Building a Computer[parts thread]

[direkiller]

Well internet it's time for me to put on the big boy nerd glasses and build my own computer.
and I figure getting a second(or 30+) checks first is never a bad idea.

Case:
Cougar AF-2
Hard drive:
WD 1TB

Monitor:
ASUS 23"

Motherboard:
ASRock 1155 Intel

Graphics Card:
EVGA GTX 560 ti 2gb

DVD rom:
LITE-ON Black 18X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM

Powersupply:
Corsair 600w

RAM:
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 2x4GB

Processor:
I5-3550


any advice is appreciated.


EDIT:
Changed out some of the parts

droped the 700w down to a 600 with 80+ rated
beefed up the graphics card to a 560 ti 2gb
switched the case to one with a filter

Some things to add
Noise is not an issue.
a SSD 2nd hard drive is not an option unless I cut something.

 

[Heronblade]

I'm going from the assumption that you're looking for a solid gaming computer on a reasonable budget, please correct me if otherwise:

-Not a fan of Intel processors for gaming, but I won't get into that here, someone always seems ready to jump down my throat over the issue. That level of processor should be more than adequate regardless of the manufacturer anyways.

-You might want to consider swapping one of those fans out for a midrange liquid cooling system. Quieter and more effective. The fans that come with the case should be adequate, but are likely to be rather noisy.

-Also, you might want to consider drive speed. The expensive option I'm sure someone will shortly recommend is to get an SSD. That does provide a significant boost, but the things are still incredibly expensive for the moment. A cheaper alternative I've been using, and have been quite pleased with, is to snag a pair of 6 MB/s 500 GB hard drives, and set them up in a RAID 0 format. Major boost to read/write speed.

-A DVD-RW drive will probably come in handy at some point, even the weirdos like me who absolutely refuse to burn media files occasionally have a use for the things

-Don't forget to use a 64 bit OS, or the extra RAM won't mean squat

 

[Tanis]

I did this a few weeks ago myself...

This site is MAGIC!
http://pcpartpicker.com/


It's good at comparing deals, and see if there's any compatibility issues with your parts.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Motherboard:
ASRock 970 EXTREME3 AM3+ AMD 970

Processor:
I5-3550

BIG problem here. Motherboard is socket AM3+ and processor is socket 1155. Mobo and CPU must be of the same socket-type so either choose a socket 1155 mobo or a socket AM3+ CPU. My advice would be get a socket 1155 mobo because the socket AM3+ CPUs are kind of crap on the priceower ratio.

Also, I'd look for a different power supply. CoolerMaster PSUs are a bit dodgy and very few are 80+ certified (meaning that their power rating is given for 100% load instead of 80% load).

 

[direkiller]

Motherboard:
ASRock 970 EXTREME3 AM3+ AMD 970

Processor:
I5-3550

BIG problem here. Motherboard is socket AM3+ and processor is socket 1155. Mobo and CPU must be of the same socket-type so either choose a socket 1155 mobo or a socket AM3+ CPU. My advice would be get a socket 1155 mobo because the socket AM3+ CPUs are kind of crap on the priceower ratio.

Also, I'd look for a different power supply. CoolerMaster PSUs are a bit dodgy and very few are 80+ certified (meaning that their power rating is given for 100% load instead of 80% load).

my bad
(had two notepads open for an AMD/Intel) and just flat out coped the wrong one

 

[Joccaren]

Most of it's already been covered, but I'll put my opinion in on it.

1. If you can get 560Ti, I'd go for that instead. Slight increase to cost, but also an increase in overall performance. Can't provide anecdotal evidence for a 560, but a 560Ti will run all modern games well at max settings and full HD resolution [And if you get the 2Gb version, at 2560*1440 fine as well. You might not need the 2Gb version for this, but the extra memory helps with the larger resolutions]. That is, of course, unless you're going for graphical powerhouses like BF3, TW2 or Skyrim loaded with over 7Gb of graphics mods [I swear I've spent more time modding that game than actually playing it].

2. As has been suggested, some cheap liquid cooling may be helpful for CPU cooling, and keeping the noise down [I can barely hear my PC when its running with its fans off and only the liquid cooling on]. Of course, full rig liquid cooling would be best, but even something as cheap and relatively meh as a Corsair H60 will keep the temperature and noise level down, though you could certainly do better.

3. You can go for a 5-600W power supply from a more reliable brand. You're unlikely to need the 700W, and dropping some of that power and investing it in something more likely to remain stable would be a good move.

4. If you can afford it, I'd get a good SSD. I've got a $300 250Gb SanDisk SSD in my system with 550Mb/s Read/Write speed, and Windows loads in about 4 seconds now that I've almost filled the drive, and loaded it pretty much instantly before then [The BIOS took longer to load that's how quick it was]. Also helps with RAM paging, as an SSD is a lot faster than a normal HDD, when your RAM has to page to it it won't be quite as much of a slow down.

Otherwise its alright. Should last you well into the next console generation at the very least running games, though whether on maximum settings or not will depend on how cheap Sony and Microsoft decide to be thanks to this gen's relative failure.
Could definitely get a better/more powerful rig, but it should serve its purpose well enough.
Also, just curious, but how much is this costing you?
Kinda interested in what other people end up paying for their PCs relative to what I do >.>

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

If you buy a closed loop liquid system for your CPU based on them being 'quieter' then you better buy a GPU card with good, non-reference cooling system... Having a quiet CPU doesn't make a jot of difference if your GPU sounds like a possum being fed into a woodchipper.

 

[direkiller]

Most of it's already been covered, but I'll put my opinion in on it.

1. If you can get 560Ti, I'd go for that instead. Slight increase to cost, but also an increase in overall performance. Can't provide anecdotal evidence for a 560, but a 560Ti will run all modern games well at max settings and full HD resolution [And if you get the 2Gb version, at 2560*1440 fine as well. You might not need the 2Gb version for this, but the extra memory helps with the larger resolutions]. That is, of course, unless you're going for graphical powerhouses like BF3, TW2 or Skyrim loaded with over 7Gb of graphics mods [I swear I've spent more time modding that game than actually playing it].

2. As has been suggested, some cheap liquid cooling may be helpful for CPU cooling, and keeping the noise down [I can barely hear my PC when its running with its fans off and only the liquid cooling on]. Of course, full rig liquid cooling would be best, but even something as cheap and relatively meh as a Corsair H60 will keep the temperature and noise level down, though you could certainly do better.

3. You can go for a 5-600W power supply from a more reliable brand. You're unlikely to need the 700W, and dropping some of that power and investing it in something more likely to remain stable would be a good move.

4. If you can afford it, I'd get a good SSD. I've got a $300 250Gb SanDisk SSD in my system with 550Mb/s Read/Write speed, and Windows loads in about 4 seconds now that I've almost filled the drive, and loaded it pretty much instantly before then [The BIOS took longer to load that's how quick it was]. Also helps with RAM paging, as an SSD is a lot faster than a normal HDD, when your RAM has to page to it it won't be quite as much of a slow down.

Otherwise its alright. Should last you well into the next console generation at the very least running games, though whether on maximum settings or not will depend on how cheap Sony and Microsoft decide to be thanks to this gen's relative failure.
Could definitely get a better/more powerful rig, but it should serve its purpose well enough.
Also, just curious, but how much is this costing you?
Kinda interested in what other people end up paying for their PCs relative to what I do >.>

about $1150 after shipping and unlisted things(OS,cables,paste)
pre rebates

 

[Evil Smurf]

hint: Don't invest in speakers, get headphones instead Sennheiser is a good brand