Rate My Potential Build

[Nater43]

Approximate Purchase Date: Next few months. Around November probably.

Budget Range: ~$1000 After Rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, internet, watching movies.

Parts Not Required: OS, monitor

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com

Country of Origin: USA

Overclocking: Probably, if it shows noticeable performance gain. If marginal, then no.

SLI or Crossfire: Crossfire potentially, but not anytime soon

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

=================================================================

Potential build:

Case: CoolerMaster HAF 922
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197&cm_re=haf_922-_-11-119-197-_-Product

Motherboard: Gigabyte Z68 UD3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128500&Tpk=z68%20ud3

CPU: Intel Core i5-2400
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115074&cm_re=i5_2400-_-19-115-074-_-Product

CPU Heatsink: CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Plus
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

GPU: A 6950 2GB of sorts. Cheapest one I can find at time of building.

RAM: G.Skill Vengeance 8GB (2x4GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233147

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

ODD: Cheapest I can find at time of build.

PSU: Corsair 650TX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspxItem=N82E16817139005&Tpk=corsair%20650tx

Mouse + Keyboard: Logitech G500 and Microsoft Sidewinder X4
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Anywhere I can shave off a few dollars and not take a noticeable performance hit? Anything I should buy above something I have listed? Thanks for your insight.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

mobo-asrock p67 extreme4
i5 2500k so you caqn actually oc and it gives a big performance gain and it is so easy to do
psu- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207007&cm_re=xfx_650-_-17-207-007-_-Product
you need a 750w psu to go crossfire with those cards

 

[mgf derp]

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6950-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/ I think you could just go with a 6950 1Gb over the 2Gb. That way the money you save could be put towards the 2500k for ultimate "future proofing". What kind of games do you play? This could help determine if an Nvidia or AMD card is better. Unless you have a brand preference? I also second that you should get a 750w psu for again "future proofing". Just my .02 hope it helps.

 

[genghiskron]

agreed with both. For the video card, I would just wait and see what the prices are like when you buy.
Right now, the $250 6950 2gb makes it any easy choice, imo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161368&cm_re=6950-_-14-161-368-_-Product

 

[Nater43]

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6950-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/ I think you could just go with a 6950 1Gb over the 2Gb. That way the money you save could be put towards the 2500k for ultimate "future proofing". What kind of games do you play? This could help determine if an Nvidia or AMD card is better. Unless you have a brand preference? I also second that you should get a 750w psu for again "future proofing". Just my .02 hope it helps.

I don't really have a brand preference, but from my knowledge on desktop video cards (limited knowledge...), AMD cards have always been the better value for your money. I could be wrong. Anyway, I'll be playing games like Battlefield 3, Skyrim, Dead Space 2, Mass Effect series, as well as RTS's like Sins of a Solar Empire, Age of Empires 3.

 

[mgf derp]

Then when you go to purchase I suggest you compare the prices of a GTX 560Ti and the HD 6950 1Gb as they perform similar so you get the most for your money. Hope it helps.

 

[Nater43]

Will do MGF Derp.

[strike]The reason I picked the motherboard I did was because of Gigabytes built in SSD feature. How functional is this and does it actually provide a noticeable boost, or is it just a gimmick? [/strike]

Looking into this it seems that my chosen motherboard doesn't have the build in SSD, just the technology to use one for caching. With this in mind, I'm kind of lost as to motherboard now. Any opinions?

Any other ideas where I can make my build better?

 

[Nater43]

Sorry for double post, but how will an AMD CPU build compare? I'm looking at the 955 Black Edition. How much is the performance gap? I know that the GPU will be the bottleneck before CPU, but I was just curious how much the performance differed? I know I will need a different motherboard for the AMD option, which I am open to suggestions about.

Thanks again.

 

[mgf derp]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-gaming-cpu-core-i3-2100-phenom-ii-x6-1075t,2859.html read that article and see that at this point in time it would be better performance wise to build a Sandy Bridge system over a 955. But if you are looking to save money then a 955 wouldn't be a slouch of a system I would just recommend that you get an AM3+ compatible motherboard or buy everything now except the motherboard and wait until the 900 series chipset motherboards are released in a little bit and buy one of those. They are going to be SLi compatible as well as Crossfire (well most of them) and then you could upgrade to Bulldozer cpu later on or in a few years. Just my .02

 

[Nater43]

Just curious, when are the Bulldozer CPU's set to release?

I'm leaning more and more toward the Intel build, just trying to cut cost where I can.

 

[fragglewhat]

According to the AMD release party for the Bulldozer processors, they have decided to delay the chips until around August to September. AMD is saying its for a "Strategic Decision", although many analysts are saying its due to performance reasons, as they are not able to squeeze out the juice they claimed they would be able to do. So the three months in many peoples eyes is being used to try and get more power so they can compete with Intel's current chips. Hope this helps

 

[genghiskron]

They have been delayed AGAIN to september, they were supposed to be released this month. The rumor is that the processors are still not competitive with sandy bridge and need more tweaking before they are released. Im inclined to believe the rumors because, for one, sandy bridge is just that good, and the lack of bulldozer benchmarks thus far says to me "we dont want you to see them yet, because youre not going to be impressed"

edit: too slow

 

[Nater43]

Alright thanks. That should be good then, because if I build in November, I'll get to see what the new AMD chips can do compared to Intel's offerings. Maybe prices will drop some and I'll find the money to pick up an i5-2500k instead of the 2400

 

[ignoranceabound]

You can buy a GTX 560 Ti or HD 6950 1GB to save money; both are more than sufficient at 1080p. In fact if you don't mind overclocking (with MSI afterburner it's really simple) a GTX 560 non-Ti should be enough.

That PSU is horribly overrpriced; for $90 go with the 650W XFX bronze modular or get an Antec 620/650W for cheaper.

The 922 is nice and big with great cable management but you never need to spend more than $70 on a computer case.

 

[mgf derp]

You can buy a GTX 560 Ti or HD 6950 1GB to save money; both are more than sufficient at 1080p. In fact if you don't mind overclocking (with MSI afterburner it's really simple) a GTX 560 non-Ti should be enough.

That PSU is horribly overrpriced; for $90 go with the 650W XFX bronze modular or get an Antec 620/650W for cheaper.

The 922 is nice and big with great cable management but you never need to spend more than $70 on a computer case.

The GTX 560 is a joke get the GTX 460 as it is the same thing and can be found for cheaper.

 

[Nater43]

You can buy a GTX 560 Ti or HD 6950 1GB to save money; both are more than sufficient at 1080p. In fact if you don't mind overclocking (with MSI afterburner it's really simple) a GTX 560 non-Ti should be enough.

That PSU is horribly overrpriced; for $90 go with the 650W XFX bronze modular or get an Antec 620/650W for cheaper.

The 922 is nice and big with great cable management but you never need to spend more than $70 on a computer case.

Any cases you would recommend?
I'd just be buying the 2GB version to "future proof" it a little bit, but even then if you don't see games utilizing it, I guess its pointless.

 

[mgf derp]

Not many cases better then the HAF 922 especially in the HAF's price range. Alsothe HAF is quite large for a mid tower so there is plenty of room to work in. You could look at the CoolerMaster CM690 II Advanced to save a few bucks as it also has good airflow/worrking room.

 

[Nater43]

I think I'll stick with the 922 then, as I don't really like the looks of the CM690 II.

 

[ignoranceabound]

You will be limited by the processor before the VRAM for these cards at 1080p or below. The GTX 560 is not simply a overclocked GTX 460 (though they will perform identically at the same clocks); you cannot achieve those core and RAM timings with a 460.

The biggest problem with the regular 560s is the lack of MIRs.

 

[Nater43]

Alright well sounds like I'll be good with a 1GB card then, though I'm finding that the 1GB and 2GB versions of the 6950 don't have that much of a price difference, so I might as well just get the 2GB...

 

[mgf derp]

You will be limited by the processor before the VRAM for these cards at 1080p or below. The GTX 560 is not simply a overclocked GTX 460 (though they will perform identically at the same clocks); you cannot achieve those core and RAM timings with a 460.

The biggest problem with the regular 560s is the lack of MIRs.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-560-amp-edition-gtx-560-directcu-ii-top,2944.html Its a GTX 460 that has been "optimized" with the 500 series power savings features. But performance wise at the same clocks they will be the same.