, one being quicker on mem access, and the other being a quicker calculator... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamanC Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 Sub £600 - AMD, £600+ Intel. Chip of the moment is as its been mentioned the new 1155 socket Intel i5 2500K. The K's clock very nicely and are about £10 more. Stock and prices are very hit and miss at the moment so shop around. This is what I think of sandy bridge: Sandy Bridge Custom PC. Going over your spec with parts you should address; Power supply is not great, get a corsair Unit Ideally the TX series (650TX FTW). Bin that case! Stick with an Antec, Corsair, Collermaster or Xigmatek. A good budget choice would be the Antec 300 (add two 120 intake fans) or Xigmatek Asgard, Midgard or Utgard. The CPU in that bundle is not a K series P8P67 PRo - Do you need the pro version, the standard P8P67 has 90% of the features the Pro has. An ATI 5770, whilst it is a good card as it is, is not going to 'run the latest games without breaking a sweat'. Budget £150+ for a decent video card. A GTX 460 1GB would be a suitable choice but is set to be replaced by a GTX 560 in the next few days (The 560 will probably be out of your budget though). ATI 5850's are good cards but are old tech (replaced by 6870's) but can be had on the cheap. If you find a decent video card is tipping you over try an I5 2300 CPU. It keeps you on the 1155 platform with room to upgrade later down the line but forget overclocking, it will still Turbo a little from 2.8Ghz to 3.1Ghz on its tod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 Now that's some quality advice from DamanC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 How do i do a print screen to show you what spec ive decided on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 This is the spec Im going for for, any good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a98pmalcolm Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 dont forget the CPU cooler lol besides that looks a nice lil set up With the cooler i deffo advise the Corsair H70 water cooler. Only £80 and it top notch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 It comes with one apparently the heatsink from intel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 Changed the graphics card to gtx 460 for an extra 20quid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamanC Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Make sure its the 1GB version of the 460 if you are planning on that 22" screen. With the Dominator RAM, P67 chipset and a K series chip im guessing you plan on overclocing? If so, as mentioned, you will need a half decent CPU cooler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Change of plan as not wanting to spend so much! Still getting an i5, and going to leave the graphics card out for the moment and just build it up and install the graphics card when i get paid next month so i can get a top end one. One question though- if I was to buy this: http://www.dabs.com/products/asus-intel-performance-bundle--includes-asus-p7p55d-e-lx-motherboard---intel-core-i5-760-2-8-ghz-cpu--73GZ.html?refs=443260000 Can I connect this to it without a graphics card installed? http://www.dabs.com/products/viewsonic-vx2239wm-22--1920-x-1080--full-hd-lcd-tft-with-2ms-vga-dvi-d-hdmi-monitor-77T8.html I understand I wont beable to connect it through HD but as long as I can connect it any other way for the time being... Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexM Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 That bundle you've highlighted does not have onboard graphics, and is also last-gen tech. The board I put up in my original post will allow you to use the graphics onboard the i5 (the 'K' chips have faster onboard graphics) however they will be almost useless for gaming. Why not just wait until you have enough funds and do some proper research in the mean time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foggy147 Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Right taken the plunge and just ordered this hope its as good as people are saying!! https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-014-OP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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