Building a Gaming Computer

chaikovski2002

chaikovski2002

2[H]4U
Joined
Nov 19, 2003
Messages
2,247
If you're gonna ask us to build/list a PC for you or seek advice about a build, please answer all of the following questions:

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Primarily Gaming, BF3, Crysis, Metro, Modded Oblivion, I dont even wanna get started on my Steam backlog, Web browsing, Netflix, HD Movies, Some Photoshop.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included.
Around $2000.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
SanDiego, CA.
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
Case, PSU, GPU, MOBO, RAM, CPU, CPU cooler, SSD for OS, 1HD for Steam, 1 HD for Junk,
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Asus Xonar Essence ST, BeyerDynamics DT770Pro/255, Logitech G500 mouse, Logitech G19 keyboard, 2x28'LCD Monitor
6) Will you be overclocking?
Yes
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
28'LCD, 1920x1200, I have 2 of them but only game on one while watching Netflix or Movies on the other.
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Next week or 2.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
USB 3.0, eSATA, 8 or more sata ports, Firewire, RAID.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Windows 7 Ultimate 64

I was thinking about corsair 600t and corsair h100.
 
What color do you want the 600T in? The White, Black, or Silver variant?
What exactly do you mean by "some photoshop"?

A basic build outline is this so far:
Core i5 3570K
Asus, Gigabyte, or MSI Z77 Motherboard
16GB of DDR3 1600 RAM
GTX 660 TI or HD 7950
Crucial or Samsung 830 256GB SSD
Samsung F3 1TB HDD (for Steam)
Samsung F5 2TB HDD (for Junk)
Antec or Corsair 620W to 650W PSU
 
Well let me just be the first to point out that the H100 is a bit too much, there are plenty of cheaper coolers out there that let you get really great overclocks, the most popular one is the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo, but since your budget is higher a 140mm Noctua cooler for about $80 will do just fine and save you about $30.
 
tiraides said:
What are the brand(s) and model(s) of the monitors?
Click to expand...

I have 2 of the Hanns·G HG-281DPB LCD monitors, theyre identical. Also, to Danny, are you sure 660Ti would suffice to run games maxed out at 1920x1200? I was considering a 670 or even a 680, would that be overkill for my resolution?
 
Read this article, you might see that the 680 is the best choice if you're looking to go above the $400 mark.
 
chaikovski2002 said:
I have 2 of the Hanns·G HG-281DPB LCD monitors, theyre identical. Also, to Danny, are you sure 660Ti would suffice to run games maxed out at 1920x1200? I was considering a 670 or even a 680, would that be overkill for my resolution?
Click to expand...

The GTX 660 Ti can play games well at that resolution, but how well depends largely on the game (and the visual bells and whistles you use).

The GTX 670 and GTX 680 are better cards, but you're paying a lot more for a comparatively smaller performance gain. The [H]ard|OCP article that Vithar referenced earlier shows that the $300 "mid-range" GTX 660 Ti can compete with two $400 high-end cards in the HD 7950 and the GTX 670
 
If you want to max everything out at your resolution, the GTX 670 is the best bang for your buck imo if you want an Nvidia card.

However, why not look at an HD 7950? Currently its $70 cheaper than the cheapest GTX 670 on newegg, and comes in a fair bit ahead in terms of performance with the new 12.11 drivers!

I am debating getting a 7950 or 7970 for my resolution (2560x1440) and once overclocked I should be able to get around 60 fps with either card in demanding games like BF3, so at 1200p you should have no problem with any of these three cards.

However, from a price standpoint you can't beat the 7950. $279.99 AR and 3 free games ($170 value). Or you could pay about $100 more for the 670, which runs cooler, quieter, and consumes less power, but currently is behind the 7950 in terms of performance and has less overclocking capability.

I like Nvidia cards but right now AMD is the clear winner, especially for games at higher resolutions. If you want SLI, that's a different story however.
 
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For $2000 he can afford a i7 3770k ($290 at microcenter after tax) and a GTX670 no problem. But the ATI is very tempting but some people prefer Nvidia (I am getting a GTX 670 because of after effects for example).
 
Unfortunately I do not have a microcenter here, my only options are newegg, frys, and amazon. Thanks for all the feedback, Ill look at the 670's and maybe 7950's. Any suggestions for a motherboard, I was browsing newegg and holy crap there are a lot of Z77 motherboards there, even if I narrow it down to MSI, Asus, and Gigabyte. I was looking at air coolers as well, one thing concerns me is that the layout for CPU and DIMM lots, these heatsinks dip over the memory slots, will that be a problem?
 
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Personally i love the 7950 bang for the buck, but if i was going nvidia id want at least a 670. i know the 660 performs decent, but it looks like it could bottleneck things in the future.

might as well go with 3770k too
 
I don't think it's worth it, even with a budget that can afford it simply because "some photoshop" doesn't make it worth it in any case. He'll be fine with a 3570k and some good cooling to get 4.5+Ghz overclocks.

chaikovski2002 said:
Unfortunately I do not have a microcenter here, my only options are newegg, frys, and amazon. Thanks for all the feedback, Ill look at the 670's and maybe 7950's. Any suggestions for a motherboard, I was browsing newegg and holy crap there are a lot of Z77 motherboards there, even if I narrow it down to MSI, Asus, and Gigabyte. I was looking at air coolers as well, one thing concerns me is that the layout for CPU and DIMM lots, these heatsinks dip over the memory slots, will that be a problem?
Click to expand...

You can narrow that search down a lot more by searching for motherboards with firewire. As not all motherboard have a firewire port on them.
 
AX is Corsair's high-end modular PSU line.
HX is Corsair's mainstream modular PSU line.
TX is Corsair's mainstream PSU line.
CX is Corsair's low budget PSU line.
 
Heres my short list I came up with:

ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM $16.99
Corsair Graphite Series 600T Silver $179.99
2xSAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive $199.98
GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB $399.99
CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W $144.99
CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB $71.99
ASUS P8Z77-V PRO LGA 1155 Intel Z77 $199.99
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz $229.99
CORSAIR Hydro Series H100 $114.99
SAMSUNG 830 Series MZ-7PC256B/WW 2.5" 256GB SSD $199.99
Subtotal: $1,718.89

Im open to other suggestions and alternatives. Also, I cant decide between the 650D or 600T, both cases look very nice! Let me know how its looking so far.
 
Your setup will not require a 750W PSU. You'll be fine with a solid 650W PSU. In fact, there's an awesome deal right for a high-quality 650W PSU for $100 right now:
$100 - Seasonic X650 Gold 650W Modular PSU

I highly recommend getting in on the above deal.

As for the RAM, I recommend this RAM instead since its heatsinks aren't so tall:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233280
 
Don't think tall heatsinjs will be a problem with the H100. With that said, id get the cheapest kit.
 
I have a question, my Asus Xonar is PCI, can I use a PCI soundcard in PCIe? Im trying to picture how to place things in the MOBO.
 
No.

PCIe is not backwards compatible with PCI. You'll need to buy a new sound card and/or use the onboard sound on the motherboard, which is probably as good as or better than that sound card anyway.
 
If you are building a high end machine which 2000$ is, I'd go x79 for longevity. Also a 680 is an awesome choice, I also game at 1080p and a 680 is fantastic, some newer games like sleeping Dogs do really put the gpu to work and with next year's games, I think a 680 is anything but overkill.

Head on over to Tustin micro center and pick up a 3820 for 229$, or a 3930k for 499$. You also get $50 off any motherboard with a cpu purchase so it's an awesome deal .Order everything else from tiger direct or directron to save on California tax :)
 
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