First Build for Gamer Need Your Wisdom

[Agent_Smith30303]

I'm a gamer and was wondering what people would think of this build!

It looks like this right now but based on your suggestions, could change:

CPU: i5 2500k (will be OC'd)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073

Motherboard: ASRock P67 EXTREME4 LGA 1155
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157250

GPU: XFX Radeon HD 6870 (Are there other better video cards than this? What else is comparable?)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150506

RAM:CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345 <--edit

HDD: Western Digital 1 TB 7200 RPMs
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136742

SSD: OCZ Vertex 2 60GB SATA II
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227550

PSU: CORSAIR Enthusiast Series 650W SLI Ready CrossFire Ready (I can increase the wattage if its recommended)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

Cooler: Still working on this

Case:RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX Mid Tower
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156078

Monitor: SAMSUNG ToC Rose Black 24" HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001482

Speakers: LOGISYS Computer Multimedia Speakers
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16836157006

Keyboard: Something generic, but something decent

Mouse: Something generic, but something decent

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986


So far I'm at $1329.36, but my budget is $1500. So I do have some wiggle room. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

 

[BohleyK]

Invest in a larger SSD. 120GB is a nice size. You can find some pretty cheap or on sale if you look long enough. I bought my G.Skill Phoenix Pro 120GB SSD for about $210 if I remember correctly.

Make sure you like your case. You are going to have it for awhile. You can always get a new motherboard but its kind of hard to get rid of a case. You can save money by getting a 23 inch monitor and wouldn't notice the difference.

Since you don't want anything fancy for a keyboard and mouse you should get the Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 bundle. Its a nice bundle and I used it for a year with no problems before upgrading.

The 6870 is a good card. It will run everything reasonably well or at max. An alternative would be the GTX460. Both have their advantages but they perform the same overall. If you plan to SLI you should get a 750W PSU. With Crossfire you should be fine at 650W. ATI/AMD cards run less power.

Mine as well get the Hyper 212 for a heatsink. Everybody else is rocking it and showing results with it.

 

[Outlander_04]

bohleyk is right about the ssd . 60 gig is too small to install windows and the games you will accumulate .

Id upgrade the gfx to a 6950

The hyper 212 is way over priced on newegg. Get it at Amazon , or get a $30 cooler which will be plenty for a cool running i5 2500k

 

[Agent_Smith30303]

Invest in a larger SSD. 120GB is a nice size. You can find some pretty cheap or on sale if you look long enough. I bought my G.Skill Phoenix Pro 120GB SSD for about $210 if I remember correctly.

Make sure you like your case. You are going to have it for awhile. You can always get a new motherboard but its kind of hard to get rid of a case. You can save money by getting a 23 inch monitor and wouldn't notice the difference.

Since you don't want anything fancy for a keyboard and mouse you should get the Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 bundle. Its a nice bundle and I used it for a year with no problems before upgrading.

The 6870 is a good card. It will run everything reasonably well or at max. An alternative would be the GTX460. Both have their advantages but they perform the same overall. If you plan to SLI you should get a 750W PSU. With Crossfire you should be fine at 650W. ATI/AMD cards run less power.

Mine as well get the Hyper 212 for a heatsink. Everybody else is rocking it and showing results with it.

This looks great. I found a OCZ Vertex 2 120 GB SSD on newegg for 169.99 after rebate(not a bad deal IMO)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227590

Do you have a case recommendation? I'm not looking at the state-of-the-art cases, as long as it holds all my schtuff I'd be happy -- and if it looks cool that's a plus!

In terms of the monitor do you have any suggestions? I'm looking on Newegg, but I don't really know what makes a good monitor. I had sorta just picked my previous one out of the blue cause it looked "good" and it was a Samsung which I hear is a good brand.

I did increase my wattage for a possible SLI/Crossfire in the future:
CORSAIR 750TX 750W ATX12V v2.2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&PageSize=10&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&IsFeedbackTab=true#scrollFullInfo

And then of course the amazon version (courtesy of Outlander_04) of the hyper 212 cooling component.
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310615987&sr=8-1

And the comfort keyboard that you also suggested looks good too
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823109149&cm_re=Microsoft_Comfort_Curve_2000-_-23-109-149-_-Product

In terms of the video card Outlander, there only seems to be one 6950 on newegg with 50+ reviews. It also would break my budget :/ I'm currently at 1,516.30. So unless you can truly convince me why I would need the step up on the GPU, I might have to pass on this one :/

Are there any other suggestions, comments, concerns? Ways of saving money?
Thanks for all your help so far!

 

[Formata]

If your build is for gaming, I disagree with allocating such a large proportion of your budget to an SSD. Especially considering your initial GPU choice. For the dollars your talking, you'd want at least a 6950. Spend it where it counts for what you will be using for, even if you put the SSD off for now. Many may disagree but never have I ever been involved with a build where after building and benching Crysis etc have I heard the owner say "Gee I wish I hadn't spent so much on the GPU for this build." You're a gamer, build a machine that will give you what you want now and for years to come.

 

[z_4]

Here's my recommendation :

CPU & Optical Drive : $227- i5 2500K & Samsung DVD Writer

SSD & Motherboard: $225- Gigabyte GA Z68X UD3 & Crucial M4 64 GB (SLI/Crossfire capable motherboard)

PSU & RAM : $175- Thermaltake Black Widow 750 & Corsair Vengeance 2x 4GB(modular 80plus bronze certified PSU & cheap memory)

Cooler : $30- Xigmatek Gaia (Good for overclocking)

OS : $100- Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64 bit)

Keyboard & Mouse : $32- Logitech EX100 (decent wireless set )

Speaker : $50-Creative Inspire T3130 2.1(Should be a decent one)

Graphic Card: $325- EVGA GTX 570 (More than you need)

Monitor: $200- Asus 248H 24" LED Backlit (1920X1080) (Cheaper than samsung)

HDD: $55- Samsung Spinpoint 1TB (fast and cheaper with promo code)

Case: $90- Cooler Master Storm Scout (good one to hold everything)

Total (Ecluding rebates) : 1509 USD

Rebates : 45 USD

Possible downgrades include :
GPU: $270- Radeon 6950 2GB.Save $55.
Case: $60- Cooler Master HAF 912 . Save $30.
Dropping the CPU Cooler.Save $30.

 

[Agent_Smith30303]

Here's my recommendation :

CPU & Optical Drive : $227- i5 2500K & Samsung DVD Writer

SSD & Motherboard: $225- Gigabyte GA Z68X UD3 & Crucial M4 64 GB (SLI/Crossfire capable motherboard)


Total (Ecluding rebates) : 1509 USD

Rebates : 45 USD

Possible downgrades include :
GPU: $270- Radeon 6950 2GB.Save $55.
Case: $60- Cooler Master HAF 912 . Save $30.
Dropping the CPU Cooler.Save $30.

Wow
This looks like a really great system. I understand what Formata was saying about allocating such a high amount just for the SSD, however, I will be using this for more than just gaming. I do feel that at least getting my OS on the SSD would increase the performance of really little things.

My only concern is the motherboard. It is a Z68 which I think is great, however I'm confused on why it is so much cheaper! What is the difference between this board and the ASRock Extreme?

 

[Why_Me]

If your build is for gaming, I disagree with allocating such a large proportion of your budget to an SSD. Especially considering your initial GPU choice. For the dollars your talking, you'd want at least a 6950. Spend it where it counts for what you will be using for, even if you put the SSD off for now. Many may disagree but never have I ever been involved with a build where after building and benching Crysis etc have I heard the owner say "Gee I wish I hadn't spent so much on the GPU for this build." You're a gamer, build a machine that will give you what you want now and for years to come.

A big +1 for that post.

Dual factory o/c gtx 560ti's in SLI.

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Enforcer-Interior-SGC-1000-KWN1/dp/B004WK3KKQ/ref=sr_1_6?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1309650281&sr=1-6 $79.99 & 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.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Computer-Cooling-R4-LUS-07AR-GP/dp/B002LE8BJA/ref=pd_bxgy_e_img_b $14.31 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25
Cooler Master Computer Case Cooling R4-LUS-07AR-GP 200mm Red LED Case Fan

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 $94.99 - $69.99 after mail-in rebate FREE SHIPPING
Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-750 750W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.689147 $174.98
GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.662487 $454.98 $20.00 Mail-In Rebate Card Price After Mail-In Rebate(s): $434.98 FREE SHIPPING
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127565 You Save: $5.00 $249.99 (Before $20.00 Mail-In Rebate Card) 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

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002G1YPH0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?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.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185 $54.99 FREE SHIPPING $5 off w/ promo code EMCKCKB22, ends 7/14
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118039 $18.99 FREE SHIPPING
Sony Optiarc CD/DVD Burner 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model AD-7260S-0B - OEM

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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236099 $149.99 - $134.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
Asus ML228H 21.5" 1920X1080 2ms Full HD LED BackLight LED Monitor Slim Design 250 cd/m2 10,000,000 :1 (ASCR)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0026L7FQ8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER $27.05 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Microsoft SideWinder X3 Black 5 Buttons USB Wired Laser 2000 dpi Mouse

http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-920-002478-Keyboard-K120/dp/B003ELVLKU/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1310684267&sr=1-3 $11.97 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25
Logitech Keyboard K120

Total: $1,461.73 *not including shipping, mail in rebates, and promo codes

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-CA-HS1ANA-Gaming-Analog-Headset/dp/B004IZN3NY/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1310463352&sr=1-1 $75.63 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair CA-HS1ANA Gaming Audio Series HS1 Analog Gaming Headset


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

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2011/01/27/msi-geforce-gtx-560-ti-1gb-review/1 <------ MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II/OC Review / Benchmarks

http://www.extremetech.com/computing/83018-microsoft-sidewinder-x3-gaming-mouse-review <----- Review on that SideWinder X3 Gaming Mouse

http://www.laptopmag.com/review/accessories/asus-ml228h-22-inch-monitor.aspx <----- Review of that Asus gaming monitor

http://www.pro-clockers.com/powersupplies/1838-antec-high-current-gamer-hcg-750-power-supply.html <----- Review of that Antec psu

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3856#ov <----- GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3