building $1200 i7 gaming pc

[Seromontis]

I am building a gaming pc for around $1200. I have been configuring various components for a while now and I believe these are the best I can get for the money I am willing to spend. I will be gaming at 1920*1080 on the following games: Bioshock, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, DragonAge, Mass Effect 2, Starcraft 2, and Battlefield Bad Company 2. My main game will be Battlefield Bad Company 2 and since this is the main game, make sure to put more emphasis on those reviews.
case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=3332167&SID=
2x gpu:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125348
cpu:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0346210
motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131665
ram:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145220
psu:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139006
harddrive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-185-_-Product
cd/dvd drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106289

I am also taking 2 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-337-_-Product from my storage computer and adding these to this build.

 

[crucibelle]

Since you are spending a fair amount of money anyway, why not add an SSD? By the way, I remember you from one of your other threads... what made you decide to go with the i7 over the i5, even though the i5 performs better in most games?

 

[Seromontis]

Since you are spending a fair amount of money anyway, why not add an SSD? By the way, I remember you from one of your other threads... what made you decide to go with the i7 over the i5, even though the i5 performs better in most games?

My friend said it is worth the extra money to get the i7 over the i5 when using crossfire

 

[crucibelle]

My friend said it is worth the extra money to get the i7 over the i5 when using crossfire

Oh, yeah.. I think he's probably right about that. :thumbsup:

I think everything in your build looks good. I still think you should get an SSD, though.

 

[Seromontis]

I can't really afford much past $1200 at this point, but I will buy one in maybe 3 months to see how much faster it is than the spinpoint f3

 

[saratoga172]

Looks good except I'd probably just go with one GPU for now. I can still play everything maxed out on my 5770. I don't play Crysis though.

I'd go either, One vid card but a stronger one...6870 maybe.
Or I'd go with one vid card and a Raptor or SSD. There is a noticeable performance difference in loading the OS and in loading programs and games.

Just me though. Otherwise looks like a stellar build.

 

[zi0n.]

Why a i7 for gaming? If I was you I would get a i5 750 or 760 + p55. With the money saved get an SSD and a better SINGLE card.

 

[mfenn]

The performance loss from x8/x8 Crossfire/SLI is in the 1-2% range, so I don't think that spending a ton of extra money on the i7 setup over an i5 760 + mobo is wise. I also don't think it makes much sense to do SLI/Crossfire unless you're after maximum performance (i.e. 6870 CF).

To that end:
i5 760 $170
ASRock P55 Extreme 4 $145
G.Skill DDR3 1333 4GB $70
2x 6870 = 2x$240 = $480

By my calculations, that's $20 cheaper for a heck of a lot more GPU horsepower.

 

[Seromontis]

The performance loss from x8/x8 Crossfire/SLI is in the 1-2% range, so I don't think that spending a ton of extra money on the i7 setup over an i5 760 + mobo is wise. I also don't think it makes much sense to do SLI/Crossfire unless you're after maximum performance (i.e. 6870 CF).

To that end:
i5 760 $170
ASRock P55 Extreme 4 $145
G.Skill DDR3 1333 4GB $70
2x 6870 = 2x$240 = $480

By my calculations, that's $20 cheaper for a heck of a lot more GPU horsepower.

I was looking at the benches for the 6870 and it seems like atm I only need 1.
I think this motherboard may be better(5 year warranty and its ASUS)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131601
With that in mind, would I see any benefit if I upgrade from the i5-760 to an i7-870(still uses 1156 motherboard)?
Would I see any benefit from 4gb of that ram to http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231311

This case just came up for a nice sale and rebate today:antec 900 two
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ec%20900%20two

 

[mfenn]

I was looking at the benches for the 6870 and it seems like atm I only need 1.
I think this motherboard may be better(5 year warranty and its ASUS)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131601
With that in mind, would I see any benefit if I upgrade from the i5-760 to an i7-870(still uses 1156 motherboard)?
Would I see any benefit from 4gb of that ram to http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231311

This case just came up for a nice sale and rebate today:antec 900 two
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ec%20900%20two

Nice find on the P55 Sabertooth! It may just be my new favorite $130 P55 board. Though if you only want a single GPU, you could save $35 and get the GA-P55-USB3. That saves you enough money to get a GTX 470 which is faster than a 6870 in many games.

For gaming, you're unlikely to see much benefit from the 870 or going to 8GB of RAM. Upgrading RAM is so easy that it makes sense to only buy as much as you need right now.

The Nine Hundred is a nice case, it really just comes down to which one that you like better.

 

[Seromontis]

Nice find on the P55 Sabertooth! It may just be my new favorite $130 P55 board. Though if you only want a single GPU, you could save $35 and get the GA-P55-USB3. That saves you enough money to get a GTX 470 which is faster than a 6870 in many games.

For gaming, you're unlikely to see much benefit from the 870 or going to 8GB of RAM. Upgrading RAM is so easy that it makes sense to only buy as much as you need right now.

The Nine Hundred is a nice case, it really just comes down to which one that you like better.

I want to have the option of having crossfire with the 6870, so that's why I got the sabertooth. I chose the 6870 over the 470 because they perform close when looking at BFBC 2 benchmarks and when you crossfire them, they destroy the 470s in sli.

 

[RaistlinZ]

Crossfire 6870 should be sweet. I'm envoius. :biggrin:

 

[ViviTheMage]

Get a 480GTX...womp the 6870 anyday.

I'd also get an SSD.

 

[Dark Shroud]

Some of you guys need to read reviews more.

A 6870 will be just fine with the option to crossfire later to compete in the top tier.

Don't bother with an SSD right now if you don't need it. Revisions will be released in a few months between Intel's new bigger & cheaper drives as well as new Sandforce controllers. Rapters are pointless for the most part now unless you need a RAID for your C:.

Lastly the LGA 1366 chipset will be in use for a few more years since it's used in servers. The LGA 1156 will be retired for Sandy Bridge pretty much. So basically unless you plan to upgrade sooner than later spending the extra $150 for an i7 will net you longer performance life.

 

[betasub]

LGA 1366 to be replaced by LGA 2011 in, guess when, 2011. Yes, later next year. There's not much to separate LGA 1156 & LGA 1366 in terms of longevity.

 

[mfenn]

So basically unless you plan to upgrade sooner than later spending the extra $150 for an i7 will net you longer performance life.

What does this even mean? Is the chip magically going to perform faster because Intel is waiting a few more months before EOL'ing the socket?