Hello everyone,I've only joined in the last couple of days, but after Dazz's reply and seeing a lot of videos of FSX on Youtube, I've decided to take a little longer to plan, build and use my PC and therefore have a slightly bigger budget than I originally had. I think at the end I will join a club/clan (never thought I would but having seen the attitude and community here I like the idea...) I'm looking for a good amount of detail and for it to be smooth.I am an absolute beginner, never built my own PC, but I'm willing to give it a go. I'm hoping my work as an Avionics Technician in the Air Force will help! My planning stage will probably take a couple of weeks, but ultimately I'd like the build finished by the end of March (new house move is taking up a lot of time!) I will update this thread with photos and updates as soon as something happens!Basically I'm looking for advice on whether everything is compatible, whether I need to change certain components, and generally grabbing your advice along the way.I realise my budget (Exactly £1000) wont allow miracles, but it's got to be a massive improvement on an 8 year old laptop!I already have a 24" Samsung Syncmaster HD TV, and a mouse(!)Anyway, I'll stop boring you, here is what I have jotted down thus far. All prices include delivery where I've been able to sort that!-----My Projected Build-----Processor:Intel i5-2500K 3.3 GHz - £167.94I'm reading an easy 4GHz OC? Have considered the i9-920, but is the bigger outlay really worth it?Motherboard:Asus P8P67 Pro - £127.15To be honest I'm not 100% on Mobos, but these seem to be a popular choice.Graphics Card:Currently Undecided.RAM:G Skill Ripjaws 8GB 1600MHz - £82.50Another dodgy area - is the frequency ok? Should I look elsewhere? Cheaper versions?HDD:Seagate Barracuda 1TB, Sata II - £40.79PSU:Coolermaster 850W - £92.50Do I need 850W?CPU Cooling:Noctua NH-U12P - £50.75OS and Misc:Windows 7 Home Premium - £74.30Office 2010 - £65Case:Coolermaster Elite 330 - £28.49Am open to suggestions on Case...Drives:Samsung SH-B123L Blu Ray Drive - £46.18Samsung SH-223 DVD RW Drive - £12.20Misc:Thermal Paste - Arctic Cooling MX-4 - £8.83Extra 120mm fan - Xilence Red Wing - £5.12At the moment, without a Graphics card, I have a total: £801.75.--------- Does this seem to be along the right lines, or do I need to start over?!Thanks for your time and advice in advance! :)Andy.

You don't need thermal paste if you are gonna use the stock cooler and make sure your OS is 64 bit.Not sure about that -M model motherboard. It might be small. I got the ASUS P8P67 Pro

You don't need thermal paste if you are gonna use the stock cooler and make sure your OS is 64 bit.Not sure about that -M model motherboard. It might be small. I got the ASUS P8P67 Pro

Hi Taylor, Thanks for your post!I've got the Noctua NH-12UP done for the CPU cooling - I've only got it as a safety first option, should I be just using the stock cooler?Ah, I'm glad you said about the motherboard, I wondered about the -M. Now I know! I'll search around and find the right one! Infact Taylor, I've just noticed you've got a similiar set up to what I'm looking for - what is your FSX performance like? Can I live with a lower powered PSU like yours?Thanks again!

Hi Taylor, Thanks for your post!I've got the Noctua NH-12UP done for the CPU cooling - I've only got it as a safety first option, should I be just using the stock cooler?Ah, I'm glad you said about the motherboard, I wondered about the -M. Now I know! I'll search around and find the right one! Infact Taylor, I've just noticed you've got a similiar set up to what I'm looking for - what is your FSX performance like? Can I live with a lower powered PSU like yours?Thanks again!

Oh, I am using the stock cooler but I am gonna be buying a after market cooler soon. In terms of Default scenery and default planes, 30+ When you get some addons such as PMDG it might start dipping below that. Then again I am currently at 3.7ghz. When I get an aftermarket cooler I probably will get to 4.2 ghz min.

Make sure Ram and board are compatible. Mobo manufacturers lists of compatible Ram tend to be short. If you search out the top three Ram you want with regards to frequency and timings, you search the respective Ram manufacturers lists of compatible boards. Mushkin has a forum where users share their experience with compatibility. Good luck with your build!Bjorn

Make sure Ram and board are compatible. Mobo manufacturers lists of compatible Ram tend to be short. If you search out the top three Ram you want with regards to frequency and timings, you search the respective Ram manufacturers lists of compatible boards. Mushkin has a forum where users share their experience with compatibility. Good luck with your build!Bjorn

Thank you Bjorn, just the kind of advice I need!

You´re welcome, mate ;)And remember, the lower the CAS latency (a.k.a. CL or timing) the faster the ram. For example my ram are timed 6-8-6-24 @ 1600 MHz, the first number is the CAS latency, and 6 is pretty fast. If you try to compare two sets of ram with different frequency as well as different timings, you take the CL and divide by freq., the lower the number; the faster the ram. So, for 1600 MHz ram, it doesn´t get much faster than the Mushkin Redlines (something new and faster may be out there now, haven´t checked in a while). You should also get a separate harddisk for FSX, an SSD preferably, Crucial Real C300 128 GB is not that expensive and should hold a lot of FSX and a big hangar, and they make ´em really small, you can just about tuck it anywhere in your case. If you spin the whole system including OS on one disc, you may not get as good performance. The motherboards for the SandyBridge type cpu have a design flaw and are withdrawn from the market, so unless you´re in a hurry I´d wait for their revised boards to appear. The SB type cpu seem to run fast easily.Bjorn

You´re welcome, mate ;)And remember, the lower the CAS latency (a.k.a. CL or timing) the faster the ram. For example my ram are timed 6-8-6-24 @ 1600 MHz, the first number is the CAS latency, and 6 is pretty fast. If you try to compare two sets of ram with different frequency as well as different timings, you take the CL and divide by freq., the lower the number; the faster the ram. So, for 1600 MHz ram, it doesn´t get much faster than the Mushkin Redlines (something new and faster may be out there now, haven´t checked in a while). You should also get a separate harddisk for FSX, an SSD preferably, Crucial Real C300 128 GB is not that expensive and should hold a lot of FSX and a big hangar, and they make ´em really small, you can just about tuck it anywhere in your case. If you spin the whole system including OS on one disc, you may not get as good performance. The motherboards for the SandyBridge type cpu have a design flaw and are withdrawn from the market, so unless you´re in a hurry I´d wait for their revised boards to appear. The SB type cpu seem to run fast easily.Bjorn

Thank you very much, I'll certainly look into the SSD route. On a sidenote, a quick RAM question - With myself looking into 8GB of RAM, is there any kind of issue with having RAM say, 2x4GB or 4x2GB etc, should I look for one or the other?Help appreciated as always,Andy. Edit: I've noticed that people are handling similiar builds to mine on a lower powered PSU, should I get a lower rating (and therefore save a few pennies while I'm at it?)Andy.

2 RAM sticks is better for overclocking than 4, helps with stabilityAnd 850W is overkill for a PSU (yes, I know mine is too) unless you plan on going dual SLI/XFire of high end video cards in the future

2 RAM sticks is better for overclocking than 4, helps with stabilityAnd 850W is overkill for a PSU (yes, I know mine is too) unless you plan on going dual SLI/XFire of high end video cards in the future

Thank you Dario, I've practically decided on the RAM now, thanks to your response.I've downgraded (?!) to a 650W PSU, I don't plan to go dual SLI any time soon, but again thank you for your advice.I've practically finished my planning stage I think. I'll reconsider the RAM option to a lower latency should I find RAM in the price range I'm looking. But for now, here is the plan:-----My Projected Build-----Processor:Intel i5-2500K 3.3 GHzMotherboard:Asus P8P67-M ProGraphics Card:Gainward GTX 460 Golden SRAM:Corsair XMS3 8GB 1600MHz (2x4GB)HDD:Seagate Barracuda 1TBPSU:Corsair TX650WCPU Cooling:Corsair A50OS:Windows 7 Home PremiumCase:Coolermaster Elite 330 Drives:Samsung SH-223 DVD RW Drive x 2Misc:Thermal Paste - Arctic Cooling MX-4Extra 120mm fan - Xilence Red WingOffice 2010Microsoft Keyboard and Mouse.This all comes to £882.36.--------So, this is the provisional list, I can't believe the spec I can create for a few extra hundred pounds and doing it myself. Unbelievable. Still looking into RAM and SSD options. Still, can't wait to start putting it together now!Andy.

I think it looks great. I wouldn't bother with a SSD, but that's just me. They are pricey and basically you only get better load timesAlso I'm not a fan of those H50, and for a 2500K I would pick a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus, that is much cheaper and will allow you overclock that I5 as high as voltage permits

You do know though, that Intel confirmed a small problem with a p67 chipset (the SATA-degrading-thingy)? I'm not sure if you are aware, just wanted to point it out to you.

I think it looks great. I wouldn't bother with a SSD, but that's just me. They are pricey and basically you only get better load timesAlso I'm not a fan of those H50, and for a 2500K I would pick a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus, that is much cheaper and will allow you overclock that I5 as high as voltage permits

Thanks Dario. I'm looking at the SSD, I can live with longer load times - I'll consider the option since Bjorn gave me the advice, i'll probably not go down that route mind.Thanks for the heads up on the 212 - that saves £10. :)

You do know though, that Intel confirmed a small problem with a p67 chipset (the SATA-degrading-thingy)? I'm not sure if you are aware, just wanted to point it out to you.

Hi Word Not Allowed, thanks - I've looked into it, and have given myself 2 options - 1. Buy the motherboard and have it replaced when the fixed mobos are in circulation for free, or 2. as I plan to finish the build around the end of March, maybe they'll have the new mobos around anyway?Thanks again!Andy.

Hi Everyone!Thanks to everyone who posted with help previously!Unfortunately I went away with work for a few months, but now I'm back I've finally got round to building the PC.The spec has changed, only in little areas here and there, but now I only need 1 component; the Graphics Card.I know from reading advice that FSX is more CPU dependent; but now I have a small conundrum!Basically a friend has offered me an unused Palit GTX550Ti which I think is a good card, or for an extra £20 I could get a Palit Sonic GTX 460 from Amazon which would probably be the most I'd be looking to spend.Basically my question is, is there a big enough difference between the two for FSX? Also in the future? I'm not technically minded enough to know the difference between the two... so any help would be greatly appreciated! :)Thanks again everyone,Andy. Edit: Not sure if this will matter too much, but I'll be downsizing to an LG 22" Monitor from my current Samsung 24".

Another question :)My Optical drive is Sata I, but I only have 4 Sata II connections and 4 Sata III connections, does this mean I need a different drive?I take it my Sata II Hdd goes in the first numbered Sata II port, that being SATA3G_3? (Sata III takes up 1 and 2) on the P8P67 Evo.Thanks everybody, feeling like a bit of a muppet...!