I'm out of practice

[Feldenak]

Hey folks, long time no see. I'm really out of the loop on components and have started kicking around the idea of a (mostly) new rig and realized that my Socket 775 mobo isn't really upgradable.

1. PC Use: Blu-Ray ripping and some gaming.

2. Budget: $500-$600

3. Parts purchased in USA.

4. Brand Preference: Intel CPU is really my only preference

5. Parts being reused: SATA HDDs, PSU, case, SATA optical drives, monitors, and all peripherals

6. No O/C.

7. Screen resolution: 1440x900

8. Timeline: Unclear.

9. No additional software needed.

 

[lehtv]

This is roughly what I'd build:

$200 Intel i5-4570
$80 motherboard
$60 2x4GB DDR3-1600
$120 7850 1GB
$100 120GB SSD

It won't make much sense to make more specific recommendations than this, until you know exactly when you want to build it.

Are you near a Microcenter?

 

[Feldenak]

Roughly that's going to look like this:

$120 AMD FX-6300
$60-70 motherboard
$60 2x4GB DDR3-1600
$140 7850 2GB
$70 1TB HDD or $100 1TB hybrid drive
$50 Blu-ray drive
$40 PSU
$40 Case (ATX or mATX)

Ends up at a bit under $600. It won't make much sense to make more specific recommendations than this, until you know exactly when you want to build it.

Are you near a Microcenter?

I appreciate the thought but do I really have to go AMD on this budget? I don't need a case, Blu-ray drive, PSU, or HDD

 

[lehtv]

Sorry. Edited my build, didn't notice that you already had several components to use.

What exactly are your PSU, case and hard drives?

 

[Feldenak]

Sorry. Edited my build, didn't notice that you already had several components to use.

What exactly are your PSU, case and hard drives?

Case: Antec 1200 tower
PSU: OCZ 600W Modular
HDDs: Western Digital SATA 640GB, Seagate SATA 2TB, Western Digital 3TB USB

Edit: I'm about 30 minutes from a Micro Center

 

[mfenn]

ModXStream 600W? I'd be tempted to replace that if it's more than a couple years old. That generation of OCZ PSUs were not loved for their quality. Since you're near a MicroCenter, you can take advantage of their CPU/mobo combos.

For example (if you were going to buy today):
i5 4670K + ASRock H87M Pro4 combo $260 at MC
Team DDR3 1600 8GB $59 AP
MSI 7850 2GB $125 AR
Samsung 840 EVO 120GB $100
Corsair CX600 $38 AR AP
Total: $582 AR AP

 

[Feldenak]

Thanks. I didn't realize that about the OCZ. That's the PSU I have and it's been rock-solid reliable.

 

[aigomorla]

0 overclocking....
Blue ray Render Rips....

Although ur impartial to AMD... at your price point a 8core AMD maybe a better solution.

 

[Feldenak]

0 overclocking....
Blue ray Render Rips....

Although ur impartial to AMD... at your price point a 8core AMD maybe a better solution.

AMD handle BD ripping better?

 

[aigomorla]

AMD handle BD ripping better?

u have MORE cores to process multi threads.

So yes... it will be faster then you getting a quadcore without HT, or a dualcore with HT.

Now if u can stretch the budget a little bit more... like 200 more... then possibly u can afford an intel quad with HT which would be better.

But we would be breaking your budget....

So.. this is why I and Lehtv are thinking on the same note on you going AMD.
Im actually pushing my recommendation to the FX-8350 8-core for 199. instead of levth's 6-core fx.
Since u dont require a case.

But it will be tough piecing u out a intel setup for simular performance in your area ur wanting to use the pc for.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819113284

4.0ghz out of the box.. 4.2ghz on turbo mode...

Yeah.. ur gonna need a K to be at least in the race on stock settings... 0 overclocking...


Of course overclocking changes everything... are you willing to overclock?
Because thats where the niche in intel is... when you overclock, things go very different for intel....

 

[Feldenak]

u have MORE cores to process multi threads.

So yes... it will be faster then you getting a quadcore without HT, or a dualcore with HT.

Now if u can stretch the budget a little bit more... like 200 more... then possibly u can afford an intel quad with HT which would be better.

But we would be breaking your budget....

So.. this is why Lehtv are thinking on the same note on you going AMD.

Interesting. Been an Intel guy for years. Certainly food for thought. I'll take a look at AMD

 

[aigomorla]

Interesting. Been an Intel guy for years. Certainly food for thought. I'll take a look at AMD

i have been a die hard Intel fan for many years too.

However i am not a fanboy when it comes to recommending parts for what people need.

AMD is an excellent brand when your looking at the lower end of the price range for a strong performer.

That FX i linked is a 8 core... each core has 4.0ghz and i believe a couple of them goes turbo to 4.2ghz.

That FX however sucks horribly at overclocking.
Again i am stating from a 0 overclocking aspect.

But i would be hard press to see any intel i5 beat it in rendering or any other cpu computational tasks purely on the fact it has 2x the cores.

Hence again why i am recommending a 8core on that budget frame.


Edit:
There is 1 System i would push above that.. however it will require a scavenger hunt.
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2335636

follow that thread... that cpu when handled properly with overclocking will devastate current SB/IVB intel processors in rendering (you need to jump up to the -E platform), and if priced right can cost half your budget. We show how well that processor does in rendering using benchmarks.

 

[Feldenak]

I haven't overclocked since I cooked a motherboard awhile back

 

[aigomorla]

I haven't overclocked since I cooked a motherboard awhile back

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GR5_X1CfUA

Its actually that easy... they really dumb'd it down... however in doing so they also neutered a lot of potential on the upper cap. :biggrin:

 

[Feldenak]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GR5_X1CfUA

Its actually that easy... they really dumb'd it down... however in doing so they also neutered a lot of potential on the upper cap. :biggrin:

Let's consider some O/C. I assume I can't stick with stock cooling or is the Intel stock cooling good enough now?

 

[Feldenak]

Just realized that VidCard won't work. My monitors are DVI, I need 2 DVI outs on the card.

 

[lehtv]

Asus 7850 2GB $125 AR (HDMI, DP, 2x DVI)

I consider this better than MSI due to the DirectCu cooler.

 

[mfenn]

u have MORE cores to process multi threads.

So yes... it will be faster then you getting a quadcore without HT, or a dualcore with HT.

The problem with this argument is that recent AMD processors have one floating point unit for every two integer cores and encoding is a floating point heavy workload. As you can see, the i5 4670K and the FX-8350 trade blows in encoding benchmarks.

I think the i5 is a better overall choice because of its vastly better single-threaded performance. Single-threaded performance is still important because you will run into all sorts of things that are not multi-threaded and perhaps never will be. You're not giving up anything in terms of price or multi-threaded performance with the i5, so why not get good single-threaded performance?
http://forums.anandtech.com/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=35572067

 

[mfenn]

Thanks. I didn't realize that about the OCZ. That's the PSU I have and it's been rock-solid reliable.

Feldenak told me in PM that he bought the current one in 2008. 5 years is a pretty long time for that sort of PSU. I'd get a new one and relegate your current to backup duty.

 

[Feldenak]

Well, it looks like I'm buying within the next couple days and these are the components I'm leaning towards based on the input I received here.

i5 4670K $200
AsRock H87M $60
ASUS HD7850 V2 $150 AR
Vulcan 8GB RAM $69
Corsair CX600 $45 AR

Comes out to ~$531 with tax & shipping

A little concerned about the smaller microATX. My clumsy fingers have a hard enough time with full ATX boards.

 

[lehtv]

I don't think the 2GB VRAM card is worth it, your resolution just doesn't benefit from the extra VRAM. It performs the same as the 1GB card.When you upgrade your monitor to 1080p, upgrade the 7850 to a faster card at the same time. A 7850 is becoming a bit slowish for 1080p gaming already.

The Vulcan RAM is $59 AP right now. As the promo expires today, don't wait til tomorrow to order it

Although you say you don't overclock, I think it would make sense to get an OC'able board anyway. The combo with an MSI Z87-G41 costs $5 more than the combo with that Asrock board. (Also, placing a microATX board in an Antec 1200 would be just too funny.)

 

[Feldenak]

I don't think the 2GB VRAM card is worth it, your resolution just doesn't benefit from the extra VRAM. It performs the same as the 1GB card.When you upgrade your monitor to 1080p, upgrade the 7850 to a faster card at the same time. A 7850 is becoming a bit slowish for 1080p gaming already.

The Vulcan RAM is $59 AP right now. As the promo expires today, don't wait til tomorrow to order it

Although you say you don't overclock, I think it would make sense to get an OC'able board anyway. The combo with an MSI Z87-G41 costs $5 more than the combo with that Asrock board. (Also, placing a microATX board in an Antec 1200 would be just too funny.)

More good info. Thanks

Yeah, I was kind of laughing about the possibility of a mATX board in my case.

 

[skipsneeky2]

2gb on the 7850 is a good idea, I believe when I was benching BF4 beta I found low 1366x768 was about where my 2gb 770 would run under 1gb, ultra runs 1700mb without msaa at the same resolution and I would think 1440x900 and upcoming 1080p if you upgrade to be even worst.

You may not be playing BF4 and if not, get whichever card you prefer either its 1gb or 2gb.

 

[Feldenak]

2gb on the 7850 is a good idea, I believe when I was benching BF4 beta I found low 1366x768 was about where my 2gb 770 would run under 1gb, ultra runs 1700mb without msaa at the same resolution and I would think 1440x900 and upcoming 1080p if you upgrade to be even worst.

You may not be playing BF4 and if not, get whichever card you prefer either its 1gb or 2gb.

I don't know what BF4 is and it will be a very long time before I even think about going 1080p with my computer monitors.

 

[lehtv]

Battlefield 4.