My first 'from the ground up' build - £1000 budget - Hardware & Software

This is my first completely Do It Yourself PC build and I want to know if my choices so far are good ones. This computer will be used for a mixture of gaming, HD video editing and viewing and 3D modeling. Apart from the graphics card (XFX Nvidia 9600GT which will be replaced later this year when DX11 arrives) all parts of this computer including the monitor will be bought brand new. I want this computer to have a good lifespan and reusablity so I don't want low quality parts, bang for buck is good but I want it to last for around 4 years. At the moment I have an incomplete list of parts, I would like some advice on which vendors and models to choose: - Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - [url=http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/mice_pointers/mice/devices/4259&cl=gb,en]Logitech MX518 Gaming Mouse[/url] - [url=http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/keyboards/keyboard/devices/285&cl=gb,en]Logitech G11 Keyboard[/url] - [url=http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MTEzMQ==]Antec 300 Series case with two front bay fans.[/url] - [url=http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=Njk0]Antec Signature 650W PSU[/url] it's a higher wattage than what I currently require to allow for future upgrades such as a DX11 graphics card later this year. - Intel i7 920 2.66GHz Processor (planning to overclock to 3GHz). - [url=http://uk.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=ngnrJAuyQwpRwPef&templete=2]ASUS Triton 88 CPU heatsink[/url] - ASUS P6T SE Motherboard - Corsair 6GB DDR3 Ram - LG CH08LS10 8x Internal Blu-ray + DVD+-RW Drive - 1TB Western Digital HDD (plus 500GB which I already have). - Unknown monitor, must be capable of at least 1920x1080 resolution for HD films. Alternatively I may go with an i5 Processor in which case I would go with these parts: - Intel i5 750 2.66GHz Processor (planning to overclock to 3GHz) - ASUS P7P55D Motherboard - Antec 550W TruePower PSU Most of the rest would be the same. I have to admit I'm not so keen on the i5 due to it's lack of support for triple channel ram and hyperthreading as these features could set the i7 apart in a couple of years. Are there any good suggestions you have?

Are there particular features that you need from windows 7 ultimate? The price premium is usually not worth it unless you have specific need of the features.

unless the modelling/whatever is on a professional level, don't bother with an i7 and get an i5 750, it's a waste of cash if it's just to render your GMod models or whatever a little faster there are already DX11 cards out (ATi 5000s), anyway at this point DX11 doesn't matter and it won't for a while yet MX518 is in no way expensive, it's excellent bang/buck PSU is way overkill, 600W can take double 5____ cards for the cooler look at a coolermaster Hyper 212

[QUOTE=zanraptora;19771414]Are there particular features that you need from windows 7 ultimate? The price premium is usually not worth it unless you have specific need of the features.[/QUOTE] Sorry that was a mistake, I meant Professional or Home Premium 64-bit. Would you recommend one of those? [QUOTE=reapaninja;19771618]unless the modelling/whatever is on a professional level, don't bother with an i7 and get an i5 750, it's a waste of cash if it's just to render your GMod models or whatever a little faster there are already DX11 cards out (ATi 5000s), anyway at this point DX11 doesn't matter and it won't for a while yet MX518 is in no way expensive, it's excellent bang/buck PSU is way overkill, 600W can take double 5____ cards for the cooler look at a coolermaster Hyper 212[/QUOTE] The modeling is likely to become quite high poly as I intend to start doing proper animations in the future. I chose the i7 because it will still be useful in years to come and with excellent overclocking ability it makes it a better investment over time even if the full performance benefits don't arrive for another year. I hope to keep this computer for at least four years (with modifications at about 2 years which is why I went with the larger power supply unit.) As you say, DX11 cards are available now but they will probably not be useful until DX11 is released, I want to get the most out of my 9600GT before retiring it. As for the mouse, I have now taken a look at some others and I was mistaken in thinking it was expensive. Would you recommend going for a higher spec one. Personally I don't think the extra feature are worth it so I probably will just stick with the MX518. The G11 Keyboard also seems pretty good.

[QUOTE=Master Chris;19771690]Sorry that was a mistake, I meant Professional 64-bit. Would you recommend that?[/QUOTE] unless you need XP mode, just get home premium

[QUOTE=reapaninja;19771882]unless you need XP mode, just get home premium[/QUOTE] Ok Also I updated my last post. Any suggestions for a motherboard?

depends whether it's for professional rendering/etc or just little bits on the side

Monitor [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001280[/url] Also if you plan on overclocking this xeno might be for you since they are binned higher so they overclock higher usually. [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117213[/url]

So you're still getting the Antec 850 PSU? 1. Major overkill. 2. Better quality PSUs for that kind of money. Drop the Triton heatsink (use one that comes with the CPU) unless you are [B]certain[/B] that you will be overclocking.

[QUOTE=sbradford26;19772328]Monitor [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001280[/url] Also if you plan on overclocking this xeno might be for you since they are binned higher so they overclock higher usually. [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117213[/url][/QUOTE]He lives in the U.K. And yea, OP drop the 850 watt PSU. It's overkill. And at ferrus, Antec is one of the most respected PSU brands. It's high quality.

You sure you'll be rendering and stuff, and not only gaming?

[QUOTE=imadaman;19778877]You sure you'll be rendering and stuff, and not only gaming?[/QUOTE] Yes I will be doing rendering and video editing not just gaming, but I am beginning to have doubts about whether the i7 with hyper threading is worth the investment even for very intensive tasks. I mean at most I will be running Sony Vegas, Internet Explorer and Photoshop at the same time, that's three tasks and the fourth core can be used to help out and deal with background tasks. I mean for me that would be quite a lot of things, I'm used to running just a single core processor so I haven't really got the chance to do proper multi-tasking and I would really like to take advantage of it. But on the other hand the i5 processors use the LGA-1156 socket which presumably won't be around as long as the LGA-1366 socket motherboards, therefore reducing upgrade potential in the future (say I want to get a new processor in 3 years). Would it just be better to scrap the motherboard at that stage and get a new one as well as a new processor?

Definitely go for an i7 if you're looking for upgradeability and high performance. It really is a powerhouse platform, with the HyperThreading and tri-channel RAM giving it a nice performance boost. Socket 1366 will support i9 CPUs and 32nm CPUs, which means you'll be able to upgrade to at least the next release of the i7/i9 family. If you want this to last for 3 years, then an i7 will last that long running intensive tasks. Even though it is considered overkill now, in the future it will probably be just average. Also, if you ever plan on going Crossfire/SLI, consider that the PCI-E slots will run at full x16 speed, instead of x8 on normal LGA 1156 motherboards.

[QUOTE=Error_404;19779309]Definitely go for an i7 if you're looking for upgradeability[/QUOTE] hey guys, intel just released a bunch of new i5s, this clearly means 1156 is dead and 1366 is the only way to go [QUOTE=Error_404;19779309]Socket 1366 will support i9 CPUs[/QUOTE] enjoy your $1000 server CPU [editline]01:49PM[/editline] [QUOTE=Error_404;19779309]the PCI-E slots will run at full x16 speed, instead of x8 on normal LGA 1156 motherboards.[/QUOTE] because this totally means anything right now when nothing maxes PCI-E 1.0

I've updated the OP, still need some help deciding on motherboards as i'm not sure if my current choice is the best. Any other suggestions are welcome.

[QUOTE=reapaninja;19779976]hey guys, intel just released a bunch of new i5s, this clearly means 1156 is dead and 1366 is the only way to go[/QUOTE]has intel even announced future LGA 1156 CPUs? [QUOTE=reapaninja;19779976]enjoy your $1000 server CPU[/QUOTE] yeah man just because games don't use 6-cores today doesn't mean they'll use them in a few months that's TOTALLY CRAZY everyone said the same exact thing just before dual-core came out, and again just before quad-core. [editline]09:20PM[/editline] you can't always rely on "but it's cheaper" as an argument, you know. someone who has a job and has money won't give a shit if something costs more, if it's better, they'll get it.