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!

 

[blazorthon]

I'm sorry when did I suggest to him to get X79? If you read my post carefully, I said I got an X79 system with a similar budget, and that is not the same as suggesting him to get an X79. Maybe you should spend less time assuming what other people say first before attacking them?

You suggested it. That's not the same as recommending it, but you suggested it by bringing it up.

 

[Quantum01]

You suggested it. That's not the same as recommending it, but you suggested it by bringing it up.

I did not suggest it. I never write anything to suggest him to buy an X79 system. Bringing it up is an ENTIRELY different thing than suggesting it. I don't think people need a degree in English literature to understand the difference between suggesting someone to get something and bringing something up in a discussion.

 

[Quantum01]

A 7950 has lower stock voltage than a 7970. That lets the 7970 go higher when you don't bring the 7950's voltage up to the 7970 stock voltage range. You need to account for that when doing research.

That XFX 7950 isn't even one of the good 7950 models.

I actually account for the fact that the 7950 become unstable past 1200 Mhz GPU core no matter how much additional voltage is given as indicated by the reviews (both the Saphire and the XFX one) and thus the Gigabyte 7970 still has higher overclocking head room when same voltage are given to both cards.

This review here shows that Gigabyte HD 7970 actually achieves 1305 Mhz Core with additional voltage increase as compared to the maximum 1200 Mhz core (no matter how high voltage are given to the 7950).

If the OP wants to save money and get the 7950 instead, that is perfectly understandable, but to claim that 7950 has the exact same overclocking headroom as the 7970 is actually wrong.

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/02/08/gigabyte_radeon_hd_7970_oc_video_card_review/3

 

[azeem40]

It does have the same headroom. Both can be OCed by a certain number, but since the 7970 is binned at 100 MHz more, it is totally possible. OC headroom doesn't mean it OCs to the same levels, but that it OCs just as much over stock.

 

[blazorthon]

I actually account for the fact that the 7950 become unstable past 1200 Mhz GPU core no matter how much additional voltage is given as indicated by the reviews (both the Saphire and the XFX one) and thus the Gigabyte 7970 still has higher overclocking head room when same voltage are given to both cards.

This review here shows that Gigabyte HD 7970 actually achieves 1305 Mhz Core with additional voltage increase as compared to the maximum 1200 Mhz core (no matter how high voltage are given to the 7950).

If the OP wants to save money and get the 7950 instead, that is perfectly understandable, but to claim that 7950 has the exact same overclocking headroom as the 7970 is actually wrong.

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/02/08/gigabyte_radeon_hd_7970_oc_video_card_review/3

This is the article with the latest drivers.
www.hardocp.com/article/2012/08/23/galaxy_gtx_660_ti_gc_oc_vs_670_hd_7950/

You're comparing an XFX 7950 to a Gigabyte Windforce 7970 and that doesn't apply to what I've said about the 7950. Compare the Gigabyte Windforce 7950 to the 7970 version and then you'll have a good comparison.

 

[azeem40]

This is the article with the latest drivers.
www.hardocp.com/article/2012/08/23/galaxy_gtx_660_ti_gc_oc_vs_670_hd_7950/

 

[Flare01]

It does have the same headroom. Both can be OCed by a certain number, but since the 7970 is binned at 100 MHz more, it is totally possible. OC headroom doesn't mean it OCs to the same levels, but that it OCs just as much over stock.

Overclocking headroom means how much overclocling potential the card has, not how much it can overclock over stock as compared to another card. The arguement here is that since you claim that both 7950 and 7970 is has the same overclocking headroom, if that is true, then both card should achieve about the same clock given the same amount of voltage because they are both the same chip. The review linked by Quantum clearly indicated the opposite, HD 7970 can achieve a higher and stable overclock than a 7950 counterpart.

 

[azeem40]

Not what I meant to say. I was talking about how much it OCs over stock. Of course it is less powerful than a 7970 OCed to 1.3 GHz.

 

[azeem40]

You're comparing an XFX 7950 to a Gigabyte Windforce 7970 and that doesn't apply to what I've said about the 7950. Compare the Gigabyte Windforce 7950 to the 7970 version and then you'll have a good comparison.

I don't see any benchmark out that compares that. All this talk isn't helping the OP anyway. I think he has a good understanding of what parts to use, so let's just wait for him to reply.

 

[fire r a g e]

Since most of the games I play are mixed, I am still pretty confused on which GPU to choose. This is harder than I thought.

 

[blazorthon]

Rest assured that pretty much any choice will probably make you happy. Just be sure that the price makes you happy and that you get what you want for that price.

 

[fire r a g e]

OK, I will come up with a build.
I think I have an idea on how to find parts, so please tell me whether or not I made a good choice, and of course, changes and opinions are appreciated.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14CS 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar D1 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($78.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($135.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($24.97 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Wired Gaming Keyboard ($86.97 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Razer Naga 2012 Wired Laser Mouse ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1916.92
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-10 03:11 EDT-0400)

 

[azeem40]

Looks good, although get a HDD from WD or Seagate. Hitachi has high failure rates from what I hear.

 

[tuganu]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3820 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.98 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler ($82.65 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock X79 Extreme6 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($238.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Intel 520 Series Cherryville 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($119.98 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($413.78 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master HAF XM (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair 850W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($144.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($90.46 @ Amazon)
Total: $1656.29
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-10 03:44 EDT-0400)

 

[blazorthon]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/h3tT/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3820 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.98 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler ($82.65 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock X79 Extreme6 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($238.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Intel 520 Series Cherryville 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($119.98 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($413.78 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master HAF XM (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair 850W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($144.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS90 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($90.46 @ Amazon)
Total: $1656.29
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-10 03:44 EDT-0400)

Why would you recommend that OP waste money on an X79 system to get much weaker graphics than other builds here, a much weaker SSD, and unnecessarily high RAM capacity?

 

[nafoni]

OK, I will come up with a build.
I think I have an idea on how to find parts, so please tell me whether or not I made a good choice, and of course, changes and opinions are appreciated.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14CS 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar D1 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($78.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($135.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($24.97 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Wired Gaming Keyboard ($86.97 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Razer Naga 2012 Wired Laser Mouse ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1916.92
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-10 03:11 EDT-0400)

Yes, it looks good.

I would still do some minor changes, but because you people somehow managed to waste four pages looking at benchmarks with so small differences that hardly makes a difference when actually using the computer, it's hard for me to know 100% what you want with this, because I cba to read through four pages of this.

Anyway, just to quickly mention what I mean:

Noctua NH-D14 > CM Hyper 212 EVO > Other CPU coolers
2x 670 > 2x 7970 > 2x 7950
RAM costs more than it has to
No need to waste money on sound cards
Mouse and keyboard expensive

 

[ojas]

man if you crossfire or sli any 2 cards in that price range you'll get 60fps at that resolution for quite some time. 7950, 670, 7970, all are good cards.

Radeons tend to pull ahead at higher resolutions, maybe because of higher VRAM. Also if you're getting really confused, get two 7970s and call it a day, i think it'll still fit your budget with ease.

So yeah, two overclocked 7950s or two 7970s. i dont think the GHz editons will make too much difference in your case. if you find a cheap but good one then have fun.

scaling is never perfect, so take it as about 185% (of one card) averagely. it's usually above this value.

 

[ojas]

OK, I will come up with a build.
I think I have an idea on how to find parts, so please tell me whether or not I made a good choice, and of course, changes and opinions are appreciated.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14CS 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card (CrossFire) ($312.55 @ Newegg)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar D1 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($78.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($135.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($24.97 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Wired Gaming Keyboard ($86.97 @ Newegg)
Mouse: Razer Naga 2012 Wired Laser Mouse ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1916.92
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-10 03:11 EDT-0400)

Hmmm...i just went through your last build. Arguably some things i wouldn't have done, but what the heck, not going to confuse you any more.

Anyway, i just put together that build of yours on newegg, with some tiny modification.

I added a core i7 3770, an AsRock Extreme6, and two Sapphire 7970s.

I'm getting a total of $2286 (including everything you've listed), with $65 in MIRs, a free 60GB OCZ agillity 3 and two DiRT Showdown coupons. In raw value terms that's about $265 off.

Of course, how much importance that stuff holds depends on you. Cut back to a 3570k and you'll be under 2k again (considering the rebates and freebies), plus you could save $20 bucks on the RAM and DVD drive combined.

Perhaps change the cooler. Mild OC= Hyper 212 EVO + maybe Arctic Silver 5 or equivalent, and the Noctua DH-14 if you want a real good high-end thing.

...and that's about all i can think of tweaking. Maybe the HDD too (probably look at a WD Green or Red), but then i stopped reading some of the posts in b/w so i dunno if that's what's led you to this current choice..

Btw My insistence on the Extreme6 has been because:

The tightest overall competition pits ASRock against MSI. MSI wins overall CPU overclocking and ASRock has the highest CPU base clock. ECS might have joined the value-overclocking race with the highest dual-DIMM memory data rate, but its $220 price tag is significantly higher than its competition. MSI’s PCIe 3.0 x4 slot beats ASRocks PCIe 2.0 x4 slot for bandwidth, while ASRock’s x4 slot has the advantage of not stealing lanes away from the two primary graphics slots.

( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-extreme6-z77a-gd65-z77h2-a2x,3187-22.html )

You may need to check if your PSU can handle two 7970s and an OC'd 3570k/3770k, should you actually consider my "pushing the price limits" build.

EDIT: you'll get another $10 off, free 16GB USB drive :lol:

 

[sherlockwing]

Hmmm...i just went through your last build. Arguably some things i wouldn't have done, but what the heck, not going to confuse you any more.

Anyway, i just put together that build of yours on newegg, with some tiny modification.

I added a core i7 3770, an AsRock Extreme6, and two Sapphire 7970s.

I'm getting a total of $2286 (including everything you've listed), with $65 in MIRs, a free 60GB OCZ agillity 3 and two DiRT Showdown coupons. In raw value terms that's about $265 off.

Of course, how much importance that stuff holds depends on you. Cut back to a 3570k and you'll be under 2k again (considering the rebates and freebies), plus you could save $20 bucks on the RAM and DVD drive combined.

Perhaps change the cooler. Mild OC= Hyper 212 EVO + maybe Arctic Silver 5 or equivalent, and the Noctua DH-14 if you want a real good high-end thing.

...and that's about all i can think of tweaking. Maybe the HDD too (probably look at a WD Green or Red), but then i stopped reading some of the posts in b/w so i dunno if that's what's led you to this current choice..

Btw My insistence on the Extreme6 has been because:

The tightest overall competition pits ASRock against MSI. MSI wins overall CPU overclocking and ASRock has the highest CPU base clock. ECS might have joined the value-overclocking race with the highest dual-DIMM memory data rate, but its $220 price tag is significantly higher than its competition. MSI’s PCIe 3.0 x4 slot beats ASRocks PCIe 2.0 x4 slot for bandwidth, while ASRock’s x4 slot has the advantage of not stealing lanes away from the two primary graphics slots.

( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-extreme6-z77a-gd65-z77h2-a2x,3187-22.html )

You may need to check if your PSU can handle two 7970s and an OC'd 3570k/3770k, should you actually consider my "pushing the price limits" build.

EDIT: you'll get another $10 off, free 16GB USB drive :lol:

PH-TC14PE have matched or beaten NH-D14 in multiple reviews in temperature so it is a high end cooler already, at 69.99(or $20 less than NH-D14 SE2011) it is a much better deal.

Get Extreme 4(also a Tom's recommended) over 6 or the ASUS it is now selling for 134.99 and give you 8G of G.Skill Ares DDR3-1600 memory(CAS9),much rather have 8G of Ram worth $42 than 60G of SSD.

3770K offer no advantage in gaming, only spend the extra $110 if you need to Video encode 24/7 or do something else that need hyper threading a lot.

In the best case scenario for 3770K(Gaming & Video encoding at the same time), 3770K net you a whooping 2 FPS over 3570K for $110.

Otherwise 3570K is just as good for $110 less.

 

[Tavo_Nova]

an i7 3570k
good old crucial or intel SSD
any 8gb 1600mhz cl9 corsair or g.skill or kingston if you want
any 7850/7870/7950/7970 in CF from sapphire
or
any660ti/670/680 in SLI from msi/asus/giga

go with asrock extreme4 but i do like the looks of the extreme6 better just my opinion.

should fit your budget nicely.

 

[nafoni]

You can get the NH-D14 for 70$.
http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=47090&vpn=NH-D14&manufacture=Noctua&promoid=1373

Noctua is a better known brand than Phanteks, and the NH-D14, along with the Hyper 212, is definitely the two most popular aftermarket CPU coolers on the market to date.

 

[blazorthon]

If the Phanteks cooler is better and isn't more expensive, then I'd buy it regardless of brand recognition, but only if it's better.

 

[blazorthon]

an i7 3570k
good old crucial or intel SSD
any 8gb 1600mhz cl9 corsair or g.skill or kingston if you want
any 7850/7870/7950/7970 in CF from sapphire
or
any660ti/670/680 in SLI from msi/asus/giga

go with asrock extreme4 but i do like the looks of the extreme6 better just my opinion.

should fit your budget nicely.

Samsung SSDs and pretty much any other Marvell-based SSD are also extremely reliable.

 

[nafoni]

I feel like we're confusing this guy way too much.

I'll try to settle something with this post. All part picks based on the info OP gave in his first post.

CPU
You're listing "Gaming (BF3, Skyrim, GW2), minor video editing, web browsing, watching youtube in 1080p quality" as your main uses for your computer. This means i5 is the way to go. You said yes to overclocking.

i5-3570K is your only option.

CPU cooler
I'd say it all depends on how much you're going to overclock.
<4,2GHz (as far as it goes without upping the voltage) - Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
4,2GHz+ - Noctua NH-D14
You can argue with me as much as you want on this one, but the difference here isn't really huge either. I like Noctua over the Phanteks cooler because Noctua, and especially their NH-D14 cooler, is just so much more popular than the Phanteks, which I haven't even heard of.

Motherboard
There are tons of motherboards out there. You want CF/SLI support, USB 3.0, SATA 6Gbps, UEFI. You also want the LGA 1155 socket and the Z77 chipset since you're overclocking. Tons of motherboards offer this functionality. I'll list some boards below. You can't go wrong with any of them. None of them will give you better performance than others.
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H
ASrock Z77 Extreme4
ASUS P8Z77-V LK

I don't see any reason to spend more on motherboards than this, unless there are some specific features you want. If you want WiFi, get a separate add-on card. So how do you decide between them? Pick the one with the best number of ports to suit your needs, look for the cheapest if you want to, or just go with the brand you like the most (if any).

RAM
RAM is RAM. All you want here is the cheapest possible RAM from a quality company that has the following specifications: 8GB - 2x4GB (I see no reason to go higher than this for your uses), 1600MHz, CAS 9, 1,5V.
I would close it down to this.
If you want to, use some extra $ to find the specific brand that you like and/or the look of the RAM that you like best.
Again - getting RAM with better specifications will not give you noticeable performance increases for your uses. There is as good as no difference between RAM as long as they have the same specifications.

SSD
There are tons of good SSDs out there. There is no need to start looking at benchmarks to find the best SSD. You will notice 0 difference between similarly priced benchmarked drives in the real world.
These days the Crucial M4, Samsung 830 and OCZ Vertex 4 are among the most popular and best SSDs. The two latter ones won each of their price categories in Tom's Hardware best SSDs for the money August 2012.

HDD
If you don't mind spending a bit more to get WD's extended warranty, do that. Otherwise, I'd opt for a Seagate drive. They are cheap and give you very good performance, but has a limited warranty. Again - performance differences between HDDs are so small. You just need them for storing stuff on them anyway, so speed isn't really that important. Just make sure it's at least 7200RPM.

GPU
You're playing on a high resolution, so I would close it down to one of AMD's 3GB 79X0 cards. Go 2x7970 if you don't mind spending the extra money, otherwise just go 2x7950. You will benefit from their 1GB more VRAM than the GTX 670 since you are playing on a high resolution.

PSU
You want one that is 80 plus bronze/silver/gold certified, and you want 750W (850W if you find a good discount, but 750W will handle everything just fine). You don't need a modular one, since you'll be using all your PCIE cables with your SLI video cards anyway. I know XFX has a good deal on their PSU which is 10$ cheaper, but I just feel more safe + I like the look better of this extremely popular Corsair TX750W V2. It's one of the two cheapest quality PSUs I can find on this list, in addition to the XFX PSU.

Case
As always, don't let anyone tell you to get THAT case. You want a case that you like the look of. I'd recommend looking at for example Corsair, Cooler Master, Antec and NZXT cases. The Rosewill Thor V2 case is very good too, if you want to go with that one.

Optical drive
The cheapest one you can find.

 

[blazorthon]

Actually, on the VRAM argument, it is mostly AMD's memory bandwidth advantage that is the real kicker, not so much the capacity. It's still true, but it's not the capacity that is what helps AMD the most, it's the bandwidth. Most games are still fine with 2GB even at 2560x1440/2560x1600 with heavy AA and such, but they eat through memory bandwidth greatly and Nvidia (especially on their 660 Ti) does not have enough of it with their Kepler GPUs.