To the people who are computer freaks (building them)

[Guerrillakilla13]

I'm trying to gather parts together for a PC build. Could you tell me how this all sounds so far, and how I can check for compatibility? (i'm pretty sure that most, if not all parts are compatible with each other, but I just wanna be sure)..

Keep in mind that i'm on a budget and would like to spend somewhere between 600-800, in case you have suggestions.
Also, how do I know which disk drive to go for? Thanks a lot in advance gents I greatly appreciate your time and help

MOTHERBOARD
Amazon.com: AS Rock LGA1155 DDR3 SATA3 USB3.0 Quad CrossFireX and Quad SLI A GbE ATX Motherboard Z77 EXTREME4: Electronics

PROCESSOR and INTEGRATED GRAPHICS CARD (for now)
Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-3770 Quad-Core Processor 3.4 GHz 4 Core LGA 1155 - BX80637I73770: Electronics

RAM
Amazon.com: Kingston Technology HyperX 8 GB (2x4 GB Modules) 1600 MHz DDR3 Dual Channel Kit (PC3 12800) 240-Pin SDRAM KHX1600C9D3K2/8GX: Electronics

SATA III 1TB HDD (3.5 inch)
Amazon.com: WD Blue 1 TB Desktop Hard Drive: 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, SATA III, 64 MB Cache - WD10EZEX: Electronics

SHELL (COOLMASTER, MID TOWER) (COMES WITH 2 FANS)
Amazon.com: Cooler Master HAF 912 - Mid Tower Computer Case with High Airflow Design (RC-912-KKN1): Electronics

PSU
Amazon.com: Corsair Builder Series CX 600 Watt ATX/EPS 80 PLUS (CX600): Computers & Accessories

[KMdef9]

IIRC, compatibility is all on your motherboard, as far as RAM, video card and processor.

i7 is my favorite, I like them better than AMD's.

I would go with 2 solid state hard drives, they're worth every penny. I like running two hard drives, 1 for software and the other for data.

And with a high airflow case, make sure to clean it out often, it will collect dust really fast.



Video card? Is it on board?

[Guerrillakilla13]

Awesome thanks a lot! Ive just been waiting for a yes before I went ahead and bought the parts. I7s are great man this one is like the 3rd or 4th top i7. Are SSDs better than HDDs? I'd like to research it but my tablets about to die. And I'm still kinda new to this computer stuff. And yes the processor has Intel HD 3000 graphics I do think, but when I make more money i'd like to get a serious gaming card

[raynor139]

SSD is faster by far it will boot up in 30 secs or less. If you want to save some money to get a video card you could go with the I5 line. Unless your running some very processor intense programs I7s can be overkill for most everyday stuff and gaming. My processor load never goes above 30% unless I'm doing video editing or something like that with my I7 and I'm running a bit older 2600K.

[CJREX]

If I were building new, I'd put the OS on an SSD and all my data on the traditional HDD.

With the OS on the SSD, boot up will be lightning fast and if Windows ever craps the bed your data is still safe on the 1TB drive.

Don't skimp on the SSD though. Many of the cheap ones have a habit of conking out after a few months.

I'm also guessing that you are planning on loading Win 7, which natively supports TRIM for SSD drives. Or maybe Win 8 (if you haven't tried it, don't buy it before trying as it is definitely NOT for everyone)

Check HERE for details on TRIM support.

[SiggyZ]

I really need to upgrade mine.

I'm currently running:
MSI K8N-Neo nForce 3 250Gb AGP 8x motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 3400+ @ 2.40Ghz CPU
3Gb Corsair XMS DDR 400Mhz PC3200 memory
WD Corvair 120Gb 8mb cache HD
nVidia GeForce 7600 GS 512mb AGP 8x video card on a Samsung SyncMaster 24" widescreen LCD
Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

It's a great computer as is, but if I wanted to get deeper into more of the latest games and such, I know it would struggle to run them.

[Blakbird24]

If I were building new, I'd put the OS on an SSD and all my data on the traditional HDD.

With the OS on the SSD, boot up will be lightning fast and if Windows ever craps the bed your data is still safe on the 1TB drive.

Don't skimp on the SSD though. Many of the cheap ones have a habit of conking out after a few months.

I'm also guessing that you are planning on loading Win 7, which natively supports TRIM for SSD drives. Or maybe Win 8 (if you haven't tried it, don't buy it before trying as it is definitely NOT for everyone)

Check HERE for details on TRIM support.

Agreed...SSDs are far too expensive to be used for data storage. However, as an OS drive, they are excellent. 120GB is really all you need, and even the good ones can be had for under $150 in that size. I recommend the Samsung 830 or 840 series.

[SiggyZ]

That may be the route I go when I upgrade. Good idea.

Agreed...SSDs are far too expensive to be used for data storage. However, as an OS drive, they are excellent. 120GB is really all you need, and even the good ones can be had for under $150 in that size. I recommend the Samsung 830 or 840 series.

[SMWS6TA]

This just gave me a blue print for my pc upgrades, thx!!!

Good info on SS drives I did not know. I'm looking to move all my music/videos/pics to an external HD.



I'm just now upgrading to WIN 7. Still need to get a new MB, processor, RAM, but

[Hi-Po]

One more vote for SSD as a boot drive. I have a 128G SSD in my laptop, boots in ~15 seconds or so, depending on what is going on for startup applications. Then a 500G spinner (HDD) also in the laptop for storage, best of both worlds.

Packed a nVidea GTX 580M in this monster of a laptop

[Guerrillakilla13]

Sorry if I can't respond to all the replies, doing this on my tablet is very difficult. My laptop died and that's why I'm doing this whole thing. So an SSD sounds like the way to go in really like that idea of a 500 GB HDD and a 100 GB ssd for speed. How do I tell the motherboard which to use first? Same with the graphics card, if I get one I'll have 2 since another's on the processor I'm getting. How do I tell the motherboard which to use?

I have win7 on a disk, so I have no problem getting the OS. A stronger proccesor means faster speeds correct?

Edit: Wow, they're expensive as hell! I might have to save that sdd idea for after summer

[SMWS6TA]

Setting up the default drive order will need to be done in the bios.

That is that initial program you see just before windows screen takes over. Usually you have to hit the "delete" key to interrupt the boot program in order to get into the bios.


For graphics card once you get windows up and running and load the GVC (Graphic Video Card) the drivers setup should take over and default it to the new one over the one that is part of the MB.

[Guerrillakilla13]

The bios, of course XD I'll be using that to install my OS win 7 as well. Thanks a lot, you've all been way more helpful than my computer nerd so called friends. Install and part compatibility is the only real thing I'm worried about, I'm pretty good with software stuff.

[SMWS6TA]

make sure you back up anything that is important.....

[Guerrillakilla13]

I learned that lesson the hard way man my laptop died on me with ZERO warning signs. It was running solid, It just refused to start up since last week. I pinpointed that the problem was most likely the video card

[raynor139]

Sorry if I can't respond to all the replies, doing this on my tablet is very difficult. My laptop died and that's why I'm doing this whole thing. So an SSD sounds like the way to go in really like that idea of a 500 GB HDD and a 100 GB ssd for speed. How do I tell the motherboard which to use first? Same with the graphics card, if I get one I'll have 2 since another's on the processor I'm getting. How do I tell the motherboard which to use?

I have win7 on a disk, so I have no problem getting the OS. A stronger proccesor means faster speeds correct?

Edit: Wow, they're expensive as hell! I might have to save that sdd idea for after summer

A stronger processor does mean faster as long as you have good supporting hardware. Poor RAM, mother board or video card choices can bottle neck a good processor.

[SMWS6TA]

Not to mention all the software that loads up on start up.

I try to take all except anti-virus/firewall out of startup.


Apple products like Itunes are resource hogs.

[Guerrillakilla13]

Awesome, I know the ram is ddr3 and top rated, and the video card I get will be top notch too. What's your opinion on the motherboard I chose?

UPDATE; sorry everyone, i chose the wrong processor! THIS is the processor that includes the video card intel HD 4000

http://www.amazon.com/Intel-i7-3770K-Quad-Core-Processor-Cache/dp/B007SZ0EOW/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1357598474&sr =1-1&keywords=i7+3770k

[98TransAmWs-6]

Awesome, I know the ram is ddr3 and top rated, and the video card I get will be top notch too. What's your opinion on the motherboard I chose?

UPDATE; sorry everyone, i chose the wrong processor! THIS is the processor that includes the video card intel HD 4000

http://www.amazon.com/Intel-i7-3770K-Quad-Core-Processor-Cache/dp/B007SZ0EOW/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1357598474&sr =1-1&keywords=i7+3770k

Don't use intel graphics cards they suck. Especially the integrated ones. I didn't look at the link but if it is integrated install nvidia graphics card and disable the intel. I have that same one except the 3000 series on my desktop and I plan on disabling it and installing a nvidia.

[Blakbird24]

Don't use intel graphics cards they suck. Especially the integrated ones. I didn't look at the link but if it is integrated install nvidia graphics card and disable the intel. I have that same one except the 3000 series on my desktop and I plan on disabling it and installing a nvidia.

Actually, if you're not playing any games or doing any 3D modeling, Intel's built-in video is great.

BTW...Intel only offers integrated graphics. They don't make "graphics cards" (thank God for that).