Building a new computer and need help

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lbascian

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Dec 18, 2012
10
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10,510
Hello,
I'm currently trying to pick hardware to build my 1st computer and have a few questions...
-My goal price was around $1000 but right now I'm sitting at about $1300+
-I'm mainly going to be using it for music production (FL Studio 10/NI Massive etc..) and Starcraft 2/WoW (low-mid graphic settings)
-trying to shave off some $$ if I can

The parts I've picked so far:
CASE
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160

PROCESSOR
Intel i7 Ivy Bridge Quad-Core

POWER
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139031

MEMORY
Corsair Vengeance 2 x 4GB

MOTHERBOARD
Sabertooth Z77
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821

HARD DRIVE
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148725

VIDEO CARD
(I haven't chosen one yet, there's so many to choose from)

*Questions I have:
1) Any better alternatives to the parts I've chosen for about the same price or less?

2) I've read online that the i7 ivy bridge is worth the extra cash, but considering my needs can I save a few $$ with the i5 ivy bridge, and still have my computer performing well enough?

3) Would a 1GB video card be enough? If so, any suggestions? There's a lot to choose from
 
Solution
Just remembered the XEON options. You can get an e3-1230 for the price of a 3570K. It's the same clock speed, but has hyperthreading like the i7's. Only downside is no overclocking, but you probably won't need to.

I'd do something like this, only swap out the i5 for a Xeon 1230

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($115.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.86 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5"...

phil_livesey

Honorable
Nov 3, 2012
181
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10,710
first off, get an i5 to shave off some money, preferably one with a 'k' at the end of the model number. a modular psu is not necessary, plus, 600w would probably be enough (stick with corsair or antec though).

personally i'd go with something like this graphics card if you're not bothered about max settings: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130827

i'm getting this mobo for my next board, that sabertooth is very expensive, both mobos have the latest chipset, support the same max ram, ddr3, the asus has less sata 3 ports, and it doesn't support sli. tbh i'm looking at a lot of reviews for it and it seems very decent.

ram is pretty much spot on too.

but yeah, i'd get an i5 if you want to shave some money off, i7s are really expensive and i doubt you'll see a major difference because fl stuido will be more ram intensive.
 

twelve25

Distinguished
Absolutely no reason to pick a $240 motherboard when you are worried about budget. You can get a nice ASUS or ASRock for close to $100.

For Sound editing, you want a bunch of threads, so if you can't run i7, I'd do AMD 8350.

I don't see where you've spent $1300.
 

twelve25

Distinguished
Just remembered the XEON options. You can get an e3-1230 for the price of a 3570K. It's the same clock speed, but has hyperthreading like the i7's. Only downside is no overclocking, but you probably won't need to.

I'd do something like this, only swap out the i5 for a Xeon 1230

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t6jJ/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($115.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($45.86 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($91.33 @ Amazon)
Storage: OCZ Agility 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($93.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Tempest 410 ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Rosewill Green 630W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $950.09
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-18 14:57 EST-0500)
 
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