New Computer Build!

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B Zerker

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Jan 17, 2011
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I finally have a fixed source of income (jobs are few and far between for high school students in my town) so I am FINALLY building my gaming computer.

Here are the components I have decided on (willing to take suggestions).


Case:
Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case


Hard Drive:
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive


Memory:
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL


MotherBoard:
ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

The total for these four components is $525.96.
I need help finding a good CPU, PSU, Graphics Card, and possibly an SSD while staying in the $1000 to $1250 price range.

Any Suggestions?
 
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First off, memory isn't another hard drive. Its RAM. Something like this. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186

Next, I don't like the case. Its cheap and plastic. For that price you should look into some of corsair's beautiful cases with metal construction and great wire management. Here is a full list.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...n=corsair&name=Computer Cases&Order=BESTMATCH

I like the c70 or 600t or 500r for a midsize ATX tower and they come in several colors.
If you want a little more plain look the 300r or 650d are good choices.
 
chili dude96 said:
First off, memory isn't another hard drive. Its RAM. Something like this. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186

Next, I don't like the case. Its cheap and plastic. For that price you should look into some of corsair's beautiful cases with metal construction and great wire management. Here is a full list.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...n=corsair&name=Computer Cases&Order=BESTMATCH

I like the c70 or 600t or 500r for a midsize ATX tower and they come in several colors.
If you want a little more plain look the 300r or 650d are good choices.
Click to expand...
oops I linked the wrong item...
This is the memory I was looking at:
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
I also looked at those corsair cases and I'm diggin the Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel case...
 
B Zerker said:
oops I linked the wrong item...
This is the memory I was looking at:
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
I also looked at those corsair cases and I'm diggin the Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel case...
Click to expand...
I like the corsair RAM better. Its low profile so its future proof in case you decide to get a CPU heatsink. Also, RAM doesn't run hot, there is no need for heat spreaders on them, and furthermore, I have G skill RAM and the spikes at the top are hollow, which means they certainly can't dissipate much heat.

And also, I figured you would like the corsair cases. Their build quality is 100 times better than cooler master. The all metal cases are durable and the inside is a builder's dream. I personally like the 600t in the white or black, but the 500r is still a great choice in either black or white.

Next order of business. I would NEVER spend that much money on a motherboard. Unless you are doing crazy overclocking there is no need for thermal coating on the mobo. How about something like this. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130644

A 850watt corsair power supply would be a great choice. Certainly plenty of power for adding another card maybe down the road and corsair makes the best psus. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139011

A 3570k would be a great CPU. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

Graphics card would be 7870. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127662

All my parts would make a $1100 build before $50 in mir and $15 in limited time promo codes. I've left off the SSD. I don't know a ton about the specific brands which are good so I will leave that to some one else. How much SSD room you want will determine how much it will cost. If you end up not spending the rest of the budget on the SSD, I suggest using it to upgrade the GPU.
 
If you live close to a microcenter, then you can get $50 off if you get a 3570k + an intel mobo. You wont see that discount untill you add it to your cart. Also, the cpu itself is $40 less then on newegg. You an get the 3570k and the ASRock Z77 Extreme4 mobo for a total of $298.79.

From here you can add the case, ram, and hard drive you picked out. You can get a 850w corsair psu (overkill?) and a gtx680 gpu. That would add up to $1233 and you would get $25 in MiR. If you want an SSD, you can get a little cheaper gpu and/or psu.
 
I like chuck's recommendation. Definitely take advantage of the microcenter deal for your cpu and mobo if you have one nearby.

However, gtx 670 is the sweet spot for gpus. Not much more performance when you step up to a 680, especially for the additional $100. However, msi has some great prices on their twin frozr 7xxx series on newegg. The 7870 that was linked to and the 7950 are both great coolers on good cards for a respectable price. So depending where your budget ends up, those would be great lower cost choices if a gtx 670 doesn't fit.

Switching to one of corsairs cases is a strong choice as chili suggested. You will definitely not be disappointed. However, the haf will have better airflow as it has larger fans with no air filters. That is not to say the corsair will cool poorly, just not as good as the haf. Corsair does include dust filters which are a must for a comp build I do. It is a tradeoff, though one I fully recommend.

As for an ssd, a good 128gb unit would be my recommendation. There have been some impressive sales that pop up occasionally. The ones to consider would be the crucial m4 and the samsung 830. Both are great reliable units, and if you can snag them at $90 or less with no rebate, they are a steal.

A 750w psu would be good enough:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207015
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151107
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182073

All will be decent choices. It also depends when you are buying if a promotion will be running to lower the price.
 
It just so happens that I am also planning out a Gaming PC as well. And at current prices, the spec I have come up with should be what you are looking for:

CPU: Intel i5 2500K Sandy Bridge @ 3.4 GHz, planning on OCing it. $219.99
Mobo: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 $119.99
Memory: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB), 1600MHz, 9-9-9-24 $53.99
GPU: ASUS GTX 560 DCII OR XFX Double D HD 6870 (both 1GB) $189.99
PSU: OCZ ZT Series 750W $109.99
Storage: Muskhin 120GB SSD for OS/Programs, Seagate Barracuda 1TB for Games/File Storage $89.99/94.99
Case: Corsair Carbide 400R $99.99
CPU Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus $19.99
Optical Drive: ASUS BD/DVD/CD $54.99
Extras: 2x SATA 6GB/sec data cables $5.44

The total for that is $1039.34
 
prefer Core i5-3450 about 100~ and ATI Radeon HD 6950/ NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560
 
Ok I totally blanked last night and forgot about microcenter's deal. I would go with what chuck recommended. I'm fine with going down to a 750watt psu but I would like to stick with corsair, they are the best. The one huckle linked to isn't modular, so I would like this one better. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010. I would also go with a 670.

So for me the build looks like this.
CPU + mobo @ microcenter - 3570k and ASRock z77 - $300
PSU - corsair hx750 - $145 with $10 mir
RAM- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186 - $55
HDD - Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive - $90
Case - Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $140 with $10 mir
Optical Drive - Any $20 piece of junk will do, like this. - $20
GPU - gigabyte 670 - $400
SSD - crucial m4 128gb - $120

This makes the total $1270 before 20 mir. You could always wait for a sale on the SSD as huckle suggested and snag one for $90. I also think thats the best 670 for your money. The cheapest you can get one for is 400 and this one has a non-stock cooler versus all the others at 400 have stock coolers. Its a no-brainer.

I understand huckle's concern that the corsair has less airflow. But to me the dust filters are worth it because they will protect your parts better. Also, if you get a gpu with a nice cooler, such as the one I recommended, your parts temps will be fine.
 
Ok this is my updated cart:

Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drivect.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

MSI R7870 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support ...

XFX Core Edition PRO750W (P1-750S-NLB9) 750W ATX12V 2.2 & ESP12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified ..


CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9

ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (There is a good chance I will overclock the CPU so I will take the extra heat dispersion)

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K

sadly the closest microcenter is 200 miles away so ill have to get it from newegg.

So is there any other suggestions?
 
That motherboard is a waste of money. Even if you are overclocking, the asrock extreme 4 z77 will do fine. It will allow you to overclock further than you will even be able to take the chip. And if you are overclocking, you will definitely want an aftermarket cpu cooler since ivy bridge generates a bit of heat.

PSU looks good. Corsair is definitely not the end all/be all. Seasonic is. And that XFX unit is based off of a seasonic design. Modular is nice, but a feature than can be omitted, especially with a case as large as the corsair where hiding unused cables should not be a problem.

If you don't think you will ever be adding a second card in, then this would be a cheaper option that is a very nice unit. Deal on atm makes it very attractive. Obviously, if you are not buying soon, it is not valid:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ction-_-cables-_-na-_-na&Item=N82E16817151093

16gb is overkill for a gaming rig. 8gb is plenty for now and not even required for a gaming rig. Apply the savings to a better gpu or ssd.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147096

This is the best ram, especially for overclocking. It is 30nm technology and low voltage which allows for it to be overclocked quite a bit, way past the corsair vengeance, and the large heat spreaders will get in the way of a tower air cooler for the cpu. These samsung sticks produce very little heat due to the 30nm manufacturing and require no heat spreaders.

As for a cpu cooler, depending how far you want to overclock, you could go with the king:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018

Or you could go with a good budget cooler:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

This will not let you overclock to the limit, but still to a respectable level.

Lastly, you could look into one of the self contained water cooler from corsair:

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

This unit is going to be in between the other two coolers. It frees up the space near your motherboard, but requires you to mount the radiator, usually on the back of the case. Pretty sure corsair warranty also covers damage to your components if one of these units were to leak.
 
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Huck had a really great set of suggestions to add to what Chuck (lolz... Huck / Chuck) and the others brought up. I do think that motherboard is really expensive though -- it looks to me like it just has a few minor tweaks like slots and expansion that you're probably not ever going to see a use out of, so you're not really losing anything out of the Extreme4 or Extreme3 Z77 by ASRock (though Huck's recommendation of the 4 is probably your best bet).

You'd save a good chunk of money by ditching that Sabertooth for the Extreme4, lose zero performance and be able to stick closer to your budget.

Also to expand a little on what Huck said about that RAM: according to tests and reviews it overclocks and tweaks really, really well. While the initial timing may not look mindblowing, the substantial architecture improvements have shown that you can get it to some pretty crazy timings on some sexy voltage without really trying and it's not at bad 'stock' settings to begin with. It's the best RAM available on the market right now IMHO. Eight gigs of that will serve you much better than 16GB of those Corsair sticks and you'll thank yourself when your CPU cooler isn't crushing your RAM because of skyscraper-sized heat spreaders. lol
 
B Zerker said:
ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (There is a good chance I will overclock the CPU so I will take the extra heat dispersion)
Click to expand...
Dude, that extra $100 spent for extra heat dispersion on the mobo would give you better heat dispersion if you put it towards nice cpu/gpu cooling solutions, not thermal coating on your mobo. Or even better there is room at the top of the case for 2x120mm fans, or a 240mm h100 radiator, the money would once again be better spent there.

Also, have you ever overclocked before/how far do you plan to overclock this rig?
 
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Updated Cart:

Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drivect.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

MSI R7870 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support ...

XFX Core Edition PRO750W (P1-750S-NLB9) 750W ATX12V 2.2 & ESP12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified .. Sadly that cheaper PSU was sold out, I would have loved to have saved 50 bucks but oh well.


SAMSUNG 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MV-3V4G3D/US

ASRock Z77 Extreme4 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel ... I got the budget fan because I probably wont insanely OC right out of the box.
 
Looks good. The savings are definitely a good move. And like I said, you could bump up to a 7950 which is about a 10% performance increase. And it looks like the price went back up on the twin frozr 7870. It is back up to $280 AR. I think it had been down to like $250 AR, and that was a great deal. Not as enticing as before. There is a reference 7870 by HIS that is $240 AR. The twin frozr 7950 is still $310 AR where it has been for awhile. But again, depending on how soon you will be buying, these deals can come and go fairly quickly. According to this review of the twin frozr 7870, it is actually louder than the reference cooled 7870:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/HD_7870_Twin_Frozr/25.html

So the reference might not be a huge step down in reality, especially if you end up saving $40 in the end.
 
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