More budget now ($850 gaming pc)

[fury0609]

I am gonna be gaming at 1920 x 1080 monitor, playing BF3, cabal online, dragon nest and maybe other mmorpg.
I have access to microcenter so i will buy either there or newegg.
My budget now is increased to $850 not willing to go more than $900.
I dont know if i should get gtx 560 ti or radeon hd 6950 1gb.
I will be buying this the first week of september.

i5-2500k $180 at microcenter
Windows 7 $100 at newegg
DVD Drive $20 at newegg
4gb ram $34
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231427
mouse $17
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826146009
keyboard $8
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823107128
rosewill challenger $50 at newegg
antec 750w psu $60 after rebate
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0361181
seagate 1tb 7200rpm hard drive $50
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0334293

$519 without motherboard and graphics card

can anyone suggest me of a good motherboard?
i might sli/crossfire if i need it for future upgrade
i am debating on getting gtx 560ti or radeon hd 6950, maybe even considering gtx 570 or 6970 if it fits on my budget

 

[rozz]

560Ti is great card.. picked one up the other day. it should blow threw bf3 np

for future upgrades.. be sure to get sli. when the 560ti card starts to become a little slow - get another one should be a cheap upgrade by then.

as for motherboards. here is one i like that should work good for you

ASUS P8H67-V (REV 3.0) - $109 at on newegg.

 

[fury0609]

I have read that if i will be doing sli or crossfire that I should get dual x8 or x16 mobo because it will have better performance. Is that right or no?

 

[RichterFry]

I don't know much about keyboards, but the shipping on the one you have posted above almost doubles the price, while you can get a potentially better one with free shipping. I'd check out this range here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100008650%204093%204808&IsNodeId=1&name=Free%20Shipping

Just a thought

 

[rozz]

Hey rich, if he is shipping multiple items from one location - the keyboard will go in the one box with all the other parts, reducing the price dramatically.

As far as sli and crossfire goes, yes, dual x16 is best. The motherboard i include does have dual x16 PCIexpress slots on it.

 

[fury0609]

any more opinions on gtx 560 ti vs 6950?
and about the motherboard?

 

[fury0609]

btw i dont plan to overclock right away when i get the parts.
but i will try it in a year or 2, or when i want the extra performance

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 $129.99
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=Z68%20Extreme3%20Gen3 <---- another look at that board

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127594 $239.99 - $219.99 after mail-in rebate card FREE SHIPPING
MSI N560GTX-Ti Twin Frozr II GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 $89.99 - $64.99 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

 

[Why_Me]

Hey rich, if he is shipping multiple items from one location - the keyboard will go in the one box with all the other parts, reducing the price dramatically.

As far as sli and crossfire goes, yes, dual x16 is best. The motherboard i include does have dual x16 PCIexpress slots on it.

Would you link us to that Asus NF200 board that runs dual cards @ x16 for $110 on newegg please.

 

[fury0609]

i saw that psu in newegg exactly same as one in microcenter earlier
but will save me a couple of bucks so i chose the one in newegg.
that mobo looks great to me and just $130
ive heard twin frozr ii gtx 560 is a great graphics card

these total to $881.77 with tax and shipping after rebates
with the coupon $15 off $100 purchase
and $10 off new customer

looks like i am all set to buy the first week of september.
i will be looking to get a ssd on black friday if theres a good sale.
maybe a gaming keyboard/mouse too.

 

[madchemist83]

I would consider either EVGA 560Ti or HD6950 1Gb like Sapphire. The reason for HD6950 being that it's only about $20 difference but it performs way better. The problem comes here with your case, idk if Rosewill be able to accommodate two HD6950s in the future. Might consider getting HAF 912.
Nice Mobo btw.

 

[fury0609]

so here are my choices for graphics card
msi 560ti twin frozr $220 after rebate
evga 560 ti superclocked $220 after rebate
xfx/sapphire radeon hd 6950 $220/$225

 

[fury0609]

hmm the haf 912 after rebate is the same price as rosewill challenger

 

[madchemist83]

HD6950 hands down ...

and if you CF later on just remove HDD cage from HAF 912 and you should fit well (the only problem is that HAF is sold out from newegg ...nooooooooo
u can still find it on amazon

 

[fury0609]

no worries i am not buying until first week of september

 

[Why_Me]

so here are my choices for graphics card
msi 560ti twin frozr $220 after rebate
evga 560 ti superclocked $220 after rebate
xfx/sapphire radeon hd 6950 $220/$225

At your resolution the 560ti when o/c surpasses the 6950. In fact no other card on the market atm o/c as well as the 560ti.

 

[madchemist83]

^ true but remeber with oc comes heat and u'll probably need top 120mm fan for ur case

 

[madchemist83]

Also any decent 23in panel is still cheaper then 560ti

 

[fury0609]

doesn't overclocking voids the warranty of the product?
and plus I don't know anything about overclocking except it can destroy the parts if done wrong

 

[shinaynay]

For the most part it's a lot less about destroying the cards and more about taking the time and effort to actual accomplish a stable and worthwhile overclock. That said, yes it does void the warranty and that's why a lot of people choose to never overclock. On the other hand, if you do want a little performance and don't want to necessarily take the time and effort for it, there are many programs from many companies that will find a stable overclock for you, all you'll have to do is hit a button and wait.

With that said, the 560Ti does overclock better, and it is a stronger card in general by pure technicality. There are more games written and coded to favour the Nvidia cards than there are to ATI. By that alone, one card Nvidia, one ATI when both are identical . . . I give my vote to the Nvidia.

 

[fury0609]

where can i find these programs?or does it need to come with the mobo?
like those oc genie i've been seeing on some motherboards

 

[madchemist83]

Those are for ocing CPU. For GPU it's Riva tuner for Nvidia or something something for ATT . If u don't feel comfortable ocing ask on the forums read some articles. Otherwise go for it

 

[Why_Me]

where can i find these programs?or does it need to come with the mobo?
like those oc genie i've been seeing on some motherboards

http://forums.guru3d.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

 

[fury0609]

So all I have to do is download that engine, find some tutorials then im good to go, I would need a good case and cooling right? although im not planning to oc right away

 

[madchemist83]

cm hyper 212+ will be ok for a cooler