Building new Gaming PC $1600-2000

[Texasravenor]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Heavy high end gaming/ media stuff, Gaming where I can have max settings for a decent time into the future.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$1600-2000, tax and shipping not included
3) Where do you live?
San Marcos, Texas
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, Mobo, RAM, case, PSU, GPU, monitor, CD and DVD burner, sound card(extra), water cooling if needed(extra).
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
all new
6) Will you be overclocking?
not at first, but maybe later
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
hopefully a 26'', but 24" to 30" is what I want...Also I would like to be able to watch 1080p movies and play my consoles on the monitor
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
As soon as possible.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I would like to have the option to have Crossfire or SLI in the future if it becomes affordable and or at least worth it.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
yes, 64bit Win 7 Prof.


This is my wish list from Newegg.

-Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129043

-EVGA 141-BL-E757-TR LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX X58 SLI LE Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188049

-CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

-Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Model BX80601930
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115225

-CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145224

-SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

This is minus the monitor, graphics card, and CD/DVD burner, optional sound card, and water cooling.

Is there anything you would change with what I have picked out or have a better idea?

Any suggestions and help will be appreciated.
Thx in advance.

 

[Dangman]

There's virtually no real world performance difference between those Dominator RAM and this G.Skill set:
$165 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM

So I recommend the above G.Skill set instead.

HDD wise, with a $1600 to $2000 budget, you can easily fit a SSD:
$125 - Intel SSDSA2MP040G2R5 2.5" 40GB SSD
$220 - Intel SSDSA2M080G2XXX 2.5" 80GB SSD

Case wise, the Antec 1200 is not a good case for the money as there are better quality, better cooling, and roomier cases for less or similar price. Some other case recommendations:
$70 - Cooler Master RC-590-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$80 - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-E8B ATX Case
$120 - Lian Li PC-7FN ATX Case
$120 - Thermaltake ElementS VK60001N2Z ATX Case
$130 - Cooler Master Storm Sniper ATX Case
$150 - Antec P183 ATX Case
$160 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$170 - Cooler Master Cosmos S 1000 RC-1100-KSN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$180 - Cooler Master ATCS 840 RC-840-KKN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$180 - Lian Li PC-B25F ATX Case
$210 - Silverstone FT01-B ATX Case
$240 - Lian Li PC-V1200A Plus II ATX Case
$300 - Corsair Obsidian Series 800D CC800DW Full Tower ATX Case
$330 - Silverstone Temjin SST-TJ07B Full Tower ATX Case

GPU wise, pick up the cheapest XFX HD 5870 1GB you can find.

CD/DVD burner wise, I'd recommend this:
$20 - Samsung SH-S223C SATA DVD Burner

Other than the parts I noted above, the rest of the build list seems fine to me. Find out what the new total is with the HD 5870, SSD, new case, new RAM, DVD burner + the rest of the parts you chose. Tell us that number and we can figure how much of your budget is leftover to fit in a new monitor and/or another HD 5870 or if a HD 5850 Crossfire setup might be needed.

 

[Texasravenor]

$165 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM

$220 - Intel SSDSA2M080G2XXX 2.5" 80GB SSD

$160 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case

-SAPPHIRE 100281-3SR Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102883
(399.99 after the instant $30 savings)(though I prob. can find a cheaper one elsewhere, this will just be a place holder)

For the burner, I looked at the reviews on newegg, all of them were 3 or less ratings.
Should I not trust those ratings or does every burner at that price range have a decent amount of problems if your unlucky?

All this has either replaced or was added to my list.
The final total is at $1603.87

I do have a question about the Hard drive. I get the benefit of a SSD but how do I get more storage space? Do I just have another standard Hard drive with more space to put videos, pictures, music, etc.?

Also, if I have to get a liquid cooling system, what should I get?

Thx for your help Danny Bui.

 

[Dangman]

To get more storage space, just get a relatively fast 1TB drive to start additional programs, videos, pics, music, etc. The Samsung you chose is a pretty good choice.

Monitor wise, check out this 24.6" Hanns-G monitor with HDMI for $200:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254040

I don't think water cooling is neccessary in this situation. Nor do you have much of your budget left for one.