I haven't built a system for quite a few years, and with Diablo III around the corner (possibly a long corner, but hopefully not...) I am ready to build a new machine. I have left a few blanks below primarily because I would like opinions and haven't picked out anything specific to fill these slots.
Approximate Purchase Date: 1-2 Weeks
Budget Range: $800-1000 After Rebates (willing to spend more if it will be extremely beneficial)
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Diablo III, web surfing, primary home computing, Blue Ray movies (may/may not add Blue Ray burner now, depends where the rest of my budget ends up)
Parts Not Required: keyboard, mouse, monitor (Toshiba 40” LCD 1080p), speakers (home surround sound, Onkyo receiver), OS (Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit)
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com, Micro Center
Country: USA
Parts Preferences: Nothing specific.
Overclocking: Probably down the road.
SLI or Crossfire: Not unless it would be of benefit.
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 (Would I benefit from SLI/Crossfire?)
Additional Comments: I would like a quiet PC, unless performance will suffer. Willing to spend a few bucks here to decrease noise.
Case: Thermaltake Commander ………$35 (MicroCenter)
Cheap, good airflow, lots of fan locations, window (not necessary, but definitely kewl)
CPU: i5 2500k.........$190 (MicroCenter)
MOBO: ASUS P8Z68-V Gen3 .........$75 (MicroCenter)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 1600 ………$48 (MicroCenter)
GPU: 560Ti or 570 (would like to keep around $250, maybe $300 if it’s worth the jump to a higher card)
I'm not necessarily set on Nvidia, I just have had better luck with their drivers over the years. Is the performance benefit worth the extra cost of the 570 or is there a different card I should consider?
Hard Drive: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB SSD………$160 (MicroCenter)
120GB will be enough for me until I feel like buying a storage drive for music and movies, preferably when hard drive costs drop a bit. I saw the article on the Vertex 3 and it appears that it performs very well. There are several other reasonably priced SSDs in MicroCenter's Feb deals. Any input?
PSU: Antec High Current Gamer 750W .........$80 (MicroCenter)
Most economy 5-600W PSUs I've seen are $50-60. If I can get a higher end PSU for only $20 more, then I will. Feedback and suggestions please?
Optical: LG Blue Ray Burner.........$80 (Newegg)
Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper N 520.........$40 (Newegg)
Only $5 more than a 212 Evo and claims to be much quieter.
I’m at $1008 allowing $300 for a video card. I’m sure I will end up getting more odds and ends and with tax I will be close to $1100, a little over-budget, but I think well worth it for this system.
Approximate Purchase Date: 1-2 Weeks
Budget Range: $800-1000 After Rebates (willing to spend more if it will be extremely beneficial)
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Diablo III, web surfing, primary home computing, Blue Ray movies (may/may not add Blue Ray burner now, depends where the rest of my budget ends up)
Parts Not Required: keyboard, mouse, monitor (Toshiba 40” LCD 1080p), speakers (home surround sound, Onkyo receiver), OS (Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit)
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com, Micro Center
Country: USA
Parts Preferences: Nothing specific.
Overclocking: Probably down the road.
SLI or Crossfire: Not unless it would be of benefit.
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 (Would I benefit from SLI/Crossfire?)
Additional Comments: I would like a quiet PC, unless performance will suffer. Willing to spend a few bucks here to decrease noise.
Case: Thermaltake Commander ………$35 (MicroCenter)
Cheap, good airflow, lots of fan locations, window (not necessary, but definitely kewl)
CPU: i5 2500k.........$190 (MicroCenter)
MOBO: ASUS P8Z68-V Gen3 .........$75 (MicroCenter)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 1600 ………$48 (MicroCenter)
GPU: 560Ti or 570 (would like to keep around $250, maybe $300 if it’s worth the jump to a higher card)
I'm not necessarily set on Nvidia, I just have had better luck with their drivers over the years. Is the performance benefit worth the extra cost of the 570 or is there a different card I should consider?
Hard Drive: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB SSD………$160 (MicroCenter)
120GB will be enough for me until I feel like buying a storage drive for music and movies, preferably when hard drive costs drop a bit. I saw the article on the Vertex 3 and it appears that it performs very well. There are several other reasonably priced SSDs in MicroCenter's Feb deals. Any input?
PSU: Antec High Current Gamer 750W .........$80 (MicroCenter)
Most economy 5-600W PSUs I've seen are $50-60. If I can get a higher end PSU for only $20 more, then I will. Feedback and suggestions please?
Optical: LG Blue Ray Burner.........$80 (Newegg)
Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper N 520.........$40 (Newegg)
Only $5 more than a 212 Evo and claims to be much quieter.
I’m at $1008 allowing $300 for a video card. I’m sure I will end up getting more odds and ends and with tax I will be close to $1100, a little over-budget, but I think well worth it for this system.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram