Need up to date information for DIY rig!

[cowswearbras]

Have been searching HWZ for latest reviews but can't seem to find any.

Okay so basically I am a newbie with a little knowledge on DIY rigs. I know the exact parts I want and alternatives if there isn't stock at the shops. Now I just need to know which shop to go for the best price and (possibly) credit card payment. I understand from what I've read that most shops have credit card instalment plans but correct me if I'm wrong!

I don't know how to assemble the parts so I would need them to assemble for me. My friend recommended Tradepac and Best Price(?) (is it still open?). So many shops with "Best" in it I got quite confused. Best Price, Best Bargain, Best Buy.

These are the parts I want:
Asus Maximus VII Hero + i5-4690K
Gigabyte G1 Gaming GTX 970
G.Skill RipjawsX 2x4GB 1866MHz
Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
WD Green 1TB
Corsair RM 850W
NZXT Kraken X61
NZXT H440
Windows 7

Any advice would be much appreciated, thanks!

 

[escksu]

Recommend you to get a bigger SSD. At least 256GB. The Plextor m6P is a good option.

IMHO, there is no need for ROG boards unless you really need the features. Hero is rather overpriced. Also ditch the Corsair RM PSU for a Seasonic X-750W. Seasonic PSUs are far superior compared to Chicony ones.

 

[escksu]

Btw, I am not sure if NZXT AIO are still available in SLS. For some reason I went last week, I don't recall seeing any NZXT AIO apart from the GPU cool bracket kit.

 

[Ark Law]

Best Value, aka Tradepac
Best Price, aka subsidiary of Video-Pro
Best Bargain, aka the original "Best-branded" shop
Best Buy, aka defunct competitor of Best Bargain

Just because the shop has the words BEST printed on their display panel doesn't necessarily mean that they have the best price to boot

Btw, if you're thinking of paying by credit card installments, better don't buy and save up cash first.

 

[cowswearbras]

Recommend you to get a bigger SSD. At least 256GB. The Plextor m6P is a good option.

IMHO, there is no need for ROG boards unless you really need the features. Hero is rather overpriced. Also ditch the Corsair RM PSU for a Seasonic X-750W. Seasonic PSUs are far superior compared to Chicony ones.

I want a board that supports Broadwell incase I do want to upgrade, and I know it's stupid but a black/red themed one for aesthetics. What about the MSI Z97 Gaming 3?
Hmm I don't know much about the PSU brands but I wanted a bigger capacity for future proof, incase I wanna do SLI/Crossfire. But thanks I'll switch to Seasonic!

Best Value, aka Tradepac
Best Price, aka subsidiary of Video-Pro
Best Bargain, aka the original "Best-branded" shop
Best Buy, aka defunct competitor of Best Bargain

Just because the shop has the words BEST printed on their display panel doesn't necessarily mean that they have the best price to boot

Btw, if you're thinking of paying by credit card installments, better don't buy and save up cash first.

Oh why is that?

 

[cowswearbras]

Also guys, I texted "gs" enquiring about how much is it to assemble my components and he said anything. What should I make of that?

 

[halnala]

I want a board that supports Broadwell incase I do want to upgrade, and I know it's stupid but a black/red themed one for aesthetics. What about the MSI Z97 Gaming 3?
Hmm I don't know much about the PSU brands but I wanted a bigger capacity for future proof, incase I wanna do SLI/Crossfire. But thanks I'll switch to Seasonic!



Oh why is that?

750w more than enough to sli. If you use too big a psu but draw only like 50% or less of its capability, it's simply inefficient and wasting power. Local electricity cost not exactly in the cheap category.

Credit card payments don't get much of a discount anywhere in SLS. Cold hard cash is your best bargaining chip.

 

[halnala]

Also guys, I texted "gs" enquiring about how much is it to assemble my components and he said anything. What should I make of that?

Means it is totally up to you.

 

[cowswearbras]

Means it is totally up to you.

Hmm so around how much would be a decent price to pay?

 

[alifffresto]

Also guys, I texted "gs" enquiring about how much is it to assemble my components and he said anything. What should I make of that?

Kopi money bro... Kopi money...

 

[Yureak]

Hmm so around how much would be a decent price to pay?

give him $20-50 bah whatever comfortable with you

 

[Ark Law]

Oh why is that?

Credit card payments don't get much of a discount anywhere in SLS. Cold hard cash is your best bargaining chip.

That, and when you're paying in installments, you're paying products which are in continual depreciation. So if you're paying $1.5k credit over three months now, you could've paid $1.4k cash (or lesser depending on market) three months later instead.

Or you could get better parts the $1.5k credit you would've used. Remember cash gives you more wiggle room to bargain.

Hmm so around how much would be a decent price to pay?

Shops typically charge $20-$30 for assembly service. Nigel (gs) leaves it up to you. Cash tip, or case of coke/beer, or pack of cigs or whatever you see fit

 

[jimlwk]

Can try for MSI Gaming GTX 970, it's more bang for buck. Of cos, G1 970 is a good card, better than MSI gaming in terms of temp ONLY when overclocking. If nv overclock like me, then MSI is better I feel la.

 

[royfrosty]

Rebalance out your rig for you.

From the looks of it i don't think you will do any form of overclocking.

MSI B85 G43 Gaming + i5-4460 ~ $384
Gskills Ripjaws 1600mhz 2x4gb kit Red ~ $115
WD Blue 1tb ~ $67
Crucial mx100 256gb ~ $155
MSI GTX970 4gb Twin Frozr V ~ $575
Superflower Leadex 650w 80+ Gold Fully Modular PSU ~ $149
Fractal Design Arc Midi ~ $129
Samsung DVD Drive ~ $21
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM ~ $115

Total ~ $1710. Buy at tradepac, DIY.

Ask yourself whether do you really need an high end system? Do you see yourself adding another GPU in perhaps 2-3months time? If there is no need to add one then forget about it. Just go for single card.

 

[escksu]

I want a board that supports Broadwell incase I do want to upgrade, and I know it's stupid but a black/red themed one for aesthetics. What about the MSI Z97 Gaming 3?
Hmm I don't know much about the PSU brands but I wanted a bigger capacity for future proof, incase I wanna do SLI/Crossfire. But thanks I'll switch to Seasonic!



Oh why is that?

IMHO, I do not think its worth keeping Z97 to upgrade to Broadwell. I think new one will come out already.