vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 I am buying pre-built from ibuypower (sadly don't have the time nor the resources to do my own build), and I am planning to do some minor or moderate overclocking (4.3-4.6ghz) in the near future, and I will perhaps add crossfire later on as well. AZZA Armour Gaming Case Intel Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 It's a good starting point IMHO but it really depends on how much you'll be paying as to whether or not it's a good deal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 It's a good starting point IMHO but it really depends on how much you'll be paying as to whether or not it's a good deal. I'm paying around $1200, and I'm ready to pull the trigger. My main concern was with the motherboard. Is 6+2 sufficient for moderate (not extreme) overclocking? The 8+2 motherboards are $50 and up, and I really don't know if I need those at all. I don't think I do, but I'm not sure what overclocking capabilities this system already has. Thanks for the help. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 Personally don't like MSI boards but they've gotten a lot better since their exploding-VRM days with Phenom II chips. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 Personally don't like MSI boards but they've gotten a lot better since their exploding-VRM days with Phenom II chips. Haha, I remember reading about that, it was what nearly pushed me to an inferior Asus board, lol. Do you think it'll hold up to some overclocking though? Is their build quality good enough now? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 I think they've gotten a lot better especially on new Intel boards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 I think they've gotten a lot better especially on new Intel boards. So you think I should pull the trigger then? No need for any kind of change? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
El_Capitan Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 (edited) $1200? Do you live in Australia? That's pretty expensive. I love MSI, but I lean away from them for motherboards and overclocking. For moderate overclocking, they'll do fairly well, though. I'd also go at least with 4GB memory sticks, 2x4GB Samsungs can be found for as low as $35 right now, and Black Friday is coming around. With Sandy and Ivy Bridge, and latest generation of graphics cards, you don't need that heavy a PSU. If you're not planning to get a 2nd card, then I would switch from the CX 750 and move towards a TX 650 V2. You'll save $15 after MIR, and it's a better PSU. For your HDD, you're going to spend a bit more getting a 6GB/s than a 3GB/s, and they won't even reach 33% of the SATA II threshold. Except for the price, and the type of cooler you have is fine for a moderate overclocking build (but I would personally go with something different), it looks alright. Also, if you're gaming at 1920 x 1080, you don't need anything more than a good overclocking HD 7850. The HD 7970 is overkill. Edited November 7, 2012 by El_Capitan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 $1200? Do you live in Australia? That's pretty expensive. I love MSI, but I lean away from them for motherboards and overclocking. For moderate overclocking, they'll do fairly well, though. I'd also go at least with 4GB memory sticks, 2x4GB Samsungs can be found for as low as $35 right now, and Black Friday is coming around. With Sandy and Ivy Bridge, and latest generation of graphics cards, you don't need that heavy a PSU. If you're not planning to get a 2nd card, then I would switch from the CX 750 and move towards a TX 650 V2. You'll save $15 after MIR, and it's a better PSU. For your HDD, you're going to spend a bit more getting a 6GB/s than a 3GB/s, and they won't even reach 33% of the SATA II threshold. Except for the price, and the type of cooler you have is fine for a moderate overclocking build (but I would personally go with something different), it looks alright. Also, if you're gaming at 1920 x 1080, you don't need anything more than a good overclocking HD 7850. The HD 7970 is overkill. What causes you to lean away from MSI boards? How high do you think I could push it (Not planning on going to extremes anyway, just curious) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
El_Capitan Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 (edited) What causes you to lean away from MSI boards? How high do you think I could push it (Not planning on going to extremes anyway, just curious) The problem with MSI motherboards I've had in the past, particularly the P67 boards (and I don't think they fixed them in the Z68 or Z77 boards), is their LLC. Basically, you can push it to say 4.4GHz, but at higher voltages when more load is put on it than on a better board, in which you might be able to get to 4.5 or even 4.6GHz. I wouldn't worry too much about it. You can probably get to 4.4GHz with that motherboard and CPU cooler. That's still plenty fast. Your temperatures will hold you back more so than the voltages. Edited November 7, 2012 by El_Capitan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vance09 Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 The problem with MSI motherboards I've had in the past, particularly the P67 boards (and I don't think they fixed them in the Z68 or Z77 boards), is their LLC. Basically, you can push it to say 4.4GHz, but at higher voltages when more load is put on it than on a better board, in which you might be able to get to 4.5 or even 4.6GHz. I wouldn't worry too much about it. You can probably get to 4.4GHz with that motherboard and CPU cooler. That's still plenty fast. Your temperatures will hold you back more so than the voltages. Do you have a link that proves that? I heard from a couple of people that they were much improved... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
El_Capitan Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 Do you have a link that proves that? I heard from a couple of people that they were much improved... Just Google "MSI Z77 Review" and find sites that overclock and measure the power consumption compared to other boards (may be hard to find). Still seems that way from this review (the best overclocking board from MSI, perhaps until the GD80 Thunderbird): Overclocking with the MSI Z77 MPower was a bit less fun than I had expected. Getting the CPU to 4.6 GHz required 1.225 V, while I also had to boost VCCIO to 1.15 V and VCCSA to 1.125 V to pull 2666 MHz stable. This made my test CPU run a bit hotter than it has on other boards, so I wasn't exactly impressed. Sure, it was stable at 4.6 GHz, but I have had better. Power consumed when overclocked was a bit higher because of higher voltages. http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/Z77_MPower/12.html Like I said, you'll get the overclock you want, you just might have higher voltages to get there compared to say, good ASUS boards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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