Upgrading from laptop to desktop

[ChrisByatt]

Hey guys,

I've had an enigma iii 520 for the last couple of years but it's getting a bit slow now. I'm looking for something that will run most games on a high/max setting and will be easily upgradable in the future. My budget is 1-1.5k. This is the build I'm looking at now for £1526. I've gone for an 850w cpu because at some point i'll get another 680 and have them in sli. Is there anything I've specced too highly or too low? I'll be using one 3D 1080p screen. Might get a second in the future.

Case
COOLERMASTER HAF 922 MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3820 (3.6GHz) 10MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P9X79 PRO: INTEL® SOCKET LG2011
Memory (RAM)
16GB SAMSUNG QUAD-DDR3 1600MHz (4 X 4GB)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 680 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
4x BLU-RAY ROM DRIVE, 16x DVD ROM (£27)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W PRO SERIES™ HX850-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£139)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H60 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£59)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
DUAL-BAND WIRELESS 802.11N 450Mbps PCI-E CARD (£35)

 

[Rakk]

I'd actually go for something more like this:


Case
COOLERMASTER HAF 922 MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770 (3.4GHz) 8MB Cache the i7-3770 will perform better and to be honest you could probably easily get away with the i5-3570 for gaming purposes unless you play games that are CPU dependent rather than GPU dependent
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LK: PCI-E 3.0 READY, SLI, CROSSFIREX will allow SLI
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT) 8GB will be fine, and you can add more later if you really need
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready marginally worse than the 670 but a lot cheaper
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB INTEL® 520 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW) SSD goodness - will make for much faster booting and loading
2nd Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
4x BLU-RAY ROM DRIVE, 16x DVD ROM (£27)
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX750 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£86) will eb enough if you want to add another 670 later
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet 22dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler (£19) dont need watercooling if you're not overclocking and overclocking doesn't generally benefit gaming unless the game is CPU dependent
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
DUAL-BAND WIRELESS 802.11N 450Mbps PCI-E CARD (£35)
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
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,294.00 including VAT and delivery. cheaper!!!

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-ivy-bridge-pc/eS0bOFGcB_/

 

[ChrisByatt]

Thanks for the ideas and the savings!

I have two questions - if I were to go with a 680 rather than a 670, would the 680 be better supported in terms of driver updates and futureproof? Would I notice a difference between the 2gb and 4gb versions.

My other question is with any high end graphics card companies do their own versions - would I be better off buying without a graphics card and sticking one in later? I'm looking at the MSI GTX 670 Power Edition Twin Frozr IV and ASUS GeForce GTX 670 Direct CU II TOP. I believe PCS use palit cards?

 

[KrossBowKitty]

Thanks for the ideas and the savings!

I have two questions - if I were to go with a 680 rather than a 670, would the 680 be better supported in terms of driver updates and futureproof? Would I notice a difference between the 2gb and 4gb versions.

My other question is with any high end graphics card companies do their own versions - would I be better off buying without a graphics card and sticking one in later? I'm looking at the MSI GTX 670 Power Edition Twin Frozr IV and ASUS GeForce GTX 670 Direct CU II TOP. I believe PCS use palit cards?

Hey there!

In answer to your question, you will only see a difference between the 2GB and 4GB if you're running multiple monitors off of one card. The 2GB one is fine. However, just like Rakk said I'd stick with the 670 if I were you because its performance is still up there along-side the 680 and its quite a lot cheaper.

Secondly, however many after market GPU's there are out there, the stock ones will give you great performance. The only differences you may see with after market GPU's would be:

1. Quieter and more powerful cooling solutions.

2. Marginal overclocks.

3. More intuitive drivers.

These factors don't make a whole lot of difference while playing games. So no, the reference cards will do you just fine

Hope that helps


EDIT: Another option may be to get the Radeon 7970, as that is an amazing card for the price

 

[ChrisByatt]

Both the MSI PE and ASUS Top run faster than a 680 with their extra cooling and overclocking. The ASUS card is also only $20 more expensive than stock

 

[KrossBowKitty]

Both the MSI PE and ASUS Top run faster than a 680 with their extra cooling and overclocking. The ASUS card is also only $20 more expensive than stock

Buy them if you wish. Get the stock ones from PCS if you want the convince of having everything installed for you and a guarantee that it will work. If you want an after market GPU then the option is there if that's what you want to do because at the end of the day its down to your preference. I'm just saying that the reference cards will run very well and fast if that's what you're worried about.

 

[keynes]

I don't think the difference between an overclocked gtx 670 and a stock gtx 680 is noticeable, in terms of warranty and to avoid dealing with a third party retailer I would suggest getting the whole system from PCS. As far as I know 3d gaming is only supported with 1 or 3 screens with nvidia, I don't think you will benefit from a 2nd 3d monitor unless you are planning to get a 3rd.

 

[ChrisByatt]

Thanks for the help guys - I think I'm gonna get the build Rakk suggested (with some minor tweaks) and no gfx card and stick in an EVGA GTX 670 FTW Signature2 card. It's got the best reviews on newegg for any 670 and is only marginally slower than a 680.

Really appreciate the comments - you guys have saved me a load of money looking forward to my second PCS build!

 

[ChrisByatt]

My Second PCS Build

Case
COOLERMASTER HAF 922 MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770 (3.4GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LK: PCI-E 3.0 READY, SLI, CROSSFIREX
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st Hard Disk
120GB KINGSTON HYPERX 3K SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
2TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 64MB CACHE
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
CORSAIR 750W PRO SERIES™ HX750-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£119)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H40 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£39)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
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


Separately I've bought an EVGA GTX 670 FTW Sig2 with plans to get another in a year or so. Let me know what you think

 

[keynes]

If you are not overclocking your cpu you could get the triple copper heatpipe and a caviar black as a secondary drive.
Edit: same as Rakk's spec without the gpu

 

[ChrisByatt]

I think I probably will be overclocking. What's the difference between this drive and a caviar black? Other than it's much cheaper the generic drive seems to have the same spec

 

[Rakk]

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770 (3.4GHz) 8MB Cache

I think I probably will be overclocking.

If you are thinking of overclocking you would want the i7-3770k CPU instead since the k-variants are unlocked for easier overclocking

 

[keynes]

Caviar black should be faster and for overclocking you would need the i7-3770k

 

[ChrisByatt]

Ok, changed the proc I think I'll keep the HD the same as it is - for anything I need quickly I'll use the SSD.

Thanks for the tips I can't wait for my build to arrive!

 

[ChrisByatt]

12th working day in pre-production...
I changed the build a bit in the end so this how it stands now..

Case
COOLERMASTER HAF 922 MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-3770K (3.5GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LK: PCI-E 3.0 READY, SLI, CROSSFIREX
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPERX BEAST DUAL-DDR3 2400MHz X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU) (Adding my own gtx 670 FTW sig2)
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
120GB KINGSTON HYPERX 3K SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd 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
2nd DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
12x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD ±R/±RW
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W PRO SERIES™ HX850-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£139) (powerful enough for SLI when I get round to it)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H80i Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£69) (quieter and better for OC)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Extra Case Fans
2 x 12CM Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof) (£9)
Network Facilities
DUAL-BAND WIRELESS 802.11N 450Mbps PCI-E CARD (£35)