It's time for my new PC! .... help!

[SgtMattBaker]

Hey guys, so since BF3 is only 2 months away, it's time to get serious about my new pc.
First off, I'm buying everything from newegg since it was the most recommended site from some of you, and from other pages...

Well, you may just ask "What's your budget?". Let's just say I have a good one, and I'm not limiting myself to a certain amount of money, although the less, the better. (under 1500 if possible)

I was browsing Newegg and found this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229267

It's a prebuilt pc, that looks good, but has some stuff I can do without, like the bluray player and i7 2600k. But I'm taking some of the specs as my standard.



So, here's where I need massive help if someone has time to spare.

I need help finding every single item I need to build it, with the link to it and everything.

Here's what I want, If I'm missing anything, just let me know: (Remember, the cheaper the better, but I don't mean CHEAP as in quality...)

-8GB RAM, 1600mhz? 1333mhz? Just link me to the best one.

-GTX 570 or 580, there are tons of GPU brands that I really don't know anything, just point to the one you think will handle BF3 at its best.

-i5 2500k

-A case with good airflow that I won't have any problem adding a new GPU in the future.

-PSU ... well I'm no expert at this, so give me your best shot.

-A good air cooling system.

-1TB HDD.


That's the stuff I need, again if I'm missing something, just point it out.
Thank you for taking time to help me out.

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Here is what I'm spec'ing on building so maybe you can work off my list...


Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
ASUS P8Z68-V LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
EVGA SuperClocked 012-P3-1572-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready
OCZ Vertex 3 VTX3-25SAT3-240G 2.5" 240GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

This is going to be an upgrade, so I already have the following:
* case (p180b modded)
* psu (850w)
* optical drive
* 1Tb data drive
* X-fi soundcard

thoughts:
* CPU: Still hard to decide between the core i5 and i7 K series. I think im going to settle on the i5. my current quad core doesn't have hyper-threading so i doubt i will miss it and the $100+ in saving can go towards something else.
* MOBO: probably the hardest component to decide on. the Z68 and P67 chipsets are about equal with the Z68 adding a few features. I narrowed this down to asus or gigabyte. going with the p8z68-v non-pro version because i don't need the extra 6Gb sata ports and it has everything else i want. mobo reviews on newegg are ridiculous with noobs putting a system together that doesnt work, then rating stuff 1 star.
* RAM: looked the mobo's supported ram list at asus' website and choose the corsair. this is also the exact ram maximumPC used in their dream machine 2011 running at 4.8ghz. good enough for me.
* HSF: gotta run an aftermarket cooler! I always go with one that uses a standard 120mm fan which is easily replaceable and upgradable. this coolermaster seems popular and decent.
* SSD: the most expensive part. I've been wanting a SSD upgrade for a while now. a 120Gb ssd is not enough so im going with a 240Gb. Might as well get one of the best.
* GPU: I'm still scratching my head over this choice. I have bought $500+ gpus in the past several times but this time I think im going to go mid-grade and then do an upgrade in a couple years and see how that goes. the evga is factory overclocked and has good ratings but if anyone has any other GPU ideas i'd like to hear them.

[SgtMattBaker]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

How did you post your list like that?
I want to show you what I've done so far without having you clicking all the links?

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

It was a lot of work :)

you could take a screenshot of your newegg wishlist, or make your wishlist public and post the link.

[SgtMattBaker]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Ok I have 2 possible wishlists, it all depends if the 580 goes a little cheaper if they announce new stuff, or there is some kind of deal...

Wishlist 1, with the 580 and a 850w PSU (might sound like overkill, but I might add another GPU in the future).



Wishlist 2, with a 570 and a 750w PSU.





Are the items compatible with one another? Am I missing something essential? Can you recommend a cheaper item? Is the case size good enough? anything helps.

Also I'm missing an optical drive, but my noobness cant help me get around newegg finding a decent one, with cdrw and dvdrw, so if you can get me the link it would be awesome.

Thanks.

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

both lists look ok, although i don't know anything about choosing a current case - its all up to what you want. Just research a little and make sure the case can accept longer video cards. also remember that mobo can support the i7 should you want to go that route.

almost any dvd burner will do fine. my last sony died and i think i have the $20 asus one right now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007589%20600003707%20600003509&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=50

your hdd choice seems expensive for a 500Gb. Is there a reason you choose that one? I haven't looked at hdd's in a long time so i would have to read up on them. some have gotten a lot faster recently.

[CptainCrunch]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

I think the hard drive is more because its SATA 3. I havent seen any specs on hard drives in a while, but I would think the limit of read/write time would slow down the fact that its a SATA 3 drive.

Crunch

[CptainCrunch]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Did some quick googling and I was correct on the Sata 2 vs. 3 thing. SATA 3 on a hard drive is a waste as there is plenty of bandwidth on SATA2. Now if you went solid state, then 3 would be a benifit.

http://www.overclock.net/hard-drives-storage/735953-sata-iii-wd-black-vs-sata.html

http://forums.techarena.in/portable-devices/1365016.htm

http://www.evga.com/forums/tm.aspx?m=966218&mpage=1

http://www.pcmech.com/forum/computer-hardware/215474-sata-2-sata-3-hard-drive.html

So in conclusion, get yourself some 1TB Sata 2 drives.

Crunch

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

...
So in conclusion, get yourself some 1TB Sata 2 drives.

Crunch

with the 32mb cache.

[SgtMattBaker]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

wow, funny thing is, I actually thought I had a 1TB in the list, don't know why I chose that, thanks.

SSD's will be in there a couple of months, too expensive to get one at the moment, although I could get a 60gb just for the OS.

@ Signa, I noticed you have a sound card, I'm kind of a 'sound guy' when it comes to games, I love hearing all the effects, environments, soundtrack if there's any... And we all know BF3 sound is going to be out of this world, is it worth getting one?

[PCKiller]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Signa, i did this Thread:

http://csnation.net/showthread.php?380350-i7-950-ASUS-Sabertooth-X58-DDR-3-frequency&p=3260515#post3260515

i use i7 950 by the intel i can use ddr3 max 1066. can i set manual and use ddr3 1333 without overclock the cpu?

the same case of i5 2500, to use 1600! by the intel max 1333!

no problem?

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

@ Signa, I noticed you have a sound card, I'm kind of a 'sound guy' when it comes to games, I love hearing all the effects, environments, soundtrack if there's any... And we all know BF3 sound is going to be out of this world, is it worth getting one?

I think so (imo). i've been using dedicated sound cards for the past 10 years and recently when my old x-fi "extreme music" died, i had to go back to onboard sound. I thought it sounded like crap in bc2, so i found a deal on a x-fi titanium and bought it. :)

Signa, i did this Thread:

http://csnation.net/showthread.php?380350-i7-950-ASUS-Sabertooth-X58-DDR-3-frequency&p=3260515#post3260515

i use i7 950 by the intel i can use ddr3 max 1066. can i set manual and use ddr3 1333 without overclock the cpu?

the same case of i5 2500, to use 1600! by the intel max 1333!

no problem?

I do not know anything about "core i" series overclocking... (yet).

[SgtMattBaker]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Might just get one :), also any cables I should buy? any extra of them?
Also I've heard that I need thermal paste for the CPU and the Cooling system, any true?

[signa]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

also any cables I should buy? any extra of them?
I doubt you'll need any, usually motherboards come with everything.

Also I've heard that I need thermal paste for the CPU and the Cooling system, any true?
oh yes. you'll want to use some good thermal paste. previously arctic silver 5 was the best but now they have some new products out that may be worth researching.

[SgtMattBaker]

Re: It's time for my new PC! .... help!

Fantastic, so it's a final price of about 1500usd. Great price for all the bang inside!.
I'll let you know know how it all goes. I'll be ordering mid September.
I just watched newegg's 'how to build a pc' video on youtube and yeah, looks like every single cable is included, i just need a screwdriver and some cable ties, very helpful video.

Thanks Signa and Crunch, you've been great +rep.