Upgrading Essentials

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Hello there!

I'd like to keep this post brief - I recently received a XFX Radeon HD 6790 as a replacement for my older HD 6670 that I'd RMA'd. Unfortunately, my mobo (ASUS P5B-MX) wasn't able to accommodate the new card's gigantic behind (I could barely fit it in my cabinet). Seeing how my rig was ancient as it is, I figured it'd be a good time to upgrade my machine.

I only plan to upgrade the following components: CPU, MOBO, RAM, PSU and Cabinet. Unfortunately, I'm on a rather tight budget - I can afford to spend no more than 16, maybe 17, grand.

Requirements/Notes:
CPU - Anything that's decently performant. Preferably from Intel.
MOBO -

Must be able to fit/suppoprt the 6790 without a fuss
Reasonably future-proof
Need not support multi-GPU setups
DDR3 1600 support would be nice
USB 3.0/SATA 6Gb/s support would be nice too

RAM - 8 Gigs
PSU -

Needs ample power, 550W+ I'm told.
Must power the above rig and at least 3 SATA HDDs
Bottom mounted
At least 2x6-pin PCI-E power connectors

Cabinet -

Supports the above PSU
Large enough for the 6790 (and similarly gigantic cards)

As far as the cabinet goes, I've got my eye on the Cooler Master Elite 311 series. I'm from Chennai and will be buying the upgrades, in all probability, from a regular brick and mortar store.

Thanks in advance

EDIT: This forums is wonky - I'm unable to reply to any thread (it incorrectly tells me that the answer to the random question is wrong). So,

I looked around some and came up with this config:

Intel 3.3 GHz FCLGA1155 Core i3 2120 Processor ~ 7000
MSI B75MA-P45 Motherboard ~ 4500
2 x Transcend DDR3-1333 DDR3 4 GB PC RAM (JM1333KLN-4G) ~ 2000
Cooler Master Elite 311 Plus ~ 3000

Had to push the budget a bit but I'm building this rig to last.

I considered Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H for the mobo at first but it seemed to me that its layout couldn't accommodate my HD 6790 (a couple of side-mounted SATA ports appear to get in the way). Now, the only thing that remains in the PSU. I'd appreciate it if I could get some advice about it. Apart from the aforementioned requirements, it shouldn't cost more than Rs 4000 (give or take a hundred quid).

for ram get 2x 4GB Corsair Value Select DDr3 1333 Mhz modules and for PSU just grab a Corsair GS500.

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Thanks for the reply. Will the PSU be enough if I upgraded to a higher end card in the future?

the gigabyte mobo will accomodate the gpu. u see the sata ports are after the PCI slot. so dual slot gpu will not cause u trouble.

Component	Model	Price
Processor	Intel Core i3 3220	7287
Motherboard	Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H	4346
Ram	G.Skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT x 2	2224
PSU	Corsair CX430 V2	2703
Cabinet	Cooler Master Elite 311	2287
Total		18847

or since u talked about futureproofing here u can get this -
Seasonic S12II 520 Watts PSU | Psu | Flipkart.com

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@Gigabyte MOBO: Are you sure? I'll give it another look but I'd rather be safe than sorry.
@Seasonic PSU: Thanks, but the flipkart page only mentions a single PCI-e 6 pin connector - The 6790 requires 2. Also, does Seasonic have a service center in Chennai?

P

Gigabyte mobo suggested is good.
Also SEASONIC makes quality PSUs I have a 620W S12-II.Works very well.Recommended.No idea about service centers there.

shademe said:
@Gigabyte MOBO: Are you sure? I'll give it another look but I'd rather be safe than sorry.
@Seasonic PSU: Thanks, but the flipkart page only mentions a single PCI-e 6 pin connector - The 6790 requires 2. Also, does Seasonic have a service center in Chennai?

yes GBT mobo is fine.
about psu it has 1 6 pin and 1 6+2 pin connector. flipkart might have mentioned it wrong.
Seasonic S12 II Bronze 520W Review

Overclockers Zone
tirupati has a office in chennai. its responsible for seasonic rma.
or
u can contact flipkart. flipkart page reads this -
Customers can get RMA support by sending email to rma@tirupati.net with their purchase details. After verification that the product is sold by Tirupati, they will receive instructions on how to return the defective product They can also get in touch with any of our branch offices across india for rma support with the proof of purchase.

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Righto, Seasonic S12 it is then! Many thanks.

Oh, nearly forgot - I decided to buy the Cooler Master Elite 431 for my cabinet instead. Will the cable lengths be long enough? Some of the reviews I read on Flipkart/Newegg seem to suggest otherwise.

shademe said:
Righto, Seasonic S12 it is then! Many thanks.

Oh, nearly forgot - I decided to buy the Cooler Master Elite 431 for my cabinet instead. Will the cable lengths be long enough? Some of the reviews I read on Flipkart/Newegg seem to suggest otherwise.

do they mention they could not fit cpu power connector?

@ OP - Seasonic PSUS are really good but you may face RMA issue later ...

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Jaskanwar Singh said:
do they mention they could not fit cpu power connector?

Not in particular - They merely mention that they are a tight fit.

EDIT: Ah, seems like the cabinet the reviewer used was larger than the one I've chosen (CM 690 II Adv).

topgear said:
@ OP - Seasonic PSUS are really good but you may face RMA issue later ...

How so? Please elaborate.

read this :
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/service-r...cement-repair-seasonic-psu-over-2-months.html
and this :
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/power-sup...-guide-right-power-supply-25.html#post1682196

S

I see. Thanks for the links. Would a Corsair GS500 be a suitable replacement?

PS: I figured I'd push my budget even further and have decided to get some performance RAM. Any suggestions? I was looking into the G.Skill RipjawsX series. How's the RMA service for G.Skill, by the way?

topgear said:
read this :
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/service-r...cement-repair-seasonic-psu-over-2-months.html
and this :
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/power-sup...-guide-right-power-supply-25.html#post1682196

thanks for info TP.

shademe said:
I see. Thanks for the links. Would a Corsair GS500 be a suitable replacement?

PS: I figured I'd push my budget even further and have decided to get some performance RAM. Any suggestions? I was looking into the G.Skill RipjawsX series. How's the RMA service for G.Skill, by the way?

yes GS500 is good.
even u can try for GS600 which is about 800 bucks costly. as power supply is one thing which u wont like to replace when u buy new higher end components.
save that 1k from ram u are planning to upgrade to ripjaws X. get one i mentioned.

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Jaskanwar Singh said:
save that 1k from ram u are planning to upgrade to ripjaws X. get one i mentioned.

The G.Skill NT DDR3 4 GB (1 x 4 GB) PC RAM (F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT)? But that's a 1333Mhz stick - I figured I'd get a native 1600 kit as I'd settled for an Ivy Bridge processor. And I'd rather not overclock.

I would say go with Corsair value select Ram - spend the rest of the money to get a true Quad core cpu like Core i5 2310/20 @ ~10.5k

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topgear said:
I would say go with Corsair value select Ram - spend the rest of the money to get a true Quad core cpu like Core i5 2310/20 @ ~10.5k

That, unfortunately, is not quite possible. Even if I got the value select RAM, I'd be short a couple of grand. I'm pushing my budget as it is.

P

If you're not too paranoid about Service Centers,go for Seasonic,the cable length is fine.But make sure the service is your region isn't bad.
AFAIK it is bad in the northern side,decent in the Western.
GSKill RipjawsX is also pretty decent,I have a 4Gig 1600MHz stick (Red).People rarely have problems with RAM but it is supposed to be decent,however there might be delays as the product ships from Taiwan.

shademe said:
That, unfortunately, is not quite possible. Even if I got the value select RAM, I'd be short a couple of grand. I'm pushing my budget as it is.

can you tell me what's your max total budget ?? coz on the first post you said 17k and on post # 13 you said you would push you budget even further .

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My budget, as it stands, is 22.5K. My config:

Intel Core i3-3220 3.30 GHz Processor ~ 7300
MSI B75MA-P45 Motherboard ~ 4500
2 x G.Skill RipjawsX DDR3 4 GB (F3-12800CL9S-4GBXL) ~ 3100
Cooler Master Elite 431 ~ 3100
Corsair CMPSU-500GS 80 PLUS Certified 500W Power Supply ~ 4300

Alternatives, if need be:

Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H ~ 4400
2 x Corsair Value Select DDR3 4 GB (CMV4GX3M1A1333C9) ~ 2200

Prices were approximated from various online retailers.

first of all online prices are higher than local prices - for eg. the cpu is 400 bucks cheaper !

1. Core i5 2310 @ 10.5k
2. B75MA-P45 @ 4.5k
3. Corsair VS 2x 4Gb @ 2.2k
4. NZXT Source 210 Elite @ 2.6k
5. Corsair Cx430v2 @ 2.6k

Total = you do the math ;-)

and this config ( read PSU ) is capable enough to handle even a HD 7950.

S

Interesting. I'll check those prices with my local retailer.

Got a question: What's the best orientation for the bottom mounted PSU's fan? Facing up or down? I'm reading conflicting reports.

the PSU fan should face downwards ;-)

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topgear said:
the PSU fan should face downwards

But I'm not if there'll be enough clearance b'ween the vent and the surface the cabinet's on - We're talking less than an inch here. How can it be sufficient for proper airflow?

It's personal preference really but most people prefer it to face downwards. You don't want your PSU to be sucking hot air inside your cabinet instead a bit of cool air from about inch of that gap will be better IMO.

In other words, a bit of cool air is way better than alot of hot air for your PSU

shademe said:
But I'm not if there'll be enough clearance b'ween the vent and the surface the cabinet's on - We're talking less than an inch here. How can it be sufficient for proper airflow?

fitting the PSU with the psu fan facing upwards won't be possible on a bottom mounting cabinet and there's vents at the bottom of the cabinet to intake cold air for the PSu.

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I'll be getting the goods shortly, so final question(s):
> Do Corsair PSUs need to a universal power adaptor or something? Or can I just use the power cord from my stock PSU?

You can use any power connector, standard for a PSU. But make sure that the quality is good.

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Thanks for the quick reply. Yet another question: The Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H mobo is my fallback, should I be unable to get the MSI. This is gonna sound overtly paranoid but bear with me - Are we certain that the XFX 6790 will fit that mobo? I know I've brought it up in one of my older posts but I need to be absolutely sure as I will not be able to swap it after the purchase. The card's dimensions are as follows: 26.2 x 11.12 x 3.81 cm / 10.3 x 4.4 x 1.5 inch.

This was my point of contention: I considered Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H for the mobo at first but it seemed to me that its layout couldn't accommodate my HD 6790 (a couple of side-mounted SATA ports appear to get in the way).

Inspecting the mobo's photos, I still feel that way. If someone has managed to fit a comparably sized card on it, please let me know.

S

Well, the deed's done. Many thanks to all those who offered suggestions

Final Config:

Intel Core i3 3220 - 6950
Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H - 4100 (The card did fit )
2 x G.Skill Sniper 4GB PC1600 DDR3 RAM - 3200 (They didn't have the RipJawsX series. Same specs though)
Cooler Master Elite 431 Plus - 3500
Corsair GS600 - 4900