Last call for changes to my gaming rig build

[brad310]

Building a rig top to bottom for gaming - Tribes Ascend (beta Nov 4) and Diablo 3. Budget is $1500. No plans for OCing.

The only must haves for me is a full tower and SSD. I have used AMD cpus in the past and am making my first shift to intel with the sandy bridge. The 6 core Phenom would actually bring the cost down about 100 bucks but the amd's in my exprience ran hotter and louder.

Any input will be considered.

Case HAF 932 $160
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119213

PSU - 730W $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817152036

Mobo - MSI P67A $105
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130571

CPU - i5 2500
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115073

RAM - 8GB DDR3 1600 $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231445

GPU - GTX 460 $175
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130571

SSD - Crucial 128GB $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820148448

OS - W7 pro $140

Monitor $150

KB - MS Sidewinder $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823109191

Mouse - Logitech G500 $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826104318

Headset - MS Lifechat $27
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826105209

Acronis True Image - $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832200030

 

[VirtualLarry]

Raidmax anything == no good.

Seasonic, Antec, XFX, Corsair, and some would include Enermax are good PSUs. Most others are crap.

Any reason why you chose a 2500, rather than a 2500K? Overclocking is so easy on a "K" chip, it's practically effortless, and it's "free" performance. (You should buy a third-party CPU cooler to help overclock though.)

What is the reasoning behind the P67 chipset, rather than the Z68 chipset? Z68 adds SSD caching support.

 

[lehtv]

Alright, there's a bunch of things that you should change.

First, do NOT get that Raidmax PSU. Get an XFX Core 650W for $60 after rebate, it's in a completely different league than Raidmax, and you don't want to skimp on the PSU. Corsair HX650 if you need modularity and long cables. But what do you need a full tower case for...?

$70 for a DDR3-1600? G.Skill Ripjaws or red Ripjaws X or Sniper is just $50.

Should spend more on the video card. GTX 460 is a bit underpowered for a $1500 gaming setup. I would recommend XFX or MSI 6950 2GB at $250.

Would also recommend a Z68 board, though they do cost $10-20 more. Asrock Pro3 or Extreme3 Gen3 or Asus P8Z68-V LE would be do fine - and even the cheap Gigabyte Z68P-DS3 would be alright.

Why do you need Win 7 Pro? Home Premium does everything you need an OS to do, at $40 less.

Other comments:

Get the G400, you will like it better than G500, I'm 99% sure. I'm currently using G500 because my other mouse broke, this is a pain in the backside. I owned MX518 and it's a lot better than G500. G400 is essentially an improved MX518.

Terrible headphones at your budget too... I'd consider something a bit higher quality. But I guess whether this matters is a bit subjective.

The Acronis software is probably unnecessary, I'm sure there are freeware programs that do what it does just fine.

Any reason why you chose a 2500, rather than a 2500K? Overclocking is so easy on a "K" chip, it's practically effortless, and it's "free" performance. (You should buy a third-party CPU cooler to help overclock though.

This, although if you just do a mild OC by increasing the multi to 40, the stock cooler is fine.

 

[mfenn]

:thumbsup: to lehtv as usual. The ASRock Z68 Pro3 is actually the same price as the P67 that the OP picked out.

 

[lehtv]

^ I know, I meant in general the difference between the chipsets alone is around $10-20.

 

[brad310]

tyvm guys i'll update the post when i get home.

 

[brad310]

Change 1:
PSU - OCZ 750W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817341041

The last 2 builds i did i used OCZ and was pleased.

Change 2:
Mobo - ASRock Z68 Pro3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157251

Change 3:
W7Pro to Home

Change 4:
RAM - G.Skill Ripjaws $47
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231311

I had the $70 ones on there because of the lower timing and CAS but wtf i'll prob never notice it.

Change 5:
GPU - EVGA 560 $189
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130660

I didnt want to go up to the next level on the graphics card there, it would put me over. Same reason im not going to OC...didint want to spend another $50 on an aftermarket HSF in addition to the extra cost for the K. AFA the acronis, it has saved my ass a couple times with shitty vista...im going to keep it.

Overall great criticism. Thank you everyone.

 

[mfenn]

The two things that I would change there are the PSU and GPU.
- PSU: 750W is extreme overkill for this rig and you can spend $32 less AR on Silencer MKII 500W the while still getting a higher quality unit.
- GPU: That is a GTX 560, which is a completely different animal from a GTX 560 Ti that you normally hear people talk about. This Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti is $200 AR

 

[lehtv]

This Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti is $200 AR

Nice find. For $5 more you can get the version factory overclocked to 900MHz (default 822) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125363

 

[brad310]

The two things that I would change there are the PSU and GPU.
- PSU: 750W is extreme overkill for this rig and you can spend $32 less AR on Silencer MKII 500W the while still getting a higher quality unit.
- GPU: That is a GTX 560, which is a completely different animal from a GTX 560 Ti that you normally hear people talk about. This Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti is $200 AR

Done. Thank you all so much for your time. I'm probably going to order tonight or tomorrow night.

 

[mfenn]

Done. Thank you all so much for your time. I'm probably going to order tonight or tomorrow night.

No problem. Feel free to update this thread with the results of your build.

 

[gevorg]

That Microsoft headset is pretty crappy, if you have the funds and value good sound quality, go with a nice pair of headphones like Sennheiser HD448 and a webcam for mic/video input.

 

[brad310]

Just an update...got it all in, put together, and online.

1-Startup and shutdown is crazy fast...im assuming because of the SSD
2-LOVE the case...probably could have gone with a mid tower but hey...i like the elbow room
3-My only "complaint", that isnt really a complaint, about my build are the cables on the PSU...for reaching the SSD and DVD drive, they're not quite long enough to chase through the back of the case like i would have wanted, but hey, no biggie. guess thats the drawback of the full tower.
4-cathode lights really add some flavor. if i did it over again i would put my dvd drive in the 2nd bay and put the controller for the 2 lights above it instead of on the floor of the case under the drive bay. The wiring for the lights isnt long enough to have one at the top and one at the bottom to the same controller...so i ran one at the bottom and one vertial along side the mobo.

The lighting inside is blue (2 cathodes, 3x230mm fans, 1x140mm fan) iwith the PSU having a red LED.

The mobo has a mouse driven BIOS with lots of eye candy which was new to me.

The KB and mouse feel good so far...i havent gamed anything on it yet, prob wont for a few months.

The 4 big fans, CPU fan (stock), psu, and SSD are quiet as a cat...you really dont even know its on.

Im happy with all the items in the build.

 

[mfenn]

Glad you like it! :thumbsup: