First Gaming Build

[Sanduskin]

I am looking at doing my first gaming build and wanted some opinions. I am looking to stay under $1100 before rebates and this is what I have come up with. Total comes out around $1072 before rebates and shipping. I want something that will last a couple of years, but can be upgraded if need be down the road.

NZXT Phantom 410 CA-PH410-B1 White Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146087

MSI Z68A-GD55 (G3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130622

MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127608

RAIDMAX HYBRID 2 RX-730SS 730W ATX12V V2.2/ EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Modular LED Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817152036

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148441

G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231497

LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

Western Digital 1.0TB WD10EAVS-32D7B1, DCM HARNHT2MA, SATA 3.5" Hard Drive (this I already have)
http://www.memory4less.com/m4l_itemdetail_print.aspx?t=+3twQt1Lw6llDCDUe1I5Dw==&partno=WD10EAVS32D7B1

 

[g-unit1111]

Looks pretty good except for the Raidmax PSU - this would be a far better choice for only $20 more: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095

And I'm not the biggest fan of MSI - this would be a better board and video card for the same category:

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498
Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130738

Otherwise it looks really good but you should definitely check out those choices.

 

[amythompson172]

The only thing I have to say is that, that Western Digital 1TB HD is unusually expensive at $233. You can get a fantastic Western Digital 1TB Sata III on amazon for $160.

http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Caviar-Internal-Desktop/dp/B0036Q7MV0/

 

[Sanduskin]

I already have the WD 1TB, so cost isnt a factor on that.

 

[g-unit1111]

I already have the WD 1TB, so cost isnt a factor on that.

You shouldn't factor that into your build then - you should focus more on what you don't have and not on what you already have.

 

[michxymi]

What's your monitor's resolution? Do you plan to Crossfire / SLI down the road?

 

[Sanduskin]

Getting a 22" monitor from a friend, not sure of the resolution, just know its HD. May do SLI down the road, but not near future.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

The MSI has a 6 phase VRM ..... competing brands like Asus and Gigabyte offer 7 phase designs ... all things being equal, more phases means better OC'ing

http://www.pureoverclock.com/review.php?id=1201&page=17

I'd spend an extra $5 for the Corsair 500R (Black) $20 off w/ promo code EMCNHNC46, ends 2/13

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&N=100006644&isNodeId=1&Description=500R&x=0&y=0

As was said above, no on the RAIDmax PSU

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207011

The M4 64 GB is small and way down at Tier 9 .... $100 seems a lot

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-review-benchmark,3115-6.html

$170 .... ($20 off w/ promo code HARDOCPX2X8E, ends 2/14) gets ya a Tier 3 which is twice the size and almost 80% faster.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220599