First gaming build ~$1200 budget

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Deekun

Deekun

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Jun 1, 2013
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Hello, everyone.

This is my first time building a computer and I'm still very new to everything, but I've been trying to learn as much as I can about the process so I'm not completely helpless. I've had the same laptop for 3-4 years now, and it's definitely time to replace it.

Approximate Purchase Date: Hopefully before the end of June

Budget Range: All said and done, after shipping and taxes, $1,200 max. It would be best if I could get it down to around $1,000 though, so any tips on how to save a little would be greatly appreciated.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming and regular internet surfing. I'm not a real big pc gamer, mostly because I haven't had a pc that could handle them, but I'm looking to get into gaming with this build. A decent mid range pc is all I'm looking for though, nothing real high powered.

Are you buying a monitor: Yes. I also need an OS, mouse, keyboard, all of it.

Preferred Websites for Parts: newegg.com, amazon.com and I suppose tigerdirect.com

Location: I currently live in Mississippi, so no microcenter around.

Parts Preferences: I prefer intel and nvidia

Overclocking: I don't think so. It's my first build and I'm a little wary to try and learn how on it, so I'm thinking about leaving that off until I'm more familiar with everything and have a spare system around to practice on.

SLI or Crossfire: No

Your Monitor Resolution: I'd like a 1920x1080 or so, I want a nice monitor.

Additional Comments: As far as games go, the most I've been able to run on this old laptop is minecraft. I snagged a couple good looking games in a sale recently, Batman Arkham Asylum/City and Dragon Age I and II, so I'm going to be playing those as well. I don't believe I'll be running anything really intensive on it. Also, I have no idea what peripherals or cases are good, I was just going by reviews on pcpartpicker, so I probably need help with those.

Here's the build so far: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/182oG

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P Ivy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.3GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 69W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80637i53350P

Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO

Motherboard: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007RLYP56/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] ASUS P8H77-V LE LGA 1155 Intel H77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard [/url]

RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600

SSD: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009NHAF06/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Samsung 840 Series 2.5 inch 120GB SATA III internal Solid State Drive [/url]

HDD: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036Q7MV0/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Western Digital WD1002FAEX Caviar Black 1 TB SATA III 7200 RPM 64 MB Cache Internal Desktop 3.5" Hard Drive [/url]

Video card: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4501133&SRCCODE=LINKSHARE&cm_mmc_o=-ddCjC1bELltzywCjC-d2CjCdwwp&AffiliateID=8BacdVP0GFs-lLtV0J4_qBQZvvcg6QfVxQ ] EVGA GeForce GTX 660 02G-P4-2662-KR Video Card [/url]

Case: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005HJMQIS/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Rosewill Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, Black CHALLENGER-U3 [/url]

PSU: SeaSonic M12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

Optical drive: LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM

OS: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004Q0PT3I/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (OEM) System Builder DVD 1 Pack [/url]

Monitor: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00413PHDM/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Asus VE228H 21.5-Inch Full-HD LED Monitor with Integrated Speakers [/url]

Keyboard: AZIO Levetron KB555U Black 122 Normal Keys USB Wired Gaming Keyboard

Mouse: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003Y7MWZM/?tag=pcpapi-20 ] Gigabyte Dual Lens Gaming Mouse with 1600 DPI High-Definition Optical Tracking (GM-M6800) [/url]

I think that's everything. If there's anything I forgot to mention or entered incorrectly, please let me know. If anybody has any advice as far as better parts or ways to save money, I'd be very grateful. Thanks in advance. :)
 
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X79

X79

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Apr 17, 2013
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- You won't need that CPU cooler. You're not OC'ing.

- 500W will probably do that system fine.

- The mouse could be substituted for a Logitech G500 or whatnot. Something with a higher DPI.

- I'd pick Win 8.
 
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SamGriffiths

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Dec 12, 2012
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Is there any reason you want nVidia over AMD? I mean you could get nVidia but it would be slower.

This build has a good keyboard and mouse, the 7870 XT is pretty damn fast, CPU is nice and fast too.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($159.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($68.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($248.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VS208N-P 20.0" Monitor ($117.57 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Corsair Vengeance K60 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Mouse: Corsair Vengeance M65 Wired Laser Mouse ($54.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $1166.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 10:17 EDT-0400)
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Jun 1, 2013
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@X79 Thank you for the help. I dropped the cooler and switched to the Seasonic 520W. I don't know if I want to go that high on the mouse, so instead of the logitech, I bumped it up to the Gigabyte GM-M6900, it's got twice the dpi of the GM-M6800, look good? And I've been going back and forth about 7 or 8, I'll look into more before I buy it.

@SamGriffiths No real reason for nvidia, it just looked like a better buy for where my budget was. I'd be open to switching if it had better performance and fit in the budget though. Also, I can't get to a microcenter, so I'm afraid that build would be too much. $1,200 is really probably a little too high already. And I'm really trying to keep an ssd in there as well, which would put it way over-budget.

So here's the updated build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V LE ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($87.93 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($207.13 @ TigerDirect)
Case: Rosewill Challenger-U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($90.91 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($137.99 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6900 Wired Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1155.87
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 17:20 EDT-0400)

Thank you again. Is there anything else anybody can think to change?
 
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SamGriffiths

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Well if you open to change this is what I would get this, AMD FX-6350 isn't as good as the i5-3350P, but it will only drop your FPS by 5-7%, and the 7950 will boost it by about 15% and it also makes it a bit cheaper. Do you not already have a keyboard and mouse? Because I still game on a off brand supermarket keyboard and mouse that I got for about £15 and they work fine.

How much do you want the SSD? Because you could get a very nice build if you dropped it, and all it does in improve load times.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($252.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill Challenger-U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6900 Wired Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1160.80
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 17:33 EDT-0400)

If you did want to drop the SDD you could get a HD 7970 (insainly powerful GPU) and a really nice case.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.10 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.56 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($403.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6900 Wired Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1170.53
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 17:49 EDT-0400)
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Well, I guess I only really prefer intel because I'm new to this and I've looked into intel more so I'm more comfortable with them. I just don't really know much about amd to be honest, I know they both just make parts so it's not a totally different type of computer or anything, I'm just not as well read on them yet. And the only thing about dropping the ssd is that I'm not really a big pc gamer yet, I'm still getting started, so I think I'd benefit more from the faster load times than having a really nice gpu, at least for right now. And no, no keyboard or mouse, I'm starting from scratch. I've been using a budget toshiba laptop for the past 4 years or so and before that I just used the family desktop, so I'm just now getting into my first "real" computer. :)
 
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SamGriffiths

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Yeah, I totally understand, if you're not very into PC gaming and you do a lot of other things the SSD will make your life a dream. To be honest you could drop the GPU a bit anyway, the thing with all these GPUs is they're made for people obsessed with having every game on ultra at 1080p, but games still look really good at 1080p on high, and a 7870 will easily do that.

The FX-6350 isn't as fast as the i5-3570k, but it's very good at multi-tasking due to the 6 cores, the HD 7870 will do you just fine if you're not obsessed with Ultra graphics, and most of the time you should be able to use Ultra anyway, and I got a 256GB SSD in so you can fit every program and game you want on it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.97 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.10 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($216.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.67 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($229.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($57.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6900 Wired Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1185.61
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 18:53 EDT-0400)
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Thank you so much for all your help, but after thinking about it, I think I'm gonna stick with the intel setup for right now. I feel bad for taking up your time now, but with this being my first time building a computer, I'd just feel better if I stayed with what little I know. I'll work on learning more about amd though, because I might be making another (cheaper) system in a few months and I might use that one to play around with overclocking.
 
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SamGriffiths

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Hey, you didn't waist my time, I'm glad to help, so if you're going Intel...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V LE ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($105.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.10 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.67 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($229.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($57.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6900 Wired Optical Mouse ($24.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1191.29
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 19:56 EDT-0400)

Either way it's going to be lightning fast so it doesn't really matter.
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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I still have a couple days at least before I can order anything, so I'll look through everything again and then make my final call. Thanks again for all your help. :)
 
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mastrom101

mastrom101

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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($184.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill Challenger-U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VG23AH 23.0" Monitor ($187.58 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6800 Wired Optical Mouse ($14.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1175.42
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 20:16 EDT-0400)

Get Haswell.
Stick with unlocked components. I often see people save $30 and choose locked components. Many of them end up shelling out and additional $200+ for an unlocked CPU down the road.
Picked up an IPS monitor
 
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SamGriffiths

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Personally I wouldn't put all my money into the CPU and cheap out on the GPU, also as he's said he's going to make a second cheaper build later on to play with overclocking.
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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@mastrom101 I don't live near a microcenter, so it'd be more like an extra $60, which I just don't have. And yeah, I'm a little hesitant to play around with overclocking on my first rig, I want to wait and learn with something a little more forgiving if I fry it. XD
 
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SamGriffiths

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Dec 12, 2012
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Just a bit off topic here, but if you did want to play around with OC this would be a very good build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-4300 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($78.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($117.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($68.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7770 2GB Video Card ($134.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($59.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $675.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-19 20:46 EDT-0400)
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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@ SamGriffiths Thanks, I'll keep that one in mind.

@ mastrom101 I'll check that out, because I had an idea about this build I wanted to post in here.

I have a monitor I can use for now, it's not very good, but it will work for now so I can move that ~$200 somewhere else. That way, I can get a more powerful system up front, and then just get a nice monitor separately when I have a little more cash. Maybe the mouse and keyboard too, we probably have some old ones that work somewhere. So I tried to rearrange the cash a little and here's what I have so far,

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.63 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($249.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: AZIO Levetron Wired Gaming Keyboard ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Gigabyte GM-M6800 Wired Optical Mouse ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1168.52
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-20 04:49 EDT-0400)

This could probably use some tweaking, but it's just an idea. This way, I won't overclock right away, but I'd be able to whenever I was ready and as soon as I popped a cooler in there, right? Not to mention that that video card is a pretty nice one already. And I think the PSU might be a little pricey, but I kind of want a modular model and I don't know what else to use.

Sorry for going back and forth on things, I'm still trying to decide what would be the best way to go. Thank you all again for your help so far.
 
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SamGriffiths

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That's a solid build, if you look around and wait you can get a "okay" monitor for like $70, I got a AOC e2050Sn 1600x900 LED monitor for £50 because it had a damaged box.

SeaSonic generally make good PSUs, and it being modular makes life easier.
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Thanks for all your help everyone! I was wondering one last thing, is the 550w power supply going to be enough if I add a cooler and overclock later on? Because I could get a 620w SeaSonic for only $10 more.
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Thanks for the offer, but I'm looking forward to the experience of putting a pc together for myself. And Brookhaven is actually pretty far away from me. :)
 
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Gaxe

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Here's a few tips I learned, Intel is best for CPUs (currently this could rapidly change in the future thanks to AMD CPU Consoles). For GPUs usually AMD is best bang for the buck (and there also way more future proof thanks to consoles again). You won't be needing a better fan if not overclocking. I really recommend you overclock though it's not hard to learn trust me. For GPU I'd recommend a 7950 Vapor-X, really solid GPU that is well worth it's price. RAM speed doesn't really matter you could drop it down to 1333. If you plan on upgrading in the future I'd go with a 750w PSU if not then a 500w would be fine. If your looking for a amazing monitor that is worth it's price I'll always stand by the Asus VX238H.
 
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Deekun

Deekun

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Thanks for all your help everyone, looks like I have my build. I'll just stick with the 550W for now, it should be fine. Hopefully I can get the money soon and get to building. :)
 
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mastrom101

mastrom101

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Only $10 more? Definitely worth it in my opinion.

Good luck on your build!
 
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