How does this build look on an $1100 budget?

[tylermorrissey]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/lbak
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/lbak/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/lbak/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($26.82 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($159.49 @ B&H)
Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($296.97 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($91.77 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($91.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1197.48
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Total price in my newegg shopping cart is $1094 after promos and before rebates.

Thanks!

 

[tylermorrissey]

It's for gaming, live-streaming, and possibly a small amount of video editing!

 

[blazorthon]

You can do much better. A Caviar Blue HDD or two would be cheaper despite being faster (Caviar Black needs a refresh and two Caviar Blue 1T of the most recent models would be far faster than the more expensive Caviar Black 2TB) and you're PSU is way overkill. Vertex 4 and Samsung 830 128GB SSDs are also available for the same price as the Crucial M4 and they are superior to the M4.

 

[excella1221]

A few comments/suggestions.
- Swap the Ripjaws for an Ares series for easier CPU cooler installation.
- The HDD will probably just storage, you can opt to swap it with a Caviar Green, unless you want the Black's 5-year warranty
- The Vertex 4 should be slightly faster than the Crucial, but that's nitpicking
- Get a 7950 instead for a GPU, better priceerformance.
- Drop the Hive, get the Green series; or any other reliable manufacturer. The Hive isn't that great.

Everything else looks a-okay!

 

[tylermorrissey]

That HDD is on sale for 109. And the psu is an incredible deal for the fact that it's modular and would cover anything if i decided to add another 660 later. The M4 is also the best rated 128G on newegg and is on sale for $99 right now.

 

[tylermorrissey]

I'll go with the vertex4. And a switch to the sapphire 7950 too The ram is actually inaccurate, i have some already. If you could explain more about the HDD I would appreciate it.

 

[blazorthon]

You either had a typo or you confused the 660 with the 660 Ti. They're two different cards and you chose a 660 Ti in your build, not a 660.

That 750W model is still somewhat overkill for two 660 Ti cards. I'm not telling you to not get it, I'm telling you that I recommend against getting it.

 

[boulbox]

i would switch mobo for extreme3 instead, not much of a difference

switch 660ti for a 7870 or 7970. 7950 doesnt have much more performance than a 7870

spend a bit more on a reliable PSU like corsair HX750 or XFX 750W

the CPU from microcenter is a buy in store only so if you do buy it in store get the extreme4 if not you will have to change stores for it.

 

[blazorthon]

Extreme 4 is more than worth the price hike over the Extreme 3. It's more reliable, among other advantages.

 

[tylermorrissey]

I meant 660 ti. My apologies. If you guys think the 750w to 650w switch is detrimental, i'll do it. But if i get the hx650 would i be able to have two 7950s if i chose to do so in the future?

 

[aebome]

Newegg has a promo code for the 750W modular Rosewill Capstone, which is 80-Plus Gold certified, and the Capstone series is well reviewed. Use promo code EMCJNHG53 to get it for $90. Way better than the Hive series.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182264&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL102312&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL102312-_-EMC-102312-Index-_-PowerSupplies-_-17182264-L012C

Personally, I think the Samsung 830 is the way to go, and its only $10 more. No firmware issues like the Vertex 4 has had in the past.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147163&name=Internal-SSD

Your HDD will be a storage drive, you don't need anything that fast for it, so get a WD Caviar Blue. Dont' pay extra for the Black, you don't need it.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236339&name=Internal-Hard-Drives

Definitely get the AMD 7870 or 7970. The 7950 isn't fast enough compared to the 7870 to warrant the price increase.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-5.html

 

[blazorthon]

Newegg has a promo code for the 750W modular Rosewill Capstone, which is 80-Plus Gold certified, and the Capstone series is well reviewed. Use promo code EMCJNHG53 to get it for $90. Way better than the Hive series.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182264&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL102312&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL102312-_-EMC-102312-Index-_-PowerSupplies-_-17182264-L012C

Personally, I think the Samsung 830 is the way to go, and its only $10 more. No firmware issues like the Vertex 4 has had in the past.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147163&name=Internal-SSD

Your HDD will be a storage drive, you don't need anything that fast for it, so get a WD Caviar Blue. Dont' pay extra for the Black, you don't need it.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236339&name=Internal-Hard-Drives

Definitely get the AMD 7870 or 7970. The 7950 isn't fast enough compared to the 7870 to warrant the price increase.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-5.html

Past issues are completely irrelevant. The Vertex 4 currently has the best firmware available and is better than the Samsung 830, although not nearly as much as they are better than the Crucial M4. Furthermore, you imply that Caviar Black is faster than Caviar Blue in the way that you worded your post and that is incorrect right now.

I agree about Capstone being great, but again, that is overkill for your graphics recommendation.

Besides that, all of you are ignoring the fact that only at stock is the 7950 not worth the money over the 7870. If you overclock, the 7950 is the better choice if you have enough budget.

 

[blazorthon]

I meant 660 ti. My apologies. If you guys think the 750w to 650w switch is detrimental, i'll do it. But if i get the hx650 would i be able to have two 7950s if i chose to do so in the future?

It would not be a problem, especially if you went for two 7870s instead of two 7950s.

EDIT: Actually, it might be a problem if you overclock greatly for the two 7950s (IE like ~1.2GHz GPU/~1.6-1.7GHz memory), but otherwise, no problem.

 

[aebome]

Past issues are completely irrelevant. The Vertex 4 currently has the best firmware available and is better than the Samsung 830, although not nearly as much as they are better than the Crucial M4. Furthermore, you imply that Caviar Black is faster than Caviar Blue in the way that you worded your post and that is incorrect right now.

I agree about Capstone being great, but again, that is overkill for your graphics recommendation.

Besides that, all of you are ignoring the fact that only at stock is the 7950 not worth the money over the 7870. If you overclock, the 7950 is the better choice if you have enough budget.

Not disagreeing that the Vertex 4 is a great drive, it is. There just haven't been the teething issues with the Samsung drives, and so thought it was worth a mention.

Regarding the Caviar, I just meant that the Black is is billed as faster, whether it is or not (and apparently it is not), and he'll pay for it, which is unnecessary.

I think the Capstone 750 probably is overkill, but as $90 its not like the OP would be overpaying, and expressed an interest in some headroom. He could always go with the 650W version (here it is OP: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182263&name=Power-Supplies) but its $10 more than the 750W with the code.

As for the GPUs, if the OP wants to overclock, ANY card will be faster, and if you buy a more expensive card, your performance generally will be faster (as it is with the 7950). He just doesn't have to spend as much if he doesn't want to get great performance. Wish I had a 7950 tho ;-)

 

[tylermorrissey]

You guys were all a great help! Really appreciate it! If you're wondering, i'm going with the 7950 and the 750w for some headroom.Going to overclock the 7950 as well as the CPU. Also with the vertex and the caviar, in case you wondered abou that too. You guys are awesome, thanks!

 

[blazorthon]

Not disagreeing that the Vertex 4 is a great drive, it is. There just haven't been the teething issues with the Samsung drives, and so thought it was worth a mention.

Regarding the Caviar, I just meant that the Black is is billed as faster, whether it is or not (and apparently it is not), and he'll pay for it, which is unnecessary.

I think the Capstone 750 probably is overkill, but as $90 its not like the OP would be overpaying, and expressed an interest in some headroom. He could always go with the 650W version (here it is OP: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182263&name=Power-Supplies) but its $10 more than the 750W with the code.

As for the GPUs, if the OP wants to overclock, ANY card will be faster, and if you buy a more expensive card, your performance generally will be faster (as it is with the 7950). He just doesn't have to spend as much if he doesn't want to get great performance. Wish I had a 7950 tho ;-)

"Great performance" is subjective, so I won't argue that, but performance itself is not subjective. At stock, the 7870 is too close to the 7950, but overclocked, the gap widens. The best 7870 models generally have 30-40% headroom over reference, but the best 7950 models generally have over 60-70% over (non-Boost) reference. I'm not saying that a 7870 can't have great performance, but unlike at stock, it is truly inferior enough for its higher cost when serious overclocking is considered because the 7950 simply has so much more headroom.

 

[blazorthon]

You guys were all a great help! Really appreciate it! If you're wondering, i'm going with the 7950 and the 750w for some headroom. Also with the vertex and the caviar, in case you wondered abou that too. You guys are awesome, thanks!

Glad to help. What 79560 model are you looking at?

 

[tylermorrissey]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202006
This one. Also comes with a redeemable steam product. Too excited

 

[blazorthon]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202006
This one. Also comes with a redeemable steam product. Too excited

That's a good choice.

 

[tylermorrissey]

That's a good choice.

All thanks to you guys!

 

[tylermorrissey]

Best answer selected by tylermorrissey.

 

[boulbox]

if buying from newegg

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293&name=Intel-Motherboards

asrock extreme4 comes with free Ram. if you know how to do some modding, i would just take off the plastic heatsinks the ram have

also this combo saves $15 for win7 if you are going to buy it
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1032600

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1075005
CPU+optical combo

 

[excella1221]

I know this thread has been solved, but I'd like to point out that 750w would be the sweet spot for a system with 7950 and has plans to add a 2nd card in the future.

A 650W technically WOULD run it, but that would be pushing it a bit too close to the edge and leaves little to no headroom, especially since we're talking about OC-ing here. The PSU will be working very hard and pushed to its limits.