$1500 Gaming rig

[manofchalk]

Approximate Purchase Date: Early July

Budget Range: $1500 Maximum (Lower than that the better)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, General Use, Some rendering (Adobe Premier, Photoshop, After Effects),

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, Optical Drive

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: PC Case Gear, MSY, Melbourne based retailers

Country: Victoria Australia

Parts Preferences: Right now im leaning toward an Intel CPU and AMD GPU

Overclocking: Yes, though not to a very large degree

SLI or Crossfire: Yes for capability, might use in future upgrades

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 (primary), 1440x900 (secondary)

Additional Comments: Emphasis on being easily upgradable, will last a long while with only small upgrades, Black and red colour scheme if possible.

-----------------------------
Current Specs for the build


Motherboard - AsRock Z77-Pro4-M (~$118 from local store)

CPU - Intel i5 2500k ($195.46 from local store)

RAM - 8Gb 1600Mhz Corsair Vengeance ($63.63 from local store)

GPU/VGA - Powercolor 1Gb HD6870 ($159 from MSY )
Question: Hows Powercolors reputation? From what iv gathered there decent, but not great like Sapphire or Gigabyte.

PSU - Thermaltake Toughpower XT 775W ($109 from Local store)

Case - Coolermaster HAF-X ($181.82 from local store)

HDD - Seagate Barracuda 2TB ST2000DM001 ($129 from PC Case Gear )
EDIT: Realised I wont need 2tb, down to a 1tb model. Saved $30

Optical Drive - Sony AD-7200S (Free from previous computer)
NOTE: Not concerned with the Disc Drives ability's, barely use it as is. Just needs to be functional.

SSD - OCZ Vertex 3 60gb ($99 from PC Case Gear)

CPU Cooler - Enermax ETS-T40-TB ($55 from PC Case Gear )
EDIT: Based on feedback, going for the Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO instead, $35 on PC Case Gear.

Fan Control - NZXT Sentry Mix ($55 from PC Case Gear)

OS - Windows Home Premium 64bit ($105 from local store)

Some non-stock fans and LED's - (~ $80)

--------------------------
This all comes to $1360 at the moment

Thoughts on the build, any feedback would be good.

 

[cdiscoll2012]

okay you are way over spending on the cpu cooler get a hyper 212 evo instead and just drop the fan control most times you can download a good one for free

 

[manofchalk]

okay you are way over spending on the cpu cooler get a hyper 212 evo instead and just drop the fan control most times you can download a good one for free

From what I can tell, the Motherboard doesn't have nearly enough fan connectors to power all of them, so a software solution wont work. So its either plug them all into the PSU or using this fan controller. I would prefer the ablility to customize the fan speed.

Though with the CPU cooler I can see your point, wasn't too sure about it.

 

[cdiscoll2012]

oh sorry missed that yeah thats fine and the evo is a great cooler i highly recommend it

 

[Why_Me]

Approximate Purchase Date: Early July

Budget Range: $1500 Maximum (Lower than that the better)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, General Use, Some rendering (Adobe Premier, Photoshop, After Effects),

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, Optical Drive

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: PC Case Gear, MSY, Melbourne based retailers

Country: Victoria Australia

Parts Preferences: Right now im leaning toward an Intel CPU and AMD GPU

Overclocking: Yes, though not to a very large degree

SLI or Crossfire: Yes for capability, might use in future upgrades

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 (primary), 1440x900 (secondary)

Additional Comments: Emphasis on being easily upgradable, will last a long while with only small upgrades, Black and red colour scheme if possible.

-----------------------------
Current Specs for the build


Motherboard - AsRock Z77-Pro4-M (~$118 from local store)

CPU - Intel i5 2500k ($195.46 from local store)

RAM - 8Gb 1600Mhz Corsair Vengeance ($63.63 from local store)

GPU/VGA - Powercolor 1Gb HD6870 ($159 from MSY )
Question: Hows Powercolors reputation? From what iv gathered there decent, but not great like Sapphire or Gigabyte.

PSU - Thermaltake Toughpower XT 775W ($109 from Local store)

Case - Coolermaster HAF-X ($181.82 from local store)

HDD - Seagate Barracuda 2TB ST2000DM001 ($129 from PC Case Gear )

Optical Drive - Sony AD-7200S (Free from previous computer)
NOTE: Not concerned with the Disc Drives ability's, barely use it as is. Just needs to be functional.

SSD - OCZ Vertex 3 60gb ($99 from PC Case Gear)

CPU Cooler - Enermax ETS-T40-TB ($55 from PC Case Gear )

Fan Control - NZXT Sentry Mix ($55 from PC Case Gear)

OS - Windows Home Premium 64bit ($105 from local store)

Some non-stock fans and LED's - (~ $100)

--------------------------
This all comes to $1400 at the moment

Thoughts on the build, any feedback would be good.

That board isn't meant for dual cards. It runs dual cards @ x4. You want a board that runs dual cards @ x8.

 

[mourice12]

Yea ditch the Haf-x thats a huge case for what you are putting in it. I have a Haf 932 with 2 PSU's, 2 HDD, 2 Video cards, Hyper 212 evo, fans the whole shabang and still have tons of room. \

Check out this site for some good gaming rig ideas for current prices.
http://www.hardware-revolution.com/best-mainstream-gaming-pc-may-2012/

 

[manofchalk]

@Why_Me

Didnt realise that, upgrading to the Extreme4-M which has dual 16x slots, runs dual cards at 8x.

@Mourice12

I'm planning on having this build for a long while, and the case for much longer. So I'm getting the HAF-X because it'l fit everything I could throw at it in the future (Plus I think it looks awesome).

 

[Why_Me]

@Why_Me

Didnt realise that, upgrading to the Extreme4-M which has dual 16x slots, runs dual cards at 8x.

@Mourice12

I'm planning on having this build for a long while, and the case for much longer. So I'm getting the HAF-X because it'l fit everything I could throw at it in the future (Plus I think it looks awesome).

mATX like the extreme4-M has horrible slot spacing for a dual card set up. Look at this board down below.

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=138_711_1183&products_id=19867 $165.00
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 Motherboard

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=Z77%20Extreme4 <----- another look at that board along with the latest bios update

http://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/asrock_z77_extreme4_review,1.html <----- review of that board w/benchmarks

 

[manofchalk]

So other than size, is there any other benefit to getting the Extreme4 over the Extreme4-M? As far as I can tell there the same except for the size, $15 and a couple of small features like a power and clear CMOS button.

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.hardwareheaven.com/reviews/1437/pg10/sapphire-radeon-hd-7850-overclock-edition-graphics-card-review-vs-radeon-6870.html <----- 7850 vs 6870


http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=25_31&products_id=15892 $105.00
CoolerMaster HAF 912 Advanced

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=15_226&products_id=15134 $99.00
Antec High Current Gamer 620W Power Supply HCG-620

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=138_711_1183&products_id=19867 $165.00
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 Motherboard

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=187_346_1184&products_id=20138 $249.00
Intel Core i5 3570K

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=207_23_845&products_id=18670 $39.00
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=186_912&products_id=19632 $59.00
G.Skill Ares F3-1600C9D-8GAO 8GB (2x4GB)

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=210_344&products_id=19747 $99.00
Seagate Barracuda 1TB ST1000DM003

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_1373&products_id=19799 $269.00
Sapphire Radeon HD7850 2GB OC

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=375_974&products_id=17003 $95.00
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit with SP1 OEM

Total: $ 1,179.00 inc. GST

 

[Why_Me]

So other than size, is there any other benefit to getting the Extreme4 over the Extreme4-M? As far as I can tell there the same except for the size, $15 and a couple of small features like a power and clear CMOS button.

Slot spacing.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/index.asp?s=1155 <---- compare the boards. mATX boards weren't really meant to run dual vid cards. They just aren't large enough to have enough space.

I'l be honest with you. You came here for advice so I'm going to give you some good advice.

You have a case that's the size of a small house that runs right around $200 and a vid card that's not even considered good enough to be middle of the road. Not only that but that card has only 1GB of vRAM which is going to hurt you even more when running dual monitors. That psu you have up there isn't needed nor is that extra $ for that enermax cpu h/s. Your putting all your money in the wrong places instead of balancing it out. You have shorted yourself big time where it counts and put too much $$$ where it's not needed. Your going to end up with a build that looks pretty but doesn't perform.

It's like taking an old Volkswagen engine and putting it into a Ferrari body. All show and no go.

 

[manofchalk]

Slot spacing.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/index.asp?s=1155 <---- compare the boards. mATX boards weren't really meant to run dual vid cards. They just aren't large enough to have enough space.

I'l be honest with you. You came here for advice so I'm going to give you some good advice.

You have a case that's the size of a small house that runs right around $200 and a vid card that's not even considered good enough to be middle of the road. Not only that but that card has only 1GB of vRAM which is going to hurt you even more when running dual monitors. That psu you have up there isn't needed nor is that extra $ for that enermax cpu h/s. Your putting all your money in the wrong places instead of balancing it out. You have shorted yourself big time where it counts and put too much $$$ where it's not needed. Your going to end up with a build that looks pretty but doesn't perform.

It's like taking an old Volkswagen engine and putting it into a Ferrari body. All show and no go.

OK, I can understand your position. Let me explain.

Altered the specs to use the Hyper 212 EVO that you and cdiscroll suggested. Thats saved $15.
I don't understand your position on the PSU, I'm getting it for $109, Its 155W more, modular, better efficiency and only $10 more than the one you suggested. And the issue of the mobo is its too small for crossfire, wouldnt I need more than 620W for that anyway?
I'v downgraded the 2tb hard drive to a 1tb, same model. Saved $30. Will probably use the 1tb hard drive I'm currently using to put it back to 2tb overall.
Why go for the i5 3570k when its $50 more and only a small performance upgrade over the i5 2500k?
I'm willing to get the Extreme4 motherboard.
The HAF-X I want for future use, as in I'l have it and never need another because this will fit anything I could throw at it.

As for the graphics card, I was almost backed into a corner for that. I initially was going to get a HD6950/6970, But they'v all disappeared everywhere I looked. So it was go up to the 7850 which is $250-300 or back down to the 68XX's (which is also disappearing quite quickly) at around $160. Going Nvidia wasn't going to help as a 560 is the same as 6870 and the 560ti is also $250-300. Anyway, I can spend the $100 for the HD7850 but that puts me very close to the limit of my budget.