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Building a new gaming rig - open to input.

T

TheVrolok

Lifer
Looking for input on a new build. As background, I'm currently running on a NZXT Lexa Blackline contained Q6600/eVGA 750i FTW/eVGA GTX 285 OC/4GB RAM/2x500GB WDD Greens/Cosair 520HX. Built the system late 2007, upgraded the originaly 8800GT to the GTX 285 probably 3-4 years ago. Upgrading now as a bit of a treat to myself. Don't do as much gaming as I once did, and honestly, my machine is still holding up fairly well, but I'm looking for something that will be able to handle my gaming needs for the next 3-4 years (obviously performance will decline). Play a variety of games, just about every genre out there. Looking to keep it below 1300ish. Just looking for some opinions. Will be putting it together in the US at the end of April, and already have the pieces below. Will be using a single nvidia GPU. Yes, I realize the PSU is overkill, but I like overkill in that area. 😛

Case: Rosewill Challenger
PSU: Seasonic x750 Gold
Mobo: MSI Z77A-GD55
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 2x8GB DDR3 1600
Optical: ASUS BRD Burner
OS: Windows 7 HP

Cost so far: 535.81

Will likely put an i5-3570 in (missed the 6 hour sale newegg had it sub 200).

Trying to decide if I want to spend on a SSD for a boot/OS drive and reuse the 2x500GBs as storage - that Samsung 830 256 for 160 is pretty tempting. Input on "worth it" value of a SSD? Kinda tempted to save some cash in this area and just continue with the 2x500GBs .. but ever since I put a SSD in my "NES PC" (yeah I got on the bandwagon and built one) I've been jonesing for one in my primary rig.

Have been watching the nvidia 660 Ti for a good deal (really like the in-game coupons, I do play Planet Side 2), but open to other options (have some room in the budget).

Will likely not do much OC'ing this time around so will keep cooling with stock air coolers.

Really just looking for some general input. I've done no hardware shopping since my '07 aside from the GTX 285. Thanks in advance.
 
So is there a game or program that's pushing this upgrade? I mean you said your old one is holding up fairly well. If it's still capable of handling all the games you intend to run I always advocate waiting. Buying a computer for its performance four years from now is a questionable plan.

On the other hand, if you really have gotten all you can out of your current machine and it's holding you back from the latest generation of games you'd like to be playing, that's a different story. What you have looks pretty good, although I would step the PSU down. Even 550W is more than enough for a single-GPU setup with minimal overclocking.

Edit: Basically, you look like a good candidate for mfenn's $1000 rig if you need an upgrade to keep playing the games you'd like to play. You have the money to get a nicer case or upgrade your display or both.
 
TheVrolok said:
Trying to decide if I want to spend on a SSD for a boot/OS drive and reuse the 2x500GBs as storage - that Samsung 830 256 for 160 is pretty tempting. Input on "worth it" value of a SSD?
Click to expand...

Short answer- YES! with your budget, there's no reason not to get an SSD. The SSD itself will create a much faster system overall, and you can reuse those HDD's for storage. The Samsung 840 is a nice SSD to boot!
 
DSF said:
So is there a game or program that's pushing this upgrade? I mean you said your old one is holding up fairly well. If it's still capable of handling all the games you intend to run I always advocate waiting. Buying a computer for its performance four years from now is a questionable plan.

On the other hand, if you really have gotten all you can out of your current machine and it's holding you back from the latest generation of games you'd like to be playing, that's a different story. What you have looks pretty good, although I would step the PSU down. Even 550W is more than enough for a single-GPU setup with minimal overclocking.

Edit: Basically, you look like a good candidate for mfenn's $1000 rig if you need an upgrade to keep playing the games you'd like to play. You have the money to get a nicer case or upgrade your display or both.
Click to expand...

Well, running multiple EVE clients is starting to get a bit slower as they add more eye candy. Also, Planet Side 2 is essentially unplayable in larger fights. In addition, I'd like to pick up BioShock Infinite in the near future and am not convinced my current rig would handle it all that well at higher settings. Certainly this build won't maintain high performance for 3-4 years, but I'm hoping it'll have enough longevity with a GPU update in ~2 that it'll carry me well enough.

I agree with you, it's always a good time to wait without pressing needs. I'm just at a good point right now to upgrade. Will be moving in with my gf in a few months and after that, I'm not sure she'll be thrilled with my upgrading/building a new computer. 😉 In addition, I have multiple weeks of vacation time (my first in years) coming up, so I'd be nice to catch up on some gaming time I've missed out on.

I've also been toying the idea with upgrading my second display. My primary is a BenQ2400WD (I wish I could still get one, I love it) and my secondary is my much older ViewSonic 2025wm which has been trying to quit on me for years (backlight going, DVI port occasionally quits, no longer provides EDID) so perhaps it's time to find a new replacement. Ideally, I'd like 2 identical new monitors, but I just can't give up on my BenQ and might be able to use some of the extra cash to get another 16:10 24".

BTRY B 529th FA BN said:
Do you have a Micro Center near-by?
Click to expand...

Unfortunately not. 🙁

dmoney1980 said:
Short answer- YES! with your budget, there's no reason not to get an SSD. The SSD itself will create a much faster system overall, and you can reuse those HDD's for storage. The Samsung 840 is a nice SSD to boot!
Click to expand...

I've been wanting someone to convince me. 🙂
 
Spend less on the PSU and more on the GPU. A GTX 660 Ti is weak for something that you expect to last for 3-4 years. You easily have the budget for a 7970 or a GTX 670.

As for SSD, God yes! Every single thing you interact with on your desktop is faster with an SSD. It's the biggest single upgrade you can make to your PC. I mean that literally because it's you can get a factor of 10 improvement over your previous machine.
 
mfenn said:
Spend less on the PSU and more on the GPU. A GTX 660 Ti is weak for something that you expect to last for 3-4 years. You easily have the budget for a 7970 or a GTX 670.

As for SSD, God yes! Every single thing you interact with on your desktop is faster with an SSD. It's the biggest single upgrade you can make to your PC. I mean that literally because it's you can get a factor of 10 improvement over your previous machine.
Click to expand...

PSU ran me 89.99. Worth it for the overkill for me. 😛 Bit on the 256mb Samsung 840 for 160 today, too. So really, all I need is the i5-3570 and a GPU, will likely hold out for a deal on a 670 over the next month. Seems Newegg has a PNY 670 for 309.99 after rebate (with the 150 in "game cash" for the 3 games), somewhat tempting. Only review I could find was here which seemed to be pretty favorable. Not familiar with PNY much as a GPU manufacturer, and only being able to find a single review.. hmm. I imagine there will be similar deals over the next 30 days.
 
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This one? That looks like a reference GTX 670, which is good and bad. Good in that Nvidia designed the card, so there's really nothing that PNY can do to screw it up. Bad in that it's going to be a bit louder than a higher-end dual- or triple-fan card.
 
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