Sandy bridge Build validation

[marshalex]

Hi all

Been asked to spec up a pc for a friend and this is what I've come up with. For moderate gaming usage with (hopefully!) a little bit of future proofing.

I5 2500K
Asus P8P67
Corsair vengeance blue 1600 4GB
Asus GTX560
Coolermaster centurion 5 rev2
Xfx P1 550w PSU
samsung spinpoint f3 1 TB
OCZ Agility 3 60gb ssd
Pioneer dvdrw drive

Any improvements/changes welcome!

[planet436]

Could save £7-8 going for cheaper 1.5V specced ram. Anything over 1333 speed makes little to no real world difference.

There have also been a few problems with the new sandforce controller the OCZ ssd is based upon but if that doesn't both you then should be okay, alternatives would be the crucial M4 at a similar price/capacity point (or intel 320 but costs more).

Not seen any reviews for the XFX Psu (though is based on seasonic model), it is fine in terms of size though there are reports of a clicking noise coming from the fan on some models.

[marshalex]

Could save £7-8 going for cheaper 1.5V specced ram. Anything over 1333 speed makes little to no real world difference.

There have also been a few problems with the new sandforce controller the OCZ ssd is based upon but if that doesn't both you then should be okay, alternatives would be the crucial M4 at a similar price/capacity point (or intel 320 but costs more).

Not seen any reviews for the XFX Psu (though is based on seasonic model), it is fine in terms of size though there are reports of a clicking noise coming from the fan on some models.

PSU wise it was a toss up between that, the bequiet 600w model and the ocz stealthxstream v2 600w.

Wasn't aware of any issues with new new sandforce controller, though I'm not surprised after the first gen problems. Intel is bit too far out of price range so would either be the crucial or the new corsair force models once the issues are resolved

Thanks for the tip on the ram, will defiantly do that.

[marshalex]

Did also spot this however not sure on the psu Coolermaster Centurion 5 II Case with Coolermaster GX 550W PSU.

[kalniel]

Hi all

Been asked to spec up a pc for a friend and this is what I've come up with. For moderate gaming usage with (hopefully!) a little bit of future proofing.

I5 2500K
Asus P8P67
Corsair vengeance blue 1600 4GB
Asus GTX560
Coolermaster centurion 5 rev2
Xfx P1 550w PSU
samsung spinpoint f3 1 TB
OCZ Agility 3 60gb ssd
Pioneer dvdrw drive

Any improvements/changes welcome!

Keep it as is - looks pretty perfect IMHO, maybe consider a £15 third-party CPU cooler to allow for overclocking and/or quieter operation.

[marshalex]

Keep it as is - looks pretty perfect IMHO, maybe consider a £15 third-party CPU cooler to allow for overclocking and/or quieter operation.

Yeah that was the other thing actually, how good are the stock coolers this time round? Been told they've got a bit better and allow for some ocing?

May have to change for the coolermaster bundle as it saves nearly £30 compared to buying separate psu and case so can get a better cooler and a couple of fans

[kalniel]

Yeah that was the other thing actually, how good are the stock coolers this time round? Been told they've got a bit better and allow for some ocing?

They're a bit worse actually, being low-profile jobs, but they still allow for some OCing because sandybridge runs so cool. But an Artic Cooling 13 pro is cheap and a doddle to fit.

May have to change for the coolermaster bundle as it saves nearly £30 compared to buying separate psu and case so can get a better cooler and a couple of fans

I wouldn't get the bundle personally because I'm not sure on that PSU.

[marshalex]

4GB Corsair DDR3 Vengeance Blue, P 1 £26.99
1TB Samsung HD103SJ Spinpoint F3, S 1 £29.99
Coolermaster Centurion 5 II, Black, 1 £31.50
1GB MSI GTX 560, 40nm, 4000MHz GDDR 1 £118.99
550W XFX P1-550S-XXB9 80+ Bronze Ce 1 £38.99
60GB OCZ Agility 3 SSD, 2.5" SATA 6 1 £75.99
Pioneer DVR-S19LBK 24x DVD±R, 12x D 1 £14.98
Asus P8P67 Rev3, Intel P67, S1155, 1 £94.99
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro v2 - S 1 £12.98
Intel Core i5 2500K Unlocked, S1155 1 £126.99

went for this lot in the end, ordered Friday and coming Monday! prices are ex vat and all from scan. will be getting an extra case fan at a later date as exhaust for the top of the case

[onearmedbandit]

I asked a stupid question. can I delete this post?