Need help reviewing parts for a PC that does Design/Gaming.

[ToxicShokk]

Here's the deal:

I primarily work at home doing freelance web design and graphic design. I also like to do a bit of gaming on the side. I'd like to get some additional input to check and see if I'm making the right decisions and if I'm getting the best deals out there. I have a good amount of previous experience building PCs.

I'm trying to build a PC that's 80% work-related / 20% gaming

WORK
Mostly photoshop and coding. I tend to do hi-rez print & photo work. I also generally have a lot of apps open at once for my workflow. Multiple browsers with many tabs, photoshop, illustrator, music, coding apps, etc. Occasionally I'll do some video editing... but it hasn't been anything truly extensive yet.

GAMING
TF2, the Battlefields (hoping to get into #3 this fall), the Crysis's, Elder Scrolls series, etc. I want to game at 1080p (at least).

THE TENTATIVE BUILD

I'm thinking my best overall option is to go with an Intel sandybridge (K-series) based system since it appears to be open to future upgrades and overclocking. I want USB 3.0 and the potential to SLI/crossfire in the future.

Price Range
I'm trying to shoot for a rig that's between $1800-$2000 (USD) including a new monitor. I want to build this in the next week or two.

Existing Parts
I'll be reusing a couple HDDs that I already have, my keyboard, and speakers. My primary monitor (22" TN panel) will be moving to my secondary.

New Stuff (Multiple parts under a category will be what I'm deciding on. - Feel free to add your own stuff if you see fit.)

Case - (Having trouble with this one)
Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced - 160.00 ...getting pricey
Fractal Design R3 - 110.00 ...concerned about front panel blocking airflow
Lian Li PC-9F - 140.00 ...concerned about airflow
Antec Nine Hundred Two V3 - 120.00
Antec DF-85 - 156.00 ...pricey
Antec Twelve Hundred V3 - 160.00 ...pricey
Corsair 650D - 175.00-210.00 ...looks awesome! limited availability, price is higher than I'd like

I guess with the "pricey" cases, is there a best-of?

Power Supply
XFX Black Edition: 750W - 130.00

CPU
i5 2500k - 225.00

Cooler
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus - 35.00

Motherboard - (USB 3.0, SLI/xFire in the future - decisions, decisions...)
ASRock P67 EXTREME4 - 165.00
MSI P67A-GD65 - 180.00

Video Card
XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB - 275.00

RAM
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) - 85.00

HDD - (plus the existing HDDs in my existing PC)
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 - 55.00

SSD - (OS install + photoshop for sure)
Crucial RealSSD C300 128GB - 245.00
Intel 320 Series - 120GB - 225.00

Monitor - (want a new one with better color for design work & some gaming)
Dell UltraSharp 24" - 500.00
Dell UltraSharp 23" - 319.00

Optical Drive
SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X - 20.00

OS
Win 7 Home - 99.00

Mouse
Logitech G500 - 55.00

TOTAL
High - $2114.00 before shipping & rebates. I obviously need to cut something here... less expensive case, PSU, Monitor, SSD, Mobo... I don't know.

Low - $1798.00 before shipping & rebates. I want the best bang for the buck, just like everyone else. 🙂

What do you fine people think?

---- EDIT: Easier to read sticky answers. ----

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
I primarily work at home doing freelance web design and graphic design. I also like to do a bit of gaming on the side.
WORK:
Mostly photoshop and coding. I tend to do hi-rez print & photo work. I also generally have a lot of apps open at once for my workflow. Multiple browsers with many tabs, photoshop, illustrator, music, coding apps, etc. Occasionally I'll do some video editing... but it hasn't been anything truly extensive yet.
GAMING:
TF2, the Battlefields (hoping to get into #3 this fall), the Crysis's, Elder Scrolls series, etc. I want to game at 1080p (at least).

I'm trying to build a PC that's 80% work-related / 20% gaming

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
$1800-$2000 (USD)

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
USA

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
Intel Sandybridge-based system. I have no other preferences.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
HDDs, Keyboard, Monitor, Speakers... looking for another monitor though

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
I have done research. I want a second opinion.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
I want to overclock using the i5 2500K.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.
1080p

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Within the next week or two.

10. Don't ask for a build configuration critique or rating if you are thin skinned.
I am thick skinned.

 

[aphelion02]

Please answer the sticky at the top of the forum.

 

[ToxicShokk]

You'll find that I did answer the questions in the stickied post. Though, I have now added the answers in list-form rather than throughout my initial post.

 

[mfenn]

You can probably have your cake and eat it too if you drop the "upgrading to SLI/CFX" idea. It's a silly idea in and of itself because (a) you don't have any definite plans to do so, (b) you're talking about a non-gaming focused build at a max of 1920x1200, (c) you're paying a bunch for SLI-capable PSU and mobo, (d) in 12-18 months a new single card with give you the upgrade that you want with less heat, power, noise, and (e) SLI/CFX are total PITA when you consider profile issues, potential for negative scaling, microstutter, etc.

With that in mind, you can get get this GA-P67A-UD3 + 8GB DDR3 combo to save yourself at least $75 and this XFX 650W to save yourself another $70 AR.

As for the rest of your choices, here's my opinions:
- Case: None of the above. Antec P183 $150
- GPU: MSI 6950 2GB reference $250 AR
- SSD: Intel 320 120GB $210 AP
- Monitor: My personal opinion would be the U2410, but that's because I'm a 16x10 fanboy. In reality, the U2311H is nearly as good and 2/3rds the price.

 

[ToxicShokk]

* SLI/CFX: That makes sense. It would be at least a year or 18 months before I decide to get another videocard. I wasn't aware that there were issues with this beyond space and heat.

* The GA-P67A-UD3: A few comments on newegg mention that the overclocking abilities of this board are somewhat limited. And maybe I'm getting too picky but it's also a shame that it doesn't have UEFI. Why wouldn't they add a supposed "feature" like this? ...a minor nitpick.

Another thing is that all I hear people talking about is the MSI P67A-GD65 and the ASUS P8P67 / P8P67 Pro. Someone else had recommended the ASRock to me previously.

* The Antec P183 was actually something I glanced at. What does this have that the Fractal Design R3 doesn't have? They both seem to have similar concepts behind them. Maybe I'm not seeing something, but how can these cases get good airflow through the front if there's a cover blocking the fans?

Also: Why not shell out an extra $5-$10 for a full tower from Cooler Master or Antec? It seems like having more space for such a little amount would be worth paying for...

* The other parts look pretty good to me. I'm thinking about going with U2410 since it's slightly bigger and has a higher color gamut than the U2311H.

 

[BoomerD]

FWIW, I LIKE the Coolermaster HAF cases. VERY good air flow, and the case fans are nearly dead silent.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2125015

 

[Doclife]

* The Antec P183 was actually something I glanced at. What does this have that the Fractal Design R3 doesn't have? They both seem to have similar concepts behind them. Maybe I'm not seeing something, but how can these cases get good airflow through the front if there's a cover blocking the fans?

The P183 and R3 both get their airflow through the front via the side and bottom vents of the front door. The purpose of the front door is to muffle the noise. Filters on the front of the P183 minimize the amount of dust coming to the case and they are easy to clean/vacumm. I haven't clean/vacumm the interior of my P182 case (earlier model of the P183) for 3 years because there are hardly any dust in it. The P183 is built more ridgidly than the R3 (thicker steel). Link to the review of the P183 case below, if you are interested.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article945-page1.html

Personally, my favorite case is the Antec Mini P180. It's similar design to the P183, but smaller and only accommodate micro-ATX motherboard. Although it is out of production, you can still occasionally find them on newegg or other online computer parts stores. I bought the Mini P180 on sale a while back and that's what my next build will be.

 

[piasabird]

It is a bad idea to keep legacy hard drives. Just copy the data. Often drives will die after they are in the new computer for a while. They you have to take it apart and work on it again. You want one of those old hard drives to give up and eat all of your data?

Out with the Old and in with the New???????

Just a suggestion.

If not then I hope you have a way to backup the info once in a while?

 

[ToxicShokk]

The two HDDs that I would be reusing are pretty standard 7200rpm sata drives. Neither have ever had an OS installed on them. They both were also bought as "upgrades" later in this PC's life.

On the new build, I'd be using the SSD as the OS drive (+ essential apps). The Spinpoint would be my regular storage. The reused HDDs would turn into internal backup drives. I also use an external drive to backup my data periodically.

Does that make a difference on the longevity of the older drives? I didn't know moving over HDDs to a new PC had any effect on their lifespans...

 

[fffblackmage]

Does that make a difference on the longevity of the older drives? I didn't know moving over HDDs to a new PC had any effect on their lifespans...

It's not the moving them to a new PC part; it's the fact that they're just old. They may be nearing the end of their lifespan, depending on how long you're used them.

 

[mfenn]

* The GA-P67A-UD3: A few comments on newegg mention that the overclocking abilities of this board are somewhat limited. And maybe I'm getting too picky but it's also a shame that it doesn't have UEFI. Why wouldn't they add a supposed "feature" like this? ...a minor nitpick.

All Sandy Bridge motherboards are UEFI under the hood, so the functionality is the same. It's just that Gigabyte decided not to do the flashy interface. Not a big deal IMHO.

Another thing is that all I hear people talking about is the MSI P67A-GD65 and the ASUS P8P67 / P8P67 Pro. Someone else had recommended the ASRock to me previously.

Those are good boards as well, and the ASRock's generally good bang for the buck.

* The Antec P183 was actually something I glanced at. What does this have that the Fractal Design R3 doesn't have? They both seem to have similar concepts behind them. Maybe I'm not seeing something, but how can these cases get good airflow through the front if there's a cover blocking the fans?

The front cover doesn't completely seal the front, it acts more as a baffle to stop noise. There is plenty of space around the sides to get good airflow. The P183 is very solidly build whereas the R3 is a bit flimsy.

Also: Why not shell out an extra $5-$10 for a full tower from Cooler Master or Antec? It seems like having more space for such a little amount would be worth paying for...

The R3 and P183 are targeted at a different market segment than the HAF 932 and Twelve Hundred. The former have lots of noise dampening and other convenience features whereas the latter are more "straight through" gamer cases emphasizing airflow.