First Gaming Computer, $3000 and Under

[MetalLight]

Greetings, everyone! This is my second request for a build, and I've refined my requirements since my first request.

Approximate Purchase Date: In the next 3 months;
Budget Range: 3,000 and under, After Rebates and Shipping;
System Usage: Gaming, Almost Exclusively;
Are you buying a monitor: Yes;
Parts to Upgrade: None;
Do you need to buy OS: No*;
Preferred Websites for Parts: Any reputable and trusted site;
Location: Denver, Colorado, USA;
Parts Preference: The best within budged, Nvidia;
Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers, OS*;
Overclocking: Preferably no;
SLI or Crossfire: Flexible;
Monitor Resolution: 2560x1440;

So here's the deal. I've used Macintosh computers all my life, but they just don't have good bang-for-your-buck when it comes to gaming. As such, I'm accustomed to plug and play as well as having everything I need automatically there for me. Because of this, I've tried to be thorough in my requests for my first Windows/SteamOS gaming rig.

I need it to be able to play the following (and many other more modern games) at 60 FPS @ Maximum Settings @ 2560x1440:
Crysis 1, 2, 3;
Mass Effect 1, 2, 3;
Deus Ex: Human Revolution;
Titanfall;
Metro 2033, Last Light;
Starcraft II;
Diablo III;
Team Fortress 2;
Borderlands 1, 2, Pre-Sequel;
Far Cry 3;

I need it to have a dvd drive, 4 USB 3.0 Ports (or 2 usb 3.0 and 2 usb 2.0), a headphone/speaker port, an ethernet port, *possibly* a firewire 800 port, 8 GB of RAM, 2 TB of disk space, a solid state drive, liquid cooling, and a quality 27" 2560x1440 monitor.

I also have a couple of questions:
Is there such a thing as a gpu cooler? If so, are they necessary?
Is windows 8 worthwhile for gaming?

I'm willing to spend up to $3000.00 on everything, including the monitor.

One build suggested to me in the past is as follows:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X60 98.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($107.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($174.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($63.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($108.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($163.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Phantom 630 (Gunmetal) ATX Full Tower Case ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($197.04 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2071.93
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-24 14:20 EDT-0400)

The areas this build falls short for my requirements is as follows:
The CPU cooler is no longer available through the part picker, so I'm in the market for an alternative;
The operating system is unnecessary unless I were getting windows 8;
The monitor is not included;
The DVD Drive is not included;
Unsure if it includes usb, headphone/speaker, or ethernet ports;

Any help you lovely people could give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Alpha3031]

2560 or 3440x1440?


Like this?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H105 73.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII HERO ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($209.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($76.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($77.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($318.40 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($318.40 @ Newegg)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi XL (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1300 G2 1300W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ Micro Center)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($476.99 @ Amazon)
Headphones: Sony MDR10RBLK Headset ($101.99 @ Amazon)
Speakers: Logitech Z506 155W 5.1ch Speakers ($60.99 @ Best Buy)
Other: Rosewill RDCR-11004 5.25" 2 Port USB 3.0 / 4 Port USB 2.0 Hub / eSATA Multi-in-1 Internal Card Reader w/ USB3.0 Connector ($29.99)
Total: $2571.14
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[andrei65]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($339.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Nepton 280L 122.5 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($118.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII HERO ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($209.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.92 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 290X 4GB TWIN FROZR Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($579.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 290X 4GB TWIN FROZR Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($579.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Stryker (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 1200W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $2624.11
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[MetalLight]

@Alpha: You're right, I meant 2560x1440. For the rest, that's exactly the sort of build I'm looking for. The CPU, CPU Cooler, Mobo, Storage, Case, Power supply, usb hub, and Optical drive all look like fine choices.

With the memory, is g.skill a good company? 8gb is perfect, in any case.
With the video cards, I'm more of an Nvidia guy, so are there comparable Nvidia cards that would be roughly the same price?
With the OS, is windows 8 very different from 7 when it comes to gaming?
Is the monitor of decent quality?
The headphones and speakers are unnecessary, but I appreciate the information either way.

@Andrei: Thank you very much for the reply. I think I'm leaning towards most of Alpha's build, however.

 

[andrei65]

My apologies , i didn't add any monitor , keyboard and mouse , aswell as some other peripherals . Tomorrow ill make a new build including the peripherals you need

 

[MetalLight]

I worked with a friend to come up with the following build. I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions anyone could offer.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($227.97 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.79 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Corsair Force LX Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.97 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($136.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Air 540 Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($479.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $2547.64
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[Alpha3031]

@Alpha: You're right, I meant 2560x1440. For the rest, that's exactly the sort of build I'm looking for. The CPU, CPU Cooler, Mobo, Storage, Case, Power supply, usb hub, and Optical drive all look like fine choices.

With the memory, is g.skill a good company? 8gb is perfect, in any case.
With the video cards, I'm more of an Nvidia guy, so are there comparable Nvidia cards that would be roughly the same price?
With the OS, is windows 8 very different from 7 when it comes to gaming?
Is the monitor of decent quality?
The headphones and speakers are unnecessary, but I appreciate the information either way.

@Andrei: Thank you very much for the reply. I think I'm leaning towards most of Alpha's build, however.

Yes, G.skill is one of the best, along with Corsair, Kingston, Mushkin etc

NVidia cards are generally more expensive for the same performance: though the 780 is the equivalent in performance, it's around $100 more

Along with DX12 (not out yet) support, it also uses less ram and GPU power at idle

Yes, I believe so

I worked with a friend to come up with the following build. I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions anyone could offer.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($227.97 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.79 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Corsair Force LX Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.97 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($136.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Air 540 Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($479.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $2547.64
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

First of all, you chose a last gen part, the 3570k instead of the current gen 4790k, only a few dollars more

Second, I wouldn't bother with the WD Black, just a Seagate Barracuda or WD Blue will do

Also, you chose more expensive RAM

Otherwise, great build

 

[andrei65]

Why did you choose a 3rd gen cpu , and not the 4690k which is only 12 extra dollars ?
The ram is quite expensive for what you get , you should get some ddr3-2133 ram for 90$ at least
And like Alpha says , theres no point in getting the wd black , a barracuda or wd blue or even a hitachi hdd would do the job
Honestly i prefer amd's gpu's over nvidia's but its up to you to choose , nvidia has the drivers , amd has the best price/performance ratio when it comes to high end gaming cards ( 290 to 295x2 )
Otherwise the rest of the build is great


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ks7pzy
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ks7pzy/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Glacer 240L 86.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($76.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.92 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($499.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Superclocked ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($499.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair Air 540 Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($124.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($176.81 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($73.50 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($489.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2559.65
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

This is my remake of the first build as promised
Now obviously you can change the 850 pro for a 840 evo or the lx you choosed which are about 40-50$ cheaper , but this ssd is significantly better than the lx , and the 840 evo too : http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1254?vs=966

 

[MetalLight]

Thanks so much for both of your replies. I apologize for not replying sooner -- I wasnt emailed about your replies for some reason. I'll run your build by my friend, Andrei -- from what I understand about it, I like it a lot, with only one exception. That exception being I would really like a 2 tb hdd as opposed to a 1tb. Could you suggest a good 2tb drive instead?

 

[t3nn1spr3p]

This is before rebates, so maybe later with the rebate money you can buy some nice case fans.

Let's get started:

Here's probably how I would spend $3000, a dual 1440p system.
You would not be able to game on both monitors. You could easily game on one, and have music/movies/browsers on the other one.
Have you ever used a 27" 1440p monitor? They're gorgeous, and with two of them taking up your entire desk, they'd be absolutely intimidating.
Also, even with all the real-estate that 1440p offers, you can't beat the multi-task-ability that two monitors provides.
It's personal preference, but the monitor is literally the only thing you're looking at when using your computer. So it should be damn nice. That's how I justify spending almost $1000; on a 5120x1440 resolution setup, 7.37 million pixels.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz ($219.99 @ Newegg)
No brain-er for gaming.

CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($97.99 @ NCIX US)
Close to the best cpu cooler, and around 20% quieter. Reference

Thermal Compound: Gelid Solutions GC-Extreme 3.5g Thermal Paste ($12.98 @ OutletPC)
Great thermal paste. You should use it for cpu and gpu's.

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-GAMING 7 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($169.99 @ Amazon)
Gigabyte usually makes best bang-per-buck motherboards. Also, the Asus VII is overpriced, and even this G7 is overkill.

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($88.79 @ NCIX US)
CAS 7 gives really low latency without needing to overclock your ram. Great choice.

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($139.98 @ OutletPC)
Standard in SSD choice for high-end systems currently. 250GB is huge and not really needed. You would be fine with 120GB, but if it fits in your budget, then go for it.

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Good hard drive, and since you have the SSD, this works perfectly.

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 290X 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($489.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 290X 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($489.99 @ Amazon)
My preference is Nvidia too, but with two 1440p monitors, you really want the higher bit rate, which the AMD cards offer at much lower costs. On one 1440p monitor, it wouldn't matter at all, and a 384bit GTX 780 or 780ti would work equivalently. However, you'll want the increased bandwidth that the 512bit offers without needing to pay $1000 or more PER card on the Nvidia side. And at $490 per card, these give WAY more performance at huge resolutions.

Case: NZXT Phantom 410 (Gunmetal/Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Saw you originally selected the Phantom 630. Couldn't fit that in, but the 410 works just as well. I'm a fan of the phantoms too, easy to build with and good airflow.

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ NCIX US)
Highly rated 1000W psu. The gpu's are pretty thirsty, but you definitely don't need more than 1000 watts. Reference

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ OutletPC)
You will probably use this once or twice ever. Maybe even consider removing it from your system after OS install. Could even borrow a friend's to use once, and then not even need an optical drive.

Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($479.99 @ NCIX US)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($479.99 @ NCIX US)
The gorgeous Asus monitors. Great display and build quality. Again, it's what you'll be looking at, and everyone that see's your monitors will be extremely jealous.

Total: $3009.62
Not including mail-in rebates, which I don't like to include so it shows what you'll actually spend initially.
After you get the rebate credit money, you could buy some nice noctua or corsair case fans.
I'd recommend these: Corsair Air Series AF120 Performance Edition (2-Pack) 63.5 CFM 120mm Fans ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Your 290x's will generate a lot of heat, so good to have some more fans to move that air.

Good Luck

 

[Alpha3031]

Thanks so much for both of your replies. I apologize for not replying sooner -- I wasnt emailed about your replies for some reason. I'll run your build by my friend, Andrei -- from what I understand about it, I like it a lot, with only one exception. That exception being I would really like a 2 tb hdd as opposed to a 1tb. Could you suggest a good 2tb drive instead?

2 TB Barracuda or Blue