- Sep 23, 2011
- 3
- 0
- 18,510
Hi everyone. With Deus Ex recently kicking my system in the pants and Skyrim on the horizon, I've suddenly gotten the urge to build a new system. I put together the following system mostly by comparing the June/September SBM articles, the recent BestConfig winners, and sprinkling in some Tom's Recommends and Best For The Money picks. I'm basically aiming for something that might feel close to a $1500 SBM if there was such a bracket. I feel pretty good about the system, but would love to get some general feedback on it. I also have a few specific questions that I'll put below.
Edit: Updated to reflect suggestions by Why_Me and change out the case.
Motherboard:
[strike]Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX[/strike]
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155
Graphics:
EVGA SuperClocked 012-P3-1572-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi)
Processor:
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor
Memory:
[strike]Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600[/strike]
Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600
System Drive:
ADATA S511 Series 120GB
Storage Drive:
Any 7200 >= 1TB I have laying around.
Optical:
ASUS 24X DVD Burner OEM
Case:
[strike]Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower
[/strike]Corsair Special Edition White Graphite Series 600T
Power:
[strike]Corsair Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W ATX12V [/strike]
XFX Core Edition PRO850W 850W ATX12V 80 PLUS BRONZE
Heat Sink:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Approximate Purchase Date:
One week, maybe two.
Budget Range:
$1500 max, but the closer to $1000 the better (without skimping on obvious upgrades).
System Usage from Most to Least Important:
gaming, movies, programming, internet, etc.
Parts Not Required:
Pretty much anything that's not going to go in the case. I have an ASUS VH242H 23.6" HDMI 1080p monitor and a Logitech speaker system I'm not looking to replace. I also a hard drive laying around that I intend to use for the storage drive. However, I am planning on downgrading my Das keyboard for a MS Sidewinder X4 (LOVE the Das for typing, but never quite enjoyed gaming on it), upgrading my glitchy Ikari mouse for a Logitech G500, and replacing my worn out headphones with a pair of SteelSeries Sibera v2. If anyone has any opinion on those products, I'd love to hear it.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts:
newegg.com, amazon.com (Prime member)
Country of Origin:
United States
Parts Preferences:
Intel and Nvidia. Not totally locked on Nvidia, but it'd take a really compelling argument to move me.
Overclocking:
Maybe. I've never bothered with it in the past, generally being so floored with the relative performance of a new system I never saw much point, but after reading articles on this site it seems that the accessibility and risks are about at a level I'm comfortable with, so I'll probably give it a try. This will be my first build using a third party CPU cooler (though I have used third party thermal compound in the past).
SLI or Crossfire:
Maybe, but not initially. Had a pretty bad intro to SLI a couple years ago and have always preferred a faster single card since. Seems that's a pretty common recommendation anyhow, so I don't see any reason to switch. Don't want to rule it out if I decide I want to double up down the road, though.
Monitor Resolution:
1920x1080
Additional Comments:
I'm not trying to build a silent PC by any means, but sound is a big priority. I share a studio apartment with my girlfriend and she sometimes has trouble sleeping between the overworked 120mm fans in my current system and my Das keyboard (the other reason I'm looking to replace it). This is also part of the reason I upgraded the case from the HAF 912 to the HAF 922. I'm really hoping the dual 200mm fans will help the situation.
[strike]Speaking of the HAF 922, it looks like the 120mm fan in the back can be replaced with a 140mm. Can anyone confirm this? Also, will that make a worthwhile difference to noise and/or cooling? I've never given much thought to fans or cooling in my previous builds beyond "is this sufficient?".[/strike]
[strike]I'm also questioning my choice of motherboard. The Gigabyte got a Tom's Recommends, but then performed poorly when overclocking in the September SBM ($2000). Is this something I should be concerned about, or was it more likely to have to do with the specifics of that build? ASUS boards seem to have really good word-of-mouth, so I was considering taking a closer look at their stuff.[/strike]
I guess that's about it. Again, any thoughts would be appreciated.
Edit: Updated to reflect suggestions by Why_Me and change out the case.
Motherboard:
[strike]Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX[/strike]
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155
Graphics:
EVGA SuperClocked 012-P3-1572-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi)
Processor:
Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor
Memory:
[strike]Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600[/strike]
Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600
System Drive:
ADATA S511 Series 120GB
Storage Drive:
Any 7200 >= 1TB I have laying around.
Optical:
ASUS 24X DVD Burner OEM
Case:
[strike]Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower
[/strike]Corsair Special Edition White Graphite Series 600T
Power:
[strike]Corsair Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W ATX12V [/strike]
XFX Core Edition PRO850W 850W ATX12V 80 PLUS BRONZE
Heat Sink:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Approximate Purchase Date:
One week, maybe two.
Budget Range:
$1500 max, but the closer to $1000 the better (without skimping on obvious upgrades).
System Usage from Most to Least Important:
gaming, movies, programming, internet, etc.
Parts Not Required:
Pretty much anything that's not going to go in the case. I have an ASUS VH242H 23.6" HDMI 1080p monitor and a Logitech speaker system I'm not looking to replace. I also a hard drive laying around that I intend to use for the storage drive. However, I am planning on downgrading my Das keyboard for a MS Sidewinder X4 (LOVE the Das for typing, but never quite enjoyed gaming on it), upgrading my glitchy Ikari mouse for a Logitech G500, and replacing my worn out headphones with a pair of SteelSeries Sibera v2. If anyone has any opinion on those products, I'd love to hear it.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts:
newegg.com, amazon.com (Prime member)
Country of Origin:
United States
Parts Preferences:
Intel and Nvidia. Not totally locked on Nvidia, but it'd take a really compelling argument to move me.
Overclocking:
Maybe. I've never bothered with it in the past, generally being so floored with the relative performance of a new system I never saw much point, but after reading articles on this site it seems that the accessibility and risks are about at a level I'm comfortable with, so I'll probably give it a try. This will be my first build using a third party CPU cooler (though I have used third party thermal compound in the past).
SLI or Crossfire:
Maybe, but not initially. Had a pretty bad intro to SLI a couple years ago and have always preferred a faster single card since. Seems that's a pretty common recommendation anyhow, so I don't see any reason to switch. Don't want to rule it out if I decide I want to double up down the road, though.
Monitor Resolution:
1920x1080
Additional Comments:
I'm not trying to build a silent PC by any means, but sound is a big priority. I share a studio apartment with my girlfriend and she sometimes has trouble sleeping between the overworked 120mm fans in my current system and my Das keyboard (the other reason I'm looking to replace it). This is also part of the reason I upgraded the case from the HAF 912 to the HAF 922. I'm really hoping the dual 200mm fans will help the situation.
[strike]Speaking of the HAF 922, it looks like the 120mm fan in the back can be replaced with a 140mm. Can anyone confirm this? Also, will that make a worthwhile difference to noise and/or cooling? I've never given much thought to fans or cooling in my previous builds beyond "is this sufficient?".[/strike]
[strike]I'm also questioning my choice of motherboard. The Gigabyte got a Tom's Recommends, but then performed poorly when overclocking in the September SBM ($2000). Is this something I should be concerned about, or was it more likely to have to do with the specifics of that build? ASUS boards seem to have really good word-of-mouth, so I was considering taking a closer look at their stuff.[/strike]
I guess that's about it. Again, any thoughts would be appreciated.
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