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New build, need help

1

1b0b1

Member
Greetings everyone,

This is my first build since like 5 or 6 years, so it is safe to say that I am way too much outdated when it comes to today's hardware. However, the building process haven't changed much. My only concerns are the parts to be used.

.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for:

Mainly, this will be a gaming rig. Plus, some rendering and video editing.

2. What YOUR budget is:

My Budget is 1500$~2000$ including the LED screen (already decided, approximately 200$)

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

Local & Online shopping.

4. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

CPU & GPU overclocking.

5. What resolution will you be using?

1980x1080

6. WHEN do you plan to build it?
January 2013.

------------------

Below is the list that I came up with after extensive research:

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K (BX80637I73770K)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...A2YLYLTN75J8LR

Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (RR-212E-20PK-R2)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...A2EUTVCJXLAJ4K

MB: Asrock Z77 Extreme4
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

GPU: MSI NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 (N680GTX LIGHTNING)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

HDD: WD Caviar Black 1 TB 7200 RPM 64 MB (WD1002FAEX)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

SSD: Corsair Force GT 240 GB (CSSD-F240GBGT-BK)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) (CMZ16GX3M2A1600C10)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Or

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM 1600 (PC3 12800) (F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...A2C3SMXXIDC93V

CASE: NZXT Phantom 410 Mid Tower USB 3.0 Gaming Case - Red
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

PSU: I didn't make up my mind yet, I need some help with this one keeping in mind that I am planning to use SLI with dual GTX680's and some overclocking (CPU & GPU)

Thanks in advance guys.
 
1b0b1 said:
5. What resolution will you be using?

1980x1080

...

keeping in mind that I am planning to use SLI with dual GTX680's
Click to expand...

Is it just me, or does this scream overkill? I'm not talking about "giving it 110%" overkill. I'm talking about "IT'S OVER 9000" overkill. :awe:

AnandTech GPU Bench
Battlefield 3 - 1920x1200 - Ultra Quality + FXAA-High
dual GTX 680 in SLI 160.4FPS
single GTX 680 97.6FPS
 
Welcome to the forums!

I think you'll get a whole range of comments on this build (see above), but overall, it's very good. The only thing I'll add to Zap's comment above is that if you have a $1500-2000 budget, you should absolutely spend more than $200 on the monitor. That's the component you'll interact with the most and likely keep the longest. Go for a high quality 1920x1200 panel at the minimum.

Another tip is to go with Samsung's 30nm RAM, which is both cheaper and faster (once overclocked) than Corsair's: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Electr...0nm+memory+4gb

Also, just so you know, most of your links aren't working, but your product descriptions are probably sufficient to provide advice.
 
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PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/tgJ3
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/tgJ3/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/tgJ3/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($314.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9B SE2 37.9 CFM CPU Cooler ($60.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Samsung 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Four of these) ($15.91 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($169.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($366.97 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Dell U2410 24.0" Monitor ($399.00 @ Dell)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 Full (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1914.52
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

I am personally partial to the Radeon 7970 over the 670 or even 680 because it offers better performance for approximately the same price. If you are firmly sticking with Nvidia, I recommend the 670 instead, especially since some kinds come factory overclocked just as high as a standard 680. Anandtech's Bench shows that the 7970 and 680 trade off the lead based on which game here; this bench shows how close the 670 and 680 are. You will max out a crappy 1080p monitor for sure with any of these 3 single cards, let alone XFire or SLI. You will still get 60FPS most of the time on a bigger screen as well, even with some anti-aliasing.

If you wanted to "future-proof," you are far, far better off just buying an Xfire or SLI capable PSU and a single card now, and later, when you actually need the second card's power, you buy another one. The part will certainly cost less in the future.

This build has a nice 1920x1200 monitor from Dell, which means you'll also have a good selection of ports on the screen and excellent warranty. You could also go for an $400 Korean Catleap monitor, which is a 27" at 2560x1440; they use the same top quality panel as $700+ Dell and Apple monitors. While it is much larger, it has a crappy stand, few hardware buttons to adjust colors and brightness, and doesn't really come with a warranty (you have to pay for shipping back to Korea, and it takes months).
 
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Sound advice from all above. With $1500-$2000 to spend, this is what I would do:

$400 Monitor Auria 27" IPS 2560x1440p http://microcenter.com/product/384780/EQ276W_27_IPS_LED_Monitor#

$230 i5 3570k CPU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116504

$20 CPU Cooler (after rebate) CM 212 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103065

$110 Motherboard ASRock Extreme 3 z77 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157330

$35 RAM Samsung 4GB (x2) DDR3 http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Electr...sung+ddr3+1600

Hard drive- the one you have is fine.

$180 Samsung 250GB 840 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820147189

Case- your choice. I wouldnt spend more than $110 here

$90 PSU (after rebate) XFX 750W Modular PSU. (750 watt is overkill for a single card, but will give you overhead in case you decide to buy a 2nd card later) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207023

$425 GPU Radeon 7970 GHE http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202001

That puts you at about $1700. I did not see an optical drive listed so I'm guessing you may have a DVD burner. If not, any $20 burner will do. And don't forget to purchase the OS if you don't have one.

If you prefer Nvidia, then make sure to get a 4GB vRAM 670. The 2GB cards will limit you at 1440p gaming.
 
As far as I can see, it has lower endurance and write speeds. However, it should be okay for the average consumer, correct? Does the significantly lower write speed make it inferior enough to, for example the 830 or Crucial M4, to buy the others at higher prices (say, $20 more)?

Naturally, I realize that price/"performance in X" tradeoffs are subjective. However, I feel for people moving up from a HDD to an SSD for the first time, pretty much ANY reliable drive is okay to recommend.
 
Sleepingforest said:
As far as I can see, it has lower endurance and write speeds. However, it should be okay for the average consumer, correct? Does the significantly lower write speed make it inferior enough to, for example the 830 or Crucial M4, to buy the others at higher prices (say, $20 more)?

Naturally, I realize that price/"performance in X" tradeoffs are subjective. However, I feel for people moving up from a HDD to an SSD for the first time, pretty much ANY reliable drive is okay to recommend.
Click to expand...

It suffers terrible performance losses under heavy use. That's not just after long-term use.

The 830 is definitely better, although not really available anymore. Honestly, I'd take an M4 over the 840 at the same price until more data is available. Or an Intel SandForce drive.
 
Sleepingforest said:
Well that is embarrassing. I should have checked the link first. My apologies; the last time I checked it was in-store only.
Click to expand...

No worries! I was as surprised as you were when I originally looked for that monitor. Given the price, I think it's a safer bet than the Korean monitors on ebay since the buyer can easily exchange it if issues come up
 
Termie said:
It suffers terrible performance losses under heavy use. That's not just after long-term use.

The 830 is definitely better, although not really available anymore. Honestly, I'd take an M4 over the 840 at the same price until more data is available. Or an Intel SandForce drive.
Click to expand...

Termie - whats your opinion of the new OCZ drive? I'm with you on the Sammy 840, but the challenge is that the 830's are disappearing and drives like the Plextor and intel can be a little overpriced. That leaves the m4, which looks dated if you look at the specs but is a reliable, well rounded performer (I have one and love it!).
 
Sleepingforest said:
If you wanted to "future-proof," you are far, far better off just buying an Xfire or SLI capable PSU and a single card now, and later, when you actually need the second card's power, you buy another one. The part will certainly cost less in the future.
Click to expand...

The problem with this theory is that you're not going to be running 7970 Crossfire on a 620W power supply. You'd need to bump that up to 750W to be safe. At some point you're paying too much up-front for a "maybe" down the road.

Also, you have to take into consideration that the prices of high-end GPUs don't really go down much over time. Prices usually stay pretty steady once the card has gone out of production because, while demand might be lower, supply is effectively zero. Eventually they disappear from the market altogether.

Solid build otherwise, though I would probably swap the SSD for an m4.
 
dmoney1980 said:
Termie - whats your opinion of the new OCZ drive? I'm with you on the Sammy 840, but the challenge is that the 830's are disappearing and drives like the Plextor and intel can be a little overpriced. That leaves the m4, which looks dated if you look at the specs but is a reliable, well rounded performer (I have one and love it!).
Click to expand...

The new Vector looks awesome, but it's a totally different price class (and overpriced at that). The Vertex 4 is ok, but frankly, for a first build, I'd take an M4 because it's proven.

Now is an odd time to be buying an SSD. The new drives are great but expensive, and the previous generation's top SSDs are either scarce (the 830) or stuck at the same prices they've been at for months (M4, SandForce drives).
 
In reality, Xfiring or SLIing in the future is unlikely anyway. Its probably a better cost proposition to simply sell your old card and buy a new one using the proceeds from the sale.
 
Guys, I am so sorry for not replying to any of you even though I am the one who started this thread initially. I wasn't receiving any notification emails stating that someone replied to my thread. Anyways, I have already ordered the below parts:

Intel Core i7-3770K
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Asrock Z77 Extreme4
MSI NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680
WD Caviar Black 1 TB 7200 RPM 64 MB
Corsair Force GT 240 GB
Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800)
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX 850 Watt ATX/EPS Modular 80 PLUS Bronze

Before you go into in why and how I picked this PSU, well, the price was a kill (104.99$) so I couldn't ignore it.

On the other hand, something just came to mind and I am afraid that it will cause a big problem to me:

Considering those 3 parts (asrock z77 extreme4, Hyper 212 evo, Corsair Vengeance 8x2). Will I have any problem fitting the ram without colliding with the CPU cooler ?

Thanks in advance guys, oh and by the way, I did take your feedback into consideration (the one regarding the monitor) and I am actually thinking about getting a better monitor but my main problem is that I can't buy it online since it will cost me a fortune to ship it to where I live. Anyways, I'll keep you posted though.

Regarding the RAM suggestions, I am not that much into RAM overclocking. So I'll stick with the corsair.

Last but not least, regarding the SSD suggestion, well, I also couldn't ignore the 199$ price tag on the Corsair Force GT 240 GB, considering the writing/reading speeds, and the awesome reviews, I made up my mind and took it.

Finally, about the GPU suggestions, thanks for the explanation and I am sure that most of the guys agrees with you but it is just me, the GTX680 lightning is the ONE for me. Thanks again 🙂

Please give me your feedback about my concern (in bold).
 
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You won't be able to have any Vengeance modules directly under the fan. The fan will probably block the first DIMM slot.

In any case, since you haven't built it yet, I would return the Vengeance RAM and order a standard profile kit instead.

2x8GB Kingston HyperX blu $75
 
lehtv said:
You won't be able to have any Vengeance modules directly under the fan. The fan will probably block the first DIMM slot.

In any case, since you haven't built it yet, I would return the Vengeance RAM and order a standard profile kit instead.

2x8GB Kingston HyperX blu $75
Click to expand...

lehtv is exactly correct. That being said, you shouldn't use the first RAM slot unless you are running four modules, so you'll be ok for now. Of course, if you end up buying additional RAM, don't buy Vengeance high-profile.
 
Does the kingston HyperX blu has the same timing as the corsair ? I honestly don't know which one is better. I am about to return them, please reply asap
 
First off, timing will not really impact performance enough for you to notice. It's less important than clock speed, and you probably wouldn't even notice a difference between 1333MHz and 2133MHz in everyday use.

You can see the timing in the SKU code:

Kingston: KHX1600C10D3B1K2/16G = CAS 10
Corsair: CMZ16GX3M2A1600C10 = CAS 10

However, more precise specs (found by googling the SKU code) show Kingston is 10-10-10 while Corsair is 10-11-10.
 
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one more question, if i used the second and the last slot instead of the first and the third, will there be any difference ?
 
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