Building a Gaming PC PLEASE ADVISE

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Quattad

Honorable
Nov 12, 2013
1
0
10,510
Hi, this is my first time attempting to build my own gaming PC from scratch with a budget hopefully falling within a total of USD$1200-$1500. After researching a few of the parts for the past few days, I've come up with a rough idea of what I want in the PC as listed below.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22bzk Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22bzk/by_merchant/ Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22bzk/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Newegg)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($35.98 @ Newegg)

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($124.99 @ Newegg)

Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($92.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)

Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card ($316.13 @ Newegg)

Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N180UBE 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($17.99 @ Newegg)

Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Corsair Professional 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Newegg)

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($24.98 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $1283.00 (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

COMMENTS ON PART LISTNG

CPU

I chose the 3570K as I am open to overclocking. However, still deciding if I should just go with the new Haswell 4670 since I've read that overclocking doesn't really show results for a gaming rig + not sure if I'm confident enough of overclocking.

Motherboard

Many builds I've seen that use the 3570K utilize this motherboard so I guess it goes pretty well with the Ivy Bridge.

Storage

SSD for installing of the Windows 7 OS and the HDD for installation of games and the like.

Video Card

My 2nd choice as of the moment. Open to possible SLI/Crossfire configurations but unsure of which graphic cards are worth dual-pairing right now. VERY open to suggestions and opinions on this. Main choice is the new SAPPHIRE R9 280X 3GB TOXIC Edition but currently not available in my country. Hopefully it'll be released over the course of this month.

Case

Read good reviews about this case. Ideally a Mid Tower, other considerations are :

-NZXT Phantom 410 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.98 @ Newegg)

-Cooler Master Storm Enforcer ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)

Power Supply

Enough for possible overclocking?

Any feedback and suggestions greatly appreciated. Like I've said I'm new to building a gaming rig so I am willing to put careful thought into any opinions put forward.
 
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G

Ghan_04

Distinguished
Nov 29, 2011
22
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18,520
Here are my comments:

- Ivy Bridge is still definitely a good platform. You probably won't be able to tell the difference between it and Haswell as far as CPU performance. Haswell is newer for sure, but the CPUs at this level pretty much tear through games like nothing. You will more likely be bottlenecked by the graphics card here.

- Overclocking is fairly easy on a K-series chip. I would not be too afraid of it. The basics are: Make sure your thermals are good. Check the temps with a torture test on Prime95 or similar to make sure the clock is stable and that you don't get too hot. If your CPU is running much above 80C at full load, that is when I would likely stop trying to push it further. Also try to keep the voltage down - that's what increases temperature the most and puts the chip most at risk.

- I would get 16 GB of RAM and definitely take a look at some higher clocks. I bought 1866 Mhz RAM for my latest build and it has worked fine even though you have to "overclock" the motherboard in the BIOS - it's basically just a setting change. RAM clock speeds can have an effect, and at these levels you can find options all in the same price area. It's only when you start to break 2000 Mhz that they start to get a bigger price increase.

- There is probably not any point in getting a 1 TB drive anymore. The 2 TB ones can be had for about the same price. You can sometimes find these on sale for $10 off or so: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148834

- I'm not big on wireless for desktops, but I don't know your setup. If you need wireless, I would just consider an adapter that supports the ac standard. They are probably more expensive, but you will likely get more longevity from it, even if your current router doesn't support it.

- 750W is most likely a good bit of overkill here. 650W would probably be enough to give you expansion room for another graphics card. But $90 is a good price here, so this is not a major point.

- I would consider Windows 8 instead of 7. I've been using 8 with Classic Shell (http://www.classicshell.net/) and I've not had any major complaints.

I think that covers most of what I wanted to say. Cases are many and various, and everyone has their own opinions on that. Ultimately I would just not like to spend more than $100-$120 on one. So as long as what you get has good reviews and you like it, go for it.

Hope this helps. Good luck!
 
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