Need help finishing new computer, need to order within few hours

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J

John1988

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Apr 6, 2012
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Approximate Purchase Date: Today
Budget Range: $850
System Usage: Gaming, Multiboxing D3, CS:GO, Multitasking
Are you buying a monitor: No
Parts to Upgrade: 100% new build
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Microcenter, Newegg, TigerDirect, Amazon.
Location: Southern California
Parts Preferences: Good reliability/performance, best bang for the buck
Overclocking: Maybe in the future
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe in the future
Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200

Hey guys I'm building a new computer and need some advice on a few parts I still need.

This is going to be a HUGE upgrade compared to my current stone age system (AMD 3800x2 Socket 939 2.2GHZ, 2GB memory, 5400RPM IDE HD, GeForce 9600GT 512mb).

Today I bought at MicroCenter:
- Intel i5 3570k 3.4 GHZ Processor ($189.99)
- ASRock Z77 Extreme4 Mobo ($84.99)
- Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1600 kit ($52.99)
- Corsair TX650M Power Supply ($114.99)
- Sony 24x SATA CD-ROM Drive (17.99)
After taxes it came out to $495.60

-I still need a video card, SSD drive, and case.
-I have $355 left in my budget ($850 budget)

For the case, I'm going to go with the Antec 302 or Antec One Gaming Series case, still deciding.

So that leaves me with $300ish for a video card and SSD drive.

Any suggestions? I'm loyal to Nvidia/EVGA cards, still open to AMD cards if the price/performance is that much better than Nvidia. From what I can tell, Nvidia seems to be lagging with new releases, compared to AMD?

For the SSD I need a 120/128 GB, known for reliability and best bang for the buck.
Anyone have this SSD?
Newegg.com - Corsair Neutron Series CSSD-N120GB3-BK 2.5" 120GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

It's torturing having these parts sitting on my desk, while missing a few parts. So I would like to order online or pickup at store if need be in the next few hours.

Thanks!



 
Solution
bigcyco1
other professional reliable review sites consistently have the GTX 660 Ti beating a 7950 at 1920 resolution.
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/56090-nvidia-geforce-gtx-660-ti-review-23.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_660_Ti_Power_Edition/28.html
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6159/the-geforce-gtx-660-ti-review/20

Quote:
"As it stands, AMD’s position correctly reflects their performance; the GTX 660 Ti is a solid and relatively consistent 10-15% faster than the 7870, while the 7950 is anywhere between a bit faster to a bit slower depending on what benchmarks you favor. Of course when talking about the 7950 the “anything but equal” maxim still applies here, if not more so than with the GTX 670...
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manofchalk

manofchalk

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May 11, 2012
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A 128GB SSD will cost around $100, so that leaves $200 for the graphics.

At the $200 price point, Nvidia doesn't have much to offer, AMD is the better option here. Due to recent price cuts, that has dropped the HD7850 (king of the mid-range IMO) right at your price point.
Sapphire HD7850. $210
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102998

Heres my SSD of choice, and it also neatly fits into your price range. Its about the fastest (trades blows with other drives in various benchmarks, but its easily at or close to fastest, especially with the newer firmwares).
OCZ Vertex 4 128GB. $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227791

Total: $310 (not including shipping, promo's or rebates).
 
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Z

zbeezz

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Nvidia is releasing the GTX 660 non ti with the GK106 core in 2 weeks. that would be the perfect card for his build since being a nvida fan however the 7850 is a solid buy but i would sugest get one with an aftermaket cooler because the reference fan is loud. As for the SSD any drive with Toggle nand or synchronous flash like the Vetex 4 or samsung 830. just check tomshardware best SSD charts for the current month.
Nice choices on the 3570k at microcenter and the corsair TX650.
 
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J

John1988

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Did they officially announce the GTX 660, or is it speculation? Around how much will it cost?

I was looking at the GTX 560 (non Ti) 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130662

Is the 7850 a little or a lot better than the GTX 560 2GB above?

I noticed there are so many EVGA GTX 560 on Newegg, they look different (visually), have mostly same specs, but different prices? What's up with that? Are some of them older models or something?

For example:

This one is superclocked GTX 560 @ $169.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130664

This one is not superclocked, but is more expensive @ $189.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130660

They don't look the same and superclocked is more cheaper than regular? What gives?

Thanks.
 
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manofchalk

manofchalk

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May 11, 2012
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The GTX660 is going to come out, but as of yet there is no actual release date or reviews on it. Given that it would have to reside at a $250 price point (as makes sense with the 660ti being $300), it would be out of your price range anyway.

The HD7850 is better than a 560Ti, which is better than a 560.
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/52165-amd-radeon-hd-7870-hd-7850-review-10.html
Like I said, at the $200 price point, Nvidia doesnt have much to offer. That bit of the review I showed you was just performance, when you count in a lower power draw, generally lower temps and great overclock-ability, its a no-brainer.

Not sure why that is, they are both the same except for clock speeds. Must just be a glitch of supply and demand. Great demand for the overclocked card has caused them to get more, now that no-one wants them, they are worth less than the standard card. Though the un-overclocked card does have a slightly bigger fan, maybe it has a better cooler.
 
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D

davec80

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Apr 15, 2012
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If you can, return the power supply before you open the box. It's a decent quality power supply and not terribly overpriced, for what you paid for it. The problem is, it's not appropriate for your hardware. You mention overclocking and future SLI, possibly. Unless you want to buy two power supplies, you need to upgrade to at least 800W right away. Many single video cards require up to 600W for the first card, with another 150-200W for each additional.

In the same price range, try a Lepa (enermax) B 850. You still have time to order it off of the Internet.

Also, SSD is not reliable enough to be a SINGLE (only) drive in a system. As a minimum, you need to recycle a hard drive from a previous system and have some kind of backup software to do automatic, periodic backups of your entire SSD drive. If you weren't planning to do this already...
A better idea would be to buy a ~320-500GB 2.5" (notebook) hard drive, plus a 64GB OCZ Synapse cache ssd. You'll get all the performance of a SSD drive, plus a hard drive. Total cost for both pieces about $130 delivered.
 
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John1988

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All these replies, now I want the newer video cards... I'm looking at the GTX 660Ti and AMD 7870 cards now. I guess a little future proofing wouldn't hurt. My mobo has PCI Express 3.0 and the newer cards have it, though I have no idea what the diff is.

7870's prices are pretty damn nice with the rebates. When did this series release?

I've decided in any case to order from TigerDirect now. Did a little thinking... It would be better for me, because I can get them to price match NewEgg, get additional 6% discount purchasing with my BoA card, additional $10 off if I give my e-mail to TD, and NO Taxes + free shipping.

As for the SSD I'm thinking between Samsung 830 series and Corsair Force Series 3.

If I get a 7870 or 660Ti, I will most likely have no need to do SLI/ Crossfire in the future.

Hey, Davec80- I drove over an hour to MicroCenter yesterday, the cost in gas for my V8 truck would not be worth it to return the PSU unfortunately. I guess SLI / Crossfire is not in my future haha. I will eventually get a regular HD too, but right now I really want a SSD. Will my PSU have any trouble with the 3570k + 7870 or 660Ti?
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Feb 11, 2012
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other professional reliable review sites consistently have the GTX 660 Ti beating a 7950 at 1920 resolution.
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/56090-nvidia-geforce-gtx-660-ti-review-23.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_660_Ti_Power_Edition/28.html
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6159/the-geforce-gtx-660-ti-review/20

Quote:
"As it stands, AMD’s position correctly reflects their performance; the GTX 660 Ti is a solid and relatively consistent 10-15% faster than the 7870, while the 7950 is anywhere between a bit faster to a bit slower depending on what benchmarks you favor. Of course when talking about the 7950 the “anything but equal” maxim still applies here, if not more so than with the GTX 670. The GTX 660 Ti is anywhere 50% ahead of the 7950 and 25% behind it, and everywhere in between."
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6159/the-geforce-gtx-660-ti-review/21
 
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Solution
A

abegnale

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I just wanted to drop-in as I own an eVGA 560 SC. I have it clocked at FTW+ clocks on SC voltage.

I would think that the $169 was acquired lately and that the $189 was older stock. I think they're trying to recover from the cost of acquiring the batch of $189s thus the higher price but the $169s are faster. Just speculating.

To compare the 78 vs the 560:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/549?vs=543

Please note that the 560 is at reference and not OC clocks.

HTH and good luck!
 
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J

John1988

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Anyone know where I can get Windows 7 OEM for under $99? $99 is the cheapest I've been able to find. I have Windows 7, but my brother took it, because it didn't do too well on my current setup. He's going to pay for it, just seeing if he can save a few bucks.
 
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J

John1988

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Which case would you buy if you only had two choices? I chose these two Antecs, because I don't want anything too fancy looking. Just nice, simple, and cheap. The Carbide 300R was close, but too much ventilation going on for my likes.

Antec Gaming Series One
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129181

Antec Three Hundred Two
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129180

Pretty much for me, it comes down to Three Hundred Two has hinged front panel with dust filter. Antec One has a black interior which I like, but hard to remove front panel and does not have a dust filter.
 
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odiervr

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May 1, 2012
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Case: pls consider CM HAF 912 (50 ish) big and airy. Will fit anything and everything.
GPS: HD 7850 ($220 ish)
SSD: Intel 330, Samsung 830, Crucial M4. All are great. I have the intel at 180 GB's and I love it !! Easy, quick, and reliable. You will never install your OS on another HDD once you make he switch. ($100 is)

Total: $370 ... best i could do with your money. OBTW the 7850 sips power so you will easily be able to use two with your PSU

Good Luck
 
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abegnale

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Between your two choices, I'd take the Three Hundred Two. Both look quite similar but since you mentioned the hinged panel and the filter, that's what I'd go for.
 
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bigcyco1

bigcyco1

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Well i would pick the Antec Three Hundred Two :)
 
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D

davec80

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Apr 15, 2012
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Your PSU should handle just about any single video card plus all your other hardware, just fine. I haven't looked up the two video cards you ask about, but as long as they are not one of the oddball cards with two GPUs on one card, your power supply will be FINE.

Depending on the video card though, it's likely that an SLI/Crossfire setup would be too high of a constant load for the PSU that you've already purchased.

But for the current build? Yeah, that PSU will work fine.
 
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J

John1988

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Is the SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold better than my Corsair TX650M ? I am considering getting the Seasonic because it's Gold rated, fully modular, and sli ready. After a bit more research I found out the TX650M is barely modular...

The SeaSonic X650 is currently on sale right now- Original Price: $179.99 - $40.00 Instant Savings + 15% off + free shipping= Grand Total of $127.62 after tax.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088

Should I exchange the Corsair TX650M and order the SeaSonic X650? Think it's worth it?

TX650M @ $123.84 VS. X650 @ $127.62
 
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J

John1988

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Well after hours and hours of research and thinking, I finally decided what I'm going to do.

Going to order the Seasonic X650 PSU from Newegg (I really want fully modular, not much of a price difference after discounts)

Going to return the Corsair TX650M PSU to Microcenter. (Wish this PSU was more modular, it barely is)

Going to buy the Antec Three Hundred Two case + 2x 120mm front panel fans.

I just ordered a EVGA GTX 660Ti Superclocked for $309.99 (10.00 MIR) w/ free Borderlands 2 game (hoping I can sell this game for atleast $30 later).

Also ordered a Samsung Series 830 128GB SSD for $99.99

On top of that paid for 2 day rush shipping for the video card and ssd lol, talk about having no patience...

So 660Ti and SSD with shipping came out to $421.16 :ouch: atleast there were no taxes and I get 6% cash back from using bank of america add it up program on TigerDirect.

Boy was it HARD deciding on which video card to go with... from beginning to end= 550Ti> 560> 560Ti> 660Ti> 7870> 7850> 560Ti> 660Ti> 7870> 7850 in a endless loop for hours lol. In the end it was VERY close between 660Ti and 7870, but TigerDirect does not have good prices on 7870's at the moment.

I'm nearly $150 over my initial budget, but for performance/price and future-proofing, I think I did alright.

I'd like to thank everyone who has helped me, I really appreciate all the input.

 
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