Kalel28

Hi all,
As you probably know, I'm a new member in the site and a novice in pc gaming. I'm looking to build a gaming pc and i need some advices and ideas about the components. So my selected are:
CPU: Intel Core i5 2500k 3.3GHZ LGA 1155 quad core processor (Sandy Bridge)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z68-V
RAM: 2*2Go Corsair Dominator 2 x 2 Go DDR3 PC12800 CAS 8
V.Card: Asus ENGTX560 Ti DCII TOP/2DI/1GD5
Chassis: Cooler Master CM-690 II Advanced
PSU: Cooler Master GX Power - 650W
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 SATA Revision 3.0 - 1 To
Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster P2370HD

I'll not do any intensive overclocking before a certain moment so i don't think i'm gonna need another cpu cooler.
I'd like if possible to obtain some points of vue about my every single component and ther compatibility, also how long can i keep this pc.

What i'm gonna do with this pc in order of importance : Gaming, watching hd movies, browsing while listenig to music, some photoshop and hd video encoding.

I hope i'll get some help. Thanks for everyone who read this post and i really would appreciate it if someone helped me.

blibbax

You've got a pretty decent list of components there - certainly similar to what I'd consider on a comparable budget - and yes, they are compatible.

A few points I'd pick up:

• You may want a small SSD for your OS drive, keeping the HDD for games and programs. This results in much, much better system performance. You could consider a larger SSD if you also want your games on it as well, for faster level loading times, and maybe for your Photoshop scratch file too.
• Do you need a Z68 motherboard? Unless you plan on making use of the extra features vs. P67, it may be a wasted of money. Z68 is not faster or of higher quality.
• Do you need a monitor that also has scart and HDMI inputs? If you don't, it might be cheaper to go without.

To answer your question on how long you can keep it for, well obviously that depends on how old a PC you are willing to put up with. I can't predict how fast technology will advance, but that PC should be able to game fine for several years. If and when it stops being able to, you've easy upgrade routes for RAM and GPU, and you can always overclock the CPU.

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Kalel28

Thanks for your answer
For the SSD could you please tell me the name of a good one, i read that OCZ Vertex 2 was pretty good.
For the motherboard, i chose Z68 because i thought that since it's newer it may be better, and also i thought about the Ivy bridge compatibility problem that might come out. Then it's a little bit of a personal choice because i like to have the "last" features ^^
For the monitor would this be good ? Newegg.com - ASUS VW246H Glossy Black 24" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ASCR 20000:1 (1000:1) Built-in Speakers if not could you please give me some advise about it ?
Thanks again

I have some doubts about the chassis : Is there any difference between the CM690 ii advanced ant the Zalman Z9 Plus ?

blibbax

The OCZ Vertex 2 is a pretty decent SSD, but my advice would be to look back through some recent HH reviews.

Z68 and P67 have identical processor compatibility. Nothing that works with Z68 won't work with P67. All that Z68 has that P67 doesn't have is Quick Sync and SSD caching, neither of which are very useful in my opinion. But you might want to do some reading anyway - many people would disagree with me there. There are plenty of Z68 launch reviews on the internet, including one at HH.

That monitor's fine but I question the need for HDMI input or built in speakers - again, these are a potential waste of money if you aren't going to use them.

I've not used either of the chassis that you mention, but the CM690 does have an excellent reputation round here. Personally I'd go for the CM Silencio (which doesn't seem to be on Newegg yet) or the Fractal Design XL, but that's just my personal taste.

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Kalel28

Thank you again blibbax,
like you advised I'll read the reviews about the Z68 and the SSD.
Since the CM690 has an excellent reputation I'll stay with it but thank you for the suggestions.
For the monitor I'll search for a more convenient one ( without the hdmi and the built in speakers) since I will not use any of the two.
I'll post my decision later after some reading.

Thank you for your support.

Kalel28

Hi again,
For the motherboard i think I'll choose the P67 since the Z68 has features that I'll not use ( Lucid-Smart response..) the model is Asus p8p67.
For the SSD i read some reviews, both of the Intel 510 and the Vertex 3 are good but are somehow expensive -for my budget- and I only need 64Go so I'll go with the Crucial M4 64GB .
For the monitor i got really confused XD, if the price difference between an hdmi monitor and a non-hdmi monitor is minimal and I noticed that he non-hdmi ones are a little bit old and have 8ms response time like this one : Samsung 2333T 23 Class Widescreen LCD HD Monitor - 1080p, 1920 x 1080, 50000:1 Dynamic, 8ms, VGA, DVI at TigerDirect.com.
But if it's not a problem (8ms) I'll go with it.

Ps: for the HDD Think i'll switch for a f3 (samsung) or a WDC green. (640Gb to TB) if that is good.

Sorry for taking so long, and thanks again for your help.

blibbax

If there is no price difference between HDMI and non-HDMI, just get the one that you wanted. 8ms is pretty slow by modern standards.

As for your HDD, you will want a fast one, as it'll have all your games and programs on it. As such you want to avoid the WD Greens - they are designed for data storage rather than programs, and are very slow. I'd reccomend a WD Black edition.

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Tyrsonswood

Nothing wrong with the Seagate you originally spec'd either. Personally I'd get a Seagate over a WD any day...... (Personal preference) Ive got two 7200.12's in my main rig.

<<<< Specs

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Kalel28

Hello again,
For the monitor since It's slow 8ms I'll stay with my first.
For the HDD I heard that the WD Black was a little bit noisy, if true I'll go with the seagate 7200.12, but if not I think they're close in performance and since the Seagate is cheaper perhaps I'll stay it. Stop me if I'm wrong.
Thanks.

blibbax

As long as you get one with a decent amount of cache, I'm sure a 7200.12 will be fine.

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Kalel28

So I'm going with a Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 SATA Revision 3.0 - 1 To.

I guess my rig has no issues now.

Thank you for your help.

Takaharu

Ok, you're wrong. The Velociraptor is loud, the WD Black is not. I know, I have one and I can't hear it over the sound of my fans (apparently a whopping 30db combined).
I'd put my 2p in for the build but I'm off out.

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OldBuzzard

Good move staying with the 690II Advanced case. I had the original 690 and got the 690II Advanced for my current build. EXCELLENT case with lots of room, and good cooling.

I would take issue with your choice of PSU. It's not the greatest, and has had mixed reviews on the net. HardOCPgave it a FAIL.

I'd spend the 10.00 extra (using Newegg pricing), and go with the Corsair TX650 v2.
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

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When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

blibbax

Yeah, I figured that that CM unit would be ok, and I'm sure it would be, but it isn't the best in terms of efficiency or stability.

I'm not familiar with U.S. pricing, but if you can pick up a Corsair 650 within 10 dollars, I would recommend doing so. That deal that OldB linked appears to be an extraordinarily good one.

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niceguyrichy

yeah, PSU is the one thing that i thought you could do better with tbh
i've looked at a lot recently, just bought a Be Quiet! myself, and i steered away from those GX's after some of the reviews and feedback i read.

and the case btw, so long as you're buying new and spending the money anyway, why not get something just vaguely pretty...

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Kalel28

Hello,
for the PSU like you said I'll go with the Corsair enthusiasts series TX650W V2.
Also I'll see for the hdd, maybe I'll take one for now and add the other later (depending on budget). but I've read that the SSD's have a certain lifetime depending on models ( I'm quite scared of that tbh).
I like the cm 690 II and I'm ensured now that It's a good one so I'll go with it, I saw the Storm Enforcer and the NZXT Hades but they didn't convince me enough.

Thank you for your replies

EDIT: For the SSD's I also read that some optimisations and settings must be applied before installation and after in order to keep the Flach memory good or something like that. If It's that difficult perhaps I'll replace the SSD with a good HDD ( WD Black). So what do you think ? ( I'm a novice )