Buying soon - need a little help

[marinbb]

Hello everyone, this will be my first build. I'm planning to spend ~$1500-~$1700 on a new home computer for gaming and occasional work. I'm planning to use it for 4-6Yrs and upgrade it over time as components become obsolete. What do you think about this configuration: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/20Vy9 ?

I picked out well-reviewed components but don't have much sense as to whether the system will be stable. Do you see any obvious issues?

 

[Ronaldspiers]

Since you're getting the VI hero get the 4770K so you cna overclock and get the best out of it

Also I would suggest a corsair, XFX or Seasonic brand of PSU as they are the best quality ones and by general consensus the most reliable.

 

[Tadej Rajgelj]

Check out this build http://pcpartpicker.com/p/21fyJ it is a bit cheaper.

 

[marinbb]

Thanks, yes, I was unsure about the PSU. I'll switch it out for a more reputable brand.

How do you feel about faster RAM? I was thinking about getting 1800MHz or 2133 MHz RAM but both are more expensive and would require overclocking. I went with 1600MHz for now with the outlook of potentially upgrading later.

 

[PepitoTV]

If the computer is only for gaming, then you don't need 16GB of RAM.

Are you sure that you need the Bluray player?

Are you set on that case? You can save a little by going with a Corsair 500R.

Do you need Windows 7 Pro? Home Premium will do the same (barring 16GB+ RAM which I doubt you'll ever need).

I think that motherboard is a little overpriced so I'd choose a cheaper (while still good) one.

Those savings let you get a higher end GPU which will have a much greater impact on how you see your games.

That said, this is what I'd do with your budget:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.65 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($42.92 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.00 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
Keyboard: Logitech K120 Wired Standard Keyboard ($10.29 @ B&H)
Mouse: Logitech MX310 Wired Optical Mouse ($36.57 @ Newegg)
Total: $1690.32
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-12 12:43 EST-0500)

 

[Ronaldspiers]

If the computer is only for gaming, then you don't need 16GB of RAM.

Are you sure that you need the Bluray player?

Are you set on that case? You can save a little by going with a Corsair 500R.

Do you need Windows 7 Pro? Home Premium will do the same (barring 16GB+ RAM which I doubt you'll ever need).

I think that motherboard is a little overpriced so I'd choose a cheaper (while still good) one.

Those savings let you get a higher end GPU which will have a much greater impact on how you see your games.

That said, this is what I'd do with your budget:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.65 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($42.92 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.00 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
Keyboard: Logitech K120 Wired Standard Keyboard ($10.29 @ B&H)
Mouse: Logitech MX310 Wired Optical Mouse ($36.57 @ Newegg)
Total: $1690.32
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-12 12:43 EST-0500)

Thats a real nice build. And with that PSU you will have the option of getting another 780 down the line for SLI

 

[marinbb]

Thanks a lot, PepitoTV. I like your call on the bluray player and the case. I don't have an immediate need for the player and can always upgrade if a need arises. I had picked the case because of positive reviews about the ease of installing components.

I occasionally work from home and on side projects. I do statistical analysis on big data sets (up to 2-3GB) and went with 16GB of RAM + Win7Pro to support some hefty applications (MatLab, Excel, and Python's Pandas and Statsmodels modules).

I had considered getting a second SSD and RAIDing the two for data security but I already use cloud-based backups so this didn't seem like an obvious do. Maybe i'm wrong on this one.

If the computer is only for gaming, then you don't need 16GB of RAM.

Are you sure that you need the Bluray player?

Are you set on that case? You can save a little by going with a Corsair 500R.

Do you need Windows 7 Pro? Home Premium will do the same (barring 16GB+ RAM which I doubt you'll ever need).

I think that motherboard is a little overpriced so I'd choose a cheaper (while still good) one.

Those savings let you get a higher end GPU which will have a much greater impact on how you see your games.

That said, this is what I'd do with your budget:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.65 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($42.92 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.00 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
Keyboard: Logitech K120 Wired Standard Keyboard ($10.29 @ B&H)
Mouse: Logitech MX310 Wired Optical Mouse ($36.57 @ Newegg)
Total: $1690.32
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-12 12:43 EST-0500)