enquiry on choosing GPU, mobo, processor

[nicula]

Good morning everyone,

Recently, I am beginning to develop interest in building my own rig. As opposed to just seeking advice based on my budget, I hope to seek the experienced HWZ forum-ers on what to look for in some of the components of a DIY rig.

Here are some of my questions

GPU: does the GPU numbers matter? For the uninitiated like me, I often based my selection on numbers like 1GB and 2GB. Should I look into details like shader core, texture cores, CUDA cores (Nvidia), power consumption, stock cooler?

Mobo: I am really confused over here. I did some read up and reckon that number of PCIe slots will determine the type of expansion cards I can use (in terms of the lanes, whether if it is PCIe 3, which i assume is the current standard?).

What about SATA? Is it related to how fast the read-speed of the mobo when it comes to accessing your hdd?

Processor: The current Haswell processors, how do I choose between i3, i5 or i7 and in addition, the variant within each group?

I apologize for saturating the thread with so many questions :S

 

[ipadxcell]

1) Know your needs and uses.
2) Google is your best friend.
3) The more you research on your own, the better you understand.
4) Don't rush!

Good luck!

 

[royfrosty]

Best is you search what you need. Current standards are pcie 3. Sata 6gb/s. Processor haswell i5-4xxx or 4xxxk. Find out the meaning of what is with the k behind for.

To read up more. Google it. It will be your best bet in getting what you need.

Mobo comes in B85 H87 z87. Go read about it.

 

[Entry Level PC]

Wah lau you really 100% total noob.

GPU: does the GPU numbers matter? For the uninitiated like me, I often based my selection on numbers like 1GB and 2GB. Should I look into details like shader core, texture cores, CUDA cores (Nvidia), power consumption, stock cooler?

Wrong liao.
Totally wrong.
You look at the benchmark.
Nvidia = X60 and above.
AMD = X850 and above.
Anything below = Can only play games in LOW or MEDIUM.

Mobo: I am really confused over here. I did some read up and reckon that number of PCIe slots will determine the type of expansion cards I can use (in terms of the lanes, whether if it is PCIe 3, which i assume is the current standard?).

What you talking about?
You need at least PCIe 2 16x to have enough bandwidth for your GPU.

If you not going DUAL GPU, you don't need to care about PCIe.

What about SATA? Is it related to how fast the read-speed of the mobo when it comes to accessing your hdd?

SATA2 = 3Gbit
SATA3 = 6Gbit

SATA2 is more than enough.
You will only get around 100-200MB/s at best.
Which is still within SATA2 bandwidth range.
Unless you using SSD then u need SATA3.

Processor: The current Haswell processors, how do I choose between i3, i5 or i7 and in addition, the variant within each group?

I apologize for saturating the thread with so many questions :S

i3 = Dual Core with 4x Threads
i5 = Quad Core with 4x Threads
i7 = Quad Core with 8x Threads

Variant = Made for OCing or Power Saving
Different Model Number = Different Ghz.

Not going to answer anymore of your question.
Plz go spend at least 1 week to read up and study on your own.

 

[shadow84]

Wah lau you really 100% total noob.



Wrong liao.
Totally wrong.
You look at the benchmark.
Nvidia = X60 and above.
AMD = X850 and above.
Anything below = Can only play games in LOW or MEDIUM.



What you talking about?
You need at least PCIe 2 16x to have enough bandwidth for your GPU.

If you not going DUAL GPU, you don't need to care about PCIe.



SATA1 = 3Gbit
SATA2 = 6Gbit

SATA1 is more than enough.
You will only get around 100-200MB/s at best.
Which is still within SATA1 bandwidth range.



i3 = Dual Core with 4x Threads
i5 = Quad Core with 4x Threads
i7 = Quad Core with 8x Threads

Variant = Made for OCing or Power Saving
Different Model Number = Different Ghz.

Not going to answer anymore of your question.
Plz go spend at least 1 week to read up and study on your own.

It's Sata 2 - 3Gbit and Sata 3 - 6Gbit...

 

[Entry Level PC]

It's Sata 2 - 3Gbit and Sata 3 - 6Gbit...

My bad.
EDITED liao.

 

[shadow84]

My bad.
EDITED liao.

HAHA, you also need go do your research ... ... (No offense, just sarcasm...)

 

[nicula]

just did my research as suggested by the participants in this thread, probably accelerated by some caustic remarks from some.

anyway...

For processor, if I am not interested in OC, should i stick to intel i5 4570?

For mobo, I can stick to B85 model instead of the pricier Z87. For B85 model, I am able to run SLI or Crossfire if I desire right? Some of the more popular B85 mobo recommended in this forum is MSI B85M-g43. For running GPU, I read that if inserting it into a PCIe x16 slot, it will yield the full x16 bandwidth, but if i were to do SLI or Crossfire, the bandwidth will be divided into x8 for two cards. Is there any mobo out there that allowed me to do dual-SLI/Crossfire with each card running at x16 bandwidth?

For GPU, some stalking in the forum again shown the trend of recommendation of GTX 760. Games I play (dragon nest, lol) means that GTX 760 can fully cover the demand but is GTX 760 at least future proof for the next 3 years?

Some advice on my research?

 

[shadow84]

just did my research as suggested by the participants in this thread, probably accelerated by some caustic remarks from some.

anyway...

For processor, if I am not interested in OC, should i stick to intel i5 4570?

For mobo, I can stick to B85 model instead of the pricier Z87. For B85 model, I am able to run SLI or Crossfire if I desire right? Some of the more popular B85 mobo recommended in this forum is MSI B85M-g43. For running GPU, I read that if inserting it into a PCIe x16 slot, it will yield the full x16 bandwidth, but if i were to do SLI or Crossfire, the bandwidth will be divided into x8 for two cards. Is there any mobo out there that allowed me to do dual-SLI/Crossfire with each card running at x16 bandwidth?

For GPU, some stalking in the forum again shown the trend of recommendation of GTX 760. Games I play (dragon nest, lol) means that GTX 760 can fully cover the demand but is GTX 760 at least future proof for the next 3 years?

Some advice on my research?

If you are not gonna do OC, then i5-4570 should do fine.

B85 cant do SLI, only Crossfire (AMD). Certain Z87 can do SLI. Popular recommendations would be MSI B85M-G43 or Asrock B85M Pro4, difference being Asrock having legacy PCI slots as compared to MSI having PCI-e slots, which are newer. 2-way SLI is designed to use 8x/8x, bandwidth will be split, no way around it.

If your game isnt that intensive, like BF3, Crysis 3, etc, then the GTX 760 will suffice. Just note that Palit has 2 yrs warranty and is the cheapest. The rest of the brands have 3 yrs warranty.

If you are gonna plae that level of games, then a 760 will be enough.