$2,000 gaming PC. Need help picking parts.

[Revenge209]

I think it's time for an upgrade from my current computer. It's not doing the job. It has:
Radeon 9250 256MB -- Pentium 4 3.00GHZ CPU -- 1GB DDR2 RAM--- 80GB HDD
Watching HD videos on YouTube really stutters and make my pc slow. Won't even run Battlefield 2.

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Purchase date: May
Budget: $3 - $2,200
From Newegg.ca preferably
Overclocking: Maybe
SLI or Crossfire: Probably sometime in the future
Parts not required:: mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers.
System usage, most to least important: Gaming, Watch HD videos, Multitasking, Surfing the interwebs



I'm not really all that computer wise compared to you guys. The experts. I want a computer that is really quiet and has good airflow. I want to be able to play games at ultra settings (BF3, Crysis 2, Arma 2, Metro 2033, RTS Games, etc), watch hd videos, having multiple tabs open, listen to music and all that jazz.

These are the parts I want for my pc so far. You have probably noticed there are a few parts missing. This is where you guys come in. The experts. I would greatly appreciate it if you could use your great knowledge of computers and tell me what I should get for the missing parts. Thank you.



CPU -- I7 3770K $350 http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116501
HeatSink --
GPU -- GTX 680 $530 http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769
MOBO -- ASUS P8Z77-V DELUXE $290 http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131818
Case --
RAM -- CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB $50 http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186
HDD --
PSU --
CD/DVD Drive --
OS -- Windows 7 $110 http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986

Grand total so far... $1,330


What do you think about the motherboard? Also, should I get an SSD?

 

[geogolem]

Yes, grab a 120GB SSD or larger. Then grab a 500GB or 1TB HDD. It really depends on your usage habits. If you have been surviving with an 80GB HDD all this time, maybe all you need is a 120GB SSD. You can always grab another HDD in the future.

At a minimum grab a 60GB SSD and use it to cache a system HDD with Intel SRT technology but you would be better off buying a 120GB or larger SSD and using it as a boot drive.

I like the Corsair PSU's. The three series you should consider are TX, HX and AX.

TX: non-modular, 80+bronze
HX - modular, 80+silver
AX - modular 80+ Gold

HX is the happy medium, and AX is nice. TX is for those who can't afford an HX. If you never plan on SLIing, ever grab a Corsair HX650. If you want to SLI someday grab a Corsair HX850 or larger.

 

[l0v3rboi]

corsair 500r: 140

Asrock Extreme6: 170

i5 3570k: 250 (you can also get 2500k, its a better overclocker because of less heat; also you don't need i7 for gaming. difference is so minimal that its negligible)

GTX 680: 530

G-Skill 8 GB (4 x 2 GB): 50

WD Caviar Black 2 TB: 270

Crucial M4 128 GB: 125

PC&P Silencer MkII 950W: 150 (Assuming you're OC and SlI in the future)

LG Blue Ray Drive: 65

OS: 110
TOTAL ===== 1840
All those prices are from Newegg.com.

 

[g-unit1111]

If it's a strictly gaming PC you don't need all the features of the i7-3770K - the i5-3570K will handle everything you need and then some.

Try this:

Case: Corsair Carbide 500R - $139.99 ($15.00 MIR)
PSU: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MKII 950W - $149.99 ($20.00 MIR)
Motherboard: Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 - $169.99
CPU: 3.4GHz Intel Core i5-3570K - $249.99
Cooler: Cooler Master TPC 12 - $69.99
RAM: 8GB Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 1333MHz 1.5V - $42.99
SSD: 128GB Crucial M4 - $141.99
HD: 1TB Seagate Barracuda ST - $99.99
Optical: LG Blu Ray Burner - $79.99
Video Card: EVGA Geforce GTX 680 - $499.99

Total: $1754.89 - $35.00 MIR = $1719.89

Use the difference for OS, a nice monitor or any nice peripherals you want - the budget will more than allow for it.

 

[Jdorty]

You say you don't need a monitor, but it would be nice to know what resolution monitor you currently have. Any of these expensive graphics cards will be way, way overkill for anything less than 1980x1020 resolution, and honestly with only one monitor and not doing anything overly taxing the CPU and GPU are both overkill.

Basically, depending on your monitor, you may want a lower end Video Card, or buy a new monitor. If you end up buying a new monitor, you can use your old one as a secondary monitor (always nice). It's also good to know whether you want to spend all the way up to your budget, and get the best bang for THAT buck, or whether you want to spend as little as possible for the performance and usage you're looking for.

I would stick with the Corsair Vengeance RAM you chose. It's good RAM and a great company if you need to RMA it. I would also stick with a WD Black for a HDD, going anywhere from 500 GB to 2 TB, depending on your needs.

You don't list a CD/DVD/Blu-ray drive, but many people are listing Blu-ray burners. Is a Blu-ray burner something you would use? If you don't have Blu-rays, then most definitely not. You can get a simple DVD/CD burner for less than $20, and I personally don't see a blu-ray drive as ever being necessary, seeing as high speed internet and downloadable EVERYTHING making it obsolete.

You don't need an aftermarket CPU fan unless you plan on overclocking, I would hold off on that until you decide to overclock (if you ever do).

You really don't need a 950W PSU either, but the one g-unit1111 lists is very well-priced (and a good brand), so its a good deal for upgrade-ability if you decide to crossfire or SLI at a later date.



So in short, it would be nice to know your current monitor resolution and whether you want to spend all of your budget for as powerful of a PC as possible, or if you're looking for the least you can spend to get a good PC for your needs and good brands.

Honestly you can spend half your budget and run all the games you listed and do everything you mentioned very well at 1980x1020 or lower resolution.

Edit: I would NOT go with an Asrock mobo. I have had terrible experiences with their customer support, and so have many other builders I have talked to online. Go with EVGA or Asus, especially with your budget. It won't be much of a price difference and can save you a huge headache.

 

[g-unit1111]

You say you don't need a monitor, but it would be nice to know what resolution monitor you currently have. Any of these expensive graphics cards will be way, way overkill for anything less than 1980x1020 resolution, and honestly with only one monitor and not doing anything overly taxing the CPU and GPU are both overkill.

That may be true but it's nice to plan ahead - if you're running one monitor now and then have plans to add a second or third wouldn't you want to make sure you're ready for it?

Basically, depending on your monitor, you may want a lower end Video Card, or buy a new monitor. If you end up buying a new monitor, you can use your old one as a secondary monitor (always nice). It's also good to know whether you want to spend all the way up to your budget, and get the best bang for THAT buck, or whether you want to spend as little as possible for the performance and usage you're looking for.

To me the GPU is the most important part of any build and it can often make or break a build's performance. I was running in my HTPC a Radeon 5490 - I swapped it out with a GTX 550TI - took the WEI score from 4.5 to 7.4.

I would stick with the Corsair Vengeance RAM you chose. It's good RAM and a great company if you need to RMA it. I would also stick with a WD Black for a HDD, going anywhere from 500 GB to 2 TB, depending on your needs.

Corsair is fine as long as you get the low profile version - anything else and I don't recommend Corsair RAM for that. I like Crucial and Kingston the best personally. I would not pay the premiums for the Caviar Black drives right now - the 2TB version runs nearly $300 even with the HD shortages. You can get a solid 128GB SSD like the Plextor M3 or Crucial M4 for 1/2 the cost and a 2TB green drive for $99.

You don't list a CD/DVD/Blu-ray drive, but many people are listing Blu-ray burners. Is a Blu-ray burner something you would use? If you don't have Blu-rays, then most definitely not. You can get a simple DVD/CD burner for less than $20, and I personally don't see a blu-ray drive as ever being necessary, seeing as high speed internet and downloadable EVERYTHING making it obsolete.

The reason BD-R burners are included on high end builds is because most people will be hooking their systems up to some high end audio and/or video equipment (such as a 55" LED) and not a traditional 20" - 24" monitor - this is the reason why expensive GPUs are recommended and the reason why most people want HDMI output on them with the highest frame rates available. A lesser GPU than a 680 or 79XX / 78XX will slow that down to a crawl on anything less than high settings.

A BD-R burner lets people watch movies and even 3-D movies on their high-end monitors. Something you can't get with a cheap $15 DVD burner. Plus the 25GB single and 50GB dual configurations of the discs make backups extremely easy (even though the media is expensive).

You really don't need a 950W PSU either, but the one g-unit1111 lists is very well-priced (and a good brand), so its a good deal for upgrade-ability if you decide to crossfire or SLI at a later date.

PC Power & Cooling is a great brand (partly owned by OCZ but remains as a separate entity) and that PSU was a steal for what I paid for it, and it's actually made by Seasonic which is one of the best OEMs in the business.

Edit: I would NOT go with an Asrock mobo. I have had terrible experiences with their customer support, and so have many other builders I have talked to online. Go with EVGA or Asus, especially with your budget. It won't be much of a price difference and can save you a huge headache.

Huh, I've been eyeing that board for my system but I may stick with Gigabyte based off that suggestion (although I did score an unbelievable deal on the i5-3570K just now). EVGA's got a great support department but their motherboards I'd only recommend on $2K+ systems - the Z77 FTW board is sweet but it's a monster motherboard and requires a monster case to run it properly.

 

[John Koligliaths]

Hmmmm I am not a computer expert but i think with a budget like that u could try this build out .

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($185.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($121.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data S511 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($154.47 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($399.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($399.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master HAF X Blue ATX Full Tower Case ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional Gold 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($171.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Microcenter)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($184.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $2034.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-04 14:16 EDT-0400)


EDIT : U might want to buy a 1000w PSU
2nd EDIT : U should read articles for having the best airlfow inside your case , the recommended is to have 1 120mm fan in front and one in rear