New Gaming/Work PC: Any changes or recommendations welcome

[Sidmouth]

Hi Everyone, I will be using this PC primarily for gaming however I'll be using it for everyday use too plus work.

Quick rundown: -

Gaming on high settings. Hopefully more than that.
Photoshop plus similar
Browsing
Watching movies
Then your usual: Email, Office etc.

Heres the specification: -

Case

InWIN MANA-136 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)

Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard

ASUS® P8Z77-V LX: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, ATI®CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)

8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card

2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk

1TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 32MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive

24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply

CORSAIR 650W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX650 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£69)
Processor Cooling

SPIRE GEMINI REV.3-THERMAX HDT TWIN FAN CPU COOLER (£39)
Sound Card

ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities

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 w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
Office Software

NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus

NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
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 10 to 12 working days
Quantity
1

My budget was around £1000 although I've exceeded that by about £20 but its no big deal.

Couple of questions:

1. The Power Supply that I have selected. Is this too much or too little for the components I have selected specifically the 'GTX 670'? On the graphic card description page PCS recommend a minimum of 650W power supply, however I've read different looking at similair forum threads here.

2. The case that I have selected has an option of two more fans on top of what is already included. How do you specify that you want these included with the build?

Thats all I can think of so far question wise

Any feedback would be appreciated.

I posted a new thread just before this one and wasnt sure whether it posted properly so apologies for posting a new one so quickly. Please delete the previous thread and keep this one please. [Note by Rakk: old one has been deleted - it was in the moderation queue]

Thanks.

 

[keynes]

The Power Supply that I have selected. Is this too much or too little for the components I have selected specifically the 'GTX 670'? On the graphic card description page PCS recommend a minimum of 650W power supply, however I've read different looking at similair forum threads here.

The PSU is fine for your spec, if you are planning in adding a 2nd GTX 670 you would need a 750w PSU and change the motherboard.

The case that I have selected has an option of two more fans on top of what is already included. How do you specify that you want these included with the build?

It is not possible to add optional fans in the configurator, you could buy them separetely and send them to PCS to fit them for you.
SPIRE GEMINI REV.3-THERMAX HDT TWIN FAN CPU COOLER (£39)
For your built the triple copper heatpipe is a cheaper alternative. The Spire would be more suitable if you are planning to overclock your CPU.
1TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 32MB CACHE
A caviar black is faster than the standard HDD you selected.
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz
No noticeable difference in gaming/photoshop with higher memory bandwidth. You could go with the samsung 8gb 1333mhz.

 

[Buzz]

1: Personally it being the power supply which gives everything the power I prefer to not have mine limited around the same as the comp needs. I always like to go that bit higher. So if I need a 650W Ill always get a 750W and so on. Just a personal thing.

2: According to the config page on PCS the InWin MaNA 136 Black Gaming Case

Features
1. Rear: 12cm Fan x 1
2. Front: 12cm LED Fan x 1
3. Top: 12cm Fan x 2 (Optional)
4. Side: 12cm Fan x 2 (Optional)
5. Water-Cooling Hole Ready

So extra fans can be fitted. Fans are pretty easy to fit. After you have selected all your components and you have clicked proceed down the very bottom of the page you will see "Further details". If you click "additional items" and then post in there what you want. Im sure pcs will hook you up if indeed they can fit depending on the setup.

 

[Sidmouth]

Brilliant thanks for the quick reply.

Would it be wise to order the 750W power supply now if I intend to upgrade the graphics card in the future seeing as they may use more power.

And thanks for the recommendation on the CPU cooler. I won't be overclocking as I dont want to contend with the extra heat however is the titan cooler suitable enough for keeping the CPU cool while gaming for long periods and on a regular basis?

 

[keynes]

Brilliant thanks for the quick reply.

Would it be wise to order the 750W power supply now if I intend to upgrade the graphics card in the future seeing as they may use more power.

And thanks for the recommendation on the CPU cooler. I won't be overclocking as I dont want to contend with the extra heat however is the titan cooler suitable enough for keeping the CPU cool while gaming for long periods and on a regular basis?

If you are not overclocking the triple copper heatpipe is a good choice. You could go with the 750w PSU, I'd expect future cards to require less power though.

 

[Buzz]

I would advise and again this is just down to preference, NOT need but I would go for the higher PSU. If you can afford it now get it all done for you and have it there.

With no overclock the titan will be perfectly suitable and if managed to get the extra exhaust fans uptop that would help the overall air o the case and help keep things that bit cooler over prolonged gaming periods.

 

[Sidmouth]

Thanks for both of your replies, very helpful. 'Buzz' thanks for the tip about 'additional items' on the order page, I'll make a point of including that with the order.

 

[Buzz]

Thanks for both of your replies, very helpful. 'Buzz' thanks for the tip about 'additional items' on the order page, I'll make a point of including that with the order.

Happy to help mate. Anything else needed just holler

 

[Sidmouth]

Ruben I noticed you recommended the Caviar black HDD. Is it just a case of better read/write speeds over the standard model. And do you know which manufacturer PCS use for the standard drives?
Thanks.

 

[Rakk]

Ruben I noticed you recommended the Caviar black HDD. Is it just a case of better read/write speeds over the standard model.

The Caviar Blacks basically make for faster booting and loading times

 

[Sidmouth]

Ok thats great. It's only another £20 so can't complain. Better boot and load times is a winner in my mind.

 

[Sidmouth]

I have made some changes to my specification as shown below : -

Case

InWIN MANA-136 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)

Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3570 (3.4GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard

ASUS® P8Z77-V LX: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, ATI®CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)

8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card

2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk

1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive

24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply

CORSAIR 750W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX750 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£86)
Processor Cooling

SPIRE GEMINI REV.3-THERMAX HDT TWIN FAN CPU COOLER (£39)
Sound Card

ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities

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 w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
Office Software

NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus

NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
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 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

I have another question that I'd like to run past everyone.

I have checked the dimensions of the case I have selected and have specifically checked the dimensions of the GTX 670 and the CPU cooler (spire gemini). What im basically asking is will these components along with all the others fit properly with enough space left for good airflow?

The figures add up and theres room for everything its just a case of whether in an ideal situation it would be better to accommodate all of the parts in a larger case for the sake of cooling.

Thanks.

 

[keynes]

I have checked the dimensions of the case I have selected and have specifically checked the dimensions of the GTX 670 and the CPU cooler (spire gemini). What im basically asking is will these components along with all the others fit properly with enough space left for good airflow?

If there is any issue with your components not fitting properly PCS should contact you but it should be fine, due to the size of the Spire cooler you may want to confirm with PCS if you are also able to fit additional fans in the side panel. If you want better cooling you could upgrade your case.

 

[Sidmouth]

I think looking at the size of the components it would be wise to get the 'COOLERMASTER HAF 912 Plus'. The extra few inches look like they could be useful : D

 

[vanthus]

Personally I would go for the bigger case.
If planning on adding a 670 GPU in SLI in future (as you have selected a 750W PSU)
you will need a P8Z77-V motherboard,if not just ignore this.

 

[Sidmouth]

I've decided I'll add a PCI wireless card to my setup saves fiddling around with the USB dongles.

Quick question on this subject.

I've decided to go for one of the 300mbps wireless N cards however there are two options at £16 one is 'PCI' and the other 'PCI - E'.

Now the motherboard selected has enough PCI - E slots. The faster 3.0 slot I assume will accomodate the graphics card.

Is there an advantage to having a PCI - E network card over a standard PCI model?

 

[Sidmouth]

One more question before I order.

Is it better to get a modular power supply or is it recommended that you keep those additional cables.

Im aware that you achieve better airflow with the modular power supply, but by the sounds of it PC specialist do a good job of tidying up the interior of your case anyway.

If anyone could answer both of the above that would be great.

 

[keynes]

It is easy for you to tidy up your cables with a modular PSU and ,as you mentioned, better airflow. It also depends on the case you have selected.

A modular PSU is not essential but if you are able to afford one go for it The best cable management you will get is by you spending time tidying up your rig.

 

[vanthus]

One more question before I order.

Is it better to get a modular power supply or is it recommended that you keep those additional cables.

Im aware that you achieve better airflow with the modular power supply, but by the sounds of it PC specialist do a good job of tidying up the interior of your case anyway.

If anyone could answer both of the above that would be great.

With a modular you only need to instal the power cables you need,wth the non modular of course you don't have that option the extra cables are not removable.
I'm not convinced a few cables would have any affect on airflow,but just my opinion and PCS make an excellent job of cable management anyway.

 

[tom_gr7]

With a modular you only need to instal the power cables you need,wth the non modular of course you don't have that option the extra cables are not removable.
I'm not convinced a few cables would have any affect on airflow,but just my opinion and PCS make an excellent job of cable management anyway.

I dunno mate, a mod psu was one of the best choices I think I made for my rig. even when I had a HX750, I had a full bag of spare cables, I would have no where to put them if it wasn't a mod psu, apart from blocking airflow.