$1000 first time builder

[bigk40k]

Approximate Purchase Date: Will start ordering parts in the beginning of March

Budget Range: $1000, but $1200 is cap if the upgrade is worth it for the long run.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Hobby, surfing internet, casual gaming. I dropped some other hobbys and have always loved computers and so I would like to become professional amateur at building and overclocking as I go.

Are you buying a monitor: yes, eventually

Parts to Upgrade: Everything, I have been researching and reading reviews(mostly based off of this site). I have been using pcpartpicker to make a mock of what I want.

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg, tigerdirect, and amazon are what I've been mostly using but I am always open to the best deal! And pcpartpicker just finds the cheapest it seems so I will loosely base off of that?

Parts Preferences: Intel seems to be the cpu of choice in my price range right now, but Im really open to suggestion on anything.

Overclocking: eventually

SLI or Crossfire: the motherboard I have picked out has it but I dont foresee using it right away.

Your Monitor Resolution: is 1280x1024 but is from 07' and I would like to get something hd eventually, probably want to run both monitors when I get the new one

Additional Comments: Nothing Right now

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: My pc is from 07', is a hp prebuilt amd4200 that Ive already had to replace the psu and optical on, It runs slower than molasses in February, Ive had to edit and fix the registry on it twice(probably virus? I need a good anti-virus if Im building a nice new pc) Which I actually enjoyed researching and editing it to make things work again. Bottom line is its old and slow and I'm ready to invest/build a nice new one.

Here's what I got on my list:

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

MoBo: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157295

CPU Cooler: Xigmatek GAIA SD1283 56.3 CFM CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233082

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231474

Storage: G.Skill Phoenix III 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231613

Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136769

G. Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202011

Case: NZXT Phantom 410 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146087

PSU: Rosewill Capstone 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182066

O. Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106352

O. System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986

I just used newegg for listing ease but my current price total is $977.

Now my main questions.

If I do start overclocking is that cooler going to be ok? Otherwise I was Looking at the swiftech h220. http://www.swiftech.com/H220.aspx

If I do/should just go with the swiftech, what is the Case that you recommend?

Is win7 home premium ok for overclocking and general pc modifying? or should I go with professional?

Do I need another small ssd for caching or can that 120gig run my system and caching? been reading about it just my core processor(brain) is running about as slow as my pc right now.

Should I break down and order some thermal compound or will the stuff that comes with my cooler be ok? Obviously if it doesnt say it comes with any I will definitely order some, just wondering if the stuff that can come with coolers is ok?

The Case I picked out has like 3 fans in it, plus my cpu cooler, will the psu I have come with enough connections? those would all be 4pin correct?

Will the psu handle an upgrade to the h220? and also is it enough for now and future upgrades to my pc?

Anything advice/critique/questions are appreciated! Thanks!

 

[SHORYUKEN]

1. That cooler is decent. Get an EVO if you can for $30

2. Don't get that cooler. You don't need it for now.

3. Win 7 doesn't make a difference, except for the programs you can install. Most people don't need anything buy Home Premium.

4. SSD would be very nice. Get a SanDisk or a OCZ Vertex. You don't need to get another one. You can replace that G.Skill one. Most people satisfy with just 1 SSD, but if you want, you can get 2 just for different apps and speed and what not.

5. Sometimes the paste is bad, in the way that you spread it. If you spread it with the business card method, then don't get any special paste. I recommend hard plastic against a pea drop thermal paste as a spreader. You can find videos about this method.

6. Every PSU comes with all you need. No need to worry. Yes, they are 4 pins. I think you are trying to as if you connect the PSU to the fans? No you don't, the fans connect to the MoBo.

7. If this is a 1000-1200 build you can do MUCH better.


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 ($32.97 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($71.68 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($102.97 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($297.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($18.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1114.51
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-15 11:18 EST-0500)

 

[lhikary]

heres what you need to get instead
mobo: the extreme 6 isnt that much better than 4
go with the extreme 4
psu: corsair 650w v2 is plenty but if you may want to sli go with the 750w model
case: thermaltake chaser mk 1 is better than the one you posted and it can run the swiftech cooler
and yes the windows 7 home is enough

no need for another ssd but get a bigger size 256 is a personal favor
ocz vertex 4 256gb is better than the one you suggested

 

[lhikary]

ram wise get a 2x4gb kit
thermal paste get Arctic mx-4

 

[bigk40k]

Thanks for the suggestions, this is what I was hoping for keep it coming! I like that thermaltake chaser mk-i case so I think I will definitely go with that, then I would be set if I upgraded to the h220 later.

I like shoryukens build, but at $300 on a vcard should I consider a geforce instead?

 

[bigk40k]

I should also add...Ive yet to actually own a game that requires a serious vcard, that said is it more important to go with gigs or with hertz? and it would be possible to overclock a vcard if I have read other posts correctly?

 

[timmy97236]

Here is my two cents on a cooler .... the XIGMATEK Dark Knight II SD1283 Night Hawk is on sale right now for $35 (usually $50).... here is a review http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMB93_upUmI

It looks to perform similarly to water cooling kits but for a fraction of the cost.

Also on the SSD topic, you dont really need 256gb to be realistic... i have the 120 on one of my builds and i still have 40 gb left over after OS and a couple programs... that is including all the registries and system files with about 30+ games on my other hard drive... I have a 256 ocz ssd on my laptop but that is only cause i got it for a steal of about 160, but a decent 120gb ssd costs no more then 120, so dont waste your money. add that extra $40-50 into the gpu, that is where your actual performance be beneficial.

 

[timmy97236]

I should also add...Ive yet to actually own a game that requires a serious vcard, that said is it more important to go with gigs or with hertz? and it would be possible to overclock a vcard if I have read other posts correctly?

Also to reply to your question... more Mhz is usually better and more gb doesnt always mean more performance... Its better to just look at the toms hierarchy charts, find the card in your price range and then look at the different companies that offer that card and pick one that has good cooling and good Mhz... You should always look at reviews performance and frames per second achieved in games then just looking at gpu specs, so make sure to look at the toms reviews and gpu hierarchy that is linked below... also if a card has duel fans it can usually be overclocked a bit... Also the only time i would suggest nvidia is if you have cash to blow and if your gonna be running editing software (and not just once in a while editing stuff, i mean if your actually doing it for a job or for a serious hobby)... editing programs that can utilize the nvidia cuda cores perform significantly better. Also nvidia cards in sli usually perform slightly better then similar in performance radeon cards in crossfire (since nvidia cards dont suffer from microstuttering as much).

But on the performance per dollar ratio, amd radeon cards win almost always. So my advice is to find your price range and then by the best amd card that you can afford.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-4.html

look at the different price ranges on the above link, and see what you can afford. Then look at the different cards that are offered by different companies. I prefer MSI because they are decently factory overclocked and have good coolers. Other companies are great as well like asus and xfx.

 

[bigk40k]

is there a good mid tower case that will fit a radeon 7800 series? i dont have a large desk, and it would be nice to have something a little smaller. I was thinking thermaltake commander http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133196
Anyone have anything similar or better for $100 or less?
Also I was thinking of maybe an asus mobo? and I notice quite a few guys pc signature has a i2500k, any thoughts vs. a 3570k?

 

[Dylan300]

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 ($32.97 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($71.68 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($102.97 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($297.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($18.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1114.51
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-15 11:18 EST-0500)

I've adopted this build as my own, however, I'm not nearly close enough to run a hardwire. Are there any good wireless card or adapter that will work with my Verizon Westell 9100. Thanks in advance. Cheers!

 

[Dylan300]

is there a good mid tower case that will fit a radeon 7800 series? i dont have a large desk, and it would be nice to have something a little smaller. I was thinking thermaltake commander http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133196
Anyone have anything similar or better for $100 or less?

I bought the thermaltake mk1 that was suggested earlier in this thread, ordered it just this morning. I also have a small desk but I think the awesome look is going to be worth it.