Advice Appreciated - Gaming PC

captaindanwaldo

I’m currently looking at putting together a new rig for gaming, I’ve been quite the regular gamer in the past however over the last few years have failed to maintain my current PC. I’m not up on all the finest details but would greatly appreciate some advice. I have invested in very little at the moment, other than a new ATX case and was hoping that perhaps somebody could advise if I’ve made a suitable MB & Processor choice.

I’ve always been a fan of FPS’s and MMORPG’s. I tend to play during the evenings and as my pc will be situated in my room which is located beside my housemates and above the front room I’m slightly conscious of the noise it will produce.

Case: Deep Silence 1 Anthracite I've started with this

MB: Gigabyte ATX Thunderbolt
&
Processor: intel core i5

Forgive my ignorance but can someone advise me on RAM, am I mistaken in believing that there’s very little advantage to having anything over 4GB, I was always under the conclusion that more RAM is the key to a faster PC?

captaindanwaldo

I should have mentioned this is a project I will be undertaking and devloping over a few weeks so Im not concerned with graphics, psu, hdd etc at the moment. I do however want to ensure that the items Im beginning with are suitable for my needs and will allow me to upgrade at a later stage, if this pc is going to be used for the next number of years I want to ensure its somewhat future proof or at least easy to upgrade.

BloodBath

Those parts are a little pricey. You could save about €100 there ordering parts from amazon. There's no way I'd spend that much on a mainboard when something costing €80-90 will give you the exact same performance and overclocks.

I assume you are planning on overclocking the parts since you are ordering the overclockable versions of the mainboard and processor. If that's the plan I would change your choice of case. It's a good silent choice but not so good for airflow and overclocking. It is possible to have both.

This case for example has better airflow options while maintaining good sound dampening.

8gb of ram is the sweet spot for gaming.

captaindanwaldo

BloodBath wrote: »

Those parts are a little pricey. You could save about €100 there ordering parts from amazon. There's no way I'd spend that much on a mainboard when something costing €80-90 will give you the exact same performance and overclocks.

I assume you are planning on overclocking the parts since you are ordering the overclockable versions of the mainboard and processor. If that's the plan I would change your choice of case. It's a good silent choice but not so good for airflow and overclocking. It is possible to have both.

This case for example has better airflow options while maintaining good sound dampening.

8gb of ram is the sweet spot for gaming.

I hadnt actually noticed that it was the overclocked version, I dont have any experience with overclocking...

BloodBath

It's pretty easy these days. You can get 4.5ghz with a half decent cooler pretty easily with those chips.

If you don't want to overclock you could save another €50 getting the non overclockable versions of the mainboard and processor.

captaindanwaldo

BloodBath wrote: »

It's pretty easy these days. You can get 4.5ghz with a half decent cooler pretty easily with those chips.

If you don't want to overclock you could save another €50 getting the non overclockable versions of the mainboard and processor.

Is the motherboard a good one to start with? With or sithout it being overclocked? Any recommendations?

BloodBath

I'd go for an Asrock pro 3 or 4 for single gpu or Asrock extreme 3 or 4 for dual gpu.

Gumbi

BloodBath wrote: »

I'd go for an Asrock pro 3 or 4 for single gpu or Asrock extreme 3 or 4 for dual gpu.

What does the pro4 offer over a pro3? My pro3 recently failed (I think - quite randomly too) and in wondering if the pro4 might be worth the extra few quid (that is, if I can actually do that and give HWVS more money to replace my Pro3 with a Pro4).

BloodBath

Just 2 additional satas, 2 usbs and a dvi connection for the cpu graphics.

captaindanwaldo

This?
http://www.dabs.ie/products/asus-maximus-v-gene-s1155-intel-z77-ddr3-matx-80TX.html?refs=469740000-50626&src=3

or This?
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4153#ov

With Core i5 3750K, not planning on ocing but would appreciate the opportunity. Is the Asus Gene a good Mobo, theres a lot of positive recommendations out there...

Deano12345

Both boards would push a 3570K fine on conventional cooling. The Gene is a good board, but the UD3H is probably better if you ever think you might get a second GPU, since the Gene is only an m-ATX board, the spacing isn't ideal.

tuxy

Do you need the extra features on the motherboards you linked to to make it worth spending an extra €80 over the Asrock Z77 pro 3/4 ?
If you don't know what the features are then you don't need them and will get the same performance from a cheaper board.

Serephucus

I'd personally go for the DS1 over the R4. Main reason being that it's got much better water cooling support. If you're looking for a really quiet rig it's definitely the way to go. A Swiftech H220, a GPU block, and you're sorted.

I'm also not sure where Bloodbath is getting his figures from, but the DS1 beaats the R4 in most cases when talking air cooling as well.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6479/nanoxia-deep-silence-1-case-review-you-asked-for-it-you-got-it/6

BloodBath

I'm also not sure where Bloodbath is getting his figures from, but the DS1 beaats the R4 in most cases when talking air cooling as well.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cases/2012/12/14/nanoxia-deep-silence-1-review/3

Reviews are mixed on which is better. You can't really go wrong with either.

Serephucus

Point taken. Even with that review though, if you take the minimum speed of both (and ventilated in the case of the DS1, as that equates best to the R4) we're only talking a 1° CPU difference, and 3° GPU difference. When you add in all the extra water cooling support (and the better looks, though this is subjective) I'd have to go with the DS1. That said, they are both excellent cases.

BloodBath

Well he never mentioned water cooling. I was basing it on air. Decent custom loops are gonna be at least €300.

I do like the way the bays swap around in the nanoxia though for a front dual 120/140 rad. If you are going water cooling it's probably the case to go for.

Serephucus

I admit, it might be outside the scope of his rig, but given that he's interested in a quiet rig (not for his own benefit, but who knows, he might get interested down the line) and given that it performs close to one of the best air cooling cases out there, I figured, why not hae the option? etc.

And actually, if he added a GPU block to a H220, it would be closer to €200. Still well above the price of decent air cooling though.

BloodBath

I didn't know you could add gpu blocks to closed loop coolers. The H220 looks pretty good. Still gonna be close to €300 if you go with 2 rads though.

captaindanwaldo

I'm going for the Asus Maximus V Genie, does anyone have any recommendations as to which RAM would be preferable? Perhaps http://www.scan.co.uk/products/8gb-(2x4gb)-corsair-ddr3-dominator-platinum-pc3-12800-(1600)-non-ecc-unbuffered-cas-8-8-8-24-dhx-xmp

Serephucus

Um, that's a bad buy for a few reasons.

1) It's meant as an extreme overclocking board, and since you're not even sure if you're going to be overclocking, that's a lot of wasted money.
2) It's an mATX board, which is meant for much smaller cases, and means you don't have as much expansion options as with a full size board.

This would be a much better option, and gives you the same feature set:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asrock-z77-extreme-4-intel-z77-s-1155-ddr3-sata-iii-6gb-s-sata-raid-pcie-30-(x16)-d-sub-dvi-d-hdmi-a

Also, that RAM is only worth if it you're going for looks, and since neither the R4 nor the DS1 even have a window, I don't see the point.

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/8gb-(2x4gb)-corsair-ddr3-vengeance-low-profile-jet-black-pc3-12800-(1600mhz)-non-ecc-unbuffered-cas-

Edit: You don't have to use two rads for a 3570+680 type setup. Usually a 240 rad is enough with decent fans. (Yeah, I know, I'm one to talk)

BloodBath

Why do you want to spend so much on the parts that will have the least impact on your performance?

You could spend half as much and get the exact same gaming performance.

captaindanwaldo

BloodBath wrote: »

Why do you want to spend so much on the parts that will have the least impact on your performance?

You could spend half as much and get the exact same gaming performance.

I incorrectly associate price with quality, its a bad habit. Im also newish to all this and dont know any better. I am taking all the recommendations on here into consideration and I appricate the recommendations that provide the same features for a fraction of the price.

tuxy

captaindanwaldo wrote: »

I incorrectly associate price with quality, its a bad habit.

Well it's not completely incorrect. If you spend more on the graphics card you should get better frame rates. But with some parts like motherboard you can end up paying lots for features you will never use.

Serephucus

Do us a favour OP and copy/paste the questions from the post here. It'll give us a better idea of what you're looking for.

captaindanwaldo

1. What is your budget? Im not 100 sure, in and around the €1000 mark.

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Gaming (FPS & MMORPGs), Photoshop, 3D Modelling, Entertainment, Media

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? Yes

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? Nanoxia Deep Silence, ASROCK Z77 Extreme 4, Cosair 600W Builders Edition PSU

5. Do you need a monitor? No but I am considering upgrading

5a. If yes, what size do you need. 22' - 24'

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? Max Res

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? No

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? Yes

8. How can you pay? Credit Card

9. When are you purchasing? As I go, as you can see from above I have already purchased some of the items that were recommended here.

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? Dublin City