Second opinion on new PC build

TorturedChaos

TorturedChaos

Posts: 836   +43
After looking at the list of games coming out in the next year I'm thinking I want/need a new PC. My current isn't looking like its going to have the power I want.

I've thrown together a prelimanry build mostly based off the Techspots PC buying guides, but would like a second or third opinion. I'm planning on using this build in the near future, along with 2 of my friends would be using the same or very similar build.

Last time I did a PC build for myself I spent about 6 months researching it, but well I just don't have the time to do that now :p. So I'm hoping to leach from others experience :p.

So here is the build:

CPU - $209.99
Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz
I really have no plans for OC so I don't really see the point in buying the "K" version.

Case - $59.99
COOLER MASTER HAF 912 RC-912-KKN1 Black SECC/ ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
I'm not dead set on this case, just pulled it from the budget build. My last case was an Antec 300 Illusion which worked very well, but I'm not very happy with the fans that came with it. They didn't last as long as I thought they should.

Mobo - $149.99
ASRock P67 EXTREME4 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
This (and the gpu) is where I think I need the most help. There is just so many choices of Mobo I always have a hard time picking one.
If I don't plan on OC do I need the P67 or would the H67 work just fine? Is there a more cost effective choice here?

Graphics Card - $169.99
XFX Double D HD-687A-ZDFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 Again another spot where I feel I need a lot of help. Just so many damn choices.

PSU - $89.99
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W
Swiped straight from the enthusiastic's build. Looks like it should have enough power and then some.

RAM - $46.99
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL
With the price on DDR3 RAM being so low, I went for the 8 gigs. Plan on running Win7 64bit on this.


TOTAL: ~$750

No HDD listed due to the high price right now and I have one from another computer I can use.
Seriously thought about a good SDD, maybe if I can wiggle ~$100 out of the other parts I could go for it. Right now I'm at about the top of my budget tho.

Thanks!
 
CPU: I think you should pony up the $15 and get the K version, for only $15 more you get huge overclocking potential. While games may not fully utilise an overclocked 2500K's power now, they will do in the future.

Mobo: you could probably get away with a cheaper board. I don't have a LGA 1155 system so can't comment first hand but there do seem to be cheaper options on newegg that would work just as well.

GPU: If you can, you should hold off until Nvidia's Kepler cards come out in March. Prices should be lower by then (hopefully!)
 
Tmagic650 said:
I don't like the motherboard choice... Gigabyte or MSI would be better...
Click to expand...

Hate to be confrontational, but based on what? ASRock has put out some high quality boards in the last few years and in our testing, they're often a better all around solution in terms of performance and value. Such is true of the P67 Extreme6 (the Extreme4 in our buying guide is virtually identical, barring a few non-essential feature changes).

TorturedChaos, if you won't be overclocking or using multiple graphics cards, there's no harm in scaling back to an H67 or even H61 board (if it matters at all, I believe there are some H61-based boards with SATA 6Gb/s via third-party chips, though Intel's native SATA 6Gb/s support in the H67 tends to perform better). Here's an easy way to cut $100+:

ASRock H67M B3 $80 (-$70)
NZXT Source Elite $50 (-$16 with free shipping -- there's a black one too, but it's out of stock)
Antec Neo Eco 520C $60 (-$27, also currently out of stock but it's available elsewhere)

That saves you around $113 -- just the right amount for a 64GB Crucial M4.
 
Matthew said:
Hate to be confrontational, but based on what? ASRock has put out some high quality boards in the last few years and in our testing, they're often a better all around solution in terms of performance and value. Such is true of the P67 Extreme6 (the Extreme4 in our buying guide is virtually identical, barring a few non-essential feature changes).

TorturedChaos, if you won't be overclocking or using multiple graphics cards, there's no harm in scaling back to an H67 or even H61 board (if it matters at all, I believe there are some H61-based boards with SATA 6Gb/s via third-party chips, though Intel's native SATA 6Gb/s support in the H67 tends to perform better). Here's an easy way to cut $100+:

ASRock H67M B3 $80 (-$70)
NZXT Source Elite $50 (-$16 with free shipping -- there's a black one too, but it's out of stock)
Antec Neo Eco 520C $60 (-$27, also currently out of stock but it's available elsewhere)

That saves you around $113 -- just the right amount for a 64GB Crucial M4.
Click to expand...

Thanks!. Wasn't sure if the Antec Neo 520 would be enough power for my pc is mostly why I didn't pick it. Not sure about the NZXT case tho. Ordered one for my dad's computer and it didn't feel all that sturdy.
 
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