Which Pc is the best all round?

[Stephenx63]

Hi

Just wanted to get some opinions on which of the following PC set ups would be best overall, or maybe what combination of parts from these would be best:

1.

Computer Case Corsair Carbide Spec 01 (Red)
CPU AMD FX 6300 (6 x 3.5 GHZ - Turbo 6 x 4.1 GHZ) - FREE GRID 2 GAME
CPU Heatsink Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo - Low Noise
Memory 8 GB 1333Mhz (1x8GB) - (DDR3)
Graphics Card AMD Radeon R7 260X - 2 GB - (XFX) - (PCI-E)
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-78LMT/USB3 (AMD 760G) - VGA/DVI/HDMI
Sound Card Motherboard Integrated HD Sound
Networking Motherboard Integrated Ethernet Lan (Broadband Ready)
Power Supply Corsair 650W PSU - Low Noise CPU Compound Standard CPU Compound Supplied With Heatsink Extra Case Fans Standard Fans Included With Case
Hard Drive #1 500 GB Seagate SATA-III HDD 7200 RPM 16MB
Optical Drive #1 Samsung 24x DVD/CD Re-Writer/Reader - Black - (SATA)


2.

Case
COOLERMASTER HAF 912 PLUS MID TOWER GAMING CASEProcessor (CPU)
AMD A6-6420K Dual Core APU (4.2GHz) & Radeon™ HD 8000 Series GraphicsMotherboard
ASUS® A88XM-PLUS: (M-ATX, DDR3, USB 3.0, 6Gb/s)Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X BEAST DUAL-DDR3 2133MHz X.M.P (1 x 8GB)Graphics Card
1GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 750 - DVI, mHDMI, VGA - 3D Vision ReadyFree ItemFree Item
FREE £90 IN-GAME VOUCHER with GTX 650 / 750 /7000M / 8000M Series GPUs1st Hard Disk
500GB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 16MB CACHE1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAMMemory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORTPower Supply
CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550 POWER SUPPLYProcessor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLERSound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS 802.11N 150Mbps PCI-E CARD (£6)USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD

3.

Computer Case X-Blade Black
CPU Intel i3 3240 - (2 x 3.3 GHZ) - Ivy Bridge
CPU Heatsink Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro V2 - Low Noise
Memory 8 GB 1600MHz (1x8GB) - (DDR3)
Graphics Card AMD Radeon R7 250 - 2 GB - (SAPPHIRE) - (PCI-E)
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H (Intel B75) - VGA/DVI/HDMI
Sound Card Motherboard Integrated HD Sound
Networking Wireless 150Mbps (USB)
Power Supply Corsair 550W PSU - Low Noise CPU Compound Standard CPU Compound Supplied With Heatsink Case Fans Standard Fans Included With Case
Hard Drive #1 500 GB Seagate SATA-III HDD 7200 RPM 16MB
Optical Drive #1 Samsung 24x DVD/CD Re-Writer/Reader - Black - (SATA)

I already have a 128GB SSD drive with Windows 7 Home Premium 32 bit installed already on it which is what I'll be using as the operating system, will be fitting that into new PC when I get it. Mainly just wanting to upgrade as current PC is 5 years old, gonna be using new PC for some gaming, watching HD movies, downloading etc.

Many thanks in advance

 

[evvo123]

What's your budget? You could probably do better than any of the 3 listed here, assuming you have ~£500 to play with.

 

[Stephenx63]

Was thinking about £400 - £450, but could go as high as £500 if need be.

 

[evvo123]

Was thinking about £400 - £450, but could go as high as £500 if need be.

Here you go - this spec is better than the three above:

Case
CORSAIR 230T COMPACT GAMING CASE - RED LED + SIDE WINDOW
Processor (CPU)
AMD FX-6300 Six Core CPU (3.50GHz/8MB CACHE/AM3+)
Motherboard
Gigabyte 970A-DS3P AM3+ (ATX, DDR3, USB 3.0, 6Gb/s)
Memory (RAM)
4GB KINGSTON DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD RADEON™ R9 270X - DVI, HDMI, DP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1003FZEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
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
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
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 7 to 9 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £504.00 including VAT and delivery.

Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/amd-bulldozer-top-spec-pc/3CF4OzGSrP/

 

[evvo123]

If you need to save further, opt for the standard 1TB drive rather than the caviar black HDD.

 

[Stephenx63]

Wow cheers for that dude, very helpful. I was thinking more of getting like 8GB of RAM rather than 4 or maybe 6. But i'll fiddle around on PC.co.uk and see what comes up for around my budget with what you have suggested there.

 

[evvo123]

Wow cheers for that dude, very helpful. I was thinking more of getting like 8GB of RAM rather than 4 or maybe 6. But i'll fiddle around on PC.co.uk and see what comes up for around my budget with what you have suggested there.

No problem. I selected 4GB RAM because a. it was the only way I could keep it in budget without sacrificing the CPU/GPU (which are more important for gaming), and b. it's extremely easy to add more at a later date.

 

[Stephenx63]

That's true, if i'm using the PC not for full all the time gaming but occasional gaming but more using PC for internet, videos, work etc, would a 1 GB graphic card and 8 GB ram be better. Also how is a Cavier Black HDD different from standard HDD?

 

[evvo123]

That's true, if i'm using the PC not for full all the time gaming but occasional gaming but more using PC for internet, videos, work etc, would a 1 GB graphic card and 8 GB ram be better. Also how is a Cavier Black HDD different from standard HDD?

1. It depends - to an extent - on what games you play. If it were me? No, I really wouldn't sacrifice the R9 270X for an inferior card. The point is that 4GB RAM certainly won't limit you for the non-gaming everyday tasks listed (internet, downloading videos, watching films etc), so your best option would be to just add more RAM at a later date. Remember, changing the GPU is a far greater financial burden than adding RAM.

2. The Caviar Black drive is just faster than the standard HDD: files will write onto it more quickly; applications will launch / load a bit faster; the OS will boot more quickly.

 

[Stephenx63]

Yeah good point, RAM is go much easier to add at a later date so 4GB will do me.
Is it worth getting a Caviar Black drive if I have a SSD drive already which is what my OS is on and will boot from. Would a 500GB Caviar Black drive be worth it since the SSD has 128GB on it?

 

[evvo123]

Yeah good point, RAM is go much easier to add at a later date so 4GB will do me.
Is it worth getting a Caviar Black drive if I have a SSD drive already which is what my OS is on and will boot from. Would a 500GB Caviar Black drive be worth it since the SSD has 128GB on it?

I'd personally get the Caviar Black drive simply for the extra speed with larger applications that won't fit on the SSD. That said, if you need to save on any part of the build, make it the hard drive, and opt for the standard HDD.

Re. the 500GB Caviar Black, it really depends on whether you consider 500GB ample storage capacity for all your files. For me, it would probably be a tad low, but if you think it will be sufficient, go for it.

 

[Stephenx63]

The 3 drives I have at the moment add up to 265GB and I havent filled either of them up so I think 500GB should easily be enough for me.
Something I'm wondering, currently I use a USB adaptor plugged into the PC to connect wireless to the internet, would I need to get a wireless PCI-E card or would the Gigabit Lan port be ok (wi-fi not included) be ok?

 

[evvo123]

The 3 drives I have at the moment add up to 265GB and I havent filled either of them up so I think 500GB should easily be enough for me.
Something I'm wondering, currently I use a USB adaptor plugged into the PC to connect wireless to the internet, would I need to get a wireless PCI-E card or would the Gigabit Lan port be ok (wi-fi not included) be ok?

No, you don't need a PCI-E WiFi card, you'd be fine connecting with the USB adapter.

 

[Stephenx63]

That's good, I use a USB adaptor to connect to the wireless internet downstairs, although have been thinking about getting a new adaptor at some point. Your advise has been very helpful dude, lot better than on another forum I asked about this one. I did notice this message comes up when proceeding to order:

"Please note that due to the motherboard you have selected not having a USB 3.0 header, the USB 3.0 front ports on this case will not be active. If you would like the USB 3.0 ports to be functional, please select a different motherboard."

So does that mean I won't get any USB 3.0 ports at all? Is it worth having USB 3.0, I thought it makes things run faster and connect better?

 

[Stephenx63]

Anyone else have any suggestions or thoughts on this?

 

[alesma]

That's good, I use a USB adaptor to connect to the wireless internet downstairs, although have been thinking about getting a new adaptor at some point. Your advise has been very helpful dude, lot better than on another forum I asked about this one. I did notice this message comes up when proceeding to order:

"Please note that due to the motherboard you have selected not having a USB 3.0 header, the USB 3.0 front ports on this case will not be active. If you would like the USB 3.0 ports to be functional, please select a different motherboard."

So does that mean I won't get any USB 3.0 ports at all? Is it worth having USB 3.0, I thought it makes things run faster and connect better?

It means that the case will have USB 3.0 ports but they will just be empty I think, because your motherboard doesn't have USB 3.0 headers. They may plug them up, I'm not sure.
USB 3.0 is slightly faster in my opinion, although I don't transfer enough data to notice its real benefits. Personally it wouldn't bother me having only 2.0 but that's your choice.

3.0 basically allows data to be transferred at a faster rate. This may help:

http://www.diffen.com/difference/USB_2.0_vs_USB_3.0

 

[Stephenx63]

Yeah I hardly use the USB's much except for one for my keyboard and one for my USB to connect wirelessly to Internet.
What do you think of the PC set up evvo123 suggested, any good you think for the price?

 

[vanthus]

Yeah I hardly use the USB's much except for one for my keyboard and one for my USB to connect wirelessly to Internet.
What do you think of the PC set up evvo123 suggested, any good you think for the price?

evvo123's build is about as good as you'll get for the price.
Regarding USB 3.0 ports,only the front ones won't be active,you will still have active USB 3.0 ports at the back.

 

[Stephenx63]

Ah thats cool, didnt know the ones at the back would work fine. I'll probably order the set up evvo123 suggested next week then.

 

[Stephenx63]

One question I wouldnt mind answering. I have windows 7 on a SSD drive which I will connect to the new PC i'm getting so I have an operating system and more memory. Is there anything specific I have to do when doing this on a new PC, do I have to re-install Windows 7 again or will it work if I connect it to the motherboard SATA and set it up to load in the BIOS. I have a retail copy of Windows 7 so can install again.