New Gaming Build (around $1100)

[epicgamerz]

Need help with my rig!

Approximate Purchase Date: Hopefully within 24 hours

Budget Range: Around $1100 give or take

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Other Stuff

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, mouse, monitor, os, speakers

Preferred Website for Parts: Newegg.com

Country of Origin: U.S.

Parts Preferences: None

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Yes

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1200

Here is what i have so far:

Case: COOLER MASTER HAF 922 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

PSU: ENERMAX NAXN 82+ ENM750AWT 750W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817194086

Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231311

Mobo: ASRock P67 EXTREME4 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157229

Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

What kind of cpu cooler would you guys recommend that is best for overclocking? Also, I was looking at the reference 6950 (so i could unlock it) and the 560 Ti. Since I plan on doing crossfire/sli I was wondering which would be a better choice? Keep in mind I may get a (slightly) smaller monitor in the future, as my monitor is getting a little old and I feel its almost time for an upgrade.

 

[Jmassault]

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1308808726&sr=8-2
Samsung spinpoint is 5 bucks cheaper on amazon...

Also, if you wanna spend two more bucks then you can get slightly faster memory...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445&cm_re=g.skill_ripjaws_series_8gb_240-pin_ddr3_sdram_ddr3-_-20-231-445-_-Product

And here's another case you may want to consider to lower your cost a tad
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066&Tpk=antec%20300%20illusion

For a cpu cooler the Cooler Master Hyper 212 is pretty popular and is only about $30 on amazon. (in stock and $20 cheaper than newegg)
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1308809090&sr=1-1

 

[z_4]

Here's a build (Before MAIL-IN-REBATE):

CPU : $220- i5-2500k (same as yours)

Motherboard : $145- Gigabyte GA-Z68X( Slightly cheaper but has almost the same features)

RAM : $75-GSkill ( Same as what JMAssault Suggested)

HDD : $60-Seagate Barracuda 1TB

Power Supply : $110-Corsair TX750

Cooler : $30-ThermalTake Gaia ( Cheap and Good for your overclocking needs )

Case: I'll leave it to you. My suggestion would be Cooler Master HAF 922($100)

Total (Without Graphic Card ) : 760 USD
Here's a thumbnail :


Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Now about Graphic Card :
(Around 340 USD)

With that budget you can
1. get 2X HIS 6870 (Each 185 USD)
CrossFire Performance of 6870
If you find yourself to be short you can drop down the case which JMAssault suggested.

2. Get a HIS 6950 2GB(250 USD) now. Later when you have more money get another one.
Crossfire Performance of 6950
3. If you dont't feel the need to buy another graphic card, then with the saved money get an 64 GB SSD like Crucial M4

BENEFIT OF 6950 2GB : It can be unlocked to 6970. The 1 GB version cannot be. Here's a guide.

Here's a thumbnail with SSD and HIS 6950. (Total 1130 USD)

 

[vibhas]

Power supply: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049
meets or beats the Tx 750w.

Memory: Go with the $75 1600mhz g.skill ram
graphics: The 6950 2gb and 6950 1gb have virtually no difference, unless you are using multi monitors or having a $1000 2560x1600p 30" monitor...

"So first off, did you guys check the difference in-between the 1GB and 2GB 6950 versions as well, yeah ... the results are nearly NIL. The added benefit of an extra full GB is excruciatingly hard to measure, even with all games setup with the best image quality settings, hefty shaders and massive textures. The reality is that for 98% of you with today's games 1 GB is absolutely sufficient."

The fact is, in those benchmarks, the 6950 1 gb embarassingly BEAT the 6950 2gb overall .

What do you get? A saving of $30 for the same thing.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150523&cm_re=6950-_-14-150-523-_-Product

The Nvidia equivalent is.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162074&cm_re=gtx_560_ti-_-14-162-074-_-Product

Almost the same level of performance...

But the way i see it, either get the 6950 1gb or the GTX 570.

Why?

Because the 6950 2gb is $250, and offers around a 12% reduction in performance compared to the 570, for $285. Overall, your system costs $1100, so basically... the $35 difference means the 570 uses 3% more of your budget than the 6950 2gb, and gives 12% more performance. Thats 4% more performance per 1% budget.

$285 gtx 570 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162075&cm_re=gtx_570-_-14-162-075-_-Product

$300 evga gtx 570 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130613&cm_re=gtx_570-_-14-130-613-_-Product with 13 year warranty after registration.. (EVGA is a bigger company, so if u like them, then u may be prepared to pay the $15...)

if you dont want to overclock, and want a factory oc'd version, a lifetime warranty evga for $310... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130622&cm_re=gtx_570-_-14-130-622-_-Product - 70¬mhz overclock..
However, at $25 lesser, the $285 one is the most appealing to many..

Yes, the gtx 570 is dominated by 2x hd 6870.
But in CF/SLI, single cards are always dominated; however the facts are plain to see - The minimum fps you'll ever get in game, on a 1920x1200 monitor is 34 on crysis 2, on max settings. The average fps is higher than that; thats the MINIMUM. Metro 2033 is a bit higher.
If you ever feel like performance is too low, put in another gtx 570 - but honestly, for a 1920x1080 or 1920x1200 monitor, 1 gtx 570 will be excess to any game in the next 2 years easily. If you want to get 2x hd 6870, your performance will be better, but cooling will be required, power bills will be higher, and there is much more that can go wrong, even now.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

I'd skip the 922 as it has no front USB port. Suggest Antec 902 in mid tower or step up to full Tower HAF 932 (new version added USb 3).

This RAM is both faster and cheaper
(2 x 4GB) Corsair CAS 9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324

Asrock B3 boards only offer a 2 year warranty (1 year on Z68 boards).

At 1920 x 1200, the best bang for the buck are the factory overclocked GTX 560 Ti's (900 MHz). provided with larger coolers they can stand more overclocking than their reference board cousins.

Guru3D uses the following games in their test suite, COD-MW, Bad Company 2, Dirt 2, Far Cry 2, Metro 2033, Dawn of Discovery, Crysis Warhead. Total fps (summing fps in each game @ 1920 x 1200) for the various options in parenthesis (single card / SL or CF) are tabulated below along with their cost in dollars per frame single card - CF or SLI:

$250.00 6950 (479/751) $0.52 - $0.67
$290.00 6950 Frozr OC (484/759) $0.60 - $0.76
$210.00 560 Ti (455/792) $0.46 - $0.53
$355.00 6970 (526/825) $0.67 - $0.86
$220.00 560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862) $0.44 - $0.51
$335.00 570 (524/873) $0.64 - $0.77

The single 900 MHz 560 costs ya 44 cents per frame and only its non overclocked sibling is able to stay below 50 cents. But where the 560 really shines is in its scaling at 177%, it manages 51 cents per frame, closet thing from ATI in this performance range is the 6950 at 67 cents (33% higher cost per frame). The twin 900 Mhz 560's are only11 fps behind the twin 570's.

However, that's at 1920 x 1200 .... if ya move to 2560 x 1600, I'd move to the 69xx series.

Gigabyte $224 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363
EVGA $220 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130651
Asus $234 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121425

I have overclocked the Asus model to 1000 MHz in Son No. 3's box which was kinda amazing as it req'd no voltage increase. I'm down on EVGA as Son No. 2 has been battling with EVGA for the last 20 months because his factory over clocked dual GPU card has never been stable at the factory OC or the reference speed. He sent back his 4th RMA yesterday. Immediately prior, we stole the twin 560's from his brother's box yesterday and they ran just fine.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

This build is just under $1187 but it has a large 120 GB SSD
Case - $70 - Antec 902 V3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066
PSU - $60 - XFX 750 W Core Edition PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207014
MoBo - $380 - ASUS P8P67 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.660725
CPU - incl above - Intel Core i5-2500K Inc in above
Cooler - $40 - Scythe SCMG 2100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142
TIM - $5 - Shin Etsu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150080
RAM - $70 - (2 x 4GB) Corsair CAS 9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324
GFX - $220 - EVGA GTX 560 Ti 900 Mhz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130651
GFX - Later - Same
HD - $65 - Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 rpm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
SSD - $255 - Vertex 3 120 GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706
DVD Writer - $22 - Asus 24X DRW-24B3L w/ LS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135221

If it were me, I'd keep the 120 GB SSD and spend the extra $. I'd also recommend spending the extra $ 4 - $14 for the Gigabyte / Asus version of the GFX card given my experience with EVGA referenced above.

 

[vibhas]

I'd skip the 922 as it has no front USB port. Suggest Antec 902 in mid tower or step up to full Tower HAF 932 (new version added USb 3).

This RAM is both faster and cheaper
(2 x 4GB) Corsair CAS 9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324

Asrock B3 boards only offer a 2 year warranty (1 year on Z68 boards).

At 1920 x 1200, the best bang for the buck are the factory overclocked GTX 560 Ti's (900 MHz). provided with larger coolers they can stand more overclocking than their reference board cousins.

Guru3D uses the following games in their test suite, COD-MW, Bad Company 2, Dirt 2, Far Cry 2, Metro 2033, Dawn of Discovery, Crysis Warhead. Total fps (summing fps in each game @ 1920 x 1200) for the various options in parenthesis (single card / SL or CF) are tabulated below along with their cost in dollars per frame single card - CF or SLI:

$250.00 6950 (479/751) $0.52 - $0.67
$290.00 6950 Frozr OC (484/759) $0.60 - $0.76
$210.00 560 Ti (455/792) $0.46 - $0.53
$355.00 6970 (526/825) $0.67 - $0.86
$220.00 560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862) $0.44 - $0.51
$335.00 570 (524/873) $0.64 - $0.77

The single 900 MHz 560 costs ya 44 cents per frame and only its non overclocked sibling is able to stay below 50 cents. But where the 560 really shines is in its scaling at 177%, it manages 51 cents per frame, closet thing from ATI in this performance range is the 6950 at 67 cents (33% higher cost per frame). The twin 900 Mhz 560's are only11 fps behind the twin 570's.

However, that's at 1920 x 1200 .... if ya move to 2560 x 1600, I'd move to the 69xx series.

Gigabyte $224 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363
EVGA $220 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130651
Asus $234 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121425

I have overclocked the Asus model to 1000 MHz in Son No. 3's box which was kinda amazing as it req'd no voltage increase. I'm down on EVGA as Son No. 2 has been battling with EVGA for the last 20 months because his factory over clocked dual GPU card has never been stable at the factory OC or the reference speed. He sent back his 4th RMA yesterday. Immediately prior, we stole the twin 560's from his brother's box yesterday and they ran just fine.

I'm not a fan of this 'cents per frame' to be honest mate... The graphics card is most important, and getting the minimum number of frames right up there is important, not the frames per dollar. By this frames per $$, we shouldn't buy a whole load of stuff.. a case, fans a bigger psu with headroom.. a quality motherboard etc. Secondly, as the gpu is most important, spending more $$ there is most important; a 5% increase in the cost of a system may be $50, but it may give a 15% increase in performance, but this same product is lowly rated in your "frames/$" even though it is well worth it.. Thirdly, the prices there are all bogus, totally destroying values.

Can't you just do a simple "Link to benchmark" reference to increase in performance, reference to increase in price, and perhaps a 'total cost increase vs total performance increase.' Because something like a $285 GTX 570 (unlike the $350 price tag you have there), vs a $250 69502gb , is $35 more, yet gives over 10% more performance in the anandtech benchmarks.. so perhaps a 3% increase in cost of the system ($35 / $1100) but a good 10+% increase in fps. But in that, the 6950 2gb leads in fps/$...

btw, in your posted $1187 build, you tagged a 750w psu for $60, but newegg shows that its the 650w xfx at $60..thats pretty low for SLI oc'd 560tis, in terms of headroom, esp as op is ocing cpu too..

 

[mjmjpfaff]

case: Antec 300 illusion http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066&cm_re=antec_case-_-11-129-066-_-Product 70$

PSU: Antec 750W PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049&cm_re=750w_power_supply-_-17-371-049-_-Product 85$

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128500&cm_re=gigabyte_z68-_-13-128-500-_-Product 153$ shipped

CPU: i5 2500k http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072&cm_re=i5_2500k-_-19-115-072-_-Product 220$

Cpu Cooler: Hyper 212 plus http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B002G1YPH0/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1308840381&sr=1-1&condition=new 29.51$

Ram: Kingston HyperX ddr3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104246&cm_re=8gb_1600-_-20-104-246-_-Product 57$

HDD: Samsung spinpoint f3 1tb http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-3-5-Inch-Internal-HD103SJ/dp/B002MQC0P8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1308840012&sr=8-2 60$

SSD: Corsair Force 3 120gb (vertex 3) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233181&cm_re=corsair_force_3_ssd-_-20-233-181-_-Product dont mind the bad reviews they have fixed the problem 180$

DVD DRIVE: LITE-ON DVD Burner http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289 19$

GPU: PNY GTX 570 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133370&cm_re=gtx_570-_-14-133-370-_-Product 290$

Total 1164$
hope you can find the 64$ for the gtx 570

 

[mjmjpfaff]

This build is just under $1187 but it has a large 120 GB SSD
Case - $70 - Antec 902 V3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066
PSU - $60 - XFX 750 W Core Edition PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207014
MoBo - $380 - ASUS P8P67 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.660725
CPU - incl above - Intel Core i5-2500K Inc in above
Cooler - $40 - Scythe SCMG 2100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142
TIM - $5 - Shin Etsu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150080
RAM - $70 - (2 x 4GB) Corsair CAS 9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324
GFX - $220 - EVGA GTX 560 Ti 900 Mhz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130651
GFX - Later - Same
HD - $65 - Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 rpm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
SSD - $255 - Vertex 3 120 GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706
DVD Writer - $22 - Asus 24X DRW-24B3L w/ LS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135221

If it were me, I'd keep the 120 GB SSD and spend the extra $. I'd also recommend spending the extra $ 4 - $14 for the Gigabyte / Asus version of the GFX card given my experience with EVGA referenced above.

that case is an antec 300 illusion, and that is a 650w psu which will not run 2 560 ti's, and the scythe mugen 2 is out of stock

 

[epicgamerz]

Wow everyone, thank you for all of your help and all these good choices!

 

[epicgamerz]

Best answer selected by EpicGamerz.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

if you are going w/ z_4's build change out that cpu cooler for this one since it is better: http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B002G1YPH0/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1308879816&sr=1-1&condition=new