Another gonna build a new rig thread!

[DezaD]

Well a little bit about myself, I have been a lurker here for quiet some time! This community seems to be very mature and knowledgeable. Very awesome website!

The last time I built a pc was back when the GeForce Ti 4600 was the card to have, the good old AMD XP days!

Now im looking to build a new pc and ive seem to fallen way out of the loop, boy has hardware changed!

I am looking to build a gaming pc, I am not into photo editing or movie making. So I figured I would make a new thread to ask you guys what you think? I seen some really kickass rigs on here!

I live close to micro center so pretty much everything will be purchased their. Here is some of the hardware I have selected.

I would like the pc to be upgradeable down the road, and i would like to utilize all the hardware.

So here is my short list so far. Budget would like to keep under 2k

CPU= Core i7 920

MoBo= undecided

PSU= most likely a 1000watt cross.

RAM = undecided 6 GB

GPU = GTX 285 oc edition.

HD = I will pick up their no biggie.

Case = i will also pick up their.

So basically if you fine people can point me to a nice board and some nice ram I would greatly appreciate it.

Any experience with the nvidia boards?

 

[Dangman]

It would help if you answered the sticky "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FIRST" so that we can help you better.

Ditch the GTX 285 unless you've found it for $200.

Also, there are no Nvidia chipset motherboards for Core i7 CPUs.

 

[tiraides]

First, answer the questions listed in this thread. I know that you've answered some of them, but please answer all of them.

Second, depending on your gaming needs, you could get by with a P55-based system and one HD5850 or HD5870 card. Either of those cards competes with the GTX 285 and both are recommended as they support Direct X 11.

Third, check the recent build threads posted here for ideas on parts (and specials and/or combo deals) that are often recommended.

 

[DezaD]

Sorry been a while since ive been active on a forum

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

Gaming

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

2k , I want to buy everything from microcenter for easy returns if need be.

3) Where do you live?

Macomb TWP, MI

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.

Ground up build.

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

Not gonna reuse a thing gonna pass my current machine to my daughter.

6) Will you be overclocking?

Not planning to.

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

I am currently looking at a 23" Samsung P2350 Wide High Definition LCD Monitor
http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=440057&pCatg=5902

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

Weekend of the 26th

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

SLI im a nvidia guy.

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

Going with Windows 7 64 bit pro.

Thanks for answering some of my questions, curious why u say to skip the GTX 285 unless if i can find it for $200

Are ATI cards that much better than Nvidia?

 

[Dangman]

Thanks for answering some of my questions, curious why u say to skip the GTX 285 unless if i can find it for $200

Are ATI cards that much better than Nvidia?

Well the $300 HD 5850 (MSRP $260) performs just as well, if not better than the GTX 285. The cheapest GTX 285 on Newegg right now is $380 which is right in the price range of the significantly faster $400 HD 5870. So yes, in terms of best bang for the buck and performance, ATI is currently the champion. There are virtually no best bang for the buck Nvidia card out now that would not be beaten by a ATI card. I say $200 because that's gonna be the price range of the HD 5830 when it comes out. It looks like the HD 5830 would be a tad slower than the GTX 285.

And just to be clear: Is a LCD monitor and cost of OS part of that $2000 budget?

 

[tiraides]

Here's a tentative list (omitting the OS, monitor, and peripherals):

$200 - Intel Core i7 920 processor
$220 - Gigabyte GA-X58A-DS3R motherboard
$170 - Corsair XMS3 3x2GB DDR3 1600 tri-channel kit
$30 - Samsung 22x dual-layer DVD burner (OEM)
$270 - Intel X25-M 80GB SSD
$100 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB HDD (OEM)
$288 - Radeon HD5850 video card
$120 - Corsair HX650 650 watt power supply
$72 - Cooler Master RC-690 ATX mid-tower case
=====
$1470 - Subtotal (not including taxes or rebates)

There is a possibility that Micro Center will price match any component that NewEgg offers for less, but you have to ask them beforehand and bring in a current NewEgg shopping cart (printout) containing the item(s) in question. YMMV there, but based on my personal experiences, you'll have the best odds of getting the motherboard, memory, and power supply price matched.

That said, I recommend going to NewEgg (or your favorite online retailer) to pick up the memory, SSD, and video card. NewEgg has more types of RAM that run at 1.5V to 1.6V (ideally, get RAM that runs at 1.5V -- there's no way you could really tell at MC), and you could buy DDR3 1333 RAM there for less (since you aren't overclocking, you don't need DDR3 1600 RAM). With SSDs in general, you'll find better deals online, but if your $2000 budget requires the OS and monitor as well, you might as well omit the SSD. Depending on the store, you may find more brands of ATI cards available -- again, buy an ATI card -- but you need to look for the XFX brand. If you can't find it at MC, get it online; XFX offers the best warranty and customer service out of all of the major ATI-based brands.

Unless you plan on going ultra high visuals on every game that you play -- or you plan on playing a lot of Crysis at ultra high everything -- you don't need SLI or CrossFire. Considering the overall costs of a dual-card setup, you need to decide right now whether or not you're going the CF/SLI route. (I chose my parts under the assumption that you aren't going to use CF.)

 

[DezaD]

Thanks for the reply.

I am going to go for the HD 5870. That card is amazing!

I was also wondering about his board X58 SLI LE LGA 1366 X58 ATX Motherboard
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0312963

compared to

Gigabyte GA-X58A-DS3R motherboard
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327331

The Gigabyte seems to be a bit better of a board.

I am thinking about the evga strictly for the color. I know it may not be a big deal to some, but I wanted to have it all kinda color coordinate.

Also I have seen some youtube vids on the SSD storage. Seems really fast. I think im gonna pass on that for now.

 

[tiraides]

The Gigabyte X58A-UD3R has two SATA III (or 6GB/s) ports and two USB 3.0 ports, both of which are backwards compatible with their respective older technology. They would be useful to have as more SATA III drives and USB 3.0 devices become commonplace in the future.

If you're buying something that's not going to be seen through a window, why focus on the color?

The WD Caviar Black 1TB HDD is fast enough on its own to compete with the 10K RPM VelociRaptor. The Samsung Spinpoint F3 500GB and 1TB HDDs are a bit faster than the Caviar Black, but they're out of stock at most online retailers. SSDs are generally faster than any SATA HDD, but they're comparatively more expensive.

Get the HD5870 if you plan on high visual settings and you're definitely going to buy a 1920x1080 or 1920x1200 monitor. If that's the case, ensure that you pick up an XFX-branded card; you may have to go online for one.

 

[DezaD]

Well thanks for all the help!

I was able to get everything from microcenter just for the fact that their local and close for returns if need be.

I went last friday night and purchased all my hardware accept my vid card.

Items purchased:

-HAF full tower case.

-i7 920

-evga x58 le

-XMS3 6GB DDR3-1600 (PC-12800) CL8 Memory Kit

-corsair modular 850 PS

-some big ass cpu cooler

-WD Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7,200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive OEM

-generic dvd burner

then after i put in a old pci card got the os up and running the next day i went and pick up a Diamond HD 5870

everything works great!!

Thanks for the help

 

[tiraides]

Which "big ass" CPU cooler? Be specific.

And where are the pictures? I don't see anything....