Gaming 'puter

[thepope1322]

I don't think it's worth getting an ivy bridge CPU since the socket is at the end of its life, so I replaced it with a Haswell i5 and also the motherboard. Replaced the ram with cheaper stuff, swapped out to a Samsung HDD since the 840 pros are pretty much the standard.

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/23J94

Why the Micro ATX board if you're not using a Micro ATX case?

[Luvandpower]

I don't think it's worth getting an ivy bridge CPU since the socket is at the end of its life, so I replaced it with a Haswell i5 and also the motherboard. Replaced the ram with cheaper stuff, swapped out to a Samsung HDD since the 840 pros are pretty much the standard.

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/23J94

Why the Micro ATX board if you're not using a Micro ATX case?

cheaper/doesn't matter lol

 

probably isn't sli/crossfire capable mobo either but oh well I doubt he will ever need to.

[thepope1322]

If you're going with a MicroATX mobo, might as well grab a MicroATX case too, to build something more compact.

[20000_Posts]

If you're going with a MicroATX mobo, might as well grab a MicroATX case too, to build something more compact.

Only problem with smaller case can be that the larger graphics cards might not fit in, as well as poor cooling and cable management. I don't have enough time to go through and find which micro atx case would be the best.

 

And micro atx mobos are generally cheaper and many people don't need the extra PCI-E slots (things like internal pci-e soundcards are becoming less used, most things are through USB nowadays).

[Luvandpower]

If you're going with a MicroATX mobo, might as well grab a MicroATX case too, to build something more compact.

Only problem with smaller case can be that the larger graphics cards might not fit in, as well as poor cooling and cable management. I don't have enough time to go through and find which micro atx case would be the best.

 

And micro atx mobos are generally cheaper and many people don't need the extra PCI-E slots (things like internal pci-e soundcards are becoming less used, most things are through USB nowadays).

^ this MOST micro cases just can't hold things like a titan/r9 290. This isn't to say that they will not ALL hold them ( I have seen a few that actually can sli with two ) but it's always hard to figure that out and you don't want to get into that trouble. I'd just stick with a full tower.

[thepope1322]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139021

 

This one will.

 

I'm sperging about the case/mobo so much because you're essentially getting the worst of both worlds, none of the upgradability of a full ATX mobo, and yet all of its bulk. Plus I have a hard-on for small gaming PCs.

 

And if you insist on going with a mid-tower, there's better cases than the Antec 900. That one is ricey as fudge and very builder-unfriendly. I have a bigger version of this (HAF XM) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197 and would recommend the HAF series. The upside of this case is that you can remove half the hard drive mountings to improve airflow or fit a longer graphics card.

 

Edit: Also, your mobo has an H87 chipset, which can't overclock, so you might as well go with a proc that is frequency-locked, or take a Z87 mobo.

Edited November 18, 2013 by theking1322

[Luvandpower]

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16811139021

 

This one will.

 

I'm sperging about the case/mobo so much because you're essentially getting the worst of both worlds, none of the upgradability of a full ATX mobo, and yet all of its bulk. Plus I have a hard-on for small gaming PCs.

 

And if you insist on going with a mid-tower, there's better cases than the Antec 900. That one is ricey as fudge and very builder-unfriendly.

17.7" x 8.3" x 17.3"

 

should yeah about the size of my old solaris case

 

edit: any particular reason why that case? The case doesn't have the best ventilation in the world so it may have more heat in it especially with a larger card. Cable management would need to be a must.

Edited November 18, 2013 by Kaysie

[thepope1322]

Actually, the frontal intake fan on that will be taking air directly to the graphics card.

 

Also, to be fair, the R9 290X will run hot in pretty much any case, that card has already gained notoriety for its proneness to overheating.

[Luvandpower]

Actually, the frontal intake fan on that will be taking air directly to the graphics card.

 

Also, to be fair, the R9 290X will run hot in pretty much any case, that card has already gained notoriety for its proneness to overheating.

I disagree with most of those rumors. My 290X only runs hot on the big screen of mine using like a 3000 + resolution running something like BF4.

[O hai im KAMIL]

What monitor will you be gaming at? Because if it's just a single 1080p, then an R9 290X is way overkill.

[Seaconmorae]

Ill be using a 1080p 17 inch monitor, using a 1080p flatscreen 32 inch when I feel like it.

[thepope1322]

Actually, the frontal intake fan on that will be taking air directly to the graphics card.

 

Also, to be fair, the R9 290X will run hot in pretty much any case, that card has already gained notoriety for its proneness to overheating.

I disagree with most of those rumors. My 290X only runs hot on the big screen of mine using like a 3000 + resolution running something like BF4.

They're not rumors, they're facts.

 

Edited November 19, 2013 by theking1322

[O hai im KAMIL]

I'd go for an R9 280X or GTX 770 in that case, and spend the money saved on upgrading the MoBo and PSU to allow SLI/Crossfire. Either of those cards will play all games smoothly on ultra settings for quite a while, and you'll always be able to chuck another card in should you add another monitor or something.

[Luvandpower]

Actually, the frontal intake fan on that will be taking air directly to the graphics card.

 

Also, to be fair, the R9 290X will run hot in pretty much any case, that card has already gained notoriety for its proneness to overheating.

I disagree with most of those rumors. My 290X only runs hot on the big screen of mine using like a 3000 + resolution running something like BF4.

They're not rumors, they're facts.

 

 

Again, I can only state my own experience. The card doesn't get nearly as hot as people are showing results for. On my 27 inch at home it can get up to maybe 60-70 if I OC for a long time but that's just about it.

[20000_Posts]

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16811139021

 

This one will.

 

I'm sperging about the case/mobo so much because you're essentially getting the worst of both worlds, none of the upgradability of a full ATX mobo, and yet all of its bulk. Plus I have a hard-on for small gaming PCs.

 

And if you insist on going with a mid-tower, there's better cases than the Antec 900. That one is ricey as fudge and very builder-unfriendly. I have a bigger version of this (HAF XM) http://www.newegg.co...N82E16811119197 and would recommend the HAF series. The upside of this case is that you can remove half the hard drive mountings to improve airflow or fit a longer graphics card.

 

Edit: Also, your mobo has an H87 chipset, which can't overclock, so you might as well go with a proc that is frequency-locked, or take a Z87 mobo.

Didn't know you can't OC on an H87, good catch. You're right, I'd get the non K version of the CPU, then.

 

Someone want to make a more up to date PC part picker list?

 

Edit: and yes the 290x gets hot and can be a bit loud, but the non-ref coolers aren't coming out until around January...

Edited November 19, 2013 by FREEDOM

[mikeyy]

Might want to take a look here: http://lifehacker.com/amazons-running-a-sale-on-everything-you-need-to-build-1467134336

 

 

Might catch a deal on something you need.

[Luvandpower]

Might want to take a look here: http://lifehacker.co...uild-1467134336

 

 

Might catch a deal on something you need.

Intel Quad-Core Ivy Bridge i5 3570K | $200P

Intel Quad-Core Haswell i7 4770K | $310

Sapphire Radeon Vapor-X HD 7970 3GB DDR5 | $300

 

how are those deals :o...

 

and here is the updated list:

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/24Pzf

 

here is the list without the 290x but the 280x

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/24PDe

 

Edit: note I did use a little more expensive mother board on purpose. I thought about it and for $15 more it has sli support. There is no need to downgrade the cpu as you can use the z87 perfectly fine with this setup and OC. That was an oversight on my part. All H77/H87 do not OC but the Z77/Z87's do.

 

Edit 2: One problem with the mid tower HAF cooler masters...they don't have headers. Do you know of any other cases that have that feature/that have the headers?

 

Edit 3: look at this new bad boy!

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?gclid=CObor4Gg8boCFabm7AodoBIAng&Item=N82E16814127771&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-_-pla-_-Desktop+Graphics+Cards-_-N82E16814127771&ef_id=UoPRfAAAALhMwUtl:20131119161728:s

 

It apparently...BEATS THE TITAN and is $300 less. This will be an interesting turn of events.

Edited November 19, 2013 by Kaysie

[20000_Posts]

The 780Ti is about as good as the 290x, they trade blows on different titles so it's really a tossup. But I think the 290x is still cheaper.

[thepope1322]

Titan is an overpriced piece of shizzle anyway. 780Ti is more expensive than the 290X but it runs cooler and eats less power.

 

Here's my attempt:

 

Full ATX, designed purely for game performance, long term stability and reliability.

 

http://pcpartpicker....erPL/saved/2RRp

 

I went with that PSU because I am a whore when it comes to quality parts. That PSU will keep you running for years, after every single part in that PC has been replaced. I didn't add anything that won't improve performance in AAA games, hence the 8GB RAM (though it's easily upgraded to 16GB) and the midrange CPU.

 

I got the R9 290X in there because I'd be called a heretic if I didn't, but, honestly I am of the opinion that spending an extra $100-200 to gain 10-20 more FPS over a cheaper card, say the 770, is one of the most full-retard things you can do.

Edited November 19, 2013 by theking1322