New PC @ 30k · DIGIT-ARC

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1. What is the purpose of the computer? What all applications and games are you going to run? (Stupid answers like 'gaming' or 'office work' will not work. Be exact. Which games? Which applications? Avoid the word 'et cetera.')

Ans: Strictly Gaming.

2. What is your overall budget? If you can extend a bit for a more balanced configuration, then mention this too.

Ans: 27-28k, max 30k , not anymore plz

3. Planning to overclock?

Ans: Not the processor, but GPU for sure.

4. Which Operating System are you planning to use?

Ans: Windows 7 Ultimate x64

5. How much hard drive space is needed?

Ans: 500GB, although I have 250GB at present.

6. Do you want to buy a monitor? If yes, please mention which screen size and resolution do you want. If you already have a monitor and want to reuse it, again mention the size and resolution of monitor you have.

Ans: I already have a monitor which runs at 1600 x 900 resolution. I won't be changing this monitor.

7. Which components you DON'T want to buy or which components you already have and plan on reusing?

Ans: Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, DVD Writer, Hard disk [ 250GB ].

8. When are you planning to buy the system?

Ans: End of this month.

9. Have you ever built a desktop before or will this be done by an assembler?

Ans: I'll assemble it.

10. Where do you live? Are you buying locally? Are you open to buying stuff from online shops if you don't get locally?

Ans: I live in Bhubaneswar, open to buy from SMC, Flipkart etc.

11. Anything else which you would like to say?

Ans: Is a RAID compatible motherboard possible within this budget?

T

X4 960T- Rs. 6,300
Gigabyte GA880 USB3 or MSI 880GMA E35 - Rs. 4,500
Corsair 1x 4GB 1333Mhz- Rs. 1,100
WD 500GB HDD- Rs. 4,300
Corsair CX500 v2- Rs. 3,000
Cooler Master Elite 311- Rs. 1,800
MSI R6850 Cyclone PE/OC- Rs. 9,000

Total Rs. 30,000

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The MSI 880GMA E35 looks badass compared to the Gigabyte model you suggested. Also is the 960T unlockable to hexacore ?

ArjunKiller said:
Also is the 960T unlockable to hexacore ?

Yes it is. But I've read user reviews doubting the stability of the same. Also you'll need a good Mobo like ASUS M5A97 and a decent after market CPU cooler.

@the1337est - Decent suggestion mate. But I think you should recheck the prices at flipkart.

A

Is Core i5 possible within this budget ?

ArjunKiller said:
Is Core i5 possible within this budget ?

Only possible if u take out Hdd.

W

for strictly gaming purpose i5 is much more than required.if you also do lots of video encoding/converting,virtual machines etc then i5 can be worth it.for gaming all one need is a 4 core processor & best possible graphics card along with a good power supply & cabinet within budget.

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Okay, but won't i5 be more futureproof than the Phenom ?

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RiGOD said:
Yes it is. But I've read user reviews doubting the stability of the same. Also you'll need a good Mobo like ASUS M5A97 and a decent after market CPU cooler.

@the1337est - Decent suggestion mate. But I think you should recheck the prices at flipkart.

He said that he's open to buy from SMC so the prices I mentioned is approximately what he can get from SMC.

@Arjun:
An i5 Sandy Brige is all that gaming needs atm. Phenom isn't bad, but i5 is surely a better performer.
960T can be unlocked to a hexcore, MSI clearly states the high possibility of a stable unlock with MSI 880GMA E35, if not, you haven't lost yet, it is a black edition (unlocked multiplier).

Also, with all 6 cores unlocked on the 960T it can perform better than i5 in tasks like video encoding / compressing etc.

If you can extend your budget, go for i5, if not, 960T is your best go.

Good luck

W

don't risk unlocking 960T on a budget mobo like MSI 880GMA E35 which does not even mention which phase VRM design it uses(at least gigabyte clearly mention it).Asus M5A97 which costs ~6200 with 4+2 phase VRM is suitable to unlock to 6 cores & overclocking it.also there is no such thing as futureproof since no one knows the future.if you are a gamer & have the budget i5 is the best option & if not then get amd.

ArjunKiller said:
Is Core i5 possible within this budget ?

Ready to reuse the HDD? Go for an i5+h61 board (it is cheaper than h67, but no SATA III, USB 3.0, extra RAM slots)

Or else AMD + a good GPU will do.

A

I definitely would need RAID 0 in the future because of faster speeds, Sata 6.0GB/s is also essential along with USB 3.0. I guess AMD is the only choice for me

I can reuse the HDD till prices come down if needed.

Here's an alternative if you're reusing the HDD.

Component Make Price
CPU Intel Core i5-2400 11500
Motherboard Intel DH67CL B3 5725
RAM Corsair DDR3 4 GB 1200
GPU Radeon HD 7770 8200
Case Any Generic 1000
PSU FSP Saga II 500W 2260
TOTAL 29885

It'll give really good gaming experience at 1600x900. And if you can push your budget by a few hundred bucks then go for this GPU *www.smcinternational.in/index.php?...ategory_id=33&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=91

A

Seems good, although i5 is available for around 9.5k in Bhubaneswar.

I guess Phenom II X4 960T will be enough for you.
Don't buy the hdd now..go with the1337est's suggestion without the hdd and add the budget to the graphics card (total budget= 9000+4300=13300) and get hd 7850 after 1-2 months

samshingdude said:
I guess Phenom II X4 960T will be enough for you.
Don't buy the hdd now..go with the1337est's suggestion without the hdd and add the budget to the graphics card (total budget= 9000+4300=13300) and get hd 7850 after 1-2 months

An HD 7850 which would cost around 13-14k for playing at 1600x900. I think that's waste of money. Even to max out at 1600x900 an HD 6850 @ 8.6k is more than enough. Moreover to overclock the 960T you'll need a better Mobo and an expensive after market cooler, a better cabinet for decent airflow etc etc. And still the stock i5 would wipe the floor with the above overclocked thing.

So I'd say if he can save a few hundreds more, go for THIS killer card and never look back.

A

How about this guys? Will this be OK?

Component Make Price Processor Intel Core i5 2400 9500
Motherboard Intel DH67CL B3 5750
RAM G-skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT(4Gx1) 1193
Graphic Card MSI R6850 Cyclone PE/OC 8600
PSU Corsair CX500V2 3000
Case NZXT Source 210 Elite 2300

Total 30343

Seems good to me. But don't finalize yet. Wait for some expert comments.

Nice one.
BTW are you sure i5-2400 is available for 9.5k here?? And what about mobo? Is it available here or are you gonna get it from flipkart?

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Well, 1 month ago it was 9.8k @ Gadget World, so now should be 9.5 approx with discounts and stuff.

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intel i5 config is best for gaming as well as other usages.i5 2400 prices are ~9500 in nehru place i think & DH67BLC3 is available for ~5450 on flipkart.

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ArjunKiller said:
How about this guys? Will this be OK?

Component Make Price Processor Intel Core i5 2400 9500
Motherboard Intel DH67CL B3 5750
RAM G-skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT(4Gx1) 1193
Graphic Card MSI R6850 Cyclone PE/OC 8600
PSU Corsair CX500V2 3000
Case NZXT Source 210 Elite 2300

Total 30343

which config would peform better in gaming

Core i5 2400- 9500
Intel DH67CL B3- 5750
R6850 - 8600
Total - 23850

or

Phenom II X4 955- 6200
Gigabyte GA-880GM-USB3- 4600
Radeon HD 6950 1 GB - 14500
Total- 25300.

W

it depends.
i5 2400>>>any Phenom II x4
6950>6850
if playing on resolutions below HD difference between 6950 & 6850 won't be much noticeable.at full HD 6950 will perform better than 6850 but i5 is much faster so in games where cpu matters difference between 6850 & 6950 will be much smaller.

It all comes down to the playing resolution. Full HD? GPU matters more. Smaller resolutions? Less load on GPU. So the 6850 will be more than enough and with i5 on board it will rock.

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whitestar_999 said:
it depends.
i5 2400>>>any Phenom II x4
6950>6850
if playing on resolutions below HD difference between 6950 & 6850 won't be much noticeable.at full HD 6950 will perform better than 6850 but i5 is much faster so in games where cpu matters difference between 6850 & 6950 will be much smaller.

Are there significant no. of games where CPU matters (than the GPU)? i thought its the GPU which makes the differrence.

Battlefield 3 recommended requirements is any quardcore processor, doesn't even mention the clock speed. But 6950 & GTX 560 is the recommended card. anything below means game will struggle at High Resolutions & Maxx settings.
Battlefield 3 system requirements - Battlefield 3

from the anandtech CPU benchmark.
AnandTech - Bench - GPU12
AnandTech - Bench - CPU

@1680X 1050, i5 outperforms Phenom II X4 by 50% in FarCry 2. But only 17% in left4dead and 11% in Crysis warhead.

and 6950 outperforms 6850 by 20% to 40%.

if we take the latest Battlefield 3,
Battlefield 3 VGA and CPU performance benchmark test
diff between 6950 & 6850 @ 1920X1200 is 40%. diff increases at even higher resolution.

W

right now there are few games where cpu relatively matters more compared to other games but as i already said even in these games 6950 will perform better just that difference between i5+6850 & phenom II x4+6950 will be smaller than expected.

cheapest phenom II x4 costs ~6000 while cheapest i5 costs ~9000 so the difference is only 3000 but performance gain is huge.also intel DH67CLB3 features sata3 & usb3 & cheapest amd mobo with these features too will cost ~5000.if you don't need these features & can not adjust your budget then only go for AMD.

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whitestar_999 said:
right now there are few games where cpu relatively matters more compared to other games but as i already said even in these games 6950 will perform better just that difference between i5+6850 & phenom II x4+6950 will be smaller than expected.

cheapest phenom II x4 costs ~6000 while cheapest i5 costs ~9000 so the difference is only 3000 but performance gain is huge.also intel DH67CLB3 features sata3 & usb3 & cheapest amd mobo with these features too will cost ~5000.if you don't need these features & can not adjust your budget then only go for AMD.

indeed sandybridge gave huge boost in performance, Core i5 2400 is a steal at 10K price level, its giving lots of value for the money we are paying. But i read many times that while building a gaming computer, save money on CPU and spend most on GPU.
it would have been easier for gamers if Athlon II X4 at 4K price was availaible in the market.

a stupid question would Pentium G620 bottleneck the HD 6950 in any of the present games?

ajaymailed said:
which config would peform better in gaming

Core i5 2400- 9500
Intel DH67CL B3- 5750
R6850 - 8600
Total - 23850

or

Phenom II X4 955- 6200
Gigabyte GA-880GM-USB3- 4600
Radeon HD 6950 1 GB - 14500
Total- 25300.

the AMD system is more powerful but you don't need an HD6950 for HD gaming. my suggestion is to get 960T with some better motherboard so that you can overclock is as well as unlock is safely later. As for GPU, wait for HD7XXX. else get HD6870.

ajaymailed said:
a stupid question would Pentium G620 bottleneck the HD 6950 in any of the present games?

no. to make 620 act as a bottleneck, you'll need an even faster GPU.

W

check this out:G620+6970
Intel Pentium G850, Pentium G840 and Pentium G620 Review. Page 4 - X-bit labs

the above test measures how well the cpu can handle the games without taking into account graphics card superior functions.

we do our best to make sure that the graphics card is not loaded too heavily during the test session: we select the most CPU-dependent tests and all tests are performed without antialiasing and in far not the highest screen resolutions. In other words, obtained results allow us to analyze not that much the fps rate that can be achieved in systems equipped with contemporary graphics accelerators, but rather how well contemporary processors can cope with gaming workload. Therefore, the results help us determine how the tested CPUs will behave in the nearest future, when new faster graphics card generations will be widely available.

New Intel microarchitecture is very well fit for gaming load that is why the new Pentium processors do really well in this group of tests. This entire family is quite comparable with Core i3 LGA1156 processors, so they fit perfectly for inexpensive gaming systems. Only more expensive Core i3 LGA1155 processors and in some cases Athlon II X3 can offer better performance than Pentium G850/G840/G620, when a game uses multi-threading efficiently enough.

edit:it looks like that 1600*900 resolution is going to be a problem because lower the game resolution more will be the cpu load.so either run games at 1080p on your 1600*900 monitor or get at least a core i3.

A

I won't be changing this monitor ever, I'm 200% sure about that. So I guess I have to take i5 + 6850 eh ? And no RAID

W

then i5+6850 is good especially since you are keeping the monitor & getting anything higher than 6850 at that resolution is not going to make a difference anyway.also what about RAID.DH67CLB3 supports RAID 0,1,5,10.in fact now-a-days even a Rs.2500 AMD mobo supports RAID 0,1,10.however my recommendation is stay away from RAID unless it is absolutely necessary(which is not for most of the people).RAID is meant primarily for server usage.only application i can think of for home usage is building a media server which is then accessed by multiple people simultaneously over lan/wifi to watch HD movies which may be a common scenario abroad but not here.

A

So ditching out RAID, what would be my motherboard and cbinet now that fits best within my budget of 30k?

i5 - 10k
RAM - 1.2k
HD 6850 -9.2k
PSU - 3k

So around 24k for this.

Cash left 6k. Have to decide on a good cabby and mobo now.

The cheapest Mobo with USB 3.0 and SATA III is MSI H67MA-E35 (B3). It has mixed reviews. So let someone comment on its build quality and stuff. Intel DH67CL has 4 RAM slots BTW.

You can get the Zebronics Bijli w/o PSU for around 1.2k.

A

Couldn't find any review of that board.

W

H67/H61 mobos don't have a lot of reviews.most reviews are of z68/p67 mobos(or in other words overclockable) as it is overclocking which really stresses the components & where the component quality matters most.at stock speeds/non-overclocked situations usually any mobo from a known brand will do fine.it all comes down to personal preference & after sales support.

A

I won't be overclocking the CPU obviously as the multiplier is locked. GPu, maybe after a year or so and even that slightly, no voltage increase

I guess MSI is good then.

Component Make Price Processor Intel Core i5 2400 10000
Motherboard MSI H67MA-E35 (B3) 4815
RAM G-skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT(4Gx1) 1193
Graphic Card MSI R6850 Cyclone PE/OC 9500
PSU Corsair CX500V2 3000
Case Any 1000
Total 29600

I guess this config is ok?

Read the user reviews here.

A

Reviews are mixed but mostly positive. I can live with that beeping

ArjunKiller said:
Reviews are mixed but mostly positive. I can live with that beeping

After BIOS update it will make just a single beep I guess. But let some experts comment on the build quality, warranty etc. I guess everyone will suggest Intel DH67CL.

A

I can't extend above 30k. So if you suggest Intel, budget will rise. Could you alter any options from the above table I made ?

^^ go for i5 2320. just 100Mhz slow and should cost 1-1.5k less.

Sam said:
^^ go for i5 2320. just 100Mhz slow and should cost 1-1.5k less.

So true. But what about the MSI H67MA-E35?

A

I'll stick to the MSI board then? As I can't overclock anything except the BCLK I think the VRMs should be ok, because I heard MSI boards have pathetic VRM.

RiGOD said:
So true. But what about the MSI H67MA-E35?

not much idea about it.

ArjunKiller said:
I'll stick to the MSI board then? As I can't overclock anything except the BCLK I think the VRMs should be ok, because I heard MSI boards have pathetic VRM.

this won't matter much. TDP of i5 2400 is low and as the clockspeed and voltage (correct me if i am wrong) can't be altered. so MSI board should be a safe buy.

W

DH67CLB3 costs ~5400 so the extra cost over MSI is just ~600.with MSI total is 29600 so with intel extra cost will be just ~200 over 30000.i don't see this as a huge saving so why not get intel board which has confirmed build quality & good reviews from many.

altering bclk for i series is meaningless.one can overclock upto +400MHz but only on turbo(meaning single core only) using bios or intel utility.also according to some altering baseclk is not recommended as it throws most of the clock speeds off for other components in the system that can result in data corruption.

A

I'll go with Intel then. But on the flipkart website B3 revision is mentioned nowhere, whereas MSI has favourable reviews, some people are having problem installing Ubuntu but that was also solved by using noapic in the boot parameters.

W

intel started shipping B3 revisions in march/april 2011 so there is almost zero chance that in march 2012 you will get a earlier revision from anywhere.

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ArjunKiller said:
I won't be overclocking the CPU obviously as the multiplier is locked. GPu, maybe after a year or so and even that slightly, no voltage increase I guess MSI is good then.

Component Make Price Processor Intel Core i5 2400 10000
Motherboard MSI H67MA-E35 (B3) 4815
RAM G-skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT(4Gx1) 1193
Graphic Card MSI R6850 Cyclone PE/OC 9500
PSU Corsair CX500V2 3000
Case Any 1000
Total 29600

I guess this config is ok?

I bought a similar priced config few weeks ago for gaming but instead of Core i5 & 6850, i went for Phenom II X4 970 & HD 6870. I liked Core i5, but just couldnt convince myself to put 10K for CPU and less for GPU.

A

Well at my resolution i.e 1600x900, the CPU is going to be more stressed rather than GPU.

A

Guys, finally got a "bakra" who is selling his 500GB hard disk to me for 2k. He says he will buy new 1TB for 2.5k :O :O LOL. I will buy that from him today. Any necessary config changes ?

500Gb for 2k? WOW. get it before he realizes that you made him a bakra

A

its better to be cautious i guess, like checking for bad sectors and any other problems with HDD. what are the chances that he wouldn't have checked about rise in HDD prices.