New PC specially for PoE

Hi All,

Since my current computer is extremely crappy, so I'm planning to replace it with a new computer. I was wondering if the following specification will enable me to enjoy PoE with max settings, so I can appreciate the graphic that GGG took the time to create.

Hardware


Any advise would be great, thanks.

PS. Yes, I'm going with Mini-ITX due the space near my TV and I'm planing to connect it to the TV with HDMI.

Two very personal recomendations.

If you're not planning on overclocking, go for a Intel CPU. 4330 (non-K) should be around the same price tag. If you do want to overclock then keep that AMD, altho I'd read a couple of reviews on temps/noises.

On the GPU... it's a very good price/performance card. But I have 2 issues with AMD. First, PoE doesn't get along extremely well on AMD cards. After years of using nVidia (9xxx then 2xx then 4xx) I got a 7950 on my hands. Performance? Amazing , drivers? unghhhh.

Random crashing drivers? Check /
Underutilization on certain games (like PoE) ? Check /
Underperformance with no apparent reason, which is fixed 2 drivers afterwards? Check /
Suddenly upgrading a driver and some games working way better... or way worse? Check /

On the good side I've never got an nVidia running this low on noise and temp.

TL;DR , your setup is good and will work. I'd look for an intel/nvidia alternative on the similar price tag and read reviews/comparitions (several) of each and every part.

Thanks for responding, I did some research, but Intel stuff is quite pricy comparing with AMD at the same performance range. As for the GPU, there's another model that I found was within the price range and performance, which is the "GeForce GTX 750 Ti".

As you mentioned about the noise and temperature issues, I'm thinking about investing a bit extra in cooling system instead of spending on Intel. I heard that cooling system installed would reduce noise and the temperature as well.

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arothhaas wrote:

Thanks for responding, I did some research, but Intel stuff is quite pricy comparing with AMD at the same performance range. As for the GPU, there's another model that I found was within the price range and performance, which is the "GeForce GTX 750 Ti".

As you mentioned about the noise and temperature issues, I'm thinking about investing a bit extra in cooling system instead of spending on Intel. I heard that cooling system installed would reduce noise and the temperature as well.

For extra cooling, always go air.
Water is for insane overclockings or insane SLI/Cross setups.

Replacing the stock fan of the CPU is always a good option for temp/noise, thing is, since you picked a mini-ATX you will have less options on this (Pretty sure a CM Hyper 212 Evo won't fit on that).

As long as your case has a good airflow you shouldn't have issues.

Regarding the R7 265 vs GTX 750Ti . General reviews are R7 265 is better in performance, similar in temp, worse on noise.

This are general reviews, and may vary a lot depending on the manufacturer. Apparently MSI's own version reviews seem to say that the GPU is quiet.

All in all, after checking what your other options are, I think it's a decent setup!

I'd disagree with the "always go air" sentiment, but generally it's not needed, stock fans are great, if a little noisy.

The PSU looks a bit underpowered for a gaming system, though the GeForce 750 Ti has very low power consumption.

You should probably wait for the "Black Friday" weekend for electronics sales.

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ionface wrote:

I'd disagree with the "always go air" sentiment, but generally it's not needed, stock fans are great, if a little noisy.

The PSU looks a bit underpowered for a gaming system, though the GeForce 750 Ti has very low power consumption.

You should probably wait for the "Black Friday" weekend for electronics sales.

You're right, generally extra-cooling is not needed. There are some CPUs tho that come with very awful stock fans, and have serious temp or noise problems.

For extracooling on case, it really depends on size and how good is the room temp + in/out air flow.

My last 3 setups were made on a regular ATX case, no extra fans, still on stocks and it's a semi-hot room. Since the case is big enough the flow is decent, so the temps are very decent.

The PSU is more than enough, Corsair PSUs are not the best out there when you go to their low-tier but still the VS550 has a 500w~ output at the 12v rail + 2 PCI connectors.

For a single GPU (140w peak on R7 265 / 100w peak on 750Ti) + 100w CPU it can be considered an overkill.

I'm a Seasonic fanboy myself, mostly because even their low-tier PSUs has top quality parts. But even if the Corsair doesn't have top quality parts he's not going to load it over 60%

My average temperature is around 93.2- 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (34-37 C) without air conditioner, but I have an air conditioner on most of the time (25-27 C), so the temperature issue should be the last thing to worry for me.

As for the PSU, should I get lower power output? I did some reading and found that too big of PSU would just increase my electric bill is more than necessary.

I won't be overclocking or anything, so do you think SeaSonic SSR-450RM 450W would be sufficient?

PS. English isn't my main language, so sorry about the grammars.

As Drakier explained the usage of the PSU is on-demand. The only PSU's characteristic that can affect your electric bill is efficiency, which depends on the model, and the load % (80+ bronze/silver/gold/plat are just certifications of this).

Efficiency is just how much "wall power" (do not know if this is the correct term in english) the PSU has to take to deliver the actual power the PC requires. IE, PC requires 240w, efficiency is 80% so the PSU is actually drawing 300w from wall.

The Seasonic you posted is an amazing model, with very high quality components, and high efficiency (Gold standards, 87-90-89 on 25/50/100 load).

Now, would that be enough for your build? Yes, more than enough. Will it give you good extra power for future upgrades? Maybe, you will have to be careful on the pieces you get. You won't be able to go SLI/Crossfire with this PSU tho, if this is something you KNOW you don't want to do (like you said about no OC) then go for it, it's an amazing product.

If you think that at some point you may go SLI/Crossfire then no, go for a bigger one (even bigger than the original Corsair VS550).

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People lately has been forgetting how the most current technology has stopped being so power-hungry compared to old hardware, on GPUs Radeon HD 7xxx and previous, nVidia GTX 4xx and previous were very power hungry, specially if you went for the high-end some of them going well over the 180-200w reqs. Same with the latest CPUs. Nowadays any single-GPU build can be built with a decent 450w PSU and have room for upgrades.

That's true, I was shocked when I learned that some new GPUs can be powered from the slot alone.

It's still good to have higher-wattage PSUs to keep electric bills down. A 500W PSU with "80 Plus Gold" efficiency rating running at 500W (100%) is expected to use less than 565W from the mains (13% is converted to heat). But the same efficiency 1000W PSU providing 500W (half-load) will have less heated components and will be using less than 550W from the mains. The small difference in power usage means it might take a year or two to make up the power-efficiency cost in power-savings costs (that assumes you aren't idling all the time, but have the computer hibernate or off while it's not in use). The thing to remember is that PSUs are most efficient at about half to three quarters load.

There are other factors, of course, like noise and dependability. I know Seasonic is reliable, researching the manufacturer of a PSU is important though. This is an extremely helpful guide to power supply companies, http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supply-psu-brands,3762.html.