New PC advice requested

Thanks again for your advice. After doing some searching I was able to find some of them for cheaper prices.

Graphics
Gigabyte GBT NVIDIA PCI-E GTX 760 2GB REV 2
£129.67
http://www.lambda-tek.com/Gigabyte-...=gbaseGB5.16?gclid=CNmgr9OvsMICFQHMtAodVwoAlg

Processor
Intel Core i5 4690K 3.5GHz Socket 1150 6MB L3 Cache
£187.05
http://www.ebuyer.com/645547-intel-...ium=products&gclid=CLf60ZGnrcICFSIYwwodd1kA8Q

Cooling
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU Cooler
£29.97
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-035-CM

Motherboard
MSI Z97 PC Mate S1150 Intel Z97 DDR3 ATX
£63.42
http://www.dabs.com/products/msi-z9... - Motherboards and Processors - Motherboards

RAM
2* Kingston Technology ValueRAM 4 GB 1600MHz CL11 DDR3
£59.42
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingston-Te...8&qid=1417475168&sr=1-5&keywords=ddr3+ram+4gb

HDD
Seagate Barracuda 1 TB
£40
http://www.dabs.com/products/seagat... Storage - Hard Drives - Internal Hard Drives

OS
Windows 7 Home Premium w/SP1 64bit- Low Cost Packaging
£69.99
http://www.ebuyer.com/259863-window...ium=products&gclid=CJqplfD4tsICFYrHtAodyU4AsQ

Total: £579, or £549 if I use the fan that comes with the processor. Do you think the original fan will be able to cope?

I'm going to try this in my existing case, with my existing PSU, and I notice the motherboard has a couple of PCI slots so I'll try using my existing SoundBlaster Live.

 

Windows 7 is very expensive, i found some for < 30 EUR...

 

Sweet sounds good to me.

No I would get the Evo cooler or similar, esp for a K chip.

But if you have really cool ambient temps it is possible to run stock cooler.

But not really good practice to have high cpu temps at full load for long periods.

and you run this at 1920x1080 yes ?

It will be fine.

If not you can always wack a i7 and GTX970 in it later.


But I don't think that is you and I think 500-600 was your limit.


Using your old tower ?

 

I'd have a look on gumtree for a 2nd hand PC:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/desktop-wo...n-gaming-monitor-gtx-670-dual-ssd-/1091881496

http://www.gumtree.com/p/desktop-wo...c-64ssd-1tb-hdd-700w-psu-gaming-pc/1092457952

http://www.gumtree.com/p/desktop-wo...12-months-wty-rrp-£649-vat-invoice/1089790865

 

Thanks again for your advice. I'm going to try to use my existing case. My resolution is "only" 1600 x 1200. I like the idea of widescreen, especially for race sims, but my desk doesn't allow me the space.

As a British citizen my ambient temperature can be quite low, but I'll get the cooling kit for peace of mind. We do have hot days in the summer.

What about this product key: http://uk.mmoga.net/Software/Windows/Windows-7-Home-Premium-32-64-Bit-Key.html?ref=392&currency=GBP
and this download: http://windows-7-home-premium.en.softonic.com/

I know in theory how to build a PC from scratch, but I haven't done it before. Will the above downloads cause any problems? Will that W7 file work with that Rufus program?

 

I would not trust either of those sites

MMOGA are scammers the other one is just a BS clicks site.


You need a bootable Windows DVD to make a image.

But rufus is the way


Faster to install then DVD.
Keeps your DVD scratch free.
Takes minutes to make a thumbdrive.

 

Intel 4 core, non-hyperthreaded version. My favorite combo for price and performance is a 4690 non-K with an H97 motherboard (and a cheap H97 motherboard, you don't need anything more). With 2x4Gb dual-channel1600 MHz RAM (CL7, but CL8 will do and is easier to find, but not neccessarily less expensive).

That's the best combo, or get a lower model of the same cpu series if you want to save more money.

Or get a used i5 ivy bridge cpu, but don't go sandy bridge (eg. 2500, 2600k), you want pci-e 3.0, especially for rF2.

 

Go for a Win7 Pro Version, not the Home.

If it`s an OEM Version, you may must activate this by phone (freecall MS Number). But this shouldn`t be a problem.

//Edit: e.g. there:

http://www.aot-software.de/betriebssyteme/windows-7-professional-32-64-bit-produkt-key.html

They send the license by Email.

I bought there a couple of licenses, no problems.

 

Thanks, that's a good price. To use Rufus, I'll need an .iso file. Since I can't make one from a Windows 7 disk, I'll have to download one. I know the .iso has to match the version type (Win 7 Pro 64 bit), but is there a special .iso for an OEM license?

 

I just bought Windows 8.1 from here, but I did cancel my debit card straight away... I'll let you know how it goes....

http://www.mrhightech.com/operating...ft-windows-81-professional-0885370634990.html

 

I am abit confused about this cheap licencing.

What do you download if not a iso image. ?

I rather buy original anyways.

Rufus you can use any DVD, as long as it is bootable.


BTW: If you into sims I would get Home Premium not Professional.

I am not sure why you need to pay extra unless you specifically use the extra features.

* You need to run 32GB of memory
* You rely on windows backup and restore to a network
* Encrypting File System
* Location Aware Printing
* Remote Desktop Host
* Presentation Mode
* Joining a domain
* Windows XP Mode

I would NEVER use any of them ( I have better 3rd party tools ) so it would be a waste of money for me.

 

The ISO Download comes with the license

 

I contacted microsoft support and the product key I was given by MRHIGHTECH.com is valid, windows 8.1 pro .iso for £40

 

I like full retail , never had to ring MS in my life since DOS 5.0 ........that alone is worth the extra outlay imho.


Clean installs, Any PC , any hardware , any time, no BS phone calls.

 

Mine is full retail

 

Just letting you know I haven't forgotten about this. I tend to put things off but most of the parts have arrived now. I'm just waiting for the hard disk and I had to get a new DVD drive. I already have one, so you might say this is madness, but I say this is SATA.

 

I just want to say thanks for the advice. It took a while for the hard drive to arrive but last week I got it and put my new PC together. The graphics card I selected turned out to be out of stock so I got a Radeon R9 280 instead. The rF2 demo runs very smooth on max settings. Some of the fans made a bit of a noise but I only noticed when I stopped driving. I suppose it could simulate wind noise.

But I have a dilemma. I have 2 RAM sticks, 4GB each, and the MB has 4 RAM slots. The problem is I cannot use them in slots 2 and 4 as instructed for dual channel mode. Slots 1 and 2 are faulty; if either one contains a RAM module, the PC starts then immediately restarts, and the only way to break the cycle is to switch it off via the PSU switch. I can use slots 3 and 4, so I still have 8GB.

The track loading time is okay (the demo comes with Silverstone). If I replace the MB so I can have dual channel RAM, how likely is it I'm going to notice a difference?

BTW I tested the RAM using memtest86+ and no errors were reported. I also used a tool in Windows and that also reported no errors.

 

Boot into bios make sure your memory is set correct speed an timings .
Fit ram to slots 1-3 reboot

Did you buy the memory you quoted ? ( sorry I never noticed, I would have advised you spent a few dollars more )


If that does not work RMA it and exchange for XMP profile memory, like G.Skill F3 1600

 

The values are correct.

That causes the same reboot cycle with 2 and 4.

Not exactly. I got the same type but from here instead:
http://www.onestoppcshop.co.uk/inde...w/id/343714/?gclid=COL9oqSBg8MCFauWtAod_XcAUA

If the memory is fine in slots 3 and 4, and I don't get any errors in a memory test, why do you think replacing it would help?

 

Because in slots 3-4 the ram is running in single channel.

If you brought all the gear at the same place you are entitled to swap the memory if it is incompatible, which it seems to be.

If you look here at compatible list for your motherboard your ram is not listed

http://www.msi.com/support/mb/Z97_PC_Mate.html#support-mem

If you look down to G.Skill you see all F3 is.

G.Skill / Corsair 1600 is not a great deal dearer.


P.S. On 2nd look I don't think that is dual channel if you Google it no description mentions " dual-channel"