First PC Build Help

Tiberius · 2012-09-09, 12:05 AM

I've decided to build a computer - I can definitely do it. I just need some to help choosing the right parts to buy. Here are my answers/constraints:

1. Are you building this computer yourself or having one built for you (Like HP, Alienware, or even a small shop)?
Building it myself.

2. What is your budget and does that include shipping/taxes?
Under $1000. Willing to spend a little more on the video card if it will pay off (GeForce GTX 670)

3. Where do you live (Please list town, state, and country)?
San Diego, CA (I'll be on wifi internet)

4. What do you need this computer to do (like gaming, Photoshop, and so on)?
Just playing PlanetSide and using Microsoft home & office for work.

5. What parts will you need for the computer? List what parts specifically, saying you need everything will not do.
GPU, CPU, Motherboard, HDD or SSD, Memory, Case, Optical Drive, Monitor, Power Supply, Keyboard

6. Are you reusing any parts for this computer? If so say what parts (make and model).
Negative

7. What kind of monitor/resolution do you have or want to get to use for the computer?
I'd be happy with around a 15.6" Monitor, with nice resolution. Nothing too big.

8. Do you have already have a OS or do you need one? What OS is that?
I need Windows 7

9. What are you looking for the motherboard to have feature wise? Like SLI, Crossfire, Firewire, USB 3.0, Sata 6.0 Gb/s, and so on.
Not sure what any of that is, definitely at least 3 USB ports, lots of GBs

10. Any plans to overclock the CPU or GPU?
Not sure what that is, my last Nvidia card was though.

11. What time kind of time frame are you planning on ordering these parts?
I'm hoping to get it up within the next three months. If there's some awesome release in over that I can wait. I know the Windows 8 is coming out in October so there might be some nice new hardware on the horizon which will surely create some deals on older stuff.

Goku · 2012-09-09, 10:37 AM

In terms of new hardware that will be out around the October time frame give or take a month will be a new AMD CPU and possibly GPU. Piledriver is the new AMD CPU, but I don't see that being recommended over Ivy Bridge currently, unless its priced and performs good for certain build budgets. The next gen AMD GPU may possibly make it out around this time frame, this all rumors however.

To give you idea of what to expect check this out:
Intel Core i5-3470 - $199.99
MSI R7870 Twin Frozr - $259.99
Acer G215HVAbd Black 21.5" Full HD WideScreen LCD Monitor - $119.99
Crucial Ballistix sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 - $34.99
GIGABYTE GA-B75M-D3H - $74.99
Antec NEO ECO 520C 520W - $54.99
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB - $84.99
ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - $20
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM - $99.99
Fractal Design Core 3000 ATX Mid Tower - $49.99

Total = $999.90 (From Newegg, but when the time for the final build comes we can do it off Amazon to save on tax)

You are still about $140 for a 670, since you are waiting awhile longer though the price should come down even more. Over all even this build is solid for PS2. Oh and 15.6 inch screens are only for laptops :P. Desktop you are looking at between 20 to 23 inches for your budget range.

Tiberius · 2012-09-09, 01:42 PM

Nice, thanks man.

Goku · 2012-09-09, 02:05 PM

Happy to be of help. If you have any questions between now and the time you are ordering feel free to ask.

Tiberius · 2012-09-09, 06:31 PM

Cool, I just ordered the case since it had a $10 promo code that expired today. Should I just plug the item name into Amazon for the other items when I'm ready to order them?

Vancha · 2012-09-10, 02:03 AM

http://pcpartpicker.com

Use this and it'll find the best deal from the more popular vendors.

Goku · 2012-09-11, 07:42 AM

Originally Posted by Tiberius

Cool, I just ordered the case since it had a $10 promo code that expired today. Should I just plug the item name into Amazon for the other items when I'm ready to order them?

This Saturday Amazon is going to start collecting sales tax in Cali. When you are ready to order we will piece you together a new build. The one I did was to just show you what you can get with that budget. That was a good price on the case though.

Tiberius · 2012-09-11, 08:57 PM

Will I need a better power supply if I expand my budget to $1200 and go for an i5-3570k and a more expensive card like the MSI AMD Radeon 7950 or Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670?

Goku · 2012-09-11, 09:06 PM

Yes, but that is only $10-$25 more depending on what you want.

Tiberius · 2012-09-14, 10:39 PM

I increased my budget $150 and made a build based on what I thought looked good. Will this work in the case that I have? I'm hoping the OS, GPU, CPU, and Motherboard will drop in price over the next few months. Any thoughts on this or things I can improve?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/htwo

Vancha · 2012-09-15, 03:16 AM

Case is fine. Motherboard is overkill. You'd probably be fine with the ASRock Z75 Pro3

Tiberius · 2012-09-15, 01:56 PM

Okay, is this a better build?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hwGG

Should I get 1333 or 1600 DRAM? I read that get you should get 1333mhz with low cas if you're not OC'ing or get 1600mhz with higher cas if you are OC'ing. But I'm not sure if I'm going to overclock, is it hard to do?

Vancha · 2012-09-15, 04:09 PM

The ram you've got is fine. Even overclocked, I'm not sure how much difference a 1600mhz pair would really make. I doubt it'd be noticeable.

Otherwise, yeah that looks good. All I'd say is that I know some price cuts were inbound for the 7950, but I don't know if they've kicked in yet. It might be worth waiting a while, if they haven't.

Rbstr · 2012-09-15, 04:28 PM

The CPU you've got supports 1600..there's no real reason not to, except saving the (small amount of) bucks.

The biggest difference you could probably make is if you do to 1.35V memory...that wouldn't hit performance, but it would put out less heat.
This is CAS9, 1600mhz and 1.35V for $4 more http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820226184

Vancha · 2012-09-16, 02:05 AM

Do you know anywhere I can see the heat difference between 1.35v and 1.5v?