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First "full" build myself, need a little help

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August 13, 2014 12:28:16 AM

So I'v been spending the last week or so looking up parts to build myself an (almost)entirely new desktop computer. I will be using it mostly for gaming. I have a general idea of everything I need. I'v picked out most everything so far with some help. What I ask of you guys is if it's a smart build, such as: do all the parts go well together, will it run well, any part suggestions instead of what I list, will it all fit in the case I picked, do I need any better parts for it to work, any parts out there that are better for the price or cheaper for the same performance, etc.

I'll put in parentheses where I'd buy them. As well as additional questions or information under the link.

Original list:
Spoiler
Motherboard (Newegg)
CPU (Micro Center)
I don't know if I need a cooler, as it says it has a heatsink and fan.
Memory (Amazon)
Question: I currently have two 4GB sticks in my computer, they may be different types than one another. Would it bog down my new PC at all if I put those two in the 2nd channel in the motherboard? Increasing it to 24GB RAM.
Storage (Amazon)
I will also be using my current 1TB 7200 drive.
Video Card (Newegg)
Case (Newegg)
PSU [2] (N/A)
I don't know which to pick, or if I should pick another altogether.
Optical Drive (Amazon)
Almost all I'd use this for is to install the OS, and special programs such as Photoshop.


Motherboard (Newegg)

CPU (Micro Center)
I don't know if I need a cooler, as it says it has a heatsink and fan.

Memory (Amazon)
Question: I currently have two 4GB sticks in my computer, they may be different types than one another. Would it bog down my new PC at all if I put those two in the 2nd channel in the motherboard? Increasing it to 24GB RAM.

Mostly what I'd use this amount of memory for is heavily modding Minecraft/Skyrim. To give a small idea of how much memory I'd use, things I'd have open would be: 3-8 Chrome tabs/windows(youtube, 2-3 browser games(Idle games), other misc), Skype, Teamspeak, A Steam game, Razer Synapse- Usually all at once the majority that the PC is on.

Currently my PC has been thinking it needs to use 80%+ of it's memory, so something is screwed up inside- this is mostly why I want new ram, and partly why I want to build a whole new computer(the rest of the reason being I just need a new PC and I have the money). I plan to test my current RAM in the new PC which I hope aren't the problem, increasing it to 24GB, pretty much just for the sake of having it, heh..

Storage (Amazon)
I will also be using my current 1TB 7200 drive.

SSD (Newegg)
I picked this one just by reviews and a little by price. If there's one better for the price or the same for less, please tell.

Video Card (Newegg)
I picked this pretty much just because it's a ton better than my current video card, and it seems like a fairly good price for what it is, at least for all I know. I have a dual monitor setup that I don't believe I can use safely with my current PC, seeing as Skyrim killed my last video card while having both monitors on, and my current card is a little worse than that one, and pretty old (Geforce GTS 250).

Case (Newegg)

PSU (Newegg)

Optical Drive (Amazon)
Almost all I'd use this for is to install the OS, and special programs such as Photoshop.

I don't need an OS, Sound Card, Network Adapter, Monitor ,Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers, or Headphones, as I already have them except for a sound card which I may buy afterwards if I want it.
The OS I have is Windows 7 64bit.
I have Razer Keyboard, Mouse, and Headset.

More about : full build

August 13, 2014 8:38:29 AM

CPU/Mobo - Any reason why you are getting a CPU/mobo that is 2-3 years old now? For the same price you could easily get a i7 4790k and a Z97 Extreme 4.

Memory - Any reason you need 16gb let alone 24gb? 8 GB is still sufficient for gaming, if you do some video rendering or have a specific program or situation that needs more than 8 then get 16 otherwise you could probably reuse the 8 gb you already have.

Storage - Also look into a SSD for a boot drive, they speed up OS loading and application loading times if they are installed on the SSD, usually 120gb is what ppl get.

Video Card - The gtx 770 is a great card but unless you are planning on SLI 770s or have a multimonitor setup, the 4gb vram will likely be wasted. I would recommend either getting the 2gb gtx 770 or looking at the r9 280x or the r9 290 if you are worried about Vram.

Case - nothing to say here, move along :) 

PSU - Out of the 2, get the HX series. The CX series uses cheap chinese capacitors that are more likely to fail (compared to their competitors) at high temps. Personally I would not get either since the HX is a bit expensive for what it is, you can typically find comparable products for $20-30 less. Here is a real good one and what I would get:

EVGA Supernova G2 750w Gold (10 yr warranty!): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

So yeah, quite a few changes that I would make haha
August 13, 2014 8:58:30 AM

I'd suggest the 280x over the 770 right now. You can pick up most of the 280x cards for under 300 bucks whereas most of the GTX 770s are well over that.
Related resources
August 13, 2014 9:24:19 AM

What your budget?
If you want build ivy bridge it's the best part i can pick for you :) 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/gnKcgs
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/gnKcgs/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($329.98 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($172.68 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Avexir Core series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($84.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($113.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 4GB Dual Superclocked ACX Video Card ($369.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 450D ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CSM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Micro Center)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1455.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-13 12:23 EDT-0400
August 13, 2014 11:10:16 AM

Thanks for the replies. My budget is around $1500, but cheaper than that would be great- $1390 I'd be able to afford by next month, anything higher I'd have to wait another month (I get social security money so it's not all that much).

Wima/gizzard- I'll look into those parts, thanks.

numanator said:
CPU/Mobo - Any reason why you are getting a CPU/mobo that is 2-3 years old now? For the same price you could easily get a i7 4790k and a Z97 Extreme 4. Reason would be I just don't know, heh. I pretty much picked parts based on the number of good ratings, and price, and what I saw go together. I didn't know there was a Z97 Extreme4, I'll likely get those instead.

Memory - Any reason you need 16gb let alone 24gb? 8 GB is still sufficient for gaming, if you do some video rendering or have a specific program or situation that needs more than 8 then get 16 otherwise you could probably reuse the 8 gb you already have. Honestly the only thing I'v thought of using it for is Minecraft, heavily modded(and Skyrim), which can take a ton of memory. Another reason is I just thought it would be nice to have that much, as well as I just want to replace everything and have the money. I'm not sure but there may actually be a problem with my current memory, because often when my PC is on for some 6+ hours it starts to think it's using 90% of the memory, without anything running and continues when I start doing things- needing a restart.

Storage - Also look into a SSD for a boot drive, they speed up OS loading and application loading times if they are installed on the SSD, usually 120gb is what ppl get. I didn't know that, thanks, I was actually thinking of a small drive to boot applications, I'll look for one to add.

Video Card - The gtx 770 is a great card but unless you are planning on SLI 770s or have a multimonitor setup, the 4gb vram will likely be wasted. I would recommend either getting the 2gb gtx 770 or looking at the r9 280x or the r9 290 if you are worried about Vram. I do have a dual monitor setup that I can't safely use wth my current PC. My last video card was killed by Skyrim and having both monitors on, mostly my fault but still. Currently I'm using a friend's spare GeForce GTS 250, which I assume is very old. I'v just needed a better video card and getting one that much better would be nice/cool. The price for it also doesn't seem like a whole lot to me for what it is, but that's coming from someone who doesn't know a whole lot.

PSU - Out of the 2, get the HX series. The CX series uses cheap chinese capacitors that are more likely to fail (compared to their competitors) at high temps. Personally I would not get either since the HX is a bit expensive for what it is, you can typically find comparable products for $20-30 less. Here is a real good one and what I would get:

EVGA Supernova G2 750w Gold (10 yr warranty!): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168... That one looks great, I'll choose that if no one objects, haha.
!