Multi-Phase Do-it-all desktop on a budget

[chubbywan]

Hey everyone,

I've been out of the game a while, haven't built a PC for myself in about 5 yrs. I work in IT and follow the hardware though so I've got a pretty good idea what I want. Having kids has prevented me from upgrading a few times but its finally time to say goodbye to the old workhorse and build something new. In order to help my budget out, I'm going to do this in a couple phases:

Phase I: Mobo, CPU, RAM
Phase II: Video Card, PSU, SSD
Phase III: Blu Ray Drive,

First let me tell you what I'm running now:

ASUS P5B-Deluxe-Wifi mobo
Intel C2D E6300
6 GB PC2-6400
NVIDIA GeForce 7600GS
2 x 500 GB SATA-150 HD's
Cooler Master CM-690 Case
2xDVD-RW's
Antec NEO 500W PSU
22" Monitor, speakers, kb, mouse, etc, etc
I also have a 2 yr old 128GB Samsung SSD (don't know the model off the top of my head) that was given to me.

AND here's what I want:


Approximate Purchase Date: in the next month
Budget Range: $700-ish
System Usage from Most to Least Important: A little bit of everything: Video conversion, some gaming, surfing, office apps, lots of tinkerint with networks and multiple OS's.
Parts Not Required: KB, Mouse, Monitor, Case, optical drives, storage drives, psu
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Micro Center 1st and Newegg if they won't pricematch
Country:USA
Parts Preferences: Intel looks best now, no real preferecne
Overclocking: Yes
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe
Monitor Resolution: 1680 x 1050 (hoping to upgrade this yr)
Additional Comments: I want something that will last me a bit with quality components. I've had my current build for 5 years and haven't had any major parts go bad, just a couple cheap fans.

So for phase 1, I want to reuse my current setup, pop in that SSD for my boot drive and replace the Mobo, cpu and ram with this:

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP $104 http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0366193
CPU: Intel i5 2500K $180 http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354589
Ram: Corsair Vengeance or GSkill Ripjaw X -2 x 4GB - $47: Depends on if Microcenter will pricematch

Phase II:

Video: Sapphire Radeon 6870 $145 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102948
PSU: Havent gotten there yet, but a quality 600W should suffice. Something by seasonic, antec, corsair
SSD: also not sure, but willkeep my eyes out for good deals.

Phase III: turn old pc to HTPC, other odds and ends.

Do you think my CM-690 will suffice or should I look into something else? What am I missing?

Thanks for the help, let me know what you think so far. I'm far from complete but was hoping to get some good ideas.

 

[tlmck]

You might save a few bucks by going 1333 speed on the ram. It can be had for $40 or so(Gskill and others). I have had 1333 and 1600(current) in mine and could not really tell the difference other than a few points on the benchmarks. I just got the 1600 because i got an amazing on day deal. 16gb of Kingston HyperX for $60. I split it between my two rigs, and used the old 1333 for another.

Other than that, you seem to have it figured out.

 

[chubbywan]

Best answer selected by ChubbyWan.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey