Efficient Gaming Build

[Pomme]

HELLO, new to the forums. So after 6years of using my laptop, I have finally decided to build my own desktop. What I am aiming for is decent gaming (by this i mean, i can run new games today at high and be able to run games down the road on mid/low settings)

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within next week or 2.

BUDGET RANGE: (e.g.: 600-800) Before Rebates 1-1.2k Canadian.

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Strictly gaming.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: http://canadacomputers.com/

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Canada

PARTS PREFERENCES: Intel, but honestly, i don't really care.

OVERCLOCKING: No

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: Not sure yet.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: With all that being said, I haven't really looked into any hardware related news or performance for last 5-6years since i last bought my laptop. Now I am looking to build a desktop with decent gaming abilities. The list below are what I am planning to purchase and for some components I just don't know what I should do (price vs performance).

Here we go:

Motherboard:
$184.99 Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD4P Socket 1156
or
$159.99 Asus P7P55D-E Socket 1156

I really don't see much difference other than price/brand, not too sure which one to get. Suggestions?

Processor:
$224.99 Intel Core i5 760 Quad-Core

Video Card:
$189.99 Sapphire Vapor-X ATI Radeon HD 5770
or
$179.99 XFX ATI Radeon HD 5770 (HD-577X-ZNFC)

Is this strictly a brand thing or is the x-vapor a bit better?

Memory:
$105.99 G.SKILL Ripjaws Series DDR3 1333MHz
or
$107.99 G.SKILL Ripjaws Series DDR3 1600MHz
Or
$129.99 Corsair XMS3 Classic 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz
or
$119.99 Corsair XMS3 Classic 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz

Here is one of my major issues.
-What is the difference between ram 1333mhz and 1600mhz? After reading some posts it seems 1333mhz is better overclocking than 1600mhz.

-Since I don't plan on overclocking much, is 1600mhz the way to go?

-Is 4gig ram enough these days or 6gig is a better cushion.

-Why are some ram so much high price for same specs, is it just a brand thing or quality?

Power Supply:
$129.99 Corsair HX Series CMPSU-650HX 650W
or
$79.99 OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W

Would I need the 650W or 600W is sufficient. I am not planning to overclock or any major upgrades.

Hard Drive:
$89.99 Western Digital Caviar Black (WD1002FAEX) 1000GB (1TB) SATA3 7200RPM 64MB Cache

Optical:
$29.99 LG GH24NS50 Black SATA DVD-Writer 24xDVD+R/-R

Case:
$99.99 NZXT Hades Crafted Series Black Mid Tower Case

So there it is. It equates out to be roughly 1-1.1k cdn. I would really appreciate if you guys can answer some of the questions I have above especially regarding ram and such. Also if you guys can give me alternative hardware to replace what I have down and can save me money for same performance or if you guys can give me suggestion to enhance my system by just increasing it 30-40$ i wouldn't mind adding a bit more.

Thanks!

 

[batuchka]

A few things u should know about SATA/USB 3.0 tech and mobos as shown by our very own forums here
USB 3.0, SATA 6Gb/s, Motherboards, And Overcoming Bottlenecks
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/usb-3.0-sata-6gb,2583.html
Also note that LGA 1156 shall be usurped by LGA 1155 as soon as end of this year/possible Q1 next year if u intending to sink a wee bit on chip + board FYI...
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2010/04/21/intel-sandy-bridge-details-of-the-next-gen/


That said for the money your HD 5770 based config looks overpriced for the frames it will churn out for the $$ You should really be hitting a HD 5850 in this gaming rig price cat....

 

[Pomme]

thanks for the heads up. i still have 1-2 weeks before i decide what to get. i'll keep looking into it.

 

[batuchka]

No sweat i am also holding out for a day or two till combos pop up in August hehe