Gaming Build

[guroten]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
I will be using emulators (So CPU is important) and some medium gaming at 1080p.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
My budget is $2000 or less.
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.
CPU
RAM
HDD
PSU
Video Card
Optical Drive
Monitor
Keyboard/Mouse
OS
MB
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I have a 2 TB external HDD, so I will be using that for most storage.
6) Will you be overclocking?
I plan on doing basic cpu/gpu overclocking, but nothing too complicated or extreme.
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
22 inch, 1080p
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within a week or so.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I want an MB that future proofs my computer somewhat (Sata3, USB3, etc.) I would also like one that makes overclocking easier and more user friendly.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
I I plan on using win7 64bit.


Here is what I have so far:
ViewSonic VA2231w - LED Black 22" Full HD LED Backlight LCD Monitor Slim Design
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 12GB (3 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333
ASRock X58 EXTREME6 LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2
HP 24X Multiformat DVD Writer Black SATA Model 1260i
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5"
LIAN LI PC-A71F Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
COOLER MASTER Intel Core i7 compatible V8 RR-UV8-XBU1-GP 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler

I'm wondering whether the case is overkill, as well as what GPU to get. Are these full tower cases as huge as some make them out to be? In the past, I've owned dells, so I don't have any comparable computers in terms of size. I don't want to do SLI or crossfire, so I'm not sure whether to get a card now or wait until the new 6xxx radeons. If it matters, this is my first attempt at building a computer, so I want a case and MB that make it easy to do.
Thanks!

 

[tiraides]

The parts, in general, are overkill. Most emulators that I know of aren't resource-intensive at all. Which emulators are you planning to use? Better yet, which games do you plan on playing?

Outside of gaming, are you using your computer for any resource-intensive programs or tasks?

And what do you mean by "future proofing"? Intel and AMD are coming out with new processors and sockets some time next year. Are you willing to wait that long?

 

[Nightbird]

And what do you mean by "future proofing"? Intel and AMD are coming out with new processors and sockets some time next year. Are you willing to wait that long?

This. Now is probably the worst possible time to build a future proof system
Performance will probably jump 30% if you just wait 2 months, especially on your budget where you can afford the newest.

 

[guroten]

But the higher end Intel CPUs won't be out until Q3 2011, right? I thought sandy bridge was lower end. I don't care about the IGP in sandy bridge so will it really be much better than 1366?
In terms of gaming, most of the guides to PS2 and Wii emulation say that you need a 4 ghz CPU to max out the emulator's capabilities (although that was for core 2). On my 2.1 ghz core 2 laptop, I get pretty poor framerates.

 

[Nightbird]

But the higher end Intel CPUs won't be out until Q3 2011, right? I thought sandy bridge was lower end. I don;t care about the IGP in sandy bridgem so will it really be much better than 1366.
In terms of gaming, most of the guides to PS2 and Wii emulation say that you need a 4 ghz CPU to max out the emulator's capabilities (although that was for core 2). On my 2.1 ghz core 2 laptop, I get pretty poor framerates.

The improvement I mentioned should be the difference between the low-end sandy bridge (4 core 8 threads) and the i7 950 you listed there. The difference with the high-end (8 core 16 threads) will be much greater. Someone more informed than me could give you a better estimate however.

 

[guroten]

Looking at the few sandy bridge previews I can find with benchmarking, I don't see a huge difference between current i7 and low end sandy bridge in terms of gaming. Could you point me to an article that made this point? Thanks a ton. One other thing, is I'd like to have some parts that stand the test of time. What I mean is, can power supplies or cases become obsolete, if I decide to drastically upgrade?

 

[Nightbird]

Looking at the few sandy bridge previews I can find with benchmarking, I don't see a huge difference between current i7 and low end sandy bridge in terms of gaming. Could you point me to an article that made this point? Thanks a ton. One other thing, is I'd like to have some parts that stand the test of time. What I mean is, can power supplies or cases become obsolete, if I decide to drastically upgrade?

Sorry for the delay, went shopping.

Here you go: Anandtech is one of my fav sites, with very reliable analysis done by Anand.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3871/the-sandy-bridge-preview-three-wins-in-a-row

Remember, pc games are usually limited by the video card so high-end CPUs are not fully utilized. If you're running emulators, it's all CPU so more crunching power will directly equal more fps. The preview basically shows the sandy bridge i5 2400 running neck to neck with the current i7 980x, with its notorious 1000$ price tag.

Cases become obsolete if you get tired of the appearance, power supply is good for a long time if you overshoot a bit when it comes to needed wattage. The important things that get outdated quickly if you like to upgrade alot are the CPU, graphics card, and potentially the motherboard. The only solution to avoid this is to not upgrade

 

[Dangman]

I'm wondering whether the case is overkill, as well as what GPU to get. Are these full tower cases as huge as some make them out to be? In the past, I've owned dells, so I don't have any comparable computers in terms of size. I don't want to do SLI or crossfire, so I'm not sure whether to get a card now or wait until the new 6xxx radeons. If it matters, this is my first attempt at building a computer, so I want a case and MB that make it easy to do.

Well man, if you have a tape measurer, ruler or some other length measurement tool, the specs/dimensions of most cases are listed for you to figure out whether or not the case is really that large.

Hold off till the release of the HD6xxx series cards.

But the higher end Intel CPUs won't be out until Q3 2011, right? I thought sandy bridge was lower end. I don't care about the IGP in sandy bridge so will it really be much better than 1366?

Well the point is that you mentioned "future proof" with your motherboard. Generally when people say that, they mean CPU upgrade path. For all intents and purposes, socket LGA 1156, 1366, and AM3 will be more or less dead in a year or so as there won't be any worthwhile CPU upgrade for those sockets next year.

So is that what you mean by "Future proofing" as in CPU upgrade path or did you mean something else entirely?

Sandy Bridge is the codename for the entire CPU architecture, not just the low end or high-end CPUs.

In terms of gaming, most of the guides to PS2 and Wii emulation say that you need a 4 ghz CPU to max out the emulator's capabilities (although that was for core 2). On my 2.1 ghz core 2 laptop, I get pretty poor framerates.

Ok, but still doesn't justify a Core i7 setup considering that even the Core i5 750 can hit 4Ghz with overclocking. AFAIK, just like with regular games, emulatators don't take advantage of the HT feature of Core i7 CPUs.

Nor have you mentioned if your emulators actually need 12GB of RAM.

One other thing, is I'd like to have some parts that stand the test of time. What I mean is, can power supplies or cases become obsolete, if I decide to drastically upgrade?

Any part in a PC can be unusable, obsolete, or insufficient due to drastic upgrade. YOu can get a 1200W PSU and $500 case and even that might be insufficient if you go for a crazy high-end quad-SLI, highhly OC'd CPU, and 20 hard drives setup. So in other words, it really depends on your upgrade plans that'll determine whether or not a PSU and case can be come obsolete, insufficient, or unusable.

 

[guroten]

Thanks for the responses. I guess I should have been more clear in my original post. My impression of the i5, i3 CPUs was that they were missing a number of useful features (such as HT) and did not overclock as well as i7, but perhaps I was wrong. It is true that most emulators cannot make use of more than 2 cores, but that could change in the future (for example, retrocopy is a recent tri-threaded emulator). I picked the 950 because would also rather have a higher stock speed, since I know very little about overclocking and I don't want to accidentally damage anything.

Also, when it comes to GPUs, what determines how well a GPU can apply anti-aliasing? Is it the whole package, fast memory, or something else? I ask because I often play older games that are heavily modded and use programs that hook into the game to apply high levels of AA and AF. For example, it would be great to be able to play Morrowind with 32x AA, 16x AF, and high resolution textures. My current card struggles with anything over 4x AA.

In terms of future proofing, I mostly meant a build that would be upgradable, as was mentioned. I'll definitely consider what you guys have said and may put it off until January, so thanks for helping a newbie out.

 

[Dangman]

Thanks for the responses. I guess I should have been more clear in my original post. My impression of the i5, i3 CPUs was that they were missing a number of useful features (such as HT) and did not overclock as well as i7, but perhaps I was wrong. It is true that most emulators cannot make use of more than 2 cores, but that could change in the future (for example, retrocopy is a recent tri-threaded emulator). I picked the 950 because would also rather have a higher stock speed, since I know very little about overclocking and I don't want to accidentally damage anything.

Yeah trust me, for your stated needs, you don't need an i7. Can easily get away with a Core i5 setup:
$360 - Intel Core i5 750 CPU + Asus P7P55D-E Pro Intel P55 ATX Motherboard Combo

A full $170 cheaper but still provides roughly the same performance in games and still has plenty of bells and whistles on the motherboard.

Also, when it comes to GPUs, what determines how well a GPU can apply anti-aliasing? Is it the whole package, fast memory, or something else? I ask because I often play older games that are heavily modded and use programs that hook into the game to apply high levels of AA and AF. For example, it would be great to be able to play Morrowind with 32x AA, 16x AF, and high resolution textures. My current card struggles with anything over 4x AA.

Basically the whole package.