WoW Cataclysm (Ultra Settings) Build $1000

[wcard]

Hello,

I am looking to build a rig that is capable of running WoW Cataclysm on Ultra settings while maintaining 60 FPS most of the time (30 or so in dense cities is acceptable). With my WoW settings maxxed I am assuming the rest of my computer needs will be more than satisfied. Unfortunately my knowledge in the realm of computer building is extremely limited and, in my research, I have found the sheer volume of available information and parts to be quite overwhelming. That is what brought me here.

**Update** I added the build I am currently considering to the bottom of this post.

Approximate Purchase Date: Next 2 Weeks (As soon as I have a workable build I plan to buy parts)

Budget Range: $1000 Before rebates (This is a maximum. I would love to achieve Ultra Settings for much less if possible)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: WoW, Movies, Internet

Parts Not Required: Mouse, Speakers, Keyboard

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com http://www.microcenter.com/at_the_stores/brentwood.html

Country of Origin: United States

Parts Preferences: None (I am perfectly willing to pay a bit more for higher quality parts if it is recommended)

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: Thanks in advance for anyone willing to share their wisdom with me. It is greatly appreciated.

*******************************************************************************

Current State of Build: This is what I have at the moment. I tried to do what I thought was somewhat conservative, but still powerful. My main concern is that I may have too much power in one area, and not enough in another. I don't want performance to be hindered because I have an under utilized component. At the same time, I don't want to sacrifice performance because one part is not up to par with the rest of my system. Please let me know if any parts should be upgraded or downgraded in order to meet my ultra settings requirements.

Motherboard:$139.99
Gigabyte GA-P67A-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 P67 ATX Motherboard

Processor:$179.99
Intel Core i5 2500K LGA 1155 Boxed Processor

Memory:$99.99
Kingston HyperX blu 8GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-`12800) CL9 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 4GB Memory Modules)

Graphics:$129.99
Asus ENGTS450DI1GD5 NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 1024MB GDDR5 PCIe 2.0 x16 Video Card

Hard Drives:$59.99
Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7,200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

Monitor:$179.99-$299.00
$179.99 - ASUS VH238H Black 23" Full HD HDMI LED Backlight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 250 cd/m2 ASCR 50,000,000:1
$199.99 - Asus VE247H 23.6" LED backlit Widescreen LCD Monitor
$179.99 - Samsung S23A300B 23" Class 300 Series LED Monitor
$299.99 - SAMSUNG P2770FH ToC Rose Black 27" 1ms Full HD HDMI LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 DC 70,000:1 (1,000:1)

Optical:$29.99
Asus 24x Internal DVD±RW SATA Writer

Case:$49.99
Thermaltake Dokker VM600M1W2Z ATX Mid Tower

Power:$59.99
Corsair Builder Series CMPSU-430CXV2 430 Watt ATX Power Supply

With these parts my total price comes to $930 before rebates and $840 after. I am perfectly happy with this, but I want to be sure I am not doing anything stupid. Thanks again for the help and thanks to those willing to share their wisdom with me. It is greatly appreciated.

 

[Kamab]

I'd really recommend the System Builder Marathon Articles. I used it as a starting point for my build which I've used for watching videos and gaming.

If your not including the monitor in the 1000$ limit I recommend the March 2011 1000$ build. Honestly even at ultra settings the Radeon HD 6950 might be overkill for WoW.

 

[cmadrid]

microcenter can have some really good deals, just buy things there that would be cheaper than buying them online.. usually have the best price on the actual CPU at least

 

[wcard]

I'd really recommend the System Builder Marathon Articles. I used it as a starting point for my build which I've used for watching videos and gaming.

If your not including the monitor in the 1000$ limit I recommend the March 2011 1000$ build. Honestly even at ultra settings the Radeon HD 6950 might be overkill for WoW.

Thanks for the quick response Kamab. Those articles were a great help and I will definitely be using them as starting points.

Since I do need to purchase a monitor, I was thinking of starting with The $500 Gaming PC and beefing it up to suit my needs. I just need to know which parts I should focus on improving to suit my needs (if not all of them).

 

[soest009]

Check my system info in my sig, this runs wow all settings ultra without a single hickup.
All together youre looking at around (in euro however) around 700 to 800.

 

[wcard]

Did a quick pricing of your rig soest. Comes out to about $1100, but that is with your $500ish speaker system included in the price. So if im right in assuming you included that in your overall cost then that is great news. Thanks for the reply

 

[wcard]

Ok I have done some more research and added what I think is a potential build to my original post. I would greatly appreciate some feedback on it. I dont feel comfortable going forward without a bit more advice.

 

[cmadrid]

Going to need a P67 motherboard (or z68, those come out tomorrow) and dual channel DDR3 RAM kits

 

[wcard]

Thanks cmadrid, I think I see where I went wrong now. I updated post to include:

Motherboard:$139.99
Gigabyte GA-P67A-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 P67 ATX Motherboard
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0358098

Memory:$99.99
Kingston HyperX blu 8GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-`12800) CL9 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 4GB Memory Modules)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0360527

These seem like acceptable choices?

 

[cmadrid]

should be fine =)

 

[wcard]

Best answer selected by wcard.