Gaming PC - Around $2000

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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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Hello, this is my very first build, so any advice & tips will be greatly appreciated!

Updated Build!

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz 1155
(I want the latest builds to future proof my CPU, and I don't plan on OCing over 4.5-5.0+ GHz, so the temperature difference between an Ivy and Sandy shouldn't be a problem for me. Also, I use my PC mainly for gaming, not video-editing, rendering, etc.)
MB: ASUS Sabertooth Z77
(I know that a less expensive version of an ASUS Z77 or an ASRock Z77 Extreme6 would suffice, but I'm choosing the Sabertooth just for personal preference. I know it's just marketing, but I just prefer it more.)
GPU: EVGA GTX 680
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1600
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA III
SSD: Crucial M4 128GB SATA III
PSU: SeaSonic X850 Gold 850W 80 PLUS Gold
(To ensure that I don't have to upgrade again when I mount a second GPU for SLI/Crossfire. I know a 750W will probably suffice, but I just want to be more than sure since I will be OCing as well.)
CPUHS: Noctua NH-D14
CASE: Corsair Obsidian 650D Mid Tower
CDROM: ASUS DVD Burner
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium OEM (64-bit)
Total: $1882 USD

& Monitor: ASUS VH236H 23"
Click to expand...
Approximate Purchase Date: First Week of June, 2012

Budget Range: Around $2000, Under $2500

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming (See Below), Browsing Internet, Watching Videos & Streams

Parts Not Required: Mouse & Keyboard

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: amazon.com or newegg.com

Country: United States

Parts Preferences: CPU - Intel

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, not sure if I should or not.

Monitor Resolution: Single 1600x900 (MIGHT upgrade to 1920x1080)

Additional Comments: Here are my goals for gaming.

Primary Goal: To run WoW on maximum settings with average 50-60+ FPS in a 25-man raid setting (with a few unnecessary settings tuned down, i.e. 8x AA instead of 16x AA)

Secondary Goals: To run D3 and GW2 on maximum settings with average 50-60+ FPS

Other Goals: To run Skyrim, BF3, etc. on maximum settings with average 50-60+ FPS (these don't HAVE to be met, but it would be REALLY nice if possible!)
Click to expand...
Regarding the case, I am not sure whether to get the 650D Corsair or any other NZXT case, since the NZXT cases look nice. The only reason I listed the 650D is due to recommendations I have received. Is there any other NZXT that will provide me with the same performance?
 
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TheBigTroll

TheBigTroll

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Apr 15, 2012
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1: get a cheaper mobo such as gigabyte z77x-ud5 or msi z77a-gd65
2: get a gigabyte windforce gtx 670. its both cheaper than a 7970 and performs about the same or better. its performance is also within 5-8% of a gtx 680, but its a 100 dollars cheaper
3: seagate barracuda 1tb with 64mb of cache is cheaper than the black drive while having the same performance
4: why are you planning to use a 1600x900 monitor???!!? you need to get a 1080p monitor bro. get the asus ve247h. its has a matte finish and is more energy effcient. or you could get a samsung. even with 1080p monitor, the 670 will max out all settings on bf3
5: dont spend too much on the case. a case such as a antec 302 or p280 will fit your needs fine
 
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J

jacknhut

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Based on the games that you play like WoW, Skyrim and Battlefield 3, GTX 670 or 680 is a much better choice because those games favor Nvidia cards over AMD ie you get a much higher performance using nvidia cards over AMD cards. Diablo 3 and Guild wars 2 are not that demanding in graphics power so either Nvidia or AMD card is ok.
 
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inzone

inzone

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Mar 12, 2011
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As far as the case goes it does not add to the performance of the Pc , the only thing that a case does besides looks is ventilation for the components.
I would say that gaming on a 23"/24" is better than a 20" and the 1920x1080 is also a plus.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001550

As far as video cards go with whats out now the card I would go with is the GTX 670 , it's going for just about $400 and when you put two of these together they are at the top of most every benchmark and you would be assured of 60+ fps in any game you want to play. Right now the price and performance of this card can't be beat.
The rest of your choices are good and I'm sure that if you wanted to save a few bucks here and there you could with shopping around for sales and rebates.
I would try to decide if you want to go with one or two video cards because you should get a 850w psu for two cards and while you could start out with one and add another later I would start out with the 850w psu if your sure you will be adding the second video card. That way you won't have to swap out the psu also if you add the second video card later.
 
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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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Which brand of GTX 670 is most recommended? EVGA or Gigabyte?

I think I might upgrade to a 850W PSU and go with the dual GTX670's. There's one thing that worries me about the dual GTX670 option though. Approximately how long will the dual GTX670 path assure me 60+ FPS in most online games? (I probably won't be playing games like Crysis 2, etc. as much)
 
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TheBigTroll

TheBigTroll

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Apr 15, 2012
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both brands are pretty good. i only recommend the gigabyte because it has great cooler and is around the same price as the evga reference design.

you can run sli with a 650-750w power supply because these cards dont draw that much power

a single 670 will gt you around 60-70fps. 2 of these bad boys will get you 100-120fps in most games at ultra. in other words, a single 670 will max out almost every game at 1080p with some AA
 
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inzone

inzone

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Mar 12, 2011
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I would go with the Evga 670.
The 670 just came out and with a card that powerful I would look for it to be great in gaming for at least 3 years if not longer. Of course there will be the temptation to get a new card before too long and it won't be out of necessity either. It's actually a hard thing to do , to see how long before you need a new card.
I bought two GTX 580's a year ago and there is no sign of weakness yet. I get over 100 fps in MW3 and 75 to 90 fps in BF3.

http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-670-2-and-3way-sli-review/15
 
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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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Also, which processor is most recommended for the games I mentioned above? I know that WoW 25-man raids require a lot of CPU power, but I do not know how much is enough.

Here are my choices.

i7-3770K, i7-2600K, i5-3570K or i5-2500K

From this one website I saw, the i5-2500K was the #1 ranked processor for gaming. Is this true?
 
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J

jacknhut

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Its true for the past prior to the i5 3570k release. Now the Ivy Bridge is out the I5 3570k is 10% faster than i5 2500k at the equivalent frequency. I5 3570k do have more heat when overclocking though so make sure you hava good cooler and monitor temperature closely.
 
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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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Thank you all for the advice! Here is my new build.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz 1155
MB: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
GPU: EVGA GTX 670 FTW (Buying 2 for SLI)
RAM: Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer 8GB (2 x 4GB)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB SATA
SSD: Crucial M4 128GB SATA III
PSU: SeaSonic X850 Gold 850W 80 PLUS Gold
CPU Heatsink: Noctua NH-D14
Case: Corsair Obsidian 650D Mid Tower
CDROM: Sony Optiarc 24x DVD Burner
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium OEM (64-bit)
Monitor: ASUS VH236H 23"
Total: ~$2268 USD

EDIT: Just wondering, if I ordered all these parts with Newegg, would they send me all the parts in one shipping?


 
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R

Rataan

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Apr 26, 2012
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I think SLI 670's is total overkill for your MMO's. GW2 may be a new game, but it needs to attract as many subscribers as possible, not just those of us who can afford high end PC's. It has already been verified that it will run on some comparatively modest hardware. You should do yourself a favor and just buy one 670, then buy the other one when you are sure you need it, which will probably be about the same time you want to buy a whole new PC.
 
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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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@Rataan

I know that it's a bit of an overkill, but if it all works out, I plan on playing higher-end games that require such a setup.

@bigcyco1 & vitornob

It'll be difficult for me to actually be able to buy a Gigabyte/Asus/MSI GTX 670, so I'm gonna try my luck with the new GTX 670 FTW's. Supposedly they fixed their problems with this card. If more problems occur before the time I buy my new PC, I will change brands.

Anyways, I updated my build above (changed PSU's) and in the main post. Here are the build again so you all don't have to scroll up again.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz 1155
MB: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
GPU: EVGA GTX 670 FTW (Buying 2 for SLI)
RAM: Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer 8GB (2 x 4GB)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB SATA
SSD: Crucial M4 128GB SATA III
PSU: SeaSonic X850 Gold 850W 80 PLUS Gold
CPU Heatsink: Noctua NH-D14
Case: Corsair Obsidian 650D Mid Tower
CDROM: Sony Optiarc 24x DVD Burner
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium OEM (64-bit)
Monitor: ASUS VH236H 23"
Total: ~$2268 USD
Click to expand...
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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Well it's your build bud so buy what you wish the msi 670 is 399.99 @newegg in case you change your mind also save yourself 10 bucks and get this ram instead http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231460&Tpk=DDR3%091866%094GB%09G.Skill%09F3-14900CL9D-8GBSR#top i checked the Z77 Extreme4
Memory Support List the one you currently picked is not listed also get this combo http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.910431 $364.98 save: $10.00
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K other than that looks like a little beast of a build good job! ;)
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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If ocing is one of the top things you care about aside from gaming than you should get sandy not ivy
 
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ynnkim

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May 23, 2012
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Well, I don't know anything about OCing, and my priority is gaming. I mentioned OCing since I just see gamers OC, so I wanted to open myself to the option to OC later on. The reason I asked the question above is because I'm more familiar with an ASUS MoBo, so I wanted one instead of an ASRock.
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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Well not sure if it's better but since you asked ASUS P8Z77-V PRO you should check this review out though http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-extreme6-z77a-gd65-z77h2-a2x,3187.html
 
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inzone

inzone

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Mar 12, 2011
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I like this build a lot and I do think that you will be able to play any and all games with this build and all the parts look like they are compatable. On the shipping from Newegg , most likely you will not get all of the things at the same time as they ship from different warehouses but don't worry it doesn't affect the shipping charges and the parts should all arrive within a day or two of each other.
 
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inzone

inzone

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Mar 12, 2011
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http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ivy-bridge-overclocking-core-i7-3770k,3198.html

According to this article the Ivy Bridge does not overclock as high as the Sandy Bridge cpu but that's not a reason to not get one , you cn still overclock the Ivy Bridge and with the two video cards that you are planning to get you won't need to do any overclocking. I would still bump up the clock to about 4.2 or 4.3 ghz and that should work well with the video cards.
 
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