First Timer Building Gaming PC - please help me build it

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davidrobb118

Honorable
May 20, 2012
15
0
10,510
Hi friends,
Long story short - posted here a year ago then decided to pull the trigger on xbox 360 instead. Now with next gen consoles coming out want to build a gaming rig and move away from console gaming into PC gaming.

Would like to build a rig that will run graphics intensive games - BF3, Far cry 3, Crysis 3 maybe some mmo like Tera or WoW. Want the system to also be capable of running next generation games as well BF4 etc at high or ultra settings if possible in my budget.

Approximate Purchase Date: in next two weeks

Budget Range: $1000 - 1200 after rebates - also need keyboard and mouse

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming with light internet browsing, maybe an occasional video

Are you buying a monitor: No

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I live near Microcenter so parts from there are great, though for online or better prices New Egg, Amazon, or any others

Location: Boulder, CO

Parts Preferences: Intel CPU please

Overclocking: Yes - though i don't have a clue about it and will need ot learn more

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe - not sure open to this

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: Quiet if possible, though not that important

Why Are You Upgrading: Transitioning from console gaming to PC gaming

My attempt at building it here - would love cheaper and/or better options for running games at highest settings possible in my budget. Also wanting to have approval for compatibility etc:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1xK1W
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1xK1W/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1xK1W/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($94.99)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Carbide Series 300R Windowed ATX Mid Tower Case ($65.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($71.30 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($83.88 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1043.08
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-29 18:30 EDT-0400)

Thanks!
 
Solution
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Looks all good to me, i myself would switch out the CX PSU(CX should only be used if you are going to do 400-600W, not recommended to SLI/CFX with it as it is not that great of a PSU which is why it is the lowest end of Corsair products)

try this one out you will love it with not much more money
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1750bbefx

Fans do not spin up unless a certain temp is reached giving you the utmost silence
Fully modular meaning you can take out the PSU just by unplugging the plugs connecting to the PSU(no need to fiddle with the stuff attached to motherboard and such)
Gold rated for cleaner power
and is a Seasonic OEM which is a top grade OEM for PSUs
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Guest

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To be honest it really looks like you have everything figured out. I'd love to have that setup personally to be honest with but until money is more fluid with me I will remain with my mid budget PC.
 
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Guest

Guest
To be honest it really looks like you have everything figured out. I'd love to have that setup personally to be honest with but until money is more fluid with me I will remain with my mid budget PC.
 
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G

Guest

Guest

I should be, do some research on the i5 you selected, if it's unlocked then you can overclock til it explodes literally and the card in overclockable no matter what. Personally I don't recommend overclocking, I see it as an unnecessary risk
 
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boulbox

Honorable
Apr 5, 2012
1,880
0
11,960
If the UD3H from gigabyte is on sale at microcenter, get that instead. For Z87 chipset, you want more features on the board(software too) and Gigabyte and ASUS have the best so far i have seen

OC makes components die faster but run faster(dies from the heat) which is why you need a good cooler and know how to overclock correctly(many guides out there that are easy to read and just a key point "DO NOT LEAVE SETTINGS ON AUTO" at least for a few things because if you leave it on auto it can overvolt things which makes it hotter.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($94.99)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($57.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Plextor M5S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: SeaSonic M12II 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.90 @ Amazon)
Total: $1044.80
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-01 06:18 EDT-0400)

a little more updated build

GPU switched to a Sapphire. for AMD you really want to stick with Sapphire, and HIS. XFX was a really good one but there products this time are not that great(cooling is terrible and coil whine was a bit bad)

Switched case to something with more quality and features while being cheaper. It is very similar but has more filters for less dust to get inside and great air flow.

750W PSU from Seasonic is fairly cheap right now and lets you add in a 2nd GPU in the future if needed(might want to keep both GPUs at stock due to power consumption fairly high)
 
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davidrobb118

Honorable
May 20, 2012
15
0
10,510
Ok, based on feedback I switched up the graphics card to sapphire 7970. Also went with a 750w psu, Corsair - as the one you suggested had spiked in price. I went back to the Corsair 200r case as the Fractal case you (Boulbox) suggested is unfortunately $109 at my local Microcenter.

How does this build look? If anyone has suggestions for tweaks, lower prices or any other feedback, please let me know.

Thanks again!

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/davidrobb118/saved/2jrU

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1zyXD
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1zyXD/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1zyXD/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($94.99)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($57.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($92.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($303.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($57.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($74.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.88 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1078.76
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 13:11 EDT-0400)
 
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boulbox

Honorable
Apr 5, 2012
1,880
0
11,960
Looks all good to me, i myself would switch out the CX PSU(CX should only be used if you are going to do 400-600W, not recommended to SLI/CFX with it as it is not that great of a PSU which is why it is the lowest end of Corsair products)

try this one out you will love it with not much more money
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1750bbefx

Fans do not spin up unless a certain temp is reached giving you the utmost silence
Fully modular meaning you can take out the PSU just by unplugging the plugs connecting to the PSU(no need to fiddle with the stuff attached to motherboard and such)
Gold rated for cleaner power
and is a Seasonic OEM which is a top grade OEM for PSUs
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
D

davidrobb118

Honorable
May 20, 2012
15
0
10,510
I want to thank everyone who helped for their recommendations. I've finally pulled the trigger on all the parts and should be building this weekend.

I'm sure I'll be on the forums with questions about the actual build. Final build looks like this due to price fluctuations and what happened to be on sale at microcenter this weekend.

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/davidrobb118/saved/2rpT

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1GKNw
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1GKNw/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1GKNw/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.99)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: SeaSonic M12II 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($96.50 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($95.87 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1082.28
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-23 10:50 EDT-0400)
 
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