First Time Build around $1k

[beerdette]

Approximate Purchase Date: 2-4 weeks, thinking specifically Black Friday for best deals.


Budget Range: $1000-$1100 After Rebates


System Usage from Most to Least Important: Internet/Gaming/Coding


Parts Not Required: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS


Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com/amazon.com


Country of Origin: US


Parts Preferences: None


Overclocking: Yes after I learn about it more


SLI or Crossfire: Not planned but may change mind


Monitor Resolution: Currently 1280x1024 but I plan on upgrading my monitor early next year.


Additional Comments: I have a keyboard/mouse/monitor but I would like to upgrade each of these next year so suggestions will be appreciated. I have looked at other builds and I believe what I have picked out is pretty good.

MOBO: ASUS SABERTOOTH P67
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131702

CPU: Intel i5 2500k
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

PSU: CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

GPU: GIGABYTE GV-R695OC-1GD Radeon HD 6950
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125385

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

CASE: Cooler Master HAF 922
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197

SSD: OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-60G
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227725

CPU COOLER: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

STORAGE:
Open to suggestions on best brand but would like 1TB

OPITICAL:
Open to suggestion just had an LG in my cart to place hold

 

[ares640]

Change your motherboard. The sabertooth is old and does not offer any real benefits besides the armor cover, which is really just for looks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130611

A much better board with ivy bridge support and PCIe 3.0 dual X16

SSD: The agility 3 has been known to be very problematic. Get a Crucial M4 or one of the newer sandforce models.

 

[onefearlesssniper]

CPU: i5 2500k
Motherboard: ASrock extreme3gen3
RAM: 8 gigs G.skill Ripjaws 1600 mhz (add 8gb more if you really do alot of coding/rendering)
HD: Samsung Spinpoint f3 1TB
SSD: Crucial M4 64gb
Case: Rosewill Challenger
PSU: 850w corsair enthusiest series
CD Drive: Asus 24x CD/DVD burner
GPU: AMD Radeon 6950/nVidia GTX 560 TI

Then crossfire 6950/560 ti.

Or if you don't want too, go WAY down on the PSU to a 600w, and use that money to upgrade to a GTX 570/Radeon 6970

 

[g-unit1111]

Case: Corsair Carbide 400$ - $99.99
PSU: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MKII 750W - $109.99
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3P - $179.99
CPU: 3.30GHz Intel Core i5-2500K - $219.99
Cooler: Corsair A70 - $42.99
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1600MHz 1.5V - $74.99
SSD: 64GB Crucial M4 - $109.99
HD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB - $149.99
Optical: LG CD/DVD Burner - $18.99
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 - $239.99

Total: $1225

 

[Nigelfrost]

Don't get the 6950- it doesnt have physX. I know that may sound stupidbut it won' in 2-3 yoars when 1/2 games utilises it. If I were you I'd opt for the 560ti.

 

[beerdette]

Is there any reason I should get a Z68 instead of the P67? I thought the Z68, besides having the graphics support, it has a small SSD on the board to speed up hard drive reads.

What are thoughts on this board instead?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157265

I originally picked that SSD since it was on the Tom's hardware suggested for the price. I looked and this one has the newest Sandforce but wanted to see what everyone thought of this one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220602

If I decided to go CF the 6950 would I need a 750W or 800+?

I also read about the 560 ti getting an update to 448 cores and is basically a 570 with cores shut off. Is this worth waiting for or just go with the 6950?

 

[Cinci555]

Is there any reason I should get a Z68 instead of the P67? I thought the Z68, besides having the graphics support, it has a small SSD on the board to speed up hard drive reads.

What are thoughts on this board instead?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157265

I originally picked that SSD since it was on the Tom's hardware suggested for the price. I looked and this one has the newest Sandforce but wanted to see what everyone thought of this one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220602

If I decided to go CF the 6950 would I need a 750W or 800+?

I also read about the 560 ti getting an update to 448 cores and is basically a 570 with cores shut off. Is this worth waiting for or just go with the 6950?

The z68 chipset has the capability to have a small SSD less than 64gb act as a sort of large cache, meaning the programs and files you utilize commonly will be stored there for quicker access.

The recommendation on the z68 chipset, is it is the newest, a bit quicker across the board, has good future proofing for most models.

The crucial m4 128gb is the best SSD on the market price to performance. The m4 64gb is a bit lower on performance but same dependability and the drivers are known to be good.

If you are CFing you need at least 850-950W PSU. The 6950 is a good card, can be unlocked to essentially be a 6970. The 560ti is a good upper midrange card. It will perform well for a year then you will need to SLI them in order to keep up with the newer cards and the newer games.

PhysX is coming, but it is not required to have games playable in the future it's just a bonus.

For RAM anything with 1.5v and 1600Mhz will work perfectly, be mindful of the height of your RAM and the size of your CPU cooler, as you have to put the RAM in certain slots to use dual channel and the cooler might block those slots.

 

[beerdette]

I thought only the reference 6950 cards could be unlocked? I have also seen other posts that say 750 is enough for a CF 6950 but then others say you need 850? Honestly I doubt I will CF but in a few years I might just replace the card all together for a new single card. So then should I get the 750W or just keep the 650W I have listed to future proof myself for better cards in the future or will they have about the same power consumption as the top cards now?