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New gaming build ~$1500

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I haven't kept up with hardware news lately... so hoping you guys could help me out. I know mismatched parts can bottleneck yourself. Hopefully though, much of my budget goes to a nice GPU. :love: 

Approximate Purchase Date: Within 2 weeks

Budget Range: $1500, Less is OK too

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Games, Daily Browsing

Parts Not Required: Monitor, Mouse, Windows 7, Keyboard, Headphones

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon First (I have prime too), then Newegg (I have tax in California)

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: Intel, one SSD 120GB

Overclocking: Definitely

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: I prefer an Intel system with lots of overclock potential, a budget motherboard without too many features (but stable), medium tower. One 120gb SSD for boot/games and one regular cheap 500gb hdd for storage. I read 7870 is good, but if something nicer is coming out within 2 weeks I don't mind waiting.

Thank you!

PS. My current setup I have i5-750 @ 3.6 and Radeon 5850. Going to leave that one at work, and build a new one for home

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Quote:
Additional Comments: I prefer an Intel system with lots of overclock potential, a budget motherboard without too many features (but stable), medium tower. One 120gb SSD for boot/games and one regular cheap 500gb hdd for storage. I read 7870 is good, but if something nicer is coming out within 2 weeks I don't mind waiting.


I have a 7870 and it's excellent - but the 680 is the reigning champ of GPUs right now and I've included it. At $500 it's not cheap and it's definitely too rich for my blood but the 7870 more than handles what I need it to do, so that's why I went with it. It's a bit rare but give it about a month and we'll start to see NVIDIA work its' way out of the shortages. I'm sure that NVIDIA and its' manufacturers did not anticipate the unusually high demand for this product. It's certainly the most energy efficient GPU that NVIDIA has ever produced and the days of 1K+ PSUs are coming to an end.

All right here you go:

Case: Fractal Design Arc MIDI - $99.99
PSU: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MKII 750W - $94.99 ($20.00 MIR)
Motherboard: Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 - $139.99
CPU: 3.4GHz Intel Core i5-3570K - $249.99
Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo - $34.99
RAM: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 - $42.99
SSD: 128GB Crucial M4 - $131.99
HD: 1TB Seagate Barracuda ST 7200 RPM - $99.99
Optical: LG Black BD-R Burner - $74.99
Video Card: EVGA Geforce GTX 680 - $499.99

Total: $1,474.89 - $20.00 MIR = $1,454.89

Best solution

Godzealot said:
I haven't kept up with hardware news lately... so hoping you guys could help me out. I know mismatched parts can bottleneck yourself. Hopefully though, much of my budget goes to a nice GPU. :love: 

Approximate Purchase Date: Within 2 weeks

Budget Range: $1500, Less is OK too

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Games, Daily Browsing

Parts Not Required: Monitor, Mouse, Windows 7, Keyboard, Headphones

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon First (I have prime too), then Newegg (I have tax in California)

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: Intel, one SSD 120GB

Overclocking: Definitely

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Additional Comments: I prefer an Intel system with lots of overclock potential, a budget motherboard without too many features (but stable), medium tower. One 120gb SSD for boot/games and one regular cheap 500gb hdd for storage. I read 7870 is good, but if something nicer is coming out within 2 weeks I don't mind waiting.

Thank you!

PS. My current setup I have i5-750 @ 3.6 and Radeon 5850. Going to leave that one at work, and build a new one for home



http://videocardz.com/32728/geforce-gtx-670-review-twea... <----- gtx 670 benchmarks. That card is due out this week and should retail for $400

http://videocardz.com/ <----- more links on that gtx 670


Anything not in stock @ amazon can be found on newegg. Both of those boards down below combo with all the Ivy Bridge cpu's to save you another $15.


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007SZ0E1K/ref=ox_sc_a... $244.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Intel Core i5 3570K Processor 3.4 4 BX80637I53570K

This XFX psu down below is manufactured by Seasonic as are all XFX and the mid and upper tier Corsair psu's.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... <----- that same XFX psu on newegg

http://www.amazon.com/XFX-ATX-550-Power-Supply/dp/B004R... $74.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
XFX ATX 550 Power Supply - P1550SXXB9

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Series-Mid-Tower-... $75.84 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair Carbide Series 300R Mid-Tower Gaming Case - CC-9011014-WW

http://www.corsair.com/carbide-series-300r-compact-pc-g... <----- another look at that case

or...

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Series-Gaming-Com... $99.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair Carbide Series 400R Mid Tower Gaming Computer Case - CC-9011011-WW

http://www.corsair.com/pc-cases/carbide-series-pc-case/... <----- another look at that case

or....

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Carbide-Series-Gaming-CC-... $116.16 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair Carbide Series 500R Mid Tower Gaming Case CC-9011012-WW

http://www.corsair.com/pc-cases/carbide-series-pc-case/... <----- another look at that case.


Both of these boards down below are meant for a single card configuration (single PCI-E 3.0 @ x16).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $119.99
ASRock Z77 Pro4 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=Z77%20Pro4 <----- another look at that board

or...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $159.99
ASRock Z77 Performance LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=Fatal1ty%20... <----- another look at that board

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007WPHXIS/ref=ox_sc_a... $69.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master TPC 812 CPU Heatsink Cooling Pad with Vapor Chamber Technology (RR-T812-24PK-R1)

http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=265... <----- that's a review on that h/s done with a single fan configuration

http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm <----- that heat sink on Frosty Tech's top 5 list.

or...

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-212-RR-212E-2... $34.95 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler (RR-212E-20PK-R2)

Add this fan down below to either of those CM cpu heat sinks above for a "push - pull affect" to help bring cpu temps down even more.

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-BladeMaster-Silent-... $11.06 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25
Cooler Master BladeMaster 120mm PWM High Air Flow Silent Case Fan R4-BMBS-20PK-R0

http://www.amazon.com/HD7870-DC2-2GD5-DisplayPort-Utili... $349.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
ASUS HD7870-DC2-2GD5 Radeon 2GB DDR5 VGA/DVI/HDMI/DisplayPort GPU Tweak Utilities PCI-Express 3.0 Graphics Card HD7870-DC2-2GD5

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/HD_7870_Direct_... <----- review of that Asus card w/benchmarks

Low profile RAM so it doesn't impede any after market cpu h/s.

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-Profile-PC3-128... $49.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair Vengeance Low Profile 8 GB (2x4GB Module) PC3-12800 1600mhz 240-Pin DDR3 Dual Channel Memory Kit SDRAM CML8GX3M2A1600C9

http://www.amazon.com/Asus-24xDVD-RW-Serial-Internal-DR... $17.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25
Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive DRW-24B1ST (Black)

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Barracuda-3-5-Inch-Intern... $99.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Seagate Barracuda 7200 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 6 Gb/s NCQ 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive ST1000DM003

http://www.amazon.com/Mushkin-Chronos-2-5-Inch-Solid-MK... $114.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Mushkin Chronos 120 GB SATA 6.0 Gb-s 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive (MKNSSDCR120GB)

I just finished ordering parts for a build around your price range, so I thought I'd share my build to give you some alternatives (although g-unit's build looks excellent). I was a bit slow ordering at first jumping on deals, bundles and rebate offers. Here's my final build and the prices I paid ...

Case: Corsair 500R - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $95 (after discount code/rebate)
CPU: i5-3570k - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $190 (Fry's matched Micro Center's deal)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $170
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB Black - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $97 (16GB is overkill but memory is cheap so I said why not)
PSU: Corsair AX750 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $125 (after discount code/rebate)
Cooler: Corsair H100 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $98 (Fry's matched Amazon's price)
SSD: Samsung 830 128GB - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $136 (bought too soon and missed the Crucial M4 deals but was still a decent price for the Samsung drive)
HD/Optical: WD Caviar Black 1TB / Lite On 24x DVD Bundle - http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite... - $152
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 OC - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... - $450 (after discount/rebate)

Total: $1,513

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Oh, Why_Me has a good point regarding the GTX 670. It's supposed to release in 3 days and early reports show that it's a beast for a "midrange" card, and actually beats AMD's top end Radeon card. Depending on how it's priced at release and availability, it may be the buy of the year for the GPU.

My Sapphire 7970 is ready to go back to Amazon unopened if I can get my hands on the Gigabyte or another non-reference GTX 670. Gigabyte seems to have done some interesting things with their Windforce edition of the card though.

Hi everyone, thanks again for all the suggestions. I'm trying to shave off a few dollars here and there, because the important is only GPU and CPU. I just moved into a new place and actually don't have a desk or chair yet :D  Please let me know what you guys think of this build. I actually found out a friend works for Newegg and he is willing to help me get 10% off everything, and I pick up the stuff at his place after work, so that offsets the tax. I got a cheaper case, and I remember HDDs used to be like $49.99 for 500GB, but this year nothing... I cut the bluray and just got a combo DVD player with the HDD.

GPU ~ $400 or $500 ~ All GTX 680s are out of stock, so probably going to get the 670. Hopefully I can nab one on the first day, but if the 680s come back in stock... :) 


XFX ATX 550 Power Supply - P1550SXXB9
http://www.amazon.com/XFX-ATX-550-Power-Supply/dp/B004R...
$74.99


Rosewill CHALLENGER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 140mm ...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
$49.99


CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Profile Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
$49.99


COOLER MASTER R4-BMBS-20PK-R0 Blade Master 120mm Case Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
$11.99


COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel ...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
$34.99


Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2CCA 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) with Transfer Kit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
$131.99


Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite...
-$10.00 Combo
$379.98


Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite...
-$13.00 Combo
$105.98


Total (Depending on GTX 670 vs 680): $1164 or 1264
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