# computer build



## retroyoshi (Feb 26, 2012)

My old HP Pavilion a1013 has ofiacailly proven itself old and i need to replace it. Ive herd that so long you know what your doing, building your computer is the best way to go about replacement. This new computer HAS to be able to play games like Dungeons and Dragons Online and/or Leage of Legands AND be able to record game play whilst doing so. I have consulted with a good freind of mine who agrees this should work, but id like a triple check just to be sure. Thank You for your time and please share any advice you can come up with. Im trying to keep this at a budget of under $1,000. heres the list:

Western Digital Caviar Blue 500 GB SATA III 7200 RPM 16 MB Cache Bulk/OEM Desktop Hard Drive - WD5000AAKX 

Raidmax Hybrid 630W ATX12V/EPS12V Power Supply RX-630SS 

Corsair XMS3 16GB (4x 4GB) PC3-10666 1333MHz DDR3 Memory Kit for AMD and Intel Dual Channel Processors CMX16GX3M4A1333C9 

EVGA GeForce GTX 460 FPB, 1024MB GDDR5, PCI-E 2.0, Dual DVI, miniHDMI, SLI Ready Graphics Card (01G-P3-1361-KR)

Raidmax Typhoon ATX Mid Tower Case ATX-312WS 

Samsung Blu-Ray Combo Internal 12XReadable and DVD-Writable Drive with Lightscribe SH-B123L/BSBP 

HP S2031 20-Inch Diagonal LCD Monitor

GIGABYTE GA-990FXA-UD3 AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard 

AMD FX 6100 6-Core Processor, 3.3 6 Socket AM3+ - FD6100WMGUSBX 

Sony MRW620/U1/181 Internal 17 in 1 Memory Card Reader/Writer

Logitech Wireless Desktop MK320 Keyboard


----------



## A1tecice (Jun 1, 2010)

Hey Retroyoshi and *welcome to TSF!*.

Before I look over your build in great detail I have already noticed a few things that I believe are wasteful/need changing.

Firstly is your power supply I found it on newegg for $49 I (and im sure everyone else on this forum) would strongly suggest you find a new and better branded model of PSU. I suggest you read this post first:

http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f210/power-supply-information-and-selection-192217.html

Choosing a rubbish and cheap power supply can be a massive mistake for your system because if it decides to go. it can bring your whole pc to its knees. Not to mention it may cause problems just by using it. I would stick to brands such as *OCZ,Corsair,Thermaltake and Enermax.*


Secondly, Your RAM. is there some reason you need 16GB of ram? if it is just gaming i would suggest 4-8GB is plenty any more is just a waste of money. Also i suggest you stay away from 4GB RAM sticks I know we have had alot of problems on the forums with faulty 4GB RAM sticks. so I would stick to 1-2GB sticks and avoid them.

I cant see anything wrong with your build apart from that.


----------



## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

Stay away from OCZ, Enermax, the only thermaltake that are good are the toughpower series, Corsair AX, HX,TX and VX (stay away fron the GS line), XFX and Seasonic are all good quality power supplies.


----------



## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Ditto! ^
You can use our suggested build list for a guide: http://www.techsupportforum.com/for...evised-2012-and-updated-regularly-448272.html

SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair (not the CX-GS-M Series). 650W minimum for the GTX 460. and 4GB (2x4) is more than plenty.


----------



## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

8gb vs 16gb is cheaper and identical in performance. Going from 1333 to 1600 would make more difference than 8gb vs 16gb.

Cases are personal preference but I would recommend getting one with a larger exhaust fan (yours listed is only 80mm, 120mm would be good). The side fan will have little if any effect. What I look for is pre-installed front and rear 120mm fans with the front fan having a dust filter. I like the Rosewill Blackbone myself:
Newegg.com - Rosewill Blackbone Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
If down the road you want serious case cooling, you'll have to purchase higher-RPM aftermarket fans anyway.

For PSU Amd_Man and Tyree are 100% correct. I would recommend you use Newegg's wattage calculator then *add 30%*, then choose a PSU from our recommended list in the sticky about two-thirds of the way down the page:
http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f210/power-supply-information-and-selection-192217.html

The 460 is an alright card but the Radeon HD6850 is a little better and costs the same. I used the 6850 to record some LoL myself, solid 60fps no matter what happened. With the games you listed, you could get the same results from a cheaper 550ti.

For League of Legends, I recommend getting a big monitor :grin:. It's one of those games that really benefits from screen size. A solid standy-by for gamers is on sale atm:
Newegg.com - ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ASCR 20000:1 (1000:1) W/Speakers
Note that monitors are measured diagonally, so each additional inch in size actually adds more screen space than the last. If you calculate price-per-square inch you'll see bigger monitors are usually quite cost-effective 

Good luck with the build. Looks like it's going to be pretty rockin'.


----------



## retroyoshi (Feb 26, 2012)

okay, thanks for the advice! heres a edit of the parts:

PSU is now: Corsair Builder Series CX V2 500-Watt 80 Plus Certified Power Supply - CMPSU-500CXV2 

GPU is now: GIGABYTE ATI Radeon HD6850 1GB DDR5 2DVI/HDMI/DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card GV-R685OC-1GD

RAM is now (im getting two of these): Corsair XMS3 4GB ( 2 x 2GB ) 1600mhz PC3-12800 240-pin DDR3 Dual Channel Memory Kit

I did my research and agree with those changes. I'm not changing my case to the Roswell Blackbone because it seems to chunky and boring and all-around nerdy. my computer was to sit on top of my desk and id rather people see something other than that. I wont change to that Asus moniter because that would be adding an extra $70 to my budget. Remember I am trying to budget this and with the new parts list, I'm already pushing it close to the line. thank you for all of your advice, and please post anything else you think i should know.


----------



## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

You need to be at 650w for good reliable power and the Corsair builder series are not recommended. Corsair AX, HX, TX and VX are the ones you want. The case toothman listed is much better than yours and does not look nerdy. If anything the case you chose looks hideous!


----------



## retroyoshi (Feb 26, 2012)

Tooth man said cases are a personal prefrence, so lets stop discusion over cases, I could just mount the computer on the wall. And those PSU's are very pricey. Back to the many other computer people I've spoken with, they all have said that you dont need to spend $100+ on something as simple as the power source. Infact, they have said the $30-50 range was the perfect spot to shop for with 650W power sources.


----------



## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

They have no idea what they are talking about. Anyways you asked, didn't feel the advice was good so best of luck to you! The "power source" is the most important piece of hardware. It powers all the other hardware and as such should be of quality. Your money, your choice!


----------



## retroyoshi (Feb 26, 2012)

Amd_Man said:


> They have no idea what they are talking about. Anyways you asked, didn't feel the advice was good so best of luck to you! The "power source" is the most important piece of hardware. It powers all the other hardware and as such should be of quality. Your money, your choice!


 There is no single ''most important'' piece in a computer! there's about seven!


----------



## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

No it's the power supply. I've been building and selling them for 10+ years and have worked with computers for 15+ years. Anyways there's no instilling the importance of a quality power supply to you so again best of luck with the build.


----------



## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

The PSU is the one most important component in any PC. It is responsible for supply sufficient clean power to the entire unit. Without that supply of clean sufficient power, the other components are stressed and will fail prematurely.
You need to be at 650W with a good quality PSU for the 6850 GPU.
SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair (not the CX-GS-M Series) are top quality. Using anything less will result in damage and cost you more later.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f210/power-supply-information-and-selection-192217.html
Cases are certainly a personal choice but Raidmax cases are more about the bling than quality and personally I'm not fond of Rosewill cases either. CoolerMaster and Antec have the better quality cases in quality per cost.


----------



## A1tecice (Jun 1, 2010)

I cant agree with Tyree and AMD_Man more. Please rethink your choice of power supply.without reiterating what they have already said please change your PSU to a more suitable reliable option.


----------



## joesaje (Oct 11, 2011)

U definetly need at least 650w and more wouldnt hurt if u look hard enough u can find a decent priced psu


----------



## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

joesaje said:


> U definetly need at least 650w and more wouldnt hurt if u look hard enough u can find a decent priced psu


A good 650W PSU will run just under $100.


----------



## joesaje (Oct 11, 2011)

I spent around 100$ and got my psu its 1000 w ...lol i can put an air conditioner in my rig and still have enough power to go around! Lmao


----------



## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

The reason I (we here) use and recommend quality power supplies is to protect peoples other "expensive" hardware from premature failure due to insufficient power being supplied. I don't want a person, poster or customer coming back to me with dead hardware because I cut corners (dollars) by using a poor quality power supply.


----------



## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

joesaje said:


> I spent around 100$ and got my psu its 1000 w ...lol i can put an air conditioner in my rig and still have enough power to go around! Lmao


watts means nothing its amps that are important low quality supplies like raidmax for instance will exagerate the wattage the psu can handle. if you add up the amps it wont = the wattage which it should.

the psu is the most important part, there is no point in having 16GB ram a good graphics card a good cpu and a crap power supply you would just be asking for problems.

I used to test power supplies for a living and I can tell you that difference between a good quality power supply and a crap quality power supply is very dramatic. When it comes to technology cheap = crap.

We dont want you to waste your money so this is why we advise quality units buying low quality leads to potential damage and you could at some point have to replace the entire system especially running it with a raidmax psu.


----------



## joesaje (Oct 11, 2011)

I would reccomend u go with the psu i use antec cp-1000 its a bit overkill but i found it for around 100$ and for a case id say also antec 1200 v3 its spacious and jas plenty of fans all with their own controls i get cold just sitting next to my rig!


----------



## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

joesaje said:


> I would reccomend u go with the psu i use antec cp-1000 its a bit overkill but i found it for around 100$ and for a case id say also antec 1200 v3 its spacious and jas plenty of fans all with their own controls i get cold just sitting next to my rig!


antec used to be great power supplies but around 4/5 years ago they started swapping component suppliers quite often to save money. This in turn ended up with low quality capacitors inside the psu and crap power output. When antec were made by seasonic they were one of the best and in tier 1 of power supplies now there are lower tier 2 because of their costly money saving shennanigans.


----------



## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

"Some" Antec PSU's are good quality but they change suppliers to frequently to suggest anyone using them. 
Staying with anything SeaSonic built guarantees top quality and helps insure a longer life for your components.


----------



## joesaje (Oct 11, 2011)

I know what youre saying but i got a good price for it and like i said before its 1000w and ive got 2 video cards and a full ram bay (24gb) of tri channel ram plus atvleast 5 fans and a cpu heatsink the size of an old n.e.s system so ill use it till i find a new one


----------



## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

The HCP 1000 Antec is made by FSP and they are far from good quality.
You won't find a good quality 1000W PSU in the $100 range. $200 plus for any good quality 1000W.
Best of luck.


----------



## A1tecice (Jun 1, 2010)

Word of advice i spent £260($412) on my 1250W PSU. So just to give you a 'good estimate' although 1KW PSU's are more common now than they used to be.


----------



## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

I would recommend going over the PSU information sticky that Tyree linked earlier:
http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f210/power-supply-information-and-selection-192217.html

Contains explanation for why all the shop owners who are techs on this site, such as Tyree, same the _exact same thing_ about PSUs. Good information.


----------

