Building a new comp for my girlfriend

S

swchoi89

New Member
Hey guys,

My girlfriend is interested in building a new system, she has about $1,200 (Canadian) to spend. Keep in mind, Mouse, Keyboard, Windows 7 and Monitor are covered already, just need the computer itself :P

I can't keep up with the new Haswell and the new 700 series from GTX... Can you guys recommend me some good parts? Like, 3570k vs. 4670k or gtx 670 vs 770, etc...

And most importantly, it HAS to have a pink case... do you guys know any good pink cases? or any girly coloured ones?

She is obsessed with this game called Aion... so she needs to have everything maxed out and achieve minimum of 40FPS throughout the game. Although their website says you need basic gears, my 3570k and gtx 670 FTW used to lag like crazy...

Thanks for your help guys.. :)
 
I'm pretty sure you can get the NZXT Phantom in pink.

You may as well go Haswell now with a good Z87 board and an i5 4670K. The Gigabyte GA-Z87X-OC would be a good board to buy.

The GTX 770 is about as powerful as the 680. The 670 and 760 are about equal but usually the 670 comes out being a little faster (see here http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/830?vs=854). When the 760 Ti comes out it will probably be faster than the 670 but slower than the 680.

You may as well just get her a 760 or a 770 now depending on how much you want to spend on the graphics card - or wait for the 760 Ti (if there is going to be one) for NVIDIA.

AMD is another option of course. The 7970 GHz Edition is still a great card remember and is usually a bit faster than the GTX 770 http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/768?vs=829 if you want to spend less you can get a regular 7970 or a 7950. Either one of those is also a great choice.

I'm sure you know what other parts are good. I've seen you post quite a bit round here. :)
 
spirit said:
I'm pretty sure you can get the NZXT Phantom in pink.

You may as well go Haswell now with a good Z87 board and an i5 4670K. The Gigabyte GA-Z87X-OC would be a good board to buy.

The GTX 770 is about as powerful as the 680. The 670 and 760 are about equal but usually the 670 comes out being a little faster (see here http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/830?vs=854). When the 760 Ti comes out it will probably be faster than the 670 but slower than the 680.

You may as well just get her a 760 or a 770 now depending on how much you want to spend on the graphics card - or wait for the 760 Ti (if there is going to be one) for NVIDIA.

AMD is another option of course. The 7970 GHz Edition is still a great card remember and is usually a bit faster than the GTX 770 http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/768?vs=829 if you want to spend less you can get a regular 7970 or a 7950. Either one of those is also a great choice.

I'm sure you know what other parts are good. I've seen you post quite a bit round here. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks! yea, I still can't fully justify the option of buying GTX 770 over 670 or the 7970. 7970 is a very good card I think... but lacks Physicx, which I'm sure Aion can definitely benefit from if I'm not mistaken.

I noticed that the 3570k and 4670k are the same price (or similar). I'll go with 4670k, but any huge increase in performance? I heard the only advantage is with the laptops, giving extra battery hours or something.

I think I'll aim for 770 although, still not fully convinced if the money is still worth it.

In terms of PSU, I'm sure 750W would be sufficient? Those CX series or whatever?

Once I finalize the list, I'll post again and let you know.
And yes, can't find those pink cases... god why can't she just take a normal case lol
 
swchoi89 said:
Thanks! yea, I still can't fully justify the option of buying GTX 770 over 670 or the 7970. 7970 is a very good card I think... but lacks Physicx, which I'm sure Aion can definitely benefit from if I'm not mistaken.

I noticed that the 3570k and 4670k are the same price (or similar). I'll go with 4670k, but any huge increase in performance? I heard the only advantage is with the laptops, giving extra battery hours or something.

I think I'll aim for 770 although, still not fully convinced if the money is still worth it.

In terms of PSU, I'm sure 750W would be sufficient? Those CX series or whatever?

Once I finalize the list, I'll post again and let you know.
And yes, can't find those pink cases... god why can't she just take a normal case lol
Click to expand...
You could get a 760 if you can't justify the 770's price and want PhysX. Or maybe look for a 660 Ti or cheap/used 670.

May as well just get the 4670K now regardless of performance difference. In terms of performance, it's a bit like the 2500K to 3570K upgrade, basically the 4670K ends up being a tiny bit faster than the 3570K http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/701?vs=837 I think the big difference between the 3570K and the 4670K is actually to be found in the onboard graphics.

750W will be more than enough. A CX 600 would do. Make sure you get the modular ones though (CX 700M etc) - save on cable clutter!

Isn't she eventually going to off a pink case? Tell her black or white looks much better and is much classier. :P
 
Get a Seasonic made PSU like the Corsair TX750 V2 otherwise get a Seasonic PSU instead.
 
Coming back to this... what do you think?

GPU- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=84358&vpn=N770 TF 2GD5/OC&manufacture=MSI/MicroStar&promoid=1311
RAM- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=70944&vpn=KHX1600C10D3B1K2/16G&manufacture=Kingston&promoid=1311
SSD- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=7...facture=Samsung Memory & Storage&promoid=1311
HDD- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=66010&vpn=ST2000DM001&manufacture=Seagate&promoid=1311
CPU- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=81327&vpn=BX80646I54670K&manufacture=Intel&promoid=1311
MB- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=84042&vpn=GA-Z87X-UD3H&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1311
Air Cool- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=64385&vpn=RR-212E-20PK-R2&manufacture=COOLERMASTER
PSU- http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=58382&vpn=CP-9020042-NA&manufacture=Corsair
Case- http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146025

Spirit, you mentioned some OC part for MB, but it is a bit expensive. What about the one I found above?
And Twiki, I used TX750 but it is not modular. Should I be concerned?

Follow-up questions:
1) Any good 23+IN monitor that you guys can recommend?
2) Is water cool set-up much more difficult than air cool? I've installed air cooling system once before, never water cooling.

Thanks guys!
(Yes, I gave up on pink cases)
 
Last edited:
I think it's good but the case choice is horrible, sorry. Silver interior and cable management will be a pain. Some cases I'd recommend are the Corsair 300R, Fractal Design Define R3 (or R4, both are great) and the NZXT Phantom 410. Granted, they're probably a little more pricey, but worth it. The Phantom 410 looks great in this gunmetal colour http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146093

The board you chose is perfectly adequate. :)
 
You're fine with the PSU. Modular means less cable clutter as you use the cables only what you need.
 
spirit said:
I think it's good but the case choice is horrible, sorry. Silver interior and cable management will be a pain. Some cases I'd recommend are the Corsair 300R, Fractal Design Define R3 (or R4, both are great) and the NZXT Phantom 410. Granted, they're probably a little more pricey, but worth it. The Phantom 410 looks great in this gunmetal colour http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146093

The board you chose is perfectly adequate. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks, how about these ones?
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=6_112&item_id=033493
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=6_111&item_id=038240
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=6_111&item_id=041764
 
Definitely go for the Phantom over the Guardian. If I remember correctly, the Guardian has the same problems as that other one you were looking at.

The Phantom is a great case.
 
spirit said:
Definitely go for the Phantom over the Guardian. If I remember correctly, the Guardian has the same problems as that other one you were looking at.

The Phantom is a great case.
Click to expand...

Thanks mate!

Sorry, one last question for you.. hope you can answer relatively quickly.

Monitors...
http://ncix.ca/products/?sku=86250&vpn=LS27C570HS/ZC&manufacture=Samsung&promoid=1311
http://ncix.ca/products/?sku=69305&vpn=LS27B350HS/ZA&manufacture=Samsung&promoid=1311

which one would you pick?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top