Compatibility/Critique for First time Builder

[DillonPressley]

I'm looking to build a computer for the first time.
I've looked through several parts and had some questions.

A. Are these parts compatible?

B. Is the 4170 a good enough processor, or should I get a 6 or 8 core? I'd looked into the FX-8120, for my price range. I haven't really looked into Intel, although I'm not against it.

C. My budget is about $1000 plus a $200 monitor.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-4170 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($79.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT M59 - 001BK ATX Mid Tower Case ($57.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W ATX12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB/RSBS DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Gigabyte GK-K6800 Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Kensington K72356US Wired Optical Mouse ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $806.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-29 22:36 EST-0500)

 

[butremor]

well, go for at least fx 4300 or fx 6300 if you want more cores
and get 2x 4GB ram to make use of dual channeling

 

[DillonPressley]

I put the 6 GB memory by mistake. I'd intended onthe 2x 4GB.
It's not necessarily that I want more cores.
Moreso just asking, do I need them? For this particular setup?

 

[butremor]

well you said you considered even 8 cores, so a six-core would be nice solution for dillema between fx 4 and fx 8 ... but idk how many cores you need because you havent yet specified whar are you using pc for...

 

[DillonPressley]

Apologies.
It's obvious I've never done anything like this.
Primarily for gaming and web browsing.
Games like
Most FPS games
Skyrim
The Batman Arkham games
GTA games
and such.

Truth be told, I'm not even sure what the major differences between the 4, 6, or 8 cores are.

 

[butremor]

meh
scratch everything here's intel build , i5 cpu is top notch for gaming
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Av8W

 

[g-unit1111]

meh
scratch everything here's intel build , i5 cpu is top notch for gaming
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Av8W

That's $130 over the OP's budget but I definitely agree Intel would be better for gaming at that price point. Here's something a bit more affordable:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $844.48
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 15:52 EST-0500)

 

[butremor]

That's $130 over the OP's budget but I definitely agree Intel would be better for gaming at that price point.
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 15:52 EST-0500)

no , his budget is 1k

 

[g-unit1111]

no , his budget is 1k

Stand corrected then.

Try this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($313.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($92.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1021.45
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 16:41 EST-0500)

 

[DillonPressley]

Looking into both those builds.
Just curious though.
Is there anything particularly wrong with this build?
I've added and FX 8350 Processor.
I'm not really looking to overclock, or anything.
But for this price, is Intel more reliable?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($79.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT M59 - 001BK ATX Mid Tower Case ($57.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Gigabyte GK-K6800 Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Kensington K72356US Wired Optical Mouse ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $945.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 17:17 EST-0500)

 

[g-unit1111]

Looking into both those builds.
Just curious though.
Is there anything particularly wrong with this build?
I've added and FX 8350 Processor.
I'm not really looking to overclock, or anything.
But for this price, is Intel more reliable?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($79.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT M59 - 001BK ATX Mid Tower Case ($57.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Gigabyte GK-K6800 Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Kensington K72356US Wired Optical Mouse ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $945.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 17:17 EST-0500)

For gaming Intel CPUs are far better than any AMD CPU at the same price point. That case is OK if you have a bigger budget get a better one like the Corsair 300R.

 

[DillonPressley]

There are a few parts like the Hard Drive and the Graphics card that I'm pretty much sold on.
However the Processor and Motherboard are really what I'm iffy on.

I have an Intel Build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Gigabyte GK-K6800 Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Kensington K72356US Wired Optical Mouse ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $960.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 18:03 EST-0500)

And an AMD Build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8350 4.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($79.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Keyboard: Gigabyte GK-K6800 Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Kensington K72356US Wired Optical Mouse ($6.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $952.86
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-30 18:05 EST-0500)

 

[g-unit1111]

Go with the Intel build. You'll be glad you did.

 

[DillonPressley]

So the Intel build looks fine? Any part you recommend against?
Also,
For the Intel build, would I need to purchase any extra fans?
I'm getting a 32" HDTV for the monitor, will I need any HDMI cables?
Are there any components I'm forgetting about?

 

[butremor]

if you're not loooking to overclock then go for i5 3470 cpu

 

[DillonPressley]

This is probably a dumb question.
Or questions, rather.

What exactly is overclocking?

How would I overclock?

Do I need to overclock?