Need advice on a $1000 gaming PC

biosteak12

Distinguished
Aug 9, 2011
3
0
18,510
Approximate Purchase Date: Planned to buy them this week, but need advice.

Budget Range: Around $800-1100 including tax and shipping, but lower better.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: I planned to use it for lots of gaming. Occasionally some video editing.

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, Speakers, OS.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com

Country of Origin: United States

Parts Preferences: I'd like to stick with the Sandy Bridge series of CPU.

Overclocking: Yes, but not too much.

SLI or Crossfire: Possibly in the future.

Monitor Resolution: 1440x900, might change in the future

Additional Comments:

Hello everyone, this is the first time I'm building a new computer. I want to use the best part that can give me max performance while staying under the budget. I did some research and came up with some of the parts myself, but I fear that some of the component might not be compatible with each other. I would like you guys to help me see if the parts help me see if there will be any conflicts or problems with my build or if I'm missing anything.

Also, how high can I overclock the CPU without replacing the stock heatsink and fan or deducing the CPU lifespan? Occasionally, I do some video editing, how much faster will the i7 2600K be compared to the i5 2500K, let's say I'm rendering a 1GB file. According to my research, the hyper threading included in the i7 is absolutely useless on most of the game in the market. What other performance increase can I get from the i7, other than working with videos and photos? Is it worth the $100 switching to the i7?

Some of my other concern is with the PSU. Is my power supply good enough to provide sufficient power for my new computer? I don't know if the brand of the PSU is good enough or not. I saw some pretty cool benchmarking on the Radeon 6870, but I don't know if there are other graphic card that is better than the 6870 with a more reasonable price. I saw some reviews on the ASUS P8P67 deluxe mother board, and heard it's pretty decent. If anyone know a better one, please let me know! I have much more concern since it is my first time building a computer, but I felt like I'm asking way too many questions.

Setup:
CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz
CD/DVD Burner: ASUS 24X DVD Burner
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB
Graphic Card: SAPPHIRE 100314-2SR Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5
PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W
Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Motherboard: ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (REV 3.0)
Case: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower

Total Cost: Rounded up to $1,090.05 after tax and shipping.

All advice, tips, and feedback are welcome, thank you all! :)
 

lp231

Splendid
You can save by getting this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771
The DVD writer you have needs shipping. $20.99+$4.99=$25.98
This has free shipping: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151235
Better cooler than stock Intel? here...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

Games won't take advantage of i7's HT, but when you work on encoding and other media task (Sony Vegas),
Core i7 will be at a advantage over the Core i5.
And at that screen resolution, you won't need SLI or CFX
 
G

Guest

Guest
The psu is more than you need. You'll be good with the i5. Likely not much more performance for you. Not worth it. On stock cooling, you can safely get to 4ghz without going over 80C on full load(in my experience).

I recommend this hdd instead, cheaper, cooler, and faster in many situations.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

I think you don't need to spend that much on the motherboard. Just my opinion... I would pocket the extra money or spend it more on the graphics card instead. This motherboard would be enough.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128512

 
G

Guest

Guest
Don't need a cooler. Imo just use the stock cooler for mild overclocks. Unnecessary to spend money on a budget cooler. On one of my pcs, with 4ghz(which will be enough) I barely reach 80C while running Prime 95 for an hour. Once you want to do some serious overclocking get the best cooler you can get. Not worth getting a mediocre cooler for mild overclocks.
 

biosteak12

Distinguished
Aug 9, 2011
3
0
18,510
Thank you all for your replies! I'll definitely reconsider my build :)
How will my new computer do in graphic demanding games?
How much faster will the i7 be compared to the i5 in video rendering, percentage wise?
 
This build just needs a case added to it. For good cooling with plenty of room, look at the Cooler Master mid towers like the CM Scout, Enforcer, 922 HAF, 912 HAF, etc..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 $89.99 - $64.99 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/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128502 $118.99 FREE SHIPPING
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Virtu, Touch BIOS, Smart Response SSD, 2-Way SLI, HDMI

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.694804 $266.98 save: $13.00 - $20.00 Mail In Rebates FREE SHIPPING
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory with heatshield Model PSD38G1600KH

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065 $27.99 FREE SHIPPING
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185 $49.99 FREE SHIPPING
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
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=N82E16814130604 $239.99 - $214.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

or.....

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127594 $239.99 - $219.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card


Total: $815.01 *not including mail in rebates



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