Mid Range Gaming Build - 900$-1100$ - Parts List and Questions

aLx450

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Hi all,

I've been around computers all my life but never had to put one together myself. I bought a Dell 5 years ago for around 1,000$ and it started having trouble handling games about 6 monts ago. Time for a new system and I would appreciate advice and the accuracy of such build.

Here's the complete breakdown from the Recommendations Guide

Approximate Purchase Date: 2-3 months
Budget Range: 900-1100 CAD (after shipping if possible)
System Usage: Games, Streaming, Generic school work
Are you buying a monitor: No - 24'' IPS - Possibility to plug in a second monitor is a plus.
Parts to Upgrade: Everything can be brand new except for the HDD for which I can still use my 3.5in WD 1TB.
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: NCIX for its price match capabilities (Canada)
Location: Montreal, Canada.
Parts Preferences: Intel CPU. GeForce GPU.
Overclocking: Maybe, if possible and affordable.
SLI or Crossfire: Doubt it, not a priority
Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 on single screen. Might update to two 1920x1080 monitors.

Additional Comments: Look and Bling is in no way a priority. Quiet rig is a big plus. Want something that lasts.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Current build is falling behind in terms of performance. I had a competent machine that lasted a good 5-6 years at full power for my games and all my computing needs. I'm looking for the same thing this time. New games are a priority, but stability and possibility for RAM upgradability is also a good option.

List of Parts I currently have listed
(Asterix indicates parts I have doubts and questions about, see below)

Case
Corsair Carbide Series 200R Black Gaming Case ATX 3X5.25 4X3.5 Front USB3.0 Audio

Processor
Intel Core i5 4670K Unlocked Quad Core 3.4GHZ Processor LGA1150 Haswell 6MB Cache Retail

Motherboard
MSI Z87-G55 ATX LGA1150 Z87 DDR3 3PCI-E16 4PCI-E1 SATA3 DVI HDMI CrossFireX/SLI USB3.0 Motherboard

Power Supply ****
Corsair CX Series CX750M 750W ATX 12V 80 Plus Bronze Modular Power Supply

Memory
Corsair Vengeance CML8GX3M2A1600C9 Lowprofile 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 Dual Channel Memory Kit

Video Card ****
ASUS GeForce GTX 760 DirectCU II OC 1075MHZ 2GB 6.0GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Video Card

Solid State Drive (mainly for OS
Kingston SSDNow V300 120GB 2.5in SATA3 LSI SandForce Solid State Disk Flash Drive SSD

HDD (possible replacement / additional)
Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB SATA 6GB/S 7200RPM 64MB Cache 3.5IN Hard Drive OEM

I plan on paying the extra 50$ to have NCIX build it for me unless I can find a tech guru to assemble this stuff.

At the time of this message, with the additional HDD and Installation, my total is 1.052.48$


Questions and Queries
First off, thanks for sticking with me through this thread and I appreciate that you care about providing help. Here are a few of my worries...

1) Do I really need such a powerful PSU? Would you suggest something a little less watt oriented and of better overall quality for the price? Like I mentioned earlier, I want something stable, so power is important I assume.

2) Assuming I manage to learn how to overclock the GTX 760 OC, can I get a sufficient performance bump to compete with the stock GTX 770? Is this OC 760 good for the long run, in your opinion? My RADEON GTX 9800 last 5 years on High/Ultra settings, can I get the same with this?

3) Do I NEED a custom fan / cooling or the stock factory provided gear would suffice? I've never installed anything that was not stock in terms of airflow/cooling. With this rig and stability in mind, would you say it is mandatory to add fans? If so, any part model you could suggest would be greatly appreciated.

There goes, I believe that covers it. If anything else comes to mind, I will add to this post. Many thanks in advance for your help everyone.


--- A very confused New Guy.
 
Solution
PCPartPicker part list: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK
Price breakdown by merchant: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.98 @ Amazon Canada)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek GAIA SD1283 56.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($33.85 @ Newegg Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($90.15 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($368.75 @ Vuugo)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($104.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX750B BRONZE 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power...
PCPartPicker part list: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK
Price breakdown by merchant: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/39SMK/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.98 @ Amazon Canada)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek GAIA SD1283 56.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($33.85 @ Newegg Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($90.15 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($368.75 @ Vuugo)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($104.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX750B BRONZE 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($18.50 @ Vuugo)
Total: $1056.20
 
Solution
http://pcpartpicker.com/user/Danbuscus250/saved/43sk
CPU Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core $209.99
CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing $29.99
Motherboard ASRock Fatal1ty H87 Performance ATX LGA1150 $107.86
Memory A-Data XPG V2 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 $64.99
Storage A-Data Premier Pro SP600 64GB 2.5" SSD $49.99
Video Card EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB $339.99
Case Thermaltake VL800P1W2N (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower $47.71
Power Supply XFX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V $64.99
Optical Drive Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer $19.98
Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) $84.98
Wireless Network Adapter TP-Link TL-WN881ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 $18.83
Total: $1039.30

here ya go :D it has a 64gb ssd to boot windows and a couple games, and you can add your hdd. also leaves money to have this build for you and/or get a second monitor :)
 
http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/user/Danbuscus250/saved/43sF
CPU Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core (NCIX Override) $259.99
CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing $29.80
Motherboard ASRock Fatal1ty Z87 Killer ATX LGA1150 $144.99
Memory A-Data XPG V1.0 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 (NCIX Override) $79.99
Video Card Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 2GB $369.99
Case Antec One ATX Mid Tower (NCIX Override) $52.99
Power Supply XFX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V $79.99
Optical Drive LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer (NCIX Override) $24.98
Wireless Network Adapter Asus PCE-N10 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 (NCIX Override) $14.99
Total: $1057.71

here ya go. all parts from NCIX except for the cooler. i slightly higher quality psu too :p the case comes with fans, and i added a very popular aftermarket cooler which is a little better than the stock. you wont need to OC the 760 cuz i put a 770 in there :D
 

aLx450

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Thank you both for your quick answers. What I can gather from those replies is that I do absolutely need an aftermarket cooler to have this type of rig remain stable?
 

aLx450

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Ok, good to know. I just tought of something too and this might seem like a truly dumb question but... if I elect not to put a wireless network adapter in this machine because I'm always plugged in via a wired connection, does the ethernet port come standard on almost all motherboards?
 

RazerZ

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Yes it does.
 

RazerZ

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If you can stretch your budget here's a build that you can upgrade in the future instead of buying a new system.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($259.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.80 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($85.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($369.99 @ NCIX)
Case: NZXT Source 530 ATX Full Tower Case ($114.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: Antec HCG M 850W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($16.79 @ DirectCanada)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N10 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($14.99 @ NCIX)
Total: $1152.50
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-14 19:40 EDT-0400)
 

aLx450

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I've never ordered from NCIX, but I heard their Price Match system works well to beat prices coming from other sites... Someone would have to confirm that, though. If I need to stretch by 50-100$ to get longevity out of this thing, it wont be a problem.

Where I'm curious is how much of a difference will having 1886 or 2400 memory make?
Or if there is a clear winner between a 650/750/850 watt PSU considering there is ample wattage to run the tree provided configs with the lowest of the bunch, the 650.

Sorry for bombarding the thread, but you all seem knowledgeable so I figure you might be able to answer such questions
 
the difference between 1866 and 2400 ram is very little, you will most likely never notice a difference. but, because the 2400 isnt much more expensive, that is fine cuz in the future you will notice that 1333, 1600, and eventually 1866 start to drag you back a little. choice is yours. and it doesnt matter about the watts of the psu as long as it has enough amps on the 12v rail (which all of the ones weve posted do), and then its pretty much a difference between quality and efficiency. i would get the 650 watt one i posted, the 80+ gold means it is very efficient, and it is fully modular meaning you can unplug all the cords that run out of it.
 

RazerZ

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I included the 850W PSU in case you plan to add a second 770 in the future, when games become more graphically demanding.
 

aLx450

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Quick bump on this... I"ve been trying to shave off as much as I can from this list and I'm debating the 4670 and 4570, is the 40$ difference worth to 0.2 Ghz? And how much of a difference will this make in the long run... For reference, my current CPU is a Q6600 3.4 Ghz Dual Core so whatever I get will be miles ahead, but still curious...
 

RazerZ

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No just get the 4570.