$1700-1900 Gaming/Rendering Computer

[xzsl]

So I've decided I need to upgrade my current computer and I needed some help with the final choices on the build. It's going to be primarily used for playing games such as Diablo 3 and Battlefield 3, it's also going to be used to render 1080p videos and also 3D animations. So any feedback/opinions you could give me would be great!

Country: USA

Preferred Websites: Newegg, Amazon, and TigerDirect

Overclocking: Definitely

SLI/Crossfire: Not at the moment

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080



CPU: i7 3770K $350

CPU COOLER: Corsair H100 $100

MOBO: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 $170

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 2133HZ $70

PSU: CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX750 $170

GPU: Currently not sure/Definitely need help picking up a good one that will last for a couple of years!

Boot Drive/Primary Program Storage: OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-240G 2.5" 240GB SATA III $200

Storage Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache $100

Sound Card: HT | OMEGA STRIKER 7.1 $76

Case: Currently not sure of either, just something slick and simple though. Under $150 preferably!

So far this all equals about $1250 so that leaves about 350-450 for the graphics card! Please leave any feedback if possible!

 

[azeem40]

How far of an overclock do you want? Anything above 4.5 GHz won't net you much of a performance gain. For around $120, get the Carbide 500R. I have it and it is completely tool-free and has great cable management.

 

[Houseboratheon]

Depending on how complex the 3d animations you're going to be doing , I strongly reccomend that you step up to 16gb.

 

[xzsl]

That's actually what I want 4.5 GHz for the overclock, and thanks for the case suggestion!

 

[azeem40]

For 4.5 GHz, the H100 is overkill.

 

[xzsl]

What would you recommend then instead that still uses water cooling?

 

[manofchalk]

Get 1600Mhz RAM, anything above that only gets a minimal performance upgrade for the cash. Spend the money you save to get more RAM as its an editing rig.

The HAF-XM is a good case at $130. Has all the benefits of its big brother the HAF-X except for its sheer size.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119257

$400 will get you the GTX670, which will play games at high/max settings for a long while, with an easy upgrade path of getting another in SLI. Nvidia's CUDA cores also help with rendering apparently. I would suggest this one, keep an eye on it for when it goes back in stock.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125423

Or get this ASUS one now and overclock it manually.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121637

Not essential, but you may want to replace the fans on the Corsair h100. Iv heard there not the best.

Thats my feedback, rest of the build looks good.

 

[azeem40]

Nothing. WC is not needed for quietness or getting temps down. A Hyper 212 EVO is MORE than you need.