$800 Build, First Time

[evillemon325]

I've done about 2,3 days research for the what I want in a new computer.
I want a computer for the next 6 years- when I will graduate college. It should be able to play current games at max settings easily, as well as be able to be used for school work for low intesity work programs.
After my preliminary research, I've come up with this build:

Approximate Purchase Date: (e.g.: this week (the closer the better))


Budget Range: $800
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Run games competently for the next few years, able to do low intesity college for for next 6

Parts Not Required: OS

Country of Origin: Grand Fenwick... don't care really, as long as its quality.

Parts Preferences: none

Overclocking: nope
SLI or Crossfire: what is this?

Monitor Resolution: 1440x900

_______________________________

CPU: Sandy Bridge 2500k

Video Card: ATI Gigabyte 6870 1GB

RAM: 2 x 4Gb Corsair Vengeance

MotherBoard: Gigabyte Ga-P67 D3-B3 Rev 1.1

Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint 2TB Internal

Monitor: HP S2031-20" LCD Display

OS: I think I can scrounge up a windows 7 liscense around here somewhere

Disc Drive: LiteOn BD-ROM

Case: ???

If there are any glaring problems in here, such as lacking important parts, or I am using unpopular models, please let me know, thanks!

 

[striker410]

Please fill out this form. It will give us the info we need to help you http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

 

[evillemon325]

~bump~

 

[aznshinobi]

At that resolution and since you're not overclocking.

The build in my siggy for $600 would work just fine. Just swap the i3 2100 for an i5 2400 and that'd bring you up to $650.

Are you living in the US? That's a good trick, a fictional country.

 

[evillemon325]

At that resolution and since you're not overclocking.

The build in my siggy for $600 would work just fine. Just swap the i3 2100 for an i5 2400 and that'd bring you up to $650.

Are you living in the US? That's a good trick, a fictional country.

Gran Fenwick was the example country in the form that Striker gave me.
As for the 2400... hmm. I want something that can play most games for the next few years...
I just ruled out overclocking because I was just starting out, and might overclock it later on to squeeze some life out of it.

Also, what constitutes 'good' savings? I plan to buy from Fry's and Newegg, part by part whenever they go on a good sale. Based on expierience you may have had with these companies, when are the savings high enough to constitute a buy, where those prices won't return in a foreseeable amount of time?

 

[aznshinobi]

The i5 2400 will last you A LONG time. If you want to overclock, I suggest that you get the 2500K only if you're going to overclock the CPU past 4ghz tbh. It'll perform the same until after 4ghz.

Good savings, that's about $10-20 off MSRP though generally Newegg gives you the best deal, I've shopped at Fry's and certain things (GPU, Memory) are more expensive than Newegg. (Mobo, Case, Pricey shipping items, CPUs are generally the same price or cheaper at Fry's though you should check both out. I would say Newegg if you're shopping on line. Fry's locally.

The $650 would last you a LONG LONG time if you're gaming at such a small resolution such as 1440x900

 

[striker410]

Ok, here's what I got. Couldn't fit the 2500k, but this chip is still very capable.

Motherboard: ASUS P8H67-M LX (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel H67 $88
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131713&cm_re=h67-_-13-131-713-_-Product

CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz $124
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078&cm_re=i3_2100-_-19-115-078-_-Product

GPU: GIGABYTE GV-R695UD-1GD Radeon HD 6950 1GB $236
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125372&cm_re=6950-_-14-125-372-_-Product

HDD Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.0GB/s $60-65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

DVD drive: Generic LG burner $19
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136238

Case: CoolerMaster HAF 912 mid tower gaming case $50-60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233&Tpk=haf%20912

Monitor: Acer S231HLbid Black 23" 5ms HDMI LED-Backlight LCD monitor $149 (full HD!)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009255

PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ500MXSP 500W $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341016&Tpk=ocz%20500w


Ram: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 $45
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231425&cm_re=g.skill-_-20-231-425-_-Product

Total is $836 before rebates.

I went a bit over. But hey, do you wanna play BF3 on high or not

EDIT: I saw the posts between you and Shinobi, and I assumed you needed a monitor... If you have one already, we can adjust the build.

 

[evillemon325]

Found a new monitor 2 inches bigger and 1080p for $10 more:

Hannspree IP221DBB 22" Widescreen LCD Display LCD Panel Monitor

Also: Do I need a seperate power supply? Do some cheap cases come with one?
I really don't care about the quality of the case unless it can somehow affect performance. Also, does it need a seperate cooling unit?

 

[striker410]

You should get a separate power supply. Usually the PSU's that comes with cases are pretty crappy, and cannot hold up under pressure. I can go cheaper than the case I linked, but the HAF 912 has awesome cooling for the price.

 

[aznshinobi]

^+1

 

[evillemon325]

I see the disc drive you added did not have blu ray-
Is the format not catching on?
Games and programs are not printed on, or going to be printed on them?

 

[aznshinobi]

^ It will probably not be printed on there for a LONG LONG time. The only company I see using this is Sony. And that is a console. Until Blu-Ray's can be purchased cheaper, it will not be the format. I run a 22$ drive and it works fine. Blu-Ray will not be the standard since it isn't cheap yet. The stuff put in BR drives are pretty expensive, specially the laser used to read discs.