Custom build or iBUYPOWER 922SLCK

[KingLou]

Ok, so I've always been a firm supporter of building systems myself. I always built my own rigs....back when I was a professional student and had more time and patience. Not to say I don't enjoy the process and the satisfaction of assembling a pc myself, but there always seems to be some hangup or issue to troubleshoot that takes up time. I always justified that by....number one, having plenty of spare time (not such anymore).....and number two, I knew I'd be saving a ton of money (apparently not so anymore either).

It's been about 6 years since I've put a gaming PC together so not only is it way out of date, I'm a little out of touch with modern tech too. I haven't felt compelled to upgrade until now, since BF3 will be launching soon. That is pretty much all it will be used for.

So, I've come across the iBUYPOWER 922SLK for a hair under $1500 which is about all I want to spend:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...264&CatId=4928

Seems to have enough guts for my purposes:

CPU: i7-2600K
GPU: GTX580
PSU: 800 watts
RAM: 8 gigs DDR3 1333
HD: 1 TB, no ssd

The only downside I can see is that I really don't know the specifics on the component manufacturers, like PSU and mobo, and gpu. But...it has a warranty.

The thing is, I can't really seem to piece this together much cheaper on my own. Granted, if I'm building myself, there are some things I won't skimp on, like PSU.

I've heard "negative" things about iBUYPOWER on forums, but nothing particularly specific. Just random comments like 'd000d stay away from them!' and hearsay about poor service or quality but haven't found much from people with actual experience.

Sooo....looking for some honest opinions since I've kinda been out of the tech scene for a while. Should I go back to my roots and build? Or save time and get a warranty? Anyone have any actual experience with this manufacturer (if you can call them that)?

Thanks!

 

[Ken g6]

The thing about making your own system is that you can choose parts that will do a better job without paying excessive amounts for them. For gaming, the 2600K is generally no better than a 2500K, and the GTX580 is priced 50% higher than a 570 but isn't worth that much more.

Now, I've seen only one benchmark of the BF3 beta, but based on that I'm beefing up your graphics.

i5 2500K $220
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO $35
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 $133
G.Skill DDR3 1333 8GB $42
EVGA GTX 570 superclocked rear-exhaust x2 $680
Samsung F3 1TB $60
Samsung DVD Burner $18
XFX Core Edition PRO850W $96 AR
Win7 $100
Rosewill BLACKHAWK Gaming ATX Mid Tower $100

Total: $1485, for really solid, powerful parts. Sorry, still no SSD. No keyboard or mouse or monitor either; do you still have some of those?

 

[T_Yamamoto]

The thing about making your own system is that you can choose parts that will do a better job without paying excessive amounts for them. For gaming, the 2600K is generally no better than a 2500K, and the GTX580 is priced 50% higher than a 570 but isn't worth that much more.

Now, I've seen only one benchmark of the BF3 beta, but based on that I'm beefing up your graphics.

i5 2500K $220
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO $35
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 $133
G.Skill DDR3 1333 8GB $42
EVGA GTX 570 superclocked rear-exhaust x2 $680
Samsung F3 1TB $60
Samsung DVD Burner $18
XFX Core Edition PRO850W $96 AR
Win7 $100
Rosewill BLACKHAWK Gaming ATX Mid Tower $100

Total: $1485, for really solid, powerful parts. Sorry, still no SSD. No keyboard or mouse or monitor either; do you still have some of those?

looks awesome

totally better than that prebuilt

 

[DaveSimmons]

^ nice build.

FYI, building really is pretty simple these days. 2 phillips screwdriver (large & small) and an hour's work and you're done. You still have warranties on the parts, and if a part dies you can send just it back not the whole PC.

If you decide to chicken out, CyberPowerPC can build you a system similar to the above, including the EVGA SuperClocked, for about $1250 with one 570, or $1600 for two.
http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Gamer_Xtreme_4000/

... so the assembly cost is only around $100 over Newegg prices.

 

[mfenn]

The thing about making your own system is that you can choose parts that will do a better job without paying excessive amounts for them. For gaming, the 2600K is generally no better than a 2500K, and the GTX580 is priced 50% higher than a 570 but isn't worth that much more.

Now, I've seen only one benchmark of the BF3 beta, but based on that I'm beefing up your graphics.

i5 2500K $220
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO $35
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 $133
G.Skill DDR3 1333 8GB $42
EVGA GTX 570 superclocked rear-exhaust x2 $680
Samsung F3 1TB $60
Samsung DVD Burner $18
XFX Core Edition PRO850W $96 AR
Win7 $100
Rosewill BLACKHAWK Gaming ATX Mid Tower $100

Total: $1485, for really solid, powerful parts. Sorry, still no SSD. No keyboard or mouse or monitor either; do you still have some of those?

Solid high-end build right there. :thumbsup: Nice find on the new Hyper 212. It looks like they changed the blade design of the fan in a way that will be much quieter than the old one.

OP, what kind of monitor do you have or are planning to buy? The build above really wants a 2560x1440 to stretch it's legs. If you're playing at 1080P or below and/or don't mind lowering the AA, you can drop down to a single GPU and 650W PSU.

 

[KingLou]

Thanks so much for the comments and suggestions. Have all the peripherals so that's not an issue.

Ken, that build looks like a winner to me. Thanks for the benchmark data too. Most of my apprehension about building myself is just that I've haven't kept up with new tech so making selections of individuals parts and knowing I've chosen good quality/value has gotten difficult.

Any other suggestions or comments still welcome.

 

[KingLou]

My monitor is nothing special and I probably won't be upgrading that right away. It's a Viewsonic VX2235wm, and the resolution is only 1680x1050, so you think I might even get away with just a single 570? I'm sure no matter what it's going to outclass my old rig (AMD FX60, and sli'd 7900gtx's). I'd like to keep the PSU beefy in case I upgrade/change/add cards or components.

I noticed the Ram recommended was a "value" line ram and 2x4gb sticks. Would there be any benefit to going with a higher end ram and/or going with 4 x 2gb sticks?

 

[mfenn]

My monitor is nothing special and I probably won't be upgrading that right away. It's a Viewsonic VX2235wm, and the resolution is only 1680x1050, so you think I might even get away with just a single 570? I'm sure no matter what it's going to outclass my old rig (AMD FX60, and sli'd 7900gtx's). I'd like to keep the PSU beefy in case I upgrade/change/add cards or components.

GTX 570 SLI is beyond overkill for 1680x1050. Get a single one. You would also be doing yourself a disservice with an 850W PSU because it costs you a lot more up front and will have lower efficiency than an appropriately-sized PSU. The chances of "upgrading to SLI" are near zero.

I noticed the Ram recommended was a "value" line ram and 2x4gb sticks. Would there be any benefit to going with a higher end ram and/or going with 4 x 2gb sticks?

No and no.

 

[KingLou]

Ok, so I'm looking at pretty much exactly what Ken recommended with the exception of:

single GTX 570
650 Watt Corsair Enthusiast PSU

Looks like I'm coming in at $1144. Which is less than I was initially anticipating having to spend so I'm happy.

My last question would be....before pulling the trigger here.....does anyone have any good recommendations on a wireless NIC? I pretty much hate gaming over wireless, but right now the room my PC will be in will not have a hard line. At least not right away. So hopefully something that will be fairly consistent for gaming.

I really appreciate all the direction here. Very helpful.

 

[lehtv]

@KingLou

You can grab an XFX 650W for $60 after rebate from newegg. Like Corsair TX, it's Seasonic manufactured so it's just as high quality - but it comes with 4 PCIe connectors in case you ever go dual-GPU on it in the years to come (it could handle two 150W GPUs fine, e.g. 6870 crossfire.)

does anyone have any good recommendations on a wireless NIC?

I would browse newegg reviews of PCI wireless adapters and see if people have problems or success getting them working on Win7 64. I'd say what determines playability over wireless isn't so much the adapter, but the router and your connection

 

[KingLou]

Awesome! Thank you.

 

[mfenn]

I agree with lehtv about the GPU. In terms of the NIC, look for one that has the antenna on a stand with a longish cable similar to this Rosewill. That way, you have a lot of freedom in positioning the antenna can can replace if with a high-gain one if necessary.

 

[KingLou]

Ok...so I pulled the trigger. Another question. I game with a headset and on my last rig noticed a BIG difference in audio quality by adding a soundcard (Audigy 2 ZS). I didn't bother buying a soundcard for this machine. I realize the Audigy is a bit out of date at this point....but should I still see a benefit over onboard sound by swapping it out of my old rig into my new one? Or has onboard sound gotten pretty good? My searching of the forums seems to suggest onboard sound is still sub-par to even basic soundcards. Is this accurate?

I will be using a Roccat Kave 5.1 headset.

Sorry if I'm going off topic...I'm just trying to stay confined to one thread instead of making many.

 

[R4in]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829132020

$20 at newegg after rebate, looks like good reviews to

It may not be the best sound card but who can complain at that price lol

 

[KingLou]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829132020

$20 at newegg after rebate, looks like good reviews to

It may not be the best sound card but who can complain at that price lol

I figure if my Audigy is going to beat the onboard, and I can recycle at least something from my old rig, I'll keep my $20 for something else! And if not, then no, I can't complain too much if I do in fact need to spend another $20. I spent enough on the headset....I want to make sure I'm getting my moneys worth out of them.

 

[mfenn]

Onboard has gotten a lot better in the past few years. However, if you already have the Audigy sitting around, there's no reason not to use it.

 

[KingLou]

That's what I was thinking. But wanted some input from you guys who are obviously smarter than me. :awe: Plus, I don't know what it is....something sentimental, and absolutely meaningless, about having a piece of my old machine in my new one.

 

[KingLou]

Ok, so I've got everything assembled. Put it together last night but didn't feel like turning it on / installing the OS. It's been so long since I've done this, I'm afraid to turn the thing on. Hopefully everything is hooked up right. :whiste:

 

[mfenn]

You weren't even tempted to press the power button? Not even a little bit?

Double check all your wires and then fire it up!

 

[KingLou]

Haha, yes....definitely tempted. But, I knew once I did I wouldn't stop until everything was installed and running. It was late and I figured I'd rather get some sleep.

PS- updating from my new PC. Seems I haven't forgotten how to use a screwdriver after all!

 

[lehtv]

Enjoy your new PC :thumbsup:

 

[KingLou]

I will, thank you. And with the money I saved thanks to all the recommendations from you guys, I'll be able to breath a little new life into my old rig as well. :thumbsup:

 

[mfenn]

:thumbsup: Glad it worked out for you!