Taking my "Build your own" virginity...

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David Jalali

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Jul 10, 2013
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10,510
Hello World!

I have browsed this wonderful website quite often for benchmarks and etc., now it is time I call upon the knowledge you guys have.

My old Dell Studio XPS 7100 just isn't cutting it anymore (Athlon II x4 630, ATI HD5770, 4 GB RAM), and with the imminent arrival of Battlefield 4, I am looking to build a new system that will be able to max it out completely, at 1080p. I'm pretty sure from what I've read online that a simple upgrade to my current system will not get the job done, so I've been looking into options, configuring different setups via pcpartpicker.com

So far, I've wandered over (hopefully not aimlessly) to the following setup:

i7-3770K
2 x MSI GTX 760 running in SLI (which I've read outperforms a single GTX Titan for half the price)
8 GB RAM (c'mon now, does anyone REALLY need 16GB? I'm not going to be rendering, like I said, main priority is BF4)

I'll include the full text of my part list below, I'd appreciate an analysis / any suggestions you geniuses have. For example, I've heard there are problems with SLI? Or will I have sufficient cooling to prevent any early component death? Bottom line is, what is the system that will cost the least as well as run Battlefield 4 on Maximum Settings at 1080p?

Cheers,
David


Part list from PC Part Picker:

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Zalman CNPS9500 AT Ball Bearing CPU Cooler ($36.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($254.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($254.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N180UBE 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($88.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1347.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-10 19:41 EDT-0400)
 
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Carl Angelo De Leon

Carl Angelo De Leon

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Jun 29, 2013
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get the best gtx 780 rather than sli because it does have issues. it would be a killer rig, i swear :)
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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It looks pretty good.I have a few suggestions. Why not the i7 3770K you may ask? Well the i7 3770K merely adds Hyper-Threading and a higher clock speed to the equation. Though these two improvements are fantastic in CPU intensive tasks such as video encoding and 3D modeling, in gaming scenarios it doesn’t really do a whole lot. Games these days are much more graphics intensive than CPU intensive, so it’s a much better idea to invest the extra dough into the graphics card.

Core i5 3570K. For those who regularly follow our monthly builds here at Toms Hardware, you’ll know that it’s still one of the best processor you can get for the money today. With plenty of performance, top notch overclocking capability and enough horsepower to run any game you throw at it, the choice is a no brainer.That said, if you're looking to do live streaming or other tasks which require any sort of video encoding, feel free to pick up an Intel Core i7 3770K instead. The part is 100% compatible with the build and will give you better performance for these tasks. However, with all things higher performance, expect to shell out a $100 premium for the processor.I'd also skip going with two GTX 760's just get a single GTX 770 or GTX 780 and add another in the future if you're not happy with it.Also get 8GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600MHz kit is now only a mere $69.99! With excellent reliability, great performance, a low profile and an amazing price, there really isn't any reason to get g.skill value series 1333MHz ram imo it's o.k. though if you rather save the two dollars difference lol G.Skill is reliable so it's not a must you change it.
 
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Larry Bob

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May 26, 2013
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Might want to put the money saved on the single 770/780 and/or dropping down to a 3570k towards a better CPU cooler. Phanteks PH-TC14PE (in whatever color you want) and Noctua NH-D14 are popular high-end choices.
 
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Intel God

Intel God

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Jun 25, 2013
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OP what will this build be used for? Just gaming? Also big no no on 1155. You want Haswell and since you're buying from Microcenter you get it at a great deal.

4770K/4670K + Z87 Extreme6 - MC
8GB DDR3 2133 or 2400 - Newegg
Asus/Gigabyte/MSI GTX 760's in SLI - Newegg
 
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Intel God

Intel God

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Jun 25, 2013
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There are no real bad Z87 boards. The Z87 Extreme4 has the same power phase's an extreme6 has so if you're not planning any LN2 the Extreme4 is plenty. I like the Extreme6 simply because it looks better :lol:
 
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D

David Jalali

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Jul 10, 2013
6
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10,510
Also guys, just as an update, I think I will try to buy all of the items from my local Microcenter in either Baltimore / Towson or Rockville, simply because I can't bear to wait for things to come in the mail. I know, immature :p

But regarding that, Microcenter doesn't seem to carry the GTX 780, they only have the 690 (waaay too expensive for a single GPU) as well as multiple varieties of the 770 and 680. Suggestions?
 
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David Jalali

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Jul 10, 2013
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Or maybe I should ditch NVidia altogether and go with ATI? I know the demo was showcased on a 7990, so perhaps it is AMD favored? Bear with me guys, I'm somewhat new to GPUs / benchmarks and completely green when it comes to building a whole system
 
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Intel God

Intel God

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Jun 25, 2013
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If you plan on going with a single Amd card they're great but avoid crossfire till they fix it. The driver fix is scheduled to be released july 31st.
 
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David Jalali

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Jul 10, 2013
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10,510
So after taking into consideration your thoughts, I think I might go with the Diamond 7970:

http://www.microcenter.com/product/414204/7970PE53GV2_AMD_Radeon_HD_7970_Dual_Fan_Edition_3072MB_GDDR5_PCIe_30_x16_Video_Card

My only concern is, to reiterate, do you guys think this card will honestly be able to max out everything (MSAA, lighting effects, etc.) on Battlefield 4? I realize the beta isn't out yet so there's no way to tell for sure but making an educated guess, what do you think? If the demo was showcased on a 7990, does that mean that is the only card that can truly "maximize it"? Or perhaps AMD will release drivers down the road that will accomodate the 7970? I want this build to be future proof for at least 4 years. Fuck the next-gen consoles xD
 
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apower101

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Dec 25, 2012
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if what you want is future resistance (gone off the term futureproof), then a single 780 is the better choice. It is better than a 7970 by quite a bit. You can the sli it later on. But I am curious. Wy don't you want to wait for the volcanic islands gpus coming out at the end of the year? They will be strong (at least acording to rumours), and they will be better optimised for next gen console ports, such as bf4. Otherwise I would go 780. But my advice is to wait, compare gpu's and watch the prices drop, as competition comes into play.
 
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bluejayek

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Apr 3, 2013
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There will always be a new part coming out in six months that you can wait for, that will be cheaper and more powerful. At some point you just have to take the plunge and buy whats currently available.

That being said, since BF4 is only being released in october, waiting until then would not be a bad idea if your main intention on buying the new CPU is to play this game. Also, if you wait until a bit after the release, you will get a better idea whether AMD/nvidia cards perform better on this title.

 
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iineviidable

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Jan 11, 2013
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If you aren't going to be encoding much then you don't need the 3770k as a bunch of people have already said just get the 3570k unless you're going to be streaming and all that then with the $100 you saved get a closed loop cpu cooler like the corsair h80i, and the 780 is more powerful than the 7970 and you can always sli the 780 in the future.
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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With current pricing, AMD is not competitive at all. The Radeon HD 7970 is slightly cheaper, but much slower, and the HD 7970 GHz Edition is more expensive and slower. Both AMD cards also lose to NVIDIA's recent offerings when looking at power consumption and noise. The only thing they bring to the table is the rich Never Settle game bundle. The GTX 770 will also affect NVIDIA's own lineup. The GTX 680 is suddenly completely undesirable at its current price, and I would buy the GTX 770 over the GTX 670 any day if the GTX 670 remains at a $370 price point, but even "last-generation" GTX 600 Series cards could become an interesting buy if NVIDIA pulls off price reductions across a wider range of products. It's not like the GTX 700 adds any essential features that gamers will miss out on by buying older GeForce cards. Source http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Gigabyte/GeForce_GTX_770_WindForce_OC/32.html
 
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