Is my $800ish build okay? and other questions

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00asdf

Honorable
Aug 23, 2013
7
0
10,510
This is my first actual computer that belongs to me, and I'm trying to get it to be as good as I can, for games, work, and videos.
The PC is around $800, the peripherals bring it up to what it is, which is around $1.2K.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2120 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($120.97 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($115.91 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.08 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($122.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB Video Card ($173.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($71.30 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($29.94 @ Adorama)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Acer H236HLbid 60Hz 23.0" Monitor ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Microsoft SIDEWINDER X4 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($49.96 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Cooler Master Recon Wired Optical Mouse ($32.98 @ Newegg)
Speakers: Logitech Z130 5W 2ch Speakers ($22.72 @ Amazon)
Total: $1207.77
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-23 19:06 EDT-0400)

Now, the 620w PSU is on sale, but if I buy it, the watts that aren't needed, won't be used, right? If that makes any sense.

How does it look? Do you guys see anywhere cuts can be made?
Should I go with an i5?
I've been reading up on monitors, and apparently, as the one I'm getting is 60hz, and the GPU I'm getting can go well above 60fps on games like TF2, there will be screen tearing because the monitor can't keep up with the GPU; should I be worried about this?

Thanks.
 
Solution
photonboy
Hi,
1) With your budget, I recommend building an AMD system using the FX-6300 which has six cores. The i3-2120 has two physical cores and sometimes even beats the FX-6300 but for games and tasks that are well threaded the FX-6300 wins and this is a trend that will only continue.

For example, the PS4 and XBOX ONE will use SIX CORES (out of eight) for games so we'll definitely see a big increase in future games using multiple cores.

2) Graphics card:
*The HD7950 allows you to download THREE GAMES of your choice from a list. Even if we got the games on sale for $40 each, that's $120! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127667

So if the games were worth $120, then the card cost you $80 (plus tax/ship/rebate).

Some...
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radiantjet

Honorable
Jun 14, 2013
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Dual core, are you nuts? I know nothing about intel, but if the i5 is a quad core, then yes. Absolutely get it.

Do you really need a $30 optical drive? A $15 one will install games, windows, and play dvds. (Save $15)

What are you putting on the ssd? An entire steam library? If you just need your OS and important applications, 64gb will be plenty. (Save $60)

I can't recommend anything else, the rest looks pretty sweet!
 
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B

_Brute_Force_

Honorable
Mar 27, 2012
103
0
10,690
+1000 for the i5 processor and while your at it, might as well get haswell

For the PSU, this one has 80 PLUS bronze efficiency, so there is nothing to worry about
However its a little bit too much for your specs, unless your want to get another 650 TI Boost down the road.

As for the screen tearing, thats why there is V-SYNC, it locks the frame rates to a multiple of the screen refresh rate (30,60,90,120) , depending on what the monitor could handle, but be careful, if its locked to 60 and the FPS drops to 59, it will go down to 30. This is where NVIDIA adaptive sync comes in handy.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

Titan
Jun 20, 2006
21,567
13
85,015
Hi,
1) With your budget, I recommend building an AMD system using the FX-6300 which has six cores. The i3-2120 has two physical cores and sometimes even beats the FX-6300 but for games and tasks that are well threaded the FX-6300 wins and this is a trend that will only continue.

For example, the PS4 and XBOX ONE will use SIX CORES (out of eight) for games so we'll definitely see a big increase in future games using multiple cores.

2) Graphics card:
*The HD7950 allows you to download THREE GAMES of your choice from a list. Even if we got the games on sale for $40 each, that's $120! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127667

So if the games were worth $120, then the card cost you $80 (plus tax/ship/rebate).

Some future games should have AMD tweaks due to the use in PS4/XB1.

Summary:
- FX-6300 and AM3+ motherboard?
- HD7950 + 3 games?
 
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Solution
photonboy

photonboy

Titan
Jun 20, 2006
21,567
13
85,015
*WOW. The above MSI card comes with FOUR GAMES (Crysis 3 and your choice from a list). The card costs $200 and comes with $150 in games!

VSYNC and screen-tearing:
As explained above, if you enable VSYNC the game will automatically synch with the monitor to avoid screen tearing.

However, you want to TWEAK your game quality so you are above 60FPS most of the time. The alternative is to run without VSYNC but I can't stand the tearing.

Like THIS:

1. Install and run FRAPS to monitor frame rate
2. Start the game
3. Disable VSYNC (if possible)
4. Run the game then TWEAK the quality so you are staying above 60FPS
5. ENABLE VSYNC.
 
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