$800-$1000 Gaming System - First Time Builder

I am considering taking the first plunge into building a mild gaming computer. Scary stuff but read a lot of the forums and have a few Qs.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Next week or two
BUDGET RANGE: $800-$1000

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Primarily for gaming but do not want to spend the bank. Company of Heros, other RTS down the road, occasional shooter

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: All except monitor
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com

PARTS PREFERENCES: Thinking AMD x3 720 BE

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1080P 22”

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: New to building computer. Would like some performance for gaming but not cutting edge. I may play with overclocking down the road but likely need to stick to moderate over clocking and a motherboard that helps noobs overclock.
Big Qs on Mother board.
How many PCIe slots do i really need? Does this Graphics card take one or two slots?
I have spec'd the Asus Crossfire III ROG, but is it too much? What about other boards at bottom of list (MSI 790FX, ASUS 790X). I would like a motherboard that is noob friendly to mild overclocking.


Build
AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor Model HDZ720WFGIBOX - Retail
ASUS Crosshair III Formula AM3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.237637

SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 4870 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Rosewill Xtreme Series RX850-S-B 850W Continuous @40°C ,80 PLUS Certified, ATX12V v2.2 & EPS12V v2.91, SLI Ready CrossFire ... - Retail
Combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.234140


Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders w/ Tech Guarantee - OEM
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM
Combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] 22-136-319

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231193

Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129066

Scythe SCKTN-3000 92mm Sleeve "KATANA3" 3Heat Pipes CPU Cooler - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835185096

SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S223B - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827151187


Alternative Mother Boards....
MSI 790FX-GD70 AM3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $165
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813130223

ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $119
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131402


Thanks for all the help.

IIRC, the rosewill psu won't be that great, and the 4870 2GB was -barely- an improvement on the 1GB version. You'd be better off with a 4890 for the same price or a 4870 Toxic 1GB, and getting a different brand of PSU such as corsair.

If you go Crossfire, I suggest you a Cooler Master HAF 932. You will need a little more space. If you don't plan to OC for now, buy the heat sink later.

If I were you, I would get 2 4850 in crossfire. The price is about the same and it is about 11% slower than 2 4870 in crossfire.

You cannot go wrong with these ones.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351

I will go against everyone here... but you need to forget Asus for your motherboard. They got problems with core unlocking which is a nice feat you should look at.

It will transform your X2 or X3 into an X4.

As for Gigabyte, my 965P-DS3 died on me 3 times in less than 12 months at stock settings, so I strongly suggest you to never buy anything from them.

My AMD64 build was with MSI, and I should have stay with them. I bought an Asus M4A78T-E and I really regret my buy. When I unlock my 4th cores I can random errors and a reboot for no reason. My system is stable for a day, but can crash during the first 15 minutes after a fresh boot due to Hytransport Sync Flood Errors... a BIOS issue.

Well I RMA my board 3 times... I was on my fourth one that I sold to someone willing to take the risk. Gigabyte customer support is damn horrible.

It doesn't mean because you never got an issue with them that it will always be the case.

I don't recommend Asus lately, my 2 EAH4850 TOP are badly designed. The HS were damn horrible and everyone having them in CF were having heat problems. If Asus and Gigabyte can release trash like that on the market, just imagine what they think about their customers.

Asus AM3 motherboard got problems with their core unlocking features. Their motherboards got problems with 4 cores mode. Peoples with X4 955 were having similar problems than me with my 4th core unlocked.

The only problem I got with my MSI K8N Neo 2 platinum was a false temperature read patched with a BIOS update.

So, looks like the feedback is that the Crosshair III mobo is too much and should switch it for the Gigabyte?
GIGABYTE GA-MA790GPT-UD3H AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128398 $114.99

and... guess everyone is not going for the Rosewill Xtreme Series RX850-S-B 850W

I think i have all that. I am thoroughly confused about the 2GB 4870 vs eitehr the 1 GB 4870 or 4890 choice. Why is that 2GB not a good deal? Is it not like two 1 GB 4870 in one slot (and cheaper)? I guess there must be some type of performance loss in that 2GB 4870?


and switch the memory for
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRH - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231279 $94.99

couple Qs

At 1080 resolution, you'd probably be fine with one 4850 512MB, although since budget allows, the 4870 is a better choice. That being said, nothing wrong with wanting a bit more oomph just in case. Two 4850s in Crossfire pretty much is the equivilant to a single 4890. The 4890 can currently be had for less than $200 making it harder to opt for dual 4850s in the same price range. However, either setup is probably overkill for 1920X1080.

That's my long way of saying snag a 4870 1GB and add another one later if you need it.

Edited because I can't type for crap. Backspace is my friend.

kwarde as you said we are in the same boat..as far as the 4870 2gb being 2cards in the same slot shortstuff is correct in that the 2gb is just the video ram. however i do believe that you are thinking of the 4870 x2 this card is said to outperform a 4890 in benchmarks. this card will, however, run you around $300 through newegg and as im doing i believe the best choice is to go with a 4870 1gb or even 512 and then get a new 5xxx series as they apparently are going to be far better performing

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRH - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231279 $94.99

ok with an AMD board? Gigabyte supports this one in thr docs...
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231193

is the antec 300 case big enough for another 4890 later?

yea it should be. double check with youtube to make sure but i think so.
you will just have to manuver your hdds accordingly

*you can't have a 4870 and a 4890 in Xfire. you need two of the same.

Nice, i am going to call a nearby one in the AM and check it out. Thanks

the GTX275 will be on par with a 4890 the 4870 is the same price i guesss we are thinking a better gpu for the coin


Yeah if you really want to Xfire dont get the GTX 275

any thought on...

Antec TruePower New TP-750 750W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC "compatible with Core i7" Power Supply - Retail

instead of corsair 750tx

Antec TP 750 99.99 free shipping http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001RTPMM4

get the one you posted it seems to have more pciE plugs

A single 4870 drives a 1680x1050 monitor pretty well. Some lowered settings in very high graphics type games.

Given your CPU choice (are you still going with the X3 720?) I think CF 4870s will be moderately hampered by the CPU anyway, so not a lot of gain by using CF 4890s.

Could be, hard to say

What happens if you can't unlock it? can you go back to 3 cores or are you stuck?

so no biggie if that was what i was expecting

See if this is in your budget: $350 CPU + Motherboard
It will give you a ton more performance than an AMD 4 core.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.245501
It may be cheaper at ebiz or tigerdirect, check some of todays other posts.

Only other problem would be your heatsink may not fit on an 1156. This $30 one is good for an i5.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835103065