Another budget gaming build $750ish

[sugarfreeb]

So just like so many posts before me I have a budget gaming build I'd like you all to take a look at and critique however you see fit.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: This month or next
BUDGET RANGE: $750ish after rebates

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, surfing, movies, perhaps folding@home

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, hard drive

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: No preference but I'm most familiar with newegg
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD, ATI

OVERCLOCKING: Yes, although I've never done it before
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: yes if it proves beneficial to the build otherwise just open to the idea in the future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1440x9000

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Quiet would be nice but not the most important, pretty cool as air circulation is poor in the warmer months.

Here's what I'm looking at so far:

Mobo:GIGABYTE GA-MA790GPT-UD3H Open Box
CPU:AMD Phenom II x4 955 Deneb Black Edition
Memory:G.SKILL Ripjaws 2x2Gb CL7 DDR3 1333
GPU:Sapphire Radeon HD 5770 1Gb
PSU:CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W
Case:Antec 300 Illusion
Cooler:Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme

That's what I'm thinking so far, what I'd really like is some input in where I can downgrade in some areas and upgrade in others. Also wondering if there is anything I should do differently for overclocking (such as the memory?). Also I have 2 640Gb WD hard drives, should I connect them in a RAID setup, or is the mobo RAID any good?

OK that's it for now, thanks in advance for your input.

 

[Silvune]

Looks pretty solid. If you're only thinking of eventually crossfiring 5770s, then you could 'downgrade' the PSU, as 5770s don't use much power. A power supply that can reliably and constantly provide between 450-500W of power would be fine for a 5770 crossfire system. So unless you want to have more flexibility in what you want to be able to power in this system, then you could definitely get a quality PSU costing less.
Here are a choice of PSUs that I think would be perfectly fine, some are only cheaper than the 650TX if you get the rebate. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=Property&N=2010090058&PropertyCodeValue=1315%3A9966%2C3881%3A27149%2C3881%3A37621%2C3881%3A37625&bop=And&ActiveSearchResult=False&CompareItemList=N82E16817341022%2CN82E16817341017%2CN82E16817341019%2CN82E16817341010%2CN82E16817371035%2CN82E16817341018%2CN82E16817139004%2CN82E16817371030%2CN82E16817371015
Bear in mind that your case comes in some good combos with good PSUs. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductCombos.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066&SubCategory=7&SortField=0&PageSize=10&page=1
I think your memory is perfectly fine, altho I'm sure others will point out a 1600Mhz set that is only $5 more expensive. I can't really answer your question about RAID. I'm sure RAID would be perfectly easy to do on that board tho.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1440x9000

I know that's a typo, but if it wasn't that'd be a seriously tall monitor.

 

[sugarfreeb]

OK so I went with the cheaper case/psu combo.

Antec EarthWatts Green EA-500D Green with the same case.

I think your memory is perfectly fine, altho I'm sure others will point out a 1600Mhz set that is only $5 more expensive.

What do you mean by this? I thought when it said 1600Mhz OC'd that I'd have to overclock the 1333 to get 1600.

Oh, I also forgot to mention OS. I guess I'm doing windows7 64 professional, but I'd also like to dual boot and learn some linux.

I have RAID setup on my current rig and ubuntu installer doesn't recognize it. Further research informed me that my mobo's RAID controller is in fact a software RAID controller? I guess I just need to learn more about this.

And that was a typo. My monitor isn't really that tall.

EDIT: Almost forgot, what if I had an extra 100 bucks? Where would be the best place to put it in this build?

 

[Silvune]

You probably could overclock your 1333mhz RAM to reach 1600mhz speed, but what it means is that you buy 1600mhz RAM and to get it to the correct speed, you would have to set the speed in the bios. It's pretty simple to do and something that many think you should do anyway, so that you know you're getting what you paid for.

I think if you had an extra $100 I think you have four options.
1. Try and get a 5850, even tho it's probably overkill for your resolution, but you wouldn't be worried about running more pixels, if you either replaced or bought another monitor. Unfortunately I don't think $100 would buy that.
2. Make lots of incremental upgrades elsewhere, such a mobo with SATA 6GB/s, a faster harddrive - if you don't have one already, maybe a more expensive case.
3. Change to an Intel i5-750 build - the only thing that would be changed are the CPU and mobo. Altho getting a good mobo that can crossfire might again be too much for $100.
4. Save it and put it towards a monitor.

I hope someone else comes into this thread to answer your RAID question. If they don't then I'd advise possibly making another thread specifically about it.

 

[killerhurts]

Alright, I decided to aim for more basic stuff and go straight for the stuff that counts, CPU,Memory, and GPU.

Other notes, I'd get the Antec 300 case somewhere else. There's a few places that have the basic verison for under $60 with shipping included. Newegg has just been getting greedy because of the case's huge success.
I'd go to another website for the 5850 as well,since the XFX is sold out on newegg. XFX has lifetime warranty so its definitely worth grabbing instead.
If u don't need the DVD-RW you can subtract 8 dollars. The 600W power supply is overkill, So If you want you can grab something cheaper. The good thing is its moduler, has a -$7.50 promo code, and $15 is saved from the combo deal. This brings its cost to only $52.5

sub Total:784.89
With promo:$777.39
-$45 in rebates(these take up to 8 weeks after they've actually received the rebate and must be mailed(postmarked) within 21 days of purchase including weekends.
$732.39 After rebates.


Antec 300

ASRock M3A770DE AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

XFX HD-585A-ZNBC Radeon HD 5850 (Cypress Pro) 1GB Black Edition

OCZ 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) XMP-Ready Rev.2 Desktop Memory Model OCZ3X1600R2LV4GK - Retail

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGMBOX - Retail

OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ600MXSP 600W ATX12V V2.2 / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC ... - Retail AND Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model AD-7240S-0B - OEM

Reasoning for the 5850. I also was going to fetch a 5770 in crossfire, but its really not worth it. You'll have to buy a more expensive motherboard,power supply, and you'll add noise,heat,and loose eyefinity.

I've already broke the budget when not counting coolers. I currently I have that board and I was able to overclock my CPU to 3.6GHz and undervolt it to 1.3375 on the standard heatsink. Every CPU is different though. If you decide to go further I'd grab a Hyper 212 if you wanted to keep it cheap. If you want some more impressive and quieter performance get a scythe Mugen 2. Once against, Because the hyper 212 was so popular, newegg greedy ass has once again inflated the price. You can get it on amazon for $30 with free shipping. Instead of newegg's ridiculously high price of $42.56 compared to a dozen other sites. I love how newegg put everything on 1 site and its easily searchable, but every time an item offers great performance for the price and sells well, they'll jack up their prices and end up making it cost like 30%+ More than other websites.