1200-1500 Gaming PC

[Hagarat]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: now
BUDGET RANGE: 1200-1500
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming of course : )
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: DVD, monitor
OVERCLOCKING: Yes, as long as it's not to complicated
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1600x1200

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
I was looking at the $1300 SBM rig and was thinking about getting it, but I'm worried about the cooling issues and the problems they had with the Xigmatek in that case.
An issue I have is that I'd really prefer a Micro ATX case for portability as I'll be moving to South America soon and don't want to haul around a giant case.

Any help is greatly appreciated.


Cheers,

HagaRat

 

[kufan64]

I've been building an i7 gaming machine for myself over the past couple of months, (just need to get the video card) and it's in your price range. I'll link the parts and their cost (before MIR's and shipping costs) from newegg below.

i7 920 $280
ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 $290
Corsair 850TX $140
Corsair XMS3 3x2GB DDR3 1333 $110
WD Caviar Black 500GB HDD $70 each (I recommend at least 2 in a RAID 0 configuration; thats what I've got)
EVGA GTX 275 $240
Creative X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro $140

All that comes to about $1,340 (again before shipping costs and MIR's) with 2 of the HDD's I listed.

I didn't include a case, but as long as the one you want is getting positive reviews, it's really more personal taste than anything IMO. I chose this one: Antec P182 $145
It's heavy which you probably won't like, but I would stay away from micro ATX boards and smaller cases if you want to build an expensive gaming rig, if only because it's a lot harder to keep their temperatures down. (especially in South America, I assume) I'd hate to see you fry your $1,500 PC.

This setup will be able to overclock very well if you choose to do so, it supports SLI if you want to slap another GTX 275 in there at some point in the future, and I've been very happy with it so far. It's a solid build, and should upgrade very well over the years.

Let me know what you think, I've done a ton of research on exactly what you appear to be looking for.

 

[Hagarat]

Jung made this post http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/264733-31-i7cube and I like the idea of an i7 cube system but it seems he's having cooling issues. Are there better cooling options out there? I don't care if I have to leave the case open. I find that my PCs are open even if there isn't cooling issues.


LIAN LI PC-V351B Black Aluminum MicroATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Lian Li TR-5B Fan Control

LOW-7000 Socket LGA1366/775, 7CM Low Profile Cooler

EVGA 896-P3-1173-AR GeForce GTX 275 FTW Edition 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 SLI Supported Video Card -

ASUS Rampage II GENE LGA 1366 Intel X58 uATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ...

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail

 

[Hagarat]

Just in looking around, I'm tempted to bite the bullet and get a SX58H7. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101082&Tpk=SX58H7

Tom's did a good review about a month back. http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/shuttle-sx58h7-sff,2282.html It looks like they were able to push it to over 3.5 GHz and it'll fit the longer video cards.

I'm interested to hear other views.

 

[kufan64]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the SX58H7 appears to only include the case, PSU, and mobo. That makes the $650 price tag a little extreme IMO. That's over $100 more expensive than what I paid for those 3 components for my PC. You'll also be limited to either 2 single slot cards, or one dual slot card, which should be fine, but it's much less upgradeable than a full size ATX board. I also wouldn't recommend overclocking it to any large degree, as it appears to have problems sufficiently cooling everything if you run it hot.

If you want portability and convenience over performance and upgradeability, it might just be the thing for you though.

 

[Why_Me]

Here's a nice little single card set up that comes with a red LED modular psu to match the case. That case is lighter than a lot of MATX cases not to mention it comes with a carrying handle. It's new to the market, and it's made with LANS in mind.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119196 $99.99
COOLER MASTER Storm Scout SGC-2000-KKN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Free shipping w/ promo code EMCLTLR22, while supplies last

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10009795 $74.99 ($49.99 after MIR)
OCZ OCZ550FTY 550W Active Power Supply Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U3R $178.99 | $163.99 after rebate | Free Ground Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CrossFireX/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard

https://www.antaresdigital.com/customer/product.php?productid=16135&cat=282&page=1" $ 280.00
Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 Socket 8MB Cache CPU D0 Stepping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $39.99
XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154003 $4.99
Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130475 $239.99 ($219.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 896-P3-1170-AR GeForce GTX 275 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Free Cryostasis game w/ registration at manufacturer website

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247 $94.99 Free Shipping*
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8TU-6GBPI - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319 $74.99 Free Shipping*
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 $23.99
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $1,113.90 | $1,053.90 w/mail in rebates

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx?ITPID=mscomsc <--- Save yourself some money on an o/s until March 2010 and dl the 64 bit version of Windows 7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128375 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of that Gigabyte UD3P mobo used in this build

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of that psu used in this build

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=1665&product_id=2912 <--- more pics, specs, and professional reviews of the case used in this build

http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=584 <---short review on that D0 stepping i7. It runs cooler than the older C0 stepping i7's

http://www.fudzilla.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11773&Itemid=1 <--- that's one way you can tell if you have a D0 stepping cpu or not

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/page-261066_10_0.html <--- Fixes with that D0 stepping i7 920

 

[Hagarat]

Here's what I went with:

Shuttle SX58H7 Intel X58 Barebone - Retail $650
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101082

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail $280
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

XFX GX260NADFF GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB - Retail $185 (FarCry2 and COD5 for an extra $20? Why not.)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150329

G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel F3-12800CL8TU-6GBPI - Retail $ 95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM $75
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

With rush shipping the total was $1302

Tom's used some $150 Kingston RAM in their review but I went the G.Skill that Why recommended. Thanks for the tip on Win 7 too, Why. Had the size been an issue, I'd prolly woulda gone with your build but I don't really trust airline ppl with new rig. This one's really small and I'll be able to fit it in a carry on. I just hope they'll let me take it on the plane. I was gonna go with a cheaper rig like the $600 cube SBM, but I noticed newegg doesn't ship internationally and I'd be stuck with it for a while.

Thanks for all the advice all