First build since 2005

[ekolow]

Right now I'm gaming on a 3.5 year old ASUS G50V laptop - 2Ghz core 2 duo, 4gb RAM, Nvidia 9700m GT 512mb
This plays TF2 and CSS on almost max(AAx4) getting 20-50fps depending on #of players, and BF:BC2 on low, Starcraft 2 on medium. It has served me well.
I'm building my new computer mainly for Battlefield 3, Skyrim, Witcher 2, and playing emulators(like super smash bros melee(struggle on this laptop) and zelda: TW)
Some questions I have about this build...Is 80+ necessary on a psu?
Is there a problem buying a bare drive? Does this mean I need to spend extra $ on cables?
*Will the 570 be enough to max, or come close to maxing BF3? I almost feel like saving some money and getting a single 6950 or 560ti if I won't be able to max and save myself $100 *

Case - Lian Li
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154
CPU - i5 2500k
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
Mobo - gigabyte
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128506
Video Card - GTX 570
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130613
PSU - OCZ 700 Watt(but not 80 plus..)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341018
RAM - Corsair Vengeance
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233144
Hard Drive - WD 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533
Monitor - ASUS 23 inch
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236117
DVD drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151233
CPU cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

Final Price - 1272-40 in rebates = 1232

 

[Why_Me]

You want a 850w psu to push two of those cards in SLI. Seeing how you have a board up there meant for dual vid cards I'm guessing you plan on adding a second one in the future.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.730588 $162.98 - $15.00 Mail In Rebates FREE SHIPPING
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX850 V2 850W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9B

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185 $59.99 FREE SHIPPING
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 $124.99 $10 off w/ promo code EMCKAKA32, ends 9/15
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

 

[JackNaylorPE]

GFX - Id get the 900 MHz 560 Ti over the 570....find another $100 and ya can get two of em.

Guru3D uses the following games in their test suite, COD-MW, Bad Company 2, Dirt 2, Far Cry 2, Metro 2033, Dawn of Discovery, Crysis Warhead. Total fps (summing fps in each game @ 1920 x 1200) for the various options in parenthesis (single card / SL or CF) are tabulated below along with their cost in dollars per frame single card - CF or SLI:

$ 220.00 560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862) $ 0.44 - $ 0.51
$ 320.00 570 (524/873) $ 0.61 - $ 0.73

PSU - No on the PSU - only 55% gave 5 eggs 75% for the XFX. As for the 80+ ratings, I don't really give them a thought, I am more interested in voltage stability than whether it's 85% or 88% efficient.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207015

RAM - The only cooling effect of these big coolers is that they "look cool". While they served a purpose (when they were effective) w/ DDR2, they are absolutely useless on DDR3.

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=773&Itemid=67&limit=1&limitstart=1

At more than 2" tall in certain areas the Corsair Vengeance could pose a problem for users like me who use large coolers such as the Scythe Mugen 2. I was able to use the Corsair Vengeance only after I mounted the fan on my cooler on the backside. Size is definitely a concern with heat spreaders of this size and therefore I encourage users to check that they will have enough space under their heatsinks before purchasing the Corsair Vengeance kit.

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=773&Itemid=67&limit=1&limitstart=6

The problem I have with the Corsair Vengeance is the same I have with many kits of RAM on the market. Companies insist on putting large coolers on their RAM and it limits the choice in CPU heatsinks that can be used within users system. DDR3 does not require these elaborate coolers with its lower voltages which translate to lower temperatures then RAM saw during the DDR, and DDR2 era. Corsair is correcting this with low profile versions of its Vengeance line but ultimately I would like to see the average size of coolers drop instead of having to look for specific low profile versions of a memory line.

Same RAM w/o the silly heat sinks
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233196

Storage - Save $30
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

MoBo - Does Z68 do anything for you ? You fit into any of these categories for the Z68 ? Most don't so that may place other options available to you for consideration. When considering other options, I wud suggest avoiding brands that don't offer an industry standard 3 year warranty. With all the caps problems in recent years, if they won't go 3 years, what do they know that we don't that they won't go 3 years like everybody else ?

http://www.ukgamingcomputers.co.uk/difference-between-h67-p67-z68-and-h61-chipsets-a-22.html

Cooler - Hyper 212 is a great budget cooler....but you haven't built a budget box. Pick up 7C with a Scythe Mugen 2 or 3 .... or wait for the Hyper 612.

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=797&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=4

 

[ekolow]

Thank you very much for both of your replies. You are right that I am keeping the option open in the future as my reason for going with the motherboard I chose. I looked at the other one posted and its reviews don't do it for me(bends under weight of a video card, little support from manufacturer).
Looks like I will be going with a 6950 2gb video card, apparently it slightly edges out the 560ti in BF:BC2 and has excellent Xfire scaling.
I switched out the RAM, what you said makes a lot of sense, just wish it came in black.
I am a little torn, however between the two PSUs posted. They both cost the same (before rebate, and the other in its combo), however one is a 850W, and the other is 700, and since I plan on doing 2 video cards, which one would be better, considering neither of them are 5 eggs.

 

[ekolow]

bump

 

[mjmjpfaff]

a 6950 2gb is a good choice

i5 2500k- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072 220$

asrock z68 extreme3 gen3- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 115$ after promo code

PowerColor 6950 2gb- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131393 265$

PC Power and Cooling 750w- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703027 99$ after promo code

Corsair 8gb 1600mhz- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186 53$

Samsung F3 1tb- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185 60$

DVD Burner- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151233 20$

Cooler master hyper 212 plus- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-RSSDailyDeals-_-na-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=4176827&SID=18twf2sj4pfwu 30$

Asus 23.6" 2ms- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236174 166.50$ after promo code

 

[thrakazog]

As far as the PSU choices, I would go with an Antec or Corsair model in the 850watt range. Going with the 6950 is a great idea. I am running 2 MSI 6950's and love them. No one said anything about the case, but coming in at the same price range as the Lian-Li, I might consider this one......

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216

 

[mjmjpfaff]

you only need 750w to run 2 6950's.
here is another good case with very good airflow- http://www.amazon.com/Antec-Swifter-Mid-Tower-Enclosure-DF-30/dp/B003M8I1RG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1315692819&sr=8-4