Building my own PC

[tablechair]

Hello Tom's hardware. I was wondering if someone with expertise could help me put together an awesome PC for gaming. I've got around 1900-2300USD to spend. Been putting together a couple of lists of components, but I'd love to have some advice from someone that has fresh knowledge of PC and it's components.

What do I prefer?
GeForce for graphics
Intel for CPU
Chassi I don't care much about, as long as it keeps my computer cool.

Sorry in advance if I'm posting in the wrong thread.
Thanks in advance

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been moved from the section CPU & Components to section Systems by Mousemonkey

 

[Merueth]

This is assuming you're gaming, and that you need an entire PC. If you don't need the keyboard, mouse, OS, etc. just take it out of the build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($183.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($119.00 @ B&H)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($419.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($118.85 @ Mac Connection)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($91.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Asus VS248H-P 24.0" Monitor ($192.98 @ B&H)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($98.99 @ B&H)
Keyboard: Microsoft SIDEWINDER X4 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($47.52 @ B&H)
Mouse: Razer Naga 2012 Wired Laser Mouse ($74.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1787.74
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

 

[tablechair]

Thanks for replying. I've got a couple of questions though.

How come the price of the GTX 670 differs so much depending on wich brand that manufactured it?

Why go for a i5 instead of a i7? I've heard the i5 is better for gaming. But is it better allround? I'll be frapsing and editing a lot too. I don't mind spending a extra couple of bucks on a CPU

CPU Cooler, think I could go without one? Is it 100% necessary?

and finally, I'm considering going for 1866 RAM instead of 1600, I heard it makes a big difference and it doesn't cost much more.

Otherwise it looks great, I'll probably go for the rest of the components you've chosen.

Cheers

(btw, keyboard/Mouse/Monitor is excluded in the budget )

 

[Merueth]

The price of the GTX 670 differs because different brands manufacture it differently, using varying cooling systems. Most of the time, cheaper versions of the card have only one fan, and more expensive versions have dual fans as well as longer warranties (usually).

i7 is only useful in very heavy rendering and editing. It makes no difference in Fraps, and if you overclock the i5 enough, no difference in rendering either. Unless you do stuff like AutoCAD and sometimes photoshop, it's not worth it IMO.

The CPU cooler depends how much you want to overclock. For smaller budgets, the usual choice is the Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO, and the Noctuna is reserved for high budget builds. If you don't plan to overclock, it's not necessary.

1866 RAM is 1-3% faster than 1600 RAM, and not a great value in terms of price/performance.

Also, you may want to consider the Gigabyte Z77-UD5H mobo for a little more money. It has a couple more features than the Extreme 6 you may find useful.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128545

 

[tablechair]

I live in Sweden and I'll be ordering everything from "Komplett.se". Couldn't find all of the parts that you suggested, but here's what I put together. (Fairly similar)

Here's the list:

http://www.komplett.se/k/shoplist.aspx?mode=edit&ShoppingListId=1095705



In case you can't open it becuase it's a swedish URL or w/e, here's the components.

ASUS GeForce GTX 670 2GB PhysX CUDA PCI-Express 3.0, "DirectCU II TOP", GDDR5, DL-DVI-I+DL-DVI-D, HDMI, DisplayPort

ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77, Socket-1155 ATX, Z77, DDR3, 2xG3+1xG2-PCIe-x16,SLI/CFX, Lucid Virtu, HDMI, DP, UEFI

Corsair HX 750W PSU ATX 12V V2.2, 80 Plus Silver, Modular, 4x 6+2-pin PCIe, 12x SATA, 140mm Fläkt

Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600MHz 16GB CL9 Kit w/4x 4GB XMS3 modules, CL9-9-9-24, 1.5V, Vengeance Heatspreader, 240

Crucial m4 SSD 2.5" 128GB SATA 6 Gb/s (SATA3.0), 500MB/175MB/s read/write

Fractal Design Define R3 Black Pearl Fläktar:1x 120mm Front, 1x 120mm Bak, Ljuddämpat, ATX, mATX, mITX, USB 3.0

Intel® Core i5-3570 Processor Socket-LGA1155, Quad Core, 3.4Ghz, 6MB, Boxed w/fan

Sony Optiarc DVD±RW Writer, AD-5280S SATA, DVD±R: 24x, DVD+RW: 8x, DVD-RW: 6x, Bulk, BLACK

Western Digital Caviar® Green 1TB SATA 6Gb/s, (SATA 3.0), RPM = IntelliPower, 64MB, 3.5"

and possibly a CPU cooler, haven't decided it yet.

 

[Merueth]

I would actually recommend this case:
http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=657719

This PSU is a bit cheaper, and pretty much the same thing.
http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=623449

Other than that, looks good!

 

[spat55]

I would actually recommend this case:
http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=657719

This PSU is a bit cheaper, and pretty much the same thing.
http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=623449

Other than that, looks good!

Seen you around, for a guy with lowish posts your quite good, could you take a look at this for me?

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/351498-13-build-gonna-today-good#t2641024

Many thanks in advance

 

[tablechair]

I've decided to go with an i7 instead of i5. (In case I'll get serious with the rendering/streaming) and I've been looking at the 2700k and 3770k. The price is almost identical. Correct me if I'm wrong but the 3770 is 3d gen wich means it's has a bit lower power consumption, so you think that would be the best choice?

 

[Merueth]

Yes. The 3770k is a tad bit better than the 2700k, so I would go with that. Though you may want to note that the i7's Hyper-Threading can actually lower your FPS in games, so disable it if you can.