First build for gaming, work, and school

[joseph0042]

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Approximate Purchase Date: next few months
Budget Range: $1000 before rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, school, internet surfing, programing, work

Parts Not Required: OS, speakers, data HDD, DVD Drive

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: microcenter, tigerdirect, newegg, etc...

Country: US

Parts Preferences: Intel

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe

Monitor Resolution: 1280x1024, but will be getting a new monitor in like a week or so

Additional Comments: I will be picking these parts up from microcenter today

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Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links for parts.

These prices are from microcenter at this present time.

Intel i5 - 2500K - 179.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354589

OCZ 60GB

GA-Z68AP-D3 LGA 1155 Z68 ATX Intel Motherboard - 59.99 with purchase of the i5 above
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0375352

Zotac ZT-50303-10M GTX 560 Ti Overclocked 1024MB GDDR5 PCIe 2.0 x16 Video Card - 229.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0356003

OCZ 750 Watt Fatal1ty Series Modular ATX Power Supply - 99.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0335913

CM Storm Scout ATX Gaming Computer Case - 69.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0308296

Kingston HyperX blu 8GB DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) CL9 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Two 4GB Memory Modules) - 39.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0360527
The easiest method is to paste the label on one line and then paste the link below it.

OCZ Vertex Plus OCZSSD2-1VTXPL6 60GB SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) with Indilinx Barefoot Controller - 74.99
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0368599

Example:
Logitech 920-000914 Black 106 Normal Keys Wired Ultra-thin Illuminated Keyboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126043

Links can also be created using the following format: paste the label here

The paperclip button on the toolbar gives this: paste the label here

Example:
Logitech 920-000914 Black 106 Normal Keys Wired Ultra-thin Illuminated Keyboard - Retail

Looks like:
Logitech 920-000914 Black 106 Normal Keys Wired Ultra-thin Illuminated Keyboard - Retail

 

[danraies]

Your motherboard is not really on the top of my list of Z68 motherboards, but it's certainly good enough and you can't beat that price.

You should find a SATA 6.0Gb/s SSD. There are several choices - I generally recommend the Crucial M4 and Samsung 830. OCZ makes several.

Your PSU is more power than you need for a single 560ti. A good 550W unit would be enough. If you're planning on getting a second card in the future, though, the unit you picked is about right.

 

[joseph0042]

Ok, what motherboard would you suggest instead?

Ok, I'll take a look at those SSD's.

For the PSU I just thought it would be nice to have modular and the ability to sli or if newer cards required more power.

 

[danraies]

I usually recommend the Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 or the ASRock Z68 Extreme3, however $60 is pretty hard to beat. One thing to note, though, is that the GA-Z68AP-D3 that you chose is not a good choice if you want to SLI in the future. It has two PCIe slots but they only offer 16/x4 mode which is not good. You want x8/x8 mode for SLI.

 

[joseph0042]

Ok thanks danraies, I'll check those out.

It looks like I will not be able to purchase the machine as quick as I want...So I went ahead and edited my first post to reflect that and raised my budget for what I want to look at. So if you guys have any better ideas with the new budget from $750 to $1000 let me know!