Critique for a new gaming PC

[Goatie]

Hey,

So I'm setting up a new gaming PC and I just wanted to run it by some experts to see if I'm making any silly mistakes .

My monitor is 1680 and I'll be doing some decent overclocking.

CPU: i5 760 - $210
GFX: EVGA 1GB GTX460 Superclocked - $240
MotherBoard: Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD6 - $210
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2x4 GB) - $175

Reusing my old HDD/monitor/etc.

I have a couple of questions about power supplies as I'll be getting that locally. My current PC has a 9800GX2 in it and I was wondering about using it as a PhysX card (worth it?). The card is quite a power/heat monger though so I just wanted to see what I should look for in a power supply.

I was looking at this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139016

and was wondering if that would be sufficient? I'm kind of limited in choice where I live so if that isn't enough could I get some advice on what to look for in rails?


Thanks in advance

 

[Sp12]

IMO you're overspending on the motherboard and ram. Assuming you have access to Newegg --

You can get a GTX 470 for that same price, or get a cheaper version of the 460 if you want to save money.

You can save 60$ if you're willing to drop to a silver efficiency PSU. It's a seasonic OEM 850 watt.

Any of these mobos. (at least 60$ less).

Do you think you'll have need of more than 8GB of ram with this system? If not, you could drop to 2*2 sticks. I like those in particular in that they're 1.35 voltage, 1600 speed, and have good timings for a non-crazy price.

If you can't get access, still see if you could cut back on the ram/motherboard. PSU looks fine, should last you a while. Without knowing what you may or may not have access to it's hard to give a recommendation.

 

[Gigantopithecus]

That Corsair PSU is as good as it gets. It'll serve you well. As Sp12 said, you have room to save a few dollars by going with a different 460 - and those mobos Sp12 linked are all acceptable substitutes for the GA-P55A-UD6. I would save money on the graphics card and mobo before the psu.

As for using your existing card as a PhysX unit, it depends on the game, and how much you care about a slight increase in your power bill and temps in your case, ha. But that Corsair psu will handle everything (9800GX2 and GTX460) fine.

 

[Goatie]

Thanks for the help guys.

I'm within my budget for this build, so I'd rather optimize than save dollars. Taking what was said into consideration my new build is:

CPU: i5 760 - $210
GFX: GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 470 - $269 (seems like a really good deal)
MotherBoard: MSI P55A-G55 - $125
RAM: G.SKILL ECO Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) - 96$

$700 dollars flat compared to $835 originally. With the money saved would you guys recommend grabbing another set of 2x4GB ram to get back to 8GB, or is there a better way to blow $135 dollars?

Also, I was looking at the MSI P55A-GD65 motherboard as well (last one on that handy list!) and I don't see where the price difference is coming from (compared to the P55A-G55). It says SLI ready but as I understand things all I need is an additional PCI x16 slot for PhysX, correct? I doubt I'll ever bother with SLI.

Thanks again!

 

[mfenn]

I wouldn't bother with a monster like the GX2 as a PhysX card. You can get something like a GT 240 that will perform nearly as well (AFAIK, PhysX will only take advantage of one GPU on the GX2). Although personally I would just forget having a dedicated PhysX card altogether.

For $165, you can get a 60GB SSD like the Corsair Force which will make a huge difference in general usage.

 

[RaistlinZ]

Don't reuse an old HDD for a new computer. It's the slowest part of your system. Grab an SSD like mfenn suggests and use your old HDD for storage.

 

[Blain]

I'm not a SSD covert at this time, but with spinning platters so cheap, you should at least ad a new HD on the list.
Like RaistlinZ mentioned... "It's the slowest part of your system".

 

[Davidh373]

I'd go with a 650W and drop the PhysX card. They are useless with few exceptions, and that 9800GX2 is a beast. If you HAVE to get a 240 or something small. After all, it only has to handle a few stray calculations.

I'm also one to recommend not reusing an HD, and if you do it should be a secondary storage drive. Get a 60GB Corsair Force or OCZ Agility 2 and a 1TB, or like I said, use the old one as storage.

 

[Goatie]

Okay so I shouldn't bother with the 9800GX2 even though it'll just chill in a storage box if I don't? Maybe I'll give it to a friend.

I'll look into the SSDs then. Thanks again guys

 

[Davidh373]

Yeah, if you feel so inclined you could say "Hey, throw me some cash and it's your's" kinda deal. I wouldn't give it away. That's just me though.