First Build ever..

[inserthere]

Hey,
So this is going to be my first build ever and I want to make sure that everything is compatible. I've been going around and searching and this is what I got:

1.Motherboard:
Gigabyte GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3855#ov
2.CPU:
Intel i7-2600
3.Memory/RAM:
G.skill Ripjaws series 8GB DDR3 1333MHz PC10666
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231311
4.Graphics Card:
HIS Radeon HD 6950 IceQ-X TurboX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161372
5.HDD:
Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
6. PSU:
Corsair GS600
http://www.corsair.com/gs600w.html

Now I got some questions:
1)Are all these components compatible? especially with the PSU.
2)Is the motherboard good for future CF?
3)Which is the best manufacturer for that GPU? I chose HIS since it had good reviews and ratings.
4)Will this system run heavy games likes BF3 and Crysis?

Thanks in advance,

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice <--- please do a copy and paste of this on here. We need more information like your budget, screen resolution, country, if you plan on using dual vid cards later on, do you need an o/s (Windows), etc...

 

[inserthere]

Approximate Purchase Date: within less than a month

Budget Range: $700-1000

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, websurfing, other normal things to do when im bored .

Parts Not Required: i only need the inside components..

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: doesn't matter, just need model name.

Country of Origin: US

Parts Preferences: intel cpu, ATX mobo, Radeon HD GPU.

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire:Maybe

Monitor Resolution: 1366x768 (possible upgrade in the future).

Additional Comments: SILENT PC + read the beginning of the post ..

 

[inserthere]

oh and no OS needed ..

 

[Why_Me]

That DH2 board you have up there is a mATX board, and after reading some reviews on it...peeps couldn't fit a second card in the PCI-E slot due to it blocking everything else. Also that 600w psu you have up above would never run two of those cards. For dual 6950's or dual 560's you want a 750w psu. And you don't want a 2600K for gaming. 2500K all the way. Anyways take a look at these components down below. This allows you do add another card later on. I threw that 560 in there for the fact it's a bargain at that price and Nvidia drivers tend to be more stable. One last thing before I forget...that RAM down below is a single 4GB stick...and for a gaming build 4GB is plenty...but if you ever feel the need later on to add more RAM, just pick up another one of those sticks for a total of 8GB...but I doubt you will ever reach that point.

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Tower-Case-RC-912-KKN1/dp/B003ZM7YTA $54.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Cooler Master HAF 912 Mid Tower ATX Case (RC-912-KKN1)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 $94.99 - $69.99 after mail-in rebate FREE SHIPPING
Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-750 750W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.689907 $323.98 FREE SHIPPING
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=pd_cp_e_2 $29.49 Free Standard Shipping (3-5 days)
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler, RR-B10-212P-G1

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-PC3-12800-1600mHz-Platforms/dp/B004RFGALC/ref=sr_1_11?m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1312100768&sr=1-11 $32.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Corsair Vengeance Blu 4 GB PC3-12800 1600mHz DDR3 240-Pin SDRAM Memory Kit for Intel and AMD Platforms - Not a Kit (Single) CMZ4GX3M1A1600C9B

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-SATA-Internal-Drive-AD-7260S-0B/dp/B003MRHOQG/ref=dp_cp_ob_pc_title_2 $19.99 Free Standard Shipping (3-5 days)
Sony 24X SATA Internal DVD+/-RW Drive AD-7260S-0B - Bulk (Black)

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_1?m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1312081809&sr=1-1 $59.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
Samsung Desktop Class Spinpoint F3 1 TB SATA 3.0 Gb-s 32 MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare-OEM Drives, HD103SJ

http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-GeForce-GDDR5-PCI-Express-Graphics/dp/B004K1EUWO $234.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping
EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB 1024 MB GDDR5 PCI-Express 2.0 Graphics Card - Limited Lifetime Warranty 01G-P3-1561-AR

Total: $851.41 *not including mail in rebates


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236099 $149.99 - $134.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
Asus ML228H 21.5" 1920X1080 2ms Full HD LED BackLight LED Monitor Slim Design 250 cd/m2 10,000,000 :1 (ASCR)

 

[inserthere]

so i5 is better than i7 for gaming?!

 

[Why_Me]

so i5 is better than i7 for gaming?!

Yep. The 2600K is a hyper threaded enabled cpu which actually hurts it in some games. It's the cpu to get if your using CAD, and other proggy's that use hyper threading, but for gaming you want a 2500K.

 

[inserthere]

oh and can i use this mobo instead Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 ?

 

[inserthere]

Also check this out.. and this is about the 1GB version of radeon
http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6950-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/15

 

[Why_Me]

oh and can i use this mobo instead Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 ?

Ya it will work fine, but it's intended for someone who plans on doing some heavy o/c. It's a 12+2 phase board. Myself, I wouldn't spend the extra money on that board with your budget. I would be saving every nickel I had in order to pick up another one of those 560's for SLI seeing how BF3 stresses vid cards to the extreme. Save up, pick up another one of those cards for SLI and that monitor I posted, or one similar.

 

[inserthere]

also another question.. the CPU cooler you added.. is it necessary? or is it just extra? since i know that the heatsink comes with the CPU itself..

 

[Why_Me]

Also check this out.. and this is about the 1GB version of radeon
http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6950-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/15

You want to look for 1920 x 1080 benchmarks seeing how 1920 x 1200 monitors are dead and gone for the most part.

Benefits to the 500ti is that it can be o/c to the point that it will surpass the 6950 seeing how the 560ti over clocks better than any card on the market atm. That and AMD/ATI drivers suck for the most part. Plug in an Nvidia card, update the drivers and your on your way to gaming without the usual AMD/ATI driver issues. That and Nvidia cards run cooler also.

 

[Why_Me]

also another question.. the CPU cooler you added.. is it necessary? or is it just extra? since i know that the heatsink comes with the CPU itself..

If you plan on over clocking then ya, get that cooler. And the entire reason for the "K" series Sandy Bridge cpu's is that they can be over clocked seeing how they are unlocked. So yep, I would def. get that cpu cooler. The stock intel coolers that come with the cpu work ok, but not if you plan on doing any over clocking. Also that CM cooler I linked in that build comes with excellent thermal compound.

 

[inserthere]

Thanks for the help
im gonna get what you recommended
greatly appreciated..

 

[inserthere]

one last thing though, when you said about the motherboard i listed Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 that its a 12+2 phase.. does that mean that i need another PSU to work with it other than the one i had listed or it doesnt effect? cuz im getting the i5-2500K with the Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 and the GTX 560Ti with 8GB RAM and the PSU i had listed .. if i needed PSU upgrade in the future then will do

 

[Why_Me]

one last thing though, when you said about the motherboard i listed Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 that its a 12+2 phase.. does that mean that i need another PSU to work with it other than the one i had listed or it doesnt effect? cuz im getting the i5-2500K with the Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 and the GTX 560Ti with 8GB RAM and the PSU i had listed .. if i needed PSU upgrade in the future then will do

That psu will work fine. The 12+2 means you will have a more stable o/c. But again I can't stress enough to save your money for another one of those cards and a monitor for BF3 this fall.