Mobo and psu help! $950 build

[standardset]

So yes mainly what i'm looking towards is in the title. I want to know whether my psu will be able to support sli, a liquid cooler, and survive for at least 2 years. On the other hand i want to know whether i should go with a gigabyte z77 board or a msi z77 board.

Also I apologize if i get a bit confusing throughout this.


Approximate Purchase Date: between now and the end of the year (i can buy at anytime but i want to wait)

Budget Range: $1100 after rebates w/tax ($973 without tax)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Photoshop, 3ds max, homework

Parts Not Required: keyboard, os, mouse, monitor, ~anything i don't list

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Canada Computers, ncix.ca, and even Tigerdirect

Country: Canada

Parts Preferences: I really don't care as long as it isn't a gigabyte gpu

Overclocking: Yes (probably with a corsair h60 ~ how far can i get?)

SLI or Crossfire: Yes (in a year or two)

Monitor Resolution: I will be using two 1280x1024 monitors for the time being

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Case either haf xm or antec p280 for $124.99

Graphics card around $200 dollars/ waiting for nvidia to release their gtx 650/ ti and then make my decision *still open to suggestions

intel ivy bridge i5 3570k Waiting for price to drop to $229.99 ~ $244.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2373004&sku=I69-3570K

Patriot Viper Xtreme Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600MHz CL8 DIMMs $59.99
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=24_311_312_612&item_id=035724

Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H Socket 1155 Intel Z77 Chipset $164.99
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=26_722&item_id=047292
or would the MSI GD55 be better?

Hitachi Deskstar 7K3000 2TB 3.5" SATA3 6Gb/s 7200rpm 64MB Cache OEM (0F12115) $99.98
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=15_1086_210_212&item_id=035599

OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W Power Supply $89.99
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=33_443&item_id=020479

 

[adgjlsfhk]

One thing that you should be aware of. If you buy online, there will probably not be tax. Why do you need water cooling? A $30 Coolermaster hyper 212 evo will get you past 5 GHz.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

 

[standardset]

Well i have considered the hyper 212 but 5 ghz? That's crazy! with the hyper 212 can i get to 4.4ghz without dropping sli and destroying my psu?

 

[adgjlsfhk]

I have heard of people that have gotten 4.6 GHz on stock with sandy bridge. It is true that ivy bridge does not overclock as well, but a hyper 212 evo should be fine.

 

[Thrin]

One thing that you should be aware of. If you buy online, there will probably not be tax. Why do you need water cooling? A $30 Coolermaster hyper 212 evo will get you past 5 GHz.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

If the OP is in Canada and is ordering from a Canadian site then there will be taxes.

For example, if one lives in Ontario and orders online, then one will pay HST.

standardset, if you are going to be price watching and have some time before your build here is a list of sites that may be worthwhile to keep an eye on:

www.tigerdirect.ca
www.canadacomputers.com
www.ncix.ca
www.memoryexpress.com
www.directcanada.com
www.newegg.ca

If you are willing to take your time once you have identified specific parts you can price match them at Memory Express for bonus savings. That's if Memory Express carries the item.

In terms of parts:

CPU - i5-3750k
RAM - I'd get whatever is cheapest at the time and is 1600 rated. I'd also go with 16 GB instead of 8 GB.
Motherboard - I'd try to get an MSI GD65, ASRock Extreme4 (or more extreme), or a Gigabyte UD5H.
Case - Maybe an Antec Eleven Hundred (it's on sale right now at $69.99 at Canada Computers
HDD - Deskstar or Seagate Barracuda
Graphics - Either an Nvidia 560 ti or a Radeon 7850, you should be able to get a deal at around ~200
SSD - this is a must have. Get something that is at -least- 90 GB and preferably higher

With some watching of sales you should be able to get these at around the following price points:

CPU - $210
Cooling fan - $30
MB - $160
RAM - $90
Case - $70
HDD - $80
GPU - $220
SSD - $90 - $180
PSU - $90

Total: $1130

But, if you go with a $90 SSD, it's $1040. You could get 8 GB of RAM for $50 and that puts you down to $990.

Edit: I left out the cooling fan. My bad! With some great deals and price shaving / matching you should be able to hit the $970 sweet spot with these components.

 

[adgjlsfhk]

Why would you suggest 16 gigabytes of ram? There is no advantage of 16 gb of ram if you are gaming.

 

[Thrin]

Why would you suggest 16 gigabytes of ram? There is no advantage of 16 gb of ram if you are gaming.

Yet.

 

[cbsevenfifty]

Yet.

So you'd suggest buying something in advance and wasting money? If you go with 8GB you still have 2 slots to add another 8GB if 16GB ever becomes necessary in the near future. Otherwise by the time it is you may need to update your whole computer again because its so far out of date and you just wasted $50 buying more than you needed.

 

[Thrin]

So you'd suggest buying something in advance and wasting money? If you go with 8GB you still have 2 slots to add another 8GB if 16GB ever becomes necessary in the near future. Otherwise by the time it is you may need to update your whole computer again because its so far out of date and you just wasted $50 buying more than you needed.

It's a choice like any other choice when building a system.

I placed both on the table as options.

I, personally, went with 16 GB since I believe in getting RAM at the same time. If you want to upgrade RAM later on, it'll likely be a matter of taking out what is in the system and replacing it with 16 GB of new RAM.

Are any upgraded components in a computer really worth it? That all comes down to choice.

Is there benefit in 16 GB of RAM? I think so if you run a lot of apps and / or have things going on in the background while gaming. Do games continue to grow in size? They have since they started so chances are they'll continue to expand and benefit from more resources.

If the price differential is $50 for a possible gain then I'll take it. If one could save the $50 and put it elsewhere to gain greater performance then do that.

That's part of the fun of building a system.

 

[cbsevenfifty]

I, personally, went with 16 GB since I believe in getting RAM at the same time. If you want to upgrade RAM later on, it'll likely be a matter of taking out what is in the system and replacing it with 16 GB of new RAM.

Not sure how one comes to that conclusion.

 

[standardset]

Thanks for the suggestions! I won't be picking up an SSD right away but i do plan on upgrading or maxing out my system for what i can in the future ~overclocking, 16gb ram, ssd, and all that. Aside from that after rebates i'm going to be focusing on my gpu since i doubt i'll be saving $50 for an extra 8 gb of ram.

Aside from that i guess i'll just go for the MSI GD55

 

[standardset]

Best answer selected by standardset.