First Time Gaming Build- HELP PLEASE

[Guest]

Firs time building a gaming desktop. Any suggestions and advice would be greatly appreciated. I am a complete newbie to this.

Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP

Budget Range: $1000 after rebates. Prices listed are after shipping.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, ex: Diablo III, Civ V, STWOR, Skyrim...

Not purchasing monitor, accessories, or OS.

CPU: Intel Core i7-2700K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.99)

CPU Cooler: (Necessary?)

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($102.55)

Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (4 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($99.99)

Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($212.55, after rebate)

Case:Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.49)

Power Supply: Corsair 500W ATX12V Power Supply ($63.99)

Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer ($21.48)

This pricing gives me about $100 of allocated money to be distributed. Additions? Substitutions?

Thanks in advance...

 

[g-unit1111]

For a $1K gaming system you can do way better - drop the CPU to the i5-3570K and then upgrade your GPU to the Radeon 7950.

Try something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($307.86 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 650W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1007.77
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-08-29 16:19 EDT-0400)

 

[songorocosongo]

If you are not oveclocking yu won't need a cpu cooler. With you money left you could add a SSD. If I was the one building the pc I would rather get an i5 and put that money on a better graphics card. But that's just me so don't take that for granted 'cause I mainly play BF3.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the quick reply and the new build. I have been trying to piece something together, but I feel like there is a different build for every dollar I want to spend.

Is there any good reason to consider using something greater then a 8GM RAM, or consider using a SSD?

 

[g-unit1111]

If you are not oveclocking yu won't need a cpu cooler. With you money left you could add a SSD. If I was the one building the pc I would rather get an i5 and put that money on a better graphics card. But that's just me so don't take that for granted 'cause I mainly play BF3.

If you're not going to overclock then it also makes no sense to get an unlocked CPU. Go for a i5-3450 and H77, that will shave off about $100 or so.

Is there any good reason to consider using something greater then a 8GM RAM, or consider using a SSD?

The SSD will help with loading and booting times but it's not a necessity. If you've got the extra money then put that back into the GPU - it makes no sense to upgrade anything else. Go for a GTX 670 or Radeon 7970 GHz edition. You will not use anything over 8GB of RAM on a gaming system - the extra RAM will sit there and go to waste. If you run multimedia intensive applications in addition to gaming (Adobe CS5, etc) then the additional RAM is necessary.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

no need for more than 8GB unless you're doing professional use of Photoshop/Corel, or doing 3D Graphics renders for video.

As for an SSD, you want one. It cuts the load time of Windows 7 from about 1 minute, to 10-15 seconds. your games will load very fast. It doesn't give any actual improvement in frames-per-second in a game, but NOTHING improves 'snappiness' like an SSD.

 

[songorocosongo]

In my opinion more than 8gb RAM is a waste of money right now since you can run every game with 4gb. Although I don't have a SSD I think everyone who wants a high-end (or mid-high) PC should get one. It won't make your system better when gaming but the loading and boot times get significantly shorter. Most people have an HDD for their photos and personal files and a SSD for the OS and programs andgames they use the most.

 

[Guest]

Any recommendation on a specific SSD? And I have read posts suggesting to buy 2, one for games and one for OS. Is this a good idea or worth it?

For the GPU: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card (?)

...fingers crossed I will be on BF3, as soon as I get all this purchased and assembled.

 

[songorocosongo]

That's a great gpu! I always prefer Sapphire but Gigabite is a good brand also.

 

[Guest]

That's a great gpu! I always prefer Sapphire but Gigabite is a good brand also.

Sapphire has great reviews, but it is unfortunately another $300 more.

 

[obsama1]

Buying 2 SSD's is not a great idea when a 128GB SSD will fit Windows and a few games.

 

[obsama1]

Samsung 830's and Crucial M4's are great SSD's.

 

[Guest]

Samsung 830's and Crucial M4's are great SSD's.

Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB ?

 

[obsama1]

Not enough. Windows will take at least 20GB of that, and after 1-2 big games(MP3, BF3, etc.), it's full.

 

[g-unit1111]

Not enough. Windows will take at least 20GB of that, and after 1-2 big games(MP3, BF3, etc.), it's full.

Don't forget the formatting, that also takes a good chunk of space.

This is the one I just bought and it's excellent: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147163

 

[Guest]

Thanks so much!! Just to make sure I have it all straight, its all compatible and will will fit:
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor

(still need this?) CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard

Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory

Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card

Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case

Power Supply: Corsair 650W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply

Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer

 

[obsama1]

All compatible.

 

[songorocosongo]

Now that's what I call a gaming PC. everything is comatible and like I said before, if you are not overclocking the stock CPU cooler will fit your needs.

 

[IamAutiz]

Don't go with an i7, truly doesn't add any exponential amount of performance boost as can your GPU

 

[g-unit1111]

Thanks so much!! Just to make sure I have it all straight, its all compatible and will will fit:
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor

(still need this?) CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard

Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory

Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card

Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case

Power Supply: Corsair 650W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply

Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer

Looks good to me! If you want to overclock then yes the 212 Evo is needed.

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1020980 $133.98 save: $16.00 - $30.00 Mail In Rebates
CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply
Corsair Carbide Series 300R Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157304 $84.99 FREE SHIPPING
ASRock Z75 Pro3 LGA 1155 Intel Z75 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1046519 $521.98 save: $8.00 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
MSI N660Ti PE 2GD5 GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-120mm-RR-212E-20PK-R2/dp/B005O65JXI/ref=sr_1_7?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1346314364&sr=1-7&keywords=CPU%2Bcooler $32.32 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler with 120mm PWM Fan (RR-212E-20PK-R2)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148544 $40.99 FREE SHIPPING
Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model BLS2KIT4G3D1609DS1S00

http://www.amazon.com/Lite--Super-AllWrite-Layer-Drive/dp/B002YIG9AQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1346300944&sr=1-3 $17.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25
Lite-On Super AllWrite 24X SATA DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive - Bulk - IHAS124-04 Version C (Black)

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Barracuda-3-5-Inch-Internal-ST3500641AS-RK-Retail/dp/B000EY5F5C/ref=sr_1_8?m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1346301099&sr=1-8 $69.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Seagate Barracuda 500 GB 7200RPM SATA NCQ 16 MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Desktop Hard Drive ST3500641AS-RK-Retail Kit

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171646 $94.99 FREE SHIPPING
SanDisk SDSSDP-128G-G25 2.5" 128GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Total: $997.23 *includes shipping

 

[Guest]

What is the difference between these two...

Gigabyte GV-R797TO-3GD Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB 1.1GHz

XFX FX797GTDFC Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB 1.05Ghz

 

[ScrewySqrl]

approximately 50 MHz in speed.

XFX has a better warranty, though