Need Advice On New Build, Budget ~$2,000.00

[marsrunner]

Been out of PC building for about 5 years but am finally looking to build a new rig. Would like thoughts from the experts about my new potential build. Thanks!

Approximate Purchase Date: within 2 weeks

Budget Range: around $2,000.00 with taxes and shipping and everything

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Web browsing, gaming (usually The Sims 3 or 4 when it comes out, but occasionally more graphic-intensive games like Bioshock Infinite)

Are you buying a monitor: yes

Parts to Upgrade: everything!

Do you need to buy OS: yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com

Location: Paris, IL

Parts Preferences: Intel CPUs/Nvidia GPUs

Overclocking: no

SLI or Crossfire: no

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 preferred

Additional Comments: none

Why Are You Upgrading: don't have a pc right now!

Parts List:

Case: NZXT Source 210

PSU: SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z87M-D3H 1.0

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell

GPU: EVGA 02G-P4-2761-KR GeForce GTX 760

Memory: Mushkin Enhanced Redline 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600

SSD: SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD256BW 2.5" 256GB

DVD Drive: ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner

Monitor: ViewSonic Graphic Series VG2732m

I intentionally left off the OS (I'll just get an OEM version of Windows 8) keyboard, mouse, speakers and wireless adapter because those are pretty easy to choose, and this thread is too long already! Thanks in advance!

 

[dannyboy2233]

Here is a much better system. 2x 770 (each of which is one step up from the 760 which you have), and the processor is dropped to a 4670k, as you won't see the difference in gaming. Much better RAM, a nicer PSU, a nicer (IMO) motherboard, as well as a 1TB HDD to go along with it all! I've left $300 for the monitor of your choice monitors tend to be more personal, so I try to leave them out.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($128.53 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($398.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($398.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($137.47 @ TigerDirect)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1688.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 19:24 EDT-0400)

 

[realchaos]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.09 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($164.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($243.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $1801.12
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:06 EDT-0400)

-Unoverclockable, but you don't want to anyways.
-8gb of RAM is enough for gaming. 16gb is complete overkill.
-Big SSD.
-GTX 780 maxes out everything on 1080p (though a single 770 is still a very viable option as it can max out pretty much everything as well)
-850w psu for future SLI if you want to in the future.
-144hz monitor. Not sure what games you play, but if you play any FPS games then the 144hz will be nice. Otherwise, a $120-150 1080p 60hz monitor is good enough.
-Leaves $200 for a high end mouse and keyboard.

 

[g-unit1111]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.09 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($164.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($243.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $1801.12
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:06 EDT-0400)

-Unoverclockable, but you don't want to anyways.
-8gb of RAM is enough for gaming. 16gb is complete overkill.
-Big SSD.
-GTX 780 maxes out everything on 1080p (though a single 770 is still a very viable option as it can max out pretty much everything as well)
-850w psu for future SLI if you want to in the future.
-144hz monitor. Not sure what games you play, but if you play any FPS games then the 144hz will be nice. Otherwise, a $120-150 1080p 60hz monitor is good enough.
-Leaves $200 for a high end mouse and keyboard.

$1800 rig you should definitely be prepared to overclock. I wouldn't get expensive peripherals initially, you can always add those things later. I would get something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($150.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($673.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($134.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk II 950W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($147.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1900.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:12 EDT-0400)

 

[dannyboy2233]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.09 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($164.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($243.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $1801.12
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:06 EDT-0400)

-Unoverclockable, but you don't want to anyways.
-8gb of RAM is enough for gaming. 16gb is complete overkill.
-Big SSD.
-GTX 780 maxes out everything on 1080p (though a single 770 is still a very viable option as it can max out pretty much everything as well)
-850w psu for future SLI if you want to in the future.
-144hz monitor. Not sure what games you play, but if you play any FPS games then the 144hz will be nice. Otherwise, a $120-150 1080p 60hz monitor is good enough.
-Leaves $200 for a high end mouse and keyboard.

Ummmm... A $2,000 build most definitely has to contain an overclockable CPU. Can you please describe to me the benefits of your build over mine? I am quite confused... Worse CPU, motherboard, SSD, RAM, GPU...
Also, who are you to say that the OP doesn't want to overclock?

 

[dannyboy2233]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.09 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($164.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($243.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $1801.12
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:06 EDT-0400)

-Unoverclockable, but you don't want to anyways.
-8gb of RAM is enough for gaming. 16gb is complete overkill.
-Big SSD.
-GTX 780 maxes out everything on 1080p (though a single 770 is still a very viable option as it can max out pretty much everything as well)
-850w psu for future SLI if you want to in the future.
-144hz monitor. Not sure what games you play, but if you play any FPS games then the 144hz will be nice. Otherwise, a $120-150 1080p 60hz monitor is good enough.
-Leaves $200 for a high end mouse and keyboard.

$1800 rig you should definitely be prepared to overclock. I wouldn't get expensive peripherals initially, you can always add those things later. I would get something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($150.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($673.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($134.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk II 950W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($147.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1900.85
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-06 21:12 EDT-0400)

I still stick with my original build. Dual 770s will wreck a single 780 for only about $150 more.

 

[realchaos]

From his original post:

"Overclocking: no"

Just because it's an expensive build doesn't mean the OP has to overclock if he doesn't feel comfortable doing it.

@dannyboy: Btw, the benefits of my build is a bigger SSD, better case and has more room for higher quality peripherals. Though going with SLI 770s does seem better.

 

[g-unit1111]

I still stick with my original build. Dual 770s will wreck a single 780 for only about $150 more.

True, I just checked the benchmarks: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/geforce_gtx_770_sli_review,13.html

 

[dannyboy2233]

From his original post:

"Overclocking: no"

Just because it's an expensive build doesn't mean the OP has to overclock if he doesn't feel comfortable doing it.

@dannyboy: Btw, the benefits of my build is a bigger SSD, better case and has more room for higher quality peripherals. Though going with SLI 770s does seem better.

However, when the budget allows, there is no reason to not include the possibility. Whether OP says no or not, it is always nice to have the possibility to increase the speed (and therefore performance) of their CPU.

 

[dannyboy2233]

I still stick with my original build. Dual 770s will wreck a single 780 for only about $150 more.

True, I just checked the benchmarks: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/geforce_gtx_770_sli_review,13.html

Would you agree that it's worth it, or no?

 

[marsrunner]

Thanks for all the input guys.
A couple of things:
I only included a SSD rather than an SSD and a storage drive because I have a NAS of 2TB that can store videos, music, photos and backups. My laptop (an ASUS G53) only has about 100GB used right now. I really don't think I'll install more than one or two games at a time. Like I said, The Sims 3 (or 4 when it comes out) is the major game that I'll play. I also have a PS3 and will get a PS4 so the majority of my gaming (which is not a lot, admittedly) will be done on that.
The big takeaways I'm getting from this is that the i7 is too much for my needs and I should go with an i5. I planned on getting an i7 because I believe The Sims 3 is a CPU intensive game so I went for the fastest I could get. Will the i5 still be good for that?
If I don't plan on overclocking ever do I need a CPU cooler other than the one that comes with the processor?
Is the GTX760 severely underpowered? I can see going with ONE 770, but I don't want to drop the money for 2 to SLI or $650+ for a 780. I just can't justify an extra $400 for one game. The i7 over the i5 is only another $100-$200, so I don't mind that so much.
Again, thanks for all the input guys!

 

[realchaos]

IMHO, if the OP straight up said no to overclocking, I doubt he'll want to and including the option to overclock is just a waste of money.

If you already have a 2tb NAS setup, then just grabbing an SSD is fine.
The i5 should be fine for Sims.
If you don't overclock, you don't need an aftermarket cpu cooler. The one that comes with the processor is good enough.
I would just grab a GTX 770 and have a 750-850w psu so it leaves you the option to SLI.