$1000-$1500 Gaming PC

[TechnicalNerd91]

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers, OS

Country: U.S.

Parts Preferences:

- Mobo: ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 $199.99
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790
- GPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz $319.99
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
- Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB $129.99
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231456
- PSU: COOLER MASTER Silent Pro Gold Series RSC00-80GAD3-US 1200W $239.99
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171055
- Heatsink: COOLER MASTER Hyper N 520
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103057
- HDD: Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148441
o Have 1.5TB from previous desktop
- Video Card: HIS IceQ X Turbo H695QNT2G2M Radeon HD 6950 2GB x 2 for Crossfire $539.98
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.803257
- Case:
o COOLER MASTER HAF X RC-942-KKN1 $199.99 – Full Tower
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119225
o OR
o COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP $104.99 – Mid Tower
o http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Yes

Monitor Resolution: Would like to connect it to my HDTV, is that a good idea or should I actually buy a computer monitor? 1920x1080 is ideal if I do have to buy a computer monitor.

Additional Comments: I am fairly new to building a computer, so please go easy on me. For the mobo, GPU, and memory I am pretty sure I am sticking to those, but any suggestions are welcome. The only things I am not sure about are the PSU, Video Cards, and Cases. Would 1200W be too much? I honestly am not sure if I picked the right video card, but would like to SLI or Crossfire with a 2GB video card. What is the difference between SLI and Crossfire, if any? As for the case, I decided on a full tower at the beginning because I thought not everything would fit but I honestly am not sure what to do about the case. I would like it to not be cluttered and have good air flow. Should I buy extra cooling fans to put in the case? Is a liquid cooling system worth it?

 

[BohleyK]

Since you haven't told us what this build is for I'm going to assume is just a gaming rig with some photoshop and web surfing on the side. If that is the case there are things you can ditch to save cash or spend on something useful.

Assuming that this is a gaming rig for the most part you can get rid the Core i7 as its for workstations or enthusiasts and benchmarking. If benching is something you're into keep it I suppose but it serves no practical use over the Core i5 in a gaming rig. Secondly the enormous 1200W power plant is not necessary unless you are using more than two video cards and liquid cooling. 750W what should be more than enough for you even if you decide to Crossfire/SLI.

Again, I'm assuming you are just gaming with some photoshop on the side so 8GB of RAM should be plenty. If you are into video editing large files from FRAPS or something than OK go for 16GB but other than that its not necessary. Two HD6950 isn't bad at all but with all the money saved from eliminating the aforementioned you can probably grab an HD7970 and you won't need to Crossfire at all.

The only other thing I see that can be improved is the SSD. Yes its cheap and tempting at $100 but the write times are a joke. Most SATA III SSD's write around 500MB per second, not 95MB per second.

Just food for thought [:bohleyk]

 

[TechnicalNerd91]

Yes, this is for building a gaming PC as stated in the title. Since an i5 is good enough for gaming, I suppose I will go with that. I thought 1200W would be too much too. Thank you for the other suggestions and I will use it to adjust my build.

 

[TechnicalNerd91]

Thank you for the suggestions. I will use it to adjust on my build.

 

[aznshinobi]

Please fill this out.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

But no, Liquid cooling isn't worth it and 1200w is a crazy amount. SLI and CF are both about the same, but CF tends to scale better in situations with 3 or 4 cards. I say only 3 and 4 because that's basically the limit currently.

As for a build here's a suggestion so far.

i5 2500K + Patriot 8GB DDR3 1600 $241
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.805911
Asrock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 $122
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
Silverstone 850w $145
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256058
Diamond 7970 3GB $550
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814103201
Nova 2 60GB $85 ($10 MIR)
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-2-5-Inch-Solid-Drives-CSSD-V60GB2/dp/B0057A5RA6%3FSubscriptionId%3D19BAZMZQFZJ6G2QYGCG2%26tag%3Dsquid1240995-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB0057A5RA6
Corsair 400R + Seagate 500GB $165 ($10 MIR)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.812374
Asus DVD Drive $19
http://www.amazon.com/Asus-24xDVD%C2%B1RW-24x8x16x-48x32x48x-DRW-24B1ST/dp/B0033Z2BAQ/ref=pd_bxgy_pc_img_b
Cooler Master Hyper 212+ $27
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0%3FSubscriptionId%3D19BAZMZQFZJ6G2QYGCG2%26tag%3Dsquid1240995-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB002G1YPH0
Total: $1354 before rebates

 

[farsuka]

I'd suggest the 7k series aswell.

 

[TechnicalNerd91]

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions. I will go with the i5 and the 7k series GPU.

 

[aznshinobi]

Alright good luck!