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First Build - 3 Monitors + Gaming

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I'm going to be building my first computer in a few months and right now I'm trying to plan it all out. If you could look over my choices and make some suggestions, I'd appreciate it.


Approximate Purchase Date: November 1st, 2011

Budget Range: $1600

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Photoshop, Web development, web browsing

Parts Not Required: Mouse, Speakers, OS

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com

Country of Origin: USA

Parts Preferences: Mid tower, 23-24" Monitors (3). I don't like monitors that have a large frame or rounded edges.

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe

Monitor Resolution: 1920 x 1080

Additional Comments: I'd like it to be quiet and linux friendly. I'm not on either side of the fence in the whole AMD vs Intel thing, so if you think an AMD processor would suit my needs better, that's fine.

Games I'll likely be playing:
Minecraft
Call of Duty: Black Ops
Left 4 Dead 2
Crysis 2


Here are the parts I picked. I'm not a big fan of the case I chose, but I want my computer to be quiet.
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx...


Thanks in advance!

More about : build monitors gaming

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Monitor Expert

I think for 3 monitor gaming youre going to need a much better graphics card with more VRAM. The HD 6950 2GB for example would work well. I would then get a 750-850W PSU so you can definitely get 2 for Crossfire in future because i don't think 1 is going to max games even now.

About the quietness, remember that your computer is only as quiet as it's loudest part and that is likely to be the graphics card so do a bit of research and get a quiet version of the card you want. The 2 fan ones are usually more quiet than single fan options.

jmsellars1 said:
I think for 3 monitor gaming youre going to need a much better graphics card with more VRAM. The HD 6950 2GB for example would work well. I would then get a 750-850W PSU so you can definitely get 2 for Crossfire in future because i don't think 1 is going to max games even now.

About the quietness, remember that your computer is only as quiet as it's loudest part and that is likely to be the graphics card so do a bit of research and get a quiet version of the card you want. The 2 fan ones are usually more quiet than single fan options.

I switched my card for one with two fans. I didn't realize this earlier, but the one I picked had terrible reviews anyway. Are you sure about needing a better graphics card though? I've seen people on YouTube playing CoD on 3 monitors, with this card, and it didn't seem to be an issue.
Monitor Expert

CoD isn't very hard to run compared to a lot of games out there, it might run that but i dont think it would run more demanding games. Mostly because of the VRAM issue, just try to find a 1.5GB or 2GB card.

EDIT: I think the HD 6950 2GB is best if you can afford it.
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Which of these do you think would be better? I'm thinking the ASUS one because it has a better cooling system. I could overclock it to match the MSI, right? How would I do that?

ASUS EAH6950 DCII/2DI4S/2GD5 Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

MSI R6950 Twin Frozr III PE/OC Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

I'm also considering ditching the silent parts to save money. It depends on how loud it'd actually be. I don't care if it's loud while gaming because I'd mostly hear the game, but if it's loud while just browsing the web, it'd probably annoy me.

Should I go AMD to save some money? The games I'd be playing the most are Minecraft, CoD, and Bad Company 2, so don't think in terms of "Crysis on max settings".

Do you have any monitor recommendations?

Thanks for your help!

Best solution

Monitor Expert

You can overclock to match the MSI yeah and small <15% overclocks are pretty easy. Download a program like MSI afterburner and just bump up the core clock a bit, then just keep an eye on temperatures. Under 90c max on stress or 80c max on games should be fine since most GPU's are built to be able to survive at 100c+

If by silent parts you mean that PSU then i should say that Coolermaster aren't known for great PSU's so that one probably isn't worth the money anyway. Corsairs are known for being pretty quiet though. You can get a TX-750 or an XFX Core 750W for $20 less or an Antec for even less than that, all probably better than that Coolermaster.

I would not recommend AMD for games, yes a Phenom II 965 shouldnt have any problem with any current games but an i5 is much better value.

As for monitors, this one has really good reviews.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

If youre trying to save money you could get this instead of that ASRock, would do the same job.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Also, these hard drives are arguably better and undenyably much cheaper than a WD Black

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Lastly, you could consider a cheaper case. In terms of cooling i think the Antec 300 would do the same job for half the price. Would be a bit noisier and you would probably lose out on a few nice features though.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Thanks for the tips! I changed everything but the motherboard and the case. I'm still looking for a case I like. If a case that doesn't say "silent" will be quiet when I'm not doing intensive tasks, I want to get a gamer-style case with a window and some LEDs haha.

I'm not 100% sure about the monitors. The silver stripe for the buttons will probably bug me after a while.

Thanks again :) 
Monitor Expert

Don't worry too much about a quiet case, like i said it's probably going to be your graphics card making the most noise (even at minimum fan level in my case) To build a quiet PC you need to focus equally on every part being quiet, not just the case. 'Silent' cases can help a bit though, some have noise absorbing material.

If you like 'Gaming' cases then maybe look at the Antec 300 Illusion, pretty much the same case with lights and costs $5 more i think.

EDIT: Oh wow the Illusion comes with more fans too for only 5 cents more, thats probably a better buy.

So, what is your revised build?

The Antec 300 Illusion seems pretty cool. I'd like a window though because it's hard for me to resist sound activated cathodes haha. I'm also looking for something with fan filters or maybe I should just put them in myself. I'd like to avoid a dusty system.

You can see my build using the same link as before. It might change to AMD after Bulldozer is released though. I probably won't be buying anything until November, so there's plenty of time to change things around.

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx...
Monitor Expert

Try the Antec 902. That has the window, LED's, fan filters, fan controllers and very nice build quality and excellent cooling. It is a pain to build a system into though, same story when youre cleaning the filters. In terms of quietness, it is pretty quiet as far as 'gaming' cases go because you have the option to turn the fans down. I'm sure that Fractal Design Define R3 would be quieter and less of a pain though.

The features sound nice and it looks cool, but I don't want my first build to be a hassle. It also looks a bit small inside. I think my video card would take over a few hard drive bays. I'm not too worried about fan filters because I can just clean the fans/inside of the case out pretty easily, it'd just be a nice feature to have.

I'm considering the COOLER MASTER Storm Scout and the COOLER MASTER HAF 922.
Monitor Expert

Sorry for the double post but i will say one more time, if you can afford to do it i would strongly recommend a graphics upgrade. 3 monitor gaming is extremely graphics intensive, for only $40-50 more the HD 6950 2GB is much more suitable.

I think I'm going with the Antec 300 Illusion. It seems great for the price and I can always get another case in the future if not having a window starts to bother me.

I actually did have the HD 6950 2GB added to my wishlist, but newegg was having issues when I did it, so it appears it rolled back a bit. I added it again and this time went with an MSI one. There were a few reviews on newegg talking about stability issues, but I haven't seen other sites mention it. My friend also has this card and said it's very quiet and he hasn't had issues with it. Have you heard anything bad about it?

Here is the one I chose: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

You can see my entire build here: http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx...

Thank you very much for your help! I'm going to keep looking for cases because the Antec 300 doesn't seem to have cable management options. Other than that, I think my build is complete, for now. We'll see what happens after Bulldozer is released. Thanks!

I think I'm going with the XION Predator. I change my mind a lot though. I just realized that I still need a keyboard and should probably get a UPS. Storms cause me to lose power often and I haven't cared much because I'm currently using an iMac and Apple fixes all of my issues. I don't want to kill my new computer though. Do I need a 750W UPS since I have a 750W PSU? That sounds really expensive :( .
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