$1600 new build

[AlexRRR]

Hi guys,
I’ve been researching my first new built for a while now and have come up with this build! I’m hoping to replace an aging gaming system for around £1100/$1600. Here are the details:

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme 4 (£95)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Z77-Extreme4-Motherboard-Supports-CrossFireX/dp/B007KTY4A6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363011844&sr=8-1

CPU: Intel i7 3770k 3.50GHz (£240)
http://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials/Other+products/Intel+Core+i7-3770K+3.50GHz+%28Ivy+Bridge%29+Socket+LGA1155+Processor+-+Retail+?productId=49758

GPU: Gigabyte ATI Radeon 7970 HD 3GB 1GHz (£311)
http://www.dabs.com/products/gigabyte-ati-radeon-7970-hd-1ghz-3gb-pci-express-3-0-hdmi-windforce-3x-7ZWZ.html?refs=56920000&src=3

PSU: Corsair TX650 V2 650W ATX Enthusiast Series (£66)
http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair-memory-tx650-v2-650w-atx-enthusiast-series-7CHB.html?q=corsair%20650&src=16

RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (8GB x 2) 1866MHz DDR3 (£95)
http://www.cclonline.com/product/80510/CMZ16GX3M2A1866C9/Desktop-Memory/Corsair-CMZ16GX3M2A1866C9-Vengeance-Memory-16GB-1866MHz-CL9-DDR3-Kit/RAM0566/

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5” 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£54)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Caviar-Green-SATA-Internal-Drive/dp/B006GDVREI/ref=sr_1_3?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1363012909&sr=1-3

CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 V2 Water Cooling (£59)
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Fans+%26+Cooling/Water/Corsair+Hydro+H60+V2+Water-Cooling+CPU+Cooler+?productId=52990

Case: Zalman Z11 Plus Midi tower Black (£49)
http://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials/Other+products/Zalman+Z11+Plus+Black+Midi+Tower+Window+Gaming+Case+?productId=54575

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM (£83)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004Q0PT3I/ref=asc_df_B004Q0PT3I12315996?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004Q0PT3I

Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD burner (£15)
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Optical+Drives/DVDRW+Dual+Layer+-+SATA/LG++24x+Internal+DVDRW+GH24NS95+SATA+Black+Bare+with+m-Disk+Support+?productId=53115

Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 7.1 (£22)
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Sound+Cards/Creative+Sound+Blaster+Audigy+SE+7.1+PCI+Soundcard+-+OEM+?productId=49372

Total Cost = £1089

I am wondering about the graphics card – I’ve chosen the 7970 because it’s the most expensive I can afford and comes with loads of games I’m likely to want. Should I get the Nvidia GTX670 instead? Or go cheaper with the GTX660Ti?

Similarly, with the CPU: Is the i7 3770K overkill? I’m considering the i7 3770 or the i5 3750K as well.

Finally, how’s the motherboard? Is an additional sound card really needed or, again, overkill?

 

[bodeen2012]

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

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£164.34 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£25.43 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£103.82 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£38.91 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£52.25 @ Aria PC)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£141.00 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 680 2GB Video Card (£399.98 @ Novatech)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (White) ATX Mid Tower Case (£39.95 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£46.79 @ Aria PC)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£67.19 @ Aria PC)
Total: £1079.66
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-11 17:03 GMT+0000)

 

[Miks1890]

Hmm for gaming get i5 3570k, only few programs support HT and its 100$ less, definitely take HD 7970 because its more powerful than gtx 670, maybe add a SSD, i would suggest Samsung 840 128gb

 

[g-unit1111]

No need for an i7 on a gaming rig. On your budget I'd suggest this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£164.34 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£25.43 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£103.82 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£37.39 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£54.48 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£106.94 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (£307.98 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi Tower ATX Mid Tower Case (£68.94 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£81.58 @ Amazon UK)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (£11.45 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £962.35
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-11 17:37 GMT+0000)

 

[AlexRRR]

What do you guys think about the liquid cooling (Corsair H60)? At some point I might look into overclocking, but is this still overkill?

Thanks for the advice though - I'm going take it and go for the i5 CPU and consider an SSD as a boot drive.

 

[g-unit1111]

What do you guys think about the liquid cooling (Corsair H60)? At some point I might look into overclocking, but is this still overkill?

Thanks for the advice though - I'm going take it and go for the i5 CPU and consider an SSD as a boot drive.

No, a strong air fan like a Noctua NH-U9B would be a far better investment over the H60. The SSD I included is currently the fastest on the market.