Help selecting a few parts please! :)

[sodapop707]

Hello!

-Possibly getting a new desktop setup in the near future.i will have around 900 dollars or so to spend on a new desktop and monitor. Super excited, but I am no expert on building and component selection. Although I think I have a decent system put together! Let me know what you think.

-I am going to be some gaming such as Modern Warfare 3, Dirt 3, Battlefield 3... Mostly first person shooters and racing games of the more graphic intense. Also video editing/creating, and plenty of other editing programs such as photoshop, sony vegas etc.

-With the 900.00 I need an AMD or maybe INTEL based desktop with a monitor with a nice resolution. Dont really care what screen size and whether/whether not its 1280x1080. Slightly lower resolution wont be a huge issue to me.

-Dont need an OS, thats been covered!

-SO, lets get to the components! Here's what I've put together so far!
Any changes or suggestions? I really just want the best possible frame rates possible alo with the computer being able to burn through editing programs.

Thanks!


set up? by WLSphotography, on Flickr

 

[geekapproved]

The FX6100 is the worst choice for a gaming cpu you could have picked. The only FX that's decent is the 8150 and even that is a poor choice for gaming.

Put it this way, the FX6100 overclocked to 4.5ghz would still get beat in gaming by a stock 3.1ghz i3-2100 dual core.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-9.html

Also you want a dual channel memory kit, not triple channel.

You should fill out the new build form in the new build section if you want build suggestions.

 

[mightymaxio]

Although for longevity the FX-8120 would last for years and years if it were not a gaming desktop and just a browsing the internet/taxes/email computer.

 

[azeem40]

Nope. The i3 is more upgradeable than the Amd cpu.

 

[mightymaxio]

But if your going for longevity the more cores you have = the more Operating systems 5-6 years from now will use. You wouldn't see a difference in the AMD vs Intel CPU if your only getting for a home use PC and not for gaming which is why i said more cores = longer life for that purpose.

 

[Fragrato]

and your motherboard won't support the ram you have selected for it, make sure you get dual channel ram not triple channel.

 

[Onus]

Tom's has done a series of articles in the last month or two. Each makes a fairly strong case, but combined their statement is compelling, regardless of how sad you think it is; the simple truth NOW is that there is no price point at which Intel is not the better choice for games. None, not even at the bottom, which AMD used to own. Even cheap H61 chipset mobos can now be found with SATA 6Gb/s and USB 3.0, so even AMD's chipset advantage has been neutralized.
Since you're building new, AMD doesn't even need a seat at the table. Their GPUs are fine, but your CPU should be Intel.
For current and new games, I don't think you want anything less than a HD6870. In your place (building soon, not waiting for Kepler), I'd probably go for a GTX560Ti.

 

[Fragrato]

It looks like your ordering from tigerdirect so I'd scrap that setup and get this. You'd save and get a WAY better setup.

 

[Onus]

Only if the "600W" PSU in the combo is a quality unit. Chances are it isn't, absolutely killing the deal.

 

[sodapop707]

Thanks for the input everyone.

So what if i went for an i5 unlocked processor, and picked the right MOBO for it, and the according RAM? Would that be a good set up? And im not going for longetivity, i would upgrade every year and a half or so in term of CPU / GPU talk.

No one's saying anything bad about the GPU i selected. I saw it got good reviews and it looked to be a good performer in the gaming arena. What do you think?

Thanks again for the help!

 

[sodapop707]

Picture 4 by WLSphotography, on Flickr

Okay, so how about that set up plus a decent GPU with 150.00. Can someone recommend the best GPU for no more than 150.00?

 

[Onus]

With an unlocked i5 and a decent mobo, you shouldn't need to upgrade your CPU for years.
The HD7770 isn't a bad GPU, but there are better choices. The HD6850 is a little stronger, and a little cheaper. For modern games at 1920x1080, like I said earlier you may not want anything less than a HD6870. If your games are not particularly demanding (e.g. older games, or genres other than FPS) and/or you are not unwilling to turn down a few settings, you'd probably find your games playable with as little as a HD7750 or HD6770.

Edit: I suspect you can do a little better on the RAM, getting the price down a little.
Also, ECS would not be one of my top three mobo choices; that would be Asus, ASRock, then probably Gigabyte.

 

[sodapop707]

Okay so here's a question. If you had 800.00 to spend on a desktop (everything but a monitor included with 800), part by part what would you get to have the best possible frame rates on graphic intense games such as MW3, Dirt 3, and Battlefield 3. Honestly those are the games Ill be playing mostly.

Im willing to sacrifice HDD space for more $ to spend on more important things because I have a large external HDD for large memory things. Also willing to dumb down the case like 30 bucks. Maybe something around 40-50$.

What do you think? I just dont want to blow all my money on something i dont have a lot of knowledge on.

 

[Onus]

I would probably do something like this:

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKX 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Model #:WD3200AAKX
Item #:N82E16822136770
$84.99 -$10.00 Instant $74.99
Bigger would be nice, but with your specific remark in mind, I think this will do.

EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support FPB Video ...
Model #:01G-P3-1561-AR
Item #:N82E16814130604
Mail in Rebate Card
$249.99 -$25.00 Instant $224.99
This card should play any of the games you mentioned, and many others, on very high to ultra settings.

Rosewill DESTROYER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 120mm ...
Model #: DESTROYER
Item #: N82E16811147144
$59.99 -$10.00 Instant $49.99
Rosewill has become my preferred case provider, for being consistently decent. For the price, you get fans that are effective yet quiet, good craftsmanship, and reasonable material strength.

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 ...
Model #:BX80623I52500K
Item #:N82E16819115072
$219.99 $219.99
Not too much thought needed to go into this one. If you have no interest in overclocking, get an i5-2400 instead (which would also let you use the stock cooler).

Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
Model #:EA-500D Green
Item #:N82E16817371035
$89.99 -$40.00 Instant $49.99
For this price, this PSU will be hard to beat. Its only drawback is that it probably doesn't have much headroom for expansion. If you think you'll run multiple graphics cards in the future, drop the GTX560Ti back to a GTX560 or HD6870, and use the money to buck this up to a 650W unit of comparable quality.

LG DVD Burner Black SATA Model GH24NS70 - OEM
Model #:GH24NS70 OEM
Item #:N82E16827136236
$16.99 $16.99
One optical drive is much like another. I went cheap.

XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler bracket included LGA 2011 i7 i5 775 1155 AMD and dual fan push pull ...
Model #:GAIA SD1283
Item #:N82E16835233082
$29.99 $29.99
Any 120mm direct-touch HSF will offer similar performance.

ASRock Z68 PRO3 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Model #:Z68 PRO3 GEN3
Item #:N82E16813157279
$114.99 -$10.00 Instant $104.99
I've had good results from ASRock mobos. I'd consider this one myself if I were building a new rig.

G.SKILL Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT
Model #:F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT
Item #:N82E16820231424
$37.99 $37.99
I buy mostly G.Skill RAM because it just works. Install and done. I've never had a DOA stick, or had to RMA any. The sample size of only 12-16 sticks is insignificant, but I cannot say the same about Crucial, Corsair, or even Mushkin.

Subtotal: $809.91
There's a rebate on the GPU if you play that game and win, otherwise forgoing a lunch or two at McDorkle's will make up the difference.

Edit: killed a smiley.

 

[sodapop707]

Sounds like we have a winner!

Thank you so much! I might just go with that set up.

One last question, well two, does that mobo have more slots for more RAM sticks? And would I see any more performance in gaming if i later got another 8GB (if thats possible with the motherboard). So itd be a total of 16GB. That sounds overkill to me, but hell if I know.

 

[Onus]

Yes, there are four RAM slots on that mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157279 but I doubt you'd see any notable difference on any current games going from 8GB-16GB.

 

[sodapop707]

Thats what i had thought.

Where did you select these components? Like, what website? Uouve been a huge help thank you so much!

 

[Fragrato]

Its from Newegg, they charge tax and electronic waste processing fee since you live in CA. if you live next to a FRY's or MICROCENTER I'd advise you buy parts from them since some things are cheaper than buying at Newegg. Shopping at Tigerdirect is a good idea since no tax and no extra fees besides shipping will be incurred.

 

[Onus]

Yes, it is NewEgg. I did not realize they charged a waste fee; but I don't see where the OP indicates he lives in California...

 

[sodapop707]

I live in CA.

Im orobably ordering from TD because their shippings cheap and no tax on anything.

Thanks everyone. Case closed

 

[sodapop707]

Best answer selected by Sodapop707.