6 replies to this topic

[Joppli]

After much too long a wait, I have finally decided to put a good computer together. I am a first timer, so everything is rather overwhelming.

For the past few days I've been browsing this forum, and various other pc tech forums, trying to put a computer together on paper. I wouldn't normally have made a thread for myself, except for the fact I have a few specific questions I need answered.

Firstly, I'm currently living in the States and getting ready to head back to England. I would like to know if buying my setup here and shipping it over would work. There is a voltage difference, but I have heard something about universal power supply units that work in both countries. Any clarity on the subject would be appreciated, as this could decide whether I buy here or at home.

I don't know much about overclocking at the moment, and I don't wish to mess around with it just yet, however I would like to have the option of doing so if I desired. I understand the items I have picked out so far capable of overclocking. My question is whether or not the capibility to overclock adds to the price of the equipment, and would it be more economical to buy parts that aren't if I'm not certain I want to take advantage of it.

My list is as follows:

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H (or 5H)
CPU: I5 3570K
GPU: EVGA GTX 570 (can't decide between EVGA and Gigabyte)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB
DVD:
PSU:
HHD/SSD:

I would appreciate any help filling in the blanks/evaluating the build I have currently. My criteria is running GW2 as smoothly as possibly on the highest settings. Outside of that, I'm not a very heavy gamer and I mainly stick to RPG/MMORPGs.

The rest is really a matter of compatibility. What determines what kind of case I will need? Do I need to buy a cooling unit? If so, do you reccomend hydro cooling? Is buying a new monitor essential, or can I get by with my old (HP w19b) one until I'm home? And finally, in your opinion, is an SSD worth the money?

This is a rather daunting process, being my first good computer and all, and I appreciate any help you can offer.

Thanks,
Nathan.

Edited by Joppli, 21 November 2012 - 05:05 PM.

[Quaker]

You didn't say what your budget is.

Power supply voltage - Power supplies have a standard AC connector which is then connected to the mains with the appropriate cable. If you bought a computer in the US and took it to the UK, you'd simply need to buy the appropriate cable.
Some power supplies have a switch on the rear to select the AC voltage, but many modern supplies auto-detect. Just make sure that the PSU you get specifies that it will work at 110 and 240 volts.

Basic overclocking doesn't add much to the overall cost. It's only if you want to get into extreme oc'ing that you need more expensive parts such as more oc friendly motherboards and fancy liquid coolers. For most people a mid-range mobo with oc features and a CM Hyper 212 cooler will more than suffice.

Mobo: Good choice.
CPU: excellent choice.
GPU: I'd go for a newer GTX-660 or 660 Ti, but w/e
RAM: Be sure to get the RAM in pairs - 2 x 4Gigs - of DDR3-1600 1.5v
DVD: whatever - they're all pretty much the same, and cheap.
PSU: get a good quality PSU such as the Corsair Builder Series. 500watts is all you need. 600watts will give you lots of headroom. 750watts if you plan to SLI two video cards.
SSD: Minimum would be 128Gig for the OS and a few games/apps. 250 Gig is the sweet spot. If funds are tight, drop the SSD all together and add it later if desired.
HDD: 1TB 7200rpm for data storage

CASE: whatever floats your boat. You can get some monstrous case that sits on the floor, or a desktop mid-tower, or some form of small case such as the Silverstone PS07. The Cooler Master HAF series is a common choice.
You might want to avoid really cheap cases, especially those with lots of LEDs and crappy fans. (Because they put money into LEDs and other gewgaws rather than good materials.)

Cooling - the case should come with enough fans, but you may want to investigate options once you've chosen a case.
For the CPU, I'd recommend a basic CM Hyper 212 EVO. That will handle anything below an extreme overclock - and you don't want to go for extreme oc unless you like the thought of baby-sitting a system that wants to go unstable if you don't look after it.

Edited by Quaker, 22 November 2012 - 04:19 PM.

[dhatcher1]

The two cases I recommend looking at right now are the Coolermaster HAF 912 and the Antec 1100.  The Antec 1100 could use an extra front fan.  And NEVER put it on the floor or it will need dusting out far too often.


PSU:  Seasonic, Antec (non-BP), XFX, Corsair, Rosewill (Green or HIVE) are all good quality brands.  Find a good price in the 520-650W range, one of them is almost always on sale.

[Joppli]

Thank you both for your fast and detailed replies. You answered the questions I needed answered. I'll do some more research with the information you've given me, but now I feel close to making a purchase.

Thanks, Quaker, on the graphics card tip. That could save some extra bucks.

As for the case, Newegg are just knocked $50 off the Antec Twelve Hundred V3, so I'll take your suggestions and do a bit of research.

Thanks once again, this has been a tremendous help.

[Zerk2012]

Joppli, on 21 November 2012 - 06:25 AM, said:

After much too long a wait, I have finally decided to put a good computer together. I am a first timer, so everything is rather overwhelming.

For the past few days I've been browsing this forum, and various other pc tech forums, trying to put a computer together on paper. I wouldn't normally have made a thread for myself, except for the fact I have a few specific questions I need answered.

Firstly, I'm currently living in the States and getting ready to head back to England. I would like to know if buying my setup here and shipping it over would work. There is a voltage difference, but I have heard something about universal power supply units that work in both countries. Any clarity on the subject would be appreciated, as this could decide whether I buy here or at home.

I don't know much about overclocking at the moment, and I don't wish to mess around with it just yet, however I would like to have the option of doing so if I desired. I understand the items I have picked out so far capable of overclocking. My question is whether or not the capibility to overclock adds to the price of the equipment, and would it be more economical to buy parts that aren't if I'm not certain I want to take advantage of it.

My list is as follows:

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H (or 5H)
CPU: I5 3570K
GPU: EVGA GTX 570 (can't decide between EVGA and Gigabyte)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB
DVD:
PSU:
HHD/SSD:

I would appreciate any help filling in the blanks/evaluating the build I have currently. My criteria is running GW2 as smoothly as possibly on the highest settings. Outside of that, I'm not a very heavy gamer and I mainly stick to RPG/MMORPGs.

The rest is really a matter of compatibility. What determines what kind of case I will need? Do I need to buy a cooling unit? If so, do you reccomend hydro cooling? Is buying a new monitor essential, or can I get by with my old (HP w19b) one until I'm home? And finally, in your opinion, is an SSD worth the money?

This is a rather daunting process, being my first good computer and all, and I appreciate any help you can offer.

Thanks,
Nathan.

If your not going to in the future run 2 video card wich with this one their will be no need it's perrty much a no brainer. Some overkill on the PSU but never skimp their.
http://pcpartpicker....parts/partlist/
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812123282
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16835100007

[dhatcher1]

Joppli, on 21 November 2012 - 10:54 PM, said:

As for the case, Newegg are just knocked $50 off the Antec Twelve Hundred V3, so I'll take your suggestions and do a bit of research.

The Antec 1100 is a brand new case design released this year.  Its the easiest case I've ever worked with as far as installing and cable routing.  Everything is coated and grommeted, I was pretty impressed.  I have only handled a 1200 v1 so I dont know how much the v3 has been updated for ease of install and such.


Right now newegg has the 128GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD on black friday sale for $80!!!  It definitely makes loading between zones faster and makes swapping applications and bootup times faster.

Edited by dhatcher1, 22 November 2012 - 12:37 AM.

[Joppli]

dhatcher1, on 22 November 2012 - 12:35 AM, said:

Right now newegg has the 128GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD on black friday sale for $80!!!  It definitely makes loading between zones faster and makes swapping applications and bootup times faster.

Thank you very much. I would have completely missed that.