My first build, between 1,000 and 1,300

[whirlwind3]

Approximate Purchase Date: 4 weeks

Budget Range: I would like to spend no more than a grand, but I will have up to $1,300 available if someone can justify the purchase for me

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming (Might get back into WoW and would love to be able to max the settings, video making (Xbox live montages with a few friends, just as a side project to see if we are any good) most likely constant music playing, and student work.

Parts Not Required: I would need a keyboard, speakers and an OS. Although i am wondering if i could use my TV as a monitor for the time being? It is a hisense LTDN24V86US 24-inch 1080p LCD TV but I am no expert on if this would be any good.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg preferably, but willing to do Amazon if the price is better.

Country of Origin: US of A

Parts Preferences: I am not picky on the brands, I just want a nice tower that isn't to flashy but looks nice and professional.

Overclocking: Down the road yes, once i get comfortable

SLI or Crossfire: Yes I would like to run either SLI or Crossfire, but only down the road for now I am fine with just one graphics card.

Monitor Resolution: Like I said i would like to be able to use my tv currently if possible, but I have no clue on its resolution. Sorry

Additional Comments: I would like to try and future proof this computer to be able to play games such as WoW like i stated above on max or close to max settings, and hopefully have a nice enough computer to play the new Star Wars mmo when it comes out.

So far this is what I have:
Case - Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $69.99

RAM - CORSAIR Vengeance 4GB (2x2GB) $59.99

Hard Drive - Samsung Spinpoint F3 $64.99

Optical Drive - Asus Black burner $21.99

PSU - CORSAIR Enthusiast Series $89.99

CPU - Intel i5-2500k $224.99

OS - Windows 7 Home premium OEM $99.99

Now as far as the motherboard and GPU goes I was thinking

Mobo - ASRock Z68 PRO3 $129.99
or ASRock P67 Extreme4 $159.99

and GPU - MSI GeForce GTX 460 $194.99
or EVGA GTX 560 Ti $242.99
and Sapphire 6950 2GB $262.99

As I stated above, I am looking to go SLI or Crossfire down the road, but mainly im just wanting a graphics card that will be able to handle WoW and the new star wars mmo at near max settings is my goal, I play other games, but they aren't all that graphically intense. So as far as the GPU's go I've really no idea what is the best bang for my buck.

I would also take suggestions on keyboard, mouse, speakers and a monitor if my TV isn't all that great to use as one.

And I believe all of my selections should be compatible but if not please speak up, I will take any suggestions also on improvements thanks again you guys

 

[buzznut]

Welcome,
The parts list looks fine so far. I'm not sure its a good idea to use the TV as a monitor long term. It may get you by for now, but I think you'll find a monitor will be better suited for your purposes. That isn't a brand I trust either. I think the TV will not display text so well.
If you do choose to go with a monitor, I'd suggest 1080p, 24 inch or better, led backlighting. I like my ASUS, so do lots of other folks:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

I highly recommended you go with the HD6950 2GB.

I always use modular power supplies, but since you don't have a window the cables shouldn't be too much of an issue.

Have you looked at the HAF 912?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233

Don't know much about those particular boards, but if they have the same features I'd go for the Z68.

 

[buzznut]

One more thing, for new builds I highly recommend making room in the budget for a boot drive SSD. YES, it will make that much difference.
I've seen sales on the 60GB drives around $100. I am going with a 128GB drive, it seems to be the sweet spot right now. The smaller drives are too slow, the bigger ones too expensive. Prices have been fluctuating, but the Crucial C300 has good performance and cost lower than $2 a gig:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148348

I've seen this particular model as low as $200.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

PSU is small for SKI / CF down the road .... look for a XFX Black 750 or Core 750 ($95) or better yet a Black 850 or Core 850 ($110)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207015
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207011

MoBo - You have chosen a manufacturer who doesn't offer an industry standard 3 year warranty. That's a scary thing in my book. The $20 discount on his combo cuts the $180 MoBo price down to an effective $160
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.642515

GFX - This model is faster and $22 cheaper than the 56- you chose and either is faster than the alternatives you listed.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130610

Guru3D uses the following games in their test suite, COD-MW, Bad Company 2, Dirt 2, Far Cry 2, Metro 2033, Dawn of Discovery, Crysis Warhead. Total fps (summing fps in each game @ 1920 x 1200) for the various options in parenthesis (single card / SL or CF) are tabulated below along with their cost in dollars per frame single card - CF or SLI:

$265.00 6950 (479/751) $0.55 - $0.71
$265.00 6950 Frozr OC (484/759) $0.55 - $0.70
$265.00 560 Ti (455/792) $0.58 - $0.67
$220.00 560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862) $0.44 - $0.51

Lower numbers above w/ the $ signs indicate best bang for buck

Mose / KB:

$100 option
Keyboard - $62 - Logitech G110 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126087
Mouse - $35 - Logitech MX-518 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104318

$135 option
Keyboard - $100 - Logitech G510 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126100
Mouse - $35 - Logitech G500 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104318



Cooler - $40 - Scythe Mugen 2 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142
TIM - $5 Shin Etsu 751 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150080

Monitor (120 Hz) $350 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236104

or

Monitor (60 Hz) $160 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236059

Speakers - The Logitech 5500's are worth buying every 6 weeks or so when Dell has em cheap. But these are a good buy at $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16836121044

 

[whirlwind3]

Thank you Buzznut for the quick reply and a real big thanks for posting a monitor, I wasn't quite sure what is good in terms of monitors so I am glad you posted one you enjoy and I'll definitely look into a SSD

and thanks JackNaylorPE for the detailed reply, I do really appreciate it

 

[mlcaouette]

I would like to recommend this combo since it will do crossfire like you wanted, is the z68 chipset, and with the discount it is the same price as the asrock z68:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.651987

 

[buzznut]

Hey Jack,
If you unlock your 6950, how does that effect the cost effectiveness?

 

[mjmjpfaff]

most of the reference models are out of stock and those are the only ones that will unlock to 6970's. you will have to search really hard to find one so i would only think of a 6950 being a 6950
this is a reference 6950 that will unlock to a 6970. oh, and it is out of stock
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161359&cm_re=his_6950-_-14-161-359-_-Product
also you can save 5$ on that hard drive at amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1305411166&sr=1-2
get the p67 extreme4 i dont think that ssd caching is that great.\
this 560 ti is very good- http://www.amazon.com/MSI-PCI-Express-N560GTX-TWIN-FROZR/dp/B004JLNZXU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1305412298&sr=1-1
this vertex 2 60gb is 105$- http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-Technology-Vertex-2-5-Inch-OCZSSD22VTXE60G/dp/B003NE5JCE/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1305412344&sr=1-2
and the hyper 212 plus is more than enough (30$)- http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B002G1YPH0/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1305412546&sr=1-1&condition=new
mouse and keyboard go g500 and g110 the g500 is 35$ after mir at newegg and the g110 is 50$ at tiger direct- http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5290436&CatId=3463

 

[buzznut]

most of the reference models are out of stock and those are the only ones that will unlock to 6970's. you will have to search really hard to find one so i would only think of a 6950 being a 6950
this is a reference 6950 that will unlock to a 6970. oh, and it is out of stock
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161359&cm_re=his_6950-_-14-161-359-_-Product
also you can save 5$ on that hard drive at amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1305411166&sr=1-2
get the p67 extreme4 i dont think that ssd caching is that great.\
this 560 ti is very good- http://www.amazon.com/MSI-PCI-Express-N560GTX-TWIN-FROZR/dp/B004JLNZXU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1305412298&sr=1-1
this vertex 2 60gb is 105$- http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-Technology-Vertex-2-5-Inch-OCZSSD22VTXE60G/dp/B003NE5JCE/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1305412344&sr=1-2
and the hyper 212 plus is more than enough (30$)- http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B002G1YPH0/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1305412546&sr=1-1&condition=new
mouse and keyboard go g500 and g110 the g500 is 35$ after mir at newegg and the g110 is 50$ at tiger direct- http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5290436&CatId=3463

Method for modding non-reference 6950's:
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/159

 

[buzznut]

HD 6950:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7101568&csid=ITD&body=MAIN#productresources

 

[Why_Me]

This build allows you to add another one of those factory over clocked MSI gtx 560's later on for SLI. It also includes a after market cpu h/s (thermal paste included, 8GB of low voltage RAM, that new on the market CM Storm Enforcer case, Windows 7, full HD LED 2ms monitor, etc...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WK3KKQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER $89.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Storm Enforcer USB 3.0 Mid Tower ATX Case with Window and Black Interior (SGC-1000-KWN1)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021 $104.99 - $94.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 750W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.637592 $224.98 FREE SHIPPING
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B
GIGABYTE GA-P67X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.632379 $454.98 $20.00 Mail-In Rebate Price After Mail-In Rebate(s): $434.98 FREE SHIPPING
MSI N560GTX-TI Twin Frozr II/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002G1YPH0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER $29.51 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler, RR-B10-212P-G1

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_2?m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1305475482&sr=1-2 $59.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Samsung Desktop Class Spinpoint F3 1 TB SATA 3.0 Gb-s 32 MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare-OEM Drives, HD103SJ

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289 $19.99
LITE-ON Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X 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 CD/DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986 $99.99 FREE SHIPPING
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit English 1-Pack - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824113023 $139.99 FREE SHIPPING
Gateway FHX2152Lbd Black 21.5" 1920x1080 2ms Full HD LED BackLight LCD Monitor Slim Design 250 cd/m2 1000:1

Total: $1,124.31 *not including mail in rebates

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=19&product_id=3038 <----- professional reviews, specs, and pics of that CM case

http://www.guru3d.com/article/msi-n560gtx-ti-twin-frozer-ii-review/ <----- review of that MSI card

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2011/01/27/msi-geforce-gtx-560-ti-1gb-review/1 <----- review of that MSI card

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/msi_gtx560_twinfrozr_2/ <----- review of that MSI card

http://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/zardon/msi-n560gtx-ti-twin-frozr-ii-review-the-ultimate-560/ <----- review of that MSI card

 

[whirlwind3]

Thanks for the answer Why_Me, sorry for the delayed respone, I had to head out of town on business

 

[mlcaouette]

Tigerdirect still has some referance HD 6950's they are about $300 with shipping so you only save 40 dollars over the HD 6970.