Need help for a future proof system (Intel based)

[samuelgomes]

1. What is the purpose of the computer? (Note: If you are planning to say multimedia, you will have to be more specific as all types of systems are capable of doing that)
A: Home/office use applications like outlook/MS office, Email, Internet, Movies, Songs, Photo editing using Picasa/other user friendly software, family tree software/encarta encyclopedia etc.

2. Are you open to alternate ideas/products giving similar better performance but offering more VFM/ sellers? If not- why?
A: Not for proc+mobo+SSD combo as getting it thru employee discount
Proc - i7 2600K
Mobo - DZ68DB
SSD - intel 320 series 160 GB Solid State Drive

Edit - realized that i can get only i7 2600 + SSD also so suggestions for better mobo in range of 6.5-7.5K will also do.

3. What is your MAX budget?
A: 20K (open to increase to 25K) this is excluding the above components mentioned (Proc_mobo+SSD)

4. Planning to overclock?
A: From what I have read on wiki - No. But then read on some IT h/w websites that overclocking processors can run longer as after 2-3 years, overclocking helps in delaying upgrade and hence kind of future-proof. So from that perspective Yes.

5. Which OS are you planning to use?
A: Windows 7 Home

6. How much hard drive space is needed?
A: Have two 1TB (one USB2 and another USB3) Seagate go-flex external drives. Can I live with it, or should have one internal HDD along with SSD; and use external USB drives as external storage only.

7. What resolution will the screen run at & whats the size of the screen you want? If you already want have one and want to use it, mention its resolution and size.
A: Have Dell ST2420L 24-inch monitor already

8. How would you rate your hardware knowledge from the count of 1-10? (1 being the lowest, 5 being you are somewhat in sync with the current performers and 10 being the highest)
A:Would rate more than 6.5 or 7. Have worked in a hardware technical support call center for over 2 years. But that was 7 years back…and have moved on from that field. Still can understand a lot of components and read through to get more knowledge.

9. Have you ever built a desktop before or will this be done by an assembler?
A:will build this one self. Have not done earlier ever but as mentioned above, have knowledge. Upgraded my laptop memory and installed it self 3 months back.

10. When are you planning to buy the system?
A: within next one month

11. Are you one of the types looking out for "future proof" configurations?
A: yes, definitely

12. Are there going to be any components that you don't want to include in this new rig? If yes, do mention.
A:Will not install any Graphics or Audio card now. Will use DZ68DB and i7 2600K’s in-build GPU as well as in-built audio/LAN capabilities. But if something good and cheap, may install a graphics/audio card as I keep using the system in months to come.
Do not need quotation including keyboard as well. Have a Logitech wireless keyboard combo already

13. Which city do you live in and are you open to buying from shops from other city/states?
A: Bangalore
yes through ebay or online sites.

14. Mention any other points if deemed necessary
Will need USB 3.0 support (not sure if need to install anything separate with the mobo i am looking at) and wireless card.


Need specific inputs on cabinet/power supply/cooler for proc (if reqd) + RAM + USB 3.0 support + Wireless card + DVD writer. please do suggest if anything basic, i'm missing.

Since I might not do OC immediate, cabinet/power supply can be without cooler for proc but if not a major price diff, might as well go righaway.

 

[d6bmg]

^^ before suggesting other components, let me tell you one thing, if you don't have plans to overclock then 2600K would be a waste. :-/
So, think about it.
And DZ68DB will allow you to overclock.

 

[samuelgomes]

^^ before suggesting other components, let me tell you one thing, if you don't have plans to overclock then 2600K would be a waste. :-/
So, think about it.
And DZ68DB will allow you to overclock.

Thanks for your reply...
If couple of years down the line I need to increase my proc speed, OC will help me do that. Or do you suggest that I upgrade the proc at that time.

I just got this feedback from websites and a few ppl that 2600K may help me become a little future proof..

Ur views..?

^^ before suggesting other components, let me tell you one thing, if you don't have plans to overclock then 2600K would be a waste. :-/
So, think about it.
And DZ68DB will allow you to overclock.

Also realized there is hardly any price difference between the two so I might as well order the 2600K....

Hope that is fine..

 

[whitestar_999]

if you want a cheap & good z68 board then this is the only option:
Flipkart: Biostar TZ68K+: Motherboard

 

[d6bmg]

2600K is a great processor without any doubt, but to utilize its full power you will need a good motherboard with good VRMs which will be of great help in overclocking.
For this DZ68DB isn't a good board at all. You will need a ~12K range Z68 based motherboard, and to get this you will have to increase your budget.

 

[whitestar_999]

from OP 1st post:

realized that i can get only i7 2600 + SSD also so suggestions for better mobo in range of 6.5-7.5K will also do

For this DZ68DB isn't a good board at all.

never expected you with 2000+ post count to made the same mistake like a 40 post user did to cilus.
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/pc-components-configurations/149738-mobo-proccy-22k.html#post1540917

 

[samuelgomes]

2600K is a great processor without any doubt, but to utilize its full power you will need a good motherboard with good VRMs which will be of great help in overclocking.
For this DZ68DB isn't a good board at all. You will need a ~12K range Z68 based motherboard, and to get this you will have to increase your budget.

12K might be on higher side now..
What about the Biostar one as listed earlier by another member.

Please suggest on the power-supply/cabinet/RAM as well friends.

Need to build the system in a month's time and inputs from you all in getting a good config will be much appreciated.

 

[whitestar_999]

click the link i posted in my earlier post.cilus a senior & knowledgeable member here has recommended this board along with a link to tomshardware review of this board praising it for its overclocking potential.for your budget this is a perfect board.

 

[d6bmg]

never expected you with 2000+ post count to made the same mistake like a 40 post user did to cilus.
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/pc-components-configurations/149738-mobo-proccy-22k.html#post1540917

I meant to say is that, when any user is opting for 2600K, one must assume that he/she is buying 2600K for some serious overclocking (out of the box or near future). But sadly DZ68DB is an entry level motherboard with only 5 phase voltage regulator and obvious some medium quality VRMs which may be good for mild overclocking (upto 3.6-3.8 GHz) but can't be relayed upon while doing some serious overclocking (i.e. > 4.5GHz) which would be necessary in future, and is also one of the main reasons behind opting for 2600K.

So, buying a processor whose market price is ~$320 and combining it with a sub ~$150 motherboard doesn't make any sense at all. It would be a cheap build. Well, but while overclocking on this kind board users are also taking chance with the life of the processor itself along with motherboard.

@OP; One of the good option for 2600K would be MSI Z68A-GD55 @10.2K which is a good motherboard for overclocking with eight phase voltage regulator & good VRMs.


Correct me again if I'm wrong.

 

[samuelgomes]

click the link i posted in my earlier post.cilus a senior & knowledgeable member here has recommended this board along with a link to tomshardware review of this board praising it for its overclocking potential.for your budget this is a perfect board.

Thanks whitestar_999, yes I did read the comment of Cilus on it and observed that one fellow member bought i7 2600K with the biostar mobo. Will definitely include it in my list and probably drop DZ68DB from my combo plan.

@OP; One of the good option for 2600K would be MSI Z68A-GD55 @10.2K which is a good motherboard for overclocking with eight phase voltage regulator & good VRMs.

Thanks a lot. Question to both of you.. with a twist.
Now, since I am not looking at OCing immediately, should I go for a Biostar mobo now, and 2-3 years down the line when I am looking at higher speeds, I upgrade the mobo. That way I save around 3K now, and may be in future good mobo prices supporting effective OCing have come down too?

 

[Cilus]

d6bmg, buying a Core i7 2600K does not mean that the person only wants high overclocking only. Infact overclocking potential of 2500K is higher than 2600K as the later generates more heat due to Hyper-threading. Doesn't it occur to you that i7 2600K is required for highly Multi-threaded environments too? Apps like Photoshop, Adobe Premire, 3Ds MAx, Video and Audio encoding can be benefited from a 2600K in a large margin.
And when a person has budget constraint, try to suggest him the best possible config within his budget. Here OP has clearly mentioned several times that he cannot stretch his budget much to accomodate a 10K+ motherboard, then why suggesting him same thing repeatedly.

And regarding the BIOSTAR TZ68K+ how many times I have to tell that it is not a cheap board, in US market the price is almost same with the MSI GD55 or Gigabyte UD3-X motherboard. It can have stable overclock of 4.7/4.8 GHz with a good air cooler.
So at a budget constarint, i7 2600K + Biostar TZ68K+ makes a perfect balanced rig, offering above average overclocking potential. But still you are suggesting the Intel DZ68DB and next post saying that it is not a good board. I don't get it simply.

SamuelGomes, go with the Biostar motherboard. It is not a mild overclocking board, it offers serious overclocking potential.

 

[whitestar_999]

op wanted a mobo in the range of 6.5-7.5k which can be used for overclocking & biostar board satisfy this condition.i can advice op to get a better & costlier board but first preference should always be what op wants because it is his money after all.also i don't think someone who is planning to overclock a k series processor to more than 4.5GHz would even ask for a 7.5k mobo in first place.as you yourself said biostar board is good for mild overclocking & op also does not indicate any desire to extreme overclock so biostar is a perfect choice for op.also it is my own opinion that just because you are getting a k/overclockable processor it does not mean you have to extremely overclock it right away.after all overclocking voids warranty & therefore extreme overclocking should be left only to experts who don't need to ask questions in 1st place as they can get an idea from reviews itself.

 

[samuelgomes]

SamuelGomes, go with the Biostar motherboard. It is not a mild overclocking board, it offers serious overclocking potential.

Thanks.. two comments favoring it.. and read about it too on tomshardware as well biostar's website as well. So this is final..

<Flipkart> Flipkart: Biostar TZ68K+: Motherboard

is this the cheapest available? Or any other website. Didn't find anything on ebay. Well, flipkart offers 0% EMI so that is a good plus too.


Final
i7-2600K proc
Bio Star TZ68K+ Version 6.x / Intel Z68 Chipset mobo
Intel 320 Series 160 GB SSD

Hope with the above, i don't need LAN card/Video Card/Audio card.
Suggest other components please:

I want 8 GB RAM in the system. So 2x4GB combination..
USB 3.0 .. is it in-built in mobo or need to add a card
Wireless card (should I go for mini-PCI / USB or internal?)
Cabinet/Power supply

A basic ques - how many expansion cards can this Biostar mobo support?

Many thanks to all.. i am really glad I found this forum..

 

[Cilus]

Buddy, read the specs of the motherboard clearly, everything will be clear. Currenly all the mobos, even the sub 3K ones, come with 100 Mbps lan, 7.1 channel HD audio and on-board video solution.

For viedo, Intel has the IGP fused inside the CPU; so it is not present in the mobo. You need to have a H67 or Z68 mobo to use it. It has 7.1 channel audio too.And the specs clealry mentioned that it has USB 3.0 ports. So why you need add-on cards?

For Ram, get the Gskill RipjawX 1600 MHz CL9 4GB X 2 around 3K. Check flipkart, it is there.

For Wifi, get a USB Wi-fi dongle from Belkin. The price will be around 800 bucks. Check here: eBay - Belkin USB Wireless G Wifi Dongle Adapter 5 YR WARNTY, Similar items search

 

[samuelgomes]

Buddy, read the specs of the motherboard clearly, everything will be clear. Currenly all the mobos, even the sub 3K ones, come with 100 Mbps lan, 7.1 channel HD audio and on-board video solution.

Yes, I did read and realized that all present. Don't know but since I am assembling for the first time, want to be sure that I am doing the right thing and hence asked to cross-check. Don't want any surprises post purchase.

For viedo, Intel has the IGP fused inside the CPU; so it is not present in the mobo. You need to have a H67 or Z68 mobo to use it. It has 7.1 channel audio too.And the specs clealry mentioned that it has USB 3.0 ports. So why you need add-on cards?

Exactly, earlier I was looking at buying a P67 mobo with the proc & SSD combo as mentioned earlier. Then after research and reading realized the P67 can't utilize the GPU of i7-2600K.. hence finalized DZ68DB.

Honestly didn't know about USB 3.0 much. Before planning to assemble, I was looking to buy a Dell XPS and for USB 3.0, they had a separate card. Hence asked. Now clear that I don't need one.

For Ram, get the Gskill RipjawX 1600 MHz CL9 4GB X 2 around 3K. Check flipkart, it is there.

For Wifi, get a USB Wi-fi dongle from Belkin. The price will be around 800 bucks. Check here: eBay - Belkin USB Wireless G Wifi Dongle Adapter 5 YR WARNTY, Similar items search

Even I thought of external wifi. So will do that.

May sound naive, but never heard of Gskill (company) for RAM. Have heard only Kingston, Transcend, Adata, Hynix.. hope it is good and I don't need to worry. <sorry asking too many questions>


FINAL

i7-2600K proc
Bio Star TZ68K+ Version 6.x / Intel Z68 Chipset mobo [Flipkart]
Intel 320 Series 160 GB SSD
Gskill RipjawX 1600 MHz CL9 4GB X 2 (Couldn't find the correct one - please provide link)
Belkin USB Wifi G Apadater

Please suggest cabinet/power supply for the above.
I have the Belkin 8-out Gold series surge protector. Do suggest the UPS also for it.. missed it completely.

 

[d6bmg]

Here OP has clearly mentioned several times that he cannot stretch his budget much to accomodate a 10K+ motherboard, then why suggesting him same thing repeatedly.

sorry.
@OP: go with what Cilus says.

Gskill RipjawX 1600 MHz CL9 4GB X 2 (Couldn't find the correct one - please provide link)

Would cost around 3K. Overpriced in flipkart as it is priced @3.3K.
But if you can buy today you will get the kit @ 2550/- from primeabgb.

 

[Cilus]

regarding your Ram query, Hynix does not make ram modules, they make the Ram chipset and companies mentioned by you use that memory chipset in their memory modules.
Gskill, Corsair and Kingston are the premium ram makers and most of the high end system users normally use them.

Here is the link for Gskill RipjawX 4GB X 2 1600 MHz Ram:
Flipkart: Gskill 8 GB DDR3: Ram

But as d6bmg suggested, you can make your purchase from primeabgb, deltapage.com, theitwares.com etc where you can find the ram at a cheaper price.

 

[samuelgomes]

sorry.
@OP: go with what Cilus says.

Thanks..

Would cost around 3K. Overpriced in flipkart as it is priced @3.3K.
But if you can buy today you will get the kit @ 2550/- from primeabgb.

Thanks again.. but don't think can buy today itself.

regarding your Ram query, Hynix does not make ram modules, they make the Ram chipset and companies mentioned by you use that memory chipset in their memory modules.

Here is the link for Gskill RipjawX 4GB X 2 1600 MHz Ram:
Flipkart: Gskill 8 GB DDR3: Ram

But as d6bmg suggested, you can make your purchase from primeabgb, deltapage.com, theitwares.com etc where you can find the ram at a cheaper price.

Thanks will keep looking for the cheapest deal.. once everything is finalized.

Any help on cabinet/power supply..and UPS
Hope I am done with everything else..

Hi all,

Please help me complete this table...

In the table, I already have Dell Monitor and Wireless keyboard with me.
Kind of finalized on i72600K+SSD combo. Mobo+RAM is also almost finalized as per discussions above.

Processor Intel i7 2600K 22000
Hard Disk Intel 320 Series 160 GB SSD 0
Motherboard Biostar TZ68K+ 7419
RAM Gskill RipjawX 4GBX2 1600MHz 3300
Graphics Card On-board i7 2600K GPU 0
Secondary Hard Disk
DVD-RW
Monitor Dell ST2420L 12350
Cabinet
Keyboard Logitech Wireless MK320 1450
PSU
UPS
Wireless Card Belkin USB Wifi Adapter 800
47319

 

[d6bmg]

Thanks..


Any help on cabinet/power supply..and UPS
Hope I am done with everything else..
[/TABLE]

Max budget for cabinet+PSU+UPS+dvd writer ?

 

[whitestar_999]

DVD-RW|SONY/SAMSUNG/LG SATA|900
cabinet|NZXT Gamma|2800
PSU|SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze|3500
UPS|APC 600VA|1950

total:9150

SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

Theitdepot - NZXT Gamma Black Steel Mid-Tower ATX Cabinet