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Does this computer configuration look ok?

z34442

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 1:32AM

http://www.chillblast.com/Chillblast-Fusion-Longbow.html

I am interested in the computer in the link above, it allows limited customization of components. So does the config below look ok? Is the CPU fan and the PSU a good choice? It comes to £800 exc. delivery.

Chillblast Vantage Black Midi Mesh Gaming Case
Intel Core i5 3570K Processor 3.40 GHz (No Overclocking)
Akasa Nero 3 Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler
Generic thermal paste
Asus P8H77-M PRO Motherboard
8GB Corsair PC3-12800 1600MHz DDR3 Memory (2 x 4GB sticks)
Chillblast AMD Radeon HD 6850 1024MB Graphics Card
1000GB 7200RPM Hard Disk - 6Gbps
Samsung Blu-Ray ROM / DVD-RW Combi Drive
OCZ StealthXstream 2 600W PSU
Onboard High Definition Audio
No Operating System Required
Standard Chillblast Cable Management
24" Asus VS247H Widescreen LED Monitor
Chillblast Family PC Software Pack

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frybluff

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 2:10AM

If you want to be able to overclock, yourself, you need to change to one of the Z77 motherboards. The LK also gives you the advantage to be able to add second card in crossfire, if that is likely.

Case is their own make, so probably OK, just don't know it.

I'm not a great lover of OCZ, for power supplies. Much prefer Corsair.

The Asus monitor is OK, but the Dell Ultrasharp is a lot better. You don't have to get it from Chillblast. If you shop around, you can get it for around £240. Well worth the extra, if you can afford it.

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KRONOS the First

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 4:37AM

I differ with flybuff as I have no problem with OCZ power supplies, I have had a couple in my time and have served me well, but I do agree that Corsair are a good brand.

As for the case,if you are spending that much on a PC then I would suggest a better case, one that will help keep your components cool by offering better airflow.

To 99? of us over-clocking will not make any noticeable difference in performance,and to be honest you really do not need to do it with that chip and although a lot easier to do these days it is still possible to do damage.

I have never been a fan of dual graphic cards as in my experience there are invariably issues with drivers with little increase in performance considering the resolutions most of us play on. One decent GPU is usually more than enough for most of us and although the 6850 is not the best card today it is still up there amongst the decent cards about today.

So overall not a bad spec, I think I would tweak it a little, see if I could add an small SSD as a boot drive, change the case perhaps, maybe upgrade the PSU to a little more wattage to cover future upgrades 650W-750W but not much else.

You do not mention what your main use of the PC will be but I am assuming gaming?

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frybluff

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 11:50AM

Certainly agree that there's no POINT to crossfire, unless you may want to add monitors, for some surround vision set-up.

Overclocking does tend to impact reliability, for not a lot of real gain.

My point would be, that, for a relatively small additional cost, for a more versatile motherboard, you, at least, have the options "up your sleeve". Obviously, just my personal opinion.

Main thing is: you can make an INFORMED choice. Nothing worse than discovering, six months down the line, that you can't do what you want to, simply because you weren't aware of options, from the start.

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z34442

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 2:17PM

One graphics card is enough so I don't need to crossfire anyway. It will be for a little gaming but mostly a lot of multi-tasking (eg Firefox open with 10+ tabs, music, downloading, Microsoft Office, Visual Basic all open at the same time). I've got Win 7 Pro for it.

I'm not going to do any overclocking, but I chose a better cooler for the CPU because I thought the stock fan might get noisy.

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z34442

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 2:19PM

For the motherboard does the Asus P8Z77-V LX have any other advantages over theAsus P8H77-M PRO other than ability to overclock? It's only £10 extra but no point paying an extra £10 for the sake of it.

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KRONOS the First

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 3:29PM

Very short answer is no.

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frybluff

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Posted August 28, 2012 at 4:08PM

An unlocked CPU, and an aftermarket cooler did sort of suggest ... but no, there's no point in spending even £10, on something you're definitely not going to use.

Point is, at least you've made a choice, knowing the options. Much better than finding out you made the wrong choice, because you didn't know.

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