Please advise on new build *first timer*

[teejizzle]

Hi,

I will be building my first "from scratch" PC in a couple weeks. So far, my budget is around $1k and I have made decisions on CPU, GPU, and motherboard. However, I have virtually no idea what other components I should use in my build. I plan on using the PC for gaming and would like to overclock the system for max performance. Listed below are the components I have in mind and the question marks are those that I need advice on.

Thanks for the help!

CPU: i5 3570K
Motherboard: AS Rock Z77 Extreme 4 (Tom's Hardware Approved Award)
GPU: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7870 Ghz Edition 2GB

Cooling: ? (looking for liquid cooling)
Case: ? (I'm assuming mid tower with lots of fan slots?)
SSD: ? (looking for 120GB from a reliable manufacturer)
HDD: ? (anything cheap @ 7200RPM with about 500GB)
PSU: ? (I was told I need to look for 80+ bronze?)
Memory: ? (I know I want 8GB @ at least 1600mhz, but what brand?)

 

[malbluff]

If you are set on having a liquid cooler (air coolers are cheaper), then this would be a decent build.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100 92.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($124.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.00 @ B&H)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($53.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $992.91
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-11 19:52 EST-0500)

You should note that price, for processor, is a walk-in deal, at Microcentre. If you don't have access to MC, the next best deal, would be through Newegg, where they have combo with the cooler. It would cost about $30 more, overall, than the Microcentre deal.

 

[TheBigTroll]

no poor mans watercooling on these forums unless you have a space constraint

makes more sense to use a cheaper motherboard when you are not putting so much hardware inside the case

i suggest the fractal arc midi for it being pretty cheap and having great build quality

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/nntL