First Build (check)

Dancerman01

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Jan 8, 2012
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Doing my first build in early February. Please check parts for compatibility etc. Any and all advice is appreciated!

Approximate Purchase Date: First Weekend in February (Some things may change as the date gets closer but for the most part things will stay the same)
Budget: 1500-1700 (After Rebates)
System Usage: Gaming, Blu-Ray, Video Streaming, Internet, Office
Parts Not Required: Speakers, Monitor
Preferred Websites: Newegg, Amazon (doesn't much matter to me)
Country: USA
Parts Preference: Intel CPU, nvidia GPU
Overclocking: Maybe in the future (will upgrade cooling if I decide to... but won't be for a while-probably at least a year)
SLI/Crossfire: Maybe in the future, not right away (Probably a year or two away)
Monitor Resulution: Currently I have a 1440x900, but will be connecting the new rig to an 1080p hdtv.

The Build so far:

CPU:
Intel i5 2500k (Newegg, $219: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072)

Mobo:
Asus P8Z68 PRO-GEN3 (Newegg, $199.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790)

PSU:
Coolermaster 850w 80+ gold (Newegg $149.99 after MIR http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171061)

SSD:
Crucial 128gb (Newegg, 179.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442)

HDD:
Seagate Barracuda 500gb (Newegg $94.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148701)

GPU:
EVGA 560ti (Newegg $229.99 after MIR http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130604)

Memory:
Corsair Vengeance 8gb (2x4gb) (Newegg, $48.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345)

Case:
Corsaire Graphite 600t (Newegg, $144.99 after MIR http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139007)

Optical Drive:
Asus Blu-Ray + Corell WinDVD combo (Newegg, $85.98 http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.778559.27-135-247)

Key Board+Mouse:
MIcrosoft Ergonomic (Newegg, $37.98 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823109235)

Through combos and MIR this comes to a grand total of approximately $1502.88

Thoughts? Advice? Let me know. Thanks!
 
i know many people don't trust coolermaster PSUs and they are right but silent pro and silent pro GOLD series is a very good performer.i am using a 1000w PSU and it's doing well.only con is that it is not 'that' silent.other it is very good.i hope same for 850w unit.i would suggest a better GPU.the case looks awesome but it's expensive.there are other quality cases for less price-Antec 900,Corsair 400r and 500r,nzxt phantom,rosewill thor V2,Azza solano 1000 etc.i would suggest azza case,it's a really well built full tower for reasonable price.you can also go to micro-center.2500k is very cheap in there.
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354589
i would suggest this video card-
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1613275&SRCCODE=PRICEGRABBER&cm_mmc_o=2mHCjCVybgwTyz__wyCjCVqHCjCdwwp&cpncode=30-21144778-2
this a good PSU and enough for SLi-
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0361181
other things are good

 

phenom90

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Jul 27, 2010
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there are some parts you can save your money.... take a look...

cpu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
Intel Core i5-2500K - $220

mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 - $122

ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231461
G.SKILL Sniper Low Voltage Series 8GB F3-12800CL9D-8GBSR2 - $50

hsf: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181011
CORSAIR CAFA70 - $38

hdd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB - $130

ssd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220624
Patriot Pyro SE PPSE120GS25SSDR 2.5" 120GB - $165

odd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135252
ASUS Blu-ray Burner BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS - $70

case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147053
Rosewill THOR V2 - $130

psu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703028
PC Power and Cooling Silencer Mk II 950W - $140

gpu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162074
Galaxy 56NGH6HS4IXZ GeForce GTX 560 Ti - $185

total: $1250 after rebates excluding shipping






 
@phenom90
i already suggested him micro-center where he can get 2500k for less price.
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 is for 'budget builds'.it's a good mobo but i am partial to asus for mobo cause they make awesome mobo's.so i would suggest not changing the mobo.the RAM you listed is good but a little bit expensive.Ripjaws and vengeance are best IMO.+100 :) for case and PSU.these changes will budget for atleast a gtx 570 or hd 6970.
 

Dancerman01

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Jan 8, 2012
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18,510
For the Power Supply, I think I will go with this. I do want something 80+ certified, and this fits the bill (It is SLI-ready, powerful and slightly less expensive than the one i was looking at). http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171057

@hellfire

unfortunately the i5 link that you posted only works in a micro center store (you can't order it online!), and there is not one where I live so I an stuck ordering from Newegg.

I am willing to spend a little more for the case because it has what I want. (it has 4 usb 2.0 on the front which I will use). It is also a great case for building, as it is spacious and well designed (excellent cable management). So while I am able to save a little money (My second choice being the Rosewill Blackhawk) I have decided not to.

As far as the GPU goes, I am going to stick with a normal overclocked 560ti (I was looking at the one with the 448 cores, but I read that it is a limited edition so I might not be able to find it as easily if i choose to do SLI in the future). But the Galaxy looks great, might even be able to get a second one and start off with SLI if that sale is still there when I an buying.

 

strausd

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Jan 7, 2012
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A few posts above, phenom mentioned a Corsair CPU cooler. I definitely recommend getting a third party CPU cooler, especially if you want to overclock in the future. If you want one that is a little cheaper than the Corsair CAFA70, look into the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus. It is a well respected CPU cooler at a very good price.

You mentioned not going for the more expensive 560 Ti because you are not sure if you would be able to SLI in the future. Have you considered a GTX 570?
 

Dancerman01

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Jan 8, 2012
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@Phenom

Gonna stick with the ASUS MOBO, it has the features that I want, seems reliable, and ASUS has pretty good support. Not going to get a CPU cooler, as the stock works well for no overclocking. If i decide to do overclocking int he future I will buy one at that point. (The Corsair 600t has good potential for a water cooler if that is the route that I go).

As far as the RAM, I was just going to go with vengeance... seems pretty standard. I'm not sure what the lower voltage means, or if it is worth investing in.

I'm going to just go for a small HDD for now. My current computer has a 750gb hd right now, and I'm only using 220. SO a 500gb drive and the 120gb SSD should be enough. For the SSD I had been thinking Crucial as they seem the most reliable, and that one is on sale.

Also not so interested in a BluRay burner, just going to get a drive. (Also you missed software to play the BluRays, almost all of them are OEM. So if i got a burner I would have to pay extra for software to play BluRays, and also for software to burn them. I doubt I will be burning BR's any time soon so I'm just going to stick with teh one that I had.
 

strausd

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Jan 7, 2012
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I have noticed that whenever ASUS shows off a motherboard on Newegg TV, they always have Corsair memory in it, so that should be reassuring for the memory you choose.

They almost always have Corsair cases, SSDs, and power supplies too. So it seems like ASUS and Corsair work closely together.