Battlefield 3 Build - $2k

[fire r a g e]

Hey everyone. It has been a long time since I have posted on THG and a lot has changed since then (I have been keeping up with the updates). I have been researching a lot over the past few months, but I still don't think I can come up with a config on my own, so I need help from you all.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming (BF3, Skyrim, GW2), minor video editing, web browsing, watching youtube in 1080p quality.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$2k, although if REALLY necessary, I can stretch it a bit ($100 to $200 more)
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
U.S. Dallas, TX

4) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
None.
5) Will you be overclocking?
Yes.
6) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
2560x1440; 27"
7) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
September 14 when my paycheck comes
8) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
Maybe CF/SLI support, if I need it, USB 3.0, SATA 6GB/s, UEFI.
9) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes, 64-bit W7 Home Premium.

Thanks!

 

[jacknhut]

Dont have to worry about GW2 a single GTX 670 can play the game at very high FPS with everything maxed. I play GW2 with a single GTX 670 usually pulling 80+ FPS with everything maxed.

EDIT: It is just not a very demanding game.

Can you post a screen shot of different areas where you get 80+ fps with a single GTX 670 at max settings? I got 2 GTX 670 heavily oced to 1270 Mhz GPU/7 Ghz memory and i only got 40-90 fps at only 1920-1200 res.

 

[redeemer]

This is a great build for gaming.

cpu - i5 3570k http://www.microcenter.com/product/388577/Core_i5_3570K_34GHz_LGA_1155_Processor

cpu cooler - cm hyper 212 evo http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

mobo - gigabyte z77 ud5h http://www.microcenter.com/product/386359/GA-Z77X-UD5H_LGA_1155_Z77_ATX_Motherboard

ram - g.skill ares 8gb http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231546

gpu#1 - evga gtx 670 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130787

gpu#2 - evga gtx 670 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130787

hdd - wd 1tb http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236339

ssd - samsung 830 128gb http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147134

psu - corsair tx750 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021

case - corsair 500r http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139009

optical drive - samsung http://www.microcenter.com/product/382892/22X_DVD%c2%b1RW_Burner_with_Dual_Layer_Support_-_OEM

If you want you can get a i7 3770k and 8gb more ram for the video editing but you did say minor editing so what I have should be fine. The total even if you add the i7 and extra ram will be under $2000.

This is an excellent build, wouldnt recommend Asrock over Gigabyte motherboard, if you are gaming @ 2560x1440 than go with Crossfire 7950's. Crysis 2 ultra on 2560x1440 would bottleneck and hit the fps limit on only 2GB vram.

 

[blazorthon]

Yes, I plan to OC my card(s). How do I know what voltages to use if I go beyond the OC the cards get at stock voltage?

Keeping GPU voltage below 1.3v would probably prevent any issues.

 

[redeemer]

Can you post a screen shot of different areas where you get 80+ fps with a single GTX 670 at max settings? I got 2 GTX 670 heavily oced to 1270 Mhz GPU/7 Ghz memory and i only got 40-90 fps at only 1920-1200 res.

what cpu?

 

[fire r a g e]

wouldnt recommend Asrock over Gigabyte motherboardCrysis 2 ultra on 2560x1440 would bottleneck and hit the fps limit on only 2GB vram.

I don't plan on playing Crysis 2.

wouldnt recommend Asrock over Gigabyte motherboard

Why is that? From what I hear, ASRock is just as good.

 

[blazorthon]

I don't plan on playing Crysis 2.


Why is that? From what I hear, ASRock is just as good.

IMO, I'd usually go ASRock over Gigabyte... I think that Gigabyte has lost their touch lately.

 

[redeemer]

Yes, I plan to OC my card(s). How do I know what voltages to use if I go beyond the OC the cards get at stock voltage?

Around 1.28v gets you 1200-1250 mhz most of the time, should be good up too 1.3v the only problem is the cooling!

 

[jacknhut]

what cpu?

i7 3820 @ 4.5 Ghz

 

[fire r a g e]

Around 1.28v gets you 1200-1250 mhz most of the time, should be good up too 1.3v the only problem is the cooling!

What cooler has that problem?

 

[blazorthon]

Around 1.28v gets you 1200-1250 mhz most of the time, should be good up too 1.3v the only problem is the cooling!

Avoiding AMD reference coolers should leave the cooling just fine. Pretty much any good non-reference cooler can keep AMD's 7900 cards from being obnoxiously loud even with substantial overclocks with near 1.3v and cna handle the heat excellently. 7900, even near 1.3v, isn't using too much power. AMD is good with their overclocking power consumption with the GCN GPUs.

 

[fire r a g e]

From all the reviews, I have decided on one part: The Corsair Carbide 500R Mid-Tower Case.

I forgot one thing: I have a DVD Drive already.

 

[sherlockwing]

Avoiding AMD reference coolers should leave the cooling just fine. Pretty much any good non-reference cooler can keep AMD's 7900 cards from being obnoxiously loud even with substantial overclocks with near 1.3v and cna handle the heat excellently. 7900, even near 1.3v, isn't using too much power. AMD is good with their overclocking power consumption with the GCN GPUs.

😱 standard 7970 maybe(still more than both Nvidia), Ghz no way, still a lot more than Kepler.

 

[blazorthon]

I usually just get one of the cheapest DVD burners that I can.

 

[redeemer]

IMO, I'd usually go ASRock over Gigabyte... I think that Gigabyte has lost their touch lately.

In terms of reliability Asrock is no where near Gigabyte the UD5H has more phases and would overclock higher than the Extreme 4, Asrock uses lower quality vrm's. Furthermore the Gigabyte's bios is more polished than Arock's

 

[redeemer]

Like I said, I don't care much for power consumption. From what I hear around the forums is that 6xx and 7xxx are known for their power consumption. So please don't factor that in to video card suggestions for me.


Kind of a moot point considering I will only OC to 4.2 GHz.

If you dont care for quality than yeah Asrock will be fine

 

[blazorthon]

http://media.bestofmicro.com/9/Z/342503/original/average system load power.png

standard 7970 yes, Ghz no way.

You have to overclock it yourself. AMD's stock voltages are often far too high. For example, pretty much all 7950s can be overclocked to almost 1GHz GPU frequency on stock voltage and they meet or beat the 7970 at that point, yet don't use much more power than a stock 7950. The 7970 and the 7970 GHz Edition could probably use huge undervolting without problems.

 

[fire r a g e]

Like I said, I don't care much for power consumption. From what I hear around the forums is that 6xx and 7xxx are known for their power consumption. So please don't factor that in to video card suggestions for me.

In terms of reliability Asrock is no where near Gigabyte the UD5H has more phases and would overclock higher than the Extreme 4, Asrock uses lower quality vrm's. Furthermore the Gigabyte's bios is more polished than Arock's

Kind of a moot point considering I will only OC to 4.2 GHz.

 

[blazorthon]

If you dont care for quality than yeah Asrock will be fine

The capability to do more than it will be used to do and at a higher price than an alternative is paying more money for something that won't be used. Even then, the effective overclocking differences are too significant anyway. I'm not saying that the Gigabyte board isn't better there, it's just not so much better that OP should sepnd more money if OP isn't going to make use of it's advantages.

 

[blazorthon]

In terms of reliability Asrock is no where near Gigabyte the UD5H has more phases and would overclock higher than the Extreme 4, Asrock uses lower quality vrm's. Furthermore the Gigabyte's bios is more polished than Arock's

Compare the pricing differences and then say that again. ASRock offers better value.

 

[fire r a g e]

If not for the GW2 wildcard in this, two 7950s would be my recommendation, but I'm going to look up how differently GW2 handles Nvidia from AMD before finalizing a recommendation.

Take your time. I have time.

@ Redeemer:
I only plan to OC to 4.2 GHz. IVB only heats up when you tweak the voltages, which I do not plan on doing.

 

[fire r a g e]

I guess two cards is going to be it. Now to decide which cards to CF/SLI.

 

[blazorthon]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/guild-wars-2-performance-benchmark,3268-6.html

I'm now comfortable recommending the 7950s.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125414

 

[blazorthon]

I guess two cards is going to be it. Now to decide which cards to CF/SLI.

If not for the GW2 wildcard in this, two 7950s would be my recommendation, but I'm going to look up how differently GW2 handles Nvidia from AMD before finalizing a recommendation.

 

[redeemer]

Compare the pricing differences and then say that again. ASRock offers better value.

What does that even mean? There is a reason why the UD5H is more, the extreme 4 has vrm overheating issues. If your are going to overclock the cpu heavily than you need more quality phases which equals less ripple. Asrock boards are good but they are for penny pinchers nothing wrong with that though

 

[redeemer]

If you don't overclock a CPU enough for more and better VRM to matter, then it doesn't matter. OP doesn't intend to overclock significantly, so it'd be a waste to buy more than will be used.

I know I have already commented on his post about overclocking, my statements were directed at you. Extreme 4 is a solid solution!