Need Help on Custom Gaming Build

[Wantabettercomp]

Hello, I will be ordering the parts in a month. My requirements are to be able to play Skyrim (and most other games really) on max settings with good FPS, to leave room for upgrades,
and to cut unnecessary costs. (I'm pretty sure I can make this amount of money when the time comes to order so I don't need to cut costs too much but if you see a stupid decision on my part please let me know)

I will be using the SSD as a boot drive and to use for programs I want to run extra fast.
So far I will be using this process for that.
http://www.overclock.net/t/664738/how-to-setup-ssd-boot-drive-with-secondary-hard-disc-optimization

Will this work when I try to turn it on my family is making me paranoid -_-? This is my first build.

============================================================
Final Computer Build
==================================================================

CPU:
$214.99 Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

Motherboard:
$149.99.99 GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128512

Harddrive:
$149.99 Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148697

SSD:
$179.99 OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-120G 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227726

Video Card:
$269.99 MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127608

Memory:
$44.99 G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Case:
$69.99 Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066

Optical Drive:
$20.99 LG CD/DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136238

Heat Sink:
33.99 COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

Power Supply:
94.99 COOLER MASTER GX Series RS750-ACAAE3-US 750W ATX12V v2.31 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171053


-------------------------------------------------------------------
Total:1239.90
W464
===================================================================
Display:
$300(max) 32" 1080p LCD Tv

Wall Mount:
$44.99 Wall mount
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WL6YY8/ref=sc_pgp__m_A2FI19G9IAJPA5_1?ie=UTF8&m=A2FI19G9IAJPA5&n=&s=&v=glance

Keyboard:
$39.99 Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823109148

Mouse:
$59.99 Logitech G500 10 Buttons Dual-mode
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104318

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Total:444.97
======================================================================
Total:1684.87
------------------------------------------------------------------
-300 (Sold Laptop)
=
Total:
1384.87

Any suggestions, critiques, or lessons somebody wants to give?

 

[crewton]

I'd spend the $20 more for GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498 This one has the virtu software (need an H in the name for hydra) and it's black so it'll look better in your case. Otherwise the build looks great.

edit: hmm after looking it says your motherboard has virtu as well. Thought gigabyte distinguished between the two based on UD3 and UD3H...

 

[danraies]

Booting from an SSD and using an HDD for mass storage is a very common thing to do and is a great way to optimize hard drive performance. I don't know what made you pick the Agility III but I imagine it was price vs. performance. I own an Agility III and it works fine, but they are notorious for being unreliable. The best SSD right now (arguable) at around your price point is the Crucial M4 128GB for $200. That being said you can make whatever decision you think is best.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442

A GTX560ti is a nice card but it's going to have a hard time maxing out newer games at 1920x1080. Video cards are all about what you can afford, but you'll need more than that to max out a 1080 resolution.

A good budget gaming motherboard is the ASRock Extreme3 Gen3 for about $125. There's nothing wrong with your motherboard, but if you're ok with the features on the Extreme3, it'll perform great. Be aware, though, that it doesn't have a USB 3.0 header (though it has USB 3.0 ports in the cluster), but that's not a problem because your case doesn't have USB 3.0 on it.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271

If you want to upgrade your video card you can make a few changes. If you're willing to sacrifice performance in other areas you can get rid of the SSD completely. If you're not overclocking you can get rid of the aftermarket heat sink. A great budget case is the NZXT Gamma for $35.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146061

 

[Wantabettercomp]

Upgrade it to what? a GTX 570? This is good advice thank you.
I think I'll try overclocking. I like the idea of the SSD I think I'll stick with it.
On paper(details tab) it seems like the Agility III is better but if it is notoriously unreliable maybe I should go with the crucial... I don't know I'll research it.

Would it be worth it changing my case to this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147107

and keeping my motherboard? for USB 3.0 usage in the future? it's only 20 dollars more. (thanks for pointing the lack of front ports out to me)

I can afford a 570, would it be worth it? would it have an noticeable impact on my ability to max out games on full resolution?

 

[Wantabettercomp]

I have changed a few things around since I posted this morning, different SSD than the Agility III

============================================================
Final Computer Build "Ol'noname
==================================================================

CPU:
$214.99 Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

Motherboard:
$149.99.99 GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128512

Harddrive:
$159.99 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

SSD:
$189.99 OCZ Vertex 3 VTX3-25SAT3-120G 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706

Video Card:
$244.99 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=N82E16814127608

Memory:
$44.99 G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Case:
$69.99 Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066

Extra Fan:
16.99 Antec 761345-75024-0 120mm Blue LED Case Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835209011

Optical Drive:
$20.99 LG CD/DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136238

Heat Sink:
33.99 COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

Power Supply:
89.99 Thermaltake TR2 RX 750W Bronze W0382RU ATX 12V v2.3 / EPS 12V v2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153136


-------------------------------------------------------------------
Total:1236.89
W464
===================================================================
Display:
$179.99 ASUS VH236H Black 23" 2ms Full HD Widescreen LCD Monitor w/ Speakers 300 cd/m2 20000 :1 (ASCR)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236059

Wall Mount:
$134.99 atdec SD-AT-DW-BK Spacedec Acrobat Articulated Wall Arm
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824998211

Keyboard:
$39.99 Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823109148

Mouse:
$59.99 Logitech G500 10 Buttons Dual-mode
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104318

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Total:414.96
======================================================================
Total:1651.85
------------------------------------------------------------------
-300 (Sold Laptop)
=
Total:
1351.85

 

[Wantabettercomp]

I mean 30 dollars

 

[danraies]

Cases are a lot of personal preference. The one you picked is definitely good. If you're just looking for an upgrade that gets you usb 3.0 then this might be more cost effective:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147060

The case that you linked (the Rosewill) doesn't use a USB 3.0 header for the front USB 3.0 ports, it uses a pass-through cable. There are two places to get USB 3.0 connectivity. You can get it in from the port cluster on the motherboard (on the back of the computer, outside the case) or from a header on the motherboard (inside the case). The "pass-through" cables basically use an extension cord to move the USB 3.0 ports on the back of the case to the front of the case. Using a USB 3.0 header, though, adds two more USB 3.0 ports in addition to what is on the back. Pass through cables work fine but they look terrible and they can slip out sometimes. Headers are superior.

Skyrim is not a very demanding game from a graphics standpoint and a 560ti will do alright and naturally a 570 will do better. I'm not an expert in graphics, but I think that the difference between a 560ti and a 570 is bigger than the difference between a 570 and a 580. However, a lot of graphics-intensive games will have a harder time on a 560ti and may even struggle on a 570. Numbers speak louder than words, so you might want to look at the Tom's benchmarks for Skyrim and Battlefield 3:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/skyrim-performance-benchmark,3074.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063.html

Note that "full resolution" doesn't mean anything. It's about the resolution that your monitor can support. The monitor you picked runs 1920 x 1080 resolution.

The Agility III is not better than the Crucial M4. If you benchmarked them both the Agility III might max out it's sequential reads a little more, but sequential reads/writes are the least important statistic and in real applications the performance will be the same. There's nothing wrong with buying an Agility III, but be clear - the performance difference is almost identical and the M4 is considered a little more reliable and that's why the M4 is a little more expensive.

Also, as I think you may have already noticed - there is basically no difference between the Agility III and the Vertex III. The only physical difference is the brand of nand ram that they use and the performance difference between the two is within the margin of error. Just get whichever of the two is cheaper.

 

[Wantabettercomp]

Best answer selected by Wantabettercomp.