Gaming pc $1600 or less

Motherboard?

I don't know which motherboard I should get, mainly for gaming.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master V6 GT 93.7 CFM CPU Cooler ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($43.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($453.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Phantom (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 750W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($134.82 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On IHAS324-98 DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1352.72
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-17 09:57 EST-0500)

You can switch the psu to the 650W one , but i chose the 750W , because maybe you will want to crossfire in the future.

A good build, but I recommend these changes:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (Save $35)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (Save $7)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (Save $60)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (Add $6 but this IS stronger, and it has a rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (Add $10 but this is liquid cooling)


With these changes I have made, you gain water cooling over air, get a slightly stronger graphics card, and save $86. With these savings you can almost fit another 7970 GHz in, but I recomend you wait half a year and then buy it when it is cheap and USEFUL...

I may want to watercool in the future that is why I picked the switch 810.

- for a $1600 build i wouldn't put a non modular psu to it. and this xfx psu costs $84 @ NCIX for quality at this price pretty good.
- i wouldn't save $7 for worst ram with Cas Latency 11.
- he wanted a large case for future water cooling , the Antec Three Hundred would suffer with fitting a watercooling in it.
- the gpu you recommended is good but why pay more for the same performance ?? both are ghz edition and both has nice cooling.
- i wouldn't pick any closed loop cooler , maybe the h100 or the antec kuhler , and if he want a better cooler the nzxt havik 140 or the noctua is a better upgrade.
hope you get ma point  

i didn't saw your comment when i was writing mine , the full tower phantom can hold any watercooling system np.

Yes I do want a modular power supply that can xfire latter down the road, but I don't really want to spend that much on a cooler any recommendations for a good bang for buck cooler?

what is your budget for a cpu cooler ?
and how further you will go on overclocking ?

hmmmm the budget on the cpu cooler probably about $50 and I only want to get like 4.2 but if I can get higher thats cool. For the case I really want something with a side window and has good airflow and is simple.

Get the hyper 212 plus or EVO for cooling.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Better psu (fully modular and with 850w, seasonic is the best brand of psus) for less price :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Mobo : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

The gfx card it's the best staying with the sapphire vapor-x.

Also get this ram : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (buy two sticks, it has low voltage, it's perfect to overclock with good timings and speed for the buck and it's low profile for clearance problems).

As for the ssd get this one : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... (the samsung 830 is out of stock)

if you will not going further than 4.2 yeah get the 212 , but for higher overclocking and fit your budget the v6 looks solid , built my friend rig with v6 and it performs pretty well @4.5 with the 2500k.
djangoringo : the seasonic is great psu but less price than what , the xfx costs $89 however the seasonic costs $140 !!

I was referring to the initial build, comparing the seasonic with the corsair ax 760i .
The hyper 212 plus/evo is a good cooler for it's budget, it will do the job until he decides for a watercooling kit.

Cases option : @ the same price of switch 810 ( the Switch still a great Case )
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-case-sgc5000...
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xigmatek-case-ccchsa0dsu01
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-case-rc942kk...
- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

ah ok , and for the cooler as i said the 212 is good cooler but for safety to get a better cooler for over 4.2 overclocking , might be a temporary cooler as you say till he upgrade to water cooler.

Yes I do like the cm storm stryker, If anything it would come down to those two. But the 810 can fit a 360 rad and has nice cable management while the stryker looks better and has good airflow but can not hold the 360 rad unless you mod the case. as for the coolers I like the hyper 212 evo.

The hyper 212 evo can keep the cpu cool overclocked to 4.2 ghz, no problems at all, even for ~4.5 ghz(depending on the cpu, it's like a lottery), it's one of the best coolers price/performance.
In my opinion the V8 is not worth it, not much difference at all in temps vs hyper 212 evo and it's cheaper.

so you might now compare between the
- switch 810.
- BitFenix Shinobi.

djangoringo : no body spoke about the v8 ^^ and if you meant the v6 , no the v6 is better than the 212 but not by a margin , but it can handle high clock speed than the 212 , but still a mid level cooler

What do you think for a case?

what is your top budget for the case ? , just to know your limit
and are you going for full watercooling system ?

probably about $200?

ok i made you a another list and a they all fits your needs now it's up to you to choose from this list or the other one i made up ^^^^

- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/thermaltake-case-vo200m1w2...
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/thermaltake-case-vo200m6w2...
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/enermax-case-eca1092agbl
- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

I think its between
Switch 810
Cm Storm stryker
Shinobi XL window
Armor Revo
Thor v2 (but I want a window)

honestly if this was my build i would only compare between those :
- Switch 810.
- Cm Storm stryker.

and for the better airflow and better look and the (9+1) Expansion Slots i would pick the storm stryker.

There's also the cooler master HAF X, pretty good one for less than 200$ :

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-HAF-Computer-RC-942...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

yup already mentioned it up. it's a nice case but ,,,, dunno don't like , but it's up to him not me anyway  

Yes I agree I am going to get the stryker.
So I think this is my final build

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t8d0
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t8d0/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t8d0/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 ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($97.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($424.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Stryker (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($158.96 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic X Series 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.89 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1298.77
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-18 18:27 EST-0500)

Change the ram for 2x4GB dual channel it's better than single channel 1x8GB.
Also change the ssd for samsung 830 128GB or crucial m4, the samsung 840 non pro is no good.
The rest is all good.

Yea that was a mistake I have 2x4 in my cart. Cheers.

ok , i think now everything is ok and you are ready to game , any other questions ?
if not can you select the best answer please   -------- >

Any monitor suggestions? It doesn't have to be 120hz I just want a good picture an under 3ms response time. but probably about $200

Best answer selected by gregman101.

these are good monitors 2ms and also for good price
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-vh236h 23 inch.
- http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-ve248h 24 inch.