First time builder - Rate my rig

[alugar304]

Well long time gamer, first time builder. I thought it was about time to dive into the great learning experience of building my own PC. I have tinkered in my prebuilt systems adding cards, and more RAM so I'm not afraid to get down and dirty with this build. I expect there to be some WTF moments where I want to drop the case from my 8 story building.

I have been reading and doing my homework on the build but want some input on my choices.

System use: Gaming (WoW, Fallout 3, SC2), general PC use.
Websites: amazon.com, newegg.com and tigerdirect.com
Overclocking: possible
SLI or Crossfire: Going to go with one card to start off. Possibly adding a 2nd later.

Price range: $900 - $1200 (excluding monitor, keyboard, mouse and OS)

Processor: Intel -i7 860 ($280)
MOBO: Asus P7P55D-E Pro LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ($189)
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) ($105)
Video card: Radeon HD 5750 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 ($130)
HDD: WD 7200rpm 750GB SATA drive ($80), Planning on buying a SSD in the future.
Case: Cooler Master RC- 690 Mid case
PSU: OCZ StealthXStream 700W (Combo deal w/ case $145)

Total price: $900

Also I would like to thank you for taking time to look at the is build and welcome any comments to help build a higher quality PC.

 

[1st duke of marlborough]

Might I suggest going for a Core i5 and a better GPU? As it stands, your current build leans a little too far towards the CPU for my liking. the 5750 is a good card, but not compared to that CPU.

I'm an AMD guy, so this isn't exactly my speciality, but according to Tom's CPU guides, the i5 is the best choice for gaming for its amazing OC headroom. It's worth considering.

Far as I can tell though, the PC will be a good one, able to play the games you listed very smoothly.

Regards,

1st Duke.

 

[Guest]

I agree with 1st Duke, if you have to budget for an i7 860 then you might as well go for the i7 920 and get a X58 board. (I think this is overkill though for your needs)
OR
You can keep your board and swap the CPU to an i5 750 and use the money you save to get an aftermarket heatsink and a better graphics card.

For heatsink, the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus is pretty popular here since its cheap and performs well.
CM Hyper 212 Plus: $34.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&Tpk=212%20plus

Also that hard drive isn't the best. Get a Samsung F3 500GB (sold out as of writing) or 1TB as these will perform faster.
1TB version: $89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&cm_re=f3-_-22-152-185-_-Product
Should they be out of stock, Seagate makes comparable harddrives with similar speed as Samsung just make sure it is Seagate 7200.12 500GB/1TB
1TB: 94.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433&cm_re=7200.12-_-22-148-433-_-Product

500GB: 54.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395&cm_re=7200.12-_-22-148-395-_-Product