Budget build advice

[Purkinje]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Earliest would be the beginning of next month. Sometime this fall.

BUDGET RANGE: $800-900

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: gaming, programming, 3d graphics.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: OS.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg, amazon.com, tigerdirect.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: Intel

OVERCLOCKING: NO

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: possibly in the future.



Here's what I've got so far:

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131621
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115067
CPU Fan/heatsink: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197
Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127445
Power Supply: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341017
Memory: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231156
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136283
Monitor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824116442

Total: $1054.90

For the CPU Fan/heatsink, Newegg's price is much higher than Amazon's (49.99 compared to 29.99 at Amazon), so I'll probably be ordering it from there instead of Newegg.

I'm a college student, so my budget is pretty tight. I'm pretty sure I can only afford something in the $800-900 price range, so I'm trying to reduce the cost of this build by $150-200. One thing I'm considering doing is ordering some of the parts (like the case and monitor, since I can test it on my current machine), and waiting a bit to buy the rest.

Thanks very much for the advice!

 

[CPDawg]

I'd consider these -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102873

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&cm_re=samsung_f3-_-22-152-185-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134718&cm_re=ddr3_1066_4gb-_-20-134-718-_-Product

The PSU will be needed if and when you crossfire. The 5770 is a nice budget card.

Also, the 212 had a 1 month lead time from Amazon when I ordered, so I ended up getting it from Newegg. Make sure to check that, don't know if that will be a deal breaker.

 

[Purkinje]

I'd consider these -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102873

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&cm_re=samsung_f3-_-22-152-185-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134718&cm_re=ddr3_1066_4gb-_-20-134-718-_-Product

The PSU will be needed if and when you crossfire. The 5770 is a nice budget card.

Also, the 212 had a 1 month lead time from Amazon when I ordered, so I ended up getting it from Newegg. Make sure to check that, don't know if that will be a deal breaker.

Thank you for the advice!

I have a question about the GPU and PSU. Will using that high wattage of a PSU be harmful to my system in any way? I mean, that PSU puts out 750 watts, but with only 1 graphics card plugged in, there's gotta be a lot of heat dissipating from it. Basically, I'm wondering if that high wattage of a PSU is necessary.

Also, I've read that it's a good idea to have multiple +12V rails on a PSU that you plan on using SLI/CrossFire on, but the PSU you recommended only has 1 +12V rail. Will this be a problem if I go with that PSU?

About the GPU, is the Radeon HD 5770 that much better than a GTS 250? From what I've read and heard, it's not much faster than a GTS 250, and the GTS250 cards seem to be a bit cheaper...

Anyways, thanks again for your help!

 

[CPDawg]

Check this article from Tom's.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-radeon-hd-geforce-gtx,2676-3.html

The Tom's article basically says that with the GTS250 you can do 1080 in most games with lowered detail and the 5770 says works great on most games at 1080. From what I've read and understand, you get more bang for the buck going with ATI and they get great benchmarks. Now, I have also heard that ATI is specific to gaming, where if you are interested in other graphics heavy applications, like CAD, you will want NVidia.

Also, from what I understand, if you are interested in crossfire in the future, you will want a minimum of 650W. So I would at least go with that. It's always good to get a good PSU, as that is your lifeline basically With a good case and a good fan on your PSU, you really won't be putting out too much heat.

Hope this helps.

 

[Purkinje]

Check this article from Tom's.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-radeon-hd-geforce-gtx,2676-3.html

The Tom's article basically says that with the GTS250 you can do 1080 in most games with lowered detail and the 5770 says works great on most games at 1080. From what I've read and understand, you get more bang for the buck going with ATI and they get great benchmarks. Now, I have also heard that ATI is specific to gaming, where if you are interested in other graphics heavy applications, like CAD, you will want NVidia.

Also, from what I understand, if you are interested in crossfire in the future, you will want a minimum of 650W. So I would at least go with that. It's always good to get a good PSU, as that is your lifeline basically With a good case and a good fan on your PSU, you really won't be putting out too much heat.

Hope this helps.

Hey thanks for the link. You've been a great help.

 

[CPDawg]

No problem, have fun building!

Another thing I noticed, the 5770 supports DX 11.