~1000$ Gaming Build

[Xellz]

Hey all, I've been into computers for years but I don't think I'm at the level where I can build one myself just yet. That known, I decided to go around town to check out small businesses that do this type of thing and this is what one of the guys told me for around 1250$ tax included. I'm looking for advice if what he provided me with is good or not. Suggestions for what to replace and the such are welcome.

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-Z68-D3H-B3

CPU: Intel i5-2500K

GPU: GeForce GTX550Ti 1GB 192-bit [Debating replacing this with a GTX460 1GB 256-bit]

RAM: Kingston 8GB @ 1600Mhz [Debating switching brands to G.Skill or Corsair]

SSD: OCZ Vertex 50GB [I asked for this mainly to store the OS, making switch from XP 32-bit to 7 64-bit]

HDD: Western Digital 500GB 7200RPM [Debating if I should switch this for Samsung Spinpoint F3]

PSU: Ultra Products 750W [Never heard of this company before, any good?]

Case: Antec One Hundred ATX-Mid Tower

I want to run most games at medium settings @ a resolution of 1440x900. If next year's games jump too much in requirements, I plan on adding a second card to enable SLI and OC'ing the CPU. I mean if not next year, the year after that without a doubt. I only want to game on this thing with the most recent games for ~3ish years then I might make it into a work/school computer. Thanks for your time.

 

[rvilkman]

Well you don't seem the be getting that good of a deal. For the amount of money you listed and building yourself you would be getting a machine that would run 1920x1080 at max or close to max settings AND a monitor to do it with.

Mobo 130
CPU 220
GPU 140
RAM 75 ( the 1.5V 8GB 1600MHz kits )
SSD 120 ( for crucial M4 64Gb, that one you had is probably about the same )
HDD 40 for blue
PSU $90 for 650W Corsair, XFX $110 for 750's depending a bit on the brand that might be about the same
Case $45

So you are looking at $850-900 worth of gear, probably about 900 maybe 950 with the taxes.
Not sure if that 1250 included the OS or if you already had that. It's still a hefty premium to pay for hooking up a few wires and screwing in a couple of dozen screws.

So I would say that you should take the plunge and put together your own. For that $1250 you will be able to get a computer that has what you need, has exactly what you want with quality components and you can probably have a 22-24" Full HD LED monitor to go with your build.

But to comment on what you are debating:
GPU yeah the gtx460 1GB is actually really good, and better than the 550Ti.
Memory: Corsair, Gskill, Kingston or Mushkin are the memory vendors of choice. So Kingston is fine.
SSD:The Crucial M4 is really popular and fast ~120 commonly on newegg for the 64Gb version.
HDD: Yes you should get the Spinpoint F3, just $49.99 now at newegg for this weekend.
PSU: Ultra is ok, generally I would go with Antec, Corsair, Seasonic or XFX.
Case: Anted 300 illusion has been on sale at newegg for $54.99 often, has great airflow (and comes with 4 adjustable fans ) and would be somewhat better than the 100.

 

[rvilkman]

Here is an example of what 1250 buys from newegg if you put it together yourself, and don't have to pay tax.

CPU: i5 2500k $219.99 ( there might be a $10 off code, i saw one the other day )
MB: GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 $129.99 same as in your build, decent MB
Mem: GSkill RipjawsX 2x4GB 1.5V CAS8 1600Mhz $79.99
GPU: ZOTAC ZT-50303-10M GeForce GTX 560 Ti $219.99
Case: Antec 300 Illusion $69.99
PSU: Corsair TX750 V2 $109.99 ( before $15 MIR )
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB $49.99 ( with the code )
SSD: Crucial m4 64Gb $116.49
DVD: Lite-on 24x DVD+/-RW $18.99
HSF: Xigmatek Gaia $27.99
Thermal paste: Arctic Silver 5 $11.98 ( a bit expensive i know, other options exist )
Monitor: Samsung BX2331 FullHD LED 2ms response time $199.99

Total: 1265.47 shipped to continental US i guess ( -15 rebate a = $1250.47 )

It can be tweaked easily to fit your needs, the monitor is in the expensive end and the GPU might be overkill or there might be a better deal with another brand.
There are cheaper options for some of the other things as well so i think that with a bit of tweaking and possibly leaving out the OC ability with the HSF and paste now. You can also fit the $99 Win7 in if needed...

Just something to think about

 

[Xellz]

Thank you very much for your replies, especially the fact that you took time to link all the items. I'm in Canada but I don't think the price will vary too much. I should have mentioned I already got win 7 pro 64-bit through that MSDNAA program at my university. The only problem with buying all these parts is that I won't be able to build this myself, I'm going to need to bring it to him or another place to put it all together so there's another charge of 50-100$ I'm guessing. I'm debating if I should show him this and get him to lower the price or just order all the parts myself and get it built by either him or someone else.

 

[rvilkman]

Ah ok, well it does make somewhat of a difference, mainly in shipping costs and possible taxes and such and then the difference would be less.
Nice that you have the OS taken care of.

I would say, look up the stuff in the build from online vendors and see what it comes to with shipping and stuff and then see what the difference is. It will be close to what I estimated, but might be off by $50-$100. At least you might be able to negotiate the price down if nothing else

 

[Xellz]

Yeah no doubt, thank you once again I really appreciate it!

 

[Xellz]

Best answer selected by Xellz.