New Build ~2K Gaming PC - Please Review My Build!

[Noob]

I’m looking to build a 1920x1200 gaming PC. I’d like it to be as quiet as possible. I’m trying to hit towards the higher end of the performance/cost sweet spot – i.e. I don’t want (or, I think, need) to go for the absolute bleeding edge.

My thoughts are beginning to coalesce as below. Any thoughts and help would be much appreciated!

Approximate Purchase Date: Next couple of weeks

Budget Range: ~£2K

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, surfing the internet.

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, mouse, speakers

Country of Origin: UK

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200

Case: Silverstone Fortress FT02, Is it worth replacing the top 120mm fan? "Most users complain about that single fan being louder than all 3 of the 180mm fans combined. Replacing it with something like a Scythe Gentle Typhoon or one of the many other low dB options on the market usually solves the problem.”

Mobo: Z68, but not sure which specific board. I don’t want to SLI/Xfire. I will be looking to try some moderate overclocking. I might update the graphics card at some point. I don’t want to skimp here if it’ll be a bottleneck either now or a bit further down the line. Asus P8Z68-V PRO?

CPU: Core i5-2500K

CPU Fan: Thermalright Silver Arrow

Mem: Corsair Memory Vengeance Jet Black LP 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9

GFX: Asus Direct CU II GTX 580

SFX: Is it worth getting discrete (I guess this is partially dependent on the choice of mobo)? If so, any suggestions?

SSD: Adata S511 Series ~128GB or Crucial m4 128GB

HDD: I guess I should go for 1TB or so of storage. Not sure which I should go for given the primary SSD?

PSU: Not sure how powerful I need to go for the above setup. A few choices:
Corsair AX1200 1200W: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story5&reid=189
OCZ ZX Series 1000W: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story5&reid=238
Seasonic X-760: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story5&reid=235

 

[striker410]

Not bad! Looks alright.
First things first, you should check out the ASRock Gen3 boards. They are of excellent quality and value.
Down to the nitty gritty.
CPU: Good. Might opt for the 2600k since this is a 2k build.
CPU fan: Good if you like to do some serious overclocking, otherwise overkill.
GFX: Good for a single GPU, a little weak otherwise. 2 6950's or 560 Ti's might also make sense.
SFX: Not worth it unless you have a really nice set of cans.
SSD: Bueno, Check the Patriot Pyro too.
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 for sure.

Lastly, PSU. I would say all these choices are overkill. This PSU is an AWESOME deal, only $120 for a quality, modular, 850w PSU! Sold! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817194093 According to HardOCP http://www.hardocp.com/article/2011/06/20/lepa_b_series_850w_power_supply_review/ The unit is made by Enermax, which is an excellent company. The PSU is a great deal, and can handle your rig with ease and has enough juice to handle 2 GTX 580's in the future.

Well, that's all I gotta say. Cheers!

 

[mjmjpfaff]

go with the ocz zx 1000w. 900w is the minimum recommended.

go with the crucial m4. much more reliable than the buggy sandforce ssd's

hdd- the samsung spinpoint f3 1tb is a favorite around here for how fast it is at such a low price

CPU heatsink- the thermalrights are notorious for not having perfectly flat bases. that is why the noctua NH-D14 is the ultimate air cooler. i feel that they are overkill if you arent going to about 5ghz so that is why i usually recommend the scythe mugen 3- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185168&Tpk=scythe%20mugen%203 very quiet and still cools well.

memory: good choice

the gpu is a triple slot card which can make a lot of problems if you want to sli. look into the the gigabyte windforce cards or the msi twin frozr cards if you want good cooling.

mobo- i agree with striker the asrock gen3 boards are great and future proof until ivy bridge and the new lines of gpu's are obsolete

the ft02 is an amazing case good choice. i do think that you should switch out that 120mm for a scythe slipstream or jentle typhoon.

 

[calguyhunk]

Unless I'm missing something, the OP clearly states "No SLI".

That being the case, he doesn't need anything remotely resembling a Kilowatt PSU.

@ Noob - Since you say that you're gonna be waiting for a week -

CPU: $330(?) Intel Core i7-2700K (Upcoming)

Motherboard: $200 ASUS P8Z68-V PRO

RAM: $50 CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB

GPU: $480 EVGA SuperClocked GeForce GTX 580

HDD: $60 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 1TB

SSD: $205 Intel 320 Series 2.5" 120GB

ODD: $70 LG Black SATA Blue Ray burner Super Multi with LightScribe Support - OEM

or LG/Samsung/Sony Optiarc SATA DVD+-RW for some $50 savings.

PSU: $70 CORSAIR 650TX V2

Case: $170 Corsair Obsidian 650D, or if you wanna save some money, $100 Corsair 400R or even the HAF 912. Remember, with smaller cases like the aforementioned HAF, you'll have to remove the modular drive bays for the 580 to fit.

TBH, the Silverstone case is wayyy too expensive IMO. But to each his own, I suppose. What I can guarantee is that it ain't gonna be ANY better than the 659D either in terms of airflow, or overall interior space.

LCU: $120 CORSAIR H100 Liquid CPU Cooler or

HSF: Cooler Master Hyper 212+ or Noctua NH-D14 Or Prolimatech Megahalems + Fans depending on your choice of air/water, budget and obviously how high do you really wanna go.

Sound Card: No. If you needed it, you'd have known it

Costs - ~$1700 + Shipping in the US. Will cost more obviously in the UK, but I cannot really advise you to buy absolutely anything more without wasting money if you're not looking to SLI.

If you are willing to look at that option though, get another 580 (480 bucks) and the Corsair AX 1200 PSU ($280 odd in the US)

And whether or not you choose to SLI, don't worry 'bout any bottlenecks anytime soon. These components can and will max out pretty much anything you can throw at it for quite some time to come on a single 2560X1440 screen (or lower).

UK Websites:

Scan.co.uk

Overclockers.com

Ebuyer.com

 

[Noob]

Thanks for the help all.

Another question: is there a good reason to overclock the i2500k/2600k if I'm gaming at 1920X1200 with a GTX580? I.e. am I ever going to be CPU rather than GPU bound. This will help me decide whether I should spend more on the CPU fan...

Thanks again!!

 

[calguyhunk]

is there a good reason to overclock the i2500k/2600k if I'm gaming at 1920X1200 with a GTX580?..... This will help me decide whether I should spend more on the CPU fan...

Yes, there's always a good reason to OC

But seriously, you wouldn't need to to save yourself from being CPU bottlenecked by OC'ing. Don't even worry 'bout that. You could easily use that at stock speeds with the stock heat sink and fan without spending a dime extra.

But if you can afford a better mobo (which for your budget is more than a given), might as well give it a shot to get as much out of your system as you can. You only have to make sure to keep the temps under control for stability and longevity of your system.