Help building a computer

[eiknarf]

Hi all,

So I'm building a computer to do a little gaming on (I tried playing the SW:TOR Beta on my macbook pro via bootcamp these last couple weekends, and it was struggling to keep up and overheating). The thing is, I need to do it on a budget. After a bunch of research, I've come up with the following setup. But since this is my first time building a computer, I wanted to check in to see if this sounds like a good setup, make sure everything goes together, etc... Please share any thoughts you all have. Thanks so much!!

Edit:also, this is stretching my budget a bit, though I can make it work, but still, any thoughts on bringing the price down (or at least not increasing it significantly) would be greatly appreciated

Case:
GAMMA Classic Series ATX Mid Tower Interior Steel Chassis (Black)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002UDK9U6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-Z68AP-D3 Intel Z68 Motherboard
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1165562

Processor:
Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop
Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I32120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115077

Video Card:
HIS H687FN1GD Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16
HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161389


Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler, RR-B10-212P-G1 -
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002G1YPH0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Hard Drive (just grabbing a small one for now until prices come back down):
Seagate Barracuda 7200 250 GB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s NCQ 8MB Cache
3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive ST250DM000
http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Barracuda-3-5-Inch-Internal-ST250DM000/dp/B005CT56XU/ref=sr_1_10?m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1323047866&sr=1-10

Power:
CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 (CMPSU-430CXV2) 430W ATX12V v2.3 80
PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139026

RAM:
G.SKILL Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3
10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231424

DVD Burner:
LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

Arctic Silver AA-1.75G Thermal Compound

 

[Frizzo]

is it me or is amazon shady with shipping prices? i saw no shipping price for the case. one way you can save some money is stick with the stock cpu heatsink and buy this case instead:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811154095

 

[13thmonkey]

Bigger PSU, for future proofing and lower load levels.
+1 stick with stock HS, if you go a K ivybridge then get one.
Check gigabyte out for their ability control 3-pin case fans, I've heard that they don't.

 

[DelroyMonjo]

You don't need a CPU cooler nor heat sink compound.
As for shipping prices, it looks like they went up for the holiday season.
Look at Newegg's $10.99 for shipping RAM. Look at prices for shipping cases. Some are free shipping but look how far the case price has jumped. Same for many other items, that I5 2500K for $214.99 is now $219.99, but you get free shipping.
E-tailers are Pros, they know how to get a buck out of ya'.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been moved from the section CPU & Components to section Systems by Mousemonkey

 

[eiknarf]

interesting... i was speaking with a friend yesterday, and he was quite adamant about the heat sink. But you guys think this will be good to go without it? If so, definitely happy to save the few bucks there to put toward the psu.

As for cases, and amazon's shipping rates, the reason I went Amazon for the case was that I have prime, so free 2 day shipping. Though if the case linked is recommended, the 10 buck shipping for the 20 buck price point is fine (the same case is 35 on amazon with free shipping... agreed Delroy, they do know how to squeeze a buck)

And for the recommendation of a bigger psu, how about:

OCZ Fatal1ty 550W Modular Gaming Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022

or

CORSAIR Builder Series CX600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028


thanks for the help, much appreciated!

 

[NoobNeb]

If you like the red LED fan go with the Fatal1ty personally I would go with this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341047 80 Plus Bronze, single 12v rail so no risk of overloading

 

[Frizzo]

heh fatality, he used to be a pupil of mine.

 

[eiknarf]

alrighty, about to pull the trigger... one last question. If I'm going with the Apex case mentioned above, I should be buying fans to go along with it, right?

thanks again for helping out a noob to system building!

 

[Frizzo]

if you have free shipping like you said, just stick with the first case.

 

[eiknarf]

Best answer selected by eiknarf.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey