What do you think?

[Rawhide15]

Okay so I have spent a lot of time working out all of the components of my soon to be new computer. I have not ordered anything yet but am planning to do so as soon as I have EVERY part as I need it and make sure they will agree nicely. Please tell me any thoughts you have with the components. If you actually take the time to go through and help me out.. my hat is off to you

Use of computer:
Hard core gaming and recording of those games

Parts:

Case: NZXT Phantom ATX Full Tower (Looks amazing, Great reviews, Good air flow) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146067
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GPU: EVGA SuperClocked GeForce GTX 580 (Very Powerful, Great reviews) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130590
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CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (Powerful, Fast, Great reviews, quad-core) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
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Mobo: ASUS P8P67 PRO (Compadible with every part (I think), room for upgrades) http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771
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RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB 4 x 4GB (Looks amazing, 16 gb, cheap, good reviews) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145347
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PSU: SeaSonic X750 Gold 750W (Modular, Enough power for the components) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087
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Memory:

OCZ Agility 3 60GB (Used for OS) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227725
Western Digital 500GB 7200 RPM (For everything else) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136769


NON-essential but included:

Optival Drive: ASUS Black 12X BD-ROM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA Internal Blu-ray Drive (Just there Also I like blu-ray) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135247
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Moniter: Acer Black 20" 5ms LED-Backlight LCD (Once again.. just there, LED backlit) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009256

THANK YOU FOR READING : DDDD

 

[elayman]

I'd get 8gb of ram instead of 16 and get the i5 2500k instead of the i7. Otherwise looks good.

 

[elayman]

I'd get 8gb of ram instead of 16 and get the i5 2500k instead of the i7. Otherwise looks good.

 

[Rawhide15]

Thanks Yeah I was debating that and that is one that is subject to change. Thanks for the reply

 

[DelroyMonjo]

Get a 23' or 24" or even larger 1920X1080 monitor. I prefer Asus but Samsung makes nice LCD monitors as well. 24" monitors can be had for ~$220

 

[Rawhide15]

That would be nice if I had the money :/ Really for monitor I was looking at cheap haha If I can get enough I will defiantly get a larger one

 

[dish_moose]

^^ with the money you are saving - get a bigger SSD.
-Bruce

 

[Rawhide15]

Hmm yeah I was thinking of going for a 120. Maybe I could have 2 SSD's and have the one just for my OS.. Or would that slow it down?

 

[Rawhide15]

Should I get an after market CPU fan? I am planning on overclocking

 

[NeutralEnergy]

1. Don't get an ssd along with everything else (more on this later).
2. Get 8gb of RAM. It's more than enough. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345
3. Get the i5 2500k. There's barely any increase in the i7 2600k.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

Now, with this you should save... $200ish (I don't feel like doin the math ).
With an epic set-up like this, you NEED better peripherals to actually be able to enjoy it. Switch out that monitor with a 23" Asus Monitor. I'm on it right now and it is AMAZING.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236175

Also, if you don't already, get a good gaming mouse. If your hands aren't smaller than average I REALLY recommend the Razer Naga.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826153054
I'm also using this one and I haven't seen any other mouse NEAR as good as this one.

If you still want it, get that SSD later when you have enough money.

Also, though this is just with preferance, I would go with a gtx 570 OCed rather than the 580. The performance increase in the 580 isn't phenomenal and it's simply not worth the money in my opinion. If I were you, I would get one 570 now, and another when you feel like it later. I know someone who plays on three 23" monitors with a pair of 570's in sli (non OCed). He plays BF3 on Ultra with AA x4 and the lowest he hits is around 50 fps. Keep in mind he's playing on THREE 23" screens and the cards are NOT OCed. Your choice...

Good Luck with the build!

 

[Rawhide15]

Best answer selected by Rawhide15.

 

[NeutralEnergy]

Oh and YES. GET AN AFTERMARKET HEAT SYNC. I thought you already were. the i5 2500k has AMAZING overclocking abilities but you're goanna need an aftermarket heat sync.

I recommend one of 2 ways.

1. If your on an extreme budget then go with the Cooler Master Hyper 212+. Great heat sync, cheap ($30), very well known.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

2. If you've got more money to spend, go with the Noctua NH-C14. It's simply the best of the best but it does cost considerably more.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608020

Hope this helps!

 

[Rawhide15]

Oh and YES. GET AN AFTERMARKET HEAT SYNC. I thought you already were. the i5 2500k has AMAZING overclocking abilities but you're goanna need an aftermarket heat sync.

I recommend one of 2 ways.

1. If your on an extreme budget then go with the Cooler Master Hyper 212+. Great heat sync, cheap ($30), very well known.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

2. If you've got more money to spend, go with the Noctua NH-C14. It's simply the best of the best but it does cost considerably more.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608020

Hope this helps!

Thanks for your help

In reply to both posts here I have some input. For the graphics card I need it to be able to do hardcore gaming such as MW3 and Portal 2 and be able to record both as well.. That is why I chose the better card. Is the 570 actually that good that it is able to compete?

 

[NeutralEnergy]

So, here's the thing. Video Cards don't matter that much while recording (the 570 is more than enough). It's where the recording software is placed and where the recordings are saved onto. Now, I don't know a lot about this, so if I were you I would research some more on this but I'm pretty sure if you got that ssd and you placed the recording software on that and you set it to save the recordings onto the mechanical hard drive then you would receive really good performance and the recording wouldn't hinder the video card very much. Lemme go research some more and I'll update you on what I find, alright? In about 10 minutes.

 

[NeutralEnergy]

OK so I'm not completely sure if placing the software on an ssd will make it run quicker but recording it onto another hard drive definitely does. If I were you, I would go ahead and grab that ssd and try it out. Even if I'm incorrect it's always useful to have that extra ssd. In terms of the 570 vs the 580 here's a comparison (the OCed versions).

EVGA GTX 570 SuperClocked DS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130740

Stream Processors: 480 Cores
Core Clock: 797 MHz
Shader Clock: 1594 MHz
320-Bit GDDR5


EVGA GTX 580 SuperClocked DS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130658

Stream Processors: 512 Cores
Core Clock: 797 MHz
Shader Clock: 1594 MHz
384-Bit GDDR5


... Wow. Ok so, here are the improvements between the 570 and 580-

Stream Processors: +32 Cores
Core Clock: +0 MHz
Shader Clock: +0 MHz
+64-Bit GDDR5

No, I would definitely not pay the extra... $150-200...

 

[NeutralEnergy]

EDIT: I meant to say even if my statement about placing the software on an ssd making it run quicker is incorrect it's still worth having an ssd. You'd be all set as long as you set the recordings to save on a separate hard drive. Also, what with the sky-high Mechanical Hard Drive prices (due to that stupid flood in Thailand destroying a bunch of the factories that make Hard Drive pieces) it gives you all the more reason to buy an ssd instead of, say, a 250gb Hard Drive which is about $80-90. But, just a note here, Hard Drive prices ARE lowering as about 9/10 of the factories in Thailand are at least partially functionable.

 

[Rawhide15]

OK so I'm not completely sure if placing the software on an ssd will make it run quicker but recording it onto another hard drive definitely does. If I were you, I would go ahead and grab that ssd and try it out. Even if I'm incorrect it's always useful to have that extra ssd. In terms of the 570 vs the 580 here's a comparison (the OCed versions).

EVGA GTX 570 SuperClocked DS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130740

Stream Processors: 480 Cores
Core Clock: 797 MHz
Shader Clock: 1594 MHz
320-Bit GDDR5


EVGA GTX 580 SuperClocked DS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130658

Stream Processors: 512 Cores
Core Clock: 797 MHz
Shader Clock: 1594 MHz
384-Bit GDDR5


... Wow. Ok so, here are the improvements between the 570 and 580-

Stream Processors: +32 Cores
Core Clock: +0 MHz
Shader Clock: +0 MHz
+64-Bit GDDR5

No, I would definitely not pay the extra... $150-200...

Oh yeah.. wow.. okay so yeah I could go with the 570 and then in the future if need be I COULD use SLI with a second 570

 

[Rawhide15]

EDIT: I meant to say even if my statement about placing the software on an ssd making it run quicker is incorrect it's still worth having an ssd. You'd be all set as long as you set the recordings to save on a separate hard drive. Also, what with the sky-high Mechanical Hard Drive prices (due to that stupid flood in Thailand destroying a bunch of the factories that make Hard Drive pieces) it gives you all the more reason to buy an ssd instead of, say, a 250gb Hard Drive which is about $80-90. But, just a note here, Hard Drive prices ARE lowering as about 9/10 of the factories in Thailand are at least partially functionable.

Alright. I think I will get 1 500 gb HDD and 2 60 gb SSD's.

 

[NeutralEnergy]

Yea definitely. And afterwards, if you need MOAR POWER you could always get a third . Wow, good thing I told about that. I'll actually keep that in mind myself. Anything else you need?

Wow, also, get a caviar black, not a caviar blue. I am very surprised that the difference is ONLY $10. Used to be MUCH more. Anyways the Caviar Black is literally designed for things like video recording and gaming. It's one of the best "standard" 7200 rpm Drives. In fact, I would say it's the best.

Whoops, almost forgot the link =P .
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136795

 

[Rawhide15]

Yea definitely. And afterwards, if you need MOAR POWER you could always get a third . Wow, good thing I told about that. I'll actually keep that in mind myself. Anything else you need?

Wow, also, get a caviar black, not a caviar blue. I am very surprised that the difference is ONLY $10. Used to be MUCH more. Anyways the Caviar Black is literally designed for things like video recording and gaming. It's one of the best "standard" 7200 rpm Drives. In fact, I would say it's the best.

Whoops, almost forgot the link =P .
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136795

You sir have saved me over 200 dollars haha I think I'm going to order the RAM and Optical Drive or the Monitor tonight (Yes the better one)

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Nothing wrong with staying with P67 .....

http://www.ukgamingcomputers.co.uk/difference-between-h67-p67-z68-and-h61-chipsets-a-22.html

but I'd consider the WS Revolution (x16 x16) i this combo with the 2500k.....read why

http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/3795/asus_p8p67_ws_revolution_intel_p67_express_motherboard/index12.html

Saves $40 ...$20 MIR + $20 combo savings

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.798298

Get just 8GB of the Low profile RAM....tall toothy things server no purpose whatsoever
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233196

750 watter wont handle two 580s ....ya don't wanna limit yaslef from future upgrade to SLI. Id normally recommend a Corsair HX but the 1000 (8.0) /1050 (8.5) are the only stinkers in the HX line. Ya have $300 invested in ya Case / PSU combo .... jonnyguru perofrmance ratings in (...)

Options:

Antex DF-85 or 1200 V3 w/ CP-1000 is $290 ....much better cases, great PSU.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129087
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129100

The Corsair 500R over the NZXT

I don't recommend a SSD < 120 GB, and I buy the Tier 3's
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/buy-ssd-recommendation-value,3088-6.html

If ya gonna spend $220 on a monitor think hard about getting a 120 Hz monitor for $60 more.....it's very different......and if ya into 3D, can add the glasses later on

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236104

 

[NeutralEnergy]

I saved you $200? Wow that's great! I'm glad to help! And I'm telling you, the monitor is amazing. Btw get the Monitor tonight because there is a $25 promotional code for when you buy it ($25 off) so you can get it at $160 instead. Here's the code:

EMCJHHD43

Good Luck with the build! And, if it means anything to you, you might wanna get the items on Amazon. Amazon usually has 5-day free shipping and is just a tad bit less expensive than Newegg on some items. Actually I'll check for you and list the links.

Cooler Master Hyper 212+:
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=pd_bxgy_e_text_b
$6.53 cheaper

NZXT Phantom Case:
http://www.amazon.com/NZXT-Crafted-Tower-Steel-Chassis/dp/B003WE9WQO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1325468083&sr=1-1
$10.00 cheaper

500gb WD Caviar Black Hard Drive:
http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Caviar-Internal-Desktop/dp/B004DMFAJ2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325468234&sr=8-1
$21.00 cheaper

8gb Corsair Vengeance Blu:
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-PC3-12800-1600mHz-CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B/dp/B004QBUL1C/ref=sr_1_7?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1325467877&sr=1-7
$0.00 cheaper

Seasonic X750 750W Power Supply:
http://www.amazon.com/QualitySeasonic-Power-Supply-Retail-ATX12V/dp/B004OV9Z3O/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1325468542&sr=1-3
$40.04 cheaper (refurbished though)

There you go!

 

[NeutralEnergy]

Hmm well I think the 500R case is just as good as the Phantom. The Phantom, in my opinion, looks better (not saying the 500R looks bad, though) but the 500R has better cable management, and a few extra goodies. Although, if you had a bit more money to spend, I would personally go with the Corsair 600T or the Corsair 650D. Both are good cases. The NZXT Phantom still is a great case. All up to you.

 

[mortonww]

What about a Z68 motherboard so that you can buy a cheap, small SSD in the future and get a dramatic speedup with Intel SRT and not have to reinstall all your programs.

 

[Rawhide15]

Hmm well I think the 500R case is just as good as the Phantom. The Phantom, in my opinion, looks better (not saying the 500R looks bad, though) but the 500R has better cable management, and a few extra goodies. Although, if you had a bit more money to spend, I would personally go with the Corsair 600T or the Corsair 650D. Both are good cases. The NZXT Phantom still is a great case. All up to you.

I chose that case because it looks sick