I7 Gaming Build 1500-2000$

[max2660]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: This Summer

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming ( Call of duty MW2, Bad company 2 , SC2 , APB ... ) Internet and Microsoft office.
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, mouse, speakers
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Any that ships to canada, i like newegg.ca
PARTS PREFERENCES:

Processor
Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16819115225

MOBO
GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16813128423

PSU
Thermaltake W0319RU 850W ATX 12V
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16817153106

RAM
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231225&cm_re=gskill-_-20-231-225-_-Product

Graphic Card
XFX HD-587A-ZNF9 Radeon HD 5870
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150443&cm_re=xfx_5870-_-14-150-443-_-Product

HDD
Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073&cm_re=Western_Digital_Caviar_Blue-_-22-136-073-_-Product

CASE
Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16811129043

MONITOR
ASUS VE246H Black 24" 2ms
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16824236082

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe in a year SLI OR CROSSFIRE:Maybe in a year

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I will purchase Windows 7 with this setup, and i will probably add another HD5870 next and overclock the i7-930. I wanted to know opinion of others because you guys probably know more than me in hardware!!

I Would like to not spend more than 2000$. I need to buy another car at the end of the summer -_- !!

 

[MadAdmiral]

Switch the HDD to a Samsung Spinpoint F3 500 GB or Seagate 7200.12 500 GB. They're faster and likely cheaper.

I personally think the 1200 is overpriced. Check out the HAF 922 for an excellent case at a lower price.

Other than that, it looks pretty good.

 

[max2660]

Wow ! Thank you for this fast answer ! I'll take a look about the HHD's , but for the case i've always had a preference for the twelve hundred , I don't know why, but i can't convince myself to buy another case !!
Any other ideas someone ??

 

[MadAdmiral]

I also forgot something. That Thermaltake PSU is a POS. Grab a quality 750W unit from Antec, Corsair, SeaSonic, or Silverstone.

 

[foxmulder13]

get an ultra X 4 PSU 850 at tigerdirect

 

[MadAdmiral]

Ultra isn't a great brand either. Looking at Newegg, the cheapest one I can recommend is the Silverstone 750W for $130 before 35 USD rebate.

 

[max2660]

I like this one : http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Edit : Can 750w handle two hd5870 and all the setup even if I overclock??

 

[MadAdmiral]

Yes, 750W can handle it, assuming you get a quality unit. The new 5xxx series cards don't use a lot of power.

The 750TX is a good unit as well.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Get a much better PSU and for $12 more which is made specifically for that 1200 case:

Antec CP-850
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371024&Tpk=CP-850

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article971-page7.html
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story4&reid=142

Get a better MoBo for $4 more

Asus P6X58D-E w/ i7-930
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.378940

$175 for CAS 9 seems a bit much
Better / Faster Low Profile CAS 7 modules for $20-25 more
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145286

Hard Drives - Check out the performance charts and pick whatever 500 GB per platter drive performs best under your usage patterns. The 2 TB WD Black and XT from Seagate are good choice but at smaller capacities, you are limited to the Seagate 7200.12 or the Spinpoint F3. The 7200.12 excels in gaming, multimedia and pictures whereas the F3 wins at music and movie maker. See the comparisons here (copy past link in manually, link won't work in forum):

(http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/2009-3.5-desktop-hard-drive-charts/compare,1006.html?prod[2371]=on&prod[2770]=on)

Look at the tests that reflect your usage and choose accordingly.

For $50 more I'd grab the 1920 x 1200 model
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236047

 

[MadAdmiral]

@Jack: Apparently you missed the X58 board review Tom's just did. The UD3R was rated as the best X58 board right now. The review included the Asus P6X58D-E. And there's a combo for the i7 and UD3R too.

 

[max2660]

I chose this Mobo after reading the reading the review !! Thank you guys for your time , ill update this a couple days before buying !!

 

[newbpwng]

get an HD 5850 you can eazily OC it to 5870 performance and save 90$

 

[MadAdmiral]

Except that you can get a 5870 and then overclock well beyond what a 5850 can do. Which is why overclocking shouldn't be considered in part of choosing the components, as long as the potential is roughly the same.

 

[max2660]

Still looking around newegg and i ran across this psu today : Kingwin 850w

Blue Led will match Antec twelve hundred blue led's
Its cheap
Its modular
Long Cables

But since it seems to be an unusual brand, i want to know what do you guys think about it !!

 

[MadAdmiral]

That isn't a quality PSU. There is a reason it's cheap. Avoid any PSU not made by very respectable companies. I usually don't recommend anything not made by Antec, Corsair, SeaSonic and Silverstone.

If you absolutely must have a PSU with a blue LED, the Antec TruePower 750W is literally the only one I can recommend.

 

[max2660]

Blue led was just an added feature.. but it's really not necessary, i want to do cable management behind the motherboard and each time i read reviews about a psu, cable lenght is always brought up by a couple of reviewers !! What do you recommend ??

 

[MadAdmiral]

I'd recommend the PSU discussed originally (the Corsair).

 

[max2660]

The Psu discussed before is Non-modular, it's a huge cable mess

 

[MadAdmiral]

Not really. The case you're getting has a bottom mounted PSU. That means the excess cables sit at the bottom of the case out of the way. You won't even be able to see them. I've got the Antec 902 (a smaller version of the 1200) and a Corsair 650TX, and the cables are completely out of the way. The only time I see them is when I open up the case to clean it out.

 

[max2660]

Alright Thanks again!! Ordering them all in 2 weeks !!

 

[rockitman]

@Jack: Apparently you missed the X58 board review Tom's just did. The UD3R was rated as the best X58 board right now. The review included the Asus P6X58D-E. And there's a combo for the i7 and UD3R too.

I was intrigued by the review and rethought my upcoming purchase of my intended MB, the ASUS P6X58D Premium.

So I went on Newegg and looked at the comments on this UD3R. Horror story after horror story, and a very very hot running Northbridge. Let's just say I am sufficiently worried about this MB now and will stick with the ASUS.

Sure the price is nice, but it looks like another story of "you get what you pay for". I'd rather spend the extra $100 for piece of mind.

 

[max2660]

I agree with you... Reviews make this Mobo look like a nightmare !

 

[MadAdmiral]

I trust the review done by Tom's much more than the user reviews on Newegg. The typical user reviewer shouldn't be allowed near a pointy stick, much less a computer. Do you really think Tom's would recommend a component that would be faulty?

 

[rockitman]

Yeah, but Tom plops a board in, runs his tests, then pulls it back out.

These owners of their new boards are finding bad things that don't make themselves appearant right off the get go sometimes.

There just seems to be a big rash of discontent for this board on NewEgg. I dunno. Doesn't give me a warm fuzzy.

Tom only recommends this board over the other X58's because of it's price. Not because it blew away the others in the tests. It didn't anyways. The Asus actually came out ahead in the end, but again, it is almost $100 more expensive too.

 

[MadAdmiral]

No, they recommended it because of the price and the fact that it was equal in performance to the rest of them. We're talking about tenths of a percent here, not significant differences.