New Gaming Computer Build

[Inveigler]

I'm looking into building a new gaming computer. I've created the following three builds, but I'm not very experienced and I'm trying to find the best value for my money. I've recently moved back to New Zealand and I've found it's rather expensive to build a computer here, so would definitely like to make the best of what I can.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. If you need any more information, just let me know and I'll see what I can find.

Build 1 - $3,037.80
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD4-B3 ATX LGA1155
Graphics 2x Gigabyte GV-N580UD-15I GTX580 PCIE
Processor Intel Core i7 2600K 3.40GHz 8MB LGA1155 - HD GRAPHICS
Memory 2x XPG 4GB DDR3 1600G CL9 DIMM 3yr wty
System Drive ADATA S510 120GB SATA3 SSD 2.5
Storage Drive WD Caviar Greenpower 2TB 64MB 3.5" SATA3 HDD
Optical LG GH24NS70 24X SATA DVDRW OEM 2yr wty
Case Coolermaster Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case Black 500w PSU
PSU Adata HM850 850W ATX PSU 3yr wty
Heat Sink Coolermaster SickleFlow Blue LED Case Fan 120mm

Build 2 - $1,974.80
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 ATX LGA1155
Graphics Gigabyte GV-N570OC-13I GTX570 PCIE
Processor Intel Core i7 2600K 3.40GHz 8MB LGA1155 - HD GRAPHICS
Memory XPG 4GB DDR3 1600G CL9 DIMM 3yr wty x2
System Drive ADATA S510 120GB SATA3 SSD 2.5
Storage Drive WD Caviar Greenpower 2TB 64MB 3.5" SATA3 HDD
Optical LG GH24NS70 24X SATA DVDRW OEM 2yr wty
Case Coolermaster Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case Black 500w PSU
PSU Highpower HPC650 650W ATX PSU 80plus Cable Management
Heat Sink Coolermaster SickleFlow Blue LED Case Fan 120mm

Build 3 - $1,388.30
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-970A-D3 ATX DDR3 AM3+
Graphics Gigabyte GV-N56GOC-1GI GTX560 PCIE
Processor AMD Phenom II X4 960T Quad Core 8MB 3.0GHz AM3 - Black Edition
Memory XPG 4GB DDR3 1600G CL9 DIMM 3yr wty x2
System Drive ADATA S510 120GB SATA3 SSD 2.5
Storage Drive WD Caviar Greenpower 2TB 64MB 3.5" SATA3 HDD
Optical LG GH24NS70 24X SATA DVDRW OEM 2yr wty
Case Coolermaster Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case Black 500w PSU
PSU Highpower HPC650 650W ATX PSU 80plus Cable Management
Heat Sink Coolermaster SickleFlow Blue LED Case Fan 120mm

 

[AdrianPerry]

A few things:

1) You haven't done any builds with the i5-2500k? Quite easily THE best value for money CPU currently available.

2) HDD - Only 5400rpm drives? Look for 7200rpm and consider buying x2 1TB drives and create a RAID0 array for increased performance.

3) RAM - 8GB, 1600MHz, CL9 is the current "sweet spot" for value for money RAM.

Posting a budget and the purpose of the build (what it will be used for) might be helpful in order to get the best suggestions.

-------

Without blowing the bank, my suggestion for a capable, well priced build would be along the lines of:

Z68 mobo
i5-2500k
6970 or GTX 570
60-120GB SSD
1TB HDD
Mid-Tower case - dont waste too much money on this
650w PSU (Corsair, XFX, Antec, SeaSonic brands recommended)
8GB 1600MHz 1.5v RAM (G.Skill or Corsair recommended)

 

[Inveigler]

I don't really know anything about overclocking. Always been to unsure to try it. I heard that it decreases the lifespan of your hardware and I'd prefer my equipment to last me a while.

Apart from gaming, there's not exactly much else I use the computer for. I surf the internet, download, edit documents, listen to music and watch TV shows and movies on it. None of these really require much of a change in hardware do they?

Generally my budget is between NZ$1000-2000. I don't need a monster, but something that's going to last, that I can upgrade later and actually do something with would be awesome. I'm very aware that this is just for the tower, I haven't even added the cost of the screen, keyboard and mouse, so the $3000 limit is just pushing my savings far too much.

Thanks for your help!