$2500 Gaming Desktop Build

[Haunted_Eagle]

Hi everyone,

I'm very new to the site, I've been around the forums a bit and it looks to be a very knowledgable and helpful place. I have a new build I've been looking into and I'm seeking opinions on whether it'd be compatible with itself and such. So, here it is!


Case ($150) - In Win Dragon Rider

CPU ($220) - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 Quad-Core

CPU Cooler ($30) - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Long Life Sleeve 120mm

GPU ($500) - 2x GIGABYTE GV-N560OC-1GI GeForce GTX 560 Ti 1GB, connected with SLI

PSU ($90) - Antec Truepower BLUE LED 750W SLI Certified

RAM ($80) - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB

Hard Drive ($470) - Corsair 240 GB Force Series Ultra Fast TRIM Supported Solid State Drive

Motherboard ($170) - ASUS P8P67-M Pro

Optical Drive ($20) - LITE-ON Black SATA CD/DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM

Monitor ($400) - BEN Q XL2410T 23.6" LED Backlit Monitor

OS ($300) - Win7 64bit Professional

So this is the build I'm thinking, it's roughly $2500. Please let me know if I've missed anything or need to change certain areas, I really appreciate your input!

Thanks,
Haunted Eagle

 

[aznshinobi]

Check out my build guide in my siggy 1500$ is enough to make that build happen.

And just by the by, SF2200 SSDs are releasing soon, I wouldn't suggest spending your money on an SSD now. As you can see, the new ones kill the old ones.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/vertex-3-sandforce-ssd,2869.html

As for PSU, 560 Ti only requires a 650 watt PSU. A 750w is good enough, that HX is overkill. I recommend the 750w XFX.

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

OK, I'll definitely look into the newer SSD's.

As for the PSU, would a 750W PSU be enough for two 560 Ti's connected by SLI as well as supporting the rest of the system?

Thanks for your reply aznshinobi!

Edit: Ah actually, one other question. Sorry to sound noobish, but would I need to purchase extra cooling options for the CPU/the rest of the desktop with the case I've chosen?

 

[aznshinobi]

1. Yes 750w would be good enough for the whole system AND SLI 560 Ti.
2. No you don't need to purchase after market cooling once you've chosen the parts.

 

[Why_Me]

OK, I'll definitely look into the newer SSD's.

As for the PSU, would a 750W PSU be enough for two 560 Ti's connected by SLI as well as supporting the rest of the system?

Thanks for your reply aznshinobi!

Edit: Ah actually, one other question. Sorry to sound noobish, but would I need to purchase extra cooling options for the CPU/the rest of the desktop with the case I've chosen?

A few questions... do you like LED's and if so... red or blue...and do you plan on over clocking. Also what site (s) do you prefer ? And would you like a gaming mouse, monitor, headset, keyboard and speakers included ?

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Thanks so much azn, I'll look into purchasing a good 750W PSU.

LED's would be interesting, though I'm not sure how to go about obtaining them and such. Likely red if possible though, if I could manage to do so.

As for overclocking, I'll be likely building this system myself and I'm not entirely sure how to go about it, but if I can find information on how to do it, I'd like to use OC to improve my performance a tad.

Sites that I prefer for purchase? Amazon, NewEgg, Tiger Direct, etc. The majority of the prices I've found on these components have been from NewEgg, though.

I already have a mouse, keyboard, and speakers and the monitor is included in the price of the build I originally posted.

 

[aznshinobi]

Case suggestion: HAF X (Red LEDs)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119225&cm_re=HAF_X-_-11-119-225-_-Product

750w PSU suggestion:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207003&Tpk=xfx%20750

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Thanks azn, I changed the PSU in the original post to reflect your recommendation. As for the case, would you consider it to be substantially better than the In Win Dragon Rider? The price is somewhat higher, and as I understand the In Win comes with blue lighting which is fine by me. Love the style of both cases though.

 

[Why_Me]

Thanks azn, I changed the PSU in the original post to reflect your recommendation. As for the case, would you consider it to be substantially better than the In Win Dragon Rider? The price is somewhat higher, and as I understand the In Win comes with blue lighting which is fine by me. Love the style of both cases though.

This case down below for "Red"...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129087 $159.99 FREE SHIPPING
Antec DF-85 Black Computer Case

And something like this down below for "blue"...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.612646 Combo Discount: -$30.00 Combo Price: $478.98
Antec Lanboy air Blue Black / Blue Computer Modular Case
Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600K

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

The deal on the blue one looks quite good o.o I like the case as well, it seems to come with many cooling options.

As far as the components go, are they compatible with each other?

 

[FoldingZebra]

1. Yes 750w would be good enough for the whole system AND SLI 560 Ti.
2. No you don't need to purchase after market cooling once you've chosen the parts.

Would an 850W Antec TruePower Quattro run 2 6970's in crossfire? If so can I still OC the CPU?

 

[Why_Me]

The deal on the blue one looks quite good o.o I like the case as well, it seems to come with many cooling options.

As far as the components go, are they compatible with each other?

Everything I post is "compatible".

On another note... I have to run to the store (maybe an hour tops), but when I come back I'm going to post you a build on around or under $2,000 that's going to rock your socks..so to say and it will include the #1 gaming monitor and mother board atm.

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Haha go for it, I'd certainly appreciate the input I'm sort of a noob when it comes to computers; having been a Mac user for so long I've lost touch with computer customization.

 

[jb6684]

We all have our favorite power supplies for a build like this, here's mine...

650watts will work for any single GPU system. 850Watts will work for all but the highest end dual GPU systems.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139011


Really only one choice for the OS, but be Sure to get the 64 bit version... (Win7 64 bit OEM System Builders, $90)

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

For the OS I'll definitely be doing Win7 64 bit Professional.

 

[FoldingZebra]

Everything I post is "compatible".

On another note... I have to run to the store (maybe an hour tops), but when I come back I'm going to post you a build on around or under $2,000 that's going to rock your socks..so to say and it will include the #1 gaming monitor and mother board atm.

I will also be awaiting this with bated breath. I am putting together a build for around 1500

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Just to add another question to the thread, how would I go about OverClocking the CPU and GPU's (SLI)?

 

[FoldingZebra]

CPU- By tweaking your multiplier in bios, upping the FSB, Voltage. All in BIOS. Also may need to tweak your NB Volts a bit too.

Gor the GPUs, I use EVGA Precision. You first up the Clock speed ~20 points at a time, run a 3d game, if all is good, up it again. Test, bump, test, bump until your card starts to hang, crash, or act funny. Back it down a few to where it is stable. Then do the same for your memory speed. You can leave sharers linked to your clock speed. Monitor your temps and make sure they stay safe. You can use the prog to change your GPU fan speed too. After you hit your wall, depending on the video card, you can tweak your GPU volts a bit and go a little faster to see if that will stabilize it.

There are great guides out there, just google it. Make sure you understand what you are doing before you do it.

Also, this is a very general general guide. There is a bit more to it, but that is the gist.

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Sounds great, thanks a lot! I'll definitely look into it.

 

[FoldingZebra]

It's not too hard. I just got into over clocking. It's fun

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Haha I bet, as I mentioned earlier I'm a Mac user and thus don't do anything with Overclocking nor selecting my own parts for a computer, let alone building it myself. This'll certainly be an adventure for me, I just hope I don't screw it up!

 

[FoldingZebra]

Just take baby steps. Find out what safe temps are for your CPU and dont go ever them. Same with voltage. I believe you CAN over volt, but you need some serious cooling.

 

[FoldingZebra]

Oh, building the PC is really simple. There are plenty of guides out there if you get stuck. Just don't force anything

 

[Haunted_Eagle]

Awesome, sounds great! I figure it'd be more fun and rewarding to build your own computer, although it probably doesn't involve a comprehensive warranty :/

 

[Why_Me]

OK I'm not going to lie to you...this would not be a build I would recommend. This build down below is what is called a E-pen0r build and it's what peeps buy when they want to over clock to the moon and back. That mobo down below hold the record over clock (5.7Ghz) for these Sandy Bridge cpu's, not to mention it runs dual cards at 16x & 16x and tri cards @ 8x. That Zalman blue LED cpu heat sink in this build is on "Frosty Techs" top ten list. The psu in this build is over kill...but it leaves you headroom if you ever decide to size up in a few years with different vid cards that require more power.

Like I say, I can do a very nice build and cut off close to $500 off this build and you would still get great performance. This build was for show and tell...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207001 $149.99 - $129.99 after mail-in rebate
XFX Black Edition XPS-850W-BES 850W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.612646 Combo Discount: -$30.00 Combo Price: $478.98
Antec Lanboy air Blue Black / Blue Computer Modular Case
Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600K

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118074 $79.99 - $69.99 after mail-in rebate FREE SHIPPING
ZALMAN CNPS9900MAX-B 135mm Long life bearing CPU Cooler Blue LED

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-P67UD7&title=GIGABYTE-GA-P67A-UD7-Socket-1155-Intel-P67-DDR3-3-Way-CrossFireX-SLI-SATA3-USB3-0-A-2GbE-ATX-Motherboard $311.99
GIGABYTE GA-P67A-UD7 Socket 1155/ Intel P67/ DDR3/ 3-Way CrossFireX & SLI/ SATA3&USB3.0/ A&2GbE/ ATX Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445 $129.99 FREE SHIPPING $30 off w/ promo code EMCKGJE72, ends 3/21
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204 $17.99 Free shipping w/ promo code EMCKGJE65, ends 3/21
ASUS Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363 $244.99
GIGABYTE GV-N560OC-1GI GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363 $244.99
GIGABYTE GV-N560OC-1GI GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.591383 Combo Discount: -$10.00 Combo Price: $259.98 FREE SHIPPING
Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

http://www.frys.com/product/6417522 $399.99
BEN Q XL2410T 23.6" LED Backlit Monitor (NVIDIA 3D Ready)

Total: $2,448.87 *not including shipping, promo codes, rebates, etc...

http://www.benq.us/products/product_detail.cfm?product=1775&pltag=50&ptag=104 <--- more info on that monitor

http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/benq_xl2410t.htm <--- in depth and detailed review of that monitor