Planning on purchasing these soon for my upgrade, final feedback please?

[NukaCola]

Made a thread a while ago asking for recommendations for a computer upgrade (basically looking to run current games at max, like Witcher 2 and Battlefield 3, and be prepared for Mass Effect 3, Bioshock Infinite, etc.)

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2165902

That's the old thread, but regardless these are the components:

Already purchased the RAM:
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231428

Going to be buying these soon:

ASUS P8Z68-V LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131729

XFX HD-695X-CNDC Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150550

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115072

Any final feedback would be greatly appreciated. I currently have a 600W PSU. I surmise that it's enough to handle this machine. Thanks.

 

[lehtv]

Asrock Z68 extreme3 Gen3 is a lot better bang for buck than P8Z68-V. Your Thermaltake Armor case doesn't have USB3.0 in the front panel so that feature won't be missed.

The single-fan 6950 will be noticeably noisier than the dual-fan version ($235 AR)

 

[NukaCola]

Thanks. I'm not sure if I'm completely sold by the ASRock. I like the bluetooth capability of the ASUS, but perhaps it's not worth an extra $50. I'm not too familiar with the ASRock brand either.

 

[lehtv]

Asrock used to have a crappy reputation, but they've been among the decent brands for years now. Extreme3 has received pretty good feedback from users. Granted it only has 2 year warranty and no internal USB3 headers, but that just allows it to be priced lower.

 

[mfenn]

Thanks. I'm not sure if I'm completely sold by the ASRock. I like the bluetooth capability of the ASUS, but perhaps it's not worth an extra $50. I'm not too familiar with the ASRock brand either.

Bluetooth is definitely not worth $50. All it is is a $13 USB Bluetooth module that is pre-packaged with the board. I'd say the ASRock is a much better deal. If you really want ASUS though, the P8Z68-V LE is $120 AP now.

 

[NukaCola]

Ended up going with the ASrock anyway, along with that dual fan version of the graphics card I wanted. Should be delivered today. Thanks again for the help!

 

[mfenn]

Nice deal, the ASRock Z68 Extreme3 is a good board, especially for $115 AR.