New build for data intensive use

[shaggyjh]

Hi all,

Just another 'is this build ok' thread, sorry!

I'm wanting to build myself a desktop for processing data and running calculations on. I have a copy of Windows 7 64 bit, a Coolermaster 330 case and won't need any graphics card.
I want to run the OS and a few other smallish programs off a SSD drive, there won't be anything stored on it really so i'm not too worried about failures etc.
I'm not too worried about overclocking, but if it is going to be wise for me to do it then i'll give it a go.

So, do the components below seem ok? I've used Ebuyer for the prices, but i'll shop around once i know i have the right components!


Intel Core i3 2120 3.3GHz Socket 1155 3MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor £97.92

Asus P8Z68-V LX Socket 1155 Onboard graphics output 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard £79.26

Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz XMS3 Memory Kit CL9 1.5V unbuffered £34.52

OCZ 60GB Agility 3 SSD - 2.5" SATA-III - Read 525MB/s Write 475MB/s 80,000 IOPS £70.00

Coolermaster 450W GX PSU £46.19

Total is £327.89


I've not used a SSD yet, and was wondering whether the mobo above would not limit the speed of the data transfer, i read somewhere in my research that Sata III is the way to go, is this right?

Or would i be better off going for an i5 2500k build? I'm trying to do it as cheaply as possible so any advice would be great, many thanks

 

[macleod.mac]

Those components are absolutely fine in terms of compatibility, if you're looking for a cheap build just for the uses you've stated than an i3-2120 will be perfectly sufficient, IMO an i5-2500k would be expensive overkill.

One thing I would suggest is swapping the hard drive for a Crucial M4 64GB - currently £75 from eBuyer. This is widely regarded the best series of SSDs on the market in terms of reliability and performance, the read and write speeds don't tell the whole story. OCZ are fairly unreliable when it comes to SSDs, and in most cases the M4 is actually faster - just Google Crucial M4 vs. OCZ for comparisons.

Good luck with your build!

 

[shadowboxer]

Remember you can't overclock the i3 even on a Z68 motherboard. Getting a Z68 motherboard will allow you to upgrade to something like the i5 2500K or i7 2600K in the future and overclock too. If your not fussed about overclocking at all then you could go with a cheaper H61/67 motherboard.

+1 for the Crucial M4 SSD. That motherboard you spec'd has SATA III (6Gb/s) [the two grey ports] so will make the most of the higher bandwidth with new generation SSD's.

 

[shaggyjh]

Thanks for both your inputs. I'll look to change the SSD then but keep the motherboard in case i want to upgrade the processor in the future.

Is the RAM i have selected ok? Is there anything that would be better suited for about the same money or a bit more? Could i go for more cheaper RAM, or is this just not worth it?

Cheers

 

[CTK2000]

As others have suggested dont go with OCZ! We have had alot of failures in our builds with these SSDs 3-6 months in.... Corsair all the way!

XMS is ok, but I would go with Corsair Vengeance RAM, much more stable than XMS3.

Cheers
CTK2000

 

[shadowboxer]

I'd avoid RAM like the Vengeance with it's tall pointless heatsinks as it'll interfer with most aftermarket CPU coolers.

I'd go for this set.

Kingston 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600MHz HyperX Blu Memory Kit CL9 1.65V

 

[CTK2000]

Not if you go for the low profile version:

Corsair Memory 8GB Vengeance Jet Black Low Profile 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9 XMP Dual Channel Desktop - CML8GX3M2A1600C9 - Scan.co.uk

We use these with Corsair A50, A70 and ThermalTake Frios and freezer pros...

The kingston Hyper X is also a good choose.

Cheers
CTK2000

 

[STdrez625]

If this is work related then dont overclock, it lowers reliability. I3 is a great processor, but only dualcore, an i5 is quad core and will double your speed on multi-threaded software like excel. You could go for an 128gb SSD as it is at these sizes and sabove that SSD's achieve their full rated speeds. If you are doing database work then get an SSD that can store your full database. And even tho you are ruling out getting a graphics card now, you might find use for one as a HPC and OPENCL, purported to perform some calcs up to 500x faster than CPU /wibble/

 

[shaggyjh]

Not if you go for the low profile version:

Corsair Memory 8GB Vengeance Jet Black Low Profile 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9 XMP Dual Channel Desktop - CML8GX3M2A1600C9 - Scan.co.uk

CTK2000

This is the one I ordered actually.

All arrived yesterday and built up. Pc wouldn't startup to begin with! Mobo light would come on but no cpu fan or case fan coming on. Finally worked out that when there was any RAM in channel A the pc wouldn't boot?!?
I've set a query off to Scan so we'll see what they say.

Love how quick the SSD is! It ask works fine with both sticks of RAM in channel B.

One final question, I have a Geforce 6200 graphics card and I want to run 3 monitors! I can't seem to get even 2 working when one is in the mobo and one in the graphics card. If both are in the graphics card it is fine.
I have tried changing the settings in the bios to pci/igpu but it doesn't seem to work, any ideas?

Cheers

 

[avfsmp]

if i may ask what do you plan on using it for? if cheapness is your goal, you might be able to get rid of the windows OS if there are any open source alternatives?

 

[wanderlust]

shaggyjh Did you get this up and running then? I'm looking at building something with similar components and wondering whether or not to spend the extra £50 or so on the i5 , but bearing in mind I'm trying to keep the costs down, hopefully the i3 will suffice for a bit of HD editting and photoshop etc.

How's life with the SSD?

 

[shaggyjh]

All up and running although i haven't used it that much yet, loads on at the moment.

Sent the RAM, Mobo and CPu back to Scan and they found no problems so had to pay the charge for a wrong RMA. Got it back and built it all up again and it works fine, typical!!

The SSD is brilliant, very quick and very quiet. As i said above, i haven't had chance to use it heavily yet, but can tell the difference from my other PC.

Hope that helps?

 

[wanderlust]

Congrats, glad you got it sorted. How were Scan, I've not dealt with them yet but they seem to get a pretty good write up when it comes to customer service.

 

[shaggyjh]

Good,

They arranged courier to collect parcel and contacted me once they had tested it all. Gutted i had to pay £38 incl VAT for them testing the components and finding nothing wrong. I tried everything, but didn't have spare RAM or a CPU to test what component was causing me the problem.

Got the components back within 7days, which includes sending them to Scan, testing and receiving them back, not bad really.