I'm building a PC for/with my brother, and this is what we've got so far:

Can I get any thoughts on this? Is it the best bang for the buck I can get, or am I making mistakes anywhere? Advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

Edit: Fixed the formatting (almost) and updated the basket with recommendations, bar the SSD.

Edit 2: Pulled the trigger on what you see above (plus an SSD).

Slight changes could have been made (the case and PSU are being frequently highlighted as needing the chop), but I'm pleased with the final build. Despite Bourbon_Warrior not realising he's basically posted the same thing twice, I'm happy to stick with the 670 as it offered a reasonable boost over the 660ti (if not the most cost efficient one).

Thanks for all the help!

Yeah jesus, maybe just type out the titles?

Anywho, I'd say maybe throw in an SSD if you got the money, just a small 64 GB one and run windows off it. Also, how are you connecting to the internet? You'll need a wireless adapter if it doesn't come with one in the mobo.

There's a guide on Tested that's relevant: http://www.tested.com/tech/pcs/451477-how-properly-budget-your-next-pc-build/ though it's all priced in USD.

You might want to get a 750W or better PSU and a CPU cooler to replace the stock one. But that CPU and graphics card should last you for a while. I have something pretty similar and it's great.

I approve of this build. The 5900rpm hard drive though.... I'm not so sure on that. Spend a few extra bucks on a Caviar Black (or even Blue).

@_k1_ said:

There's a guide on Tested that's relevant: http://www.tested.com/tech/pcs/451477-how-properly-budget-your-next-pc-build/ though it's all priced in USD.

You might want to get a 750W or better PSU and a CPU cooler to replace the stock one. But that CPU and graphics card should last you for a while. I have something pretty similar and it's great.

Yeah, with regard to the PSU I wasn't sure what wattage to go for. 650 seemed like it would be sufficient, as my 600(650?) powers a 560ti and i5 2500K, but I'm worried it might not do the job here... they're fairly similar builds, though.

@Wipeout said:

I approve of this build. The 5900rpm hard drive though.... I'm not so sure on that. Spend a few extra bucks on a Caviar Black (or even Blue).

Was trying to scrimp a little there, but I've replaced it with a WD 1TB Caviar Black and I've thrown in a wireless network adapter, too.

Replace the 1.5 TB Seagate drive with an SSD and a smaller drive for Storage; also go with WD over Seagate; seagate products in my experience are awful. Usually dying within a few years and having to get them RMA replaced and losing my data.

And yeah no drive below 7200RPM even if it's just for storage. Look into WD Blacks as stated above.

Good.

@Subject2Change said:

Replace the 1.5 TB Seagate drive with an SSD and a smaller drive for Storage; also go with WD over Seagate; seagate products in my experience are awful. Usually dying within a few years and having to get them RMA replaced and losing my data.

This was my initial plan, but I wanted to try and keep it as close to £900 as possible. Bro says he isn't particularly fussed at putting up a little more, so have you any recommendations re: SSD? I've already made the swap to a 1TB WD Caviar Black as far as the HDD goes.

i assume its for gaming? you might want to get a gaming mouse like razer deathadder or the corsair M60.

Looks good. I built a similarly speced machine and have been loving it. Although I would suggest an SSD if its within your budget. I installed a 1TB black caviar as well as an SSD. I would suggest a 256GB Samsung 840/830. My boot up time is as least twice as fast than what I previously experienced.

Seems like a lot for the RAM. Although I'm not sure how GBP translates to American dollars or if RAM is more experience overseas. I bought Corsair XMS3s for ~US$35. (Amazon link)

@GetEveryone said:

@Subject2Change said:

Replace the 1.5 TB Seagate drive with an SSD and a smaller drive for Storage; also go with WD over Seagate; seagate products in my experience are awful. Usually dying within a few years and having to get them RMA replaced and losing my data.

This was my initial plan, but I wanted to try and keep it as close to £900 as possible. Bro says he isn't particularly fussed at putting up a little more, so have you any recommendations re: SSD? I've already made the swap to a 1TB WD Caviar Black as far as the HDD goes.

Crucial M4 or SAMSUNG 830/840; not in Europe so I don't know pricing but my minimum size would be 90gb, ideally 120gb at the very least; 256 is ideal.

Also I am personally and most people aren't big fans of computer cases with stock PSUs. I'd look into a cheaper case, something like an Antec 100 or Antec 300 and buying a separate PSU; 650w is fine but go with a good well respected brand like Corsair. A budget of 1050 or 1100 should make both of these things doable. Let me know if you have any other questions or are looking for other recommendations.

Looks good, I always go the AMD route get more power for the same amount of money and AMD got a deal on the 7000 series cards that includes Far Cry 3, Hitman Absolution and Sleeping Dogs. But anyway that's a decent computer.

@Bourbon_Warrior said:

Looks good, I always go the AMD route get more power for the same amount of money and AMD got a deal on the 7000 series cards that includes Far Cry 3, Hitman Absolution and Sleeping Dogs. But anyway that's a decent computer.

Indeed. Even as someone with a 660Ti, if you can get a 7970 for around £300, which it looks like you can on that site, along with all those games bundled in, go for it.

Piece of mind with stablility is worth it over ATI and it's shoddy record; even with 3 free games. All of which will drop in price shortly.

the ram is nuts, but at that lean price, i mean 50 quid aint much to argue about, although it will be running at nearly half speed un less you go and bump it up yourself.

everything else looks fine, the 650 GX's 624 watts on the 12 volt rail is more than enough to power this build.

@GetEveryone:

If you're going for best bang for the buck there are a couple things you could trim down.

While the Sabertooth is a great board... it's a bit overkill for this build. You could save around $70 and get the Asus P8Z77-V (get the Pro if you wanted the included wi-fi adapter).

You could get 1600 MHz RAM and save around $40.

Assuming this build is primarily for gaming, the GPU is going to be the most important component. If you can get a 7970 for only slightly more that would be a nice upgrade:

http://www.ebuyer.com/342736-gigabyte-hd-7970-oc-3gb-gddr5-dvi-hdmi-dual-mini-displayport-pci-e-gv-r797oc-3gd?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products

Otherwise a 7950 will perform the same as a 670 and cost slightly less.

Also, If you've got space in the budget I would get a mechanical keyboard. I probably wouldn't get a wireless mouse either but instead something like a Logitech G400.

I'd drop the 670 and go with a 660ti. The performance difference isn't big enough to warrant the price difference. With the money saved from dropping down to a 660ti, I'd dump that into a SSD.

I'd also probably ditch the blu-ray drive. That's... pricey for an optical drive you may not use much.

For your SSD, Crucial M4 or Samsung.

Power supply, I'd recommend something by PC Power and Cooling, Seasonic, or Corsair (Which just rebrands Seasonics.)

Other than that, pretty nifty build.

I agree @Zelyre said:

I'd drop the 670 and go with a 660ti. The performance difference isn't big enough to warrant the price difference. With the money saved from dropping down to a 660ti, I'd dump that into a SSD.

I'd also probably ditch the blu-ray drive. That's... pricey for an optical drive you may not use much.

For your SSD, Crucial M4 or Samsung.

Power supply, I'd recommend something by PC Power and Cooling, Seasonic, or Corsair (Which just rebrands Seasonics.)

Other than that, pretty nifty build.

Pretty much what I saw. As a 660ti owner, haven't even had to overclock it yet. Definitely need a 750W+ Power Supply.

@Zelyre said:

I'd drop the 670 and go with a 660ti. The performance difference isn't big enough to warrant the price difference. With the money saved from dropping down to a 660ti, I'd dump that into a SSD.

I'd also probably ditch the blu-ray drive. That's... pricey for an optical drive you may not use much.

For your SSD, Crucial M4 or Samsung.

Power supply, I'd recommend something by PC Power and Cooling, Seasonic, or Corsair (Which just rebrands Seasonics.)

Other than that, pretty nifty build.

I spent a while reading between the ti and the 670, and the consensus was that there was sufficient reason for choosing the 670. Disappointed if that isn't the case now that I've pulled the trigger on the build, but hey-ho. It's a good card, so my brother is pleased, regardless.

He was pretty adamant about the blu-ray drive, but has since splashed out on an SSD, too, so nothing has been lost in that regard.

All in all I'm pretty pleased with it - may look at upgrading the PSU if it's deemed a necessity. I thought 650W would provide enough power, but if not I can always just shell out for it, given the inconvenience.

Thanks for all the input, guys - it was really helpful. I shall no doubt return in the near future when I try my hand at building a second machine for myself.

I'd ditch the wireless mouse and go wired, but that's mostly personal preference. It really depends on what he plans to use it for, and how often, and for how long.

That was only half intended as an innuendo.

id check out the corsair carbide 200r as a good cheap alternative case , or the upcoming nzxt source 210 .. that enforcers not so great and you will probably be wanting a bettter psu than a cm 650 anyway , so its not as much "value"

@GetEveryone said:

All in all I'm pretty pleased with it - may look at upgrading the PSU if it's deemed a necessity. I thought 650W would provide enough power, but if not I can always just shell out for it, given the inconvenience.

650W is more than enough for this build.

Put in a SSD, truly makes it feel like new, booting Windows and games in a couple of seconds is way better than a few extra frames, Go for 660ti or 7950, on new egg the 7950 came with Far Cry 3, Sleeping Dogs and Hitman Absolution, so really a no brainer there.

http://www.tested.com/tech/pcs/452409-ssd-storage-essentials-your-next-pc-build/

I bought a 560ti for my PC build a month ago with the same processor, plays BF3 at 60 fps on almost ultra settings (1600x900). So if you wanted an SDD (they are awesome), or just to trim the price, I would get a slightly older card.

@GetEveryonesaid:

@Zelyre said:

I'd drop the 670 and go with a 660ti. The performance difference isn't big enough to warrant the price difference. With the money saved from dropping down to a 660ti, I'd dump that into a SSD.

I spent a while reading between the ti and the 670, and the consensus was that there was sufficient reason for choosing the 670. Disappointed if that isn't the case now that I've pulled the trigger on the build, but hey-ho. It's a good card, so my brother is pleased, regardless.

Don't worry, that was terrible advice. When you're building a gaming machine, if you can afford it, always get the better video card. It'll pay off the longer you have it.

@SynticV1 said:

Definitely need a 750W+ Power Supply.

Definitely do not need a 750W+ PSU unless you plan on going SLI in the future.