Final validation on a freinds build.

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Im building a PC for a freind for around £250, After a long, Long time of changing and discussing Here are the final specs. Now the pricing might not be perfect but Price hunting will be done, And its mainly about the best upgrade path wihtout going too expensive. Its mainly compatibility. Specs:

 

MSI MS-7758 (Supports Ivy/Sandy Bridge + OC)

i5 2500k (Again, Overclock then go to ivy bridge, Then oc) 

ARCTIC Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2  

3gb GTX 580

Corsair Cx550 (Non modular, White label)

9gb ram (2x4gb 1x1gb)

500gb HDD
Random case.

 

Im pretty sure the power supply can handle the 580 after lots of asking and reading, But again final validation.

Thanks.

 

 

 

[openthatchest]

3 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

MSI MS-7758 (Supports Ivy/Sandy Bridge + OC)

i5 2500k (Again, Overclock then go to ivy bridge, Then oc) 

ARCTIC Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2  

3gb GTX 580

Corsair Cx550 (Non modular, White label)

9gb ram (2x4gb 1x1gb)

500gb HDD
Random case.

Interesting specs...

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, openthatchest said:

Interesting specs...

How so? 

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

2 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

How so? 

am prety sure that 1gb stick ram is way out of place and will have a way different cas latency then the 4gb sticks ( pst dont mix ram sticks tbh )

[Streetguru]

10 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

 

I would suggest just living with the iGPU until he can afford an RX 560 or 1050 tier GPU

Wouldn't bother sticking the extra 1GB of RAM in even, it would just mess with your ability to run the RAM at higher speeds.

New parts are almost an option, but all that really gives you is an upgrade path to Raven Ridge APUs.
 

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3d32XH
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3d32XH/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - A8-9600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£55.90 @ More Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£71.24 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws 4 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory  (£73.39 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£37.99 @ Aria PC)
Case: Zalman - T2 Plus MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£23.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: EVGA - 600W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  (£43.99 @ Aria PC)
Total: £306.50
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-17 18:06 BST+0100

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, Valkyrie Lenneth said:

am prety sure that 1gb stick ram is way out of place and will have a way different cas latency then the 4gb sticks ( pst dont mix ram sticks tbh )

If it will cause a problem its ok, See, 1x8gb stick is £22, And a 4gb stick is £10. A 1gb stick is £1 (supposed to say get 2) so why Not? But if 1 stick will help compatibility then I may as well.

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

2 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

If it will cause a problem its ok, See, 1x8gb stick is £22, And a 4gb stick is £10. A 1gb stick is £1 (supposed to say get 2) so why Not? But if 1 stick will help compatibility then I may as well.

ram instability problems can cause huge file corruption, if thats what u wanna risk ( which is HIGHLY possible to happen with a mixup like that ) then go for it

 

dont blame me if ur windows goes corrupt every 2days / 2months or whatever or u lose important files ( can corrupt any file loaded into the ram )

[openthatchest]

4 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

How so? 

RAM stick variety, age of gpu, only 500 gb. instead of ssd.

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, Streetguru said:

I would suggest just living with the iGPU until he can afford an RX 560 or 1050 tier GPU

New parts are almost an option, but all that really gives you is an upgrade path to Raven Ridge APUs.
 

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3d32XH
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/3d32XH/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - A8-9600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£55.90 @ More Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£71.24 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws 4 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory  (£73.39 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£37.99 @ Aria PC)
Case: Zalman - T2 Plus MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (£23.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: EVGA - 600W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  (£43.99 @ Aria PC)
Total: £306.50
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-17 18:06 BST+0100

Thing is, Im trying to get the best upgrade path with this, And as for living with an IGPU, Thats a good point but Surely at the price point of a 1050 You could get a better card used for a similar price, Even more for a 1050ti? Or am I mistaken when saying that.

[openthatchest]

5 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

How so? 

also an ssd's are cheaper than they were, so no point in not going for one

 

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Turns out I wont go with mixed sticks for compatibility ect, The GPU is quite cheap for its performance, And Its his first pc, And he doesnt care about an SSD, Just good frames. He's used to a nearly full 5400 RPM laptop drive too. If anything it'll be the last thing the SSD, Its not really a priority IMO, Even so, We have a VERY VERY tight budget, So Even like the 128gb Toshiba SSD I have cost £40 and was a good deal, Which is a decent chunk of our budget. 

[Streetguru]

9 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

Thing is, Im trying to get the best upgrade path with this, And as for living with an IGPU, Thats a good point but Surely at the price point of a 1050 You could get a better card used for a similar price, Even more for a 1050ti? Or am I mistaken when saying that.

That machine has no upgrade path, only option is a really cheap i7 in the future.

The RX 560/1050 are pretty solid for the money, I have no idea what your used market is like but they're more on the level of a  7950/70 or 780-Lite. Would stick to a 560 in any even, should be able to hit 1400mhz easily on the core.

Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 560 2GB PULSE Video Card  (£95.99 @ Ebuyer)

The i5 isn't bad for 60hz gaming to be sure, but it's a dead and old platform at this point
 

 

[ZeusXI]

8 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

Turns out I wont go with mixed sticks for compatibility ect, The GPU is quite cheap for its performance, And Its his first pc, And he doesnt care about an SSD, Just good frames. He's used to a nearly full 5400 RPM laptop drive too. If anything it'll be the last thing the SSD, Its not really a priority IMO, Even so, We have a VERY VERY tight budget, So Even like the 128gb Toshiba SSD I have cost £40 and was a good deal, Which is a decent chunk of our budget. 

but with the 40$ 128gb ssd, you could have gotten a 50$ 1TB hdd

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, Streetguru said:

That machine has no upgrade path, only option is a really cheap i7 in the future.

The RX 560/1050 are pretty solid for the money, I have no idea what your used market is like but they're more 7950/70 tier. Would stick to a 560 in any even, should be able to hit 1400mhz easily on the core.

Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 560 2GB PULSE Video Card  (£95.99 @ Ebuyer)

IMO, I would consider upgrade path to be; In a couple years when the OC 2500k is not enough, If the i7's (SB) are cheap, Go with one of them, Then eventually (A pretty long time, He can deal with a lack of performance) Go with the ivy bridge i7, Give it an overclock and that will last him a good 4-5 years, Probably more. As for the 560, Is 2gb VRAM enough? thats my main concern, Future proofing. (I know Linus (Or jayz?) said you couldn't, Like trying to future proof yourself, But still.) It can clearly OC decently, and 2gb is already becoming a minimum (Even my 750ti sometimes hits this limit) and I want this system to last a long time without pricey GPU upgrades, Hence Why the 580, £60.

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, ZeusXI said:

but with the 40$ 128gb ssd, you could have gotten a 50$ 1TB hdd

Yes but I personally have quite a lot of HDD space, But I wanted good Boot times, Not raw space. 

[Bananasplit_00]

the 580 is a pretty bad pick for the GPU, its Fermi and draws a shitload of power for what it does. see if you cant get a 680 instead. it will work and run as long as you have the power to run it though

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, Bananasplit_00 said:

the 580 is a pretty bad pick for the GPU, its Fermi and draws a shitload of power for what it does. see if you cant get a 680 instead. it will work and run as long as you have the power to run it though

I could go for a 2gb 680, But that begs the question, is 2gb enough for feature games? People say it doesnt have enough power, But as previously stated, In a good selection of games (Even on minimum settings) on my 750ti hovers around the high 1.8-2.0 gb mark and the 680 is obviously more powerful. I doubt I can budget for a 4gb variant either....

[Bananasplit_00]

1 minute ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

I could go for a 2gb 680, But that begs the question, is 2gb enough for feature games? People say it doesnt have enough power, But as previously stated, In a good selection of games (Even on minimum settings) on my 750ti hovers around the high 1.8-2.0 gb mark and the 680 is obviously more powerful. I doubt I can budget for a 4gb variant either....

from what i have seen on my local used market 680s go for €50 or so. got my brother a GTX 680 Lightning for €50 a while back

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

- Going out for a short while. Cant respond. 

[Streetguru]

10 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

 

Fixed Fermi is surely not something you should strive for.  What kind of games are going to be run? It's likely worth waiting until you can stick a modern GPU in it.

It has even less VRAM anyways, how much are you paying for it?

2GBs of VRAM is fine for that tier of GPU, all that it limits are your texture options in most scenarios.

 

Upgrading to the i7 involves a hunt for the part, and then spending money to basically unlock hyperthreading on your platform. AM4 while slower now, though possibly at the same price if you get half the used parts you're looking at now.

Gives you up to 8 cores/16 threads, and a platform that should be supported until 2020, you'd likely want to hop on Ryzen Revision 2, with an R5 2400 or something, 4c/8t, likely faster than the i7 2600K

Here's the APU benchmarks, yours on B350 could be a bit faster, not sure on his RAM config, but the iGPU will scale with the memory speed. Basically it'll run esports games fine, and in a later video he upgrades to an R7 1700 with no sweat.

RandomGamingHD did 580 benchmarks recently, if you are getting it for the 30 GBP he did, then I suppose it's not bad, but it's still pretty old hardware that requires a good amount of power to run.
 

 

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

1 hour ago, Streetguru said:

Fixed Fermi is surely not something you should strive for.  What kind of games are going to be run? It's likely worth waiting until you can stick a modern GPU in it.

It has even less VRAM anyways, how much are you paying for it?

2GBs of VRAM is fine for that tier of GPU, all that it limits are your texture options in most scenarios.

 

Upgrading to the i7 involves a hunt for the part, and then spending money to basically unlock hyperthreading on your platform. AM4 while slower now, though possibly at the same price if you get half the used parts you're looking at now.

Gives you up to 8 cores/16 threads, and a platform that should be supported until 2020, you'd likely want to hop on Ryzen Revision 2, with an R5 2400 or something, 4c/8t, likely faster than the i7 2600K

Here's the APU benchmarks, yours on B350 could be a bit faster, not sure on his RAM config, but the iGPU will scale with the memory speed. Basically it'll run esports games fine, and in a later video he upgrades to an R7 1700 with no sweat.

RandomGamingHD did 580 benchmarks recently, if you are getting it for the 30 GBP he did, then I suppose it's not bad, but it's still pretty old hardware that requires a good amount of power to run.
 

 

Its the 3gb, I wouldnt go for the 1.5gb varient, £60. I do really want to keep Under the £250 budget? Maybe I can stay within. With the APU, Memory, Espeically DDR4 Is stupid expensive right now, Meanwhile its stupid cheap (DDR3) From Cex. The thing is, You make actually really good suggestions but am I going to be able to get A Mobo, Which seem quite pricey, Expensive ram and a GPU for cheap? He cant go over 250. Another thaught, What about A 2gb 680 would that be any good? Thing is I feel quite sure on the CPU because of the OC and the Fact ivy bridge is supported and hence the 3770k, Which seems quite a powerhouse, Although a much, Much later upgrade, And i cant think of any kind of alternate because of the pricing of Ram and ryzen/AM4. I do want a usable, Dedicated GPU and the full ram amount. 

 

Thinking about this, What would you suggest for a used build for £250? I know about new which seems a bit too much for the budget.

[Streetguru]

12 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

Ya just noticed that, my bad.

But at 60 GBP, how long until he'd have the extra 40 ish for one of the modern $100 GPUs? They'll also naturally require much less cooling, and power requirements. an OC"d RX 560 should still be a bit faster than a GTX 580 in any case.

The used build certainly isn't bad, it just gives you no real future, and upgrading it usually isn't worth it.

Used markets are different everywhere, I don't bother looking into what's good pricing, just gotta compare it to modern stuff.

Do you already have the hard drive/case/PSU pretty much set? Could take that off of the AM4 build.

What kind of games is he going to play?

[MrIceCremeLollipop]

Just now, Streetguru said:

Ya just noticed that, my bad.

But at 60 GBP, how long until he'd have the extra 40 ish for one of the modern $100 GPUs? They'll also naturally require much less cooling, and power requirements. an OC"d RX 560 should still be a bit faster than a GTX 580 in any case.

The used build certainly isn't bad, it just gives you no real future, and upgrading it usually isn't worth it.

Used markets are different everywhere, I don't bother looking into what's good pricing, just gotta compare it to modern stuff.

Do you already have the hard drive/case/PSU pretty much set? Could take that off of the AM4 build.

I have a case and Hard drives are £10 for a 500gb drive, SO not much. No PSU though. I get what you mean about upgrading not being worth it because the most powerful right now (3770k) is really pricey. I might do some looking into AM4, Pricing ect. Thank you for your help.

[Streetguru]

8 minutes ago, MrIceCremeLollipop said:

I have a case and Hard drives are £10 for a 500gb drive, SO not much. No PSU though. I get what you mean about upgrading not being worth it because the most powerful right now (3770k) is really pricey. I might do some looking into AM4, Pricing ect. Thank you for your help.

There is cheaper RAM than what I had before, might be able to OC it past 2400mhz, but who knows.

And the PSU is the only part that you might want to spend more on, but it'll work fine in any case

The APU will run games worse than any dedicated GPU, but it gives you a real future at least. Whenever Raven Ridge drops you can upgrade the CPU and the GPU at the same time, dunno how decent the Vega iGPU will be though.

I just prefer to get people on modern platforms unless the used stuff is super cheap.
 

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/fkMpXH
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/fkMpXH/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - A8-9600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£55.90 @ More Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£71.24 @ CCL Computers)
Memory: G.Skill - NT Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  (£56.46 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: EVGA - 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  (£33.84 @ Aria PC)
Total: £217.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-17 22:05 BST+0100

[Sanctorum]

LGA1155 is not a logical socket for an "upgrade path". Also upgrading to an SB i7, and then an IB i7 is beyond stupid, huge waste of money. Buying old parts is just shooting yourself in thr foot, especially that old. If the 2500k+mobo+ram are pretty cheap, go for it, but expect a new mobo and DDR4 RAM for a logical CPU upgrade.

 

Id suggest just buying an Athlon X4 950, 8GB DDR4 and a B350 motherboard. The X4 950 isnt great, but it will be adequate for literallt any GPU you use in a £250 system and gives you loads of potential logical upgrades without the need for a new mobo and RAM. Just swap out the X4 950 for a Ryzen CPU when you have some spare cash and feel like an upgrade.

 

Definitely dont buy a GTX 580, its junk. You can find used GTX 770/960s or HD7950/7970 and R9 280(x)s for £70-80, any of those would be a solid option.

 

If you can find a GTX 670/760/950 or HD7850/7870 or R9 270(x) for <£50, that wouldn't be too bad. Any of these would be the bare minimum Id recommend these days though, and ONLY for <£50.