Building a Gaming / Multimedia PC. (Maybe video editing too)

[Googer]

How so? Both lines top out at quads.



In the sense that having the feature is strictly additive (i.e. you can always choose to disable it), sure. In the sense that QuickSync will somehow magically speed up a high-quality H.264 encoder, definitely not.

Hexacore or octocore would have drove the TDP to a higher level.

 

[Crow550]

Alright so far I got....

Case: NZXT Crafted Series ATX Full Tower Steel Chassis - Phantom White with Red Trim Computer Case $125

Power Supply: XFX Core Edition PRO650W (P1-650S-NLB9) 650W ATX12V 2.2 & ESP12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply for $96 with mail in rebate: $66 or should I go for 700watts?

Mobo: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard $125 with mail in rebate: $115

Memory: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) $39 OR G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) $30?

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K $220

Video Card: MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 $277.87 (Need HDMI out. Also might route to a 3DTV later on.)

Then add in a cheap DVD burner.

Plan to start ordering on Monday....

If anyone has any further advice or any better bang for the buck parts. Let me know.

 

[fffblackmage]

Memory: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) $39 OR G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) $30?

G.Skill is a good brand. It's also cheap and fast, so there's not much to think about.

 

[Googer]

G.Skill is a good brand. It's also cheap and fast, so there's not much to think about.

I recently used patriot but ditched it for G.Skill which I run right now. As a 14 year buyer of Crucial and occasionally Kingston, Corsair, and OCz I've never had a problem with any; I would say that I'd likely not be a repeat buyer of a G.Skill product in the near future. I Go with Crucial for rock solid stability, (live USA phone) support, "extremely tight quality control" (top 10% of microns production is kept for crucial, then sorted for the top 10% of that: read that a decade ago), and lifetime warrenty*. All of that at the same competitive price. If you need an alternative Kingston or Corsair; no complaints there. OCz used to be good, but where are you now? The worst ram ever, was PNY. I bought two of the same model number, I was their performance line, and both dimms had two different pcb's with one being taller than the other, the one dimm also had different memory IC chips. I got 2GB of PNY for $10 at compusa before they closed; so it was still a good deal.


I wasted a lot of time raising and adjusting memory timings to get the stuff to work. G.Skill just wasn't plug and play ready like my past experiences with "other brands". This is due to an overly aggressive memory profile; which helps marketing departments sell more ram? I sure wish I had bought something else. Don't get me entirely wrong here; G.Skill RipJaws is definitely better than the Patriot Secotor 5. But If you are a 1st time builder, I would go with someone like the brands I suggest above.

*crucial even sells and warranties EDO memory after it became obsolete 15 years ago.

 

[Crow550]

Alright. Did some looking around.....

This look pretty solid:

Case: NZXT Crafted Series ATX Full Tower Steel Chassis - Phantom White with Red Trim Computer Case $125 NEWEGG

Power Supply: Antec Earthwatts 750W Modular Power Supply $85 NCIX

Mobo: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard $125 with mail in rebate: $115 NEWEGG

Memory: Corsair CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B Vengeance Blue 8GB $38 NCIX

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K $200 NCIX

Video Card: MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 $277.87 (Need HDMI out. Also might route to a 3DTV later on.) NEWEGG

I'm ready to pull the trigger. Just gotta throw in a TV tuner and DVD burner or maybe Blu-Ray player with dvd burner.

Should I add any additional cooling too?

Plan to get this ordered sometime Today. Thanks for the help.

On the TV tuner aside from recording TV I need something to archive VHS tapes and such. I heard ATI/AMDs Theater tech was really good at the videohelp.com forums.

So should I get: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815306023 Maybe two for dual recording?

 

[Crow550]

Ordering it now.

 

[Googer]

On the TV tuner aside from recording TV I need something to archive VHS tapes and such. I heard ATI/AMDs Theater tech was really good at the videohelp.com forums.

I would'nt use ANTENNA COAX to transfer video to a tuner. Instead get a dedicated (forget what it's called) video transfer kit that uses USB3 or 1394, which contains one or more of the following: Svideo, Composite, component video and RCA stereo inputs.

Even better yet, There were a few "digital VCR" models made, I believe a few of them had 1394; however, you need to do research and see if the 1394 port can be used to transfer video to a PC. It's been many years, but I think JVC was one brand you should look for. Panasonic or Sony may have had a few models before the high end VCR market died a sudden death.

 

[Googer]

http://forums.cnet.com/7723-6644_102-45301/capturing-d-vhs-thru-firewire-1394/

 

[Crow550]

I would'nt use ANTENNA COAX to transfer video to a tuner. Instead get a dedicated (forget what it's called) video transfer kit that uses USB3 or 1394, which contains one or more of the following: Svideo, Composite, component video and RCA stereo inputs.

Even better yet, There were a few "digital VCR" models made, I believe a few of them had 1394; however, you need to do research and see if the 1394 port can be used to transfer video to a PC. It's been many years, but I think JVC was one brand you should look for. Panasonic or Sony may have had a few models before the high end VCR market died a sudden death.

These have S-Video and such. I have a S-Video VCR with a TBC.

Those digital ones are $$$$

luckly JVC VCRS with TBC can be easily found in second hand stores.

 

[Googer]

These have S-Video and such. I have a S-Video VCR with a TBC.

Those digital ones are $$$$

luckly JVC VCRS with TBC can be easily found in second hand stores.

They no longer make D-VHS so find one on ebay. But at least use some sort of Composite or SVIDEO input to your computer, preferably 1394 and not crappy RF.

 

[Crow550]

No shit....

That card has an S-video connection. Never said I would use RF. I will use the RF for you know connecting an Antenna for Over-The-Air recording.

Read my posts next time.

 

[Crow550]

I also added the Coolit Systems Eco CPU Water Cooling System AUTO-REGULATED & Maintenance Free which was $30 with the CPU: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ti1MKPS8xfM&feature=player_embedded

 

[mfenn]

Alright. Did some looking around.....

This look pretty solid:

Case: NZXT Crafted Series ATX Full Tower Steel Chassis - Phantom White with Red Trim Computer Case $125 NEWEGG

Power Supply: Antec Earthwatts 750W Modular Power Supply $85 NCIX

Mobo: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard $125 with mail in rebate: $115 NEWEGG

Memory: Corsair CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B Vengeance Blue 8GB $38 NCIX

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K $200 NCIX

Video Card: MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 $277.87 (Need HDMI out. Also might route to a 3DTV later on.) NEWEGG

Meh, you could get the same performance for about $100 less.

PSU: You don't need 750W for a single-GPU setup and the chances of upgrading to dual-GPU are pretty much nil (based on experience). Get the XFX Core 650W for $50 AR.
Mobo: See above. Get the ASRock Pro3 for $100.
RAM: G.Skill DDR3 1333 $35 will perform within 1% but not have to worry about heatspreader clearance issues.
GPU: Would definitely not pay $277 fora GTX 560 Ti. The excellent unlockable Sapphire 6950 2GB is back in stock for $240 AR.

 

[Crow550]

Hmmm....

Does ATI offer 3D support in there drivers yet?

So that Mobo is similar just lacks dual card support?

Hmmm.... I might cancel it.

 

[Crow550]

LOL should I crossfire the 6950s?

 

[lehtv]

The second 6950 will ensure very smooth framerates at 2D 1080p maximum image quality settings. But most of the time you won't get the most out of the second GPU. In 3D it'd be more useful. I'd suggest first buying one GPU to see if it suits your needs

 

[Crow550]

Right I was just thinking about it as it would still work within my budget.

So a 6950 that can be unlocked to a 6970 would be tons better than the ti560? Right? I'd assume so but some people say that the TI560 is pretty powerful.

Two 6970s sound awesome..... However you could be right too.

Tomorrow I am re-placing the order unless I have to wait for them to return my cash.... I need to pull the trigger and get this done.

I also am having second thoughts on the liquid cooler for the CPU as some reviewers have had leaks and that scares the crap out of me. From what I read on NCIX & Amazon.

 

[lehtv]

6950 vs 560 ti: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/293?vs=330
unlocked & OC'd 6950 (=6970) vs stock 560 ti: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/292?vs=330
6970 vs 570: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/292?vs=306
6950 vs 6970: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/293?vs=292

Overclocked 560 Ti will be about halfway between stock 560 Ti and 570.

 

[Googer]

LOL should I crossfire the 6950s?

No, dual graphics can be a real headache. If you have $200 to spend on graphics. It's best spent on one $200 card rather than a pair of $100 cards in sli/crossfire.

 

[lehtv]

No, dual graphics can be a real headache. If you have $200 to spend on graphics. It's best spent on one $200 card rather than a pair of $100 cards in sli/crossfire.

6950 costs $250, what are you on about?

 

[Crow550]

I got the cpu liquid cooler took off, since I don't want to risk it leaking.

From NCIX getting the CPU & Memory. For now I will pay $7 more for the Corsair. Just because I know it's a good brand. I don't want to mess with ram timings with the G.Skill Ripjaws. I'm sure it's set it and forget it. Just know Corsair is good.

However I will still consider them in the future too.

Now really I have have decide on the GPU or
GPUS.

Also going for ENERMAX NAXN 82+ ENM750AWT 750W ATX12V v2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply instead.

 

[Crow550]

What GPU should I go for? I wanna have enough power to get by not having to upgrade for as long as possible. Willing to mess with a Crossfire or SLI setup.

Will be dual displaying or cloning to an HDTV in the living room. So the card needs an HDMI port to send the audio & video.

Plan to output to a Passive 3DTV in the future however according to my research both Nvidia & ATI will use the IZ3D driver for the passive 3D. Unless I am mistaken somewhere?

 

[JosephBAdams]

Hey Crow, I read through the thread but didn't see what you plan to do for hard drives. What's the plan there?

I'm in the process of putting together a new build in my Newegg shopping cart and may end up doing a clone of your build, with a 128 GB SSD and a 750 GB 7200RPM hard drive.

Also, on the subject of RAM, I've had no trouble overclocking my G. Skill RAM. A stick of it went bad about 6 months after I bought it (but before overclocking), and those guys sent me a new stick within 5 days!

 

[Crow550]

Hey Crow, I read through the thread but didn't see what you plan to do for hard drives. What's the plan there?

I'm in the process of putting together a new build in my Newegg shopping cart and may end up doing a clone of your build, with a 128 GB SSD and a 750 GB 7200RPM hard drive.

Also, on the subject of RAM, I've had no trouble overclocking my G. Skill RAM. A stick of it went bad about 6 months after I bought it (but before overclocking), and those guys sent me a new stick within 5 days!

Sorry I deleted what I wrote on page 1 since the part list changed drastically.

I got the SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive on Black Friday for $60 with the Google Offers code.

 

[Crow550]

The order for the ram hasn't went through if G.Skill has a good Warranty like that I might go with em.