All-Around New Build ~$1800 USD

[DBounlom]

Hey guys. This will be my second build. I am building it for my friend. I'm open to using any on-line vendor. He is primarily a gamer, but I can see this build being used for all-purpose activities. He wants to spend around ~1800. I know this build seems a little overkill for gaming, but he has 1800 to burn. Even though this is my second build, I am still a huge noob, so any suggestions is greatly appreciated. Here is the build.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/c0GF

Also, I left out a PSU because the one I selected was not on the pcpartpicker list. I picked the Seasonic X750, which seems to be at a good price right now ~$120 with the promo code. Here is the PSU that I picked.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087

Any suggestions is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[raytseng]

so you're 300 under more or less. Does he want you to spend that extra $300 or would he want the cash?

Hard to understand what the budget requirement are to save money or blow the remaining $300?
The core of your build is fine. Now it's just dohickeys that are relatively cheap, but might be "cool".


Mainly things like switching things to be quiet. And then random case features like having a harddrive port on the top, or fan switches, front hotswappable stuff.
Or random things from the motherboard like built-in onetouch overclocking, wireless features and android/iphone integration with your computer (asus).

If you don't need any of that you are good to go.

I just had a build done by avadirect, which is my first new computer in 10years and I was most impressed by case/mobo "features" bells and whistles that I picked out; compared to the core of the build.
(NZXT H2 Classic +Asus z77-V (no suffix) mobo).


If you MUST spend the $300, then for gaming, then all remaining budget goes towards video card, even if it's diminishing returns.

That is assuming he already has spent money on monitors/keyboards/mouses.
(what's the point of having a powerhouse gaming machine playing on a 19" crap monitor and sticky keyboard).


All that being said, if he has $300 to blow, maybe you direct him to an online builder so he gets warranty and all that; so he doesn't come back to you should a problem happen.


On the other hand, another way to look at it is you just spent the same of buying 5 PS3s. Save some money for the actual games or gamefly subscription or something.?

 

[DBounlom]

Hi ray -

Well, the pcpartpicker list does not have the PSU because the one I selected is not on the list. Therefore, we need to add another ~120 to the pcpartpicker total. The total right now is roughly 1700, so we have about 100 bucks of extra room to enhance the build. We can certainly blow the rest of the 100 bucks to hit the 1800 spending limit, but is there any upgrade that I should be looking into?

I like the suggestions you made. Since I'm a nooby, most of them are probably above my knowledge. You brought up a good point about wireless features. I can check if he needs wireless ethernet.

Thanks!

 

[g-unit1111]

so you're 300 under more or less. Does he want you to spend that extra $300 or would he want the cash?

Hard to understand what the budget requirement are to save money or blow the remaining $300?
The core of your build is fine. Now it's just dohickeys that are relatively cheap, but might be "cool".


Mainly things like switching things to be quiet. And then random case features like having a harddrive port on the top, or fan switches, front hotswappable stuff.
Or random things from the motherboard like built-in onetouch overclocking, wireless features and android/iphone integration with your computer (asus).

If you don't need any of that you are good to go.

I just had a build done by avadirect, which is my first new computer in 10years and I was most impressed by case/mobo "features" bells and whistles that I picked out; compared to the core of the build.
(NZXT H2 Classic +Asus z77-V (no suffix) mobo).


If you MUST spend the $300, then for gaming, then all remaining budget goes towards video card, even if it's diminishing returns.

That is assuming he already has spent money on monitors/keyboards/mouses.
(what's the point of having a powerhouse gaming machine playing on a 19" crap monitor and sticky keyboard).


All that being said, if he has $300 to blow, maybe you direct him to an online builder so he gets warranty and all that; so he doesn't come back to you should a problem happen.


On the other hand, another way to look at it is you just spent the same of buying 5 PS3s. Save some money for the actual games or gamefly subscription or something.?

Yeah but 1/2 the fun of a custom build is figuring out all the problems yourself. The manufacturers all have their own warranties and they have to honor them, and they're usually very good about it for the most part (give or take a few manufacturers).

On a build with an $1800 budget - assuming monitor and perhipherals are in a separate budget, I'd recommend something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Newegg Canada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($71.99 @ Computer Valley)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($177.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.49 @ Newegg Canada)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($143.27 @ Amazon Canada)
Hard Drive: Plextor PX-M3S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($154.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($417.19 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($189.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($113.99 @ Computer Valley)
Optical Drive: Lite-On IHBS112-04 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($79.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $1615.88
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

 

[raytseng]

cool.

yea, I don't follow stuff too closely either, but definitely these new mobos have a lot of "cool" features which are the most unexpected (or maybe gimmicky) over the more bland just getting more FPS and less impressive things from the core of the build.

I would say if does not already have at least a good 24" monitor (or 2), I would say that would bring him more enjoyment then some of the other things.

If you're hitting the budget limit, You can get away with downgrading the SSD to 128. You just might need to share with him some basic usage tips of how to properly reserve C only for OS/Apps and put all data on D:\.

but a normal shouldn't be needing that much extra space with a data drive.

EDIT: Agree with G-unit, downgrade the cpu to 3570k and apply that money elsewhere

 

[DBounlom]

Hey guys. Thanks for the suggested build. I'm sorry that I forgot to mention, but I live in the USA. I can easily convert all your parts to USA vendors though.

Is there a reason why you choose the Gigabyte board over the Asrock? Asrock boards seem to be so much cheaper, and they get good reviews. Also, I picked the CM Hyper 212 EVO which seems to be the gold standard. I haven't heard much about the Noctua. Is that just a better cooler that costs a little more? Thanks!

 

[raytseng]

unless you're overclocking the evo should be fine. It is already overkill (big) compared to stock for stock cooling.

I personally don't think spending $40 more on a cooler is needed, but then again I'm not overclocking, nor do I have currently have a task for my computer where I need the extra speed.

If I was rendering 3d or something or some practical task like serious crunching numbers or videoencoding, or something where I was actually waiting for my computer, then overclocking would be something that I'd consider.

But the way I use my computer, I've got no jobs where I'm waiting for my computer, it's waiting for me; and then it's only games (which is videocard dominated).

 

[g-unit1111]

Hey guys. Thanks for the suggested build. I'm sorry that I forgot to mention, but I live in the USA. I can easily convert all your parts to USA vendors though.

Is there a reason why you choose the Gigabyte board over the Asrock? Asrock boards seem to be so much cheaper, and they get good reviews. Also, I picked the CM Hyper 212 EVO which seems to be the gold standard. I haven't heard much about the Noctua. Is that just a better cooler that costs a little more? Thanks!

Again I'll say it's usually a bad idea to rely on stores for product reviews. Like 90% of the positive reviews are based purely on fanboyism. Whereas 95% of the negative reviews are usually not from RMAs (although they are noted) they're usually bad encounters with UPS or bad refund processing.

As far as the board goes - I like Gigabyte and I've had a lot of success with them. I really like the 3-D BIOS of the board that I'm using right now. The Hyper 212 Evo is a good cooler - you'll be able to take your CPU to 4.4GHz, but with the D14 you'll be able to reach 4.8GHz easily.

I realized my prices were in Canadian prices - here's the US prices:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive
Hard Drive: Plextor PX-M3S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($417.55 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($189.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On IHBS112-04 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($76.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1455.45
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

 

[raytseng]

on g-unit's build;

I do think it's worthwhile to just get 16gb of memory like you had in your original build.
Even if you don't use it, ram is so cheap that it's not going to get substantially cheaper in the future.
Given the full price of the computer, you might as well populate all the ram slots now rather then gimping it there.

You do not need to get super fast overclocking memory, so the crucial memory g-unit picked out is just as good, just double it up. There was a tomshardware article saying buying expensive memory only gets you just singledigit improvements, if that, so like 100->102. bigger gains found elsewhere for your $.

But if you find it for the same price, go for it.

 

[raytseng]

forgot to clarify on my first post, but in case my point was lost, some of the more deluxe asus mobos have built-in wireless and is nicely integrated.

That's why i brought it up specifically as a somewhat unexpected mobo-feature that I got with my asus z77-v.

I'm sure you'll have no problems adding wifi to any motherboard via a card, but just something cool/(or a gimmick) to consider.

I personally had a requirement for a quiet system, so I was willing to pay the premium for the customizable fan controls from this mobo.

 

[bctande1]

Again I'll say it's usually a bad idea to rely on stores for product reviews. Like 90% of the positive reviews are based purely on fanboyism. Whereas 95% of the negative reviews are usually not from RMAs (although they are noted) they're usually bad encounters with UPS or bad refund processing.

As far as the board goes - I like Gigabyte and I've had a lot of success with them. I really like the 3-D BIOS of the board that I'm using right now. The Hyper 212 Evo is a good cooler - you'll be able to take your CPU to 4.4GHz, but with the D14 you'll be able to reach 4.8GHz easily.

I realized my prices were in Canadian prices - here's the US prices:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive
Hard Drive: Plextor PX-M3S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($417.55 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($189.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On IHBS112-04 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($76.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1455.45
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

CPU - Good

GPU - Good

MOBO - Good

Memory - Good

HDD - Good

PSU - Good

OD - Good

Basically, the best improvements you can make to this setup is the SSD and possibly the processor, but going on the idea that this is a gaming PC, the differences of a CPU upgrade in that respect would be negligible.

However WHAT I'M ABOUT TO SAY IS IMPORTANT TO OVERCLOCKING

Ivy Bridges aren't good OC'ers. The materials Intel used when manufacturing it's latest weren't optimal for overclocking, and what resulted is a CPU can can run 20C HOTTER THAN SANDY BRIDGE 4.5Ghz and about 1.25V and everything above.

If you go Ivy and OC, Water-cooling will become a necessity, and good water cooling for that matter. And this complication will need a good OC'er to figure out definitely, unless you want to risk frying your CPU.

 

[bigcyco1]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14PE_BL 60.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V PRO ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($409.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF X ATX Full Tower Case ($179.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($133.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On IHBS112-04 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($76.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1624.87
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

 

[g-unit1111]

on g-unit's build;

I do think it's worthwhile to just get 16gb of memory like you had in your original build.
Even if you don't use it, ram is so cheap that it's not going to get substantially cheaper in the future.
Given the full price of the computer, you might as well populate all the ram slots now rather then gimping it there.

You do not need to get super fast overclocking memory, so the crucial memory g-unit picked out is just as good, just double it up. There was a tomshardware article saying buying expensive memory only gets you just singledigit improvements, if that, so like 100->102. bigger gains found elsewhere for your $.

But if you find it for the same price, go for it.

I defintely that buying expensive RAM is completely useless because on default settings you'll never notice the speed increase, but it's pointless to get 16GB on a gaming system as you'll never use it. You can always add more if your needs increase.

As for the SSD - the Plextor actually beat out the Crucial M4, OCZ Vertex 4, and Samsung 830 in a recent roundup: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/plextor-m3-crucial-m4-octane-performance-pro,3178.html