1500$ Gaming PC

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captain_Woof

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Dec 14, 2012
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Hi everyone!

I'm going to get myself a new gaming PC, so I put together a list of components and I just wanted to know about any comments etc...

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ynbc

I know that I went for a GTX670 instead of the HD7950, but I wanted the good driver support and PHYSX.
Anyway, I will be keeping it for quite a long time, so I need the components to be of great quality, so thats why I wnet with the slightly higher price for some off them... The PC I currently have just died after 11 years..... so thats about how long I want it to live.... well.... maybe not that long but you get the point! :D

P.S: I will overclock, but only to about 4-4.2 GHZ.

Thanks! :D
 
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stickmansam

stickmansam

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Oct 30, 2011
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^ +1 on the thermal compound

I tried to keep the brands you chose in most cases.
I went with a 1TB seagate since they are actually faster than the black series right now and cheaper. Quality wise both are about the same hit and miss. I have use seagate for years without issues while others have had really bad luck.

I also went with 1600mhz ram since Intel CPU's do not see much benefit with using faster ram. I put both of the savings into a faster Vector series SSD from OCZ.

I went with a IPS monitor for the better quality image but at almost the same cost.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / 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: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.50 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($364.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced ATX Full Tower Case ($146.76 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VS239H-P 23.0" Monitor ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Microsoft SIDEWINDER X4 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Logitech Anywhere Wireless Laser Mouse ($59.99 @ Dell Small Business)
Total: $1558.12
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-19 03:57 EST-0500)
 
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CaptainTom

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May 3, 2012
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In my experience Nvidia drivers have tons of problems. I had to switch between drivers so many times I cannot count them. Also I have personally seen:

-A friend's 560 Ti break in two weaks

-SLI unable to stop flickering to point my friend had to sell his cards (Tried dozens of drivers, 4 sli bridges, and every other suggestion under the sun). This is the one time I came across a PC problem I couldn't solve.

-A different friends 460 SE break in a month

Then take into consideration that I have abused the sh!t out of my current 7970 by overclocking it crazy high with both core and memory voltage turned up to insane levels. It may have been unstable at these high places, but guess what it still works.
I also got my old 6950's to work well in a x16/x1 crossfire configuration.


I am saying all of this because you are acting like Nvida is just better in every way. Well let me tell you they are not. My 7970 OC'd consistently benches 20% higher than OC'd 680's and my brother's 7950 benches as high as a stock 7970 GHz. You are in fact paying for Physx which is only used in like 2 games (BL2 and Batman). Even then I could run BL2's physx on my 7970 but it annoyed the sh!t out of me so I turned it off.

Nvidia isn't all bad. My cousin has a 560 Ti that works great and my brother's old 460 was really reliable. But again I have never had an AMD card break (I recommend SAPPHIRE). Most people don't have any driver problems with either.

Bottom line is, a 7950 is a really good buy at the current prices. If you want to pretend the benchmarks and prices don't exist fine. But don't act like you are paying for anything but better marketing and a gimmicky Physx option that has less support for it every year...
 
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stickmansam

stickmansam

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Well it depends on the OP if he values image quality over fast response time. I'm actually running on a TN 5ms 1080p screen and I'm pretty happy :D

I would have chosen a 7950 but the OP does want PhysX support...
The 7970 actually comes at the same price as the 670
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131468&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202008&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

I would say the cards breaking is more of the vendor (asus, gigabyte, msi etc) issue rather than AMD/Nvidia.

Driver problems are pretty much hit and miss for both sides. I personally have had issues with Nvidia drivers but not AMD ones. Most of my friends have had no issues with drivers from either side so meh.
 
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captain_Woof

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Dec 14, 2012
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Stickmansam, thanks for the tip on the hard drive, but with the monitor im on AMDradeon's side, bcause it has a really fast response time.

Also, CaptainTom, I'm not acting that nvidia is better... I just prefer it over AMD... if you get an Nvidia card and an AMD card of the same price, the AMD card is faster in most aspects by quite a lot, but since im taking the GTX670, its already stupid fast...
I'm taking an EVGA GTX670, which is quite a good company. I could have gone cheaper, like ZOTAC, but then i'm afraid that the card will die, like your friends cards...

Anyway, anyone know if the GYGABITE version of the GTX670 is better? its 15$ more expensive but has better cooling...
 
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CaptainTom

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All of those cards that broke were EVGA. Their customer service was great but they tend to overheat much easier. Also zotac is know to be reliable though I haven't owned one...
 
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boulbox

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Those ram have tall heatsinks and may block the way of the hyper 212 evo(or at least reduce one of the 2 ways it can be mounted)

My build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12P SE2 54.4 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.57 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Plextor M5S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($359.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Rosewill Tachyon 750W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VS239H-P 23.0" Monitor ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: SteelSeries 6Gv2 Wired Standard Keyboard ($86.99 @ Mac Mall)
Mouse: SteelSeries 62020 Wired Optical Mouse ($38.98 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1572.38
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-19 14:00 EST-0500)

much more of a fan of Steelseries, put inside a mech keyboard(black switches) and i am not a fan of wireless mouse and put inside a better one.
 
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lukethebeast12

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Jan 6, 2013
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^ +1
 
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captain_Woof

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Dec 14, 2012
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Thanks everyone for the replies!
I will keep the 750watt power supply, since in the future I might go SLI.
Also, I'll change my wireless mouse with a wired one. I would really REALLY want the sidewinder x8 mouse, because its a great mouse, but its not produced anymore and it doesnt have the lag of a conventional wireless mouse. I just have a bad history of all my wired mouse just completely disconnecting from the usb... so thats why I use wireless.

I went with the S-Skill sniper, because they have the lower heat sinks. I'm not too worried if they overheat, because they have lifetime warranty. :D

How many of you would recommend if I changed my GTX670 to an HD7970?
I just noticed that the price difference isnt that large, but the performance is...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125413

 
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boulbox

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iceclock

iceclock

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Dec 4, 2010
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little late to the party but heres my silent performanto build for u :)

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

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L12 37.8 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Mushkin Chronos 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($297.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Monitor: LG EB2242T-BN 22.0" Monitor ($129.98 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: SteelSeries Zboard Wired Gaming Keyboard ($38.98 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Cooler Master SGM-2000-MLON1 Wired Optical Mouse ($32.54 @ NCIX US)
Other: 3750k ($230.00)
Total: $1432.35
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-19 22:18 EST-0500)

Base Total: $1441.38
Mail-in Rebates: -$25.00
Shipping: $15.97
Total: $1432.35


7950 better deal than 670. overclocks to 7970 levels and that equalizes the gtx 680 and when somethimes beats it. best bang for bucks card atm.

nvidia has adaptive vsync and certain advantages. but with a new driver coming around amd gonna fix the small issues they have with the 7950 so its not a reason not to buy now :)

 
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boulbox

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Would get the plextor M5S, it is a marvel drive(much better and reliable controller)

You can just add the 3570k with the CPU selection PCpartpicker has to make things easier to understand

nice build overall though
 
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boulbox

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i have experience with the chronos, it is a great SSD. It can usually be found at really cheap prices(last time i saw it pretty low was like $80 for a 120GB) but at the same price as it is right now, a marvel drive is quite the steal
 
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CaptainTom

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May 3, 2012
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Well I have a 7970 and its framerate is perfectly consistent for me. Also just an FYI, my overclocked 7970 (27% performance increase) beats overclocked 590's and 6990's in benchmarks. It is crazy strong.

This is my card (it is $10 cheaper and SAPPHIRE which is known for reliability):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202008
 
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