Picking new PC components.

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

Christ, this is turning into a yearly thing, isn't it?

Anyway, suffice to say, I will be selling my old PC to get parts to complete my existing one, in total, my budget will be about £330.

Within that budget, I would purchase:
-A 1080p monitor(cheapest possible that also works well, I really don't care that much about the ratios, back-lighting, size or response time)
-A new GPU, preferrably a gtx 670 or a gtx 760(to me, the 670 seems like the better choice: more cores, also the one I have been eyeing gives me free delivery on the entire order)
-A new PSU(according to the newegg calculator, I would need about 457W, so a 500w would be good, again, I care about a decent manufacturer, not so much about extras such as SLI compatibility)
-A new keyboard and mouse(DPI is no matter to me, as I use an office keyboard now, and I can game just fine, once again, the focus is on a decent manufacturer, oh and NO WIRELESS)

I already have found the components on scan.co.uk, but I came here to ask:

-If I should pick a 670 or a 760?

-Are there any better sites that sell the components even cheaper/are there times at which they are the cheapest?(I will be selling my PC around the last week of October, as that is the only time when I'm not so bloody buried in college work).

-Also, if I am being an idiot, and that there are better components for the same price(s).

The links:

GTX 670: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-zotac-gtx-670-overclocked-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-954mhz-boost-1033mhz-cores-1344-d

GTX 760: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-pny-gtx-760-xlr8-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-980mhz-boost-1033mhz-cores-1152

Monitor: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/215-acer-s220hqlbrbd-led-full-hd-monitor-dvi-vga-1920x1080-200cd-m2-5ms-black

PSU: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/500w-cooler-master-thunder-b500-b-series-85-eff-120mm-silent-pwm-fan-green-erp-psu

Keyboard: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/logitech-k120-keyboard-slim-with-full-keys-spill-resistant-usb

Mouse: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/logitech-rx250-black-optical-mouse-black-3-button-with-scroll-wheel-1000dpi-usb-ps2

Bear in mind, I live in the UK, so no Newegg unless for stats or use as proof for something

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I also have considered going AMD, but I know that they have shitty driver support.

Nonetheless, it might be a good option considering Mantle and the fact that AMD owns the console space.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I really don't want to do "this", but I would really like some help on this topic, god knows I have made bad mistakes before that were only corrected by this community.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

As for the PSU, nothing below the 80 Plus Certified is acceptable for a gaming PC. When a PSU dies it has a tendency to take the mobo and CPU down with it. It's not worth the risk. Put more money into the PSU.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

Is it the R290X-thing?

Well, in that case, I guess I should wait(if it's being bundled with BF4, I assume that it will be released soon).

 

[Signa]

I wouldn't be quite so dismissive about a low DPI mouse. I had a Microsoft Explorer for nearly 10 years, and the moment I got a 1080p monitor was the moment it started feeling inadequate. It was a first-gen optical mouse, so the DPI probably was 400 or lower. I had to do so much lifting to get across the screen, and turning up the speed just made it imprecise.

If you're already running 1080p with a low DPI mouse, then nevermind, but it drove me nuts.

 

[The White Hunter]

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

Is it the R290X-thing?

Well, in that case, I guess I should wait(if it's being bundled with BF4, I assume that it will be released soon).

Or the 280/270X, depending on price and benches. I just picked up a 670 from Scan not long ago, Direct CUII model for around £185. I recommend it but my experience with the BF4 beta is it runs much betteron AMD aat the moment. A 7870 chewed up my relatively mighty 670 in that particular challenge.

For the monitor I'd go for something a bit bigger, keep an eye on scans today only section I got a 23.6in ASUS VS247 somethingorother for £120 which was pretty sweet.

Mouse and keys are subjective things, try go into a store and try some out. Your lower budget does somewhat restrain the options for those though. Just grabbed a CM Storm Quickfire TK (brown key switches, white backlight) and not long ago picked up a Corsair Vengeance M65, making for an excellent combo but a fairly pricey one I guess.

Need a new and larger mousemat.

 

[The Lugz]

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

personally i'd never go near that psu for any kind of gaming build, i've been around cheap psu's and the one thing they all have in common is every single one eventually popped.. so from now on i buy quality instead of quantity.

i'd recommend this:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-038-SS&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=2463
I know sea-sonic are the brand that produces the high end xfx psu's and they have a good reputation in their own right as some of the most efficient and well regulated psu's around.

honestly, at the moment amd has the graphics lineup on lockdown.. they have pre-orders up for the R9 290X, ( the titankiller, as people are taking to calling it.. 'rolleyes' ) and they have the cheapest high end performance card 7970 that ships with 3 free games from a selection.. so that's roughly £80 of free crap on a £220+- card.
( i picked hitman, dirt, saints row so for me it was £80 )

i recommend the windforce, as they best the basic cooling by a few degrees:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-097-GI&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=938

i'm currently using the msi variant, and i've yet to see a driver problem with it but i'm sure they exist.. it's not uncommon but the drivers are quite mature at this point, and they'll only get better so i don't see a real problem here
plus you can always add a second for 'next gen' titles as they emerge later

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

^ also this, if you can wait then do because prices always go down and drivers always get better, and that includes the other items in your cart.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

I thought CoolerMaster was a good brand...

DAMN YOU PC GAMER!!

 

[The Lugz]

I wouldn't be quite so dismissive about a low DPI mouse. I had a Microsoft Explorer for nearly 10 years, and the moment I got a 1080p monitor was the moment it started feeling inadequate. It was a first-gen optical mouse, so the DPI probably was 400 or lower. I had to do so much lifting to get across the screen, and turning up the speed just made it imprecise.

If you're already running 1080p with a low DPI mouse, then nevermind, but it drove me nuts.

the trick with mice is, there simply isn't a high dpi mouse. it's all software.. here francois explains it better:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc7JVjcPzL0

if you're into mice, this is a real eye opener.

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

I thought CoolerMaster was a good brand...

DAMN YOU PC GAMER!!

a good brand perhaps, but every brand has a tendency to produce office and low end equipment that proudly writes cheques it can't cash off branding! just be aware, cheap psu's are not a good idea.. it's your build but you've been warned it's not all sunshine and roses!

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

I thought CoolerMaster was a good brand...

DAMN YOU PC GAMER!!

a good brand perhaps, but every brand has a tendency to produce office and low end equipment that proudly writes cheques it can't cash off branding! just be aware, cheap psu's are not a good idea.. it's your build but you've been warned it's not all sunshine and roses!

I know, I have been bit in the ass once before by skimping on a PSU, I just dont want to spend more than £40 on one, as my budget is tight.

If you know better 500w psus for the same price, that would be great, otherwise, it will be a massive stretch, and I would have to buy a worse component(like a GPU) to compensate.

 

[The Lugz]

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

I thought CoolerMaster was a good brand...

DAMN YOU PC GAMER!!

a good brand perhaps, but every brand has a tendency to produce office and low end equipment that proudly writes cheques it can't cash off branding! just be aware, cheap psu's are not a good idea.. it's your build but you've been warned it's not all sunshine and roses!

I know, I have been bit in the ass once before by skimping on a PSU, I just dont want to spend more than £40 on one, as my budget is tight.

If you know better 500w psus for the same price, that would be great, otherwise, it will be a massive stretch, and I would have to buy a worse component(like a GPU) to compensate.

well, the closest I can find to that is either

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/450w-zalman-psu-zm450-gs-quiet-fan-atx-v23
zalman are a decent brand, but beware this wont support multi gpu if you need to upgrade later

anothert option is:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/430w-corsair-cxm-builder-series-hybrid-modular-85-eff-80-plus-bronze-eps-12v-atx
a better psu with more connectors, but same as above

they should both work decently though.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

Law of computing #1
NEVER skimp on the psu!

I thought CoolerMaster was a good brand...

DAMN YOU PC GAMER!!

a good brand perhaps, but every brand has a tendency to produce office and low end equipment that proudly writes cheques it can't cash off branding! just be aware, cheap psu's are not a good idea.. it's your build but you've been warned it's not all sunshine and roses!

I know, I have been bit in the ass once before by skimping on a PSU, I just dont want to spend more than £40 on one, as my budget is tight.

If you know better 500w psus for the same price, that would be great, otherwise, it will be a massive stretch, and I would have to buy a worse component(like a GPU) to compensate.

well, the closest I can find to that is either

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/450w-zalman-psu-zm450-gs-quiet-fan-atx-v23
zalman are a decent brand, but beware this wont support multi gpu if you need to upgrade later

anothert option is:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/430w-corsair-cxm-builder-series-hybrid-modular-85-eff-80-plus-bronze-eps-12v-atx
a better psu with more connectors, but same as above

they should both work decently though.

Will they really? Not to sound rude, but the newegg psu calc. said that I need abou 457W worth of power.

Also, I only really need the parts to last about two years, afterwards, I will be leaving for Uni, and I will sell whatever rig I have in order to buy a laptop.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

Is it the R290X-thing?

Well, in that case, I guess I should wait(if it's being bundled with BF4, I assume that it will be released soon).

Or the 280/270X, depending on price and benches. I just picked up a 670 from Scan not long ago, Direct CUII model for around £185. I recommend it but my experience with the BF4 beta is it runs much betteron AMD aat the moment. A 7870 chewed up my relatively mighty 670 in that particular challenge.

For the monitor I'd go for something a bit bigger, keep an eye on scans today only section I got a 23.6in ASUS VS247 somethingorother for £120 which was pretty sweet.

Mouse and keys are subjective things, try go into a store and try some out. Your lower budget does somewhat restrain the options for those though. Just grabbed a CM Storm Quickfire TK (brown key switches, white backlight) and not long ago picked up a Corsair Vengeance M65, making for an excellent combo but a fairly pricey one I guess.

Need a new and larger mousemat.

As for BF4, it's because nvidia and AMD are still fighting each other over which games are optmised for their cards: AMD managed to get their hands on BF4 early, so it runs better for their cards(for now, at least, until nvidia updates their drivers and gets the BF ones out of beta)

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

You won't actually need the latest AMD GPU for Mantle, by the way. It will be available on any GCN based card. Which is pretty much the 7000 and 8000 series as well.

 

[The Lugz]

Will they really? Not to sound rude, but the newegg psu calc. said that I need abou 457W worth of power.

Also, I only really need the parts to last about two years, afterwards, I will be leaving for Uni, and I will sell whatever rig I have in order to buy a laptop.

well, there are very few options in that price bracket.. like i say they're all budget components i stick with my original comment but you wanted more options so there are a few i can't really find a quality 500+w psu for that price i don't think it exists

 

[Signa]

I wouldn't be quite so dismissive about a low DPI mouse. I had a Microsoft Explorer for nearly 10 years, and the moment I got a 1080p monitor was the moment it started feeling inadequate. It was a first-gen optical mouse, so the DPI probably was 400 or lower. I had to do so much lifting to get across the screen, and turning up the speed just made it imprecise.

If you're already running 1080p with a low DPI mouse, then nevermind, but it drove me nuts.

the trick with mice is, there simply isn't a high dpi mouse. it's all software.. here francois explains it better:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc7JVjcPzL0

if you're into mice, this is a real eye opener.

Ugh, can you give me a quick summary to your point? I can't understand a word he's saying.

 

[The White Hunter]

If I were you I'd wait to see what AMD has to offer with their latest GPU lineup. I like the prices a lot. And they will definitely have an effect on Nvidia's prices. So whatever you choose, you'll probably pay less or have more money to get a better card if you wait a bit.

Is it the R290X-thing?

Well, in that case, I guess I should wait(if it's being bundled with BF4, I assume that it will be released soon).

Or the 280/270X, depending on price and benches. I just picked up a 670 from Scan not long ago, Direct CUII model for around £185. I recommend it but my experience with the BF4 beta is it runs much betteron AMD aat the moment. A 7870 chewed up my relatively mighty 670 in that particular challenge.

For the monitor I'd go for something a bit bigger, keep an eye on scans today only section I got a 23.6in ASUS VS247 somethingorother for £120 which was pretty sweet.

Mouse and keys are subjective things, try go into a store and try some out. Your lower budget does somewhat restrain the options for those though. Just grabbed a CM Storm Quickfire TK (brown key switches, white backlight) and not long ago picked up a Corsair Vengeance M65, making for an excellent combo but a fairly pricey one I guess.

Need a new and larger mousemat.

As for BF4, it's because nvidia and AMD are still fighting each other over which games are optmised for their cards: AMD managed to get their hands on BF4 early, so it runs better for their cards(for now, at least, until nvidia updates their drivers and gets the BF ones out of beta)

Running the latest Beta release for BF4 from Nvidia on an OC 670 and I'm getting 50~ish fps, sometimes up to 70~ish indoors and sometimes it just tanks to like 5 because why not. And that's on medium, with very low filter settings. Kinda odd, the driver really needs some work. Otherwise the 670 is a very solid card, even manages to run Crysis 3 maxed out at playable fps, except the particularly harrowing intro sequence everyone uses for benchmarks, where I got 25~

Here's a few I took just randomly for the card at the stock OC with a stock 4670K for CPU, everything is maxed out @1920x1080 but some stuff had vsync on (60Hz monitor and screen tearing makes my eyes hurt so vsync it is):

Battlefield 3: Av:59.932 - Min: 54 (vsync on so yeah)

Bioshock Infinite: Avg: 59.647 - Min: 59 (Vsync)

Crysis 3: Avg: 25.551 - Min: 24 - Max: 39 (during the benchmark run at the start, better performance elsewhere, and even this was playable)

Sonic Generations, Unleashed mod, Jungle Joyride: Avg: 58.123 - Min: 33 - Max: 63 (60fps cap, it's surprisingly intensive, a lot of water and foliage has to be done very fast)

Dishonored: Avg: 48 - Min: 0 - Max: 61 (think a loading screen sneaked into my bench)

Call of Duty 4: Avg: 335.742 - Min - 49 (loading I think again) - Max: 459

Borderlands 2: Avg: 83.7 - Min: 81 - Max: 86 (these doubled when I took off Physx)

Far Cry 3: Avg: 30 - Min: 27 - Max: 33, these improved to a solid 50-60fps when I tweaked down the Ambient Occlusion and lowered AA a fraction.

 

[Ravesy]

I know, I have been bit in the ass once before by skimping on a PSU, I just dont want to spend more than £40 on one, as my budget is tight.

If you know better 500w psus for the same price, that would be great, otherwise, it will be a massive stretch, and I would have to buy a worse component(like a GPU) to compensate.

Power supply looks fine to me, Coolermaster are a decent brand and the supply is 85% efficiency. Sure spend more money on one if you want, but you really aren't going to have any issues with your original choice in my opinion. (i must have made 50 computers for myself, work and friends using various versions of that power supply, and have yet to have one fail on me)

I personally use ebuyer for all of my IT stuff, but have used Scan in the past so its probably between those two for personal preference, although it might be worth checking out ebuyer to see if it is cheaper with them.

You might want to spend a little bit more on the keyboard and mouse, as i know they would probably bug me, but again i guess its down to what your used to, if your happy with those then go ahead .

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I know, I have been bit in the ass once before by skimping on a PSU, I just dont want to spend more than £40 on one, as my budget is tight.

If you know better 500w psus for the same price, that would be great, otherwise, it will be a massive stretch, and I would have to buy a worse component(like a GPU) to compensate.

Power supply looks fine to me, Coolermaster are a decent brand and the supply is 85% efficiency. Sure spend more money on one if you want, but you really aren't going to have any issues with your original choice in my opinion. (i must have made 50 computers for myself, work and friends using various versions of that power supply, and have yet to have one fail on me)

I personally use ebuyer for all of my IT stuff, but have used Scan in the past so its probably between those two for personal preference, although it might be worth checking out ebuyer to see if it is cheaper with them.

You might want to spend a little bit more on the keyboard and mouse, as i know they would probably bug me, but again i guess its down to what your used to, if your happy with those then go ahead .

I actually checked out ebuyer, and it's actually quite a good site (the parts I want fit nicely into my budget, but not the 670, nevertheless, a 760 is good).

I would like to know how much delivery would cost, as I do not want to end up paying an extra £50 for it(also, how long it would take to get them to my address(as in, do they use couriers, or is it royal mail? Also if a part has "free delivery" can it apply to the entire order?))