Dolphin PC Build for under $700?

[nsta]

Im looking to try and budget a fairly decent PC in the $700 range. Use is primarily for Dolphin Gaming, Zelda Skyward Sword mainly and also as my new HD media server,sick of PS3 limitations in this department! Also do a bit of media work, 3d modelling and photoshop so it would be nice to upgrade

Anyway, seeing as im looking to play Skyward Sword on my HDTV via HDMI at 1080P what would my best bet be? I have a few ideas but need some guidelines.

I'm almost set on a Core i5 2500K, but don't know if its worth paying the extra $$$ for a 2600k i7? and also which motherboard should i buy in my price range which supports overclocking the i5/i7 sandy cpus? and should i buy one with bluetooth ready?

Is it necessary to overclock for good gaming on dolphin? i have the $$$ ready and looking to buy all the parts to build asap (within next few days).

No idea on whats best for Graphics and power aswell.....help!!!

Any decent cpu specs would help, and price up of your setup aswell would be handy.

THANKS!

[nsta]

[quote='nsta' pid='182075' dateline='1322111324']
Im looking to try and budget a fairly decent PC in the $700 range. Use is primarily for Dolphin Gaming, Zelda Skyward Sword mainly and also as my new HD media server,sick of PS3 limitations in this department! Also do a bit of media work, 3d modelling and photoshop so it would be nice to upgrade

Anyway, seeing as im looking to play Skyward Sword on my HDTV via HDMI at 1080P what would my best bet be? I have a few ideas but need some guidelines.

I'm almost set on a Core i5 2500K, but don't know if its worth paying the extra $$$ for a 2600k i7? and also which motherboard should i buy in my price range which supports overclocking the i5/i7 sandy cpus? and should i buy one with bluetooth ready?

Is it necessary to overclock for good gaming on dolphin? i have the $$$ ready and looking to buy all the parts to build asap (within next few days).

No idea on whats best for Graphics and power aswell.....help!!!

Any decent cpu specs would help, and price up of your setup aswell would be handy.

THANKS!

Ive been doing alot of reading the past couple of hours....is the ASUS P8P67 Pro a good mobo to pair with the 2500k, and will it allow me to overclock? Here's a link to the mobo specs:

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7549

I would like to buy mobo and CPU tomorrow, and if possible GPU, undecided whether or not a Radeon HD 6850 1GB will do the job well for 1080P Skyward Sword at good settings? or should i go Nvidia?

Also, will the onboard bluetooth on the asus mobo work for me?

[Garteal]

Hi nsta,

Unless you're REALLY serious about modeling/rendering and such, you should get the 2600K.
It will render stuff a bit faster than the 2500K.

But from what I read here, your priority is to do Dolphin Gaming, and use it as an HD media server, and some media work, modeling Photoshop etc.
The 2500K should be more than enough for this.

You don't really have to OC, it's fast enough at its stock clocks for the vast majority of games but not quite all of them.

I think you should be good for Skyward Sword at stock clocks.

As for the motherboard, you should get this instead:
http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7877

Its a Z68 motherboard, and will be better for overclocking.

You should get atleast 4GB of DDR3 RAM.

As for the GPU, the 6850 should be more than enough.

For the PSU, get atleast a 550Watt.


So in a short summary:
CPU: 2500K
Mobo: AsRock Z68-Pro3 (you can change it if you feel like getting another)
RAM: Atleast 4GB of DDR3.
GPU: HD 6850

[nsta]

Great thanks for your help

The mobo looks good, though the other one had built in bluetooth, should i consider it for this reason? If not im happy to go with your suggestion. Is there any reason to go for a better GPU then the 6850 if im after better looking games or for more compatability (ie super mario galaxy 2)?

Glad i don't need to O/C for most games, though if i did need to, will the standard 2500k cooler be enough or will i need to upgrade?

Any particular ram to get, im looking at getting 8GB max for other reasons outside of dolphin anyway, and should i be running Win7 64-bit?

Any more suggestions much appreciated, whats a good 550w PSU? And will Hard Drive type matter much?

Thanks!!!

[Garteal]

Motherboard
The motherboard you gave me doesn't have any bluetooth.
Also, if you can find one with bluetooth in it, post it.

Sometimes getting a bluetooth stick externally is cheaper than getting a mobo with bluetooth included.

GPU
If you're not planning to play any PC games at high resolutions and such, the 6850 will be good enough. No need to buff it up.
Mario Galaxy 2 might require some overclocking on the CPU, I'd recommend you to get an aftermarket cooler for that.
The stockcooler isn't good enough.

RAM
For the RAM, get a brand such as Corsair, Kingston or OCZ, if you find RAM you like, post the link and we'll tell you if it's good/compatible.

PSU
For the PSU get a Cooler-Master/OCZ or Corsair cooler. Likewise the RAM, if you find something, post the link and we'll help.

Harddrive
Get whatever size you want, but make sure its 7200RPM atleast!

Have you thought about what case you'll get?

[nsta]

Thanks - Yes you are correct, the motherboard doesn't have a bluetooth enable, my wrong sorry. What is the main differences between the Z68 and P67 mobos? They are both same in price, alot of people on these forums reccommend the P67 which is why i was going to go with it, but im happy to go for a Z68 instead if they are just as good, and can be OC.

In regards to the GPU, im not planning to play PC Games at high res, only wanting to play Wii Games at high res 1080P on my LCD via HDMI so is the 6850 good for the job, is there any real benefit of going for a better card for Wii purposes? Ie getting a 6870 like you have in your specs?

So far here's what i'm looking at:

MOBO:

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=8103

OR
http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7549

CPU:

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7581

GPU:

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=6839

or

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=6838

....is there any reason to go for a better brand name for GPU? Is powercolor ok, or should i get gigabyte/asus etc??

PSU

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7832

or (600 vs 550W)???

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=4973

RAM:

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7262

or

http://www.msy.com.au/product.jsp?productId=7276

....What do you think so far of my list? Please critique and advise if i should get something better or worst.... Any advise would help, i would like to buy it all ASAP!

I was thinking of puchasing a coolermaster shuttle case, would this be ok?

[nsta]

Could anyone please comment on my rig and if it will be suitable for 1080P Skyward Sword? I was also looking at buying a Fractal Define Mini Case, will that be ok? Thanks in advice

[NaturalViolence]

Quote:I was thinking of puchasing a coolermaster shuttle case, would this be ok?

Yes.

What country do you live in if you don't mind me asking? Everyone here in the United States uses newegg, so it would be a lot easier for us to recommend specific product advise using their inventory.

Quote:....is there any reason to go for a better brand name for GPU? Is powercolor ok, or should i get gigabyte/asus etc??

Powercolor is fine.

Quote: I was also looking at buying a Fractal Define Mini Case, will that be ok?

Sure.

Quote: What is the main differences between the Z68 and P67 mobos?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_1155#Original_Sandy_Bridge_Chipsets

Both chipsets are fine. Z68 has a few extra features but you probably won't use any of them anyways.

Quote:In regards to the GPU, im not planning to play PC Games at high res, only wanting to play Wii Games at high res 1080P on my LCD via HDMI so is the 6850 good for the job, is there any real benefit of going for a better card for Wii purposes? Ie getting a 6870 like you have in your specs?

Unless you require 9xSSAA, no.

Quote:Could anyone please comment on my rig and if it will be suitable for 1080P Skyward Sword?

Yes, it's fine. Garteal is one of the people around here that knows what he's talking about, you can trust his advice. All of the advice that I would have given you is pretty much identical to what he has already told you.

[nsta]

Great Thanks Good to know i'm on the right track, every little bit helps if i can cut down on costs and still maintain a good machine!

Sorry i live in Australia, i will spec out my machine the way i would like out using newegg links:

CPU - Corei5 2500K
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

MOTHERBOARD - Asrock Z68 Pro3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157251

VIDEO CARD - Powercolor HD 6870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131378

CASE - Fractal Design Define Mini
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352011

Want to make sure my graphics card will be ok with this case?

RAM - 8GB G.Skill Ripjaws-X 1333
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231426

Could someone please recommend a power supply from the link below - as this is my local store with the cheapest prices for PC Gear here in Australia.

http://www.msy.com.au/default.jsp?category=96

Thanks to all in reply, any advise of changes that need to be made please let me know, i would love to play future Wii Games and also SMG2 if possible with my hardware

[pwnedatdolphin]

You probably have to overclock that 2500k to get fullspeed all the time in SMG2, psu, corsair gs600