need help with a Micro-atx gaming build

[mrdalesen]

Hey peeps, norwegian guy here, so this can be a little interesting. I'm putting a build together and need guidance, due to different currencies, finding parts will not be easy for people trying to help but I will make it as easy as I can by giving some examples of norwegian prices. The norwegian currency isn't that strong right now so I actually have a bit more than 1300$ to spend in reality, anyways....

This is what I have so far; (everything is subject to change , I've just scrambled something together).

Case; BitFenix Prodigy M (100$)
Motherboard; Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 (180$)
CPU; Intel Core i5 4690K (280$)
PSU; Corsair CS650M 650W (gold) (115$)
Storage; Allready have an ssd and the hdd is something I can handle
GPU; MSI GeForce GTX 970 Tiger (350$) this is the cheapest 970 I could find.
Cooler; Corsair Hydro H100i (140$)
RAM; Kingston HyperX Fury Black DDR3 PC15000/1866MHz CL10 2x8GB (130$)

I appreciate all the help I can get

 

[~Darkseeker~]

Assuming your primary purpose for this machine is gaming, looks pretty good to me.

Only thing you probably need to be aware of is the VRAM controversy on the 970; namely it actually only has 3.5GBs as opposed to 4GBs. Games played on ultra settings at 1440p will probably hit the top of that buffer - and games played with higher MSAA settings WILL hit that buffer.

Basic rule of thumb for gaming is get a decent mid-range CPU (and the one you've chosen is about as good as it gets mid-range, no real need for the i7 line when gaming, since hyperthreading doesn't add much to the experience) and splurge as much as you possibly can on your GPU, since its the most important component for a gaming rig.

the 970 (especially with MSI's custom PCB) is a very capable card despite the controvery over it's amount of available frame buffer - however if at all possible i'd push some more cash at that component and look for a 980 (Gigabyte's Windforce 3 edition is my favorite for price/performance given it's good custom PCB and hefty cooler)

You could save money where it doesn't really matter such as by getting a cheaper case or a cheaper cooler (a decent air cooler like the Cooler Master Hyper-212 will do a decent enough job for even quite heavily overclocked CPUs. for less than half of what the H100i costs) and put those funds towards a higher end GPU

EDIT: also, when you buy Hyper-X memory (or Vengeance or Dominator or any of the other meaningless sub-brand-names) you pay for the name. There is cheaper 1866MHz RAM out there from more conservative companies like Crucial and ADATA. Money saved by not paying for hyped up 'gaming' RAM will also save you money you can put towards a higher end GPU.

~J

 

[mrdalesen]

Thanks bud! I think a 970 will be good enough for me, or I hope so as the cheapest 980 is 700 bucks, that's more than half my build! hahaha... But thanks, wasn't sure if the motherboard was good etc, but thank you very much

 

[Trotter]

I will second Dark on the RAM. I would go with some plain old G.Skill 1600MHz DDR3 and save the money. You will not be able to tell the difference plus you can overclock the RAM to equal or surpass what you currently have picked out. I recommend G.Skill as I have used them for many, many years and they have always been very highly recommended since Socket A days.

I have the same opinion about the cooler as well. Unless you plan on some heavy duty overclocking of the CPU you will get good service out of a decent air cooler for a third to a half of the cost.

 

[mrdalesen]

Thanks, will do.. found this: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo for 45$, can't find a cheaper cooler which actually looks like it's "good". The RAM is actually the cheapest 16gb memory I can find... The G.skill memory was 165$ and up.. But I can buy things on sales etc to get the lowest price point possible.. Thank you so much for the help!

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

Hyper 212 is a pretty good heatsink, just be cautious if you have tall memory, it can block the first memory slot on most motherboards...

 

[~Darkseeker~]

^another argument against 'gaming' memory! Arbitrarily tall heat spreaders :L

 

[setishock]

Just turn it so it's running parallel to the ram slots. Clears the slots on mine and keeps my baby nice and cool.

A heads up here. Before you buy that heat sink make sure it fits the case with the motherboard and cpu chip installed. It's a tall bugger. I have an Antec P280 case and it fits that. But anything smaller you not squeak it in.

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

See, even that way, the fan will typically be slightly offset on the cooler, though it doesn't exactly matter... It's still a loss of air flow and pressure. BTW, if that fan is in a pull only config, your not getting full nor proper airflow through the full heatsink, you really need the air to be blowing into it...

 

[cb600fshornet]

The rear fan and the fan on the CPU cooler are pushing/pulling air in the same direction right? x)