First PC Build Advice

JohnWilson · January 2, 2015

Hey guys!

I'm new to this forum so I hope I'm following the proper procedure with writing new posts! I'm pretty excited to become part of this community.

As mentioned in my title, I am currently trying to make my first custom PC and I would really appreciate some advice from the community who would know a lot more about making PC's than me! I've been researching on parts and I've come up with my first draft of my build. I have a couple of questions about the build, but first I'll list the parts I'm thinking of. I am planning to make this PC a reality in the next month or so. The main purpose of this build will be gaming as well as some occasional programming that I will need to do.

Parts List

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=187_1490&products_id=27549

The reason I have chosen this CPU is because I have read that getting an i7 will not have much of an effect on the gaming performance as the CPU is usually not the bottleneck in gaming PC's. I have chosen this over the 4690 as I read that there is not much of a performance difference between the two for gaming and since I don't plan to overlock, there was no need for a k series. I chose this over the 4460 because the difference in price seemed worth it.

Motherboard: ASRock H97M Pro4

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=138_1491&products_id=27569

I have gone with this board because I am looking to build a compact powerful computer and I read that a mATX build was ideal for this situation. I chose this board based on a couple of good reviews and recommendations. Once again, I chose this board over the Z97 due to the fact I do not plan to overlock in the future.

RAM: G.Skill Sniper 2x4GB 1600

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=23688&cPath=912

Once again, I chose this RAM because of recommendations. The difference in price between these and the Ares was small, so I decided to just get the Sniper. I plan to upgrade this to 16GB in the future if my rig ends up needing more RAM. However, I read that 8GB is plenty for gaming. The case I have chosen is also tight for space, and I have measured that this RAM will fit in the case

SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB (Already using in Laptop)

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=19554&cPath=344

This was just the cheapest HDD I could find from a reliable brand. I plan to add more drives to my case later as I can fit up to 5 3.5" drives.

GPU: MSI GeForce GTX 970 Gaming 4G

http://www.centrecom.com.au/msi-gtx-970-4gb-gaming-graphics-card

I've decided to go with the GTX 970 because it's a beast of a card from what I've heard. Since I plan to use this in a future build in a couple years time, I decided to splurge a little and get a decent graphics card which will be useable in a few years time. I have gone with MSI because it has a higher speed than the ASUS but lacks the stability of the back plate. It is also quieter than the Gigabyte since that one has 3 fans. Overall, I found this to be the best choice in terms of the GTX 970

Case: Silverstone TJ08-E

http://www.centrecom.com.au/silverstone-black-temjin-series-tj08-e-mid-tower-chassis-usb30

As mentioned previously, the MSI GPU lacks a backplate and is prone to bending. However this case includes a small rubber platform on top of the HDD cage which is intended to help support the graphics card, so I hope that this added support will fix the bending issue with the large graphics card. This is also a Small Form Factor (SFF) case which allows it to be small and not take up much space but still has plenty of room for components, something that I am looking for. This case also positions the PSU at the top of the case instead of the bottom, and since this PC will most likely be resting on carpet, this will prevent the PSU from being suffocated and reduce the dust intake. There are also lots of good reviews for this!

PSU: Silverstone Strider 600W 80+ Silver

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=23149&cPath=535

This PSU was pretty much the cheapest fully modular power supply that I could find with good reviews. It has an 80+ Silver rating which comes in handy. I chose a fully modular PSU because as I have opted to go with a small case, the less cables the better!

Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBS

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=23679&cPath=667

Cheap Optical drive just to install OS as well as other things that I may need to burn

Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=25404&cPath=510

Cheap Fan to be mounted at the back. The case comes with a 180mm fan and by adding this fan at the back, I intend to allow air to flow in from the front and out the back. This will create a slight positive pressure reducing the dust which might be important since the case will be on carpet

Questions

1. The big question I have is whether or not all of this parts are compatible. I have built this on Part Picker and there does not seem to be any compatibility issues. However I thought I'd just ask in case something is not covered on that website.

2. Are there any parts which would be better suited to this build? Cheaper parts would be nice as I am slightly over my budget at the moment of (1200 AUD). This build is currently 1371 AUD including shipping without Windows 8

3. Using the online power calculator, I was quoted that this build would use about 350W of power. I was just wondering if the 600W power supply was a little over kill for this build? I do want to use this PSU for a future build, which is why it is slightly high. However will having a larger PSU cause issues to the components? Also, is this brand of PSU reliable?

4. Currently I am purchasing my parts from Centrecom and PCCG as I've seen good reviews from these vendors. I've avoided CPL due to the terrible reviews they have. Do any other Australian builders have recommendations for places to get parts?

5. Finally, what do you think of my build? I have put a lot of thought into this, but as I am new to this, I suspect I may have forgotten to take things into account!

Thanks for any help that any of you can provide. I really appreciate it! If I think of any more questions, I'll add them to the post later.

SEEKER1054 · January 2, 2015

This looks just like the rig that I am planning minus the 970, your build looks pretty solid and will probably serve you well for many years to come. remember that your psu performs optimally when it is using 60-80% of its capacity so unless you have plans to do sli soon i think that 600w might be oh so slightly overkill.