Comments on $850 AMD gaming build before I buy?

[z33tec]

I had to update my build slightly because of a new deal on a Lian Li case that looks good. I was going to go with the Rosewill Challenger before, but this seems like a decent upgrade to that. I also lost a few bundles that were available before which bumped up the price about $20, no biggy .

Planning on buying tomorrow if nothing changes as far as deals go (although they seem to always change and make me re-think my choices.)

Everything look good? I couldn't find a bundle for the PSU that I want, and I wasn't sure if there were any other good ones to choose. This OCZ one seems very highly rated. Couldn't find a good RAM bundle for the Ripjaws RAM either.

LIAN LI Lancool PC-K62 Black 0.8 mm SECC, Plastic + Mesh ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (Promo code makes this $80, good deal?)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112239

ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157198

OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ550FTY 550W ATX12V v2.2 / EPS12V SLI Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808

XFX HD-685X-ZNFC Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity & Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.544802.14-150-505

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive ($15 off promo code)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM (10% off promo code)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

Comes to $847.75 after promo codes.

I was right at $800 before switching from the Rosewill Challenger case to the Lian Li case and losing a couple bundles. I think it's worth the few extra bucks for a more solid case though. What do you guys think?

 

[coldsleep]

Looks good. The only concern I would have is that the PSU might not be enough to power 2x 6850 if you eventually CrossFire. If that's not in the plans, then you're completely fine.

 

[z33tec]

Looks good. The only concern I would have is that the PSU might not be enough to power 2x 6850 if you eventually CrossFire. If that's not in the plans, then you're completely fine.

I don't have any plans to go Crossfire with 2 cards. I prefer the simplicity of 1 card and just upgrading to a better card if needed. Sounds like this PSU should do the trick for that.

 

[buzznut]

Yes, I like this build. Definitely some components I would choose, like the HDD, CPU, GPU.
Have you given any thought to making room in your budget for a boot SSD?

 

[buzznut]

I don't have any plans to go Crossfire with 2 cards. I prefer the simplicity of 1 card and just upgrading to a better card if needed. Sounds like this PSU should do the trick for that.

I think you'll like the OCZ PSU. I've used two recently for builds, good for a budget PSU.

 

[Fire Lancer]

Build looks good. Cases are mostly personal preference excluding some of the really bad ones (eg inability to keep anything inside cool).

If you can find money for an SSD do, but I personally wouldnt get one at the expense of the CPU or GPU.

Only thing to be careful of is that the PSU is at the bottom, and the cables for some PSU's (specfically the 8pin CPU and 24pin ATX ones) sometimes wont reach the motherboard (or at least in a manner you like, ie not cutting straight across the video card). Unfortunately cable lengths seem to be something resellers and manufacturers dont think is important enough to list half the time, and you have to search around to find them (some reviews tell you the cable lengths for example).

 

[Zark Strife]

I have that case and let me tell you the tool-less design is so great. just make sure you stay on top of the dust filters on the front, they clog up fast. the fans on the top really help. You can fit a pretty huge HSF in there if you want, I currently have a Noctua 120mm 2x fan in there with no problem and it fit my old (horrible) CM V8. But overall a great quality case that keeps everything cool.

Any way, enjoy the great build, I have the Phenom 955 and love it.

 

[z33tec]

Yes, I like this build. Definitely some components I would choose, like the HDD, CPU, GPU.
Have you given any thought to making room in your budget for a boot SSD?

I would love an SSD. Unfortunately, they are just out of my price range right now . I also can forsee SSD's becoming the new norm as far as hard drives go. I feel like it won't be long before we are laughing at how much they cost and how small they were :lol: . I will wait until they become more mainstream and the prices go down. Don't want to sacrifice CPU or GPU just to afford a SSD right now.

 

[z33tec]

Only thing to be careful of is that the PSU is at the bottom, and the cables for some PSU's (specfically the 8pin CPU and 24pin ATX ones) sometimes wont reach the motherboard (or at least in a manner you like, ie not cutting straight across the video card). Unfortunately cable lengths seem to be something resellers and manufacturers dont think is important enough to list half the time, and you have to search around to find them (some reviews tell you the cable lengths for example).

Yes, this will be my first bottom-mount PSU case. I was also a little worried about the PSU reaching the motherboard. A bunch of people said that it would have no issue reaching anything in the Rosewill challenger (that is also bottom mount PSU) so I'm hoping the same applies to this case. If not, I guess I will just get an extension cable, no big deal.

 

[buzznut]

Yes, this will be my first bottom-mount PSU case. I was also a little worried about the PSU reaching the motherboard. A bunch of people said that it would have no issue reaching anything in the Rosewill challenger (that is also bottom mount PSU) so I'm hoping the same applies to this case. If not, I guess I will just get an extension cable, no big deal.

Here's a link to Anandtech's recent review of the Fatality PSU:


http://www.anandtech.com/show/3985/three-550w-psus-for-different-prices

They do mention the length of the cables which appear to be 45cm. However, I put the PSU in a bottom mount in here... evidently newegg has discontinued it. It is a atx midtower and it worked fine, however the 12V P4 cable was quite short. I made it work but it is stretched tighter than I like and I wasn't able to route it as I pleased. I'll prolly pick up an extender since its a windowed case. You shouldn't have any problems though, I think you'll be alright.

 

[z33tec]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Ordered the parts today! Can't wait for them to arrive

 

[z33tec]

Best answer selected by z33tec.