Spending $2000+ tomorrow, advice...

-So I'm building a new gaming system from absolutely scratch. I've been using laptops for the last few years but want a system that has a lot more power under the hood.
-My main goals with this build is a decent platform somewhere along the $2000 mark that I can expand on in the future.

Approximate Purchase Date: Tomorrow

Budget Range: $2000-$2200 before rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, video/sound editing, graphic design, coding, heavy-internet use and multimedia.

Parts Not Required: OS, Monitor, Speakers.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Thus far I have everything queued up on tigerdirect for purchase (no sales tax)

Country of Origin: USA

Parts Preferences: none

Overclocking: Will definitely try my hand. I have never OC'd anything but my EVO and my Xoom.

SLI or Crossfire: Most likely in the future.

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: I will probably, be upgrading components in the future and would really like to SLI when I can get enough $$$ to do so.

Components:
CPU: Intel i7-2600K [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7073159&sku=I69-2600K][/url]
Mobo: ASUS P8P67 Pro B3 Intel P67 Motherboard [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7343079&sku=A455-3035][/url]
Case: NZXT PHAN-001BK Phantom Full-Tower Case [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6634206&sku=A406-2042][/url]
GPU: EVGA 015-P3-1482-AR GeForce GTX 480 (Fermi) SuperClocked Video Card [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6075295&sku=E145-0482][/url]
RAM: Corsair CMP12GX3M3A1600C9 Dominator 12GB PC12800 Triple Channel RAM [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6454900&sku=C13-8283][/url]
PSU: Kingwin LZG-850 LAZER 850w Power Supply [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6077245&sku=K450-2554][/url]
SSD: Crucial C300 128GB 2.5 SATA Solid State Drive [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5975115&sku=C19-8020][/url]
HDD: Seagate ST32000641AS Barracuda XT Hard Drive - 2TB, 7200 RPM, SATA 6G, 64MB Cache [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4438030&sku=TSD-2000AS][/url]
Optical Drive: LG WH12LS30K 12x Blu-Ray Burner [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7271170&sku=L49-1063%20OEM][/url]
CPU Heat Sink: Thermaltake SpinQ CPU Cooler [url=http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4197086&sku=T925-1287][/url]

That about does it. Here is a screencap of my shopping cart ready for my purchase when I get paid tomorrow



I just want the best I can get within the price-range.

Thanks in advance!

I hate to be blunt but other than the last 3, there's not a component on that list that I would consider using.

Total $1995

Case - $155 - Antec DF-85 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129087
Case Fans - $15 - Antec Red 120 mm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835209013
PSU - $120 - Antec CP-850 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817371024
MoBo - $465 - ASUS P8P67 WS Revolution http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.642533
CPU - incl - Intel Core i5-2600K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115070
Cooler - $40 - Scythe SCMG 2100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835185142
TIM - $5 - Shin Etsu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835150080
RAM - $130 - (2 x 4GB) Mushkin CAS 7 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820226178
GFX - $220 - EVGA GTX 560 (900MHz) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130651
GFX - $220 - Same
HD - $65 - Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 rpm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152185
SSD - $300 - OCZ Vertex 3 2.5" 120GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820227706
DVD Writer - $70 - Asus 24X DRW-24B3L w/ LS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827135247
Card Reader $50 55 in 1 Card Reader http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820314001
OS - $140 - Win 7-64 Home Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6832116992

Case / PSU - Aesthetic choice of the case , ....CP-850 gets a 10.0 performance rating from jonnyguru. Best alternate is HAF-X w/ AX850 or XFX Black Edition which get the same 10.0 albeit at much higher price.....

MoBo / CPU - Your budget allows for a 2600k but f just gaming, I'd get the 2500k and save close to $100. Photshop. video editing, 3D rendering, AutoCAD etc, get the 2600k

Cooler / TIM - Mugen beats the Hyper 212 by 7C and Noctua DH14 by 1C. Nothing tops the TIM.

RAM - Memory CAS latency won't generally matter by more than 2-4% on most systems ... most systems have the GFX sybsystem as the bottleneck. This doesn't. Low CAS can improve minimum frame rate performance by as much significant numbers.

GFX Using Guru#D's game test, suite as a barameter .... (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:

$245.00 6950 (479/751)
$265.00 560 Ti (455/792)
$315.00 6970 (526/825)
$220.00 560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862)
$335.00 570 (524/873)
$500.00 580 (616/953)

To my eyes, the best bang for the buck at 1920 x 1200 is the bolded one .... at 2560 x 1600, I'd get the 2GB 6950's or 6970's


SSD - The Corsair Force 3's are comparabe and when they hit the shelves will drive the price of the Vertex 3's down to $220

If ya didn't spend enuff money, get one of these:

Monitor - $350 - ASUS VG236HE Black 23" http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824236104

I have built several of the above, owners are all ecstatic.....they used more expensive coolers (i.e Thermalright Silver Arrow) but to my mind, little was gained by the expense.

KB's and mice are very personal choices but I like the price / performance of this pairing

Logitech G510 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6823126100
Logitech G500 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6826104318

1. GTX 480 on a gaming system with 2k budget? Should get gtx 580 or pay $150 more for 2x HD 6970 crossfired

2. There are better airflow cases for that price range if you plan to OC & SLI/Xfire in future

3. Again if you plan on OC + SLI/Xfire there are better solutions (heat kills)

Noctua NH-D14 ($89.99 considered one of if not the best air cooler)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
Item=N82E16835608018&cm_re=noctua_cpu_cooler-_-35-608-018-_-Product

Corsair H60 $60 (beats air coolers at this price or lower)
http://www.centralcomputers.com/co [...] t_id=79571

I just ordered & built a gaming/rendering rig last week & you may get some ideas & it cost me 2k after shipping/taxes

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] ing-gaming

Hello:

I have a few suggestions. You did a good job of picking components but I want to present some options for you to consider.

1. Keep the 2600K you list CAD and graphic design as needed and the hyperthreading of the 2600K could help you. It also looks like you are going to be multi-tasking and the hyper threading may speed things along. It depends on what software you will be running.


2. Unless you are going to water cool I would suggest the Noctua NH-D14 CPU cooler. It will allow you to OC your computer and still keep it cool. It also is one of the quietest coolers vs performance on the market and is very high quality

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Obsi [...] 561&sr=8-1

3. Some alternate cases to consider:

1. The Cooler Master HAF X - one of the best cooling cases on the market. This is a huge case though. It is quiet, USB 3.0 compliant and well thought out

2. The Corsair 650D - This is a large mid-tower case. It is fairly quiet, cools well, it is really a conservatively beautiful case, it is USB 3.0 compliant, it has a hot swap Sata III bay and it is really well thought out to build in and nearly toolless. It is also fairly cheap for a high-end case ($180.00 on Amazon)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Obsi [...] 561&sr=8-1

The DF Antec cools really well but it is noisy (from the professional reviews that I have read).

The two cases above are very highly rated in professional reviews (I own the HAF X 942)

4. I second the recommendation to go to an ATI 6950 2GB - it is a better performing card than the GTX 480 in most games and it is more efficient

5. You might save some money by going with the Corsair 850 HX PSU because it goes on sale frequently. If you are operating your system at 30% - 75% capacity then this PSU is over 90% efficient and is essentially operating at a gold level even though it is silver certified. Only as you approach 100% capacity does it drop to 84% efficiency

6. Get 2 x 4GB DDR3 1866 RAM. Almost all of the manufacturers are equal in performance - look for the best buy. Newegg had 8gb of Gskill on sale yesterday for $80.00. This is the sweet spot of price vs performance

7. For your SSD you should look at the OCZ Vertex 3 120 GB. If money is an issue look at the OCZ Agility Sata III 6 GB/S 120 GB. The Agility is only $214 after rebate and it reads and writes at over 500 MB/s (it is similar to the Vertex 3 in performance but $100 cheaper)

8. I like your mobo, I am thinking of getting it myself

I appreciate all of the advice. Especially for the memory and coolers. Is there anything wrong with the NZXT case? I see people saying to buy some of the more proven cases but I really like the aesthetics of the the black/blue highlights and the size of the case.

Just wondering.

The Phantom is a fine case, though you may want to look into adding additional fans(the case only supports NZXT's fans) especially if you plan on crossfire/sli in the future. When it comes down to it a lot of picking a case is the aesthetics. Check out reviewers on youtube like OC3D or 3Dgameman, since they walk you through the features and can help you get a handle on the size of the case.