Paul's PC Parts Ponder...

[Steeps]

Cooler Master 212 series of fans are amazing. Just look at the reviews:

http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemn ... 6835103099

[paul161616]

im getting closer to my final project outlook. what kind of mobo would you guys recommend for the setup i have so far(4670k,Gtx780,2x8GB ram,1hdd, 1ssd,liquid cooling in the future)

Im wondering aswell if 650 watts will be good for this system, even if i want to upgrade some stuff in a year or two?

and I wanted to ask those who have bought their own rig piece by piece online what order is a good guideline to buy my parts in? (ie: what parts go on sale often/have really good deals, parts that are most likely to be outdated soon, stuff like that)

[ShockUnitBlack]

As far as prices go, use PCPartPicker's historical pricing graph (available for every item listed on the site) to figure out whether or not to buy or hold out. It'll tell you whether or not you're getting a good deal.

As far as things getting outdated, AFAIK Intel's Broadwell CPUs aren't supposed to be coming out until late 2014 (at the earliest) and the GeForce 800 series won't be coming out for at least a couple of months.

[Steeps]

This might help on the PSU questions: http://support.asus.com/powersupply.aspx

[paul161616]

took a quick look at all the pricing charts and whipped this up. these prices are all considered good deals based off of the pricing charts. The totals at the bottom are with 12% tax on all pieces (not sure tax applies to everything online) and the altogether price is with $50 shipping. if this is the case i may be bargain hunting for quite a while.

cpu- <240
cooling- <80
mobo- <160
ram- <150
ssd- <100
hdd- ~60-70
gtx780- <520
case- <70
misc accessories- ~50
PSU- <125

total: 1565
+total tax:1752.8
+total shipping:~1802.8

EDIT: thanks for the link steeps, that was really helpful, it suggested a 750W PSU for my build

[LITOralis.nMd]

Amazon price tracker, Amazon price history charts, price watches, and price drop alerts. | camelcamelcamel.com

tracks Amazon.Ca prices

Intel Core i5-4670K | Amazon Product Search | camelcamelcamel.com

gtx 780 | Amazon Product Search | camelcamelcamel.com

etc

[paul161616]

http://products.ncix.com/detail/zotac-g ... 0-1217.htm

I noticed this is one of ncix's new sales i was wondering if anyone know about zotac cards, if they are reliable or not ($50 off i cant help but be suspicious)


http://products.ncix.com/detail/zotac-g ... -91592.htm

This is the AMP! version of the card, apparantly blows all the other 780s out of the water but still... why so much cheaper??

[paul161616]

ive done some more searching, and ive found what seem to be some good deals

PSU:http://products.ncix.com/detail/corsair ... 2-1217.htm

MOBO:http://products.ncix.com/detail/asrock- ... 2-1217.htm

would still like to hear some input on this MOBO, site reviews praise it as much better than the Gigabyte z87 d3h. but in the user reviews BIOS problems seem to be a trend.

[Steeps]

I love my ASUS motherboard, only brand I personally like for them.

[X-Alt]

Here is a rig that will surely make you happy. +1 on ASUS boards, I love my Crosshair V Formula-Z.
The 212 EVO is pretty much the best value for Intel (On AMD, 120mm Water+ or GTFO) and I have assembled a PRish themed build with a 780. Alright, activating salesman mode. For the CPU, I (reluctantly, I prefer the 8320 and 3570K but the former which I use has bad single threaded performance for PR and the latter is going out of stock/EOL) chose the 4670K, which has gr8 single thread performance, which will come useful in PRBF2.. If you want to it to be "PR2 proof", go 8320. Cooler has been explained above. A 840 EVO is a solid boot SSD which should boost PR performance as well and the ASUS Z87-A has everything you need, nothing you don't (Except AI Suite :razz . The Corsair Venegance Pro memory comes with gr8 customer support, matches with your 780 and a lifetime warranty.. The C70 is a rugged, nice looking case for all your needs (subjective alert) and the EVGA 780 is a badass card with great customer support, the sexiest reference cooler known to man and some serious power... The PSU is a XFX 750W unit, based off the trusty Seasonic M12 platform that also powers the Corsair TX750 (up to you which one to go with, I think the XFX looks better for this build). In reality, a good 520W+ unit can power an OCd 4670K and a 780 no problem, 750 is only if you plan to SLI..

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($244.79 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.79 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($105.92 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($108.15 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.75 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($568.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Corsair Vengeance C70 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($110.27 @ DirectCanada)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($103.73 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $1485.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-17 19:01 EST-0500)

[LITOralis.nMd]

I believe X-Alt has found a proper build,
The Asus Z87-A has bettern MOSFETs, and more VRM phases than the Asrock Extreme3 Z87,
reference: Sin's Hardware - VRM List

The motherboard when OC'ed, will last longer, and the OC will be stable longer, extending the lifetime of the build.

[paul161616]

yea well done x-alt, that was pretty helpful. I think i have gotten almost everything figured out. here is a list of parts if i were to buy today.


PCPartPicker part list: Intel Core i5-4670K, Zotac GeForce GTX 780, Antec One - System Build - PCPartPicker Canada
Price breakdown by merchant: Intel Core i5-4670K, Zotac GeForce GTX 780, Antec One - System Build - Price Breakdown By Merchant - PCPartPicker Canada
Benchmarks: Intel Core i5-4670K, Zotac GeForce GTX 780, Antec One - System Build - Benchmarks - PCPartPicker Canada

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($244.79 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($62.93 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($84.99 @ Memory Express)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($108.15 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($63.61 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($529.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($50.87 @ DirectCanada)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($132.73 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $1427.56
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-18 13:27 EST-0500)


I decided to go with the pro-series PSU because its on sale at ncix and with rebate will only be $5 more than the version you suggested. alot of the less important parts are still subject to change, like the ram and hard drives, just want something in those price ranges.

The final question i have is about the case and its compatability with liquid cooling. It doesnt look to be too catered for a radiator, but ive seen some pictures of people just cutting a hole in the back of the case with the rad sticking out. if i have to i will get a rad that sits on the cpu, but id much rather prefer one that sits on one of the fan ports.

Oh I also decided to drop down to 8 GB of ram for financial reasons this build setup with tax and shipping at ncix comes out to $1577! and thats before MIR and price match. needless to say im getting a little antsy

[X-Alt]

H60 is bleh, 212 EVO does the same for less TBH. Here is a matching build with a better case and identical perf.. The 400R case can handle a H100i or H220 style 240mm CLCs, but if you plan to build a full loop, invest in a 750D (like me) and save yourself the pain.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($244.79 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.79 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($96.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($108.15 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.75 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($529.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Memory Express)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($132.73 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $1436.67
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-01-18 14:05 EST-0500)

[paul161616]

thanks again x-alt, reading some reviews now. anyone have other suggestions for a case?

[X-Alt]

thanks again x-alt, reading some reviews now. anyone have other suggestions for a case?

Depends on the budget, HAF922 or 200R is a great budget case, 400R a step above, 500R, Fractal R4 (DAT SILENCE) and 600T is the sweet spot and 750D+ is more "Enthusiast grade"

[paul161616]

i think i will just go with the 400r, $80 is a really good deal for what im getting.
just need to move some money around and i may just buy this today ive never used a mail in rebate before and im curious when and how you are supposed to mail it in/process it. Also if anyone knows of any promo codes or anything else that could shave a couple bucks off that would be awesome

[X-Alt]

i think i will just go with the 400r, $80 is a really good deal for what im getting.
just need to move some money around and i may just buy this today ive never used a mail in rebate before and im curious when and how you are supposed to mail it in/process it. Also if anyone knows of any promo codes or anything else that could shave a couple bucks off that would be awesome

Depends, usually requires sending in a UPC to their processing department and in a few months you get teh money back...

[paul161616]

and by the UPC you mean the one on the box of the product? just cut it out or peel off?

[X-Alt]

and by the UPC you mean the one on the box of the product? just cut it out or peel off?

Yeah, use a knife or a blowdryer to get them off safely.

[LITOralis.nMd]

I have the case prior to the Antec One, (Antec P280). It is a nightmare for a 240mm liquid cooling radiator, only allows for extremely thin (and there for expensive) radiators. I ended up pulling out my custom cooling loop, cutting apart the hdd tray and placing the allinone 240 radiator in the hdd tray area.

Here is a big list of compatibility :
H80 / H80i / H90 / H100 / H100i / H110 Case Compatibility Thread (Page 1 for full listings)

The H100i is the average size of all competing all in one 240mm radiators.