New Build for Gaming

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Hello everyone,

I recently made a thread about whether or not I could upgrade my older system but I came to a conclusion and thought it would be best to build a new system from scratch. After hours of searching this is what I came up with and I would like to get some feedback. The purpose of this system is to last me at least 4 years and to be able to play high-end games such as Battlefield 3, Diablo 3, and Guild Wars 2.

Here are the specifications for the system that I'm planning to build,

Motherboard :

ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Graphics Card :

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

HDD :

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Power Supply :

CORSAIR Professional Series HX650 (CMPSU-650HX) 650W ATX12V v2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

Memory :

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL

Processor :

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K

Case :

NZXT GAMMA Classic Series GAMA-001BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

CPU Heatsink :

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R1 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler

Total price for everything will be at around $900, including fans and sink. I'm hoping to at least run at a high setting while playing Battlefield 3 with these components.

Your comments are appreciated, thanks for your help.

 

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Just an update, I was considering ditching the AMD as I've always used Intel and thus I'm more familiar with it. But then again, I would like to have it under $800. Is it possible to get a i5 2500k (plus a new motherboard to cater it) instead of the AMD and change something else around?

Just a side note, I would really like to keep the Nvidia GTX 560 ti but try your best at changing my mind.

Thanks

 

[abekl]

For what you want to do I don't see anywhere to trim anything, especially going with an intel cpu would be heading in the wring direction cost wise.

 

[subspaced]

For what you want to do I don't see anywhere to trim anything, especially going with an intel cpu would be heading in the wring direction cost wise.

True, I don't think I will go into the Intel CPU route, guess i'll be trying out AMD for the first time. Also for your information, I changed some parts such as the power supply and the CPU, went from an AMD phenom II X4 955 to a 970 for the boost in performance, and I also added in the CPU Heatsink that I will most likely buy.

So, does anyone have anything else to add or change before I begin ordering the parts? And do you think that these parts will last me for 3-4 years at least?

 

[ukee1593]

You might want to take a look at the AMD FX range of processors coming out on the 12th of this month. These CPUs should be significantly faster than the current generation and are also built on a brand new 32nm HKMG process meaning that they'll consume less power and perform quicker than the current Phenom II range. Waiting for this release at the very least will also mean that the price of the current Phenom range will also come down.

For your purposes I recommend the AMD FX 6100 which is clocked at 3.3GHz and has 6 cores in total. The expected price is between $150 and $200.
The motherboard that you chose will suit this processor.

The other thing I suggest it that you take a look at the AMD Radeon 6950. This card is about the same price as the GTX 560 Ti but is a little faster overall. This will also go better with the AMD processor and motherboard as AMD GPUs tend to be less CPU dependent.

 

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Thank you for your input ukee1593,

I keep contradicting myself but I guess that is the process of researching as a consumer. I've decided to go with the Intel i5 2500k with a Z68 motherboard to support it, yes shoot me if you will for changing my mind, again. The reason for this change is because I simply don't mind the $50 increase to my budget for a huge increase in performance and based on my experience, Intel and Nvidia goes well together.

I've updated the original post at the top and I think this is what I'm going to go for as my final option. It would be awesome if some of the veterans can double check to see if everything will go well together.

Few things that I hope to accomplish or am worried about,

- I hope that this system will last me for 3-4 years.
- Kind of worried about the i5 2500k because it might become obsolete for gaming in maybe less than 2 years. Once it becomes obsolete, I will have to change both the CPU and the motherboard since the MOBO is limited to certain Intel chips, such as the i5 2500k. Please, correct me if I'm wrong here.
- This system will kick some ass as a gaming system?

Overall, this build will cost me a little over $900, including fans and sink.

Again, please lend me your advice/comment, Thanks!

 

[czerro]

Looks like a good build. I would probably scale it back a little, but definitely solid and not overboard with leg-room to update when need be.

Your concerns about the processor aren't necessary. Your GPU will be the driving performance bottleneck on any system.

As far as eventually upgrading the processor, you are kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place. The thing about intel, is they like to change their chipsets/socket types with just about every refresh. Makes it harder to build a system with some longevity. AMD is a little nicer in this regard, but unfortunately right now AM3 is on the way out and bulldozer has yet to arrive. So you have neither a place to grow into or grow from at the moment with AMD. And Intel will likely obsolete your socket type shortly. Still recommend the i5 based build you have above.

As someone else suggested, the 6950 is a better option if your monitor has a high native resolution as it scales better than the 560.

Something a little cheaper in the gpu department would probably serve you just as well though, and hit you for an upgrade at the same time as a 560 or a 6950. Things change so fast in the GPU arena, and new software pushing it so hard, that regardless of what you get you aren't really future-proofing yourself. I'd look at some things in the 150 range if you wanted to save a couple bucks.

I also recently updated my PSU and looked at the corsair hx650 but eventually went with the seasonic x650. Supposedly the hx650 is just a rebranded x650, yet other sites dispute this. Either way, both are solid PSU's and good choices.

I dunno anything about that case, I am partial to Lian-Li as the things are well-constructed, almost entirely thumbscrews, the drive bays/psu-bay/motherboard backboard are modular components that can be easily removed/inserted with the components mounted inside. The NZXT case may feature these exact same things.

Well, I suppose I'm rambling, but the build looks fine to me overall.

Edit: the thing about the Seasonic and Corsair PSU's is that even though they are supposedly the same thing, the Seasonic is Gold rated and the Corsair is bronze rated. My theory is that when these items are stress tested by Seasonic as part of manufacturing QA, the more efficient ones are kept to be sold by under the Seasonic line, and the less efficient ones are sold out to other resellers.

 

[ukee1593]

^^ +1 I love Lian Li cases too. Sadly they are out of most people's budget range.

You should be able to do a future upgrade to an Ivy Bridge based CPU if you go with the 1155 socket and the 2500K. However an overclock of the 2500K should probably make up the difference between the 2500 and the new Ivy Bridge.

As Czerro pointed out, the main bottleneck in your system will be the GPU. However, my system with a GTX 560 Ti and a i5 2500 does get quite taxed in new games such as the Battlefield 3 BETA. According to the resource monitor the CPU is running at 60-70% and the GPU is running at 99%. This is only the BETA so I'm expecting hardware use to be lower in the full version.

Either way I still reccomend that you wait for the AMD FX release. At the very least it will force the chip prices down even if you still go with Intel, and should offer better overclocking at a lower price than the i5 2500K.

 

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Thank you for your replies and at the same time I hate you guys for making me look for a new case for 2 hours.

I looked at some of the Lian Li cases and they do look sexy both internally and externally but I've decided to go with a case made by Corsair.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008

I think it is comparable to those Lian Li cases and also has that quality that I want.

As for everything else, I think I will stick to what I currently have laid out. If everything goes well, I will get 3-4 years (maybe more) worth of usage out of this system and that is more than enough time till I have to change parts again.

Before I submit my order, what do you guys think about the case?

 

[ukee1593]

The Corsair cases are good in terms of build quality. The main difference between the Lian Li and the Corsairs is the Aluminium build. Lian Lis in Aluminium are generally lighter than the Steel equivalents.

Also you get something which is NOT made in China ... which is a nice change (Lian Li is made in Taiwan)

Either way, you should be very happy with that Corsair case.

 

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