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Her Goals: She wants a multiple monitor workstation for productivity (Adobe Creative Suite, multiple documents open, etc.). I would say she will end up with two 1680x1050 monitors (as she already has one).

My Goals: I want her to play more Killing Floor, Borderlands 2, Valve games, etc. with me! Her laptop can barely manage KF at crap resolutions! This doesn't need to be an amazing gaming PC, I don't think she will know the difference between medium and high settings (let alone ultra...). This is kind of a birthday present from me to her, so it is really for me if ya know what I mean

Other Info: She currently has a 2011 MacBook Air (Dual core i7 @ 1.8Ghz, Intel 3000 integrated graphics), so this build would ideally be faster than that to increase the Windows adoption factor. She would also prefer to dual boot Win7 and OSX, so if can turn this into a hackintosh, I will get bonus points.

What I have already:
- Corsair Builder 430W (I know this is on the light side, but all the reviews and threads I have read suggest this will suffice)
- 8gb DDR3 1600 (2x4gb)

What I am planning on buying:
- i5-3570 (Not sure if the 3570k is necessary/worth it here, wondering if I should grab an even cheaper i5)
- Radeon 7770 (This might be an issue for hackintosh, pony up for a GTX 560?)
- A low-mid range Z77 mobo (Compatible with OSX)
- 1TB 7200rpm HDD (I think an SSD is out of budget for this build... Though she has one in her laptop, will she miss it here?)

I have an extended build timeline, so there is no rush... I don't think Haswell will be worth it, but hope it pushes down Ivy prices. I am kind of just picking up parts as good deals pop up, this build will probably be done around August.

The questions I currently have are:
Is the i5-3570/3570k overkill? I'm undecided whether I will OC the crap out of this and turn it into a beast that she may or may not take advantage of, or save some cash and shoot for a budget workstation that moonlights as a passable gaming PC. If I were building this for myself, I would probably go with the 3570k and at least a 7850, but I think that might be wasted on her. It just can't be sluggish when she is doing normal things.

I have never built a hackintosh, though I was about to do it a few years ago... my knowledge is stale at this point. Does anyone have any advice around components? I have done some research and it seems like an Nvidia GPU might be necessary (I prefer AMD/ATI...). The 3570k on a Z77 board with a GTX 560 seems to be proven (albeit probably overkill for my purposes).

Case suggestions? I am digging the Fractal R4... when it is priced at $60. I missed that deal though, and at $90+ it is a little pricy. She digs aesthetics.

If you were in my position, what would you change about the plan?


Thanks guys!

I'd start with the Editor's Choice

Processor: Games won't really be able to tell between modern processors (much) but Adobe CS benefits from increases in processor performance. So it really depends on how much CS she does. My assumption here is not to skimp on the processor, since this is for a CS machine. K series only matters if you are going to overclock (which, again, will benefit CS6).

If you are going to overclock, get yourself the K series and you will also need to get yourself a cooler (the Editor's Choice build includes it). Again, CS will benefit from an overclock, but the added K series cost and cooler may not be worth it to you. It won't affect gaming at 1680x1050 noticeably.

Storage: I wouldn't skimp on the SSD. Using an SSD is noticeable, especially on something that is a workstation. You could go with a smaller SSD (<=120GB) and then the 1TB storage drive.

Graphics: 650 Ti or 7790 seem to be good price points for performance, though you don't need anything extreme since she won't be gaming at 1080p. The 7790 seems to be the best cost right now at around $150, but you could save about $30 and go 7770. Also, see this site for getting the Radeon 7000 series working on OS X.

I will wait for Haswell to recommend it, though it might be worth it. The benchmarks and pricing will tell. I don't think Ivy prices will drop much with the Haswell introduction, since Haswell is not really going to be a large increase in performance. I expect Ivy Bridge to be around for a year or so at current prices. Even a modest performance increase, though, might be worth it for CS6, especially if the pricing is within $50 or so (that would be my assumption, not sure on your budget constraints).

Editor's choice seems a little overbudget - Certainly at 1680x1050 gaming will be fine on an HD7770. Given the Adobe CS is the primary use, and is RAM and disk hungry, you should opt for an SSD. 120GB Samsung 840 is just about the best way to spend $100 on a PC without an SSD these days.

8GB of RAM isn't too bad, either - but we have CS5 users here running out of RAM on 8GB machines quite frequently. I guess it depends how many programs in the CS5 suite she runs concurrently, and how heavy her workload is - if you can afford another 8GB upfront, go for it (although you can always add it later if she's constantly using swapfile)

If you have to drop some gaming horsepower to squeeze an SSD into the budget, a GTX 650 (non-Ti) is capable of reasonably fluid gameplay at high quality settings, especially at only 1680x1050 - There's one here for only $90 after rebate.

If you're going to do a Hackintosh you must must must go Gigabyte if you want it to be stable and easy to set up, and you must must must go nvidia if you want graphics to work - even stuff that previously worked in Lion (such as Radeon 6850) doesn't work right in Mountain Lion, since Apple never used any of the desktop chips even as upgrades for the Mac Pro. And you can't go Haswell until Apple does. So:

i5 3470
Gigabyte Z77 board of your choice as long as it has Realtek audio/LAN
GeForce GTX 650 or 650Ti

Then you build it and follow directions at tonymacx86.com.

** I have no experience with Hackintosh's so none of my component recs are guaranteed to work as such. Make substitutions for hackintosh-compatable components as necessary **

If you're still in Claremont, get in your car and drive a half hour to Microcenter in Tustin, CA. When you arrive and pick your jaw off the floor, buy yourself an i5-3570K and an AsRock Z77 Pro4-M for $260+tax. If you're back in San Francisco already, buying the Pro4-m will allow you to bump the turbo clock on any i5 or i7 by 400MHz. You can get an i5-3570 for $195 until the end of the day today, otherwise go for the i5-3470. i5 is plenty for gaming and Adobe CS and should last quite a while.
One could make an argument for dropping down to an i3 if she's not heavily into photo/image editing. They still perform well for gaming even while Multitasking and would drop your Microcenter/Newegg bill by $60-70. An i3 is probably more reasonable since this computer isn't for you. And I hate to be pessimistic, but unless you've got loads of money lying around, be careful how much money you spend on a system that could potentially walk out the door with her.

8 GB is plenty for a vast majority of Adobe image editing users and is actually overkill for many games still. Don't let people convice you otherwise, but leave your options open. A mobo with 4 ram slots will allow you to double up to 16GB later. Look for a 2x4GB 1600MHz kit @1.5V or lower.

I would shoot for an AMD 7790. $140 after MIR isn't bad, but I've seen that particular model closer to $125 recently. It also comes with more free games than a 7770!

BUY AN SSD!!! Even if you can only afford a 120GB SSD, that's the biggest difference she'll notice coming from her MacBook Air (which has an SSD). My fiance has a MBA for work which she brings home and prefers to use over her hdd laptop because it "starts up and loads programs faster." My 120GB SSD has OS and all my programs / games on it and still has ~40GB free. Obviously you'll still need a hdd if she's going to store music/pictures/videos on her comp.

Get an SSD. Skimp on anything else if you have to but get an SSD.

Case-wise. (Most) girls I know like cute little cases which will typically require a mITX mobo and/or colorful (pink- ok that one is gaudy pink, but you catch my drift) ones. Keep in mind that adding colored LED fans or replacing Power/HDD LEDs are simple ways to accomplish color on a typical black/white/grey case also. I'm sure you know your girlfriend's tastes.....I hope Auxy doesn't see my gender stereotypes...sorry in advance

Based on derFunkenstein's criteria, how about a GA-Z77-DS3H, GA-Z77-HD3 or GA-Z77-HD4 motherboard?

Consider this combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDeal ... bo.1322519
or this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDeal ... bo.1322518


I do not like the suggestion for another 1680x1050 monitor. I'd prefer 2560x1440 or 1920x1080 for photo editing.

If running OSX is a real priority then you should base your build on one of the builds contained in the following:

http://www.tonymacx86.com/351-building- ... -2013.html

When I built a system for my girlfriend I got her the following:

Intel Core i5 2500k (bundled with motherboard)
Gigabyte H61M-DS2 ($5 with bundle price)
Samsung 8GB DDR3-1600
Nvidia GTX 560ti (refurbished reference card for $90)
Corsair CX500 PSU
500GB 7200rpm HDD

At the time, SSDs were still a bit too high so I passed on that. Even today I'd still be tempted to pass on the SSD in favor of getting a bit better video card. Of course, all she does is play some games and do some stuff in Core Draw. I plan on getting her an SSD down the road, but for now she just has a mechanical drive. I even went with a cheap motherboard just so that I could afford a slightly better video card (550ti with better board or 560ti with lower end board). My experience with higher end boards has been more features and better overclocking but little to no more stability. The cheap Gigabyte H61 board that's in there is just fine for normal use.

Now with her sons' birthday coming up I'll be getting him the following:

Intel Core i5 3570k (bundled with motherboard)
ASrock H61M-DGS ($5 with bundle)
Crucial 8GB DDR3-1600
Nvidia GTX 550ti (refurbished reference card for $75).
Antec VP450 PSU
500GB 7200RPM HDD (already have it sitting around)

My thought process is the same for his system though the budget is slightly lower this time around (baby on the way). The motherboard and CPU I got for $175 at Micro Center when they had the 3570k on sale for $169.99 with $40 off basically any 1155 motherboard which ended up coming to a whopping $5. Sure, it's a cheap motherboard but when all your doing is gaming and browsing the internet it's all you need. Not to mention if the board dies, only $5 was wasted. I did the same thing with my girlfriend's build. The best part of all this...his computer is going to cost me a grand total of $500 WITH a monitor.

Of course, your girlfriend is going to be using her system for a bit more than they do so getting an SSD would be a bit more beneficial but for me it boils down to a better video card or SSD with how low of a budget I have to work with. I think both of them would prefer to have their framerates better than the benefits of an SSD. Both will get one down the road anyway.

If your girlfriend gets really serious into photo editing you'll want a better monitor. Personally, I'd wait on that and put it all into her computer. You can get decent IPS monitors for fairly cheap now so that would be a good upgrade for Christmas!

The problem with hackintosh stuff is that, as other people have mentioned, it's pretty picky with the hardware so it limits your options. Is she ok with using Windows instead? If she isn't then picking out all this hardware has to be put through the hackintosh compatible hardware filter.

FYI, If you have a Micro Center near you they always have awesome CPU + Motherboard combos.

Goodluck! I'm sure she'll love anything you get her.

7950 The Mac edition
Http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentatio ... id=1&leg=0

Anyone else keep reading the title as 'PC or the girlfriend'? Just wanted to point that out.

Airmantharp wrote:

Anyone else keep reading the title as 'PC or the girlfriend'? Just wanted to point that out.

Ya I kinda read it as the girlfriend .... Need advise

I cant offer advice about running the apple OS on this machine. However I can help a little with the software she is using. I recently built a machine to do a lot of photo editing/graphics work as a secondary function to being my gaming machine. The Adobe software is a memory hog. I went with 32 GB and glad I did, real life saver when multitasking working with Adobe CS and other applications. I can't imagine trying to use only 8GB. Do get a SSD, even a 120 GB for the OS will help. If you have to go to a smaller HDD to fit the SSD in I would do it.

As to the processor I am using a Intel Core i5 3570k with it overclocked to 4 GHz at this point, was at base clock speed for a while. The extra speed from the overclock does help when I am working on a project. So keep this in mind.

Video card wise I would recommend going with a nVidia card for her stated work goals. I went with the 680 for gaming reasons but glad I did because it works well when I am doing work related stuff. I have one co worker that lives fairly close and she was having issues that we finally concluded were caused by her 7750. She upgraded to running a 660 TI and has had no issues. I can't tell you why there is a difference but we have heard from other people we work with that there is something in the AMD drivers that does not work well with Adobe CS and other applications for graphics/photo editing. Again, I can offer no facts but this seems to be the opinion of people I work with.

Here is how I ended up with my machine. It was intended as a gamer but works well for what your are looking at. I know your on a budget but it might give you a few ideas. My co workers call it the beast because it is over the top compared to what they are using. We get a tough project guess who gets to finish it up?

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
ASUS P8Z77-V LK LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
CORSAIR Vengeance LP 32GB (4 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
EVGA 02G-P4-2680-KR GeForce GTX 680 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
2x SAMSUNG 830 Series MZ-7PC512D/AM 2.5" 512GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) Desktop Upgrade Kit
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
SeaSonic Platinum Platinum-860 860W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS PLATINUM Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply
SAMSUNG DVD Burner 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM SATA
Corsair Special Edition White Graphite Series 600T Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
COOLER MASTER GeminII S524 120mm Long Life Sleeve CPU Cooler

You need to be really sure that SHE wants to switch from a MB Air to a desktop PC. That's a pretty radical switch, and it sounds like you are pushing for it, not her. We have this word called "resentment". Unless she is really behind this switch, you're going to be getting really comfy with the concepts embodied in that word.

cjcerny wrote:

You need to be really sure that SHE wants to switch from a MB Air to a desktop PC. That's a pretty radical switch, and it sounds like you are pushing for it, not her. We have this word called "resentment". Unless she is really behind this switch, you're going to be getting really comfy with the concepts embodied in that word.

Good point. However it seems she is using the Mac at a desktop type location already since she has a secondary monitor. My guess would be the mac stays around for when she needs to travel from the desk location. Adding in a Desktop will make things more flexible. At least this is how I would sell the idea to her if she has any reservations.

killadark wrote:

7950 The Mac edition
Http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentatio ... id=1&leg=0

I can guarantee that's going to be waaaaaay over budget. Mac-edition video cards tend to run 60-70% more than their PC equivalents, and they're really aimed at the Mac Pro. Getting a PC version of the card should work assuming you can get your hands on the drivers. Then again, it also sounds like a 7950 is waaaaaay overkill, too.

I like the recommendation that JAE had with the CPU/mobo/SSD. Pretty decent discount and great components. Samsung 840 (not-pro but she's going to not-notice, either), i5 3570K, solid mobo choices. All of Gigabyte's 7-series boards come with their UEFI and their UEFI has been tuned (unofficially, anyway) to the Hackintosh community.

If I was an MB Air user and wanted more desktop to work on when I was at home, I would just add a big external monitor. Another option would be to try a 13" MBP with a Retina display. To me, switching someone who isn't really into PC's from a MB Air to a Hackintosh or a Win 7 or Win 8 PC seems loaded with pitfalls, unless you plan on leaving her.

First thought: Don't do it.

Second thought: A 24" monitor at 1920x1600 resolution with an IPS display would be an upgrade to her current monitor. (Dell Ultrasharp U2410)

Third thought: I would build a dual use PC, for you, that your girlfriend can use to game on, or get her a refurbished MacBook Pro, if you're intent on getting her something computer related.

You may want to wait for Quo Computer's ProjectQ to start shipping to the public. ProjectQ is a motherboard designed to run any OS, with OS X being the unnamed any OS, and to include all of the ports found on a Mac Pro.

Quo Computer ProjectQ
http://quocomputer.com/projectq/

My advice is to stop thinking about what you want and start thinking about what she would love.
And I don't mean just about the computer purchase. For that, just get her an iMac. She'll love it.

WOW, thank you to everyone for all the amazing replies. Reading through this thread has been super helpful. What she wants is a multi monitor workstation, for screen real estate purposes. Her MBA is 13" and she rarely uses the screen that she has because it is a "hassle" to plug in her MBA, set up a keyboard, mouse etc. Also, its not possible to have multiple monitors connected to a MBA, correct?

She is a student now, and basically has to do all her work in her department at school because she doesn't have a good work station at home. She does like to play video games, but it is kind of a selfish goal to want her play more of those with me.

I honestly think she would be ecstatic if I surprised her with a 1920x1200 monitor and an adequate PC. Screen real estate is definitely more important than power, but I just don't want the PC to lag. I don't want to buy a MacPro, so I think hackintosh is the only way to go for multiple monitors with OSX. Like I said, I don't have a hard budget but don't want to waste cash. Also, I am confident that the risk of this system walking out the door is very low , trust me on this one...

We're in Boston now, and there is a Micro Center pretty close, so MC deals are fair game.

Thank you for all the hackintosh suggestions I will focus on gigabyte MBs. I will look at the i5-3470... maybe that, an open box GA-Z77X-D3H for $120, and a cheap reference 560i with dual dvi is the answer to this question.

Micro Center has an unbeatable in-store deal for the Core i5-3570K and a Z77 motherboard. They stock one of the Gigabyte boards that meets derFunkenstein's criteria.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/3883 ... otherboard

Hi Everyone,

Thank you so much for the advice! I thought I owed an update on what I actually ended up doing.

So... I bought MYSELF a new computer and gave my GF a Dell U2412M to plug her macbook air into (because that's all she really needed). I decided that I needed a more powerful desktop for Ableton Live, as my current production set-up just wasn't cutting it (A8-3500... CPU would max out regularly, was a PITA, exports took forever). She is happy, and I am about to be happy when I build my PC next week.

When I decided that the build was for myself, I went a little wild... Here's what's either in my possession or currently en route to my apartment.

The Gorey Details:
Corsair Graphite Series 600T - $150 (Amazon)
i7 4770k + ASRock Z87 Extreme6 - $425 ('egg)
2x4GB DDR3 1600MHz - $40 (TD)
Samsung 840 250GB - $150 (Adorama)
Corsair CX430 - $18AR ('egg)
+ Still need to figure out the OS situation. I have a Vista Ultimate license that I'm not using, and a 7 Pro license on my e1400 rig that I could cannibalize. Maybe I will buy an 8 upgrade license and go that route... maybe the GF can get me student pricing...
+ Still rocking my fearless BenQ FP241W from '07 (probably the best tech investment I have ever made)
Total (so far): $783

I'm not planning to really game on this, so I'm going to see how the Intel 4600 works out, but I may upgrade the PSU and throw in a real GPU at some point. I splurged on the case, but it just looks so sick, how could I refuse? I'll probably actually snatch up a higher wattage PSU when an amazing deal appears, push the 430w on to my other rig (which has been using a DiabloTek 350w since '09. Have to say that I have had 0 issues with it)

Cheers!

(Actually - Here is a link so a track that I am working on https://soundcloud.com/s317/j-n-collab-2. This is not a plug, I am a pure amateur. To any fellow producers out there... Live 8 w/Operator and Zebra2. My old set up could not handle a single Instrument Rack with more than like 4-5 Operators in it without pegging 100 CPU... Also, 3+ instances of Zebra (as separate tracks) tends to crash Live... I think that is a memory thing though. Looking forward to upgrading to x64 Live 9)

Zyntak09 wrote:

[specs list- looks great]

I'm not planning to really game on this, so I'm going to see how the Intel 4600 works out, but I may upgrade the PSU and throw in a real GPU at some point. I splurged on the case, but it just looks so sick, how could I refuse? I'll probably actually snatch up a higher wattage PSU when an amazing deal appears, push the 430w on to my other rig (which has been using a DiabloTek 350w since '09. Have to say that I have had 0 issues with it.)

The Intel HD4600 will work out swell. On my gaming rig, I use the HD3000 in my 2500k it to power a pair of 20" 1680x1050 Acer monitors for things like Ventrilo, Procon Frostbite, and other various apps or web pages as I need while I game on my primary monitor. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that it does eat into available memory; I have 16GB installed, so I went ahead and gave the HD3000 1GB, but that may be limiting for you. If so, any inexpensive add in card will do, and your CX430 is plenty for many entry-level to mid-range cards.

For the OS; get the upgrade (or educational) license and burn that Vista license if need be. Whatever's cheaper, really.

Zyntak09 wrote:

Her Goals: She wants a multiple monitor workstation for productivity (Adobe Creative Suite, multiple documents open, etc.). I would say she will end up with two 1680x1050 monitors (as she already has one).

Does she do this for a job? Does she need to have a certain color gamut available for DTP or photo manipulation? Does she do video work? You mentioned Creative Suite and that could be anything. If she needs proper color, will you get someone to calibrate the monitors after you get them?

Or is Adobe CS kind of a throwaway item, just does tinkering and doesn't need to color match?

...oh, nevermind. Just saw the update after starting on a reply. Oops!

Zyntak09 wrote:

So... I bought MYSELF a new computer and gave my GF a Dell U2412M to plug her macbook air into (because that's all she really needed).

Scrotos wrote:

...oh, nevermind. Just saw the update after starting on a reply. Oops!

No worries, I appreciate the reply. Yeah, she is a total amateur. In fact, I actually think that I am better than she is, but *shhhh*. She would like to "get more into it."

Zyntak09 wrote:

So... I bought MYSELF a new computer... When I decided that the build was for myself, I went a little wild.

I love it when a plan comes together!

JustAnEngineer wrote:

Zyntak09 wrote:

So... I bought MYSELF a new computer... When I decided that the build was for myself, I went a little wild.

I love it when a plan comes together!

No plan survives contact with the...

If she's used to a Mac but wants to game why not get her a heavier-duty Mac and run Windows via bootcamp for gaming? Especially if she does content-creation work forcing her to switch to a PC is probably going to be a rocky transition.