First real gaming computer would like opinions and help

[John Seitz]

well i really would like to get my first real desktop only gaming computer with enough juice in it to last a good long while. i'm average with computers and decent with putting all types of things together and am not really afraid to attempt a build from scratch but ideally i was thinking something from ibuypower for convenience really. i'm not to concerned with overclocking or anything of that nature i simply want a nice machine that can handle all games on max settings without having to worry about too much. my spending limit could be close to 1200 but would really only like to spend 10 dollars lol meaning a good computer with a decent price. meaning i would like great components that get along with each other. with there being so many choices out there on parts and what not it gets a little confusing. I would appreciate any advice comments even a complete shopping list if someone really has the time I personally would like to stay with intel because ive never had any issues and only hear good about them. this is just a basic concept from ibuypower of what im looking for without the few tweaks i can do.

http://www.ibuypower.com/Store/Gamer_Paladin_D887

except for some minor movie and music and typical internet stuff gaming is what im interested in so i dont need a huge hard drive or any great big top of the line crap that isnt worth a decent price. so any feedback at all would be great.

P.S i know a lot of people hate ibuypower and all that this isnt a debate on that kinda thing meaning if its a hundred dollar difference from me screwing things up compared to someone putting all the pieces together id probably pay.

also im very committed to this topic so even if im on here everyday for a month learning im here willing to learn or be set straight .....so let the fun begin. thanks to all

 

[ssddx]

well...one benefit of building your own is that you can pick from a plethora of brands and products instead of being limited by what they offer you. major sellers such as ibuypower are also known for marking up components quite a bit or charging top end prices for mid range products. the only real benefit is that they do all the footwork and building for you. however, in the end you as the customer are stuck with it. all i am saying it to give it some thought.

i went through the ibuypower website and picked out what i thought would most likely work:

Case
Raidmax Orion Gaming Case Black
Case Lighting
None
iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction
None
iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion
None
Processor
Intel® Core™ i5-3570 Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache)
iBUYPOWER PowerDrive
None
Processor Cooling
Certified CPU Fan and Heatsink
Memory
8 GB [2 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory Module - Corsair or Major Brand
Video Card
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 - 2GB - EVGA SC Signature 2 - Core: 1163MHz - Single Card
Video Card Brand
Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-Z77-HD3 -- 4x USB 3.0
Intel Smart Response Technology
None
Power Supply
650 Watt - Corsair CMPSU-650TXV2 Free Upgrade to 750 Watt Corsair CMPSU-750TXV2 ($20 Savings)
Primary Hard Drive
1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive
Data Hard Drive
1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive
Optical Drive
24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive Black
2nd Optical Drive
None
Flash Media Reader / Writer
12-In-1 Internal Flash Media Card Reader/Writer - Black
Meter Display
None
Sound Card
3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard
Network Card
Onboard LAN Network (Gb or 10/100)
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium + Office Starter 2010 (Includes basic versions of Word and Excel) 64-Bit
Monitor
None
2nd Monitor
None
Speaker System
None
Video Camera
None
Case Engraving Service
None
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty Service
Rush Service
Rush Service Fee (not shipping fee) - No Rush Service, Estimate Ship Out in 5~10 Business Days
Free Stuff
1 x [FREE Game Download] - Metro: Last Light Free with purchase of NVIDIA GeForce GTX660 or above
Free Stuff
1 x [FREE In-Game Voucher] - $75 Value In-Game Currencies: Hawken, Planetside 2, and World of Tanks ($25 for each title) Free with purchase of NVIDIA GeForce GTX650 or above

about $1300.

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for gaming all you really need is an i5. an i7 is wasted and if you do not plan on overclocking a k series cpu is wasted.

for most gaming you will not require more than 8gb of ram. if you want to play games like crysis 3 it may be worth getting 12 or 16 for extra leadway as i heard they can be memory hogs.

a single gtx 660ti does not throw out impressive numbers. you stated you wanted to run games on maximum settings. look at this gpu charge for ultra-settings of metro 2033. http://www.anandtech.com/bench/GPU12/377 a 660ti will only get 30fps. it would be worth investing in either a sli setup or larger single card. it may also be worth running the game at a lower setting than ultra if you have a budget.

for game performance a standard 1tb 7200rpm drive should be good enough. ssd drives will make your system more snappy but will not improve game performance other than level load times.

if you arent overclocking you also do not need any fancy expensive coolers but i would suggest a case with good front to rear and ideally top fan slots.

i would highly suggest reading over other builds people have recommended. you will find more over in the /systems/ subsection.

i would also highly suggest building your own and using pcpartspicker.com and our /system/ area to compose your build. here are a few possible benefits of doing so:
-you get to pick your own components
-you can brand name components
-you can get those components cheaper
-you get all installation cds, manuals and extras such as cables, clips and accessories
-when you buy oem windows you get a disk, with prebuilt computers you may not
-everything arrives in a big box and it feels like christmastime opening gifts (at least for us compugeeks)
-no parts get lose in shipping. you build it at your house.
-peace of mind since you built the system and went over it instead of trusting someone else.
-learning experiece

we bought a tower once. that was about 15 years ago. ever since we have built our own and likely will never go back. one nice thing is that i literally have container after container of sata cables, screws, adapters and various other products. i've never had to buy any extras...

 

[John Seitz]

hey thanks a whole bunch man i like that site alot checking it out now

 

[John Seitz]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Rz2N
how does this look any problems feel free to nitpick

 

[ssddx]

you probably dont need a K series processor since you arent going to overclock. K denotes it is unlocked for overclocking. this will save you some money probably.

since you arent going to be overclocking you likely do not need a special cpu cooler either. the cpu comes with a stock cooler already which works well enough.

i'll leave the choice of motherboard up to you but my preference would be to go with an asus board.

does the case not come with fans? if not then good catch. you may also want to think about a front bay rheobus fan controller.

i wouldnt trust that psu. do yourself and go with a name brand (personally i only trust corsair, ocz and pcp&c) since a psu failure can take your whole system down with it. definitely do not skimp here.

you may want to go with a samsung 830, 840, 840pro or intel 520 ssd. these seem to meet or exceed the MTBF ratings while the rest of them not so much. i saw a test being done on this but i forget where i read it.

personally i prefer corsair or mushkin ram but your choice.

i would run this by the people in /systems/newbuild/ as well for input.