First Gaming PC, absolutely clueless.

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KingQuicksilver

Honorable
Jul 2, 2013
4
0
10,510
As the title suggests I am attempting to build a gaming PC. I have a list of parts that I have bumbled through and priced out, I however have no idea if they're compatible or not.

Graphics: GTX 770's (Planning on two in the future but will purchase only one for now)

Processor: i5 4670

Motherboard: No idea what to put here as far as compatibility is concerned, ASUS Z87-PRO? Maybe?

RAM: 8 GB

HDD: 2 TB

SSD for OS: 250 GB

Case: Cosmos II

Fan(s): No idea

Power Supply: No idea

I would appreciate any feedback/enlightenment/parts you would be willing to share and inform me on. Recommendations on Motherboards, Fans, and PowerSupplys would be appreciated. Though and opinions on the other components are very much welcomed.

I was using this as a buying guide.

Thanks!
 
Solution
manofchalk
SLI/Crossfire is Nvidia and AMD's technology (respectively) for having multiple GPU's working in tandem. For what your doing it isn't necessary though.

You have a fair bit more cash than you need for a gaming rig, but money saved is always better. You definitely have the cash to lash out on some nice mouse/keyboard, a secondary monitor, bigger case and other bells and whistles if you wanted too.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.79 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150...
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K

KingQuicksilver

Honorable
Jul 2, 2013
4
0
10,510
Approximate Purchase Date: Mid-September ~15th

Budget Range: ≤2000

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Internet, Movies

Are you buying a monitor: No

Do you need to buy OS: Yes (already have a line on that though)

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: New to this; so no preference

Location: Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada

Parts Preferences: None

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Do not know what this means

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Not satisfied with the FPS I am getting on most current games on low. I would like a PC that will last the majority of this upcoming console generation while running most games on high or "ultra" settings.

Games the PC is intended for: Battlefield 3 & 4, PlanetSide 2,
 
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manofchalk

manofchalk

Glorious
May 11, 2012
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SLI/Crossfire is Nvidia and AMD's technology (respectively) for having multiple GPU's working in tandem. For what your doing it isn't necessary though.

You have a fair bit more cash than you need for a gaming rig, but money saved is always better. You definitely have the cash to lash out on some nice mouse/keyboard, a secondary monitor, bigger case and other bells and whistles if you wanted too.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.79 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($167.73 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($68.96 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.79 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Cooler Master HAF XM (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Memory Express)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($47.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1233.22
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-02 03:43 EDT-0400)

This should be fine for gaming max-ish settings (performance killers like AA and post-processing turned down) at 1080p for a fair while, though considering that the console gen will likely last 8yrs don't expect it to maintain those settings the whole time. If you want to keep that standard of performance in all the latest games, you will have to upgrade, no way around it.

The case I went for the HAF-XM as I think its a fairly good mid-tower, but I can see why you might not like its aesthetic. Corsair, NZXT, Coolermaster, Fractal Design and some Bitfenix and Antec cases are fairly good choices. Pick the one that supports the features you want and looks good to you, in terms of cooling performance all good cases will be basically the same.
 
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Solution
g-unit1111

g-unit1111

Titan
Moderator
Jul 27, 2011
42,544
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104,940
Here's what I would do for $2K:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($141.18 @ Newegg Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($207.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.98 @ NCIX)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($144.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.79 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($672.23 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Memory Express)
Power Supply: NZXT HALE90 V2 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($179.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($18.90 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $1823.01
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-02 11:33 EDT-0400)

Better GPU and cooler than the above, PSU is made by Super Flower and can support dual GTX 780s.
 
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K

KingQuicksilver

Honorable
Jul 2, 2013
4
0
10,510


I really like this build for it's price point, but could I add a second 7970 in the future? (Could the Power supply listed handle it? Would it make sense?)
I noticed that the card is very similar in price to the GTX 770 what are the differences between them? Also I am pleasantly surprised by the look of the case and it's price.





A little pricey, but I like what I'm reading here. I will probably forgo the optical drive in favor of straight digital distribution (But it's cheap so I could always add it later). Being completely new to PC building liquid cooling kind of scares me. Lastly I would probably switch out that case for the HAF XM mention above.
 
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manofchalk

manofchalk

Glorious
May 11, 2012
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You could add a 2nd 7970 later on, though yes you will need a beefier PSU. A 750W unit is whats typically recommended for a dual card system.

Though be aware that AMD Crossfire does have some issues right now in terms of Framerating performance (pretty new benchmark of performance, different to FPS). AMD have announced that a new driver coming out on the 30th will fix a lot of these issues, but until then Crossfire isnt recommended.
If your going to buy the rig with the intention of adding a better card later on, it might be best to wait for the driver reviews to come out, and see if the Framerating issues have been fixed.

At 1080p they are pretty similar with a 5% performance gap between the 7970 Ghz edition and 770.
http://tpucdn.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_760/images/perfrel_1920.gif
However 7970's have been beastly overclockers since their release, you should easily be able to clock a 7970 past Ghz edition speeds.

Other than that, the main difference is the extra GB of VRAM with a wider memory bus and a game bundle. The extra VRAM/memory bus I think isnt too useful right now, but will become more so in the future. Some games are already breaching 2GB at 1080p (Crysis 3 does for me).
Game bundle will be fairly subjective whether it appeals or not, but three AAA titles that come free with the graphics card is pretty good.
 
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manofchalk

manofchalk

Glorious
May 11, 2012
12,914
3
48,960
Considering you have the budget, get nothing less than a mechanical keyboard.
Research into which Cherry MX key-switch is best for you (there are multiple, distinguished by colour). Then look into the typical Machanical keyboard brands like Coolermaster, Ducky, Das, Filco, Leopold, Steelseries.
I use a Ducky Dk9008 Shine II (Brown Key-switches) myself and love the thing.
 
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