$1200 CAD gaming PC

[FrederickLee1]

Approximate Purchase Date: 2months


Budget Range: 1200 CAD before rebates


System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming ( STARCRAFT 2) , Watching Movies ,


Parts Not Required: keyboard , mouse , speakers


Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.ca , memory express ( there is two in my city)


Country of Origin: Canada


Parts Preferences: leaning toward a i5-760 and HD 5850


Overclocking: Maybe


SLI or Crossfire: Maybe


Monitor Resolution: Currently using a 1440 x 900 , need suggestion on a better monitor resolution


Additional Comments:

 

[Proximon]

Generally newegg.ca is not the best place to shop.

Canada
Bestdirect
NCIX
Direct Canada
Newegg Canada
Canada Computers

NCIX is usually the best, and I think they price match also.

I think your CPU and GPU choices are fine. You can probably have a nice 24" 19x10 monitor and stay in budget... we'll see what the Loonie is doing these days:

i5-760 in combo with the DVD drive (look on the linked page for the combo deal when I say that) -265
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=54753&vpn=BX80605I5760&manufacture=Intel

ASUS P7P55D-E Pro -194
Crossfire support, good overclocker.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=48014&vpn=P7P55D-E%20PRO&manufacture=ASUS

G.skill DDR3 1600 CL9 with the Win 7 combo - 210
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=42745&vpn=F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL&manufacture=G.Skill&promoid=1223

WD Caviar Black 1TB -86
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=31000&vpn=WD1001FALS&manufacture=Western%20Digital%20WD&promoid=1223

Powercolor 5850 -265
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=55422&vpn=AX5850%201GBD5-DH&manufacture=PowerColor&promoid=1223

Antec TP-750 -132
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=36265&vpn=TP-750%20BLUE&manufacture=Antec&promoid=1223

Coolermaster 912 -66
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=55583&vpn=RC-912-KKN1&manufacture=COOLERMASTER

[strike]That may put you just over the limit but prices will change and you need to comparison shop yet.[/strike]

Doh totally forgot the monitor. That hurts. Drop the Intel CPU and board....

Athlon II X3 445 CPU with Gigabyte 880G board -200
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=53935&vpn=ADX445WFGMBOX&manufacture=AMD

Then get a DVD drive and this monitor

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=35314&vpn=W2442PA-BF&manufacture=LG%20Electronics&promoid=1223

 

[FrederickLee1]

NCIX prices seems to be a bit more then memory express =S. Also I forgot to mention that one of my friend works at MemoryExpress so i might be able to get some nifty discounts

 

[abswindows7]

Direct Canada for free shipping and fast delivery
With 1200$ you can go for an i5 750 and a 5770 and a nice screen

 

[Proximon]

Or possibly a GTX 460. Generally though that's a bit overbalanced on the CPU side. You'll get better game performance with a lesser CPU and more GPU, but if you play CPU intensive titles then it might be the way to go.

 

[FrederickLee1]

Im planning to play Starcraft 2 with ultra settings , and possibly other games as well

 

[Proximon]

Did you read the write-up done right here at TH?

StarCraft II Revisited: How Much Gaming PC Do You Need?

If you want to keep things playable during epic battles, we recommend at least a 3 GHz dual-core or a 2.8 GHz triple-core processor. We also suggest that you opt for a 3.4 GHz Phenom II or a Core i5-750 at the very least to ensure smooth gameplay at all times.

Basically, if you want my take, for Starcraft II you need a strong processor but a medium level GPU... NOT because that's the best gaming system, it not. It's just that SC II is so hard on GPUs it's best to run everything on medium settings anyway, and medium cards like the 5770 or GTX 460 or 5850 will do all that can be done anyway.

So take my initial build and see if you can fit in GTX 460. If so you can always add a SECOND GPU later, because the PSU can handle that. If not that then the 5770 will work and you can add a second one of those later as well.