$1,500 Build for SW:TOR

[sithaeysh]

Approximate Purchase Date: Before the release of Star Wars the Old Republic

Budget Range: 1500 dollars AFTER rebates.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: playing Star Wars The Old Republic on maximum graphics settings with the highest fps.

Parts Not Required: Have a Tron Keyboard/Mouse and a HP Monitor.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Honestly somewhere reliable and trustworthy.

Country of Origin: United States of America / Georgia / Atlanta

Parts Preferences: For the processor I already have my heart set on an i7...

Overclocking: Whats that?

SLI or Crossfire: Whats that?

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200

Additional Comments: I have had my current computer for 12 years now, I played WoW and some other video games, but I never really wanted to spend the money until now. The Star Wars: The Old Republic is coming out fairly soon, and I have decided to purchase a system, I can put it together no problem, but I really don't want to mess it up, I want it to be perfect for this game. I already have a tower, which is the NZXT Phantom, its Red. Also have the Tron Keyboard and Mouse from razer, and I have a really nice monitor. I would greatly appreciate any help!

 

[wintermint]

I don't think SW Tor will require $1500.. The i5-2500k matches up to the i7-2600k in games, no worry and no sweat either. The extra $100 or so price tag tacked on the i7-2600k isn't justifiable unless you plan to be doing editing/designing/3D work.. in that case you will need the hyper threading.

i5-2500k $220
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

MSI P67A-G45 $120 [$100 after MIR]
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130582

Kingston HyperX 2x4GB DDR3 1600mhz $55
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104173

PNY VCGGTX560TXPB GeForce GTX 560 Ti $225 [$195 after MIR]
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133377

Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

NZXT Phantom $0

Antec Earthwatt EA750 Modular $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371026

Sony Optiarc CD/DVD Burner $20
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118039

This comes up to $790 before MIR/ $740 after MIR. The 560 ti is already a beast. You should wait until the game comes out and see how it performs. If you want more graphic power, then buy another 560 ti to run SLI. The board I chose has single x16 or dual x8,x8. I chose an Antec PSU because it's modular. You may choose another optical drive, but that sony one has no white words in the front. If I remember correctly you open the front panel of the NZXT Phantom to access the drives. You are also free to find another model of RAM or GPU. I chose the cheapest of each but Kingstons do work fine. I use them myself and haven't had a problem yet.

 

[sithaeysh]

well that is the amount of money im going to be spending on it anyway, the game i will be mainly playing is SW TOR but I also want a computer that is really high end, so that is why im spending the 1500 and trying to find someone who knows whats what with computers.

 

[wintermint]

I added some extra sentences to the first post. Well that is high end already. You can opt for a Z68 motherboard since they're newer. i5-2500k is the best bang for the buck until you require hyperthreading .which is the 2600k but no noticeable gain in gaming between the two. SLI is when you run two graphic cards. If you want you can go for a single GTX 580 around $450-500. If you buy two, you will need at least 1000W-1200W to be on the safe side. You will also be able to run Crysis 2 on direct 11 max settings.

Do note: If you're mainly running SW TOR.. you will be building a complete overkill system with $1500 in mind. Look at the build I suggested for aronud $800. The $800 will handle SW Tor fine no probs. The other suggestions I made on this post will be able to tackle Crysis 2 smoothly [2x 580]. If you have no plans to do any high end gaming [SW Tor/WoW are not high end gaming], it will be stupid to spend 2x as much on computer parts that you won't even use to its fullest potential. The i7-2600k is highly advised against if you're mainly gaming because the it's $100 for like 1% increase in gaming performance. Games mainly depend on GPU anyway. 560 ti rocks... 570 or 580 if you want better.

 

[sithaeysh]

thank you, It looks like all my preconceived notions are wrong it will run wow / swtor at very high fps? like 60? I built my dads computer and so far its really high performance, i7 etc and money really isnt an object, whether or not i use all 1500 dollars, i still have it laying around, and i dont really have anything else to spend it on, so you are saying that if i get the i5 2500k it will still perform about the same except for the 1% increase? And I was also looking at dual channel ram, preferably corsair, but is there any noticeable difference when running wow as to the performance? (sorry i am a complete newcomer in these parts, so i have no idea why certain things run better, like i dont know what hyperthreading is)

 

[wintermint]

Yes in gaming performance between the i5-2500k and i7-2600k you will not really notice any increase. It's definitely not worth the $100. WoW doesn't require much. My friend runs Starcraft 2 using a 5770 and it's fine for him. Most laptops can handle WoW just fine with their mobile discrete graphics. The 560 ti will run WoW just fine [overkill for WoW haha]. Here's a benchmark http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/330 Crysis and Metro 2033 are games that requires good graphic cards if you plan to run them at high settings and good resolutions. As you can see the 560 ti will work like a charm. You will be using half your budget. You can spend the rest on whatever you want. Live a little . If you want more power go for the 570 or 580. The 6950 is a good choice too.

One more thing. You will be hitting the 100s in fps in WoW Cataclysm.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gtx-560-ti-gf114,2845-12.html

Hyper-Threading is useful if you plan to be doing 3D rendering, editing, and designs beause it's better-utilized in threaded workloads. Hyper threading is only included in the i7. For gaming purposes, hyperthreading is useless.