New PC

[The_Healer]

Now I know this topic has been done before, but computer technology moves at a rate of knots so any previous threads are somewhat useless at this point.

Anyway, disclaimer aside, I am going to build my own PC within the next month and want to know, in your collective opinion, what components are going to be best for me.

My budget is around $2500 Australian (although I'd prefer to keep it closer to 2000 unless there is a good reason not to). I will be using this PC for a bit of gaming and want something that will be able to run most games for the next few years at reasonable settings. Also it would be nice if it was reliable.

I already have a fair idea of what I want, but I'm sure there are a lot of people with a lot more experience than me around the escapist. At current this is my list (with queries in brackets):

Spoiler: Parts

Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard

Intel Core i7 930: 2.80ghz (is it worth getting a 960?)

Gigabyte ATi Radeon HD 5870 (should I wait for a Geforce GTX 480?)

6GB 1600 MHz Memory (too much or not enough?)

Pioneer BDR-205BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive (needed, not negotiable)

Any Mid Size Tower Case (suggestions?)

Any 750W power supply (enough power? suggestions on brand?)

I already have a 1 TB hdd so that's not an issue.
You don't just have to answer the questions, if I have it completely wrong feel free to shout at me for my rookie errors.

Thanks for any helpful contributions!

 

[Fenring]

Don't wait for the 480, the 5870 is gonna be cheaper and has almost the same performance. The six gbs of RAM is good, it's what I've got, it'll serve you well. Don't do the Blu-Ray, waste of money imo. Unless you need a Blu-Ray player, just get a regular DVD drive.

Oh, and think about an SSD, cause they're cool.

 

[Omikron009]

Six gigabytes of ram is probably fine, my desktop has 8 and I don't expect I'll need any more for a long time. I'm not that knowledgeable on things like this, but I think a core i7 might be going a bit overboard.

 

[Gabbit]

Hey mate just a warning on the Ud3R MB, i bought one of these not that long ago and i have had no end of trouble with the Network card, getting lots of random drops of connectivity. seems to be an issue between the BIOS and any NIC as i also had same problems with multiple different cards. Kind of a well known issue but not really a good solution, pretty sure its a manufacturing issue.

 

[The_Healer]

Don't wait for the 480, the 5870 is gonna be cheaper and has almost the same performance. The six gbs of RAM is good, it's what I've got, it'll serve you well. Don't do the Blu-Ray, waste of money imo. Unless you need a Blu-Ray player, just get a regular DVD drive.

Oh, and think about an SSD, cause they're cool.

Is a SSD actually worth the huge amount of money though (money vs. capacity I mean)?

The blu-ray drive is because I have a PS3 and a Blu Ray player so I wouldn't mind burning some Hi Def things (and copying rentals ahem...)

I guess it will depend on when I actually get the money together whether I get a 5870 or a 480. That is if they are at the same price.

Hmm damn, id love to help Thomas...but i lazily ordered mine built...i probably should learn to do my own things like a grown up.

Well usually grown ups are lazier (at least in my opinion). I just have always been interested in doing it so it seems a good way to save a bit of money and learn a bit about computers too. But thanks for your input, Cory.

Hey mate just a warning on the Ud3R MB, i bought one of these not that long ago and i have had no end of trouble with the Network card, getting lots of random drops of connectivity. seems to be an issue between the BIOS and any NIC as i also had same problems with multiple different cards. Kind of a well known issue but not really a good solution, pretty sure its a manufacturing issue.

Thanks for the heads up! I'll research it a bit and see what I come up with, I did wonder why they were selling for so cheap.
Also, welcome to the escapist.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

The i7 is excessive unless you do multitasking while you edit videos. An i5 would suffice for cheaper. Also, wait until the benchmarks are in for the 470/480, they may be better than ATI's offerings.

 

[The_Healer]

The i7 is excessive unless you do multitasking while you edit videos. An i5 would suffice for cheaper. Also, wait until the benchmarks are in for the 470/480, they may be better than ATI's offerings.

Good to know, where would I find these mystical "benchmarks"?

I will probably be doing some video editing as well as some 3d modelling. The main reason I was thinking i7 though is because it will longer before I have to upgrade.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

The i7 is excessive unless you do multitasking while you edit videos. An i5 would suffice for cheaper. Also, wait until the benchmarks are in for the 470/480, they may be better than ATI's offerings.

Good to know, where would I find these mystical "benchmarks"?

I will probably be doing some video editing as well as some 3d modelling. The main reason I was thinking i7 though is because it will longer before I have to upgrade.

Well in that case, the i7 is on the fence. It really is better at that sort of thing, but the i5 is quite cheaper. Go with your gut.

As for benchmarks,
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=480&Itemid=72&limit=1&limitstart=6
http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-470-480-review/16
http://gizmodo.com/5503193/nvidias-gtx-480-first-fermi-benchmarks

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Now I know this topic has been done before, but computer technology moves at a rate of knots so any previous threads are somewhat useless at this point.

Anyway, disclaimer aside, I am going to build my own PC within the next month and want to know, in your collective opinion, what components are going to be best for me.

My budget is around $2500 Australian (although I'd prefer to keep it closer to 2000 unless there is a good reason not to). I will be using this PC for a bit of gaming and want something that will be able to run most games for the next few years at reasonable settings. Also it would be nice if it was reliable.

I already have a fair idea of what I want, but I'm sure there are a lot of people with a lot more experience than me around the escapist. At current this is my list (with queries in brackets):

Spoiler: Parts

Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard

Intel Core i7 930: 2.80ghz (is it worth getting a 960?)

Gigabyte ATi Radeon HD 5870 (should I wait for a Geforce GTX 480?)

6GB 1600 MHz Memory (too much or not enough?)

Pioneer BDR-205BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive (needed, not negotiable)

Any Mid Size Tower Case (suggestions?)

Any 750W power supply (enough power? suggestions on brand?)

I already have a 1 TB hdd so that's not an issue.
You don't just have to answer the questions, if I have it completely wrong feel free to shout at me for my rookie errors.

Thanks for any helpful contributions!

Pretty good, I'd get an Antec 900 II for your case, and don't wait for the 480, its a single GPU.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

Now I know this topic has been done before, but computer technology moves at a rate of knots so any previous threads are somewhat useless at this point.

Anyway, disclaimer aside, I am going to build my own PC within the next month and want to know, in your collective opinion, what components are going to be best for me.

My budget is around $2500 Australian (although I'd prefer to keep it closer to 2000 unless there is a good reason not to). I will be using this PC for a bit of gaming and want something that will be able to run most games for the next few years at reasonable settings. Also it would be nice if it was reliable.

I already have a fair idea of what I want, but I'm sure there are a lot of people with a lot more experience than me around the escapist. At current this is my list (with queries in brackets):

Spoiler: Parts

Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard

Intel Core i7 930: 2.80ghz (is it worth getting a 960?)

Gigabyte ATi Radeon HD 5870 (should I wait for a Geforce GTX 480?)

6GB 1600 MHz Memory (too much or not enough?)

Pioneer BDR-205BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive (needed, not negotiable)

Any Mid Size Tower Case (suggestions?)

Any 750W power supply (enough power? suggestions on brand?)

I already have a 1 TB hdd so that's not an issue.
You don't just have to answer the questions, if I have it completely wrong feel free to shout at me for my rookie errors.

Thanks for any helpful contributions!

Pretty good, I'd get an Antec 900 II for your case, and don't wait for the 480, its a single GPU.

So what if it's a single GPU? The HD5870 is a single GPU as well.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Now I know this topic has been done before, but computer technology moves at a rate of knots so any previous threads are somewhat useless at this point.

Anyway, disclaimer aside, I am going to build my own PC within the next month and want to know, in your collective opinion, what components are going to be best for me.

My budget is around $2500 Australian (although I'd prefer to keep it closer to 2000 unless there is a good reason not to). I will be using this PC for a bit of gaming and want something that will be able to run most games for the next few years at reasonable settings. Also it would be nice if it was reliable.

I already have a fair idea of what I want, but I'm sure there are a lot of people with a lot more experience than me around the escapist. At current this is my list (with queries in brackets):

Spoiler: Parts

Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard

Intel Core i7 930: 2.80ghz (is it worth getting a 960?)

Gigabyte ATi Radeon HD 5870 (should I wait for a Geforce GTX 480?)

6GB 1600 MHz Memory (too much or not enough?)

Pioneer BDR-205BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive (needed, not negotiable)

Any Mid Size Tower Case (suggestions?)

Any 750W power supply (enough power? suggestions on brand?)

I already have a 1 TB hdd so that's not an issue.
You don't just have to answer the questions, if I have it completely wrong feel free to shout at me for my rookie errors.

Thanks for any helpful contributions!

Pretty good, I'd get an Antec 900 II for your case, and don't wait for the 480, its a single GPU.

So what if it's a single GPU? The HD5870 is a single GPU as well.

I'm just saying he should wait for a dual 480 or something, that's what I'd do.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

Now I know this topic has been done before, but computer technology moves at a rate of knots so any previous threads are somewhat useless at this point.

Anyway, disclaimer aside, I am going to build my own PC within the next month and want to know, in your collective opinion, what components are going to be best for me.

My budget is around $2500 Australian (although I'd prefer to keep it closer to 2000 unless there is a good reason not to). I will be using this PC for a bit of gaming and want something that will be able to run most games for the next few years at reasonable settings. Also it would be nice if it was reliable.

I already have a fair idea of what I want, but I'm sure there are a lot of people with a lot more experience than me around the escapist. At current this is my list (with queries in brackets):

Spoiler: Parts

Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard

Intel Core i7 930: 2.80ghz (is it worth getting a 960?)

Gigabyte ATi Radeon HD 5870 (should I wait for a Geforce GTX 480?)

6GB 1600 MHz Memory (too much or not enough?)

Pioneer BDR-205BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive (needed, not negotiable)

Any Mid Size Tower Case (suggestions?)

Any 750W power supply (enough power? suggestions on brand?)

I already have a 1 TB hdd so that's not an issue.
You don't just have to answer the questions, if I have it completely wrong feel free to shout at me for my rookie errors.

Thanks for any helpful contributions!

Pretty good, I'd get an Antec 900 II for your case, and don't wait for the 480, its a single GPU.

So what if it's a single GPU? The HD5870 is a single GPU as well.

I'm just saying he should wait for a dual 480 or something, that's what I'd do.

True. But that's only for true hardcore gaming. If all you want is serious gaming with good video editing, the 480 is more than good enough. You know the 495 or whatever it's going to be called is going to cost a mint.

 

[The_Healer]

I'm just saying he should wait for a dual 480 or something, that's what I'd do.

Woah!

Dude!

You know the 495 or whatever it's going to be called is going to cost a mint.

If it costs as much as the 5970, then there is half my budget blown in one go.

Also, on the benchmark front, the 480 seems to be topping everything out at the moment. It even beats the 5970 in a fair few situations. I'm leaning towards it.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

I'm just saying he should wait for a dual 480 or something, that's what I'd do.

Woah!

Dude!

You know the 495 or whatever it's going to be called is going to cost a mint.

If it costs as much as the 5970, then there is half my budget blown in one go.

Also, on the benchmark front, the 480 seems to be topping everything out at the moment. It even beats the 5970 in a fair few situations. I'm leaning towards it.

Yeah, the 495 (or whatever it will be called) will probably cost at least that much. But Nvidia does seem to be winning in performance. It might also be better for graphic work since that's part of the aim of Nvidia's CUDA project.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

The blu-ray drive is because I have a PS3 and a Blu Ray player so I wouldn't mind burning some Hi Def things (and copying rentals ahem...)

Check the price of blank BR media before you commit to the idea. Cheapest I've ever seen them is AU$15/disk.

 

[Elhueno]

go for either a coolermaster or antec case. Seriously people dont consider cases to be important, but one with a good airflow and even replaceable filters helps a computer remain reliable years into its life.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

By the way, the Antec 900 is a good case, but you may want to think about a full tower for the massive card. My favorite full tower is the Cooler Master HAF 932, but the Antec 1200 is popular as well. They aren't required, but it will make it a whole lot easier to install a mammoth video card.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Thanks for the heads up! I'll research it a bit and see what I come up with, I did wonder why they were selling for so cheap.

You might want to check to see if MSI offer something that matches what you want. I've found their motherboards damned reliable and reasonably priced.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

In regards to that one motherboard issue, EVGA makes some damn nice Mobo's. But them, Gigabyte usually, and I'm told MSI. I had one MSI board and it failed, but it happens, it's probably not a sign of their over all quality. But I can only speak for Gigabyte and EVGA out of experience. Also, EVGA makes really good Nvidia cards.