Gaming machine to a £1k budget - improvement suggestions please?

[Altissimus]

Hi Folks,

Little help please

My old computer has died. All that is salvageable is a relatively-recently purchased ATI 5770.

I am now looking at blowing ~£1k on a replacement.

I'm looking at either:


Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7-870 Quad Core (2.93GHz, 8MB Cache) + Turbo Boost
Motherboard
ASUS® P7P55D-E: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, CrossFireX™ SUPPORT
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (4 x 2GB KIT)
Graphics Card
NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
300GB WD VELOCIRAPTOR® SATA 3-Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (10,000rpm)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W TX SERIES (TX650) 80+ ULTRA QUIET PSU (£76)
Processor Cooling
TITAN FENRIR EVO EXTREME HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£39)


or:

Processor (CPU)
AMD PHENOM II X4 970 (3.50GHz/8MB CACHE/AM3) - BLACK EDITION
Motherboard
ASUS® M4A89TD PRO/USB3 : DDR3, USB 3.0, SATA 6.0Gb/s, CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (4 x 2GB KIT)
Graphics Card
NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
300GB WD VELOCIRAPTOR® SATA 3-Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (10,000rpm)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W TX SERIES (TX650) 80+ ULTRA QUIET PSU (£76)
Processor Cooling
TITAN FENRIR EVO EXTREME HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£39)


Bearing in mind this is fundamentally a gaming rig, some questions for consideration, please:

a) only difference is processor/m/b - which d'ya think is better? and why?
b) the real important question: are there any performance improvements/swops you'd make without massively increasing the budget?
c) is keeping the ATI 5770 the best option (as I already own it), or would another option (if so what) be better?

Many thanks for all helpful comments.

A.

[glc]

a: I personally prefer Intel, but I'm not going to try to sway you one way or the other.
b: DDR3-1333 is fast enough, and I'd recommend a 4gb x 2 kit instead of a 2gb x 4. A Velociraptor is not worth the money, a WD Black is just about as fast and gives you a LOT more storage per quid. You don't need an aftermarket CPU cooler if the processor comes with one. If you may want to Crossfire later, get the P7P55D-E Pro.
c: It's a decent card. Upgrade it later when needed or Crossfire another one with it.

[Altissimus]

Thanks glc.

On further examination I've made a few changes:


Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7-870 Quad Core (2.93GHz, 8MB Cache) + Turbo Boost
Motherboard
ASUS® P7P55D-E: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, CrossFireX™ SUPPORT
Memory (RAM)
4GB KINGSTON HYPER-X T1 DUAL-DDR3 2000MHz, X.M.P (2 x 2GB KIT)
Graphics Card
1GB ATI RADEON™ HD 5770 PCI EXPRESS - DirectX® 11
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
640GB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD6402AAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W TX SERIES (TX650) 80+ ULTRA QUIET PSU (£76)
Processor Cooling
TITAN FENRIR EVO EXTREME HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£39)

Going with the i7 for sure. Have also realised that the 6gb WD Black is much better than the 3gb10,000 velociraptor, aside from having not quite as cool a name.

Have gone for 4gb RAM realising that 8gb would be wasted. glc, you recommend 1333 - is the benefit of 1600 or 2000 not worth the money then?

Why the pro - what's the benefit? Other seems to support Xfire too. Not disputing, would just like to know why!

Having reviewed 5770 vs 5870 vs 5770 Xfire, have decided to pick up the second card and Xfire them. Worth keeping the cooler in this case?

Thanks,
A.

[glc]

If you don't overclock the i7, the ram will only run at 1333 so anything faster is a waste of money. You need the Pro to Crossfire properly - when both slots are used they both run at x8, but on the non-Pro the first slot will stay at x16 and the second slot will only run at x4.

If you are going to run a pair of 5770's, I'd upgrade the PSU to the TX750. You still won't need the aftermarket CPU cooler.

[Altissimus]

Awesome, thanks mate.

Shall I get it in black or pink?

[Nuclear Krusader]

Any colour as long as it's black.

[David M]

Pink is safer. Only a young girl who is into Barbie would consider stealing it.

[glc]

Perhaps you might be interested in this?

Newegg.com - APEVIA X-CRUISER2-PK Pink SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Ick!