First PC Build - Need feedback :)

M

Mr.Rook

Member
Primarily mid-high end gaming PC with room for improvements/alterations to accomodate other tasks. (Modelling/Programming etc.) It's my very first custom PC build and i'd really appreciate help from some veterans to this whole thing. Budget isn't a huge problem, but I don't want to spend what I don't need for a decent gaming experience.

Specs-
Case
PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-4690 (3.5GHz) 6MB Cache

Motherboard
Gigabyte Z97-HD3: ATX, LG1150, USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs

Memory (RAM)
24GB KINGSTON HYPER-X FURY DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (3 x 8GB)

Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 760 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready

1st Hard Disk
1TB VELOCIRAPTOR WD1000DHTZ, SATA 6-Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (10,000rpm)

1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM

Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550 POWER SUPPLY

Processor Cooling
Corsair H60 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£59)

Sound Card
ASUS Xonar DS - Bring Hi-Fi spirit to your Music, Movie & Games (£40)

Wireless/Wired Networking
DUAL-BAND WIRELESS 802.11N 450Mbps PCI-E CARD (£35)

USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS

Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)

Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence (£79)

Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365

Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL

Surge Protection
MasterPlug SRG62 6 Socket 2m Surge Protector (£9)

Cable Tidy
3 x PCS 1.5M Zip Cable Tidy - Professional Cable Management (£5)

Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)

Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)

Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
 
keynes

keynes

Multiverse Poster
Velociraptor is not significantly faster than the caviar black but more expensive, no need for h60 or sound card. I would put more money on the GPU.
 
M

Mr.Rook

Member
My budget is probably max £1,400, but again, it's flexible. I changed to the 2TB Caviar, switched the cooling and sound card and upped to a 4GB 770. Never done this before so I haven't a clue what difference sound cards and air vs. liquid cooling will make etc. Just looking to run demanding games on high settings for a few years. :)

Edit: New cooling is: CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler and sound card is: Creative Sound Blaster® Audigy™ FX OEM
 
C

Cadwah

Rising Star
For your budget I'd go for something like this:

Case
COOLERMASTER CM690 III ADVANCED CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-4690 (3.5GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
Gigabyte Z97-HD3: ATX, LG1150, USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X FURY DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
3GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 780 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Free Item
FREE WATCH DOGS with GTX 660 & 7 Series GPUs!
1st Hard Disk
240GB KINGSTON HYPERX 3K SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
2TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD2003FZEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W RM SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET (£79)
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet 22dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
DUAL-BAND WIRELESS 802.11N 450Mbps PCI-E CARD (£35)
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
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
Surge Protection
MasterPlug SRG62 6 Socket 2m Surge Protector (£9)
Cable Tidy
3 x PCS 1.5M Zip Cable Tidy - Professional Cable Management (£5)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,290.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-haswell-pc/sU69ZgzrvW/
 
M

Mr.Rook

Member
I like the look of that, but does the case matter in this case? (heh) The original case fits for compatibility, so is there anything special about the coolermaster? I'm guessing the on-board sound card is perfectly fine?
 
C

Cadwah

Rising Star
The case doesn't matter that much, anything at about or above the Maelstrom that isn't a quiet case should be fine. I had the coolermaster in there from a previous config. On-board sound is very good, only if you were audio editing or producing would you need a sound card. Also I notice you chose a wireless card, I use Homeplugs (500mbs) instead and find that they offer a much more stable signal than wireless if you are far away from your router or in a blackspot in the premises.
 
M

Mr.Rook

Member
Do Homeplugs just turn a plug socket into a hotspot or is it only connected to one appliance? How do they work?
 
C

Cadwah

Rising Star
You plug one in near your router and plug the ethernet in, they you plug the other near your desktop and connect the ethernet. They send the signal through your home wiring.

Diagram: http://www.networkingreviews.com/images/PowerLine-Home-Network.gif

Definitely want the 500mbps version though for high speed connections (I use TP Link but I imagine there isn't much difference in quality between vendors.) There is an option for them in the configurator.
 
Last edited:
M

Mr.Rook

Member
I think i'll go with that then. I chose the Dual Band because it mentioned having separate bands of 2.4 GHz for e-mail/internet etc. and 5 GHz for online gaming and HD streaming. The two bands would have less interference and therefore better signal, but the max would be 450Mbps. Would the Dual Band or Homeplugs be better in this case? Both would be nice, so I could then hook-up the homeplugs to my console and use internet for both.
 
keynes

keynes

Multiverse Poster
Does your router support dual band? I don't think the "less interference" is likely from experience both offer similar performance. Home plugs will offer a more reliable connection
 
M

Mr.Rook

Member
Yeah, not too sure on it being supported. I guess they are the better option then. Do the Homeplugs come with any Ethernet cables? Isn't a problem if they don't, just curious. Otherwise, I think that's all I have to ask, my build is complete for now I guess :)
 
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