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!

 

[ojas]

+1 to nafoni. Most organized post so far on this thread 😀

 

[azeem40]

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

I think he should go with the EVO because 4.2 Ghz isn't high at all. I have the EVO and my 2500k can reach 4.5 GHz.
For the GPU issue, the 7970s are now better than the 670s. Also, if you look at http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/08/23/galaxy_gtx_660_ti_gc_oc_vs_670_hd_7950/ the 7950 is better value for cheaper.

I agree with the sound card.
As for KB and mouse, that is personal preference. The Keyboard is one of the best low-end mechanical keyboards. They may be expensive, but they still put the OP below his max.

 

[JamesSneed]

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.

I did some more testing in GW2 and it appears it varies much more than I had realized. Im at 1080p res. I run a 2500k at 4.2 Ghz and the gtx 670 is only at 945 Mhz but im seeing 40-80's. It looks like my average is around 70 FPS with short drops here and there. This meshes with what TH found as well. Many people getting getting poor utilization of SLI setups which I expect will get resolved in the next WHQL certified drivers from Nvidia(Just assuming but due to popularity of the game it probably will make the list).


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

 

[fire r a g e]

If my build looks good, thanks for all the help!

 

[fire r a g e]

I think we should get past all this. If no one has any objections to my build, I will be buying soon.

 

[tuganu]

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?

in case you hadn't noticed. the build i chose is 1600 dollars he can tweak it to his budget. im just giving a basis. if OP just buys what anyone says without researching and coming up with opinions based on budget and uses. then that is just stupid

 

[tuganu]

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?

and also what part of a 7970 is weak. fully overclocked it can beat a gtx 680 overclocked to its max. the 7970 is a GREAT card

 

[ojas]

I think this article came at just the right time.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-660-ti-memory-bandwidth-anti-aliasing,3283.html

The 7950s are perfect, pretty much. Have fun.

p.s. note the details settings, apart from the AA, are "high" not "highest". So no, you'll not see those kinds of frame rates with 1 card! 😀

 

[blazorthon]

and also what part of a 7970 is weak. fully overclocked it can beat a gtx 680 overclocked to its max. the 7970 is a GREAT card

I never said that the 7970 is weak. I said that it is much weaker than two 7950s in CF because it is. A good 7950 can overclock about as well as a 79709 with the same cooler, so these 7950s can nearly double the performance of a single 7970. Even the 7970 GHz Edition cards wouldn't get more than maybe 55-65% of the performance that two 7950s offers.

 

[tuganu]

I never said that the 7970 is weak. I said that it is much weaker than two 7950s in CF because it is. A good 7950 can overclock about as well as a 79709 with the same cooler, so these 7950s can nearly double the performance of a single 7970. Even the 7970 GHz Edition cards wouldn't get more than maybe 55-65% of the performance that two 7950s offers.

I apologise, I misread your post. but you know 2 7970s would be even better. and think will just fit the budget on the x79 platform. even cheaper with z77

 

[fire r a g e]

I have already made my decision, so thank you all for helping me!

 

[blazorthon]

Glad to help.

 

[azeem40]

You're welcome.

 

[tuganu]

I have already made my decision, so thank you all for helping me!

Im glad you chose what was right for you.