First Build, $1000 Development/Gaming Build, Please Review!

[hmasson4]

Hello All,

I'm putting together my first build and would appreciate your thoughts. I'll use this build for web development and gaming. One "unique" goal - I want to triple boot Windows/Mac/Linux as I prefer to develop in Mac/Linux and game on Windows. I've research what it takes to do this and I think my build meets all the requirements. Overall, I want to get the biggest bang for my buck in terms of performance and longevity; I plan to keep this setup for 3-4 years or longer if possible with upgrades.
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Approximate Purchase Date: May 2012 (After Ivy Bridge release - hoping to see drop in Sandy Bridge prices )

Budget Range: $1000 +/- $100 before rebates, cheaper = better

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Software (Web) development, Gaming (Diablo 3, SC 2, BF, Skyrim, etc), Photo Editing, possible engineering modeling later

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS, HDDs (I have 1 TB for storage, x2 500 GB for Linux and Mac OS)

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Amazon

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: by brand or type: Hardware verified to be compatible with Windows/Mac/Linux (Intel processor most important)

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, later (if I do go this route, I would want to upgrade my PSU at the same time, so the PSU selected is NOT for SLI/CF)

Monitor Resolution: Dual 1920x1080 monitors

Additional Comments: Quiet and not "flashy" - case and noise level should be appropriate for an office setting... Still want something that's solid and looks good though

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Here's what I have so far:

Newegg Wishlist

Also listed here for convenience:

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K ($220)

CPU Cooling: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler ($30)

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3 ($150)

GPU: EVGA 012-P3-1570-AR GeForce GTX 570 ($300)

Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) ($47)

SSD: Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) ($90)

PSU: CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W ($90)

Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ($70)

Optical: ASUS 24X DVD Burner ($20)

Misc:

[strike]Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM ($10)
[/strike]Edit: As a few of you have pointed out, the Hyper 212 comes with a good thermal compound.

Total cost: ~$1017

Any general thoughts? Thoughts on Mobo/GPU/PSU/SSD? Anything I'm forgetting - cables, fans, etc - that I'll need during assembly?

Thanks again!

 

[l0v3rboi]

Hey,

I'm no expert but I think your build looks good. The only thing that I could suggest is perhaps changing your mobo to ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155. So yeah; unless you have a particular reason to choose that Gigabyte mobo, I would go with Asrock. Also, I'm pretty sure that your cpu cooler comes with a thermal compound so I don't think you need to buy one.

 

[g-unit1111]

You don't need the extra thermal compound - the Hyper 212 is one of the few fans on the market that comes with a really good non-conductive solution.

That build looks really good but there's two slight changes I would make:

1. Substitute your motherboard for this (not a fan of the blue / white color scheme used on the D3): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498

2. If you're going for a GTX 570 you should really take a look at the Radeon 7870 as it's matching and in some cases beating the 580 for $50 more: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102983

 

[hmasson4]

Hey,

I'm no expert but I think your build looks good. The only thing that I could suggest is perhaps changing your mobo to ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155. So yeah; unless you have a particular reason to choose that Gigabyte mobo, I would go with Asrock. Also, I'm pretty sure that your cpu cooler comes with a thermal compound so I don't think you need to buy one.

Thanks for the suggestions. I wasn't sure about the compound so that's good to know. I originally wanted to go with the ASRock Extreme3 Gen3, but the Three Hundred Two case has USB 3.0 ports on the front and the ASRock mobo doesn't have any USB 3.0 Internal I/O connections. I really like the case though so I decided to go with the Gigabyte Mobo instead since it does have the USB 3.0 connections.

 

[hmasson4]

You don't need the extra thermal compound - the Hyper 212 is one of the few fans on the market that comes with a really good non-conductive solution.

That build looks really good but there's two slight changes I would make:

1. Substitute your motherboard for this (not a fan of the blue / white color scheme used on the D3): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498

2. If you're going for a GTX 570 you should really take a look at the Radeon 7870 as it's matching and in some cases beating the 580 for $50 more: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102983

Cool, thanks! I didn't notice that the Hyper 212 comes with compound, so good to know. I do like the black color scheme on the motherboard you suggested, so I'll definitely keep that in mind.

I've actually gone back and forth between the GTX 570 and the Radeon 7870 for several days and I really can't decide. On one hand, the power of the 7870 would be really nice and last me a little longer, but on the other, I don't really game often enough to justify the upgrade. I'll probably keep an eye on prices of both over the next month, and if I see a good sale on the 7870, I'll definitely pick one up.

 

[azeem40]

Right now, the reference 7870 is cheaper than a non-reference one.

 

[g-unit1111]

Cool, thanks! I didn't notice that the Hyper 212 comes with compound, so good to know. I do like the black color scheme on the motherboard you suggested, so I'll definitely keep that in mind.

I've actually gone back and forth between the GTX 570 and the Radeon 7870 for several days and I really can't decide. On one hand, the power of the 7870 would be really nice and last me a little longer, but on the other, I don't really game often enough to justify the upgrade. I'll probably keep an eye on prices of both over the next month, and if I see a good sale on the 7870, I'll definitely pick one up.

Yeah the 7870 has been putting up some pretty impressive numbers and now that AMD got Catalyst 12.3 fixed to include the new GPUs it's been amazing so far, I'm getting one for my system as soon as I get my tax refund.

 

[hmasson4]

Best answer selected by hmasson4.