My hypothetical new rig.

[Muse]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/sectors/wishlist/wishlist.asp?WishId=9B20D0DD-E95C-4CC5-A628-746EC8307FE2&Desc=Computer

+ This below for video card since I researched and iHess is right it's much better.

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814127518

Comes to less than $850

Any thoughts? I think it looks perty nice. But if I do it this way I'm going to need to buy the OS and put it all together myself. I've upgraded about everything in a computer except a Motherboard and Processor...How hard is that shit usually?

**NOTE**

I WILL NOT BE OVERCLOCKING ANYTHING.

I JUST WANT TO BE ABLE TO RUN SKYRIM IN ALL ITS GLORY.

Edited September 13, 2011 by Muse

[Emeraldwpn]

guess you weren't kidding about building a new comp just for skyrim.

[Muse]

You know it Keith.

And does anyone know the difference between a 2600-i7 processor and a 2500K-i5?

(both 2nd generation)

Seems like there isn't much difference.

I'm being told I should wait for Ewhenn to get on to school me in all things computer.

Edited September 13, 2011 by Muse

[Kitrasaur]

coolies

[Mike]

the 2500k, (k stating it can be overclocked if I read it right from another thread here)

Other than that it looks pretty damn nice

[Hess]

the i5-2500k is a better choice than the i7-2600.

The k means you can overclock it as AssualtSabre said, plus the differences in the 2600 aren't worth the money and in fact the benchmarks show they perform the same.

As for your graphics card, Ewhenn told me to go with a GTX 460 due to a smoother and better preformed card. The one I picked out can be found here http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127518

Also I picked out a similar motherboard and I was told to go and find another by Ewhenn, if you go and read the topic I made you can find the information on why and what to look for in finding a better one.

Also you are missing a CPU Cooler.

*This was stuff I learned on my own with the last build I bought with the help of friends/mostly Ewhenn.

[Muse]

Do I really need a CPU cooler though? I have a few fans in there already and the card itself has a few and it says the card you suggest can reach over 1000Mhz air-cooled.

And I got most of those parts from a website that puts together suggestions that all fit together and won't have any compatibility issues. Will the new motherboard be compatible with everything else is all I'm worried about. I see nothing wrong with my current motherboard as long as it's compatible with the GTX460 you suggested.

And could you school me in how you decide on which cards are better? Is it simply performance benchmarks that matter? Because when you look at specifications the Evga has higher numbers in more categories so a layman like me would think it would do better (even if it turns out that isn't the case).

Edited September 13, 2011 by Muse

[Ewhenn]

Soo I was looking around and I since the extent of my gaming is basically just Runescape and Minecraft.... Starcraft 2

IHess wasn't playing hugely damanding games graphically. RS is pretty low in requirements. Minecraft and Starcraft 2 are much more CPU bound than GPU bound. Skyrim will be more demanding on a graphics card.

For skyrim, in all of it's glory you want more than a GTX 460. A GTX 460 is a mid range card, it will play the most demanding games wiht the settings lowered, and most mainstream games with settings reasonably high, it's a good bang-for-your-buck card. If you want to play Skyrim in 1080P+ (1920x1080 / 1920x1200) with all of the goodies turned up max, you are more likely going to need a GTX 560 TI, AMD 6950, or a GTX 570.

For gaming there isn't any difference between a i5-2500 or an i7-2600, spend the money on a better graphics card or SSD instead. The "K" labeled CPUs are for overclocking, if you will never overclock, don't waste money on them. If you aren't overclocking the stock cooler will be fine.

Edited September 13, 2011 by Ewhenn

[Muse]

Thanks for the info Ewhenn. My motherboard look acceptable then? I figured most of my setup is alright and reasonably matched but I'm open to suggestions.

[Ewhenn]

Thanks for the info Ewhenn. My motherboard look acceptable then? I figured most of my setup is alright and reasonably matched but I'm open to suggestions.

I'll look at it after work but, if you can answer these questions:

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc. If gaming, what types of games? Top end FPS's, or simple games like RS?

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible. Do you live within reasonable driving distance of a microcenter?

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. You can say everything if you need everything.

4B) Do you need a monitor included in the price?

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? If reusing the powersullpy, please be especially specific. List make and model.

6) Will you be overclocking?

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have? What resolution will you game at if gaming (1280x720, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200)?

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.

10) Do you need an OS (Windows) included in the price, or do you already have one?

By answering these questions you help me help you build a PC that's of better quality, better performing, cheaper or all of the above.

Edited September 13, 2011 by Ewhenn

[Muse]

1. Gaming. The most graphically intensive game I'd be playing is Skyrim.

2. 900 dollars is the most I'd want to spend with tax and shipping included since I'm spending another 100+ on monitor and OS.

3. USA, Iowa, Cedar Rapids. What's a microcenter?

4. Only parts I need is for the desktop itself. I will have a monitor I'm getting for $50 (not included in $900 limit) and all other peripherals (got a RAZER mouse recently, thing is badass).

5. Nope, all new. Except maybe a wireless card? Dunno if ill need a discrete one but I have one if so.

6. It's highly unlikely.

7. 18.5 inch monitor at 1366x768 resolution.

8. Before Skyrim comes out.

9. I don't NEED anything, but onboard video is convenient if I have problems with video cards.

10. As you might have seen in the other thread I made I'm going to try and get an upgrade version of Windows 7 cheap and use that. It'll be $50 and won't be included in $900 price.

[Ewhenn]

LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

$17.99

COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216

$89.99

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

$59.99

GIGABYTE GV-N560OC-1GI GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363

$234.99

PSU (pick one) In order that I would choose:

XFX Core Pro650 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207014

Corsair TX 650 V2 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

SeaSonic S12II http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151096

Antec NeoEco 620C http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371031

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314

$39.99

GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498

$159.99

Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073

$209.99

Total: ~$880 - $40 rebates, and a BATMAN Arkham City Game Coupon which you should be able to sell on ebay for ~$30 when the game launches if you don't want it.

NOTES: Generally when gaming, I assume people want to play on 1920x1080 wit the eye candy turned relatively high, your 1366x768 resolution is MUCH less demanding, even with details turned up high. If you aren't going to get a new monitor and are happy with the lower resolution of your current one, you can lower your graphics card to something like a GTX 460 1GB / AMD 6870 1GB just fine to save some cash. I did not include a K series CPU, which can be had for $10 more so you can overclock in the future if you want to.

[Joshjrn]

Ewhenn, what do you think about hybrid drives? They are pretty much laptop specific, so you may not have much experience with them, but I was just wondering.

[Muse]

Thanks Ewhenn, looks nice and comparable or superior to my setup in terms of capability. Will probably go with your choices, but are you sure I don't want a little bigger PSU for a little bit of future proofing?

[Ewhenn]

Thanks Ewhenn, looks nice and comparable or superior to my setup in terms of capability. Will probably go with your choices, but are you sure I don't want a little bigger PSU for a little bit of future proofing?

Common misconception is that more watts = better.

On the topic of PSUs lots of makers will say "700 watts" or whatever, but they don't list the conditions. Peak watts? In a room at 45 degrees Fahrenheit? What exactly are the conditions it will deliver those 700 watts under? They aren't technically lying, which is why it's not illegal, but IMO they aren't being honest either. That 700 watt PSU might only actually deliver 450 watts without burning up under real world conditions. Because of this, most graphics cards designers way overrate how many watts they need to run.

Also, some PSUs will deliver the power on the label, except it won't be within ATX specifications. Over time this can damage components and lead to lower system life. It can also impact system stability (blue screens, etc). OCZ and Thermaltake PSUs are notorious for fitting into this category.

In reality, a good 400 watt unit would run that system fine. Yes, I'm serious. I included a roundup of better PSUs for the price range. They will all deliver their rated power continuously well within ATX specification. They also deliver their rated power withing spec at 50 Centigrade (XFX, Corsair, Seasonic) or 40 Centigrade (Antec), this is a realistic temperature for the air being pulled from the case and into the PSU to cool it.

Any of those PSU's would easily power two graphics cards at the level of card we are talking about.

Personally I'd go with the XFX unit, it has the best arrangement of PCI-E cables, however any of them will do fine.

Edit: if you want some insight on PSUs read this, you'll come away with a lot more knowledge on power supplies: Why 99% of Power supply reviews are wrong.

Edited September 14, 2011 by Ewhenn

[Muse]

Thanks Ewhenn, looks nice and comparable or superior to my setup in terms of capability. Will probably go with your choices, but are you sure I don't want a little bigger PSU for a little bit of future proofing?

Common misconception is that more watts = better.

On the topic of PSUs lots of makers will say "700 watts" or whatever, but they don't list the conditions. Peak watts? In a room at 45 degrees Fahrenheit? What exactly are the conditions it will deliver those 700 watts under? They aren't technically lying, which is why it's not illegal, but IMO they aren't being honest either. That 700 watt PSU might only actually deliver 450 watts without burning up under real world conditions. Because of this, most graphics cards designers way overrate how many watts they need to run.

Also, some PSUs will deliver the power on the label, except it won't be within ATX specifications. Over time this can damage components and lead to lower system life. It can also impact system stability (blue screens, etc). OCZ and Thermaltake PSUs are notorious for fitting into this category.

In reality, a good 400 watt unit would run that system fine. Yes, I'm serious. I included a roundup of better PSUs for the price range. They will all deliver their rated power continuously well within ATX specification. They also deliver their rated power withing spec at 50 Centigrade (XFX, Corsair, Seasonic) or 40 Centigrade (Antec), this is a realistic temperature for the air being pulled from the case and into the CPU to cool it.

Any of those PSU's would easily power two graphics cards at the level of card we are talking about.

Personally I'd go with the XFX unit, it has the best arrangement of PCI-E cables, however any of them will do fine.

Edit: if you want some insight on PSUs read this, you'll come away with a lot more knowledge on power supplies: Why 99% of Power supply reviews are wrong.

Sounds good, appreciate the clarification.

[Ewhenn]

ooops duplicate

Edited September 14, 2011 by Ewhenn