New IB Build for Gaming

T

TXAG

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Oct 29, 2011
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I'm building a new gaming PC when Ivy Bridge is released.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Mostly gaming (Diablo 3, Battlefield 3, and a few others) and general multimedia use.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
No more than $2000 for the computer parts, tax/shipping not included. I also need a 1080p display, but that will not be included in the computer budget.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
Austin, TX
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.
CPU, Motherboard, SSD, GPU (already own), PSU, HSF, RAM, CASE, Optical Drive, HDD
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?
No.
7) 7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
I need to buy a new 1080p monitor to use for gaming. 23"-25" is preferred.
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within the next three weeks.
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.
SLI, USB 3.0, SATA 6 GB/s, Z77 chipset
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
No, I will purchase Windows 7 Home 64 bit.


Parts that I know I want:

GPU (on it's way from newegg): EVGA SuperClocked+ 02G-P4-2684-KR GeForce GTX 680 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card - $539.99

Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 650D (CC650DW-1) Black Steel structure with black brushed aluminum faceplate ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $179.99

CPU: Intel i7 3770K - $313???

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM - $99.99

Parts I'm considering for the rest of the build:

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z77X-UD5H LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - $189.99

SSD: Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - $159.99

PSU: SeaSonic X Series X-850 (SS-850KM Active PFC F3) 850W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS 12V v2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply - $199.99

HSF: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 - $29.99

RAM: Not sure what is good RAM these days. I want to get 16 GB, but should I go 2x 8 GB or 4x 4 GB? I need RAM that will not conflict with my HSF.

Optical Drive: Does it matter what brand? I don't need blu-ray, just a DVD reader/burner.

HDD: I need a recommendation. I'll put my OS and a few games on the SSD. A 1 TB drive should be more than I'll need.

If there is anything that can be improved with these parts, please let me know. The cost is up to $1612.94 with the parts I listed.
 
 
+1 to DirtyB's recommendations. Note that if you get that Corsair PSU, there's a combo deal for that PSU and the case you chose that saves you $25:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.873553

To cover some of the other stuff:
- For your use, no reason to get the 3770K. You would be fine with the 3570K
- Optical drive wise, doesn't matter what the brand is as the quality is virtually the same. Grab the cheapest DVD burner you can find and you'll be set.
 
Thanks. I have a few questions.

How much better would this RAM be?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231568

I saw that the timings are 9-9-9-9. I thought most people were going with DDR3 1600? Would I see any advantages with going 4x 4GB vs 2x 8GB?

I saw that the Samsung 1TB drive was only 3 Gb/s. Shouldn't I go with a 6 Gb/s drive?

Would I really not see any performance increase with the 3770K vs the 3570K? I want to make this build last as long as I can.

What do you recommend for CPU thermal paste? I was originally thinking Arctic Silver 5, but I've heard it is really not the best thing these days.
 
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TXAG said:
I saw that the Samsung 1TB drive was only 3 Gb/s. Shouldn't I go with a 6 Gb/s drive?
Click to expand...

In the case of mechanically spinning hard drives, the physical transfer speed is the limiting factor - and even the fastest mechanical HDDs cannot come anywhere close to saturating even a SATA 3.0 Gbps interface, let alone SATA 6.0 Gbps. Only recent SSDs can outrun a SATA 3.0 Gbps interface.

TXAG said:
Would I really not see any performance increase with the 3770K vs the 3570K? I want to make this build last as long as I can.
Click to expand...

Most games cannot take full advantage of the additional threads through Hyperthreading. And although the games that you're planning to play can take advantage of a quad-core CPU, the performance is largely dependent on the GPU and partly on the CPU clock speed. Therefore, most of the games perform slightly faster on the i7 - if only due to the higher stock clock speed. Hyperthreading is largely irrelevant unless you're going to do serious workstation-type apps (such as photo and video editing).

TXAG said:
What do you recommend for CPU thermal paste? I was originally thinking Arctic Silver 5, but I've heard it is really not the best thing these days.
Click to expand...

If getting an aftermarket air cooler such as the Cooler Master Hyper 212 series, and you're going to overclock relatively heavily, go for Arctic Cooling MX-4. Arctic Silver 5 requires a long 200-hour curing time (this means 200 hours, or more than eight days, of alternating on and off system power cycling with no overclock and no higher than moderate CPU load) before it will perform at its best, which is why both Danny and I stated there are better choices than AS5.
 
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Thanks E4g1e. What about my memory? If I go with a quad channel kit, would that be faster? Can the mobo I posted do quad channel?
 
TXAG said:
Thanks E4g1e. What about my memory? If I go with a quad channel kit, would that be faster? Can the mobo I posted do quad channel?
Click to expand...
The RAM you linked won't provide a real world performance improvement to justify the extra $30. No point getting unless you really like blue RAM heatsinks. Especially considering that the heatsinks might actually interfere with the Hyper 212+.

As for quad-channel, it would not be noticeably faster. In addition, only socket 2011 CPUs supports quad-channel
 
I would go with 3570K.
Vengeance is good memory, have been using it for years:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233144
(16 gbs is relaly too much)
Keep M4, use this as secondary drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148837
For Mobo, I would recommend Sabertooth Z77. Great reliability and good features.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821
This is good deal for case/ PSU (+1)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139011

idk anything about monitors lol.
 
dblinkhorn said:
If that's true then why do socket 1155 MBs have four RAM slots? I may have made a boo-boo buying 4x4GB RAM for my Z77 mobo?
Click to expand...

Simple. The official JEDEC specification recommends that most mainstream chipsets support up to four ranks of memory per memory controller channel. And each standard-sized DIMM can contain up to two ranks. Hence, you have four DIMM slots on most motherboards that are designed to be used with dual-channel memory controllers (which in modern platforms are in the CPU itself).

As for using four sticks of RAM, both Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge officially support such a full load at up to DDR3-1333 speed. Ivy Bridge also officially supports JEDEC DDR3-1600 RAM for up to two DIMMs (one DIMM per channel).
 
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dblinkhorn said:
So will the ram I bought work with my Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H + i5 2500k?
Click to expand...

It will although you might want to set the speed and timings manually instead of relying on the XMP or auto-set profiles for best stability.
 
I think I want to go with this RAM because it has red heat spreaders, and I like pretty colors. :D I think the red of the RAM and the blue of the UD5H will contrast nicely. It has a slightly lower height than the G.Skill X series too.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231497

So, that RAM will still work at 1600 and 9-9-9-24-2T as long as I set the timings manually in the BIOS?

The Samsung Spinpoint 1TB looks nice. I'll go with that.

Also, I found my case for cheaper on Amazon. - $162.49
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Obsid...mputer/dp/B004UE1W9K/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

What is everyone's opinion of this HSF?
http://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-100700529-True-Spirit-120/dp/B005MSOH7C/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

It looks like it would provide more clearance for the RAM slots than the Hyper 212+, it performs better, and it weighs less. It just seems like a better engineered product.
 
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That HSF is a good HSF. Haven't recommended it much since it never had free shipping from Nan's Gaming Gear. But since it's being from Amazon, it has free shipping.
 
Danny Bui said:
That HSF is a good HSF. Haven't recommended it much since it never had free shipping from Nan's Gaming Gear. But since it's being from Amazon, it has free shipping.
Click to expand...

Actually it is still sold by Nan's. The cost on Amazon includes the MSRP plus shipping from Nan's.
 
I've ordered all the components! I'm getting excited about building this thing. Thanks for all the help!
 
Goodluck with the build, post pics when you're done.
 
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