First Build, Gaming Comp, Need Advice/Input

[Tuco]

I'm building my first rig and I need some advice as to what components would be best to use.



1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming, almost exclusively.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
I can spend up to 1800$, but that includes tax and shipping.
3) Where do you live?
US
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.
Everything! Haha, ok really: CPU, Mobo, RAM, Video Card, Power Supply, Optical Drive, Hard Drive, Monitor, Keyboard, Case, and and OS
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
none
6) Will you be overclocking?
not this build
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
24" or very close to that.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I am not sure about the back ports, but I would like a large board that I can expand with. Multiple PCIe 2.0x16 slots, extra RAM space, crossfire capability.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?

No, I will have to buy a new OS. Probably Windows 7 home edition 64 bit


Other information:
=========================

-Don't know if I should go with a full tower or a larger mid tower or which case in particular to get. I want room to expand eventually, more drives, RAM, cards, etc and I'd rather not be cramped. LEDs and glam cases are fine, but not if the case doesn't perform. I'm fine with a plainer case if it performs better.


-I would prefer a small, faster, and reliable HD. I just need 120-200gb. Something 10k rpm probably. I can always expand later.

-Keyboard and Optical Drive I'd prefer just something cheap and reliable.

-Right now I'm leaning towards an AMD cpu and mobo with an ATI card. Seems to be the best bang for buck. If you think I'd be better off with intel let me know. Also I'd like to use a Radeon 5870 for gpu, but again I'm just leaning so if you think something else is better tell me.

-I don't know a great deal about power supplies or how much wattage I'll require, but I would prefer something modular. Also would like to know how important continuous power is to have.


Soooo here is the list I made from my own research:
===================================
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ965FBGMBOX AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ965FBGMBOX

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-890FXA-UD5 AM3 AMD 890FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...e=gigabyte_motherboard-_-13-128-441-_-Product

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277&cm_re=ripjaws-_-20-231-277-_-Product

Video Card: XFX HD-587X-ZNDC Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) XXX Edition 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...4150487&cm_re=xfx_5870-_-14-150-487-_-Product

Power Supply: ABS DARK BERET series DB850-M-BRZ 850W Continuous @50°C,80 PLUS BRONZE Certified,Modular Cable Design,Active PFC"Compatible with Core i7, i5" Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ontinuous_power_supply-_-17-814-016-_-Product

HD: Western Digital VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2136296&cm_re=10000_hd-_-22-136-296-_-Product

Optical Drive: ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204&cm_re=asus-_-27-135-204-_-Product

Case: NZXT LEXA-NP CS-NT-LEXA-B Silver Aluminum Construction Plastic Front Panel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case http://www.amazon.com/LEXA-NP-CS-NT...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1276295135&sr=8-10

Keyboard: LITE-ON SK-1788/BS 2-Tone 104 Normal Keys PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823107120

Monitor: ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052&cm_re=asus-_-24-236-052-_-Product

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...116754&cm_re=windows_7-_-32-116-754-_-Product



I don't think it's too bad, but I'm no expert. I based a lot of the decisions off the newegg reviews.
If you want to critique that list, that would be great. If you want to build something completely different under 1800 and matches the preferences I gave that would be good too.

And if I've left out any vital information please let me know.

Sorry for the book
Thanks for your help

 

[Dangman]

Ditch the PSU. Not that good for the money. I recommend this PSU instead:
$160 - XFX XPS-850W-BES 850W Modular PSU

Ditch the Raptor drive. Many consumer drives provide 90% of the performance of a Raptor drive but at 1/3rd the cost and 3 x the storage space. So I recommend this instead:
$56 - Western Digital WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

However a SSD is doable within your budget:
$120 - Intel SSDSA2MP040G2R5 2.5" 40GB SSD
$230 - Intel SSDSA2MH080G2R5 2.5" 80GB SSD

And a fast storage drive as well:
$70 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

Put the OS and critical apps and games on the SSD and the system will fly.

 

[Skull_Angel]

you could save ~$60 on your cpu+gpu by getting the pii 955 and reference 5870, but seeing as you don't want to overclock and the choices you listed are within your budget it's not a big deal.

+1 on Danny's SSD+HDD combo suggestion

 

[E4g1e]

I also agree with Danny's PSU recommendation, especially since that XFX unit is 80-Plus Silver certified (instead of the 80-Plus Bronze certification of the unit that you're originally going to get) and comes from a known good manufacturer (SeaSonic).

 

[Tuco]

Thanks, this is all excellent advice. I really like idea of the 80gb intel ssd combined with about 500gb-1tb for storage.

Also that psu looks much better.

Here's the list now with prices
----------------------------------------------------
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ965FBGMBOX AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ965FBGMBOX 179.99

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-890FXA-UD5 AM3 AMD 890FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-441-_-Product 179.99

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-277-_-Product 109.99

Video Card: XFX HD-587X-ZNDC Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) XXX Edition 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-487-_-Product 429.99

Power Supply: XFX Black Edition XPS-850W-BES 850W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply 149.99

HD: Intel X25-M Mainstream SSDSA2MH080G2R5 2.5" 80GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...167023&cm_re=intel_ssd-_-20-167-023-_-Product 224.99
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...g_hard_drive_spinpoint-_-22-152-185-_-Product 69.99



Optical Drive: ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-204-_-Product 22.99

Case: NZXT LEXA-NP CS-NT-LEXA-B Silver Aluminum Construction Plastic Front Panel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case http://www.amazon.com/LEXA-NP-CS-NT-...295135&sr=8-10 119.99

Keyboard: LITE-ON SK-1788/BS 2-Tone 104 Normal Keys PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823107120
6.99

Monitor: ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-052-_-Product 199.99

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-754-_-Product 99.99

Total: $1795 + 30$ shipping approx.
Grand Total:$1825

Very close. There are a number of ways I could cut cost to get under. Skull Angel mentioned the possibility of comboing the x4 with a 5870. That would probably be the best way. The 965 has some 5870 combo's just like the 955. How important is the particular model of 5870 I get? MSI, xfx, asus, etc,? Initially I neglected getting the x4 comboed with a card because it seemed like most of the time it was comboed with a cheaper or poorly reviewed (powercolor) 5870.

 

[Dangman]

Just go with the HD 5870 that has the best warranty and customer service for you. The differences between the many HD 5870 cards are relatively minor. The real difference is customer service and warranty length of which XFX wins on both accounts.

 

[lt_shiro]

What type of games do you play?

 

[doktorziplok]

black edition cpus don't come with coolers, you'll need to include the price of cooler (and possibly fans). so add another $50-$100 to your budget.

 

[quidproqu0]

i'm actually looking at making a comp and I'm stuck on the RAM. I was looking at yours, and wondering if you or other people here have looked at other choices:
1) G.Skill Ripjaws Series 4 GB (blue/red) $114 timing - 8-8-8-24
2) G. skill Ripjaws Series 4 GB (blue/red) $110 timing - 7-8-7-24-2N (what's the 2N mean?)
3) Mushkin Enhance Redline 4 GB $128 timing 7-7-7-18 (worth getting for the price difference?)

 

[lt_shiro]

timings on DDR3 is meaningless to real world performance. more important to get DDR3 1600 @ 1.5v

 

[E4g1e]

i'm actually looking at making a comp and I'm stuck on the RAM. I was looking at yours, and wondering if you or other people here have looked at other choices:
1) G.Skill Ripjaws Series 4 GB (blue/red) $114 timing - 8-8-8-24
2) G. skill Ripjaws Series 4 GB (blue/red) $110 timing - 7-8-7-24-2N (what's the 2N mean?)
3) Mushkin Enhance Redline 4 GB $128 timing 7-7-7-18 (worth getting for the price difference?)

The problem is that none of those three are native DDR3-1600 modules. They all require 1.6V to 1.65V just to attain their rated speed and timings. As such, they are native DDR3-1066 or DDR3-1333 modules that have been tested at overclocked settings. The only memory modules that are native DDR3-1600 have no XMP or BEMP profiles for the 1600 speed - but instead include JEDEC SPD settings for the 1600 speed.

 

[Tuco]

Just go with the HD 5870 that has the best warranty and customer service for you. The differences between the many HD 5870 cards are relatively minor. The real difference is customer service and warranty length of which XFX wins on both accounts.

Thanks again

What type of games do you play?

RTS, FPS, RPG, particularily:

Broodwar, Starcraft II, Fallout 3, MW2, Halo 1&2, Resistance 1&2, though not all of these have been on a computer.

In the immediate future I'd like to be able to run SCII, Mass Effect 2, Fallout Vegas on high or ultra with this build. I don't know what other games I'll be playing.

black edition cpus don't come with coolers, you'll need to include the price of cooler (and possibly fans). so add another $50-$100 to your budget.

Huh, well the description on newegg said it had fan and heatsink included. Here is the link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m_re=amd_black_edition-_-19-103-727-_-Product
Some of the other black editions I saw said they didn't include them so I hope it's not an error.

Of course, the included one might be a pile of junk, idk. Any thoughts on this? Will I need to upgrade from the included heatsink/fan? If so, what do you guys recommend?


Edit: Does anyone know the performance boost of SLI vs Crossfire? If I am going to expand later I'd like to get the most out of adding a new card.

 

[tiraides]

First off, today's retail AMD Black Edition processors come with a CPU cooler. OEM processors, regardless of which type, come with nothing else. As to whether or not to replace the stock cooler, unless you plan on overclocking the processor, it will work just fine.

For the games that you play on playing, one HD 5870 is more than enough. Don't worry about CrossFire or SLI at this time; unless you want good (over 60 FPS) frame rates at ultra high visual settings on most of today's graphically intensive (FPS) games, you don't really need it.