I want to pick your brains...

[CaseSensitive]

Hi guys...

Briefly, I'm looking to get some ideas from those more experienced about my build. I'm not going into great detail at the moment but I'd appreciate advice in a couple of areas.

i5-2500 Intel cpu / stock intel cooler complete with P8P67 mobo
GTX 460 1gb / HD 6850 1 gb
CM690 MK II / CM SILEO 500
8 gb memory
2 x 500 caviar black. No raid.
Usual dvd writer and silver warrenty etc

I'm almost certainly sticking with the CPU/mobo/memory/hdd setup but am undecided about the graphics and case.

I'm not a gamer but I want a gfx card because I might play some someday and because I will be keeping the pc for some time. My current system is almost 9 (yes NINE) years old so whatever I get will have to last and cope with whatever comes along lol

The case ideally would have reachable USB/other sockets.

I want a quiet system and a cool system. Use is mainly net browsing, office apps, musis and video. Not ruling out games but I won't be needing cutting edge gfx.

Budget has to be < 1k and I don't need a monitor. No SSD at this time because I don't think they are cost effective yet.

I'd be very grateful for your views on my ideas and in particular gfx, case and cooling. Ohhh I'm not limiting my choice to the above cases/cards.... I'll consider whatever is suggested.

Hope to order tomorrow so no pressure guys

Cheers CS

 

[JSG10]

If you want it quiet go for that Sileo case

Either one of those GPUs will keep you set for a few years at least if you're not a heavy gamer.

Why are you going for 2 500gb drives? You can get a 1TB Caviar Green for less than both of those and given your needs you won't notice a performance drop.

 

[LFFPicard]

Something like this will suit you then, got more power than you nee don the PSU for any future upgrades.
Everything else is as per request and under budget.

Enjoy!

Case
COOLERMASTER SILEO 500 QUIET MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5-2500 Quad Core (3.30GHz, 6MB Cache) + HD Graphics
Motherboard
ASUS® P8P67 (NEW REV 3.0): USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, CrossFireX™
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG DDR3 DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card
1GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 460 - 2 DVI,HDMI,VGA - DX® 11, 3D Vision Ready
Free Item
FREE Need For Speed™ World Starter Pack with any Nvidia® GTS450 or above!
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR GREEN WD10EARS, SATA 3 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TX SERIES (TX750) 80+ ULTRA QUIET PSU (£86)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 11 to 13 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £877.00 including VAT and delivery.

Configure Here: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/computers/intel-sandy-bridge-pc/

 

[CaseSensitive]

Hi guys...

and thanks for the comments so far. It seems the Sileo would be the quieter of the two cases I mentioned. I think I can remember similar sort of reply in another thread.

Both of you went with the GTX460 rather than the HD 6850. Any particular reasong for that ? Noise or power consumption ?

Is the admittedly small extra for the heatsink worthwhile and more importantly is it really quieter than the stock item ?

I went for the two 500gb drives simply to give me the option to have OS / progs on one and my data on the other. They really aren't that expensive these days so I splashed lol

I'm guessing that I'm going to see a quantum leap in performance with this new machine. I daren't even tell you the specs of my existing one. I'm really looking forward to NOT having to sit back and relax/wait while M$ Word loads or I switch from one browser window to another and it struggles to load the screen images !!

 

[JSG10]

I said either would be fine I think that the 6850 is the quieter and less power hungry of those two cards though.

The heatsink is quite a lot quieter than the stock cooler.

Makes sense about the HDD. But why not just partition them? If you really want to splash out, invest in a small 80GB SSD for your OS then get a larger HDD for all your data and programs It'll make a big difference.

And yes, they'll be a massive leap in performance! You'll love it