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Final i5 2500k build - just purchased, thanks all!!

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January 30, 2011 2:48:17 AM


Hi all,

I just wanted to post my final build (below) and send out a huge thank you to everyone on this forum. I have read, posted, dissected, researched, and crawled my way through these forums and by the end of it I was able to scrounge together a good build, while having a great time learning. Its amazing to see so many knowledgeable people in one place, and even more amazing is that many of you take the time to education everyone... from pure beginners up to pros.

Again, thanks very much for all the help. And without further gilding the lily... here is my build:

Final Cost: $1356.51 CAD Before Mail in Rebates

Final Build:

Monitor: BENQ G2420hd (1920x1080 native) 24" Cost = $170 CAD

CPU: Intel Core i5 2500K Quad Core Unlocked Processor LGA1155 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=57962

MOBO: ASUS P8P67 Pro ATX P67 LGA1155 DDR3 3PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 2PCI SATA3 USB3.0 Sound GBLAN Motherboard
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=58016

Picked these both up at NCIX in store for a deal. Cost = $389.99 CAD


HSF: Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus Direct Touch 4 Heatpipe Heatsink AM2 AM3 LGA1366 LGA775 LGA1156 120MM
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=41337&vpn=RR-B10-212P...
Cost = $29.99

A clear choice... cheap and effective.

PSU: XFX 850W Black Edition Single Rail Semi Modular ATX 12V 70A 24PIN ATX Power Supply 80PLUS Silver
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=43569&vpn=P1850BCAG9&...
Cost = $135.99 plus a $40 mail in rebate

Interesting story on this. I wasn't initially interested in anything but the Corsair 850W modular PSU. However, I got NCIX to pricematch BestDirect which brought my price down from $189.99 to $135.99... plus I still got a $40 mail in rebate :) . Checking the NCIX site now, it looks like many people were doing this so they brought the price down to $139.99 standard... gotta love price wars.

GPU: XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB GDDR5 PCI-E 2XDVI HDMI 2x Mini DisplayPort Video Card
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=57630&vpn=HD695ACNFC&...
Cost= $299.99

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 Memory
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=57953&vpn=F3-12800CL9...
Cost= $95.99 (price match with BestDirect.ca)

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA3 6GB/S 7200RPM 64MB Cache 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=50895&vpn=WD1002FAEX&...
Cost = $79.99

I wanted the Spinpoint F3, however they had a deal on this Western Digital and I couldnt find the F3 with NCIX. I didn't want to add on shipping from newegg for just one part :( ... but I think this will do fine.

Optical: Generic ASUS I picked up for about $16.99 from NCIX in store sale.
Cost = $16.99

Case: Cooler Master Haf 932 Full Tower EATX Case 6X5.25 1X3.5 5X3.5INT No PSU USB eSATA 1394 Audio - Black
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=33029&vpn=RC-932-KKN1...
Cost =$137.58

This was a tough buy. I was between this and the Antec 900 and 1200. I went with this one because I love the huge 230 x 30 mm fans (3 in all in this case). I'm abit nervous about dust pickup because this thing will be sucking in air like a hoover, but as long as I keep ontop of cleaning I'm sure it will be fine. Plus, I think the thing looks cool (but this is just my preference).

SSD or high RPM drive – None.

Why none? well.... this build was getting pricey and I made a choice. In about a year, once I should be doing my first scheduled wipe of my system to clear out the cobwebs, I will pick up a SSD and run my OS from there. By then I should see 'some' price drops, but in the mean time I think this machine will hum along just fine. Again, this was mainly a money decision... but this strategy will force me to properly maintain my system, while giving me a specific upgrade to look forward too :) 


Anyways, this is my system. I will let you know when it is up and running. Again, thanks goes out to all the posters here... you guys and girls were an incredible resource and believe me when I say that when I need tech advice I will be coming back here.

Thanks all!

Cheers,
Adam

More about : final 2500k build purchased

January 30, 2011 4:36:20 AM

Nice build you have there :) 
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January 30, 2011 8:31:11 AM

Awesome build mate, my build is nearly identical! Only exceptions are the graphics card (gtx570) and CPU cooler (default.) good luck on your gaming!
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January 30, 2011 12:20:22 PM

I'd seriously consider the much better i7-2600K. With 4 more virtual cores and more cache it's a whole nother beast.

If your just basically gaming on the machine, then the 2500K is sufficient, but 8gb of ram for a gaming machine is serious overkill, you'll never use more than 4gb.

Id recommend the WD Black over F3 anyday, the 5 year warranty is much better than Samsung's 3 yr warranty and the extra cache is nice too.
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January 30, 2011 1:06:10 PM

Thanks for the responses all!

@GeekApproved - Yep, thought about the 2600k. But, as you say, this is basically a gaming machine with some larger programs (no video editing, etc.) so the 2500k is fine with me. Plus, the 2600k is going to be overshadowed quickly with Ivy bridge so I'd rather not spend the extra cash now and just upgrade down the road. This is just my rationalization though, doesn't work for everyone ;) 
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February 6, 2011 12:21:34 AM

Best answer selected by a2love.
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February 6, 2011 12:36:27 AM

I actually would use 8gb of RAM in 1920x1080 or 1920x1200 builds over 1100 because of future expandibility, very solid build I would use the scmg-2100 and the HAF 922
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