Spec for machine ok or too much?

[jamsto]

Well I'm sorry to say that my previous attempt to order a Custom machine ended unhappily.

BUT here's something new. I've decided to opt for something smaller, one of their Advertised models rather than scratch built but hopefully still quite powerful enough run Photoshop, Painter,Manga 4.0 etc and still play games at ok levels. I've opted for the Installation and set up assistance [£79]since it all went Pete Tong when I tried to do it. Apparently it was some sort of fault they couldn't correct and I got my money back.

Remember YOU HAVE TO CANCEL YOUR ORDER WITHIN 7 DAYS of them delivering you the order !

Anyway I can't see anything better and I found pcspecialists RMA much easier than posting the damn Computer box yourself at your own expense which is the policy with other computer manufacturers.

The case is pretty standard but I'm the only person who gets to look at it! But is the Graphics card too much for the CPU? Is there too little power? Advice please.

Case
STYLISH PIANO BLACK ENIGMA CASE + 2 FRONT USB
Processor (CPU)
AMD A6-3670K APU (2.7GHz, 4 Cores) & AMD Radeon™ HD 6530D Graphics
Motherboard
ASUS® F1A55-M LE: FM1 A-SERIES, SATA 3.0GB/s, USB 2.0
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card
1GB AMD RADEON™ HD7750 - DVI,HDMI,DP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 3 Capable
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£29)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE AMD CPU COOLER (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Home Installation
Technician Assisted Installation & Set-Up (£79)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days
Miscellaneous
FREE DIRT SHOWDOWN GAME with any AMD 7000 Series GPU!
Quantity
1

Price: £635.00 including VAT and delivery.

[mantadog]

Not a bad build, CPU and GPU are going to work fine together. Obviously not the most powerful combo available, but more than enough for a bit fo photoshop and light gaming.

You sure you want to spend that money on the assisted setup? It's really not worth it in my opinion, do you know what went wrong last time? You say they couldn't correct the fault, i'm surprised at that as i would have thought even if it were a hardware component they would have just swapped it for a new one. If it was the OS then just a fresh copy of the OS would have sorted it.

It really is just a case of plugging in the PC connecting the monitor etc, entering the windows product key (note it down when the pc arrives) and clicking the boxes that come up. Just make sure you don't turn off your PC while the initial setup is going on. If your really stuck call up PCS and they will help you out or come on the forums and we can point you in the right direction. Really isn't hard to setup the PC when it first turns on. That £79 would buy you a better PC rather than having to spend it on someone to come round and push the power button, click a few boxes then bugger off...

[Diem]

CPU and GPU are going to work fine together

Are there certain combinations which don't work together? Just wondering if there are things to learn to avoid...

[jamsto]

Thanks for the reply mantadog.

My custom machine went on fine but no picture appeared on the monitor-nothing like it was even connected. I plugged in the DVI cable into all the sockets but still no show. I sent it back twice but although they thought they'd solved the problem it was the same bad news. This monitor has worked fine with a 3 year old and a six year old computers. It wasn't the monitor I checked. Even pcspecialists seemed puzzled at what it could be though they did find something wrong with some pin or other can't remember exactly.

Maybe the configuration was damaged in the transport since inevitably sometimes plugs DO come loose but they packed it carefully with foam the last time and it still wouldn't connect with my llamaya monitor. No one was more miserable than I. Perhaps a custom PC build is more of an inexact science than perhaps we realize.

So I opted for something that is a little easier to make in effect just upgrading a product I assume they built many times already and therefore nothing unusual is going to come out of left field.

I must admit pcspecialist we're pretty good about it E-Mailing me and keeping me informed and I found the RMA much easier than humping the whole caboodle to the nearest post office and standing in a queue for half an hour.

[Wolvo7]

A very low spec CPU and a powerful GPU wouldn't work well together for example, the GPU wouldn't be able to perform at its max. If mantadog said that your config is fine I'm sure it is

Regarding your monitor problem if you sent it back twice and it still didn't work it may be a problem on your end. They would have tested the PC before sending it back to you and the chance of something disconnecting during transport 3 times in a row is pretty unlikely. Maybe try a different screen or a flat screen TV if you have one, or try with a HDMI or VGA cable and see if it works.

[jamsto]

I tried the VGA Cable the first time Wolvo7 and no go. Didn't try it the second time such was my misery! Anyway all water under the bridge now so I might have another look at the GHZ and the extra £79.

Obviously having your PC turn up and your not able to use it is the worst feeling in the world so I guess I'm playing it a bit safe but thanks for the advice folks.