System just need a bit of polish

[zepheniahmann]

I will be building my gaming rig soon. Here are my parts:
cpu: i5-4690 @ 3.5ghz
gpu: msi gtx 970 gaming twin frozr
ram: corsair 1x8gb ddr3 1600mhz
mobo: Asrock fatal1ty h97 performance
ssd: crucial mx100 256gb
hdd: wd blue 1tb
case: corsair carbide spec-03
psu: antec hcg-520m
optical drive: asus drw-24b3st
os: windows 8.1 64bit
monitor: asus ve247h
Is there anything I can change to further polish it & make it better? I really like red colour scheme though

 

[Onus]

Change the RAM to a 2x4GB kit so you'll run in the faster (3%-5%) dual channel mode.

 

[bsod1]

what's your budget?

I would personally get a motherboard from ASUS OR GIGABYTE.

get a 2 x 4 GB RAM 1866 MHz

the Samsung EVO 850 Series are better

get a Antec 620 HCG PSU instead. 520 seems a little less for a GTX 970

 

[zared619]

what's your budget?

I would personally get a motherboard from ASUS OR GIGABYTE.

get a 2 x 4 GB RAM 1866 MHz

the Samsung EVO 850 Series are better

get a Antec 620 HCG PSU instead. 520 seems a little less for a GTX 970

+1 to all of that. I would have said the same thing

 

[Onus]

I have had good results from ASRock motherboards myself, as well as Asus. Most SSDs offer virtually indistinguishable performance in most tasks. I would put a Samsung in a laptop though, as they tend to have much lower idle power draw than their competition.
The GTX970 will run nicely on a 450W PSU.

 

[sadams04]

CPU - If not overclocking, the better choice is with the 4590. You won't miss the few hundred MHz, but will enjoy the budget savings.
MEM - Always install modules in pairs to take advantage of the dual memory controllers.
SSD - The Samsung 850 EVO is a bit faster The MX100 is a solid SSD as well...
GPU - STRIX model for its cooling solution and more rigid backbone.
MONITOR - Changed to an IPS panel.

The below build has a black and blue theme...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($188.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($81.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.98 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($329.99 @ Directron)
Case: Rosewill BLACKHAWK-BLUE ATX Mid Tower Case ($83.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit) ($93.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Asus VN248H-P 23.8" Monitor ($153.00 @ Newegg)
Total: $1219.73

 

[zepheniahmann]

Change the RAM to a 2x4GB kit so you'll run in the faster (3%-5%) dual channel mode.

Well I am thinking of upgrading the ram to a 2x8gb dual channel 16gb set in the future so I might as well stay for one stick in the mean time
Anyway thx for the suggestion man

 

[sadams04]

Well I am thinking of upgrading the ram to a 2x8gb dual channel 16gb set in the future so I might as well stay for one stick in the mean time
Anyway thx for the suggestion man

You have four memory slots on that board. No need to only ever use two of them... Go with 2x4GB now, then if needed add another 2x4GB or 2x8GB later.

 

[zepheniahmann]

I am from Hong Kong. My budget is around hk$10000 which is us$1290. The budget will include the peripherals i.e monitor keyboard speakers and headset (I have a mouse here). I am thinking to get the cheap stuff for the speakers keyboard and headset

 

[zepheniahmann]

Well I am thinking of upgrading the ram to a 2x8gb dual channel 16gb set in the future so I might as well stay for one stick in the mean time
Anyway thx for the suggestion man

You have four memory slots on that board. No need to only ever use two of them... Go with 2x4GB now, then if needed add another 2x4GB or 2x8GB later.

Ok thx
I may go for a corsair vengeance 8gb 1600mhz dual channel kit