First PC Build - Final Check, GPU/SWTOR question, ordering Monday

[hmille0]

This is my first computer build. I will be playing SWTOR mostly. If someone could show me a benchmark detailing whether NVIDIA or ATI is better for SWTOR, i'll love you

Approximate Purchase Date: ordering Monday morning without a doubt

Are you buying a monitor: I have a HP 22 inch monitor already, native resolution is 1680x1050, has a DVI and VGA slot, I will purchase a 1080p in the next month or two
check it out to confirm I need dvi-d male to dvi-d male cable to go from my monitor to my video card: http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00834092.pdf
my model is the w2207

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K - 230$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

Mobo: MSI Z77A-GD65 LGA - 185$ w/ shipping (170$ after 15$ rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130643
OR
ASUS P8Z77-V LGA - 180$ w/ shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131820

GPU: This is the the component I am undecided with as of late. I've read plenty of reviews, and decided to choose between the new 660, the 660 Ti, and the 7950. The 7950 is supposed to be dropping price next week. I have read that the 7950 will outperform the 660 and 660 Ti when overclocking because of the larger memory interface. If I decide to go with the 660 or 660 Ti, I will most likely go with either EVGA, MSI, or ASUS. If you guys are not up-to-date with the prices, the 660 OC version is selling for 240$, the 660 Ti OC version for 310$, and the 7950 for 320-330$. I've always used NVIDIA cards in the past, so i'd prefer to go with them, but if a small memory bus is holding me back, or if someone can show me that SWTOR is ATI preferred, i'll get a 7950.

PSU: SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold - 130$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088

RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1600 Low Profile - 45$ ($5 off w/ promo code EMCNAJG48, ends 9/19)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&PageSize=10&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&IsFeedbackTab=true#scrollFullInfo

Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO - 37$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM - 100$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-_-pla-_-NA-_-NA

Optical: ASUS 24X DVD Burner - 25$ w/ shipping)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

Case: Corsair Carbide Series 400R - 110$ w/ shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008
The 500R looks nice as well, for an extra 30$, but does not have as solid of reviews as the 400R. The 600T seems to be the best Corsair case for the money, 173$ w/ shipping, (163$ after rebate)

SSD: SAMSUNG 830 Series 128GB - 94$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147163

Keyboard: Logitech G110 Black USB Wired LED Backlighting Gaming Keyboard - 60$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126087

Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver Thermal Compound AS5-3.5G - OEM - 10$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007

Monitor to GPU Cable: Coboc 6 ft. DVI-D Dual-Link 28AWG Male to Male Cable - 8$ w/ shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812117631

Total: 1264$ with 400R + 660 OC + ASUS Mobo (w/ shipping, not including rebate)
1402$ with 600T + 660 Ti OC + MSI Mobo (w/ shipping, not including rebate)

 

[g-unit1111]

You don't need the extra thermal compound - that's a waste of money as the stuff that the 212 Evo includes is better than Arctic Silver.

As for the 7950 and 660TI - they're both excellent GPUs - so take your pick. I'd personally go with the Asus motherboard over the MSI but that's just me.

Otherwise that all looks like a good build. Be sure to get a good 1 - 2TB hard drive to compliment that SSD.

 

[azeem40]

The 7950 OCs better for only $40 more than the least expensive 660ti.

 

[Why_Me]

750w psu, not a 650w. If you dropped down on your motherboard, picked that 400R up from amazon for $90 and free shipping along with the XFX (Seasonic OEM) and switched to the Sandisk 128GB SSD at amazon you could fit a gtx 670 in that budget.

 

[hmille0]

thanks for the help guys, wondering what day amd is planning to drop prices on gpu this week. Should've had this build ordered by now but i've just been swamped with work and school. I have an external hard drive, so I don't have to buy a HDD. And yeah I think i'm going to either buy the 7950 and keep the 650 psu, or go with a 660 for now and get the 750 so I can buy another down the road. I'd still like to grab the 7950 if it goes on sale Monday..

 

[hmille0]

think I might go with the MSI R7950 Twin Frozr 3GD5/OC if I get the 7950. The ASUS 7950's don't have good reviews. If I choose one of the 660 Ti OC cards, i'd prefer a MSI>EVGA>ASUS. The 660 is definitely the best price/performance though..

 

[hmille0]

Decided to go with the MSI 660 Ti OC card, the 600T Corsair Case, the MSI GD65 Z77 Mobo, Logitech G110 Keyboard Wired LED keyboard, Asus optical, Seasonic X series 650 watt modular psu, cooler master 212 evo cooler, and i'm not getting a hard drive because I think the 128GB SSD will suffice. I have an external hard drive for my music
What do you guys think?

 

[g-unit1111]

Decided to go with the MSI 660 Ti OC card, the 600T Corsair Case, the MSI GD65 Z77 Mobo, Logitech G110 Keyboard Wired LED keyboard, Asus optical, Seasonic X series 650 watt modular psu, cooler master 212 evo cooler, and i'm not getting a hard drive because I think the 128GB SSD will suffice. I have an external hard drive for my music
What do you guys think?

Looks good to me!

 

[hmille0]

Best answer selected by hmille0.

 

[hmille0]

I just ordered everything! I had made 2-3 seperate new build posts over the past 2 weeks for my first build. I'd like to thank a few people for their help: manofchalk, TheBigTroll, Azeem40, and Why_Me. I appreciate it guys, and i'm sorry for being so OCD with my replies/multiple posts