Need help building BF3 budget rig

ecjohnson3

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Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next month

Budget Range: $800 After Rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming (SC2, BF3, Diablo3, GW2), streaming video, downloading uploading torrents, surfing the net

Parts Not Required: monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg or tigerdirect

Country of Origin: United States

Parts Preferences: no preference, but trying to keep costs down

Overclocking: Yes, in the future

SLI or Crossfire: Yes in the very near future

Monitor Resolution: currently using a 27 in at 1080

Additional Comments: would like to build for upgradability in the future (i.e. bulldozer or ivy bridge) including the installment of a second GPU. Would like to be able to run BF3 at max settings.

Thanks for the suggestions! My main concern is with what cpu/gpu combo to go with.
 
Solution
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RC-912-KKN1-Haf-Chassis/dp/B003ZM7YTA/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt $49.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Haf 912 Chassis

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.735491 $203.98 - $25.00 Mail In Rebates FREE SHIPPING
High Current Pro HCP-750 750W TX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.92 SLI Certified CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.717978 $448.98 - $20.00 Mail In Rebates FREE SHIPPING
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W...
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RC-912-KKN1-Haf-Chassis/dp/B003ZM7YTA/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt $49.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Haf 912 Chassis

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.735491 $203.98 - $25.00 Mail In Rebates FREE SHIPPING
High Current Pro HCP-750 750W TX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.92 SLI Certified CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.717978 $448.98 - $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
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=N82E16820148419 $29.99 FREE SHIPPING $10 off w/ promo code EMCKAJE26, ends 9/21
Crucial Ballistix sport 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT25664BA160A

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.696166 $66.48
SAMSUNG CD/DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-222AB - OEM
Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Total: $799.42 *not including shipping, promo codes, and mail in rebates
 
Solution

008Rohit

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Aug 1, 2011
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i3 2100 - $125
ASRock H61M-GE - $65
Gskill Value Series 4GB DDR3 1333 - $20
HIS IceQ X Radeon HD 6950 1GB - $250
Seagate Barracuda 500GB SATA III - $40
LG Optical Drive SATA 24X DVD R/W - $20
Corsair CX500 V2 - $55
CoolerMaster HAF 912 - $60

Total : $635 before rebates

This will handle BF3 pretty well. You can spend $60 more on the processor and get a quad core i5 2400.
 

AdrianPerry

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Very nice build there with some great combo deals. Don't usually see such good components in builds under $1k

Id be very temped to use the case from this months system builder $1k build however.

At $40 its a really nice case! And it has a black interior rather than the "cheap looking" silver inside of the HAF 912. http://www.raidmax.com/chassis/altas.html
 

It's not even close imo, especially for a dual card set up with the option to add a decent sized cpu heat sink. The Cooler Master has it over that Raidmax hands down. When you add in shipping charges for that Raidmax it gets even worse. The CM HAF is $50 and free shipping @ amazon and thats what the Raidmax runs with shipping from newegg even though it's half the case of that CM HAF.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156247
RAIDMAX Altas ATX-295WB Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

20" x 7.5" x 17.5"

1 x 120 mm Blue LED Front Fan
1 x 120 mm Rear Fan


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
COOLER MASTER HAF 912 RC-912-KKN1 Black SECC/ ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

19.50" x 9.10" x 18.90"

-Front: 120 mm fan x 2, 1200 RPM, 17 dBA (one is optional,can be swapped for one 200mm fan)
-Top: 120 mm fan x 2 or 200mm fan x 1(optional)
-Rear: 120 mm fan x 1, 1200 RPM, 17 dBA
-Side:120/140 mm fan x 1 (optional)
Supports two 120mm radiator fans
 

ecjohnson3

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Jul 13, 2011
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Thanks for all of the awesome advice everyone!

My questions now are:

1.)GTX 560ti SLi vs AMD 6950 1 gb xfire vs GTX 570 SLi?

-where do i get the best bang for my buck currently given the budget of the system and planning on introducing the second card a few months down the line

2.) I noticed no one suggested an AMD cpu, but it seems like i could save money by purchasing a Phenom II x4 965 for $120.00 and overclocking it.

-would this bottleneck the system later or is it just not as useful for gaming as the equally priced i3 or the much more expensive i5 2500k
 

008Rohit

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Not a bottleneck, but i3 2100 matches the performance of a 980BE at stock speeds in games. So an i5 should do even better.

Best bang for the buck is the HD 6970 Crossfire. Much more powerful than 570 SLI.
 

You can google the benchmarks for the vid cards, but good luck on fitting a gtx 570 in a $800 dollar budget along with an 850w psu to push two of those cards later on in SLI.

As far as recommending an AMD cpu... :lol:

Take a look at similar threads on here and see if anyone has recommended an AMD cpu for a similar budget as yours. Other than a few wingnuts...it's not happening. You either want a gaming rig or a ghetto blaster. I'm guessing your here for a gaming build hence the 2500K I posted in that build up above.
 

ecjohnson3

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haha fair enough. so if I was considering the gtx 560 ti vs the 6950 sli/xf what has the better scaling and overall performance?
 

For 1920 x 1080 resolution it's six one way, half a dozen the other between those two cards. You can't go wrong with either one imo. I tend to lean towards the 560ti for price and it's over clocking ability.
 

ecjohnson3

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Okay sweet.

Last question :)

Will I be losing alot of performance choosing not to overclock and saving money on an i5 2400 (and the aftermarket cooler)?
 

Some yes, but not a lot. After 4.4ghz with these SB cpu's you don't gain any fps in games. But you don't save much money going to the 2400. You can always pick up a after market cpu cooler later on.