Thoughts on this Build

[Edan S.]

Good day fellow PC enthusiasts! I'm trying to build an "okay" gaming pc on a budget. Is this a good build for gaming on Medium settings at 1080p?

 

Chassis: Fractal Design Arc Mini R2

Processor: Intel Pentium G3258 Anniversary Edition

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-H97M-Gaming 3

Video Card: Powercolor HD7850 2GB GDDR5 256Bit

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB kit (4x2) CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9

HDD: WD Blue 500GB (I have tons of files so I opted for this instead of a SSD)

PSU: FSP Aurum CM 550W 80 Plus Gold

Optical Drive: ASUS 24D3ST BLACK 24X SATA (For OS installation)

 

All in all they cost around Php26,159 or $595-605

 

I have a few questions to add:

1.) Is the PSU an overkill or not? My VGA indicates that the minimum system power requirement should be 500W so I opted for the FSP Aurum

2.) Can I overclock the Mobo of my choice? The latest BIOS update has a description "Improve Intel K-sku CPU performance".

3.) I have three options in picking a after market CPU cooler:

       > Cooler Master Hyper 212X

       > Noctua NH-L12 Low Profile Cooler

        > Noctua NH-U14S

 

 

These are the websites where I look for components:

www.dynaquestpc.com

pcx.com.ph

pcworx.ph 

 

Sorry if this was a long one. I just don't want to waste my money on buying components that might disappoint my expectations. Thanks!

[Titania_WD]

Hi there Edan S.,

 

This build looks fine for the budget. The parts are compatible and I don't think the PSU is an overkill. Over time PSUs degrade slightly in terms of the amount of power they can deliver, so I think you'll be future-proofing. The WD Blue drives are pretty reliable and the one you've mentioned should be great for medium-settings-gaming. You might however also take a look at the WD Black line (http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=760). Due to its performance it is the one recommended for gaming.

This mobo is not suitable for overclocking. If you take a look at the site of Gigabyte, you can check the overclocking series – x99, z97, z87, x58.

The most reviews that I've came across indicate that Cooler Master Hyper 212X has a better price/performance ratio. However, Noctua NH-U12S might be quieter and a better performer, but it's up to you to decide which one is the better deal where you're buying.

Hope this helps,

Titania_WD

[Edan S.]

Get an SSD and buy a storage drive later, the price difference between 500GB and 2TB is really small these days.

 

is a 120gb capacity SSD okay? the Kingston 120GB SSDNOW is the cheapest followed by the Plextor M6S.

[Edan S.]

the PSU is somewhat overkill since you probably won't use up to 400 watts. the CX430 is fine

 

everything looks good. I think the CM hyper 212 is good enough for OC'ing the pentium and it will save you some money. 

ONOTech as in that guy from Youtube who made a video about why AMD is better than Intel? OMG! Thanks for suggesting the CPU cooler! and dude. I'm waiting for "why Intel is better than AMD" video hahaha 

[Joshua Ondangan]

Good day fellow PC enthusiasts! I'm trying to build an "okay" gaming pc on a budget. Is this a good build for gaming on Medium settings at 1080p?

 

Chassis: Fractal Design Arc Mini R2

Processor: Intel Pentium G3258 Anniversary Edition

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-H97M-Gaming 3

Video Card: Powercolor HD7850 2GB GDDR5 256Bit

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB kit (4x2) CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9

HDD: WD Blue 500GB (I have tons of files so I opted for this instead of a SSD)

PSU: FSP Aurum CM 550W 80 Plus Gold

Optical Drive: ASUS 24D3ST BLACK 24X SATA (For OS installation)

 

All in all they cost around Php26,159 or $595-605

 

I have a few questions to add:

1.) Is the PSU an overkill or not? My VGA indicates that the minimum system power requirement should be 500W so I opted for the FSP Aurum

2.) Can I overclock the Mobo of my choice? The latest BIOS update has a description "Improve Intel K-sku CPU performance".

3.) I have three options in picking a after market CPU cooler:

       > Cooler Master Hyper 212X

       > Noctua NH-L12 Low Profile Cooler

        > Noctua NH-U14S

 

 

These are the websites where I look for components:

www.dynaquestpc.com

pcx.com.ph

pcworx.ph 

 

Sorry if this was a long one. I just don't want to waste my money on buying components that might disappoint my expectations. Thanks!

128gb ssd right now would suffice and buy a 1tb seagate or wdcaviar blue later.

 

the psu is fine. I'd take it over any corsair cx psu.

 

I'm liking the fsp aurum series a lot.

 

edit: I advise on just buying on dynaquest. they are more reliable than the other 2.

 

pretty much top 3 shops that I recommend are, pcnetmiles/dynaquest/pchub (pchub the least due to them being more expensive and more hassle for delivery)

[Recon97]

is a 120gb capacity SSD okay? the Kingston 120GB SSDNOW is the cheapest followed by the Plextor M6S.

Don`t buy SSD until you get more money.Using SSD as your primary storage is not recommended,at least from me.

[Edan S.]

"The parts are compatible and I don't think the PSU is an overkill. Over time PSUs degrade slightly in terms of the amount of power they can deliver, so I think you'll be future-proofing". 

"This mobo is not suitable for overclocking. If you take a look at the site of Gigabyte, you can check the overclocking series – x99, z97, z87, x58".

 

The most reviews that I've came across indicate that Cooler Master Hyper 212X has a better price/performance ratio. However, Noctua NH-U12S might be quieter and a better performer, but it's up to you to decide which one is the better deal where you're buying.

Hope this helps,

Titania_WD

Actually the main reason why I decided to get that PSU is because I saw the details of my VGA it said that the minimum system power requirement should be 500W so I opted for that

 

So all gigabyte non Z boards can't overclock the G3258? Bummer. Cheap Z boards are hard to find here in our country that's why I'm looking for a mATX non Z board that can OC the G3258 so that I don't dish out more money in building my pc, might as well get an Asus mobo instead 

 

Is the CM Hyper 212X too loud for a CPU cooler compared to the Noctua?  

 

[Edan S.]

128gb ssd right now would suffice and buy a 1tb seagate or wdcaviar blue later.

 

the psu is fine. I'd take it over any corsair cx psu.

 

I'm liking the fsp aurum series a lot.

 

edit: I advise on just buying on dynaquest. they are more reliable than the other 2.

 

pretty much top 3 shops that I recommend are, pcnetmiles/dynaquest/pchub (pchub the least due to them being more expensive and more hassle for delivery)

 

Thanks for suggesting the shops fellow kababayan! Nakabili ka na ba sa dynaquest? Concerned lang ako kasi baka out of stock mga components nila. Halos lahat pa naman nung nasa build ko mangagaling sa dynaquest haha

[Joshua Ondangan]

Thanks for suggesting the shops fellow kababayan! Nakabili ka na ba sa dynaquest? Concerned lang ako kasi baka out of stock mga components nila. Halos lahat pa naman nung nasa build ko mangagaling sa dynaquest haha

I don't advise speaking in our local language here friend.

 

and yes. better contact them first.

[Titania_WD]

Actually the main reason why I decided to get that PSU is because I saw the details of my VGA it said that the minimum system power requirement should be 500W so I opted for that

 

So all gigabyte non Z boards can't overclock the G3258? Bummer. Cheap Z boards are hard to find here in our country that's why I'm looking for a mATX non Z board that can OC the G3258 so that I don't dish out more money in building my pc, might as well get an Asus mobo instead 

 

Is the CM Hyper 212X too loud for a CPU cooler compared to the Noctua?  

 

212X is a pretty good bang for buck in my opinion. I wouldn't say it's too loud. You can always adjust the speed of the fans in the BIOS. However, it is generally considered that the Noctua should be quieter. 

[Edan S.]

Thank you guys for your suggestions! I will update this thread once I'm done buying the components

[Edan S.]

Got a bit of a problem. Decided to change my motherboard to an ASUS Vanguard B85. Can I still overclock the pentium g3258 using this mobo? I'm just a bit worried that maybe intel fixed the problem of "hacked" non Z boards