First PC build, compatibility and suggestions

[ning8983]

Hi!

Like the title states, this is going to be my first PC build. Everything I know pretty much came from reading posts and responses from different forums. I've been doing research for the past week or so on different parts. I just want the bang for the buck and hopefully I can use this build for the next few years with upgrade potential. Thanks.

Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next week.

Budget Range: $800 After Rebates/After Shipping

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, watching movies.

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: None

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com or any trusted site. No Ebay.

Location: Tracy, California USA (Bay Area)

Parts Preferences: Intel CPU

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe

Your Monitor Resolution: 1440x900

Additional Comments: This is mainly going to be used running GW2, D3 and other games in the future. Also, sometimes I leave my computer running over night.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I'm currently running a Dell Vostro 1500 and it's getting pretty slow. I've always wanted to build a PC so here I am, first gaming pc.

Below are a few parts I've selected. Any suggestion/upgrade would be greatly appreciated.

Case: Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Power Supply:
Mother Board:
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo)
Heat Sink Fan:
Memory: G. Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB
GPU:
Storage: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Optical Drive:


I've no idea what kind of PSU is good. The ones I've looked at are, OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W Modularand OCZ Fatal1ty 550W Modular Gaming Power Supply.

Motherboard wise, I was looking at a few Z77 boards and the two that stood out were, ASUS P8Z77-V LK LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS and ASRock Z77 Extreme4 LGA 1155.

Because of my budget the only GPU I was looking at was, EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi)

Hopefully all my links are correct. Thanks in advance!

 

[DeusAres]

Try this...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($32.30 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($41.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $778.71
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-03 20:18 EDT-0400)

If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.

 

[malbluff]

No arguements with most of your choices.
PSU: Marginally prefer the Modxstream. They've not got them on Newegg, but a Corsair TX550M would, perhaps, be a better choice (if you can get one at decent price). Nice PSU.
Mobo: I do like the build quality, and software of Asus mobo's. The ASRock may be better value though.
GPU: Here's where I do disagree. That GPU is c**p. Put the cheaper mobo in, and put what you save to a decent GPU. If you can make the budget go there, get something like a Radeon HD6850, or GTX560. MUCH better.

 

[ning8983]

Try this...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($32.30 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($41.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $778.71
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-03 20:18 EDT-0400)

If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.

Thanks for the build!
For the CPU Cooler is there a major difference between the 212 EVO and 212 Plus?
Also for the motherboard, the Z75 seems like a really good option and the price is great. With the few extra bucks I can put it into the GPU. Is there going to be any noticable difference in Z75 and Z77 as far as gaming and regular use?
Memory wise I think I'll stick with the G.Skill Ripjaw, but what is the difference between the X series and regular one I posted?
I found a cool deal with the 3570K + Optical drive on newegg so I might stay with that. Would the Z75 board be compatible with it?

Thanks in advance!

 

[ning8983]

No arguements with most of your choices.
PSU: Marginally prefer the Modxstream. They've not got them on Newegg, but a Corsair TX550M would, perhaps, be a better choice (if you can get one at decent price). Nice PSU.
Mobo: I do like the build quality, and software of Asus mobo's. The ASRock may be better value though.
GPU: Here's where I do disagree. That GPU is c**p. Put the cheaper mobo in, and put what you save to a decent GPU. If you can make the budget go there, get something like a Radeon HD6850, or GTX560. MUCH better.

Thanks for the suggestion!
PSU was the most difficult to sort through with so many choices. I'll definately look into the Corsair TX550M since it's relatively important to find something stable.

Would you say this is a good card? EVGA 01G-P3-1460-KR GeForce GTX 560 (Fermi) I'm not so familiar with the Radeon cards and its corresponding comparison. I'm assuming its the HD6850?

 

[DeusAres]

Thanks for the build!
For the CPU Cooler is there a major difference between the 212 EVO and 212 Plus?
Also for the motherboard, the Z75 seems like a really good option and the price is great. With the few extra bucks I can put it into the GPU. Is there going to be any noticable difference in Z75 and Z77 as far as gaming and regular use?
Memory wise I think I'll stick with the G.Skill Ripjaw, but what is the difference between the X series and regular one I posted?
I found a cool deal with the 3570K + Optical drive on newegg so I might stay with that. Would the Z75 board be compatible with it?

Thanks in advance!

Not really much difference between the EVO and the PLUS, however, the EVO does perform quite a bit better.

There's no difference between the Z75 and Z77. The 3570k is compatible with the Z75 board.

There's also no difference in the memory. I recommended the G.Skill Ares because of it's low profile heatspreaders. It'll come in handy whilst installing the bulky CPU cooler.

 

[malbluff]

Z75 is a slightly budget version of the z77. The only thing it really lacks is Intel Smart Response Technology, which is supposed to speed up access to software/data, on hard disks. In practice, I don't think it makes much different, that you'd notice. You save a few bucks on the mobo. Just depends if you'd rather save the money or have a minor extra benefit. The EVO cooler has slightly better performance. Not directly compared them, but possibly slightly quieter.

 

[azeem40]

Z75 has less power phases, so less overall overclock-ability.

 

[DeusAres]

Z75 has less power phases, so less overall overclock-ability.

Really? Glad you mentioned it. Gonna have to look into it.

 

[azeem40]

Geekapproved pointed it out to me.

 

[ning8983]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 560 1GB Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Illusion ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $743.90
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-03 22:52 EDT-0400)

What do you guys think?

 

[azeem40]

PC Power and Cooling has a 750W PSU for $90, and since the OP might go CF/SLI in the future, it is a better deal than the Season M12II 620W.

 

[DeusAres]

PC Power and Cooling has a 750W PSU for $90, and since the OP might go CF/SLI in the future, it is a better deal than the Season M12II 620W.

+1

In that case, he may also want to consider grabbing the ASRock Z77 Extreme4 motherboard.

 

[malbluff]

Thanks for the suggestion!
PSU was the most difficult to sort through with so many choices. I'll definately look into the Corsair TX550M since it's relatively important to find something stable.

Would you say this is a good card? EVGA 01G-P3-1460-KR GeForce GTX 560 (Fermi) I'm not so familiar with the Radeon cards and its corresponding comparison. I'm assuming its the HD6850?

With GPU's more is better, but 560 a lot better than 550Ti. GTX 560Ti is a good bit better again. The 560 is pretty good and will play most games reasonably, if not "max". If you are thinking of SLi/crossfire, I'm not sure whether HD6850 is better.

 

[ning8983]

Thank you all for the suggestions!

Here's what I have at the moment and just a few final questions before I order. Budget of $800.


Case: Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $53 Newegg

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor - $230 Amazon.com
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 7200 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 6 Gb/s - $77 Amazon.com
Power Supply: PC Power and Cooling Silencer Mk II 750W - $85 after rebate Amazon.com

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 - $115 Newegg
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory - $42 Newegg

Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)

Video Card: ?

Total: $654 without a GPU after rebate

That leaves me with about $150 for the video card. Below are some of the one's I've looked at.

1. EVGA 01G-P3-1460-KR GeForce GTX 560 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card - $160 after rebate
2. EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card - $200 after rebate
3. MSI N560GTX-TI Twin Frozr II/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card - $215 after rebate
4. XFX Double D FX-787A-CDFC Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - $240 after rebate

Between the GTX 560, GTX 560 Ti, HD 6870, HD 7850, HD 7870 , which would be my best option? After looking at the performance chart for GW2 I wanted to get a 7870 but I can't seem to squeeze any extra cash out of the other parts. Also, is there any other option for low profile rams? Originally I wanted the Ripjaws but I've read they won't fit under the cooler. Thanks in advance.

 

[malbluff]

It probably comes as no surprise that the order of performance goes 4-3-2-1. In terms of bang for your buck, the choice is closer. Some games would favour 560Ti, others, Radeon. One thing you do need to take into account, if you are planning SLi/crossfire, the nVidia cards are likely to be phased out, once the Kepler range is complete. That won't be an issue, immediately, but may be, a couple of years, down the line, if you need to replace one of them. The Radeons are "newer", so that issue SHOULDN'T arise, for longer.
Regarding RAM. Gskill do low profile options. Corsair Sniper are another possibility.

 

[lighter17]

If you downgrade your PSU to this:
CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply for $39.99 (after code EMCNANF27 and $20 rebate) you free up an extra $45 for your GPU.

You can go with this video card:
Asus AMD Radeon HD 7870 2GB GDDR5 DVI/HDMI/2Mini DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card - HD7870-DC2-2GD5 $223.49 (after code SCRIMMAGE and $20 rebate). You also get a free copy of Sleeping Dogs which you can sell to get to right around your spending limit.

You will have to upgrade your PSU if you ever decide to CF, but you're getting a much better system up front.

BTW: Newegg is currently selling the i5-2500k for $200, if you're looking to save some more money.

 

[ning8983]

Thank you everyone! Finally had everything ordered!

Case: Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 7200 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 6 Gb/s
Power Supply: CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
GPU: Asus AMD Radeon HD 7870 2GB GDDR5 DVI/HDMI/2Mini DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card - HD7870-DC2-2GD5

For those doing a similar build with a budget the G.Skill Ares is free when you purchase the ASRock Z77 Extreme 4 on newegg right now. Pretty sweet deal and its only for 48 hrs I think.

Link to promo: G.Skill Ares 8G 1600