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Help with making a not-overkill PC?

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Hello, I'm building myself a computer for the first time, but I am on a semi-tight budget. My plan was to make this computer for games such as GW2 or Skyrim and other MMO/RPG type games. I realized I didn't need a graphics card that was top notch because I need to save money and those types of games aren't the most graphic intense games anyways. My plan was also to record my gameplay to put on youtube or something. Anyways, here is the build.
*Edit1: Trying to keep the budget to $800

Processor- Intel i5-3570 3.4GHz ($200)
Motherboard- ASUS P8Z77-V PRO LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard ($200)
Memory- G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (Free with Motherboard)
Storage- Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s with NCQ 32MB Cache 3.5 Inch Internal Bare Drive ($90)
Video Card- GeForce GTX 660ti ($300)
Case- Unknown, Open to suggestions
Power Supply- Unknown, Open to suggestions
Optical Drive- Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99)
Sound Card- do I need one if I have speakers??

My main questions:
1) Is the motherboard overkill for what I plan on doing?
2) Any suggestions on the case? I was hoping for something flashy but at the same time I want to save money while keeping good airflow through the case.. possible?
3) How many Watts am I looking for as far as the power supply goes? I was looking at 600 is that too much?
4) I'm fairly sure this should all go together.. but please correct me if I'm wrong?

Right now I feel way over budget.. I figured the biggest places I could save money are the motherboard and hard drive. I just need a motherboard with 2 SATA 6Gb/s Ports (for the hard drive and optical drive), LGA1155, 2 pci slots (for a video and sound card?). Or maybe I'll need more than what I think I need? I don't even know. This building computer stuff started getting over my head with all the "latest and greatest" and I feel lost. Anything helps. Thanks so much in advanced.

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Okay first of all, the CPU+motherboard combo doesn't make sense. You have an unlocked CPU and a motherboard that doesn't allow OC.

SO the question is - are you going to overclock the CPU?

I also don't understand why you would want an optical drive in a 6gb/s port. :p 

How much are you willing to spend for a case? A good budget case with great airflow is the Rosewill Challenger.

550w would be more than enough for a single GPU system. On that note, get the 7950 instead. It outperforms the 660 Ti in virtually everything and is at the same price point.

Would do something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($289.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
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 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $802.48
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-21 02:00 EST-0500)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($114.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z75 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($37.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 220 ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec Neo Eco 520W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($58.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $614.91
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-21 03:07 EST-0500)

This pretty much is it. You wouldn't need much to play Skyrim or your online games.
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excella1221 said:
Okay first of all, the CPU+motherboard combo doesn't make sense. You have an unlocked CPU and a motherboard that doesn't allow OC.

SO the question is - are you going to overclock the CPU?

I also don't understand why you would want an optical drive in a 6gb/s port. :p 

How much are you willing to spend for a case? A good budget case with great airflow is the Rosewill Challenger.

550w would be more than enough for a single GPU system. On that note, get the 7950 instead. It outperforms the 660 Ti in virtually everything and is at the same price point.

Would do something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($289.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
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 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $802.48
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-21 02:00 EST-0500)


Wow, thank you so much, you really helped me out there :) 

I was kind of fearing that the combo wasn't right.. but I am glad you caught it! I don't think I'll be overclocking, seems a little risky to me, and unnecessary. And.. I thought that optical in a 6.0 would make it run faster ;-; I must be mistaken. Thank you for the GPU suggestion as well. I had some troubles with that one.

Just a quick question though, would this build be easy to upgrade? Say I want to add another video card somewhere down the road or if I decide to add an SSD?

Best solution

Oh.. no, hun. Optical drives belong to the external 5.25" bays. :p 

The build above could accomodate an SSD, yes. Though it won't support 2-way Crossfire GPUs. You'll need at least an ASRock z77 Extreme3 for that, and at that point I would suggest you get the 3570K already since the z77 chipsets have OC capabilities - anything less than the 3570k I would personally consider a waste.

You don't have to OC right away anyway, it's a nice option to have when your PC starts slowing down or showing weakness.

Oh and you'll need a 750w PSU.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/oJAo

The 3570K has a $20 discount 'til the 25th, grab it quick.
The PSU is on a discount as well, it's great quality grab it while you can.

If you need to stay in the $800 budget, drop down the GPU to a 7870. It's still a great card and it performs fairly close to the 7950.

excella1221 said:
Okay first of all, the CPU+motherboard combo doesn't make sense. You have an unlocked CPU and a motherboard that doesn't allow OC.


...he had a locked CPU with a Z77...i'm confused...

Not sure why you changed the RAM. The Ripjaws X series have tall heat spreaders that do absolutely nothing. Those will also give you a hard time if ever you decide to install a CPU cooler in the future.
Get this instead, it's on Black Friday deals as well.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

PSU is kinda bad, not so great, whichever you prefer. OCZ PSUs have a reputation of being mediocre and having high failure rates. The only good ones from the brand would be the Z- series(ZX, ZT, ZS, etc).

Please do not cheap out on this particular component as a cheap unit can fry more or less half of your other expensive components if ever the PSU fails.

I believe that HIS GPU uses reference cooling. You would not want that especially if you're gonna 2-way Crossfire in the future. Don't be fooled by its cheap price tag, it's rebate heaven. :p 

I would get this instead.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007PJVB3Y/?tag=pcpapi-20

I would say unless you need a 2TB drive, a SSD might be a good idea. It will be faster and less noisy then a HDD, and you should be able to snag one for a minimal increase in cost. Might be worth it for you.

Oh, the ram was free with the Motherboard on newegg, so I just put that in there but I guess I could replace it. The info on the PSU is good, and you're right. Spending more for the security of the parts I'm already spending a good amount on is smarter.
As far as the gpu goes, looks like a better option. Here is the re-updated one. Sorry for the several revisions but thank you so much for your help :)  (Kept the ram in there since it came with the combo but I have the other RAM parts saved)

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/oL44

Oh, well if it's free then you shouldn't skip out on it. :lol: 
Installing CPU coolers up to the size of the NH-D14 is still possible with the Ripjaws X, it'll just be harder.

Not really sure as well what you're gonna do with 2TB of storage, but that's usually a question only the end-user can know and answer. :p 

Consider getting an SSD in the future as well, you'll see the benefits are quite worth it.

Everything looks good to me. :) 
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