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High end gaming build

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octopus41092

Golden Member
Haven't really been keeping up to date so I'd like some advice on my build.

It'll be use primarily for gaming at 2560x1600. I'm hoping to keep around $1000-$1500 with tax and shipping. Cheaper is better though, so if there are parts that are overkill I'd be willing to swap them out. I'll be reusing my current case, and DVD drives.

Motherboard: ASUS SABERTOOTH Z87 LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
CPU: Core i7 4770K 3.5GHz Socket LGA 1150 Boxed Processor
HDD: Seagate Barracuda STBD2000101 2TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Retail kit
SSD: SAMSUNG 840 Series MZ-7TD500KW 2.5" 500GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
PSU: Antec HCG M HCG-850M 850W ATX12V SLI Ready CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CML16GX3M2A1600C10R
GPU: 2 x XFX Core Edition FX-787A-CNFC Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
 
I noticed you linked Microcenter for the CPU, but not MB. They had some good combo deals going on which may save you a few on the MB. I was able to pick up mine for $189 as part of the combo and would probably suite you well. I'm not familiar with the PSU so there may be better options. What CPU cooler will you be using? With a 4770k, I assume you will O/C and the stock one is not up to snuff. Also, consider going with a single 7970 with 3GB RAM.
 
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What games are you playing, and what is your current case?

Also, I don't see a HSF, are you planning on re-using or using the stocks?
 
A few things:

(1) for your budget, you're spending way too much on the motherboard. I'd aim for a $150 model.
(2) I won't recommend starting with two video cards - instead, buy one higher-end card. Also, the XFX 7870 Core is pretty bad. I've tested it and the cooler is ineffective and the card had almost no overclocking headroom.
(3) You don't need that much wattage for the power supply. You can save a lot of money going with a quality 650W unit.

Also, generally speaking, your budget range is actually too broad. There's a huge difference between $1000 and $1500. One is mid-range, one is high-end. And in case you didn't realize it, you're already at $1700.
 
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At 2560x1600 SLI might actually be worth it from the get-go, but I agree with you the 7870 is not the card to choose for that.
 
I wouldn't even call $1700 high end but its all about interpretation. I consider 'high end' $2000 or higher but that's just me.
 
Agree with DSF that SLI/CFX might be required, depending the games and settings.

OP, what type of games do you play and do you need to run them at all max? What do you consider to be an acceptable framerate?
 
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