New Build - Gaming PC -

[lordreyrey]

Hello everyone.

I am looking to build a new gaming rig, and I havent built a pc since, um, about 2000.

My current system is an HP Pavillion m9360f, with an upgraded power supply and a Geforce GTX 460.

My budget is between 1200 and 1600. I want to stay as low as possible, but I also want to build a good gaming rig to play games in max settings 1900x1080. I am currently playing SW:TOR and Skyrim.

Is there a major advantage to the i7 2600k over the i5 2500k?

Here is what I am looking at:

CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz
MB: Asus p8p67 Deluxe
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16gb, (8x2), DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
Case: Corsair Obsidian 650D
GPU: Geforce GTX 570
PSU: Seasonic 750w
Optical: LG Blu Ray drive.
HD: OCZ Vertex 2 2.5" 120GB SATA II SSD
HD: WD 1 TB Sata
Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper 212 plus.

Any comments or ideas?

Thanks.

 

[vollman1]

i5 is fine for gaming

You can get the p8p67 pro (unless you have a reason for the deluxe)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771

(Micro Center will take $50 off for these two bundled, if you have on near you)

RAM go with the 8GB kits (16 is overkill for gaming)

PSU is good or you can consider these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341018

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341017

CPU cooler: I use and recommend the H series water cooler from Corsair, but wait on MIRs. There are many benefits if you want to hear them.

Edit:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181016&Tpk=H80

and

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181015

 

[sosofm]

For gaming 2500k is more than enough. For multitasking and video encoding , 3D graphic 2600k is better.For exact the same reason 8GB RAM is more than enough , you don't need 16GB RAM if the PC is for gaming.
Buy an Z68 mobo.
Here some mobos who support SLI but they are cheaper.
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271 122$
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128502 130$
GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128512 145$
GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128498 160$
ASUS P8Z68-V/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131792 180$
ASRock Z68 EXTREME4 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157264 185$
GIGABYTE GA-Z68XP-UD3P LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128506 190$
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790 205$
You can buy cheaper without loosing the build quality.

 

[lordreyrey]

Thanks for the suggestions.

Mobo- the Asus p8p67 pro, I have read that this board had a ton of issues, anyone have this one?

CPU- Considering systems being obsolete in a few years, If I go with the i5 2500k over the i7 2600k am I going to have to scrap and rebuild a new system sooner, or not really?

GPU - As far as the graphics card goes, when it comes to using SLI and having two cards, how much performance increase do you see? Is there a major benefit for having two cards, versus just having the one high end GTX 570?

Cooler- is liquid cooling the cpu far superior to heatsink and fans?

HD- I have read that installing windows on an SSD is substantially faster performance than a regular hard drive, is this true?

Thanks again everyone.

 

[vollman1]

I have the Asus p8p67 ws revolution which is pretty similar to the p8p67 pro and I love it so far.

The are 2 issues with the p67 chip set.
Main is a double boot issue that occurs if the BLCK is not set to 100. Setting it to 100 easily solves this.
The other issue is that if you use sleep mode and have the PLL Overvoltage enabled, you will not have video and will have to reboot. The easy solution is not to use sleep mode (which is mainly for laptops to conserve battery power anyway). Some people say you should never use sleep mode with a desktop computer.

Don't worry about the CPU; the i5 2500k is fine for a while. If you have more money in your budget, upgrading graphics would be a better value.

Water will always cool better than air. But air is cheaper. My recommendation is to get one of the H series Corsair water coolers but wait until a nice MIR is in place (happens quite a lot). Prices for the H60 are between $45-$65 or so.

SSD- yes it is like 10-15 sec to boot into windows from an SSD

 

[lordreyrey]

Thanks,

And about the GPU, how beneficial is having two cards SLI over just one?

And besides the enjoyment of building a rig, is it still more cost effective, can you get the best system by building it yourself over purchasing an HP, dell, or some other premade system?

Thanks guys.

 

[vollman1]

The Xfire/SLI debate is still on; some people favor single cards and some favor dual. I think that single cards require less power for the same amount of performance (someone correct me if I am wrong), but you can sometimes get results for less with Xfire/SLI.

The real benefit of SLI is that you can use multiple monitors. However, you can use multiple monitors using a single AMD card with Eyefinity.

Ultimately, check your budget and buy the best set up that meets your needs within that. This is an article that I found helpful, but it is getting dated fast:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

 

[vollman1]

And I believe that the price point at which it is better to build your own is about $500. If your budget is less than that, buying a pre-built system is usually a better value (you can see why when just an OS alone is like $100-$120).

 

[lordreyrey]

Vollman, thanks for all your replies.

I keep diverting back to GPU in my head. I am currently running a Geforce GTX 460. Will the performance I gain by upgrading to GTX 570 be substantial?


Thanks

 

[vollman1]

Have to get another opinion there. I am still trying to decide myself. Hopefully someone else will post here for both of us lol

I have an HD 6950 in my first build but prices are changing so much that I am not sure what to go with in next build. I am going to use cpu graphics for another month or so and keep an eye on prices until then.

How much do you have in your budget for graphics? Or are you like me and looking for best value?

 

[lordreyrey]

Im open to the cost if the reward is much better performance. I do want the best bang for my buck.

If it is only marginally better, then I might as well just shove the gtx460 into the new rig.

Since im sure my current cpu quad core q6700 upgrading to i5 2500k is a great improvement. I want the same from the gpu improvement.