Planing a Future Build $800

Stevemario · May 12, 2014

isn't a gtx 750 better than a radeon 5850? cuz thats what I use and I get by fine. then again I don't play all the games people play at release and then never go back to. I mostly just dota these days.

May 12, 2014

Check review for the corsair CX...it's aweful! Chinese made capacitors, poor design, bad quality components, it's much worse than the EVGA unit i picked, much worst.

You're looking at the CX500 v1. That is an awful design.

Right now you can either choose between the CX500 (v2) or the CX500M, both of which are improved. Teapo capacitors aren't the end of the world; they're for sure lower than Chemicon / Rubycon / Panasonic but they'll get the job done fine. It's an 80+ Bronze design. You won't find loads of Chemicons and DC-DC; it's only a Bronze design.

That's why I suggested the TS550. It's based on an old Seasonic S12II design, but the S12II was and still is amazing, uses all Japanese caps.

If I had $800 to spend I would definitely save a bit on the GPU to buff up my PSU to a Seasonic G Series, Rosewill Capstone, Antec Truepower Classic, or Be Quiet Power Zone / Dark Power Pro. A weaker GPU to play at slightly reduced fps until you can upgrade, but a much stronger PSU to at least offer much better protection to your entire system.

May 12, 2014

isn't a gtx 750 better than a radeon 5850? cuz thats what I use and I get by fine. then again I don't play all the games people play at release and then never go back to. I mostly just dota these days.

I dunno. Probably not, but I wouldn't be surprised if it is by a little bit. My GT 640 GDDR5 OC'ed to GTX 650 clockspeeds still falls a bit short of the HD 5770.

The HD 5850 is also 3 generations old...at LEAST go by a R7 260X or GTX 750 Ti. Heck, you can find GTX 660s on sale for about the same as a GTX 750 Ti.

Stevemario · May 12, 2014

games are running great on not-the-most-expensive hardware these days. especially with indie growing. I would +1 to get a 750 ti. card is sexy.

May 12, 2014

games are running great on not-the-most-expensive hardware these days. especially with indie growing. I would +1 to get a 750 ti. card is sexy.

Efficient? Definitely. Affordable? Debatable.

Sexy? I think you're mistaken. Are you referring to the EVGA GTX 750 Ti ACX cooler? Because that looks nice but is kinda loud.

This is a 750 Ti (reference).

It is not a 780 Ti (reference).

Stevemario · May 12, 2014

power efficiency is sexy to me. Im thinking when these maxwell cards come out Imma get a 860.

i_build_nanosuits · May 12, 2014

isn't a gtx 750 better than a radeon 5850? cuz thats what I use and I get by fine. then again I don't play all the games people play at release and then never go back to. I mostly just dota these days.

these are all very low end GPU and they are not even meant for playing at 1080p...for 1080p 60FPS in most games on high/ultra settings you are looking at least

a GTX 760 or a radeon r9 280 (wich is about twice as fast as a 750ti BTW)

You could get away with a r9 270x or a GTX 660 if you are willing to turn some settings to medium...

Look, even a GTX 780 (wich is at least 4 times faster than a GTX 750ti) won't max out MANY games at 1080p (crysis 3, metro last light)...

i_build_nanosuits · May 12, 2014

You're looking at the CX500 v1. That is an awful design.

Right now you can either choose between the CX500 (v2) or the CX500M, both of which are improved. Teapo capacitors aren't the end of the world; they're for sure lower than Chemicon / Rubycon / Panasonic but they'll get the job done fine. It's an 80+ Bronze design. You won't find loads of Chemicons and DC-DC; it's only a Bronze design.

That's why I suggested the TS550. It's based on an old Seasonic S12II design, but the S12II was and still is amazing, uses all Japanese caps.

If I had $800 to spend I would definitely save a bit on the GPU to buff up my PSU to a Seasonic G Series, Rosewill Capstone, Antec Truepower Classic, or Be Quiet Power Zone / Dark Power Pro. A weaker GPU to play at slightly reduced fps until you can upgrade, but a much stronger PSU to at least offer much better protection to your entire system.

I agree with all that, both the CX and EVGA are in the lowest passable unit, the OP might save a few bucks but spending 60 or 70 on a good seasonic or rosewill 500w unit is a good idea, i won't argue that one bit.

averydayer · May 14, 2014

what about this build?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3JCQX

i_build_nanosuits · May 14, 2014

what about this build?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3JCQX

Upgrade the CPU to the newer piledriver architecture FX-4300, it is really well worth the extra 10$ or so mate...really.

You could check reviews of piledriver Vs bulldozer if you don't trust me but the new architecture is a good 15% faster in most situation and also consumes less energy and output less heat,

all things that are important in a micro ATX build...and it will also perform better and overclock better.

And also you will not overclock very much on a micro atx board so the corsair H60 is not necessary, but if it is for the look, or for more silent operation it can be justified...

other than that it's really nice !

May 14, 2014

Upgrade the CPU to the newer piledriver architecture FX-4300, it is really well worth the extra 10$ or so mate...really.

You could check reviews of piledriver Vs bulldozer if you don't trust me but the new architecture is a good 15% faster in most situation and also consumes less energy and output less heat,

all things that are important in a micro ATX build...and it will also perform better and overclock better.

And also you will not overclock very much on a micro atx board so the corsair H60 is not necessary, but if it is for the look, or for more silent operation it can be justified...

other than that it's really nice !

@averydayer why the cheap mATX board? AM3+ mATX boards are known for their bad overclockability / feature set. They're also terribly outdated in terms of chipsets.

Please no Bulldozer CPUs PLEASE NO. Get a FX 4300 AT THE VERY LEAST.

And yeah, go with a good air cooler if you really need cooling, you don't need an AIO. Hyper 212 EVO all day.

averydayer · May 18, 2014

@averydayer why the cheap mATX board? AM3+ mATX boards are known for their bad overclockability / feature set. They're also terribly outdated in terms of chipsets.

Please no Bulldozer CPUs PLEASE NO. Get a FX 4300 AT THE VERY LEAST.

And yeah, go with a good air cooler if you really need cooling, you don't need an AIO. Hyper 212 EVO all day.

what motherboard should i go for then? also i changed up the build a little

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3M5VI

May 18, 2014

what motherboard should i go for then? also i changed up the build a little

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3M5VI

Check the compatibility notes at the bottom, you have some issues in that build.

1. I don't know where you got the idea that the FX 4300 is a FM2+ processor. No it's not. All FX processors are AM3+. Hence my suggestion to either get a good ATX motherboard and go AM3+, or get a X4 760K and go mATX/mITX FM2+.

2. Apparently you can't fit a 212 EVO in the Core 1000.

3. If you can you might want to bump it up to 1866 or 2133 only if the price is about $10 or less difference.