I5 2500k (or 2500) & $430 limit Help with part

i5 2500k with a $430 budget.

GTXNate said:

Hey guys, It's been quite a long time since I've posted here on RTW, but I still peruse around everyday. :D

I want your opinion on a new motherboard, cpu and ram.

So I've always had money to blow with the intent to order some new pc parts, but always spend it on something else and truthfully regret it. xD Now I have a solid little chunk of cash that I hope I can spend wisely on some hardware that will last for quite sometime. My current build is very weak..


E2180 @ 2.0Ghz

2GB's RAM @ 800Mhz

9800 GT (512mb)


It has done an excellent job for the past 4 years, but lately I have noticed quite a bit of slowdown in just normal applications, no reason for me to even argue anymore, it is old hardware, simple as that.

For the past 4 years i've been in Graphics class using Photoshop and Illustrator, and my current build has been fine. Lately I have been trying to explore some video editing in Adobe After Effects, Sony Vegas, etc. Let me tell you, you know your computer is a POS when it takes over an hour to render a 1 minute clip with some simple effects. >.< At least, I do.


Anyways, going off topic.


[ ALSO, MAY TRY A HACKINTOSH IN THE FUTURE FOR LEARNING EXP ]


I plan to build an i5 setup with a decent motherboard and around 8 gigs of ram.(preferably DDR3 @ 1600Mhz as it's so cheap)

Right now i'm checking out the i5 2500k.. I believe the only difference between the i5 2500 and the 'k' version is the integrated graphics in the chip... but I may be wrong, feel free to correct me if i'm mistaken.

Like I said, for the RAM, I'd like 8gigs @ 1600, but am open for that one as well.

As for the motherboard, I honestly don't care. I don't want a cheap POS one, but don't need an extreme one with multiple PCI Express ports.. (though 2 would be nice :D ) As I posted above, I have been wanting to experiment with some OSX and hope to with this build. Don't get me wrong, I am a die hard windows fan, but I love experimenting lol.


So to wrap it all up, as all of that is kind of thrown together ^^^

___________________________________________________________________


i5 2500(k?)

8GB DDR3 @ 1600Mhz

Alright motherboard


Limit: $430


If you have an opinion, please, enlighten me. :D


Thanks everyone, I really do appreciate it!


It is my belief that the 2500 is locked at 3.3GHZ, whereas the i5 2500k is an overclocking beast (able to go to 4.5+), although I'm not entirely sure. I have a 2500k, and it is beautiful. Coupled with a P8P67, OCZ Vertex 2 SSD and 4GB of corsair DDR3 Vengeance RAM, it is a force to be reckoned with. I run Sony Vegas 9.0, Photoshop CS5, StarCraft 2, Shogun 2 and loads of other resource intensive apps, and my hardware breezes through it - and at extremely low temperatures might i add.

off topic: If you are interested in selling your current build in order to have more head room for budget I'd be interested


on topic: a i7 would be better as far as video editing and such... although an 2600K would take up about 80% of your funds

Wizen said:

It is my belief that the 2500 is locked at 3.3GHZ, whereas the i5 2500k is an overclocking beast (able to go to 4.5+), although I'm not entirely sure. I have a 2500k, and it is beautiful. Coupled with a P8P67, OCZ Vertex 2 SSD and 4GB of corsair DDR3 Vengeance RAM, it is a force to be reckoned with. I run Sony Vegas 9.0, Photoshop CS5, StarCraft 2, Shogun 2 and loads of other resource intensive apps, and my hardware breezes through it - and at extremely low temperatures might i add.

Oh do you? Awesome. Well now i'm wondering if I should just order a P8P67 for a bit more, hold back on ram for a bit (4gb's is fine for you?) and roll with the 2500k.

an i7 would be better by a slight bit in some applications, just go for the 2500k, and go for 8 gigs if you can

GTXNate said:

Oh do you? Awesome. Well now i'm wondering if I should just order a P8P67 for a bit more, hold back on ram for a bit (4gb's is fine for you?) and roll with the 2500k.


Well I'm extremely happy with my setup. I didn't go with 8GB of Corsair Vengeance DDR3 RAM purely for budget reasons, but i hope to upgrade to 8GB in the future. I can assure you that the P8P67 is a solid board, and the BIOS is beautiful (it looks like a mini OS and supports a USB mouse and keyboard). And the i5 2500k is very impressive, especially when auto-overclocked by my motherboard to 4.3GHZ (i know it can go higher but i haven't got the time or patience to mess about with it yet). That processor will eat "hardcore" applications like Vegas 9.0d and Photoshop for breakfast (and it literally destroys my Q9400 in most apps). Overall, my build was a budget bang for your buck build. And it is excellent. If you're budget conscious, i would advise you invest in the 2500k.


Good luck with your build

Tim