Hello guys,
I have put together some components for a friend. He already has a HDD, monitor and a Windows copy.
My friend is going to play LoL, SC2 and D3. In the future he wish to be able to play BF3 and newer games with the same computer.
Here's my list:
CASE: Fractal Design Define R4
PSU: Fractal Design Tesla R2 500W 80+ Gold
MOBO: ASRock Z77 Pro4
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570K 3,4Ghz
CPU-FAN: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
SSD: Samsung SSD Basic 830-Series 128GB
GPU: Gigabyte Radeon HD7950 3072MB Windforce SOC
RAM: Corsair 8GB (2x4096MB) CL9 1600Mhz VENGEANCE LP
Budget is rather strict. What do you guys think? Would this be a solid computer?
Best regards
Gaming PC for a friend
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Re: Gaming PC for a friend
Is silence a big aim here or not?
Case: if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Any reasons for the R4 in particular over something cheaper?
PSU: The prices I have seen for the Fractal Design Tesla are quite high, again if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Perhaps consider the Seasonic G450 instead?
Motherboard: If budget is tight then a uATX board may save a small amount (plus maybe allow a smaller, cheaper case?) and don't be afraid of going for something other than a Z77. Are all of the features of the Z77 really a requirement?
CPU: Is it going to be overclocked heavily? If not, you don't need the K version.
CPU cooler: Is silence important? If so, the Coolermaster stock fan has received bad feedback here before. Is anything else available to you for a similar price?
SSD: What will the SSD be used for? If it is just for a system drive and only 1 OS is to be installed then will a 64Gb do? SSDs will continue to get cheaper, faster and more reliable so futureproofing does not apply.
GPU: This won't be silent out of the box but that depends if silence is a key aim here or not.
RAM: I'm not convinced by massive spiky heatspeaders. Heaspreaders themselves have a purpose beyond basic thermals but adding giant metal teeth just seems like it's more for visual impact rather than performance, plus it will make working in the system more difficult and may compromise other component layout. If they really were that vital to the design of RAM, all server RAM would have them. There's a certain amount of marketing going on here and just dropping down to RAM with basic heatspeaders will be better value.
Case: if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Any reasons for the R4 in particular over something cheaper?
PSU: The prices I have seen for the Fractal Design Tesla are quite high, again if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Perhaps consider the Seasonic G450 instead?
Motherboard: If budget is tight then a uATX board may save a small amount (plus maybe allow a smaller, cheaper case?) and don't be afraid of going for something other than a Z77. Are all of the features of the Z77 really a requirement?
CPU: Is it going to be overclocked heavily? If not, you don't need the K version.
CPU cooler: Is silence important? If so, the Coolermaster stock fan has received bad feedback here before. Is anything else available to you for a similar price?
SSD: What will the SSD be used for? If it is just for a system drive and only 1 OS is to be installed then will a 64Gb do? SSDs will continue to get cheaper, faster and more reliable so futureproofing does not apply.
GPU: This won't be silent out of the box but that depends if silence is a key aim here or not.
RAM: I'm not convinced by massive spiky heatspeaders. Heaspreaders themselves have a purpose beyond basic thermals but adding giant metal teeth just seems like it's more for visual impact rather than performance, plus it will make working in the system more difficult and may compromise other component layout. If they really were that vital to the design of RAM, all server RAM would have them. There's a certain amount of marketing going on here and just dropping down to RAM with basic heatspeaders will be better value.
Re: Gaming PC for a friend
Thanks for your reply!
We live in Sweden so Fractal Design seems pretty price worthy!Case: if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Any reasons for the R4 in particular over something cheaper?
PSU: The prices I have seen for the Fractal Design Tesla are quite high, again if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Perhaps consider the Seasonic G450 instead?
Perhaps MSI B75A-G41 B75 ATX would do the job? It's much cheaper than the ASRock one I posted previously. or a MSI Z77A-G41 ATX?Motherboard: If budget is tight then a uATX board may save a small amount (plus maybe allow a smaller, cheaper case?) and don't be afraid of going for something other than a Z77. Are all of the features of the Z77 really a requirement?
Do you think I should pick Intel Core i5 3450 3,1Ghz instead?CPU: Is it going to be overclocked heavily? If not, you don't need the K version.
Silent system is something that is nice but not totally necessary. Perhaps I should go with a Scythe Mugen III Rev.B instead? or Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro rev. 2 (much cheaper)?CPU cooler: Is silence important? If so, the Coolermaster stock fan has received bad feedback here before. Is anything else available to you for a similar price?
We're happy with a 128gb. Will put Windows, a few programs and a game or two on it.SSD: What will the SSD be used for? If it is just for a system drive and only 1 OS is to be installed then will a 64Gb do? SSDs will continue to get cheaper, faster and more reliable so futureproofing does not apply.
I really can't find any ones that seems more price worthy than the ones I posted. Plus they are LP, low profile. http://www.inet.se/produkt/5315124/cors ... nce-lp-blaRAM: I'm not convinced by massive spiky heatspeaders. Heaspreaders themselves have a purpose beyond basic thermals but adding giant metal teeth just seems like it's more for visual impact rather than performance, plus it will make working in the system more difficult and may compromise other component layout. If they really were that vital to the design of RAM, all server RAM would have them. There's a certain amount of marketing going on here and just dropping down to RAM with basic heatspeaders will be better value.
Re: Gaming PC for a friend
Or maybe the Antec EA-450 Platinum 450 for better efficiency?Swedrive wrote:Case: if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Any reasons for the R4 in particular over something cheaper?
PSU: The prices I have seen for the Fractal Design Tesla are quite high, again if the budget is tight, this is a big expense. Perhaps consider the Seasonic G450 instead?
Re: Gaming PC for a friend
Blizzard's games scale with CPU speed and don't need as much GPU. So, keep the CPU speed, just don't get the K version if you don't plan to overclock.
What's the monitor resolution? Does your friend like to play with AA/AF/Tesselation, etc turned up to max/high/medium?
That'll determine whether you need a $300 gpu or something else.
What's the monitor resolution? Does your friend like to play with AA/AF/Tesselation, etc turned up to max/high/medium?
That'll determine whether you need a $300 gpu or something else.
Re: Gaming PC for a friend
The Tesla PSU hasn't been tested at SPCR so don't be too sure that it's quiet.
The are other LGA 1155 chipsets. Motherboards with some of these might be cheaper (take a look at the H77 for example). If you don't need to overclock, don't need to use Intel SRT, and don't need to run more than two GPU's at the same time then you don't need the Z77 chipset.
You could save some money by going with a mATX case. I'm sure your friend would want the smallest case possible. A Fractal Design Define Mini perhaps?
As edh mentions, the Gigabyte GPU might not be quiet enough. But you can always buy an aftermarket GPU cooler.
Apart from these minor thoughts, the components look very good.
The are other LGA 1155 chipsets. Motherboards with some of these might be cheaper (take a look at the H77 for example). If you don't need to overclock, don't need to use Intel SRT, and don't need to run more than two GPU's at the same time then you don't need the Z77 chipset.
From the looks of it, the EVO uses a new fan compared to the Hyper 212+ fan that had bad acoustics. This fan looked very similar to the stock fans in the Cooler Master Sileo 500 which also makde some ticking noises. So perhaps the bad reputation was caused by fans with this appearance. I'd give the new EVO fan a chance and if it turns out bad, then the EVO is so cheap that you can definitely afford another fan. But at 600 rpm (minimum fan speed) I don't think your non-SPCR friend will be able to notice it.edh wrote: CPU cooler: Is silence important? If so, the Coolermaster stock fan has received bad feedback here before. Is anything else available to you for a similar price?
You could save some money by going with a mATX case. I'm sure your friend would want the smallest case possible. A Fractal Design Define Mini perhaps?
As edh mentions, the Gigabyte GPU might not be quiet enough. But you can always buy an aftermarket GPU cooler.
Apart from these minor thoughts, the components look very good.