Questions about customizing a new PC.

[zelda111222]

Cooler Master HAF912
2x Corsair SP 120 Quiet Edition
Intel Core i5-4670k 3.4GHz which will be overclocked to 4.0GHz
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Asrock Z87 Pro3
Crucial 8gb ram 1600mhz
Seagate 500gb
Cooler Master 700 Watt
AMD Radeon HD 7870

How important is the case for things like cooling or can I save money on this?
Is the Cooler Master 600 Watt enough or do I need the 700 one?
Can I also pick a Nvidia Geforce GTX 660 instead of the AMD one, or is the GTX 660 not good enough?
Is the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO a good enough cooler or is the corsair h60i better?
Is Haswell better or Ivy Bridge? Or is it still to soon to say?

Could someone also tell me if I can play The Last Story with this computer at 4x native and with what fps?

[Starscream]

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: How important is the case for things like cooling or can I save money on this?

I wouldn't worry about the case too much, just get whatever you like.

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: Is the Cooler Master 600 Watt enough or do I need the 700 one?

600 Watts should be enough.

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: Can I also pick a Nvidia Geforce GTX 660 instead of the AMD one, or is the GTX 660 not good enough?

The AMD 7870 is a bit better, but they will both do what you need them to do with Dolphin.

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: Is the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO a good enough cooler or is the corsair h60i better?

Evo.

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: Is Haswell better or Ivy Bridge? Or is it still to soon to say?

Haswell.

(06-21-2013, 03:40 AM)zelda111222 Wrote: Could someone also tell me if I can play The Last Story with this computer at 4x native and with what fps?

Should be full speed most of the time (depending on your overclock). Yes, you can do 4xIR with either of the video cards you've listed.

[ExtremeDude2]

Quote:Intel Core i5-4670 3.GHz which will be overclocked to 4.0GHz

I assume you go the "k" version

Quote:Is the Cooler Master 600 Watt enough or do I need the 700 one?

600 is fine

Quote:Can I also pick a Nvidia Geforce GTX 660 instead of the AMD one, or is the GTX 660 not good enough?

Should be fine

Quote:Is the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO a good enough cooler or is the corsair h60i better?

Water is obliviously better but not needed

Quote:Is Haswell better or Ivy Bridge? Or is it still to soon to say?

Haswell is better for sure

Edit: darn you ninjas, also I blame NV for making us post like this

[zelda111222]

Thanks you for answering. Yeah it's the k version. But I see there is some indifference about the cooler though. Is water always better than air?

Also I read something about bottlenecking between CPU and Graphics Card. Will that be a problem with Haswell and Nvidia 660/AMD 7870?

[Garteal]

Quote:Is water always better than air?

It depends on which products. I would recommend to go with air since it's much easier to install.

Quote:Also I read something about bottlenecking between CPU and Graphics Card. Will that be a problem with Haswell and Nvidia 660?

No.

[NaturalViolence]

ExtremeDude2 Wrote:also I blame NV for making us post like this

It was my plan all along! Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen it.

zelda111222 Wrote:Is water always better than air?

It depends mostly on the price. You generally need to spend $200-400 to get a water cooling system than it substantially better than air cooling. Liquid cooling systems in the $100-200 range are only slightly better. By comparison air coolers are usually $30-75 and liquid cooling systems in that price range generally don't perform as well as similarly priced air coolers. So unless you want to spend a lot more money and are ok with a riskier, more difficult, and more time consuming installation procedure for minor gains in thermal performance I would generally steer clear of liquid cooling. Especially for a first timer.

[AnyOldName3]

I don't know about more complex installation. I saw a video of someone from corsair install a H70, and it was just a case of backplate on, TIM paste on, screws in, tubes on block, block on screws, tighten, add water + steriliser to radiator, tubes on radiator, test, bold radiator to case. It took just a few minutes. From what I've heard, handling the huge block of aluminium of an air cooler can be far more awkward, as you've still got to guide it onto the screws, but now can't see what you're doing.

However, given the £50 difference between the two types of cooler, and the fact that the cheap one is adequate, either way the Evo wins overall for sensible overclocks.

[NaturalViolence]

AnyOldName3 Wrote:I saw a video of someone from corsair install a H70, and it was just a case of backplate on, TIM paste on, screws in, tubes on block, block on screws, tighten, add water + steriliser to radiator, tubes on radiator, test, bold radiator to case. It took just a few minutes. From what I've heard, handling the huge block of aluminium of an air cooler can be far more awkward, as you've still got to guide it onto the screws, but now can't see what you're doing.

True the cheap AIO systems aren't that hard to install compared to HSFs but I was referring to the more expensive units that will actually give you better thermal performance than high end HSFs. Those are a b**ch to install.

[admin89]

Quote:Is the Cooler Master 600 Watt enough or do I need the 700 one?

Wattage is not the only important thing
Cooler Master eXtreme Power 600W is crap . It has only 70% efficiency while most PSU has 80% efficiency and up , not mention 12v rail
I recommend SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 Plus Japanese Caps

[AnyOldName3]

Slightly on topic, I've seen that Scan has refurbished H80s for £35, when the Evo 212 is £25. If anyone is in the UK, then it may be a good deal. If NV specifically tells me to, I may even get one myself.