Oh look another buying a new rig thread.

[Skeeter]

Looking at Cyberpower, can get this for $1242. Anything I'm absolutely missing the boat on, or have to have?

Mostly looking for something that can handle the next gen MMOs plus do some cool shit around the house. I don't need an UBER rig but I also don't want to screw myself by being instantly so obsolete it's a waste of money.

*BASE_PRICE: [+1179]
BUNDLE: None
BLUETOOTH: None
CD: LG 22X DVD±/±RW + CD-R/RW Dual Layer Drive (BLACK COLOR)
CD2: 16X DVD ROM (BLACK COLOR)
CAS: Thermaltake Element-T Mid-Tower Case [+25] (Original Color)
CASUPGRADE: 12in (Blue Color) Cold Cathode Neon Light [+10]
CS_FAN: Default case fans
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-930 2.80 GHz 8M Intel Smart Cache LGA1366
FREEBIE_CU: FREE 8GB USB2.0 Flash Drive
FREEBIE_RM: None
FAN: Asetek 510LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Enhanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
FREEBIE_HD: None
FA_HDD: None
FLASHMEDIA: None
FLOPPY: None
HDD: 1TB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD (Single Hard Drive)
HDD2: None
IEEE_CARD: None
KEYBOARD: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
MOUSE: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
MONITOR: None
MONITOR2: None
MOTHERBOARD: * Asus P6T SE Intel X58 Chipset CrossFireX Mainboard Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA
MB_ADDON: None
MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (A-Data Gaming Series with Heat Spreader)
MULTIVIEW: Non-SLI/Non-CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
MODEM: None
NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
NOISEREDUCE1: Anti-Vibration Fan Mounts [+9]
OVERCLOCK: Pro OC (Performance Overclock 10% or more) [+19]
OS: Microsoft® Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit Edition)
POWERSUPPLY: 800 Watts Power Supplies (* CyberPowerPC XF800S Performance ATX 2.0 Power - Quad SLI Ready)
PRINTER: None
PRINTER_CABLE: None
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS
SOFT1: Free 60 Days Microsoft® Office® 2007 (Words, Excel, Access, Power Point, Outlook + More) - Microsoft Windows OS Required
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
SPEAKERS: None
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
TEMP: None
TVRC: None
USB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
USBHD: None
USBFLASH: None
USBX: None
VIDEO: ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [DirectX 11 Support] (Major Brand Powered by ATI)
VIDEO2: None
VIDEO3: None
VC_PHYSX: None
WNC: None
_PRICE: (+1242)
_view_: d

[Celephais]

Didn't read through the whole thing, but a few things, case lights get tired real quick, they have them with a toggle, right? If they're always on I would highly suggest taking the $10 back.

Personally I hate the lights in my case, made worse by the fact it's an acrylic case, but my fans and power supply lights are always on, and one of these days when I find the time I'm going in and soldering off all the connections to the LEDs. Cool at first, distracting now.

It looks to me like it'll be plenty powerful and you'll have room to expand in the future if need be (a second GPU, possibly). Do you have a bluray player? I don't know what Cyberpower's prices are, but blu-ray drives are rather cheap right now. It may be worth it for you to just leave "CD2" blank, and then buy a bluray burner/player from newegg and install it yourself. There was an OEM bluray rom drive for $50 on sale the other day, and burners are in the <$150 range.

[radamanthys]

You might miss having USB 3.0. Or 6Gb SATA for really fast SSD transfers a year or two down the road.

[radamanthys]

Didn't read through the whole thing, but a few things, case lights get tired real quick, they have them with a toggle, right? If they're always on I would highly suggest taking the $10 back.

Personally I hate the lights in my case, made worse by the fact it's an acrylic case, but my fans and power supply lights are always on, and one of these days when I find the time I'm going in and soldering off all the connections to the LEDs. Cool at first, distracting now.

It looks to me like it'll be plenty powerful and you'll have room to expand in the future if need be (a second GPU, possibly). Do you have a bluray player? I don't know what Cyberpower's prices are, but blu-ray drives are rather cheap right now. It may be worth it for you to just leave "CD2" blank, and then buy a bluray burner/player from newegg and install it yourself. There was an OEM bluray rom drive for $50 on sale the other day, and burners are in the <$150 range.

Jesus, didn't notice the case lights. I agree with Cele 100%.

[Skeeter]

Alright chuck the case light. My alienware has one but it's really muted, looks kinda cool.

I have a PS3 so I use that for blu-ray.

<<You might miss having USB 3.0. Or 6Gb SATA for really fast SSD transfers a year or two down the road.>>

So I googled this to figure out what you were talking about. How hard would this be to add later, when it's (probably) cheaper?

[Clove]

Didn't read through the whole thing, but a few things, case lights get tired real quick, they have them with a toggle, right? If they're always on I would highly suggest taking the $10 back.x100. First thing that got my attention too
<<You might miss having USB 3.0. Or 6Gb SATA for really fast SSD transfers a year or two down the road.>>

So I googled this to figure out what you were talking about. How hard would this be to add later, when it's (probably) cheaper?I would expect there would be plug-in controllers available in the future for those that want/need to retrofit. Unless you're interested in SSD drives (which are still a bit pricey unless you have an application for that kind of speed) you probably won't feel any pain being on SATA 3.0.

[Asrial]

The first thing that got my attention is you're looking at getting a liquid cooled system and are asking for advice on what kind of computer to get.

Unless the ability to maintain liquid cooling has gone down over the past 5 years, I do NOT recommend a beginner go this route.

However.

If you're willing to research it, and take on the responsibility of proper maintenance, go for it.

[Ardwen]

Bought from cyberpower a month or so back, seems a totally different rig though, dumped intel for amd, just couldnt seen enough permance stat difference to warrant the extra cash, tossed that savings into a second vid card. Case I got came with lighting attached heh, was a freebie, thankuflly my PC is inside a cabinet, case light is not what I would call muted. Have no no serious isses with the system, and Cyberpower called quickly to walk/talk my order thru, including be willing to ship to an apparently nonexistant address on my word that I do exist. Only complaint I have is the slit bridge they provided seems to not be for the dual vids I purchased. Plusses, they upgraded both my case and mottherboard usb setup when case was backstocked and board usb setup didnt fit the case I picked. probably 60-80 bucks in freebies there

[Parkbandit]

I splurged for a dual video card and have been extremely pleased with the results. I get max FPS when I run multiple WoW characters.

[Skeeter]

The first thing that got my attention is you're looking at getting a liquid cooled system and are asking for advice on what kind of computer to get.

Unless the ability to maintain liquid cooling has gone down over the past 5 years, I do NOT recommend a beginner go this route.

However.

If you're willing to research it, and take on the responsibility of proper maintenance, go for it.

This is the fan they had pre-setup. I'm definitely low maintenance, if I think to clean the dust out of the stupid thing every few months I'm doing good. I can change memory, change a video card, and download new drivers and that's about it. If it's something I have to constantly maintain it's definitely not for me.

[Asrial]

FAN: Asetek 510LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Enhanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)

.

That bit. Definitely read up on current water cooling. It's not rocket science.. but it's something to be aware of lest you fry your computer because of a leaking seal.

[radamanthys]

Depending on the case and mobo, you should be able to add cards for USB and SATA controllers down the road. That said, in a liquid cooled system, you'll likely have hoses everywhere- might not be the cleanest install, let alone possible. If I were to build a future-proof machine today, I'd make sure those were on the motherboard. Of course, I know for sure that I'll be getting one or more SSDs within the next two years, so I'll want to maximize my potential with those. SSDs really are the biggest deal these days- other components have made mostly marginal advances relative to the HDD/SSD cut.

Perchance I might inquire... What do you mean by "do some cool shit around the house"? It's unlikely that you'll be able to, say, vacuum your room with your machine. But then again, computers are doing some funky shit lately and a vacuum cleaner/gaming PC case mod could certainly work as well as anything else. I might have to call dyson on that one.


When it comes down to it, I'd reconsider this current rig build. But that's just me. The i5-750 is just as good (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-gaming-cpu,2599-7.html) as any i7 right now for less money. The motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=13-131-359&SortField=3&SummaryType=0&Pagesize=100&SelectedRating=-1&PurchaseMark=&VideoOnlyMark=False&VendorMark=&Page=1&Keywords=(keywords)) isn't the best, either- it sounds like it's got BSOD problems with certain RAM. Doesn't seem to handle multiple video cards perfectly well, either. I'd be wary, if anything. Add in the cold cathode of death and some other sundry possible issues.

More info on your needs and wants would always help in the 'better advice' department, too. Feel free to digress at will.

[Skeeter]

If I could get the computer to vacuum the house while I played games that would be fantastic. I really just need some basic stuff. MP3s, be able to handle a bunch of pictures, play warhammer 40k if it ever comes out, streaming movies.. etc.

I'm not really sold on this cpu, I just started looking and cyberpower was the first site I tinkered with. I currently use an alienware but then now being owned by Dell and their history of customer service makes me a bit nervous headed that route.

Basically all I need is a decent graphics and sound card, enough power to run the latest games, be low maintenance enough I can just turn it on, and not be obsolete in the next 2 years.

[radamanthys]

If I could get the computer to vacuum the house while I played games that would be fantastic. I really just need some basic stuff. MP3s, be able to handle a bunch of pictures, play warhammer 40k if it ever comes out, streaming movies.. etc.

I'm not really sold on this cpu, I just started looking and cyberpower was the first site I tinkered with. I currently use an alienware but then now being owned by Dell and their history of customer service makes me a bit nervous headed that route.

Basically all I need is a decent graphics and sound card, enough power to run the latest games, be low maintenance enough I can just turn it on, and not be obsolete in the next 2 years.

You could get a roomba, but they're evil. Like clowns.

Price point is pretty decent. I wouldn't say it's a ripoff by any stretch, and you'll certainly get a perfectly serviceable machine. Just turn off the lights and switch cooling methods and you'll be pretty well set. Maybe switch to a different mainboard, while you're at it. They do have an add-in option for USB and SATA, too. Not sure if it's available across the board on the site, but I did see it there someplace. Asus makes it.

I'd check reviews of the different parts (case, mobo, ram, etc) on newegg, too. Do a little research and see what other geeks enjoy/hate about the things you're ordering.

There's a mother's day special today you might wanna hit up, too.

[Skeeter]

I'm definitely going to do the newegg thing.

Thanks for the good advice.

[Tilnam]

I splurged for a dual video card and have been extremely pleased with the results. I get max FPS when I run multiple WoW characters.

Wow is probably the worst game to judge for fps. I get max fps in wow with 2560x1600 resolution and max settings and an 8800.

If you are looking to play next gen games, I would get a slightly better video card. Get a 5850 or a 5870 if you are looking for ATI.

Also I wouldn't recommend windows 7 HOME edition for anyone. At least get professional. It is only like $20 more i think.

I would personally recommend getting a raptor or a velociraptor for your gaming hard drive, and a generic 1TB storage drive. Also as someone mentioned earlier, I would get a board that supports 6gb/s and usb3.0 for the future.

But then again this all might not be in your budget if you have one. If you aren't planning on doing a LOT of overclocking, then don't bother with liquid cooling. You just plain won't need it.

[Celephais]

Veloci/Raptors are a waste of money. I have a 150gb one and the difference isn't very noticeable. If you're going to bother doing that you're way better off getting an SSD.

As for the suggestion that liquid cooling is only useful for overclocking, liquid cooling can be much quieter than air. The liquid cooling in the case he mentioned is zero maintenance pre-filled/sealed system, no big reservoir, and it only has the one block on the CPU, not a ton of tubes running to GPU/ram/storage, so it's not really a big deal. No idea what the cost of that is though.