First Time Budget Gaming Build ($750)

[Axel_H]

So I thought I would try my hand at making my own build and upped my budget to $750. Here's what I got:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.00 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($40.50 @ Vuugo)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.50 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($219.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $760.95
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-16 09:30 EST-0500)

I realize that I went over budget by $11... but I can live with that. Is there anything that sticks out as wrong in this build? Or that you would personally change? Important notes include that I live in Canada and therefore it has to be able to ship there, and that the main uses of this build are gaming and school work. Also, I will NOT be doing any overclocking, or using Crossfire/SLI. Any help would be much appreciated!

 

[EzioAs]

I personally would get the slightly faster i5-3470, shouldn't be much more expensive I think. Other than that, I won't change anything. Looks good. I won't nitpick much.

 

[Axel_H]

As suggested, I went with the slightly faster CPU. I also dropped down to less expensive motherboard, and changed RAM. This is what the build looks like now:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($195.90 @ TigerDirect Canada)
Motherboard: MSI H77MA-G43 Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($79.99 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($40.12 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.50 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($219.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $747.47
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-16 12:34 EST-0500)

I have two questions. One is about the motherboard. I know very little about motherboards. All I really know is since I'm not overclocking, to stick with an H77 motherboard. That's pretty much the extent of my knowledge. My question is, is this a decent motherboard to go with for this build?

My other question is about RAM. I really know nothing about this either. I would like to go with 2x4GB ram, but as for the different kinds and brands I am pretty clueless. Do they really make any significant difference in the end? Is the type of RAM I have selected okay?

 

[EzioAs]

It's a decent motherboard. For the RAM, try to get a 1600MHz 2x4GB kit. Prices shouldn't differ too much but 1600MHz does show some performance improvements over 1333MHz.

 

[cball1311]

Just a few subtle changes that I would suggest.

1. Get this 1600MHz RAM for $1 less.
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.99 @ Newegg Canada)

2. Get this 520W PSU that is modular for $5 less.
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg Canada)

 

[Axel_H]

Thanks a lot guys! I'll do that.