Still a good build or need changes?

I'm not going to sit here and tell you that you HAVE to switch these parts for other parts to have a good system. This is fully capable of being good....just not the best. I say that because the intel build just perform better. The i5-2500k is just the best thing out for gaming. It has alot of overclock head room to prevent having to upgrade so soon. The AMD cpu can also be overclocked but when you put the amd vs. intel at the same speeds the intel will still come out on top. Do a google search of some benchmarks and compare them and you will see. But if AMD is what you prefer then the answer is yes it will work.


One thing I would change is the case if you want to do SLI in the future. The antec 300 is garbage it seems for cable managment. I have not seen a nice clean build of one yet. Get something that has more room and better cable routing options.

I suggest the Cooler Master 690II Advanced....it can hold 10 or 11 fans to keep components cool and has good amounts of room to build and route cables.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $89

May be a bit over your budget but is very much worth it.

No one is entirely sure when Bulldozer is coming out, but it is likely that there would be something in your price range that would beat any current AMD offering. As it stands, I'd go for the X4 955 instead of the X6- better gaming performance at a lower price.

The 6950 is a great card, and Xfire down the road will provide great scaling. As for the PSU, you need a quality 500w unit for a single card and 750w for Crossfire, and that's giving you some room. I recommend this Antec 750w unit:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

So if i do go with an intel i5-2500k Whats all the recommended parts ill need (im still not very good with the mix n match of parts) so im not sure what motherboard is good etc...

And ive got some room with the budget so some more isnt so bad

Its in the $1000 to $1500 range with a little swinging room

if you $1,500 then you can build yourself a great system.
My recomendation:

Case: COOLER MASTER HAF X ($190)
GPU: MSI N570GTX ($320)
CPU: i5 2500k ($220)
PSU: Seasonic SS 850 HT 850W ($120)
Mobo: Asus P8Z68-V ($133)
Memory: 8Gb (2x4Gb) Crucial BL2KIT51264BA1339 ($63)

Reasons:

HAF X is great, spacious, has USB 3, lots of cooling and 9 PCI-E slots
GTX 570 is awesome. More expensive than 6950, but I like it more (Physix)
CPU: no need to elaborate about it
PSU: Seasonic is the best. This particular model has a great price, though it does not have cable management. Plus, 850W gets you "near future proof" power.
Mobo: Asus boards are great (support, driver up-dates, general treats etc.). Z68 is the best chipset for you Sandy Bridge.
Memory: ALWAYS buy the cheapest from a good vendor. Expensive memory, with creative names (Revenger, Assassin, Terminator etc.) are just not worth.

It still lets you money to get monitor, keyboard, mouse etc.

In time:

Cooler: Xygmatek Dark Knight ($53)

570's are great but like he said more expensive and the AMD's scale better in crossfire....either way it wont be a disappointment. Also seasonic is good. you will find that other companies take their psu and re-brand them. Non modular PSU are cheaper but are harder to work with if you dont have a case with good cable routing options. 690II can handle it though. so its your choice on if you would like to have more cables in your system than is needed.

+1 to all, if it's in the $1500 range you either go with a 2500k now or wait until Bulldozer.

would be nice to have numbers for bulldozer to see how they would compare to intel

I think I forgot to mention my monitor is going to be my hdtv so my GPU needs a HDMI is there a difference between the mini hdmi the 570 has and a regular hdmi?
and maybe another motherboard thats in stock? (just me being impatient lol) but i can wait if its the best for my money

LOL...sorry...didnt see it was out of stock

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

no diff in mini and reg hdmi.....same pic quality...most cards come with adapters from mini to reg

Oh and just in case you ever consider a micro atx board with sli/cf features

ASUS Maximus IV- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $169 (z68)

How big is your HDTV?

50in 1080p

Get a card with 2gb vram or more....the 570 will run you around $400 and the 6950 will be around $270

Does that have to do with it scaling or refresh rate or what?

Nevermind...got ahead of myself. Sorry. I did some reading and asked another part of the forum. It wont matter unless you try and play games above 1900x1080.

I just want this system to be as close to maxing out Skyrim the day it comes out and I thought 1900x1080 was max for 1080p?
Didnt think it could go higher

Your right....just didnt know what you were using...your good to go man

Thank you so much ive learned so much today that i ever would have on my own.  

Best answer selected by jojoman211.

Good Luck!