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New Gaming Rig

cytoSiN

cytoSiN

Platinum Member
Hi all,

Looking to put together a new gaming rig just in time to receive my tax return, and this is what I've come up with. I'd love some feedback/critique before I pull the trigger. Thanks in advance!

Case NZXT Phantom Black - $119.99 (newegg)
Power Supply Corsair 750HX - $141.99 (amazon)
CPU Intel i7-2600k - $314.99 (amazon)
Heatsink Cooler Master 212 Plus - $29.99 (amazon)
Motherboard ASUS SABERTOOTH P67 - $219.99 (amazon)
Memory 8GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 12800 - $99.99 (newegg)
Graphics Card EVGA GTX 570 Superclocked (KR model) - $359.99 (amazon)
Hard Drive Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black - $87.99 (amazon)
SSD Intel X25M 120 GB SSD - $226.99 (amazon)
DVD Lite-On LightScribe 24X SATA DVD+/-RW - $22.99 (amazon)
 
IMO, the only thing you shouldn't buy is the i7-2600. For gaming, you want the i5-2500K.
(yeah, I know...it doesn't make sense that the i5 is better than the i7, but it is.)

Lots of folks here will rant about buying such an expensive motherboard...but I prefer the premium boards myself...

Also, while that graphics card comes with a 3-year warranty, personally, I prefer the ones that come with the lifetime warranty.
Limited Lifetime: -A1, -A2, -A3, -A4, -AR, -AX, -CR, -CX, -DX, -FR, -FX, -SG, -SX
Click to expand...
Even though 3 years IS a lifetime for a video card...I just prefer having a written longer warranty. <shrug>

If you have a MicroCenter near you, you can probably get a great price on your processor...and maybe the board as well.
 
You've got a very unbalanced build there IMHO. The ratio of dollars spent on the GPU to dollars spent everywhere is is all out of whack. Additionally, it looks like you picked the most expensive components in each performance category. My math shows that you're planning to spend $1625 total. Lemme whip up a $1.5K build real quick that stomps all over that in gaming.
 
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Thanks for the replies. Definitely looking into the i5 after your responses and other similar threads on this and other forums. As for the mobo, I've had great luck/success with asus boards, and in my experience, a little extra on the motherboard goes a long way.

Mfenn, thanks for trying to save me some $$. Most of the parts I chose were due to brand loyalty based on good experience, e.g., the corsair psu. I considered the TX series instead of the HX, but the difference was relatively minimal.

For the GPU(s), how much difference am I going to see between the GTX 570 and 2x6950 (or similar setup)?

Thanks guys!
 
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Not sure what resolution/monitors OP is looking to drive with this rig, but a single GTX570 should be fine for 1080p or lower.

The 69x0 2GB cards stretch their legs at higher resolutions, & I agree with mfenn that OP's combination of budget/motherboard/PSU makes Crossfired "6950 2GB" a realistic player.

(If OP doesn't already have a good monitor, some of the budget could be set aside for the nice screen).
 
I'm using a single 24" IPS panel at 1920x1200.

Sorry, should have included that in the OP.

Based on that, how much difference do you think I'll see between a single 570 and a SLI/Crossfire setup like the one proposed by Mfenn?

Thanks all.
 
Given your resolution you will be fine with a Single GTX 570, or 6950 (which can be unlocked to 6970). If for whatever reason you don't find that's enough power you can always add a second card later on. Also unless there is something specific you need for the sabertooth board I would drop it down to the P8P67 Pro. It's still what I would consider a premium board, but doesn't cost as much.
 
dpodblood said:
Also unless there is something specific you need for the sabertooth board I would drop it down to the P8P67 Pro. It's still what I would consider a premium board, but doesn't cost as much.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I guess my issue there would be whether the thermal armor on the Sabertooth is worth the extra money?

Also, I read that some versions were recalled, and then most places I checked were out of stock on the Pro, but they seem to be getting new stock back now.

If I'm not going with the Sabertooth, are there any major differences between the MSI GD65 board proposed above and the P8P67 Pro?

Thanks again!
 
cytoSiN said:
I'm using a single 24" IPS panel at 1920x1200.

Sorry, should have included that in the OP.

Based on that, how much difference do you think I'll see between a single 570 and a SLI/Crossfire setup like the one proposed by Mfenn?

Thanks all.
Click to expand...

Depends on the game, but the 6950 CFX will be anywhere from the 0-25% in mostly CPU limited games like HAWX and Wolfenstein faster to about 100% faster in GPU limited games like Crysis or Metro 2033.

That being said, a single GPU like the 6950 2GB or GTX 570 will still certainly give playable framerates at 1920x1200. I was mostly using the Crossfire example to show how much you were overpaying in your original build. I was able to effectively find $400(!) of slack. If you do decide to drop down to a single-GPU, you would certainly want to still go with the rest of my components and end up paying $1250. Additionally, I would probably go for a 6950 2GB over a GTX 570 because the 6950 2GB is $75 cheaper and has similar performance in many games. That's not even taking the unlock potential of the 6950 into account.

PS. The "thermal armor" on the Sabertooth is a stupid gimmick that exists solely to "convince" people to spend an absurd amount of money on a P67 board.
 
Based on everyone's comments and a little more research, looking at the following build now. Any final words/warning before I pull the trigger?

Case : NZXT Phantom Black - $119.99 (newegg)
PSU : Corsair 750HX - $141.99 (amazon) (splurging here a little for piece of mind & expandability)
CPU : Intel i5-2500k - $224.99 (newegg)
Heatsink : Cooler Master 212 Plus - $26.99 (newegg - package deal with 2500k)
Motherboard : ASUS P8P67-M PRO (REV 3.0) - $149.99 (newegg)
RAM : 8GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 12800 - $74.99 (newegg AP)
GPU : HIS Radeon HD 6950 2 GB x 2 - $489.98 (amazon AR)
HDD : Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black - $77.99 (newegg AP -- amazon out of stock on the $60 F3)
SSD : Intel X25M 80 GB SSD - $174.99 (newegg)
DVD : Lite-On LightScribe 24X SATA DVD+/-RW - $22.99 (amazon)

Total: 1504.89


Thanks again!!
 
^ Wow, that's a serious gaming power for 1.5k! You've hit some nice price points on individual components 🙂
 
I do not agree with getting a mATX sized motherboard while your casing is a full ATX sized case. You will be suffocating your top GPU with that motherboard as there is not even a single slot of space for the GPU to intake in fresh air.

I suggest going for a full sized ATX motherboard like MSI or the ASRock. Currently the ASRock is sold out but if you could wait for it would make your build that much better. With a full sized ATX motherboards like these there would be at least a single slot of space between the 2 GPUs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-582-_-Product
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-229-_-Product
 
I'd also question the mATX board. With a large case like that, there's no reason for it.
I keep seeing/hearing about problems with the ASRock P67 boards...I'd stick with ASUS or MSi for a better chance at a trouble-free build.
 
The m-ATX board was mistakenly listed in my previous post. The final build will use either the Asus or MSI p67 ATX boards, both of which cost about the same as the m-ATX board I listed. I'll post some screens of the build process and some benchmarks once everything's installed. Thanks again!
 
cytoSiN said:
Based on everyone's comments and a little more research, looking at the following build now. Any final words/warning before I pull the trigger?

Case : NZXT Phantom Black - $119.99 (newegg)
PSU : Corsair 750HX - $141.99 (amazon) (splurging here a little for piece of mind & expandability)
CPU : Intel i5-2500k - $224.99 (newegg)
Heatsink : Cooler Master 212 Plus - $26.99 (newegg - package deal with 2500k)
Motherboard : ASUS P8P67-M PRO (REV 3.0) - $149.99 (newegg)
RAM : 8GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 12800 - $74.99 (newegg AP)
GPU : HIS Radeon HD 6950 2 GB x 2 - $489.98 (amazon AR)
HDD : Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black - $77.99 (newegg AP -- amazon out of stock on the $60 F3)
SSD : Intel X25M 80 GB SSD - $174.99 (newegg)
DVD : Lite-On LightScribe 24X SATA DVD+/-RW - $22.99 (amazon)

Total: 1504.89


Thanks again!!
Click to expand...

Definitely don't go with the uATX mobo for a CFX rig for the reasons that others have mentioned. Other than that, I would probably spend less (a lot less) on the PSU by going with the XFX that I originally suggested because it and the HX are both Seasonics IIRC. You're just paying an extra 50% for the Corsair name. Also, I would probably spend the extra $35 to get a 120GB SSD like the Corsair Force that I originally suggested.
 
mfenn said:
Definitely don't go with the uATX mobo for a CFX rig for the reasons that others have mentioned. Other than that, I would probably spend less (a lot less) on the PSU by going with the XFX that I originally suggested because it and the HX are both Seasonics IIRC. You're just paying an extra 50% for the Corsair name. Also, I would probably spend the extra $35 to get a 120GB SSD like the Corsair Force that I originally suggested.
Click to expand...

I went with the Asus P8P67 Pro.

Re: the PSU, I went with the XFX Black 750 on Newegg for 109.99 AR (thanks for the suggestion on XFX!)

Re: the SSD, I haven't ordered one yet, but I'm concerned about failure reports ont he OCZs, whereas I haven't seen any similar reports for the Intels. This is the last piece to complete my rig. Any advice re: the reports of failures of OCZ (and Crucial, and others vs. Intel)?

Thanks!
 
I'm not sure about the failure rates on OCZ drives, but OCZ is a pretty shady company so I wouldn't bother buying from them. Seems the Intel drives are the best if you want to make the "safe" choice. Meaning they are reliable, and if anything goes wrong the customer service will be good.
 
dpodblood said:
I'm not sure about the failure rates on OCZ drives, but OCZ is a pretty shady company so I wouldn't bother buying from them. Seems the Intel drives are the best if you want to make the "safe" choice. Meaning they are reliable, and if anything goes wrong the customer service will be good.
Click to expand...

I agree that Intel is always the safe choice. Their performance is a bit lacking IMHO. I feel confident that Corsair will take care of you on the Force as well though.
 
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