Search
Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

New gaming system $1k-1.5k

Last response: in Systems
Share

Hi all,
I am looking to buy a new system. Here is what I am thinking of so far. I would really appreciate any input.

Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 Mid Tower ATX Case, Black

PSU: 700W Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus ATX Power Supply, Quiet 120mm Fan, Active PFC

CPU: Intel Core i7 2600 Quad Core Processor: 3.4GHz, 8MB L3 Cache, On-Chip Graphics, Socket 1155

Mobo: Intel BOXDZ68DB Motherboard, ATX, Socket 1155, USB 3.0, Sata 6Gb/s, eSATA, RAID, HDMI, Firewire

RAM: Corsair XMS3 8GB kit (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800 (1600MHz) Memory x2 (16gb total)

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200rpm SATA 6Gb/s Hard Disk Drive, 3.5" x2 (running a RAID, not sure about this)

GPU: nVidia GeForce GTX560 1GB PCI-E Video Card, SLI ready

OS: Windows 7 professional 64bit

Approximate Purchase Date: within the next few days

Budget Range: 1000-1500

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, gaming, gaming?

Parts Not Required: monitor(?)/mouse/keyboard

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: wherever, but Amazon is fast

Country: US of A

Parts Preferences: none really, mainly care about functionality and reliability

Overclocking: I am not an advanced user and do not know how/when/why to do or not do this

SLI or Crossfire: I honestly do not even know what this is

Monitor Resolution: I am not sure; I can buy a new monitor if I need to, but would rather not. I have a 22" Soyo I got a while back which looks good enough for me, but if the resolution is gonna be an issue I can buy a new one. I have it set to 1680x1050 now, and the slider goes up to 2048x1536, but when I get up past the 1680x1050, it scrolls, which is weird.

Additional Comments: I am not an advanced user, but I am pretty comfortable with installing hardware/drivers/etc. I would like something that works well without too much tweaking, and am interested in bang for the buck. Skyrim will probably be the first game I spend a lot of time on.

Thanks!

Zach

More about : gaming system

Register or log in to remove

Overclocking is pretty simple. All you'd need is an aftermarket CPU Cooler to keep it from overheating. There should be a BIOS setting for FSB and all you do is change that number. However, you'd need an Intel CPU with "k" in the name.

azeem40 said:
Overclocking is pretty simple. All you'd need is an aftermarket CPU Cooler to keep it from overheating. There should be a BIOS setting for FSB and all you do is change that number. However, you'd need an Intel CPU with "k" in the name.


Ah, I see. I noticed the Intel Core i7 2600K Quad Core Unlocked Processor: 3.4GHz, 8MB L3 Cache, On-Chip Graphics,Socket 1155 option, but I didn't know what unlocked meant. Is overclocking a no-brainer? People have also said on these forums that i5 is fine/better for gaming than i7, but I am wondering if maybe the i7 is more "future proof." I don't mean REALLY future proof, I just mean maybe having a longer "can play the newest games at reasonable settings" life.

Thanks,
Zach
Related ressources
Ask the community

You've put together a nice solid all-around system. If your main focus is gaming however you can save a few bucks by going with the i5-2500k and 8GB ram. I'd also recommend sticking with just a single HDD for the time being considering how inflated the prices currently are.

Just a few $ saving tips, again overall it's a nice balanced system.

Thanks a4mula.

I will drop to the i5, that advice seems very consistent, and I think 8gb of RAM will be fine. It's very easy to upgrade later anyway.

What do you think the best way to upgrade the GPU is? I don't mind buying two, especially with saving on the processor, RAM and HDD, but I don't want to upgrade to anything that won't be stable and non-fiddly once it's put in.

Thanks!
Zach

a4mula said:
You've put together a nice solid all-around system. If your main focus is gaming however you can save a few bucks by going with the i5-2500k and 8GB ram. I'd also recommend sticking with just a single HDD for the time being considering how inflated the prices currently are.

Just a few $ saving tips, again overall it's a nice balanced system.

zzimet said:
Thanks a4mula.

I will drop to the i5, that advice seems very consistent, and I think 8gb of RAM will be fine. It's very easy to upgrade later anyway.

What do you think the best way to upgrade the GPU is? I don't mind buying two, especially with saving on the processor, RAM and HDD, but I don't want to upgrade to anything that won't be stable and non-fiddly once it's put in.

Thanks!
Zach


If you're happy with 1680x1050 then the 560 is fine imo. I wouldn't worry too much about SLI/Crossfire as it's really only something you want to get tangled up in if you need it (large resolutions).

If you're just looking to future proof a bit you could always take a look at the 570 or an unlockable 6950 2Gb like the Sapphire. If you do go the route of AMD just keep in mind that while there are still cards out there with the bios switch, it's still no guarantee.
Register or log in to remove
 
Ask the community
Read discussions in other Systems categories
!