New Build, ~$1000 Gaming

[Czyrxis]

Approximate Purchase Date: As soon as possible, preferably within the week

Budget Range: $900-$1100

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming (RPG/Strategy/Casual), Internet, Multitasking, Office

Parts Not Required: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Using AVADirect for parts and build

Country of Origin: United States

Parts Preferences: Prefer AMD CPU, but could be convinced to go Intel if improvement is truly significant. Looking at a Mini-Tower case with dimensions of roughly 14"(356mm)H x 7"(178mm)W x 15"(381mm)D (or smaller) because I'm planning on placing it within a wheeled cabinet currently barely holding a system with those dimensions (Front to back dimension is most critical).

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: Existing monitor is 1440x900. May upgrade to something a size or two larger in the next year or so, but not in the short term.

Additional Comments: Slight preference for running on the cooler, quieter, more energy efficient end of the spectrum. Prefer more conservative cases (black/grey, standard box shape, no windows/lights). Unlikely to be significantly upgraded/replaced sooner than about 4 years from now.

Current System Thoughts:

Case:
$ 97.18 - [http://www.avadirect.com/product_details_parts.asp?PRID=10377]Antec NSK3480 Black Mid-Tower Case[/url]

PSU:
$ 71.11 - Antec TruePower New TP-650

MB:
$108.95 - Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H

CPU:
$192.88 - AMD Phenom II X6 1055T, 2.8GHz

RAM:
$ 43.44 - Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) PC3-10600 DDR3 1333MHz CL9 1.5V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC

GPU:
$206.01 - Asus EAH6850 DirectCU/2DIS/1GD5/V2, Radeon™ HD 6850 790MHz, 1GB GDDR5 4000MHz

HD:
$ 43.56 - Western Digital 500GB WD Caviar Blue (WD5000AAKX), SATA 6 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 16MB cache, OEM

DVD:
$ 21.91 - Sony AD-7261S Black 24x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ Lightscribe, SATA, OEM

OS:
$109.02 - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Ed

Current Total:
$894.06

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/147?vs=288 <----- AMD Phenom II X6 1055T vs Intel 2500 Sandy Bridge

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_560_Twin_Frozr_II/ <----- Review/benchmarks of that video card down below (MSI gtx 560)

This build includes Windows 7 (combo'd with that Samsung h/d down below).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016 $64.99
Antec BP550 Plus 550W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130569 $99.99
MSI H67MA-E35 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel H67 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073 $209.99
Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226092 $42.99 FREE SHIPPING
Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model 996768

http://www.amazon.com/Lite--LightScribe-Layer-Drive-IHAS424-98/dp/B002SIMPXM/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1299218744&sr=1-1 $22.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping
Lite-On LightScribe 24X SATA DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive IHAS424-98 - Retail (Black)

http://www.amazon.com/MSI-N560GTX-Twin-Frozr-IIOC/dp/B004JLNZXU/ref=sr_1_4?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1299218861&sr=1-4 $249.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
MSI GeForce GTX 560 1 GB DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x 16 Graphics Card N560GTX Ti Twin Frozr IIOC

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.591429 Combo Price: $159.98 FREE SHIPPING
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM

Total: $850.83 *not including shipping

*Here's a case worth taking a look at...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133187 $119.99
Thermaltake ARMOR A30 VM70001W2Z Black SECC ATX Mini Tower Computer Case

 

[Czyrxis]

As stated in the OP, I'm going with AVADirect for parts and build so I can't take advantage of Newegg supply or combo deals. AVADirect does not carry any of the LGA 1155 socket motherboards or CPUs so your MB/CPU selection is currently not an option. That combo may be an option soon, but I have no idea when and am wanting to purchase very soon.

Any other suggestions using either AM3 (still preferred) or 1156 socket parts?

Thank you

 

[Why_Me]

As stated in the OP, I'm going with AVADirect for parts and build so I can't take advantage of Newegg supply or combo deals. AVADirect does not carry any of the LGA 1155 socket motherboards or CPUs so your MB/CPU selection is currently not an option. That combo may be an option soon, but I have no idea when and am wanting to purchase very soon.

Any other suggestions using either AM3 (still preferred) or 1156 socket parts?

Thank you

Hey, it's your money.

 

[WR2]

AVADirect does not carry any of the LGA 1155 socket motherboards or CPUs

It appears that AVADirect does carry Sandy Bridge CPUs & MBs. Or do you have better information than is what on the AVADirect website?
http://www.avadirect.com/Custom-Mini-Gaming-PC

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

-> This THG article might explain why a Sandy Bridge option might be attractive:
Who's Got Game? Twelve Sub-$200 CPUs Compared

 

[JackNaylorPE]

As stated in the OP, I'm going with AVADirect for parts and build so I can't take advantage of Newegg supply or combo deals. AVADirect does not carry any of the LGA 1155 socket motherboards or CPUs so your MB/CPU selection is currently not an option. That combo may be an option soon, but I have no idea when and am wanting to purchase very soon.

Any other suggestions using either AM3 (still preferred) or 1156 socket parts?

Thank you

Expect that to change on next 3 or 4 days.

Wow $200+ for a 6850 ... should be $160ish

 

[Czyrxis]

It appears that AVADirect does carry Sandy Bridge CPUs & MBs. Or do you have better information than is what on the AVADirect website?
http://www.avadirect.com/Custom-Mini-Gaming-PC
[url]http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1150/ss068.jpg[/URL]
Uploaded with ImageShack.us

-> This THG article might explain why a Sandy Bridge option might be attractive:
Who's Got Game? Twelve Sub-$200 CPUs Compared

You are indeed correct. I was going on somewhat old information and only checking in their individual parts section rather than within their actual system configurators. They do seem to have a handful of configurators with the Sandy Bridge CPUs and MBs, but are still missing support in several other places. I'll probably have to deal with them directly rather than through the web site to get a build that will work for me. Hopefully they will add the Sandy Bridge components to their general parts section soon though.

Also @Why_Me, I'm curious about the graphics card choice. It seems like it would be significant overkill for low resolution gaming. Wouldn't I be more CPU bound at low resolutions (1440x900), or will the 2500 CPU be able to fully utilize the 560's GPU capability?

Thanks for the advice thus far.

 

[WR2]

Existing monitor is 1440x900. May upgrade to something a size or two larger in the next year or so, but not in the short term.

Why_Me is no doubt looking after your future goals.
An alternative would be getting a future 1920x1080 monitor and either a 2nd HD 6850 to run in CrossfireX or sell the HD 6850 and use the proceeds to buy a HD 6950 class next gen replacement.

I don't think going for 1600x900 is much of an improvement and would not recommend that unless there are some desk space limitations not yet mentioned.