Building 1100 build for 2012

[Slufa111]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for.

Games, Internet, Movies

2. What YOUR budget is.

1100 USD

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

Fort Bragg, USA

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

Whatever gives the best performance.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

24" inch ASUS Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

I am planning on overclocking it to the fullest.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.

1080P

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?

This week.

 

[Slufa111]

So far I have

Antec P280 Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (I want a quality case but I think I can do better in terms of price.)
LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model (solid)
XFX HD-695X-CNFC Radeon HD 6950 2GB (I am not a hardcore gamer buuuuuuut when I do game I like decent quality.)
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 (solid)
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 (I am not sure about this motherboard....but reviews aren't bad)
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (solid)
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus
Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III (solid)
Western Digital Caviar Green WD5000AADS 500GB SATA (solid)

So far its at 1126 with free 2 day shipping.

I bet I could do better if I trimmed corners.

 

[ElFenix]

the fractal R3 case is better in price but the fan filters are difficult to clean, apparently.

otherwise, pretty solid if you ask me

edit: check hot deals for SSD pricing

 

[KCR]

Good build so far. Did you consider getting a blu-ray drive? might come in handy.

You have picked a very popular MOBO, shouldnt be able to go wrong with it.

If you are doing SSD caching and want to cut back on prices you could lose it. Caviar is a good choice, a bit small for my preference but it should be fine. Have a look at hitachi as well they are reasonably cheap. Nice CPU! i'm sure you have heard a lot about it.

For the case Coolermaster, Antec, NZXT or maybe a fractal should also be looked at. The fractal RC3 i have heard good things about.

The GPU is a good choice, the prices should be down a bit since the release of the new gen GPU's from AMD. The current GPU replacement is the 7950.

 

[KCR]

the fractal R3 case is better in price but the fan filters are difficult to clean, apparently.

Lol, guess that makes my post a +1 instead

 

[Ken g6]

Well, I'm a little stumped. Your build is very similar to [thread=2192841]MFenn's standard midrange build[/thread], except that your SSD is smaller. But you somehow managed to come out almost $100 more expensive than his!

I suggest you compare, contrast, and maybe post prices/links for your selected hardware.

 

[Slufa111]

Well, I'm a little stumped. Your build is very similar to [thread=2192841]MFenn's standard midrange build[/thread], except that your SSD is smaller. But you somehow managed to come out almost $100 more expensive than his!

I suggest you compare, contrast, and maybe post prices/links for your selected hardware.

He got 8gb for 16 dollars. I paid 41 and I have about 40 dollars in rebates.

 

[Slufa111]

is 6950 the best bang for the buck?

 

[KCR]

The 6950 is a good GPU, for that price bracket i'd say you cant get much better.

 

[mfenn]

He got 8gb for 16 dollars. I paid 41 and I have about 40 dollars in rebates.

What does this mean? Have you already bought some stuff? If so, please annotate it.

 

[Slufa111]

no no, i was just expressing how he saved more money. His were after rebates.

 

[mfenn]

no no, i was just expressing how he saved more money. His were after rebates.

I am He in this case. Can you explain to me what "I paid $41" means? I am pretty sure that you only pay for something when you buy it.

 

[lehtv]

the fractal R3 case is better in price but the fan filters are difficult to clean, apparently.

I wouldn't say so. The front filters are easily cleaned with a vacuum cleaner, and you're unlikely to (need to) use the bottom fan position. If you add a side fan and a custom filter, you can vacuum that too. The PSU fan filter is removable.

 

[ElFenix]

I wouldn't say so. The front filters are easily cleaned with a vacuum cleaner, and you're unlikely to (need to) use the bottom fan position. If you add a side fan and a custom filter, you can vacuum that too. The PSU fan filter is removable.

you're probably smarter than newegg reviewers, then

 

[mfenn]

you're probably smarter than newegg reviewers, then

Not terribly difficult. :awe:

 

[Slufa111]

COOLER MASTER HAF 912
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (solid)
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO
ASUS Maximus IV Gene-Z/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX
LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model (solid)
XFX HD-695X-CNFC Radeon HD 6950 1GB
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 (solid)
CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III

After rebate: 1092.00

THE ONLY concern with this build is ram clearance however, I heard you can just move the fan on the EVO and youll be fine because Vengence RAM (tall) I got is the one with all the deals.

Or I can do this

COOLER MASTER HAF 912
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (solid)
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO
ASUS Maximus IV Gene-Z/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX
LITE-ON DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model (solid)
XFX HD-695X-CNFC Radeon HD 6950 2GB
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 (solid)
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA II

After rebate: 1130

No ram clearance problem with the TX750 (for future proofing) and a good deal on 16gb!


I am nearing it to these two builds if you tell me whats the pros and cons.

 

[mfenn]

What is the difference between the two, just the GPU?

Anyway, I wouldn't get either of those because they both have a decent amount of fat that's not doing you any good:

- Mobo: $190 for a light OC gaming machine? That's too much. Check out the ASRock Z68 Extreme3 instead. -$68
- GPU: The 6950 2GB is a good choice, but I'd get one with a dual-fan cooler like this Sapphire because it'll be quieter. +$5
- PSU: Overkill for a single GPU machine, but an OK deal at $80
- RAM: It's an even better deal if you don't buy memory that you'll never use. Get an 8GB DDR3 1333 kit instead. -$51

 

[Slufa111]

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

I am planning on overclocking it to the fullest.


Figured it would be a great choice.

 

[mfenn]

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

I am planning on overclocking it to the fullest.


Figured it would be a great choice.

The HSF is much more important than the mobo for overclocking. The Hyper 212+ is good for a light-moderate OC. Spend the money on something more serious like a U12P if you want to push it harder.

 

[Slufa111]

Well I already purchased the parts last night so hopefully it will be a good build and I will post pictures and post benchmarks when I get it up and running. Aside from the ins and outs of the little parts that I could've interchanged with each other I'm pretty satisfied with the purchase.

One question I had was if I get another 24 inch monitor what is 6950 be able to handle that resolution?

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk

 

[Slufa111]

I was thinking of it a little more and took your advice.

1 x ($279.99) SAPPHIRE 100312-3SR Radeon HD 6950 Dirt3 Edition 2GB

1 x ($229.99) Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz

1 x ($160.99) Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III

1 x ($121.99) ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68

1 x ($104.99) CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 750W

2 x ($49.99) CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Profile Desktop Memory

1 x ($61.99) Logitech G500

1 x ($49.99) AMD Gift - Dirt3 Game Coupon

1 x ($46.99) Microsoft SIDEWINDER X4 Keyboard

1 x ($34.99) COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO

1 x ($16.99) LG DVD Burner

Total after rebates: 1102.15

For 9 dollars more (which was the total of my last order) I got a keyboard and mouse and a dual fan 6950.

I kept the extra 8gb of ram is because I may use it in the future, or in a future build.
I kept the PSU because it was a awesome deal with combo price + 15% off the psu price. 10$ difference between 750W and 650W, I thought it was worth it.

I added a new keyboard and mouse which I desperately needed.

 

[mfenn]

Looks nice, I'm sure you will like it.

As for adding another 24", it will work fine for extending your Windows desktop and such. You wouldn't want to do Eyefinity with only 2 matching monitors because the bezel would be right in the middle of the image.