First time builder looking for advice

[crcrimson]

Hello everyone. As the title mentions, I'm looking to build a new computer used primarily for gaming. I've done some research over different parts and this is what I've come up with so far.


Processor - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072&Tpk=core%20i5%202500k

Video Card - EVGA 012-P3-1570-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130593&cm_re=gtx_570-_-14-130-593-_-Product

Case - COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Advanced RC-932-KKN5-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Compucase Case with USB 3.0 and Black Interior

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160

Motherboard - ASRock P67 EXTREME4 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157229

Heatsink - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

Memory - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

PSU - CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139011&Tpk=corsair%20hx850

Hard Drive - Samsung 1 TB Spinpoint 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.5 inch Bulk/OEM Desktop Hard Drive

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-Cache-Desktop-HD103SJ/dp/B001U3S5S0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1301535781&sr=8-1

CD/DVD Drive - 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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204


I'll also be getting Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit.

I thought I'd go with this computer build and leave room for another GTX 570 in a few months. That's why I decided to go with the Corsair 850w model but I've been wondering if I should upgrade to a 1kw PSU if I'm going to be using 2 video cards. I've read some differing opinions on whether an 850w PSU would be able to adequately power 2 GTX 570s, but the consensus seems to be it should be up for the job.

Since this is my first computer, I would like to see if you guys have any advice or suggestions on my build. Thanks.

 

[aznshinobi]

Check out my build guide.

Get the XFX 850 though, saves you some money.

 

[majin ssj eric]

I would stick with Corsair personally....

 

[aznshinobi]

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2010/04/20/xfx_black_edition_750w_power_supply_review/9

 

[Why_Me]

Actually both Corsair and XFX are made by SeaSonic. Whichever of those psu's happens to be cheaper atm is the one I would go with.

 

[batuchka]

I thought I'd go with this computer build and leave room for another GTX 570 in a few months

If u thinking multi GPU - unless u 100% need CUDA red camp is the way to go ^^

Triple-GPU Scaling: AMD CrossFire Vs. Nvidia SLI
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/crossfire-sli-3-way-scaling,2865-12.html

CrossFire came out with a huge overall scaling lead over SLI, and removing the one title that didn’t reflect that average would have made the lead even bigger. Superior scaling allowed two mid-priced Radeon HD 6950s to approximate the performance of two higher-cost GeForce GTX 570s, while three HD 6950s took the performance win over three GTX 570s.
If CrossFire’s value-oriented victory in two-way and performance win in three-way configurations weren’t enough to convince us, the Radeon HD 6950's lower power certainly did. AMD started out with the highest efficiency at one card, and superb multi-GPU scaling allowed its efficiency to increase with every card we added. When’s the last time adding parts made your machine more efficient?

Also if 2 mths wait is doable

Since peeps been waiting this long for the top end i suggest for healthier/fatter budgets to
1. Await Z68 chipsets, Zambezi AM3+ on platform front
2. Await HD 6990/GTX 590 on the GPU front and price revisions trickle down lower down the foodchain
3. Await the Sandforce SATA 6GB/s SSDs to hit retailers

Leaked: FAH score of a 4 way Interlagos Bulldozer <--Pay attention to floating point numbers/chip architecture
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2148217
Exposure of the first performance of AMD bulldozer cpus
http://www.overclock.net/hardware-news/971464-chiphell-exposure-first-performance-amd-bulldozer.html

Intel Z68 Express Chipset Preview
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z68-express-lucidlogix-virtu-ssd-caching,2888.html

 

[crcrimson]

After looking over the evidence it seems that the 6950 crossfire combination would probably be the best value, in terms of both performance and price, for my needs (gaming). I've read that a 750w power supply should be more than capable of handling crossfire 6950 so I thought I'd change to a Corsair 750TX.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

However I'm still undecided on a good LGA 1155 motherboard to go along with the crossfire 6950s. I had decided on the ASRock P67 Extreme4 mobo but it seems that the P67 line has again been recalled/deactivated so I'm ambivalent.

 

[aznshinobi]

Wait for stock, get this instead.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371025&cm_re=antec_750-_-17-371-025-_-Product

As for the 1155 barely any are instock anymore. Your just going to have to wait. B3 has been implemented, it's just takes time for manufacturers to get the boards up to the stock they had with the pre planned sandy bridge release.

 

[Why_Me]

After looking over the evidence it seems that the 6950 crossfire combination would probably be the best value, in terms of both performance and price, for my needs (gaming). I've read that a 750w power supply should be more than capable of handling crossfire 6950 so I thought I'd change to a Corsair 750TX.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

However I'm still undecided on a good LGA 1155 motherboard to go along with the crossfire 6950s. I had decided on the ASRock P67 Extreme4 mobo but it seems that the P67 line has again been recalled/deactivated so I'm ambivalent.

newegg isn't the only game in town.

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-P67X4B3&title=ASRock-P67-EXTREME4-B3-LGA1155-Intel-P67-B3-DDR3-Quad-SLI-Quad-CrossFireX-SATA3-USB3-0-A-GbE-ATX-Motherboard $153.99
ASRock P67 EXTREME4 B3 LGA1155/ Intel P67 B3/ DDR3/ Quad SLI & Quad CrossFireX/ SATA3&USB3.0/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard

http://www.amazon.com/Antec-Truepower-TP-750-BLUE-Management/dp/B001RTPMM4/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1301899521&sr=1-3 $89.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Antec Truepower 23754 TP-750 BLUE LED 750-Watt PSU NVIDIA SLI Certified 80 Plus Bronze Advanced Hybrid Cable Management Power Supply

 

[aznshinobi]

Lawl Why_Me you basically just posted everything I just posted or reiterated.