First build ever! (Gaming PC, please help)

[brassmonkey1010]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: By the end of July at the latest

BUDGET RANGE: $800-875 (can't really go any higher)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, web browsing, college work, movies

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Case: (Antec 300 Illusion I got from a friend), Keyboard, Mouse, OS (Windows 7 64 Bit)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Newegg, Amazon, im in the US.
PARTS PREFERENCES: Just reliable brands

OVERCLOCKING:no

MONITOR RESOLUTION: Need a monitor in the budget, looking for a 23-24"

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I want to be able to run two video cards in the future. Looking for a balanced gaming machine that is powerful, and future proof.


These are the parts I thought looked good...


CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674

MOBO: MSI 790X-G45 AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130249

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

GPU: XFX Radeon HD 5770
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150462

Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W (650W for future dual video cards)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015

HDD:SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181

DVD: Samsung Black 22X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151188

Total: $700.39



So I have about $175-$200 to get a 23-24" monitor(could you help pick me a good one?)



Does this build look good? Everything compatable? Will it all fit in my case?

Also, if there is other parts I sub in let me know!

 

[WR2]

Nice choice of parts.
Antec 300 Illusion is a good gaming case and will hold everything, and keep it cool as well. PSU sized correctly for 2x 5770 or a future single top video card (5870 replacement).

For a monitor look @ ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms 1920x1080

 

[brassmonkey1010]

Nice choice of parts.
Antec 300 Illusion is a good gaming case and will hold everything, and keep it cool as well. PSU sized correctly for 2x 5770 or a future single top video card (5870 replacement).

For a monitor look @ ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms 1920x1080

Thanks!!

 

[brassmonkey1010]

After looking at some of the reviews on newegg it seems that there is some sort of flicker problem that kills those monitors...Should I be worried and just get it anyways, or pick something else?

 

[WR2]

You'll be hard pressed to find a monitor with a better overall customer rating. About 90% 4 & 5 Egg rating.
List of 23.6" LCD monitors Visit link @ NewEgg and choose the sort option: Best Rating (upper right)
You can try that sorting option in other categories too.

It's not easy to pin down the reason some monitors have issues but shipping damage is always a possibility.

 

[batuchka]

$694AR

 

[brassmonkey1010]

Is that better then my build? Everything seems to be downgraded a bit to get a better GPU. Is that what I should do?

 

[batuchka]

23-24" are 1920 x 1080 and you best go with t HD 5850 for better gaming performance ^^

 

[brassmonkey1010]

23-24" are 1920 x 1080 and you best go with t HD 5850 for better gaming performance ^^

Okay. I might just save up another two weeks to get the 5850. Would the Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W be enough to power two of them(if I ever want to do that)

 

[WR2]

The suggested PSU for CF 2x 5850 is 600watts. So you'd be covered there.
5770 isn't a bad video card for 1920x1080. But 5850 is definately better. And 2x 5770 in CF would be better yet.

 

[brassmonkey1010]

I actually am going to get a 5770 now, and get something more powerful in the future(next year maybe).

My friend said this is the best 5770 card to get from SAPPHIRE (He said he has had problems with XTF return process).


This one also seems to have the best reviews, it will fit in my case right?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102858

 

[brassmonkey1010]

I actually am going to get a 5770 now, and get something more powerful in the future(next year maybe).

My friend said this is the best 5770 card to get from SAPPHIRE (He said he has had problems with XTF return process).


This one also seems to have the best reviews, it will fit in my case right?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102858

 

[WR2]

Sapphire is always a good choice for ATI video cards.

You Antec 300 Illusion case can fit the 5770/5850/5870 cards easily.

The HD 5770 won't even overhang the edge of the motherboard so there is plenty of room for nice cable managment.

 

[brassmonkey1010]

Okay, last question I swear (I hope!)

I just noticed the motherboard i have selected does not have USB 3.0 but the one below does, and is cheaper. There would be no reason to not go with the below, right?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130275

 

[WR2]

Ask as many questions as you like.
It's true your original MB selection didnt have USB 3 or SATA 6Gb/s built in. If you ever found a need for those options you could get a add-on card for about $25
What you'd be giving up on the MSI 870 board is the 2nd PCI-e video card slot runs at x4 speed vs x8 on the MSI 790X-G45. Both run a single video card at x16. 790X-G45 runs 2 video cards at x16/x16 and 870A-G54 run CF @ x16/x4 (which isn't quite as bad as it probably sounds).
IMO the best reason to have USB 3 or SATA 6 options would be a fast external HDD (USB 3) or an internal hi-performance SSD (SATA 6).
That's not to say that USB2, e-Sata or SATA 3 is in any way bad or lacking good performance.

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the features: MSI 870-G45 / MSI 790X-G45 / MSI 890GXM-G65

 

[impsquared]

Maybe a Ryzen CPU?