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1.5-2k Gaming rig for first time computer builder

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Perfectcrime

n00b
Joined
Aug 20, 2010
Messages
2
Looking for help. Thanks for viewing my thread.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

I plan on going 2 monitor with one great monitor for Gaming/movies and the other average monitor for webbrowsing/random online tv watching when gaming. (No eyefinity)

Gaming and web-browsing. Specific games I'm looking into being able to play at a high level are Final Fantasy xiv, SC2, Dragon Age/Dragon Age 2, Fallout iterations, Civ 5, Elemental: War of Magic (Have to be prepared for those ambitious mods), Mass Effect iterations, Assasin's Creed iterations, Star Wars: TOR, you get the idea...

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

1.5k-2k with 1.5k as a goal and the 500 dollar wiggle room for tax and things I can't get around

Monitor is not included in this particular price budget, so don't worry about the extra 200 from a monitor and how it might change this budget.

3) Where do you live?

New York

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.

-CPU
-PSU
-GPU
-Motherboard
-RAM
-hard drive
-Case
-dvd drive
-Nice flatscreen monitor

-Possibly an aftermarket heatsink if it is necessary

Nice things I'm looking at, but not really interested in buying right this second

blu-ray
SSD
UPS

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

n/a

6) Will you be overclocking?

Yes, but not excessively so

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?

Seriously considering this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824005126

contrast ratio worries me a little

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

within the next 3-4 weeks (I've been researching for a while and wanted hard forum's expertise)

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.

Crossfire for sure, although I'm not doing it right away
RAID seesm great but I'll have to learn more about it

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?

Yes, Windows 7, 64 bit, digital copy

My build thus far:

CPU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115225

PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207001

It's 850w. Would I really need a 1000w psu if I wanted to crossfire in the future?

GPU:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150496

PSU and GPU on deal when bought together (Also the GPU, ATI 5870, I want)

Motherboard:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131641

RAM:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145242

Hard Drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533

Optical Drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

Monitor:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824005126

Case: (any recommendations would be appreciated on this one)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119213
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119230

Stuck between these three (and, frankly, am open to any suggestion). Keep in mind I am planning on being prepared to crossfire, the heatsink for that crossfired rig, install an SSD, and possibly other little things when needed in the future. I am hoping to keep it as simple as possible, for this rig, for the time being.

What I would like from you guys:

Anywhere you can see I've got my compatibilities wrong, made a poor quality choice, or can even just save me money would be appreciated. Even if it's just a comment, to reassure me that I'm on the right path, it would be appreciated.

Thank you and Cheers!
 
Last edited:
Don't bother HD 5870 Crossfire at all. Sadly, HD 5870 Crossfire gets outperformed by GTX 460 1GB SLI:
http://hardocp.com/article/2010/08/09/geforce_gtx_460_1gb_sli_vs_radeon_hd_5870_cfx/

So I recommend just going for GTX 460 1GB SLI right off the bat since it's cheaper yet nets you a lot more performance:
$460 - 2 x Gigabyte GV-N460OC-1GI GeForce GTX 460 1GB PCI-E Video Card

Yes that XFX 850W PSU is more than enough for GTX 460 SLI. Hell even the XFX 650W would be enough.

RAM wise, ditch that Corsair RAM set. You're not gonna notice an iota of difference between that Corsair set and this G.Skill set:
$145 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM

At $180 shipped, the HAF 932 Blue RC-932-KKN3-GP is not a good choice at all for the money IMO. There's better cases than that at $180. Between the two cases, I'd spring the extra cash for the HAF 932 Black RC-932-KWN3.

You can save another $25 if you get the motherboard and CPU together:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.466116


lt_shiro said:
these days we would general suggest gtx 460 in SLI and not a single 5870, much less 6 edition onless you are planning on buying 5 displays.
Click to expand...

Fixed that :D
 
Monitor: If you are going 24" then go for 1900X1200, as it gives you more real estate. However, I would highly recommend you spend a little more and get either the Dell U2311h or the NEW EA231wmi. They are a little smaller, but have a MUCH better panel (ips) and amazingly better stands.

CPU: thats the one I have and it is fantastic. Easy to overclock 3.8 and seen them go up to 4.8.

PSU: Thats what i have as well. you cannot go wrong with this one of the Corsair HX850. HardOCP also has a few more recommendations or PSU's if you look under power supplies and SLI/Crossfire recommendations.

GPU: That is one helluva card. 5870 is WAY too much processing power for a 24" monitor...especially one running at 1080. You need higher res/more monitors or less of a card...let alone 2 cards like you are looking to.

Mobo: decent mobo, but i recommend Asus P6T deuxe v2 or Gigabyte UD3R. just know that the 1366 socket is not being produced in the future, so you will not have much upgrade ability.

RAM: I think this is too expensive. i doubt you will see any increase in CAS 7 RAM. CAS 9 is fine (you should be able to OC it to 8 no prob, but 9 is fine).

HDD: This is a great drive, but Samsung Spinpoint F3 is faster in many benchmarks as is only $60.

Case: Dont get the 922. If you dont mind a bigger case go with the HAF 932 (or the HAF X if you can spend a little more). However, if you like the look i recommend the NZXT Phantom. If is a better case.

Heatsink: YES. Get an aftermarket heatsink. Thermaltake VenemousX RT or Noctua NH-U12P SE2 (get the DH-14 if you decide to do serious Overclocking).

Anyway, have fun...looks like a sweet build!
 
Hey Guys,

Thanks for the advice some edits of my original in case it's not caught:

I plan on using two screens, but I'm buying the second screen later. This will not be used for eyefinity (or the Nvidia equivalent) or anything of the sort. The second screen will be purely for multitasking/web browsing when playing games/watching movies.

In regards to the GPU:

I read through everything about the GTX 460 (single and SLI) on HardOCP and it certainly does seem like a great card compared to the heat, noise, wattage consumption of the GTX 480 by itself or SLIed (major turn off).

With SLIed GTX 460s would I absolutely need an aftermarket heatsink?

Would the motherboard I've chosen be able to overclock it with relative ease?

In regards to the RAM:

I've read that G.Skill has some issues with RAM being DOA. Is this a false perception? My Corsair choice is mainly because it's a very trusted name all around.

In regards to Monitors:

I'm really open to any suggestion so thank you guys. I'm going to definitely be doing my research on those.

Thank you for the case suggestions. I would love a mid tower, but the air flow of a Full is a good selling point for me on top of the limited potential for upgradability.
 
Perfectcrime said:
With SLIed GTX 460s would I absolutely need an aftermarket heatsink?

Would the motherboard I've chosen be able to overclock it with relative ease?
Click to expand...
Sorry these two questions seems a bit out of context. Did you mean to ask if you would need a 3rd party HSF for the CPU? or for the GPU?

As for the "it" in the 2nd question, is that refererring to the CPU?

Perfectcrime said:
I've read that G.Skill has some issues with RAM being DOA. Is this a false perception? My Corsair choice is mainly because it's a very trusted name all around.
Click to expand...
False perception. COrsair is a good trusted brand but you happen to choose a particular Corsair set thats completely overpriced and won't provide any tangible real world performance benefit.
 
PSU: Get 850w+. There's no reason to get less power.

GPU: GTX 460 1GB SLI or GTX 470 SLI. The 470 consumes more power, but it's also faster, and it has been spotted at similar prices at times. If you can find it for $230 - $250, then go for it.

GPU cooling: you do not need aftermarket heatsinks on the GPU. If your case airflow is good, then everything will be fine.

CASE: I've noticed that this site seems to like the Silverstone FT cases for the unique airflow. The upward directed airflow is probably just what you're looking for if you're worried about GPU cooling.

Aftermarket CPU heatsink: Venomous-X, Cogage Arrow, NH-D14... those are at the top of the list. For budget enthusiast: Scythe yasya, cogage true spirit, thermolab baram. You may want to add aftermarket fans: scythe GT AP-15 for the best, coolermaster blademaster or R4 9-blade for less, Yate loons for even less.

RAM: G.skill is a great brand.

LCD: recommendations for the NEC and comparable Dell u2311h are spot-on, but the Dell seems to have more variability with respect to quality. I got a good one, but others were not so happy according to the large thread in the display forum. Both LCDs use the same panel - maybe NEC has the better picks?

Motherboard: My friend just got the Evga B-stock X58 SLI board ($100 + tax) - that's a steal. Otherwise... go with suggestions in this thread.

CPU: If you have a microcenter near you, then i7 930. Otherwise = whatever deal you can find on a 920/930 d0 stepping.

Overclocking: You may as well... i7's are an easy 3.8Ghz 24/7 even in hot environments. Nvidia cards are overclockable as well, and the performance difference is palpable.

Hard Drive: I do like the Samsung F3 1TB. It's inexpensive and fast.
 
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