[ADVISE] Help in Assembling/Building/Choosing/Upgrading Your Computer

[OhNow3P]

Hi guys,

I started this thread to help everyone wanting a new computer. All you need to do is post the following:

budget:
usage:

other miscellaneous requirements:

*If to be used for gaming,. please indicate the games you wish to play.


The prices i will be using are those that come from major shops in gilmore and also PCexpress and others... The prices will only reflect that of which on the date of my post.


also please put your requests in this format:

Processor:
Motherboard:
RAM:

Video Card:

Hard Drive:
Optical Drive:

Power Supply:
Casing:

monitor:

Accessories:

please indicate (at least)the size of the hard disk desired, and also what you need/have/prefer.

Thanks.


How to get to Gilmore:
commuting... From EDSA get on the MRT to Cubao and take the other train and get off at Gilmore station. so easy.
driving... Via aurora is the easiest way from EDSA. anyway, just ask na lang cos i dunno where you'll be coming from.


An example post would be as follows:

Hi. Please help me buy a computer for my son. He will be using it mainly for school and some games. He likes to play Dota and L4D. Our budget for the PC would be 20K. We already have a printer, monitor and speakers. Our monitor is a 17" CRT monitor. My son said he prefers 1gb video card.

Thank you.

 

[acidbiscuit]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

@ashden
kung may pambili ka na ng casing, bumili ka na ng true rated na PSU.. puso ng rig mo ang PSU..

to the peeps asking questions on rig built and PSU.
- read all of villain_allain's post / suggestions you'll learn a lot from him..

 

[topet2k12001]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

woohh.. wait up.. 460?? may 560 na ngayon.
and are you planning on crossfire? if not then go for the antec tp550.

Thanks, Allain for the chat conversation.

So I learned new things:

1. I could just get an NVIDIA GTX 560. It's going to be expensive by almost PHP2,000. But...I can do away with spending for a VGA Cooler as long as the card itself is a non-reference card and just to ensure that I have to apply good thermal compound.

2. CPU Cooler (Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus) is okay for my current processor and motherboard. Also it is recommended to regularly replace/apply good thermal compound to keep the CPU/processor cool. A good brand he recommended is the Gelit Xtreme for PHP500. Depending on your usage, you may need to re-apply thermal compound every 2 months (again...depending on your computer usage).

3. For the casing, options are varied and a matter of preference. He suggested I go for the Thermaltake Dokker: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9411827 for PHP3,050. It's just PHP350 more expensive than the Cooler Master USP 100 with clear side panel at PHP2,700.

4. For the PSU...this is something very important that I have learned:

- Buy a watt-meter. You will learn how much your computer really consumes. It's being sold for PHP850 at Sulit.
- Power Supply Units will only become efficient on power consumption once it is being utilized at 70% to 80% capacity/load.
- Meaning to say, if your computer consumes less wattage, say 150W, and you purchased a 650W PSU...your computer will not be able to achieve the 70%-80% capacity of the PSU. So the PSU is not yet achieving its "efficiency" level. So in essence, you purchased "extra power" that you are not using and therefore, you wasted some money.
- Therefore, if you have only 1 video card and you are not overclocking the card, in essense a 500W PSU (get a branded one) will do. You can still get a 550W PSU for that extra headroom (i.e. you want to install extra fans, lights, etc.).
- Allain recommended me to purchase a 550W PSU, Antec Brand. It's being sold for PHP2,500.

I'll edit this post to see how much I will need for budget.

 

[villain_allain]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

Thanks topet2k12001.

Post your pics here soon pag tapos na ang rig mo.

Also thanks for acidbiscuit.



Reminder on PSU
There are 2 cougar lineup that failed the test of hardwaresecrets.
The Cougar CM/CMX series and the RS series.

Now for the Cougar A series.

Conclusions

This is the third power supply from Cougar in a row that fails our tests. It seems that they test and label their power supplies at 25º C, and they behave badly under higher temperatures. (We test power supplies between 45º C and 50º C, and semiconductors lose their ability to deliver current and power, and efficiency drops, with temperature.)

The A-Series 560 W presented decent efficiency between 83% and 84%, when we pulled between 20% and 60% of its labeled wattage (i.e., between 112 W and 336 W). At 80% load (448 W), efficiency dropped to 81%. At full load, however, efficiency dropped way below the 80% mark, at 77.8 percent. We wonder how this unit got the 80 Plus Bronze certification.

Also, this unit has a voltage regulation problem, with its +5VSB and +3.3 V getting outside the proper range as you approach the unit’s labeled power.

Because of these problems, we can’t recommend this product.

Sorry on the brand of Cougar. Hope they will fix all this problem soon.
Im a big fan of Cougar. @_@ As of now di muna naten irerecommend ang brand na 'to. (except GX)

Other PSU that should be avoided, Thermaltake Litepower series, some Coolermaster GX series.

Recommended PSU:
Corsair is only a brand. pero inside corsair may makikita ka na seasonic brand. So bakit ka pa magcorsair if makukuha mo ang seasonic na mas mura?

XFX series -- all seasonic. depends nalang on the design. this looks sleek.
Antec TPseries -- seasonic inside. nowadays eto ang cheapest brand na modular din.
FSP line up -- you cant go wrong with this. Same as seasonic, madaming brands ang bitbit ang FSP. e.g. OCZ stealthxstream.

 

[robinsar]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

UP!!

Hello mga master pa setup lang po ako CPU lang for hardcore gaming.

MoBo: Asrock N68-S3 UCC (para mejo mura)
CPU: AMD
Video card: ung the best sana master 5 - 6k
Memory:
Power supply: kung kaya ng generic mas ok para mapamura )
Casing:

wag muna ung Hard disk.
15k budget master. wait ko na lang po
thxbai!

 

[acidbiscuit]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

@robinsar
Asrock N68-S3 UCC PHP 1950.00 - request mo
AMD Athlon II x3 455 3.3ghz PHP 3610.00
Geil 2gb ddr3-1333 PHP 940.00
Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00

14,900
==
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500 - FTW tong PSU na to
check specs
http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product1.php?id=MTc1OA==

more headroom in case of future upgrade , additional fans , overclocking CPU and GPU .
for it's price panalo to

Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
rebranded 5770 can play all latest games


July 11-13 promo
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10737247
In Win Griffin Mid-Tower Black Case PHP 1700.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10740885

read previous post by villain_allain with regards to psu it is well explained so no need for me to elaborate..

wait ka rin suggestion ng iba

---
Thanks rin villain_allain for dropping by here in SB...
( actually read arguments with sir tony about the HEC raptor II in TPC)
thats why I bought my Rapter at that time .. gusto ko na tuloy magpalit
ng PSU ganda ng ANTEC 550W PSU for 2500 price. wala akong masyadong headroom
for Ocing my current rig.

 

[topet2k12001]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

@robinsar
Asrock N68-S3 UCC PHP 1950.00 - request mo
AMD Athlon II x3 455 3.3ghz PHP 3610.00
Geil 2gb ddr3-1333 PHP 940.00
Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00

14,900
==
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500 - FTW tong PSU na to
check specs
http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product1.php?id=MTc1OA==

more headroom in case of future upgrade , additional fans , overclocking CPU and GPU .
for it's price panalo to

Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
rebranded 5770 can play all latest games


July 11-13 promo
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10737247
In Win Griffin Mid-Tower Black Case PHP 1700.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10740885

read previous post by villain_allain with regards to psu it is well explained so no need for me to elaborate..

wait ka rin suggestion ng iba

---
Thanks rin villain_allain for dropping by here in SB...
( actually read arguments with sir tony about the HEC raptor II in TPC)
thats why I bought my Rapter at that time .. gusto ko na tuloy magpalit
ng PSU ganda ng ANTEC 550W PSU for 2500 price. wala akong masyadong headroom
for Ocing my current rig.

Friend,

Seems like you and allain know each other. He's already offline so I'd probably ask you.

So I mentioned I'm not a gamer but I needed to upgrade my video card. This thread is very similar to the reason why I wanted to upgrade my video card (just so you have an idea): http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18234695

Anyway, allain also recommended a 550W PSU (Antec also). But in my quest for my project (like the one in the link), I may end up having to overclock the GTX 560 Ti even further. I was advised that if I plan to not do SLI and not overclock, the Antec 550W will be okay. But since I plan to overclock my video card from time to time, would it be recommended to just get a 650W PSU? Also I just thought of making sure I'm "future-proof" once I decide to fully upgrade my entire system so I can still use the PSU.

Allain also recommended an XFX brand, by the way. I saw two types of 650W on TPC:

Core Edition 80 plus: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9467675
Extreme Edition 80 plus bronze: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9467570

What's the difference and which one to choose? Let's assume I have budget whichever of the two I choose. Thanks!

 

[Kai_15]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

sir may pambili ka ng phenom II x4, sana meron ka din pambili ng psu. kahit yung fsp blue storm pro 400w @ 1300 lang. kaysa sa orion psu na ang rated is around 200w-250w lang.

-->> ser po! ano po kaya kung palitan ko muna ung processor ko instead na phen0m llx4 840 3.2ghz gawin ko munang athl0n llx2 para ung m0ney na masasave ay magamit ko muna sa ibng parts ng hardware especially p0wer supply, tingin nyo ok po ba un at makakapag-multimedia purp0ses pa ako tulad ng ph0toshop,autocad etc gamit ang athl0n llx2???? Natatakot kc ako, maganda na m0bo,pr0c. Etc. Tapos pagdating sa psu ay generic bka hndi magtagal ang first c0mputer ko eh...Kapag nakaip0n ulit saka ko palitan ung pr0cessor ko ng much better.


--->any suggesti0n guys?

 

[insen12345]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

question po anu po pangit sa hec cougar cmx 750w? ska anu po suggested nyo na psu na 750w n maganda tnx po

 

[zhanewhin]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

Mga boss anu po magandang casing sa tingin nyu ?

www.legitreviews.com/article/1332/1/

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10229129

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9593797

Thanks po .
after school po kasi dederetso nko ng gilmore .
Thanks
mas ok po ba yung bottom mounted psu? Kesa yung nasa taas?

 

[topet2k12001]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

question po anu po pangit sa hec cougar cmx 750w? ska anu po suggested nyo na psu na 750w n maganda tnx po

I was recommended to get the Antec Brand for my configuration and I was informed it's a good brand. If you want Antec also, you may want to check this out: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10740120. They have a promo (July 11 - 13 only) selling a 750 Watt PSU for PHP4,500.

 

[Jmskii]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

question po anu po pangit sa hec cougar cmx 750w? ska anu po suggested nyo na psu na 750w n maganda tnx po

Kung gusto mo ng magandang PSU. Corsair masusuggest ko sayo.

Mga boss anu po magandang casing sa tingin nyu ?

www.legitreviews.com/article/1332/1/

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10229129

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9593797

Thanks po .
after school po kasi dederetso nko ng gilmore .
Thanks
mas ok po ba yung bottom mounted psu? Kesa yung nasa taas?

Mas trip ko design ng una. :3
About sa place nung PSU. Depende po yun sa Case and PSU e.

 

[topet2k12001]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

Mga boss anu po magandang casing sa tingin nyu ?

www.legitreviews.com/article/1332/1/

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10229129

www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9593797

Thanks po .
after school po kasi dederetso nko ng gilmore .
Thanks
mas ok po ba yung bottom mounted psu? Kesa yung nasa taas?

Based on what I have seen, the answer to your question (top or bottom) depends on some factors (like the type of PSU that you have): http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/266615-31-bottom-mount

 

[insen12345]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

GUys pa suggest nmn po ng upgrade e2 po specs ng cpu q ngaun

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-VM900M
Proce: Pentium 4 3.0Ghz
Ram: 2pcs 512mb 667
Vcard: Palit 9500 super 1gb+

gwin q sana gaming pc

ung new rig q kc sa dec q na ggwin bka mpamura pq kaya upgrade q muna cpu q ngaun

TIA

 

[villain_allain]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

@robinsar
Asrock N68-S3 UCC PHP 1950.00 - request mo
AMD Athlon II x3 455 3.3ghz PHP 3610.00
Geil 2gb ddr3-1333 PHP 940.00
Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00

14,900
==
Antec True Power 550W 80Plus-Bronze SLI/CF APFC 2500 - FTW tong PSU na to
check specs
http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product1.php?id=MTc1OA==

more headroom in case of future upgrade , additional fans , overclocking CPU and GPU .
for it's price panalo to

Power Color HD 6770 1gb/128bit ddr5 PHP 5110.00
rebranded 5770 can play all latest games


July 11-13 promo
Gigabyte GZ-P5 Casing no PSU PHP 790.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10737247
In Win Griffin Mid-Tower Black Case PHP 1700.00
http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=10740885

read previous post by villain_allain with regards to psu it is well explained so no need for me to elaborate..

wait ka rin suggestion ng iba

---
Thanks rin villain_allain for dropping by here in SB...
( actually read arguments with sir tony about the HEC raptor II in TPC)
thats why I bought my Rapter at that time .. gusto ko na tuloy magpalit
ng PSU ganda ng ANTEC 550W PSU for 2500 price. wala akong masyadong headroom
for Ocing my current rig.

Actually si bro_mamen ang nagsabi sa akin sa site. Hahanap kasi ako ng magandang VPN for my gf. ehehe. anyway, nagkita na pala tayo sa tpc. ehehe. its a good buy sa antec tp550. the original price of that psu days ago nasa 3900.

Price drop or Sale price ang sinabi ni distro. Wag ka magalala sa sale day. Hanggat meron sila stock, bibigay nila ng ganon price.

Friend,

Seems like you and allain know each other. He's already offline so I'd probably ask you.

So I mentioned I'm not a gamer but I needed to upgrade my video card. This thread is very similar to the reason why I wanted to upgrade my video card (just so you have an idea): http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18234695

Anyway, allain also recommended a 550W PSU (Antec also). But in my quest for my project (like the one in the link), I may end up having to overclock the GTX 560 Ti even further. I was advised that if I plan to not do SLI and not overclock, the Antec 550W will be okay. But since I plan to overclock my video card from time to time, would it be recommended to just get a 650W PSU? Also I just thought of making sure I'm "future-proof" once I decide to fully upgrade my entire system so I can still use the PSU.

Allain also recommended an XFX brand, by the way. I saw two types of 650W on TPC:

Core Edition 80 plus: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9467675
Extreme Edition 80 plus bronze: http://www.tipidpc.com/viewitem.php?iid=9467570

What's the difference and which one to choose? Let's assume I have budget whichever of the two I choose. Thanks!

If you really want a future-proof, then going a bigger wattage of psu is better. XFX has 5 years warranty. >> which means they know the psu will last 5 years. To know whats inside the psu, the oem they use is Seasonic.

Seasonic is an OEM. Madami may dala sa kanya. e.g.: Antec True Power. Pinaliit lang na pcb si antec because of 2oz of pcb. tapos linagyan nila ng 120mm so the psu will run cooler. rather than big pcb and 140mm.

Preference nalang sa XFX and antec. pero di ka magkakamali.
If now, ill pick the 650w antec true power for 3500. mas mura eh. ehehe.

 

[villain_allain]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

GUys pa suggest nmn po ng upgrade e2 po specs ng cpu q ngaun

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-VM900M
Proce: Pentium 4 3.0Ghz
Ram: 2pcs 512mb 667
Vcard: Palit 9500 super 1gb+

gwin q sana gaming pc

ung new rig q kc sa dec q na ggwin bka mpamura pq kaya upgrade q muna cpu q ngaun

TIA

Dont upgrade. Sell the whole system. then start from scratch.

 

[insen12345]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

Dont upgrade. Sell the whole system. then start from scratch.

uupgrade q lng po ung memory nya ska ung proce qng pwde kc sa december q pa bbuoin ung new rig q

ppamana q lng to sa kapatid q nag lalaro kc xa ng OL games kya upgrade q sana

 

[seifer_yai05]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

yup useless lang. your graphics card is old na sir. siguro you can play gta vice city pa.

suggestions: kaysa sa buy ka ng new agp card. why not ipon for a low cost build cpu? e.g. a built in radeon 4250 can run san andreas with no problems.

eh mga magkanu kaya bro?eto kasi pic ng pc ko habol ko dito LCD mas tipid sa kuryente...

 

[mrleix_qt]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

to the peeps asking questions on rig built and PSU.
- read all of villain_allain's post / suggestions you'll learn a lot from him..

+1 i agree with this bro acid.

Thanks topet2k12001.

Post your pics here soon pag tapos na ang rig mo.

Also thanks for acidbiscuit.



Reminder on PSU
There are 2 cougar lineup that failed the test of hardwaresecrets.
The Cougar CM/CMX series and the RS series.

Now for the Cougar A series.


Sorry on the brand of Cougar. Hope they will fix all this problem soon.
Im a big fan of Cougar. @_@ As of now di muna naten irerecommend ang brand na 'to. (except GX)

Other PSU that should be avoided, Thermaltake Litepower series, some Coolermaster GX series.

Recommended PSU:
Corsair is only a brand. pero inside corsair may makikita ka na seasonic brand. So bakit ka pa magcorsair if makukuha mo ang seasonic na mas mura?

XFX series -- all seasonic. depends nalang on the design. this looks sleek.
Antec TPseries -- seasonic inside. nowadays eto ang cheapest brand na modular din.
FSP line up -- you cant go wrong with this. Same as seasonic, madaming brands ang bitbit ang FSP. e.g. OCZ stealthxstream.

sir villain_allain, regarding with this matter sa HEC CM/CMX posible ba na ito din yung cause na nangyayari sa external hdd ko? nag test nako 2 extrnal hdd 500 same brand seagate and the same result unstable power nagsstop ang pag cocopy lalo na kung sasabayan ng games at movies, plus unstable din sa my.computer minsan detected minsan hindi. yung 1TB ko na WDC di naman nagkakaproblema since may sarili syang pinagkukuhaan ng power.

yan ang current specs ko sir sa SIG ko with additional of:

5pcs 120mm LED Fans coolermaster and xigmatek
1pc 140mm LED CM din

nag start itong problem ko nung nag add ako ng Internal Seagate 500gb HDD, ayun na. i hope matulungan mo ako sir.

kung mag babawas nalang bago ng hardwares ko or magpapalit ako ng PSU. im using HEC CM Cougar 700w. hindi po ako naka OC all stock sir.

Advance TY!

 

[villain_allain]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

eh mga magkanu kaya bro?eto kasi pic ng pc ko habol ko dito LCD mas tipid sa kuryente...

Mas matipid mga LED sir. you can sell the lcd sa mga friends mo na 2k. (if meron bibili) then buy a led monitor cost around 16" 3500 and 18.5" 4500.

uupgrade q lng po ung memory nya ska ung proce qng pwde kc sa december q pa bbuoin ung new rig q

ppamana q lng to sa kapatid q nag lalaro kc xa ng OL games kya upgrade q sana

if you can buy a cheap ddr1 2nd hand. then go. pero if you'll buy bnew or highly cost ddr1, then wait nalang for december na magkapera ka.

 

[villain_allain]

Re: [ADVISE]Help you build/choose/upgrade your Computer

+1 i agree with this bro acid.



sir villain_allain, regarding with this matter sa HEC CM/CMX posible ba na ito din yung cause na nangyayari sa external hdd ko? nag test nako 2 extrnal hdd 500 same brand seagate and the same result unstable power nagsstop ang pag cocopy lalo na kung sasabayan ng games at movies, plus unstable din sa my.computer minsan detected minsan hindi. yung 1TB ko na WDC di naman nagkakaproblema since may sarili syang pinagkukuhaan ng power.

yan ang current specs ko sir sa SIG ko with additional of:

5pcs 120mm LED Fans coolermaster and xigmatek
1pc 140mm LED CM din

nag start itong problem ko nung nag add ako ng Internal Seagate 500gb HDD, ayun na. i hope matulungan mo ako sir.

kung mag babawas nalang bago ng hardwares ko or magpapalit ako ng PSU. im using HEC CM Cougar 700w. hindi po ako naka OC all stock sir.

Advance TY!

actually ok lang naman ang setup mo para sa cougar cm. (hoping) anyway, mas maganda na bili ka ng bago or palitan mo na. you can sell your cougar to 3k. halos bagsak presyo mga 2nd hand cougar sa tpc because of the hardwaresecrets review. Yun din ang naging sagot sa tanong sa cougar thread bakit madami ang nagpapa-RMA na cougar.

Here's an idea. Pede mo ipa-RMA ang CM series mo. Usually if you go to PCtrends then yung CM mo magiging CMX na. then you can sell it na 3k-3.5k (rush sale) then buy the Antec TP650. (if meron pa stock)

If wala then go to FSP epsilion 600w.


Other reasons sa problem mo: Pedi din motherboard problem. Pede din usb cable of your hdd. pero if you use 2 hdd na that have the same problem then chances nga pedi din psu.

Tips: (1)try mo ilipat ang videocard 2-6pin connector mo sa ibang modular of the cougar. why? **para sa ibang rail dadaan ung power draw nung videocard. (2) try mo ilipat ng sata power connector ung bago mo lagay na hdd.

**im not familiar with rails of the cougar. not sure if apat ba. kaya if mabigat ang rail sa isa, di balance. much better pa din ang single rail or dual rain. (IMHO)