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$1200 I-7 Gaming Build

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Approximate Purchase Date: 2-3 weeks

Budget Range: $1300 Max

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming

Parts Not Required: Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: prefer newegg but I am open to other sites

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: Quality parts.....

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200

I am wanting to build a gaming pc that would be able to handle any and all of the games currently in the market. Such as D3, BF3, Crysis2,3. This is my first time experimenting with overclocking and my first serious build. Here are the parts I have so far.
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/9aFv

CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series H60 74.4 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($64.23 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.86 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: A-Data S510 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($97.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($349.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Scout ATX Mid Tower Case ($72.99 @ Best Buy)
Power Supply: Corsair 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($98.99 @ B&H)
Total: $1279.00


Please feel free to tear apart the build, I appreciate any and all feedback for example pricing differences between comparable parts or bad experiences with certain products.
Also if there are any special circumstances involved with using any of these parts.

More about : 1200 gaming build

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For a gaming build don't get the i7, drop to either the i5-2500K/Z68 or the i5-3570K/Z77.

Lose the 16gb RAM in favor of 8gb.

I also wouldn't get the 7870, they are not worth the money. Use the money you save elsewhere to get a GTX670 right away.

Get a 2500k instead of the 2600k if you're only gaming, and get a NH-D14 cooler, they are one of the best performing coolers on the market current, and get a 670 over the 7870, it's ~50 dollars more and a lot better.

Agreed on the i5, GTX 670 and RAM.

Don't bother with a huge, expensive NH-D14 cooler unless you want to push your processor to its absolute limits. A sub-$30 CM Hyper 212 will do a great job for any lesser overclock.
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Try this PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master V6 GT 93.7 CFM CPU Cooler ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.86 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Mushkin Chronos 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($419.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Scout ATX Mid Tower Case ($72.99 @ Best Buy)
Power Supply: Corsair 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($24.97 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($98.99 @ B&H)
Total: $1162.74
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-06-03 02:04 EDT-0400)

I understand that the i5 is just as good as the i7 right now, but I am looking more towards the future benefits of having the i7. I have been looking into the differences between the 7870 and 670 and I most likely will go with the 670, however if there is another area to save money such as the cooler I would be open to the change.

cuca11 said:
I understand that the i5 is just as good as the i7 right now, but I am looking more towards the future benefits of having the i7. I have been looking into the differences between the 7870 and 670 and I most likely will go with the 670, however if there is another area to save money such as the cooler I would be open to the change.

Your putting your money in the wrong places. Also you want a case with front 3.0 USB ports.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006I2H0YS/ref=ox_sc_a... $76.81 & 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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite... $184.98 save: $15.00 - $20.00 Mail In Rebates
OCZ ZT Series 550W Fully-Modular 80PLUS Bronze High Performance Power Supply compatible with Intel Sandy Bridge Core i3 i5 i7 and AMD Phenom
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 along with a link to the latest bios

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $239.99 FREE SHIPPING
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $29.99 FREE SHIPPING
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel 2011/1366/1155 and AMD FM1/AM3+

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $46.99 FREE SHIPPING
G.SKILL Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-1600C9D-8GAO

http://www.amazon.com/Asus-24xDVD-RW-Serial-Internal-DR... $17.99 Free Standard Shipping (3-5 days)
Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive DRW-24B1ST (Black)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=E... $400 - $430
GTX 670 2GB

http://www.anandtech.com/show/5818/nvidia-geforce-gtx-6... <----- gtx 670 review w/benchmarks

http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-Inch-Solid-State-CT25... $199.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Crucial 256 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT256M4SSD2

http://www.crucial.com/support/firmware.aspx <----- recent firmware update for that Crucial SSD

or...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $97.99 FREE SHIPPING
ADATA S510 Series AS510S3-120GM-O 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... $99.99 FREE SHIPPING
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM

cuca11 said:
I understand that the i5 is just as good as the i7 right now, but I am looking more towards the future benefits of having the i7. I have been looking into the differences between the 7870 and 670 and I most likely will go with the 670, however if there is another area to save money such as the cooler I would be open to the change.

So you plan to keep this PC for 5+ years?

Try this:

Case: Antec 1100 - $119.99
PSU: Seasonic S12 II 620W - $84.99
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H - $144.99
CPU: 3.4GHz Intel Core i5-3570K - $249.99
Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo - $34.99
RAM: 8GB (2 x 4GB) Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 1333MHz 1.5V - $42.99
HD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB - $109.99
Optical: Lite On DVD Burner - $19.99
Video Card: EVGA Geforce GTX 670 - $399.99

Total: $1,247.89

A little over budget but you get the 670, the Gigabyte motherboard, and other good components.

azeem40 said:
So you plan to keep this PC for 5+ years?


Yes, the reasoning behind the I-7 is that I don't want to worry about upgrades with Windows 8 or any other games that would eventually fully utilize the I 7.
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