Need quick advice!

[Connor]

This PC may be purchased next week, but I first need to clarify the details and make sure there is nothing wrong or anything that could be improved.
The max budget is £750 (Please do not go over this budget)

Case
PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5-760 Quad Core (2.80GHz, 8MB Cache) + Turbo Boost

Motherboard
ASUS® P7P55 LX: USB 2.0 & SATA 3.0Gb/s, CrossFireX™ SUPPORT

Memory (RAM)
4GB SAMSUNG DDR3 DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 2GB)

Graphics Card
1GB ATI RADEON™ HD 6850 PCI EXPRESS - DirectX® 11

2nd Graphics Card
NONE

3rd Graphics Card
NONE

Memory - 1st Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7,200rpm)

2nd Hard Disk
NONE

RAID
NONE

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

2nd DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NONE

Memory Card Reader
NONE

Power Supply & Case Cooling
600W Quiet 80 PLUS Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£59)

Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£19)

Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)

Network Facilities
ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT

USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD

Modem
NONE, I WILL BE USING BROADBAND

Floppy Disk Drive
NONE

Firewire & Video Editing
NONE

TV Card
NONE

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

Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)

Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE

Monitor
NONE

2nd Monitor
NONE

DVI-D & HDMI Monitor Cables
NONE

GeForce 3D Vision
NONE

Keyboard & Mouse
NONE

Mouse
NONE

Speakers
NONE

Webcam
NONE

Headsets (VOIP)
NONE

Surge Protection
NONE

Printer
NONE

External Hard Drive
NONE

Home Installation
NONE

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

Data Recovery
NONE

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

Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 13 working days

Quantity


1


Any help would be appreciated!

 

[Phoenix]

For that budget I'd go with an AMD build to get more out of the system:

Case
PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD PHENOM II X4 965 (3.40GHz/8MB CACHE/AM3) - BLACK EDITION
Motherboard
ASUS® M4A87TD/USB3: DUAL DDR3,SATA 6.0GB/s, USB 3.0
Memory (RAM)
4GB SAMSUNG DDR3 DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 2GB)
Graphics Card
1GB ATI RADEON™ HD 6870 PCI EXPRESS - DirectX® 11
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
640GB WD CAVIAR GREEN WD6400AARS, SATA 3 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply & Case Cooling
600W Quiet 80 PLUS Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£59)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
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 - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
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 9 to 13 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £746.00 including VAT and delivery.

This build has a faster hard drive with more storage space, a future proof motherboard compatible with USB 3.0(it has the usb3 ports at the back) and SATA 6.0GB/S and has a better graphics card for gaming which is what I assume this PC is for. The T900 is well ventilated so the standard heatsink will be fine.

 

[Connor]

My currently computer is AMD and I have had repeated problems with it, I was hoping to stick to a quad core specifically as well as intel based?
(Still in need of help)

Thanks.

- Connor

 

[Phoenix]

Well the 965 is a quad core and you won't have problems with the AMD build but if you want to stick with Intel change the HDD for a caviar green and upgrade the motherboard to the next one down.

 

[Connor]

Well the 965 is a quad core and you won't have problems with the AMD build but if you want to stick with Intel change the HDD for a caviar green and upgrade the motherboard to the next one down.

I'm re-considering it now, could you please tell me how this will be better than a Intel i5 processor?

 

[Phoenix]

I'm re-considering it now, could you please tell me how this will be better than a Intel i5 processor?

The physical processor itself isn't better, it's the lower price of getting a good quad core CPU that doesn't eat so far into a budget allowing you to upgrade other areas of the system which is the better part. The 965 can handle any game out there (are you buying this to play games on?) just like the i5 760 can, it may not be as quick whilst video editing but it's a solid CPU that performs well.

 

[Connor]

The physical processor itself isn't better, it's the lower price of getting a good quad core CPU that doesn't eat so far into a budget allowing you to upgrade other areas of the system which is the better part. The 965 can handle any game out there (are you buying this to play games on?) just like the i5 760 can, it may not be as quick whilst video editing but it's a solid CPU that performs well.

Hey, well I would most definitely be using it for gaming but id also in the near future like to buy a HD PVR and do game commentaries on the xbox and upload them to Youtube (Hopefully that does not come under editing but more rendering?)

Also how fast would this run stuff and would it be possible for you to tell me (If you can) what fps would this run Arma 2 on very high (Obviously I cant expect an answer if you don't know so that's not priority)

Also for power supply if I was to go for the AMD will that require a 800w?

 

[Phoenix]

A phenom quad core would be fine for a HD PVR and doing game commentaries. I'm not entirely sure exactly how many frames per second you would get in arma 2 but 95% of the time in games it's the graphics card that's the limiting factor on the frames per second not the CPU. No, with the build I posted you will only need a 600w/TX650 power supply, you could upgrade the CPU to the Phenom II x4 970 if you want a slightly quicker processor but both are good.

 

[Connor]

A phenom quad core would be fine for a HD PVR and doing game commentaries. I'm not entirely sure exactly how many frames per second you would get in arma 2 but 95% of the time in games it's the graphics card that's the limiting factor on the frames per second not the CPU. No, with the build I posted you will only need a 600w/TX650 power supply, you could upgrade the CPU to the Phenom II x4 970 if you want a slightly quicker processor but both are good.

Thanks for the info on a note about the gaming side do you know if the current graphics card I've selected is good.
Also I think I will stick to that processor. I would also like other peoples opinions on this as well from there own experience.

Thanks again.
- Connor

 

[Connor]

Bump* Could still do with help.

 

[Sleinous]

Yes the GPU is fine, i'd have gone with a GTX 470 but thats just me!

 

[Connor]

Yes the GPU is fine, i'd have gone with a GTX 470 but thats just me!

For what the AMD or the i5?

I was also reading reviews and comparisons to the AMD to i5 and apparently the i5 still performs better?

 

[Matt00011]

For what the AMD or the i5?

I was also reading reviews and comparisons to the AMD to i5 and apparently the i5 still performs better?

Yes but then you pay the premium for that extra squeeze in performance.

 

[Connor]

Yes but then you pay the premium for that extra squeeze in performance.

I personally would like to go for an i5 providing its in my budget (Which it is) So do you suggest I go for the i5 still with my original build?

 

[Matt00011]

I personally would like to go for an i5 providing its in my budget (Which it is) So do you suggest I go for the i5 still with my original build?

If your using the PC for gaming and anything other than heavy video editing or serious music production, then I recommend the AMD as it saves you money and you still get high quality performance from that processor while allowing you to upgrade other areas on your spec.

I dont think you would notice much difference between the two, the AMD is powerful enough for most users.

 

[Connor]

If your using the PC for gaming and anything other than heavy video editing or serious music production, then I recommend the AMD as it saves you money and you still get high quality performance from that processor while allowing you to upgrade other areas on your spec.

I dont think you would notice much difference between the two, the AMD is powerful enough for most users.

Would i5 benefit more oh? Cause I can afford to get the i5 and I really would like to know if it is better than the AMD cause i'm being told it is.

 

[Matt00011]

Would i5 benefit more oh? Cause I can afford to get the i5 and I really would like to know if it is better than the AMD cause i'm being told it is.

Performance wise yes but it's not huge and for the money saved you could up the GPU if you went with the AMD.

Your money, your choice. Ultimately up to you.

 

[Connor]

Performance wise yes but it's not huge and for the money saved you could up the GPU if you went with the AMD.

Your money, your choice. Ultimately up to you.

Well I mainly just want to play Arma 2 LOL... on very high detail with no lag and a good FPS rate... I was thinking of these settings.





Case PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU) AMD PHENOM II X4 970 (3.50GHz/8MB CACHE/AM3) - BLACK EDITION
Motherboard ASUS® M4A87TD/USB3: DUAL DDR3,SATA 6.0GB/s, USB 3.0
Memory (RAM) 4GB SAMSUNG DDR3 DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 2GB)
Graphics Card 1GB ATI RADEON™ HD 6850 PCI EXPRESS - DirectX® 11
2nd Graphics Card NONE
Memory - 1st Hard Disk 640GB WD CAVIAR GREEN WD6400AARS, SATA 3 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE
2nd Hard Disk NONE
RAID NONE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
2nd DVD/BLU-RAY Drive NONE
Memory Card Reader NONE
Power Supply & Case Cooling 600W Quiet 80 PLUS Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£59)
Processor Cooling SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£19)
Sound Card ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB Options 6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Modem NONE, I WILL BE USING BROADBAND
Floppy Disk Drive NONE
Firewire & Video Editing NONE
TV Card NONE
Operating System Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Monitor NONE
2nd Monitor NONE
DVI-D & HDMI Monitor Cables NONE
Eyefinity / GeForce 3D Vision NONE
Keyboard & Mouse NONE
Mouse NONE
Speakers NONE
Webcam NONE
Headsets (VOIP) NONE
Surge Protection NONE
Printer NONE
External Hard Drive NONE
Home Installation NONE
Warranty 3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Data Recovery NONE
Delivery STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 13 working days
Quantity 1


£737 inc VAT and Delivery.

 

[Phoenix]

Looks good

 

[Connor]

Looks good

May get that then, providing I know that PC will run what I want on high detail.