Is this a good build for a $600 budget?

[Jordannn15]

PSU: Corsair Builder Series CX600
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004W2T2UQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

GPU: Galaxy MDT GeForce GTX 560 1GB
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006J41VO0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

RAM: Corsair XMS3 4GB 1600MHz
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0045HXQV4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00461G3MS/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0054OWTQU/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004JEVGMO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Case: Gamma Classic Series
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002UDK9U6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

1) Is this a good rig for a $600 budget?

2) The MOBO I chose supports SLI so when I buy another 560 will I still have enough power?

3) Is there any bottlenecking?

4) If you have any questions or suggestions please ask/tell me.

 

[Jordannn15]

Can someone please tell me something I'm going to order tonight if I'm sure these specs are good?

 

[Jordannn15]

Why no help?

 

[g-unit1111]

Why no help?

Slow day today. :lol:

I'd say that looks good with a couple of suggestions:

1. 4GB won't get you very far these days, 8GB RAM minimum is preferred anymore, something like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231544

2. Switch out your GPU with this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102948

Better frame rates and multiple monitor support than that 560 is.

And then no reason not to get the i3-2120 as there's only a small price difference and you get better speeds: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115077

Otherwise everything else looks good.

 

[dudewitbow]

if you live by a microcenter, you have access to cheap cpus and mobos, though microcenter is limited in locations.

Frys has the same kind of thing going, with the i5-2400 for 118+tax and i3-2125 for 99+tax atm if you have a local frys.

 

[dish_moose]

Also the RAM you chose in the first post was not only a single stick - it was 1.65v - a no-no for Ivy/Sandy Intel cpus.
-Bruce

 

[dudewitbow]

I will also note that i just got an email on tigerdirect, they currently have i3-2100's for 118$ with availability for a 28$ mail-in rebate on them if you do MIR's.

 

[loops]

I'd try and wing in a 6950:

sample w/ newegg combos...taxes and shipping may kill it tho:

1

Rosewill REDBONE Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Item #: N82E16811147159
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$10.00 Instant


$49.99
$39.99
1

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822136769
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$10.00 Instant


$84.99
$74.99
1

LEPA B550-SA 550W SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
Item #: N82E16817194102
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$10.00 Instant
$15.00 Mail-in Rebate Card


$69.99
$59.99
1


SAPPHIRE 11188-22-20G Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card (OC Edition)
Item #: N82E16814102987
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy
Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model PGD38G1333ELK
Item #: N82E16820220557
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy
-$50.00 Instant
-$10.00 Combo
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$5.00 Mail-in Rebate Card


$291.98
$231.98
1

AMD Gift - Dirt3 Game Coupon - OEM
Item #: N82E16800995114
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$49.99 Saving


$49.99
$0.00
1


Intel Core i3-2100 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I32100
Item #: N82E16819115078
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
ASRock Z68 PRO3 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813157279
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$10.00 Instant
-$18.00 Combo


$234.98
$206.98
Subtotal: $613.93

 

[Jordannn15]

Is this good for ram: http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Technology-1333MHz-KHX1333C9D3B1K2-8G/dp/B004DDI0IE/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344472966&sr=1-1&keywords=8gb+ddr3+1333mhz ?

GPU: http://www.amazon.com/SAPPHIRE-Radeon-6870-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B005C8RTTU/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344473126&sr=1-1&keywords=hd+6870+1gb ?

Then can you give me a mobo that is obviously lga 1155 and supports xfire for the same price but preferably lower than the board I originally picked out? Or should I get a cheap board and a better gpu?

 

[dudewitbow]

Is this good for ram: http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Technology-1333MHz-KHX1333C9D3B1K2-8G/dp/B004DDI0IE/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344472966&sr=1-1&keywords=8gb+ddr3+1333mhz ?

GPU: http://www.amazon.com/SAPPHIRE-Radeon-6870-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B005C8RTTU/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344473126&sr=1-1&keywords=hd+6870+1gb ?

Then can you give me a mobo that is obviously lga 1155 and supports xfire for the same price but preferably lower than the board I originally picked out? Or should I get a cheap board and a better gpu?

depends on how budget you want to go. h61 is barebone lga 1155, h67/h77/b75 is the next step up, which retail between 80-100ish for low end ones

 

[Jordannn15]

I want to stay below $600 as much as possible but I want my pc to be semi upgradable

 

[dudewitbow]

I want to stay below $600 as much as possible but I want my pc to be semi upgradable

how much are you willing to spend on the mobo as i dont know the current price of everything exept the mobo is atm.


i should also ask simple questions:

1. how many ram slots do you think you will need
2. how many sata 3 ports do you need(important for ssds if you ever want to invest in them later)

 

[Jordannn15]

Ok I like the H77 mobo good features but is it still worth xfiring if one card is only running at x4 or does that make much of a difference? How much performance difference is there between ram that is 1333mhz and 1600mhz?

1) I want 4 ram slots

2) I plan on having one maybe two ssds in the future

 

[dudewitbow]

Ok I like the H77 mobo good features but is it still worth xfiring if one card is only running at x4 or does that make much of a difference? How much performance difference is there between ram that is 1333mhz and 1600mhz?

1) I want 4 ram slots

2) I plan on having one maybe two ssds in the future

xfireing on 16x/4x is a difference, but its more relevant on the higher end cards. as for 1333 vs 1600 in gaming, at the most 1 or 2 fps. after that, its virtually 0-1 fps

 

[Jordannn15]

Ok thanks! If I buy another 6870 will that be enough power?

 

[dudewitbow]

Ok thanks! If I buy another 6870 will that be enough power?

heres the mobos that fit your needs to some extent

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&N=100007627&IsNodeId=1&PropertyCodeValue=717%3A289398%2C717%3A88790%2C717%3A289160%2C717%3A292871%2C717%3A288642%2C3880%3A27176%2C7968%3A49719&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=20

as for psu, if you want to crossfire them, you need 4 pci-e sata connectors on a psu that is at least 600w.


edit: im using newegg as a reference, just type in the motherboards into amazon to get the amazon counterpart. IMO the asrock z75 is not that bad if you ever switched off to an overclockable cpu.

 

[g-unit1111]

Is this good for ram: http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Technology-1333MHz-KHX1333C9D3B1K2-8G/dp/B004DDI0IE/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344472966&sr=1-1&keywords=8gb+ddr3+1333mhz ?

GPU: http://www.amazon.com/SAPPHIRE-Radeon-6870-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B005C8RTTU/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344473126&sr=1-1&keywords=hd+6870+1gb ?

Then can you give me a mobo that is obviously lga 1155 and supports xfire for the same price but preferably lower than the board I originally picked out? Or should I get a cheap board and a better gpu?

1.65V RAM will not mix well with Sandy Bridge / Ivy Bridge builds, you need 1.5V like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148544

 

[Jordannn15]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157304
^ That one says it has 1 pcie 3.0 and 1 pcie 2.0 but it says it supports crossfire? So I can install one in the 3.0 and put another in the 2.0 and it will crossfire them?? That doesn't make sense to me can you confirm that it will work and what will the cards run at? 1 @ x16 and the other @ x4 or what?

 

[dudewitbow]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157304
^ That one says it has 1 pcie 3.0 and 1 pcie 2.0 but it says it supports crossfire? So I can install one in the 3.0 and put another in the 2.0 and it will crossfire them?? That doesn't make sense to me can you confirm that it will work and what will the cards run at? 1 @ x16 and the other @ x4 or what?

when your using a sandy bridge processor, the pci-e 3.0 will turn itself into a 2.0(anyways the radeon 6870 is a 2.0 card so you wont utilize the 3.0 speeds). if you crossfire them, one card will run at 16x lane speeds, the other on 4x. the difference between 16x/4x to 8x/8x is a few fps


this applies to crossfire, i believe newgen nvidia models can only do 8x/8x or higher for sli

 

[Jordannn15]

Oh okay thanks for clarifying! Could you tell me if this is a good psu which I'm pretty sure it is and how many pcie sata connectors it has, I can't find where it says how many it has?

psu: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004W2T2UQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

[g-unit1111]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157304
^ That one says it has 1 pcie 3.0 and 1 pcie 2.0 but it says it supports crossfire? So I can install one in the 3.0 and put another in the 2.0 and it will crossfire them?? That doesn't make sense to me can you confirm that it will work and what will the cards run at? 1 @ x16 and the other @ x4 or what?

Yeah that's about right - the outer most PCI slot will work on x16, most motherboards on default will run the second card at either x8 or x4.

 

[dudewitbow]

Oh okay thanks for clarifying! Could you tell me if this is a good psu which I'm pretty sure it is and how many pcie sata connectors it has, I can't find where it says how many it has?

psu: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004W2T2UQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

this psu in particular only has 2 6+2 pins. you are going to need 4 if you ever want to crossfire. crossfire/sli ready psus tend to cost a bit more then what you have atm(generally its the 650w+ psus that have 4 connectors.) good units like the corsair tx 650w and xfx core 650w are about ~85$

 

[Jordannn15]

What do you recommend then should I just get a lower wattage psu thats enough to power this build then get a different psu when I get the second card or get a better psu now?

 

[dudewitbow]

What do you recommend then should I just get a lower wattage psu thats enough to power this build then get a different psu when I get the second card or get a better psu now?

if you can buy a better psu now, it would be cost beneficial in the long run, but if you cant, then well, nothing can really be done. put very generic recommendations on my last post

 

[Jordannn15]

Is this a reliable psu and is it 80 plus I don't know the name so i'ts probably not but here it is: http://www.amazon.com/Epower-ZU-650W-Zumax-Support-Supply/dp/B0012C4SW6/ref=sr_1_9?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1344476464&sr=1-9&keywords=650w+power+supply ?