Gaming/School First Build, $1500 Budget

[mdifaz]

Hi Guys,

I'm in the process of finalizing the components in my first build for a gaming/school PC. I would really appreciate the once-over by a few sets of experienced eyes. I'm on a max budget of $1500.

Case:
Thermaltake Chaser MK-I (VN300M1W2N) Black SECC ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133191

CPU:
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

CPU Cooler:
ZALMAN CNPS9500A-LED 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118223

Video Card:
GIGABYTE GV-N670WF2-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125438

RAM:
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345

MoBo:
MSI Z77A-GD65 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130643

Power Supply:
CORSAIR Professional Series HX650 650W ATX12V v2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139012

Optical Drive:
ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

HDD:
Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=22-136-533

SSD:
ADATA S510 Series AS510S3-120GM-O 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211588

My questions:

1) Will I bottleneck anywhere?

2) Are any of my parts overkill? Could I save a few bucks w/o decreasing performance?

3) Anywhere I could jack up the specs w/o breaking the bank?

4) I checked the compatibilities, but a double check would be great. Especially with making sure all the case features match up with ports on the MB.

5) Aware if any of these parts ship defective frequently?

5) General tips? Anything to keep in mind during the build?

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate it!

-mdifaz

 

[djangoringo]

Some changes :


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202001

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703027


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128546

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148697

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147096

 

[MichaelSP]

Well, as has been said, a better CPU cooler may go well and for little price difference. You could also go a bit cheaper by getting a seagate HDD if ti makes much difference. Most of it looks pretty good.

The GTX 670 should outperforme the HD7970 so that's good. And with an ivy bridge processor (what you've got) it won't bottleneck.

Keep in mind on your budget, have you got an operating system?

As for your case, it looks good too. That mostly comes down to personal preference at any rate. Nice motherboard too!

Thats about all I can see, hope some of this helps.

 

[mdifaz]

Yea, I think I'll switch out my cooler. My roommate has the cooler you recommended and it's served him well.

Is the Seagate drive just as reliable in the long term? Is the read and write speeds up to par with the WD Black? I'd totally be down to save some money on that, if so.

I was a little hesitant to switch out the GTX 670. I just happen to personally like NVidia over AMD.

I already picked up a student-licensed Window's 7 Ultimate for $50. It seemed like a good deal, so I jumped for it.

What's your reasoning behind the motherboard and power supply switches, djangoringo?

That memory looks like its not as flashy, but has pretty much the same specs as what I picked. The latency is 11, vs. the 9 on the Corsair. Any chance I'd notice that?

Thanks for the help guys! Keep it coming!

 

[djangoringo]

The rams are good ones for compatibility for large coolers, the samsung ram overclocks well(it has lower voltage) you can get it at ~1866mhz 9-9-9-24-1T @1.5v.
The mobo value/quality is as good as the msi one, but the gigabyte it's more cheaper, psu the same thing.
The seagate hdd is as reliable as the wd ones, not much difference in speed in mechanical hdd, you have to rely on that on a good ssd.
As for the cards, the 7970 ghz edition is the fastest card single gpu, it's better than the 680 gtx.
But if you prefer nvidia, then get the 670 best value for the money, i just get a 670 gtx ftw cause it overclocks like a beast and has a 680 gtx pcb(but it's optional).

 

[mdifaz]

The seagate hdd is as reliable as the wd ones, not much difference in speed in mechanical hdd, you have to rely on that on a good ssd.
As for the cards, the 7970 ghz edition is the fastest card single gpu, it's better than the 680 gtx.
But if you prefer nvidia, then get the 670 best value for the money, i just get a 670 gtx ftw cause it overclocks like a beast and has a 680 gtx pcb(but it's optional).

Seagate, it is! For the gpu, I think I'll probably stick with the 670. Use those savings towards a solid monitor.

 

[mdifaz]

Based on recommendations here and elsewhere, this is the updated build:

Case:
Thermaltake Chaser MK-I (VN300M1W2N) Black SECC ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811133191

CPU:
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
http://www.microcenter.com/product/388577/Core_i5_3570K_34GHz_LGA_1155_Processor

CPU Cooler:
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel 2011/1366/1155 and AMD FM1/FM2/AM3+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

Video Card:
MSI N670 PE 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 670 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127685

RAM:
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445

MoBo:
MSI Z77A-GD65 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813130643

Power Supply:
SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold ((SS-650KM Active PFC F3)) 650W ATX12V V2.3/EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3754110&SID=skim1132X509988X2acaedae46c3b997f891fb755d0312a1

Optical Drive:
ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827135204

HDD:
Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148697

SSD:
ADATA S510 Series AS510S3-120GM-O 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820211588

Thermal Paste:
Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver Thermal Compound AS5-3.5G - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007

 

[mdifaz]

Thanks everyone! Parts are on their way.