advice on new setup

[jdr]

looking to buy a strong all-rounder, need some advice....

will be used for gaming, media, Photoshop, dual monitor tasks, hd3d output to 3dtv.

for gaming purposes, how do you get surround sound output to an AVReceiver ...

is the selected RAM ok?

all suggestions will be appreciated.

(will be adding my own storage later)

this is my 1st draught.

budget is £1500....ish

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE R4 BLACK PEARL QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770K (3.5GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® SABERTOOTH Z77: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, THERMAL ARMOR
Memory (RAM)
16GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (4 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 680 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB INTEL® 520 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
4x BLU-RAY ROM DRIVE, 16x DVD ROM (£26)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W PRO SERIES™ HX750-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£119)
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet 22dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) 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 (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON (£9)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,483.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-ivy-bridge-pc/JRSdwJZqkn/

 

[rwhunited]

Would the RAM frequency affect the system much by upgrading to the 2133mhz 16gb set for an extra £7?

 

[jdr]

not sure, i just picked it because it matches the speed of the chip. i'm open to upping it if its worth while.

is it enough ram???

should it be faster???

 

[rwhunited]

I'm not sure as I don't know much about computers myself, I was just curious if the extra frequency would make much difference for the £7?

 

[Rakk]

Would the RAM frequency affect the system much by upgrading to the 2133mhz 16gb set for an extra £7?

Would add nothing unless you were planning on overclocking, might as well stay with the 1600 RAM.

 

[Rakk]

You only really need 8gb ram for games it's more then enough and 1600mhz but 16gb is overkill

True, but I've heard Photoshop can be a bit of a memory hog, though someone who uses it may be able to give a better answer here, also depends if other picture/video editing stuff is likely to be used, if so 16GB may be useful - again, wait for someone who knows more about Photoshops memory usage (8GB may be enough).

 

[jdr]

helpful stuff so far guys.

just need to figure out the 5.1 sound for gaming.

also, is there sufficient cooling. (i'm trying to keep it quiet)


as for photoshop.. its a huge hog, hence the 16gb. my current sysytem has 8, i use it for work (digital photography), so i'm going for 16 for peace of mind more than anything.

 

[keynes]

helpful stuff so far guys.

just need to figure out the 5.1 sound for gaming.

also, is there sufficient cooling. (i'm trying to keep it quiet)

If you are not planning to overclock you should get the i7-3770 (non-k), the noisiest component in your set up is likely to be the gpu when gaming.

 

[jdr]

If you are not planning to overclock you should get the i7-3770 (non-k), the noisiest component in your set up is likely to be the gpu when gaming.

i can handle noise when gaming, its when im working'n'watchin that i dont want the "airport effect"

only went for the "K" because it apparently runs a bit cooler.

 

[Chriso]

True, but I've heard Photoshop can be a bit of a memory hog, though someone who uses it may be able to give a better answer here, also depends if other picture/video editing stuff is likely to be used, if so 16GB may be useful - again, wait for someone who knows more about Photoshops memory usage (8GB may be enough).

If your using it for media production and programs such as photoshop, dreamweaver etc then I'd go for the i7 3770 for the hyperthreading and the 16gb ram @ 1600mhz. You could even consider an overclocked system. The gtx 670 is a slight cut down version of the 680 and it's alot cheaper I think it's around 10% reduction atleast according to a few other forum posters.

 

[jdr]

does the fact that its the "4gb" 680 make any difference. or is it still similar to a 670

 

[Rakk]

does the fact that its the "4gb" 680 make any difference. or is it still similar to a 670

The 4GB is the amount of VRAM, you only really need 4GB if you're going to be multi-monitor gaming - how many monitors were you planing on using?

 

[Chriso]

does the fact that its the "4gb" 680 make any difference. or is it still similar to a 670

Just looked seems no option for 670 4gb my bad thought there might of been option for both

 

[jdr]

for now, 2 monitors for editing and occasional gaming.

 

[Rakk]

for now, 2 monitors for editing and occasional gaming.

So yeah, one monitor for when you're gaming - trust me you can't easily game with the screen split over 2 monitors it just doesn't work, so you just do not need 4GB VRAM on a graphics card, so the GTX670 will be perfectly fine

 

[jdr]

the 670 it is then, as long as i dont have to upgrade in 2 years, i'm happy.

still not sure if i need a sound card for 5.1 gaming.

 

[keynes]

the 670 it is then, as long as i dont have to upgrade in 2 years, i'm happy.

still not sure if i need a sound card for 5.1 gaming.

You could try the onboard audio first before adding a soundcard.

 

[Rakk]

the 670 it is then, as long as i dont have to upgrade in 2 years, i'm happy.

Well in two years, it may not be playing the newest greatest games at ultra anymore, but neither would any card currently available

 

[jdr]

good advice keynes...

this is the updated rig so far.... its £250 under budget, any ideas for the £250?

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE R4 BLACK PEARL QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770 (3.4GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® SABERTOOTH Z77: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, THERMAL ARMOR
Memory (RAM)
16GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (4 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB INTEL® 520 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
4x BLU-RAY ROM DRIVE, 16x DVD ROM (£26)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W PRO SERIES™ HX750-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£119)
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet 22dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) 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 (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON (£9)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,263.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-ivy-bridge-pc/YobP5zBfJP/

 

[Rakk]

its £250 under budget, any ideas for the £250?

Well you could up the warranty to gold if you want a bit more piece of mind, you could also just save the money for when you decide you do need more hard drive space