Newbie needs help with a custom build

[Hurley0519]

Hello, I'm looking to save up so I can build a custom desktop computer since the laptop I'm using is getting old and isn't that good for games. Most of the time I play stuff like Starcraft 2, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic and League of Legends. I want to be able to play these games on high or highest (if it doesn't strain my wallet too much) settings and others like Borderlands 2, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Crysis 2, Dark Souls, Battlefield 3, and others that are currently out or will be released. What I need to know are suggestions for parts or maybe full builds and where I should look for these parts and a good site or instructions on how to put a computer together. Naturally I want to dpend as little money as possible but as far as a specific budget is concerned I'd be willing to pay around $1,000-$1,500. Thanks in advance for the help and for reading through all this text.

 

[manofchalk]

If you can fill out this form, it will give us the info needed to best help you.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/353572-31-build-upgrade-advice

But yes, what your after is achievable on that budget.

 

[Hurley0519]

Approximate Purchase Date: Next month

Budget Range: 1,000-1,500

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, watching movies, browsing sites

Are you buying a monitor: Yes

Parts to Upgrade: (e.g.: CPU, mobo, RAM) **Include Power Supply Make & Model If Re-using**

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com

Location: San Diego, California, USA

Parts Preferences: Intel

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080, maybe something like this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236079 ] ASUS VH232H Glossy Black 23" 5ms Widescreen Full HD 1080p LED Backlit LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ASCR 20000:1 w/Speakers & HDMI [/url]

Additional Comments: Games I typically play are Starcraft 2, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, League of Legends.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: The laptop I'm using is getting old and isn't good for gaming.

Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links for parts. Please do not post only links.

HEC 7106BB Black 1.0mm Thickness ATX Desktop Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811121010

XION AXP-850K14XE 850W ATX SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80+ Bronze Modular Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817190032

Intel Core i7-3770 Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.9GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I73770
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116502

ASUS P8B75-V LGA 1155 Intel B75 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131835

Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model PV316G160C0KRD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220735

Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

XFX FX-795A-TNFC Radeon HD 7950 Core Edition 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150590

Again thanks in advance to anyone that can help me out.

 

[manofchalk]

This should be a good build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($50.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($429.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 550D ATX Mid Tower Case ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VE248H 24.0" Monitor ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1518.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-05 17:04 EST-0500)

Its a bit over budget, but if your willing to buy from multiple sources that can be reduced by ~$60.
If you want the reasoning behind any part choices, dont hesitate to ask.

 

[Hurley0519]

This should be a good build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($50.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($429.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 550D ATX Mid Tower Case ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VE248H 24.0" Monitor ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1518.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-05 17:04 EST-0500)

Its a bit over budget, but if your willing to buy from multiple sources that can be reduced by ~$60.
If you want the reasoning behind any part choices, dont hesitate to ask.

This looks like exactly what I need. Thanks for the help!

 

[Hurley0519]

This should be a good build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($50.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($429.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 550D ATX Mid Tower Case ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VE248H 24.0" Monitor ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1518.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-05 17:04 EST-0500)

Its a bit over budget, but if your willing to buy from multiple sources that can be reduced by ~$60.
If you want the reasoning behind any part choices, dont hesitate to ask.

Sorry for the double post, but I was wondering what the solid state disk is for? I know it says for storage but is it an external hard drive or something?

 

[mrswenso]

Sorry for the double post, but I was wondering what the solid state disk is for? I know it says for storage but is it an external hard drive or something?

The solid state drive is to store your OS and any important programs that are run often. You can also put games on there if you wish. It will make your computer run faster overall to have your OS on a SSD.

 

[manofchalk]

SSD's act just like a conventional Hard Drive, they store data, but it is based off a different technology. Hard Drives use spinning magnetic platters to record data, SSD's use flash storage, akin to what you would find in a USB drive.
Due to the lack of moving parts within the drive, it has pretty much instant access times (<1ms), which is how long it takes for the drive to access the data on itself. HDD's have to wait until the platter spins into the right position and for the read head to be in the right place, which usually takes ~10ms.
This makes it ideal for situations where a lot of random data needs to be accessed fairly regularly, like your Operating System.
Its also just a fair bit faster as well in sequential read/writes due to the technology.

When you build the rig, install the OS, important programs onto the SSD. Makes the machine boot very quickly, and any programs installed to it will load much fast than if they were based on a HDD.
Use the HDD as just mass storage, so throw your movies, music, documents, files and unimportant games onto there. These dont benefit from the SSD's speed, while also taking up a lot of capacity (which is scarce on an SSD).
This video shows the difference, and its a bit old, SSD's are almost twice as fast now .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lR0XoHFU6Y