Need help - building 1st PC from scratch

[rfelix]

First post to the community, apology if I screwed anything up.

I'm building my first PC from scratch.

Uses:
Hard core Excel (50-60mb spreadsheets with 140k rows, 30 columns, and formulas in 25 of 30 columns)
Gaming (not hardcore -- just Warcraft, Starcraft II, and Civilzation V)

My thought process:

Build my own solid machine now, and then replace the mobo / processor to Ivy Bridge once it's been out and is stable.

I'm looking for advice on the current components that I've selected, and looking for some help to fill in the blanks.

Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD4 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128507
CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
Ram: 16gb? Haven't chosen yet
GPU: Need help -- 2 gb card?
SSD: (main drive) -- need help
HDD: (storage) -- 1 Tb -- 7200 rpm is that sufficient
Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 650D http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139006
Power supply: CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750M http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139030

Thoughts? Thank you so much in advance, I really REALLY appreciate it. Santa came up short, so I'm picking up the slack.

 

[majorgibly]

I found the hard core excel part funny ;0) But for RAM I believe Sandy Bridge only supports 1333MHz and needs to be overclocked to 1600MHz I believe that's correct but if not someone will correct me. As for an SSD is this going to be boot drive?

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been moved from the section CPU & Components to section Systems by Mousemonkey

 

[mchljrdn]

Welcome aboard! How much are you planning to spend? Any of the i5's will crush Excel these days. Here's my 2 cents.

Motherboard: BIOSTAR TA990FXE

Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 2 x 4GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445

CPU: If you don't need the GPU on chip you can save a little on http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073

Boot Drive: OCZ Vertex 3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227759

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1502FAEX 1.5TB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136793

Case: Antec 900 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

GPU: EVGA 01G-P3-1460-KR GeForce GTX 560 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130660

 

[cadder]

I'll add a few comments, FWIW.

1. If you get a 2500k processor then you will want to overclock it so you will need a good aftermarket cpu cooler.
2. If you get over 4GB of ram then you will need a 64bit OS. You would probably be fine with 4GB of ram and a 32bit OS, but it is up to you. There are pros and cons to either way.
3. You left out the optical drive.
4. If you read the user feedback on newegg.com you will run as fast as you can AWAY from OCZ drives, as well as a few other brands.

 

[jsc]

I found the hard core excel part funny ;0) But for RAM I believe Sandy Bridge only supports 1333MHz and needs to be overclocked to 1600MHz I believe that's correct ...

You will not little, if any, performance difference between the two.

DDR3 RAM is cheap. Get at least 8 GB.

There is hardly any downside to a 64 bit OS for a productivity machine.

If you are going to get an Antec 900 case, get the 900 Two:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129097

For first-time builders, I recommend looking at these threads:
Build it yourself:
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/274745-13-step-step-guide-building

And although this primarily a troubleshooting thread, the first part contains a checklist that will catch most noob mistakes:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261145-31-read-posting-boot-problems

 

[rfelix]

mchljrdn:

I'm a little bit confused about a number of your suggestions:

Motherboard: BIOSTAR TA990FXE
-- if we're talking about an Intel i5 chip, why would I get a motherboard that supports an AMD chip?

Case: Antec 900 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

-- Why would I want a case that doesn't support USB 3.0 on the front side?

Thanks,
Ross

 

[mchljrdn]

mchljrdn:

I'm a little bit confused about a number of your suggestions:

Motherboard: BIOSTAR TA990FXE
-- if we're talking about an Intel i5 chip, why would I get a motherboard that supports an AMD chip?

Case: Antec 900 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

-- Why would I want a case that doesn't support USB 3.0 on the front side?

Thanks,
Ross

Apologies on the motherboard I hope it was a cut and paste error and not all the paint I huffed...

MSI P67A-G43: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130583

If USB 3.0 on the front is a requirement by all means go another route. I'm a huge fan of Antec cases but there are plenty of quality enclosures out there. Make sure to let us know what you end up deciding!