Need advice on my first build

DustyCap

Reputable
Jan 9, 2015
8
0
4,510
First time builder. I want to build a gaming computer that can handle games like Battlefield 4 on ultra settings at 1920 x 1080 resolution. I also need a monitor and a cheap laptop that I can use for word processing and web-browsing.

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690k - $229.99
GPU: GeForce GTX 970 - $329.99
Motherboard: Asus z97-a - $129.99
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - Hyper 212 EVO - $34.99
Memory: PNY 2 x 8GB DDR3 - $139.99
SSD: Transcend - STATA III 128GB - $59.99
HDD: WD - Mainstream 1TB - $54.99
PSU: Corsair CX Series 750W - $76.99
Case: NZXT Phantom 240 - $69.99
Monitor: AOC 27" LED - $199.99
Laptop: Asus 15.6" intel celeron 4GB 500GB Hard Drive Black - $229.99
Windows 7 Professional: $60 (craigslist)

Subtotal: $1616.89
Tax (CA): $116.77
Total: $1733.66

This is my first build and I would love suggestions on how to make this build better or how to cut costs.

I have a few more questions:
Is a 750W PSU overkill for this build?
Is it better to run 4 x 4GB ram or 2 x 8GB ram?
How much of a difference does 16GB ram make over 8GB ram?
 
Thanks for the suggestions! I'm learning a lot about computers through researching all of a computer's parts. Could you explain to me why your suggested PSU and SSD are better than the ones I had listed already? Just trying to learn.
 
The CX series PSU's are known for bad capacitors. PNY ram is, for whatever reason, failure prone. 2x8gb is best for 16gb, in your case. Crucial and Samsung make the best SSD's, currently. Crucial has a better price per GB than Samsung, though.