First Build - Upgradeable Gaming for under $1000

[justagirl]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: September BUDGET RANGE: Under $1000

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Mostly online/offline gaming, specifically FFXIV, I have a laptop for productivity and a 1TB NAS for storage/media.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Monitor

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: none COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: I'm leaning toward AMD for price. Also leaning toward ATI for graphics because initial reports indicate that FFXIV prefers ATI.

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe. Not opposed to it, especially if it's easy. SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Yes. I don't plan on buying a 2nd video card now, but would like it for future upgrades

MONITOR RESOLUTION: n/a

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: no flashing blue LED fans required

I took a stab at a parts list on New Egg: http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=9696189

My main concern is the motherboard. Is it worth it to get the true 2 x 16 Crossfire capability (790FX) instead of the 1x16 or 2x8 one I have? Also, I've never built my own machine before. I'm kind of terrified of spending $1000 on something that I've never done before. I'd rather practice on cheaper parts, but don't have money to spare or parts laying around.

Thanks for your advice!

 

[dirtmountain]

A very sensible well balanced build, it's obvious you did your research. Since your build is still a couple of months away i'd make sure to keep an eye on any changes in prices on some components. (890GX or FX or the Asrock 870 with 8x/8x crossfire capability for example) Also make sure you check out the combo deals in newegg before ordering since they can often save you a chunk of money. Building your own PC is surprisingly easy and the familiarity you achieve by doing it with your system pays off big time.

 

[batuchka]

Negative on the 790FX with 890FX out In fact negative on 790X/GX as well with the 8/8 + USB/SATA 3.0 Asrock 870Extreme3 in the house as well
$750AR

+$100 for OS

 

[justagirl]

Negative on the 790FX with 890FX out In fact negative on 790X/GX as well with the 8/8 + USB/SATA 3.0 Asrock 870Extreme3 in the house as well
$750AR
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q205/batuchka/Untitled-697.jpg
+$100 for OS

Thank you for the feedback, but I have no idea what you just said

I think you said that the 890FX is better than the 790FX. What makes the 890FX so much better? Will it allow me to Crossfire 2 video cards without sharing bandwidth?

I think you also said that the 790X is not as good as the Asrock 870 Extreme3, and it seems from the image you attached that it basically is the same as the card I picked at a lower price.

I'd really like the motherboard to be as gaming futureproof as possible, and I think I'll be limiting myself with a board that can't support two cards both at full bandwidth, but maybe I don't understand the role of bandwidth enough.

I'd rather spend the money on a good motherboard that will support graphics upgrades for the next 5+ years than on the highest possible graphics card at the moment. In other words, for the next 5 years I want to keep playing the latest games on default settings.

Will the Asrock one fit that bill? Is there another one you can recommend?

Thanks!

 

[batuchka]

1. SB850, SUB/SATA 3.0 and prices of 790FX still relatively high
2. Correct just like in point #1 better tech on the Asrock even at lower prices
3. No worries : unless board is 16/4, 8/8 is fine for CF
4. No gaming rig would not see a GPU upgrade after 2-3 years let alone 5 so the GPU is about the least futureproof h/w hehe
5. If u really want 16/16 our very own forums had done a 890FX shoot out here
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-890fx-crosshair-iv-formula-890fxa-ud7,2640-14.html
6. You are welcomed ^^

 

[justagirl]

Oh also, I picked a 650W PSU. Is that enough? Would it still be enough if I added another vid card?

 

[justagirl]

Thanks for the quick reply! I fully intend to upgrade the gpu over the next 5 years. Probably several times. I just don't want to be limited by the motherboard when I do upgrade, if that makes sense.

 

[batuchka]

Yep that is a beefy 650W PSU and will do fine for single GPU set ups but i would say for a wee bit of headroom hit a 750W since u are looking for CF

 

[dirtmountain]

Agree with Batuchka. While the 650w power supply would be fine for crossfired 5770s since the Batuch got you in budget to use the 5850 i'd bump the power supply to 750 watts.

 

[falseg0d]

I would definitely bump it up. Especially in the later years if you decide to crossfire stronger cards instead of just the 5770's. It couldn't hurt to play it safe.

 

[falseg0d]

Also, don't pcie wireless adapters work better than just a usb?
IMO you should for for an internal one, but I'm not an expert.

 

[ubernoobie]

pci-e/pci wireless cards don't always do better than the usb ones, it all depends on the chipset of the pci/pci-e card. Usually the card does better if you pick a good one but usb is easier to install

 

[falseg0d]

I wouldn't necessarily worry about which is easier to install as long as it works, and it works better than the other choice.