xSynn

Honorable
Feb 18, 2012
25
0
10,530
Approximate Purchase Date: Next week

Budget Range: $1500+

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming

Are you buying a monitor: no

Do you need to buy OS: Yes!

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: www.newegg.ca / http://www.bestdirect.ca / www.directcanada.com

Location: Canada

Parts Preferences: Intel

Overclocking: no

SLI or Crossfire: no

Your Monitor Resolution:1920 x 1080 monitor but i also want to try and set it up with my 32inch tv.

Additional Comments: Need it to run BF3 + future games.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: This is my first time building, the computer that i was using was getting costly with repairs, decided would be best if i just invested in a new build.


Case:

Need suggestions!


CPU:

Intel Core i5 3570K Unlocked Quad Core Processor LGA1155 3.4GHZ Ivy Bridge 6MB Retail
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/?sku=242391&kw=ivy%20brid


Mobo:

Need suggestions!


CPU Fan:

Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo Direct Touch 4 Heatpipe Heatsink AM2 AM3 LGA1366/1155/1156/2011 120MM
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/237385/RR%2D212E%2D20PK%2DR2/COOLERMASTER/


Power Supply:

Corsair Professional HX750W 750W ATX 12V 62A 24PIN ATX Modular Power Supply Active PFC 140mm Fan
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/?sku=215850&kw=hx750


Graphic Card:

EVGA GeForce GTX 680 SUPERCLOCKED+ 1058MHZ 2GB 6.2GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI DisplayPort HDMI PCI-E Video Card
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/241826/02G%2DP4%2D2684%2DKR/eVGA/

I know its a high end graphic card and pretty expensive too but if you guys know any other graphic card thats decent and wont give any problems then mention it please!


Memory:

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314


HDD:
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA3 6GB/S 7200RPM 64MB Cache 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM
http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=25350DR0783


SSD:


Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442

For the OS


OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-240G 2.5" 240GB SATA III
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227727

For the games


DVD:

LITE-ON Black 18X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA DVD-ROM Drive Model iHDS118-04 - OEM
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106276


OS:

Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Edition 64BIT DVD SP1 OEM
http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=12850SW7181&vpn=FQC-04649&manufacture=MICROSOFT


Thank you!
 
Solution
Hi, my advice is to pick ONE SSD, you can install the OS and your games on that. Then for your bulk data like movies, music, pictures, etc, you can use a traditional hard drive. I would recommend the Crucial M4, a 256GB model if you can.

-Also, go with a GTX 670 or 7970 GHZ edition, the GTX 680 costs a ton more, and barely outperforms the GTX 670, and the 7970 GHZ edition costs in between the 680 and 670 and outperforms both of them.

-This power supply is much cheaper, is still modular, and just as good. But you should know for a single high power video card setup, a 650 watt version will do the job.
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/236288/CP-9020003-NA/CORSAIR/

- Good motherboard...
Hi, my advice is to pick ONE SSD, you can install the OS and your games on that. Then for your bulk data like movies, music, pictures, etc, you can use a traditional hard drive. I would recommend the Crucial M4, a 256GB model if you can.

-Also, go with a GTX 670 or 7970 GHZ edition, the GTX 680 costs a ton more, and barely outperforms the GTX 670, and the 7970 GHZ edition costs in between the 680 and 670 and outperforms both of them.

-This power supply is much cheaper, is still modular, and just as good. But you should know for a single high power video card setup, a 650 watt version will do the job.
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/236288/CP-9020003-NA/CORSAIR/

- Good motherboard
http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/242368/P8Z77-V%20LK/ASUS/

-As far as cases, this is a very personal thing, to many people it is an art piece. It is what you see your computer as afterall. My advice is to pick something out you find aesthetically pleasing, and check out some reviews on it to see how good the quality is. Personally, I have an NZXT Phantom, black with green trim, I think they're absolutely awesome, but they do come with a big price tag.
 
Solution
BTW, if you don't plan on overclocking, you can save a couple bucks on the CPU and get a non-K model Intel i5, nor will you need an aftermarket cooler, as the stock one will suffice, however, my opinion is its nice to pay the extra couple bucks if you can for the overclockable CPU, you never know you might change your mind.
 

xSynn

Honorable
Feb 18, 2012
25
0
10,530
Yes! Thank you, you're amazing! I was looking into the phantom case but I couldn't find it online anywhere, I'll probably
Have to check a local store.

Also I might be tempted to overlock so I'll stick with the K model and remove one of the ssd save some there, Thank you once again!




 
Case: Like Nekulturny said, is largely personal, you have to like the look of it. But good cases to pick from are the Coolermaster HAF series and any Corsair case, they are all reliably good. But again, go with wthat you like, just research it first.

Mobo: Go-to board is the AsRock Z77 Extreme4, great budget board packed with features.

Graphics: The GTX680 is effectively redundant given the 670 is much cheaper and performs almost identically, or better if you overclock it. Save yourself the $100 and get a 670. The HD7970 Ghz is a good option if higher resolutions may come into play.

HDD: Seagate Barracudas are faster and cheaper.
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM. $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

SSD: Only get one for the OS and main programs. Games dont benefit much from SSD's, only their load times (Though in Fallout 3 that does make playing a lot better).
Also get this SSD, the Crucial M4 is a good drive, but is somewhat old now and not as fast as its competition.
OCZ Vertex 4 128GB. $110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227791

OS: No need for Professional, Home Premium is all you will need. Only benefit Professional has is it can support 32GB of system use RAM, which you wont need on this rig.
 
You're welcome, yea, the Phantom is a couple years old, I'm not sure if they're making them any more.

But, they do have them on NCIX.
http://ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=phantom

The "Phantom 410" models are smaller (they're mid tower computers). I have the full tower, don't be fooled by the picture on the full size ones. I personally didn't appreciate how big they really were until the guy dropped it off on my porch.

BTW, my personal recommendation for Nvidia cards (GTX 670-- or 680 if you're still sure you want one) would be EVGA or Zotac brand, or for AMD video cards (7970) would be Sapphire.

Heres some benches on how they stack up against each other. You should know, since you mentioned that game specifically, BF3 is optimized for Nvidia cards, however, at 1080p, all of them will kick the crap out of it.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6025/radeon-hd-7970-ghz-edition-review-catching-up-to-gtx-680/4

And as always, you're welcome.
 


Man of chalk, my better half!!! lol,

good recommendations, btw though the Asrock Z77 was my first go to mobo as well, however for some reason they're a lot more expensive in Canada. Its like $180. All Asrock boards from what I've seen seem to be like that, even AMD ones, I'm thinking Asrock might not have a good distribution setup in Canada, hence the premium.
 


Aw, I'm touched

good recommendations, btw though the Asrock Z77 was my first go to mobo as well, however for some reason they're a lot more expensive in Canada. Its like $180.

Oops, didnt see that OP is Canadian. Huh, the Extreme4 is very expensive there, though on NCIX can be had for $150 CAD with a $40 rebate (that's a large rebate there).

To the OP. We kinda assume that everyone on the forum is American unless otherwise stated. Though that assumption can lead to trouble (like now), once I had this extended argument with someone over which RAM kit to get, and only after about a page and a half did he say he was in Saudi Arabia and the kit I was suggesting wasn't available...

Heres a Candaian link for the Vertex 4, same price (I think)
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227791