1500$ Rig - This is my first build so any help would be appreciated.

[Xianzu]

Approximate Purchase Date: Today or tomorrow.
Budget Range: 1600 Before / After Rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: All types of games, Internet browsing, Storage.

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, monitor, mouse, I have few hard drives laying around for added storage.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Prefer newegg.

Country: U.S.
Parts Preferences: Nothing really, I prefer major brands for PSU for obvious reasons.

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: No.

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: Looking for futureproofing for at least a few years.

GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3P LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

174$

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz

229$

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus

20$ after code.

XFX Black Edition FX-797A-TDBC Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

600$.

CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX850 V2 850W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

115$ After code and rebate. I already bought this PSU as the sale was ending, however I can still return it if something is off/wrong.

Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive

182$.

CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800

40$. I already bought this due to the Shellshocker deal, I was going to get the 1.35v white version but did some research and concluded it wasn't worth the extra 10$ for what little OCing I plan to do.

Fractal Design Define R3 Black Pearl w/ USB 3.0 ATX Mid Tower Silent PC

120$.
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So total price without shipping would be 1480$.

I tried to do as much research as possible before asking any questions. I actually plan on getting the Gigabyte Windforce 7970 once it is released later this month(I have another card to hold me over until then). I linked the one above because it is comparable to the same price and obviously same power. However I am not entirely sure I need something as powerful as the 7970 just looking to futureproof this as much as possible. If anyone has any helpful links they found useful for their first build I would highly appreciate it, otherwise I can research myself, never hurts to ask right? =P Also I know about the 5000 or 5200 firmware issue with the M4, they are going to push a fix within another week, so not too worried about it.

 

[tlmck]

Since you are talking about a PCIe 3.0 card, you might want a motherboard with PCIe 3.0 slots. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=280&Description=&Type=&N=100007627+600176035&IsNodeId=1&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&OEMMark=N&Manufactory=1315&Manufactory=1314&PropertyCodeValue=705%3A88788&PropertyCodeValue=20267%3A164176&PropertyCodeValue=20267%3A164177

Gigabyte would work also, but Newegg did not list any. Any of the 4 above would work though.

Everything else looks great.

 

[jeremyp1979]

Looks like a great build, though i would spend a bit more and get an Asus board, something like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790.

 

[tlmck]

Looks like a great build, though i would spend a bit more and get an Asus board, something like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790.

Your link is messed up. It happens often with Newegg as they are constantly updating their site.

 

[jeremyp1979]

Your link is messed up. It happens often with Newegg as they are constantly updating their site.

Sorry, try this ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3

 

[jsc]

Because this is your first build, look at the following threads while you are waiting for your parts.
Build it yourself:
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/274745-13-step-step-guide-building

And although this primarily a troubleshooting thread, the first part contains a checklist that will catch most noob mistakes:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261145-31-read-posting-boot-problems

And I recommend breadboarding a new build:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/262730-31-breadboarding

It doesn't take long, and it lets you test your parts before you install them in the case.

 

[Xianzu]

From what little research I did the difference between 3.0 and 2.0 slots was very small currently unless using multiple cards, screens, ect, but I guess it isn't that much more. Just curious of the real benefit of it for gaming. Oh, and according to a few reviews it despite Newegg not stating it - this board does have pci-e 3.0. So hurray!

 

[tlmck]

Yes. I see that Newegg added PCIe 3.0 just below the main description. It is still incorrect in the details tab.

I thought I read somewhere that PCIe 3.0 was twice as fast as PCIe 2.0, but I could be wrong. Until we have benchmark data, it is anyone's guess.

 

[Xianzu]

Oh, I didn't mean to sound like I knew everything. =S Rereading my reply. I do appreciate you pointing it out, I would prefer to get it over not. From what I've read, which isn't much, is it's loads better for everything but gaming - since most don't even saturate 2.0. I think on a 7970 it was like a 6%? increase or so on the data I saw. I know later it will be worth it just now, not so sure. =) Again appreciate your advice.

 

[venur]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157265 bought one and I,m impress so far for the money.

 

[somekidxd]

Looks good

 

[Xianzu]

Best answer selected by Xianzu.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey