My First Build (2011)

[amrod81]

Hey guys, just wanted to share my first build i did in 2011, nothing special, but i'm pretty happy with the end result :D if you guys could comment and suggest some upgrades and such, it would be awesome! I'm thinking about getting a proper case, like the Corsair Vengeance C 70, and an SSD.

Motherboard: ASUS p8p67 LE

CPU: Intel i5 2320 (stock cooler)

RAM: 8 GB (Kingston 4x 2GB DIMMS 1333 Mhz)

GPU: ASUS GTX 550 Ti TOP

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB (SATA 6 gb/s, 7200 rpm, 32 mb cache)

PSU: NOX NX 620w

What do you think? Today i know a little more about hardware, and i would've done some things differently but i was also on a budget...

Thanks in advance! ;)

[Money]

You picked up nice name brand parts. Maybe consider an SSD!

[TicTac]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

[Johnmini]

Looks good for a first budget build. What i can say for upgrades in the future invest in a good case that you will use for multiple builds, the C70 is good but a mid tower if you ever get into water cooling it won't work to well but if you plan on not OC at any point to water cool so the C 70 is great, The Corsair Obsidian is also a good option.

As for an SSD i suggest making it MLC not TLC i would suggest getting a 120gb or bigger so your OS and key programs don't fill up 90% of the drive, just gives you more leeway for downloading/installing new programs to that drive, read reviews before you get an SSD there can be bad sets or batches made. OCZ had some bad ones they went through a big re management thing though so don't automatically count out there drives if you read bad reviews on older ones of theirs.

[killerx525]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

[amrod81]

You picked up nice name brand parts. Maybe consider an SSD!

That and a decent case will be my next upgrades! Thanks for commenting :)

[amrod81]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

I enabled smartcooling on mine, so i have Slow 'till 60º C, Medium from 61 to 70º, fast from 71 to 75º, and fastest from 75º on...just because the noise of the fan on Medium drives me crazy :p

Thanks for you comment :)

[Money]

You picked up nice name brand parts. Maybe consider an SSD!

Maybe an upgrade to a quad core when you can. :)

[amrod81]

Looks good for a first budget build. What i can say for upgrades in the future invest in a good case that you will use for multiple builds, the C70 is good but a mid tower if you ever get into water cooling it won't work to well but if you plan on not OC at any point to water cool so the C 70 is great, The Corsair Obsidian is also a good option.

As for an SSD i suggest making it MLC not TLC i would suggest getting a 120gb or bigger so your OS and key programs don't fill up 90% of the drive, just gives you more leeway for downloading/installing new programs to that drive, read reviews before you get an SSD there can be bad sets or batches made. OCZ had some bad ones they went through a big re management thing though so don't automatically count out there drives if you read bad reviews on older ones of theirs.

Thanks :) my actual CPU does not allow a great deal of OC, but it does have a Turbo option, and i wonder if i want to use that Turbo, should i get another cooler? (air or water i really don't mind). The C 70 does support a Dual Radiator on Pull (or Push), like an H100i. I know its almost ridicule to buy a H100i considering the CPU i have, but eventually i will upgrade...

On the SSD chapter, i would have to buy a 180 to 240 GB SSD, because i like having games installed, even if i don't play them very often (mostly sports games like PES or Dirt 3). I am aware of those bad OCZ SSD's and i will certainly check out some reviews before commiting, thanks for the head's up :) neverthless, i'm considering this one (http://ark.intel.com/products/67288/Intel-SSD-330-Series-180GB-SATA-6Gbs-25nm-MLC), because it cost only around 120 Euros (160 dollars). What do you think?

Thanks for you comment! :)

[amrod81]

You picked up nice name brand parts. Maybe consider an SSD!

This CPU is Quad Core... :p

[amrod81]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

Yeah, it's (i think) a Spanish brand (http://www.nox-xtreme.com/en/), and they make reasonable products. Not common in North America though i think... the PSU does work nicely...

[amrod81]

Looks good for a first budget build. What i can say for upgrades in the future invest in a good case that you will use for multiple builds, the C70 is good but a mid tower if you ever get into water cooling it won't work to well but if you plan on not OC at any point to water cool so the C 70 is great, The Corsair Obsidian is also a good option.

As for an SSD i suggest making it MLC not TLC i would suggest getting a 120gb or bigger so your OS and key programs don't fill up 90% of the drive, just gives you more leeway for downloading/installing new programs to that drive, read reviews before you get an SSD there can be bad sets or batches made. OCZ had some bad ones they went through a big re management thing though so don't automatically count out there drives if you read bad reviews on older ones of theirs.

Yeah i know what you mean ,it's a shame SSD's are so expensive, but they are awesome! :D As for the cooler, i really don't know...i thought about upgrading to Ivy Bridge, but i reckon that's not a very smart move...not that much to win with that upgrade, 'cause i'd have to upgrade MOBO, CPU...so yeah, i think i'll get a decent air cooler like the Cooler Master Hyper 212, or that Thermaltake Silver Arrow (even though the Thermaltake is way more expensive).

[amrod81]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

Do you overclock the 550 Ti? I don't but only 'cause i do not know a lot about OC'ing, and i'm afraid of ruining de card lol

[TicTac]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

nar the asus one has a OC setting witch is useful

[amrod81]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

Yeah i have the ASUS one but i don't know how to use that (don't know how far can i go and what are the benefits of OC'ing the GPU)...maybe i'll search some guide or whatever to that :)

[TicTac]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

just use gpu tweak and click the gaming mode

[killerx525]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

As long it's reliable and it actually works then it the PSU would be fine.

[amrod81]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

Yeah, it is reliable it is a fine PSU :) They actually are making 80 plus etc PSU's, and have very decent cases and other stuff. It's a brand like, for example, EVGA - i never saw an EVGA product selling here in Portugal :D i know it exists because of reviews etc...

[amrod81]

i got a 550 ti when u get it go on gpu tweak and make the fans go to 40% when at 60c XD

Thanks man, will check it out :)

[killerx525]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

Out of curiosity, what PSU brands are available for you?

[amrod81]

Looks good for a first budget build. What i can say for upgrades in the future invest in a good case that you will use for multiple builds, the C70 is good but a mid tower if you ever get into water cooling it won't work to well but if you plan on not OC at any point to water cool so the C 70 is great, The Corsair Obsidian is also a good option.

As for an SSD i suggest making it MLC not TLC i would suggest getting a 120gb or bigger so your OS and key programs don't fill up 90% of the drive, just gives you more leeway for downloading/installing new programs to that drive, read reviews before you get an SSD there can be bad sets or batches made. OCZ had some bad ones they went through a big re management thing though so don't automatically count out there drives if you read bad reviews on older ones of theirs.

That is very nice indeed, all reviews i watched of the 212 said it was a very good cooler, especially for the price!

[amrod81]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

Mainly Corsair, Cooler Master, Gigabyte, Halfmann, 1Life, NOX and a few others. We can get other brands though, but these are the one's that sell the most. NOX is actually a well renouned brand here, 'cause Portugal is right next to Spain. I just checked a few portuguese websites and i found some EVGA products, so, my bad :p

[killerx525]

Hmm, i have never heard of NOX before.

Hey at least you can buy the world wide known brands which Corsair, Coolermaster and Gigabyte :)

[ZipZip]

What games do you play and what FPS have you been getting?

[killerx525]

@Zipzip, Techpowerup did a review on the OP's card, it should give you a impression of the card's performances.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_550_Ti_Direct_Cu/1.html