cool cool :excited:

OK Kaien,

Since your budget is $1000-$1500, I decided it was high enough to go full Intel. I think at the $1000+ range there's no reason not to go Intel over AMD as you get the best performance. When you get under $1,000 I think there's a bit of a gray area where you could go either way, and then below $750 or so I think that's when AMD chips really shine.

So, for a $1,000-ish build with Newegg pricing:

Case: Antec 300 Mid Tower $69.99 (you could pick whatever ATX case you felt like using. I just used the 300 as an example)
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z68-V/Gen3 $189.99
Processor: Core i5-2500K $219.99
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3-1600 (2x4GB) $45.99
HDD: WD Caviar Black 7200rpm Sata III $129.99
GPU: Sapphire 2GB Radeon HD 6950 Dirt 3 Edition $279.99 (I like this card of all the other 6950s because it has the BIOS switch that unlocks the shaders to 6970 levels, and it's got a great cooler allowing you to OC it past 6970 clocks if you so desire)
Power Supply: Corsair TX750 $129.99

Total: $1,065.93 excluding OS and accessories

That would be a pretty nice rig for single monitor gaming. If you wanted to spend more you could replace the i5-2500K with an i7-2600K and maybe get a second GPU to run in Crossfire if you plan on using a 3 monitor gaming setup like me, and/or add a SSD for your OS and programs.

The thing that pisses me off right now is that HDD prices have gone through the roof because of the drive shortage. A 1TB HDD used to be pretty cheap, now they run over $200. That's why I only chose the 500GB HDD for you... so you can just wait and add more space later at a cheaper price if you need to.

Anyone else have some thoughts?

SUb'd...I'll post pics of my setups soon

BTW, I've been using a mid tower and when I switched to a full, man there's no turning back. Cable management is awesome and easier to work with. Also, the quality of a Lian Li case is top notch. I've had the Antec Skeleton and while it looks cool, cable management is a nightmare and it's a dust magnet. All in all, I'm happy with the CoolerMaster HAF 932 that I got during black Friday for $90. Despite having monster fans, it's a pretty quiet case. I'd highly recommend CM HAF series cases for enthusiasts builds that require lots of cooling.

I really like my CM 690 II mid tower but it can be a bitch to route cables.

Good thing is it flows really well and keeps everything cool.

I don't have any pictures of my rig, but:

i7 920 @ 3GhZ w/ Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B Cooler
6GB of DDR 1600 Corsair Dominator lolRAM
EVGA 1st gen X58 Mobo
Sapphire 6970 2GB
Corsair 850W PSU
1x WD Caviar Black 640GB
1x 150GB VelociRaptor
2x 1TB External WD HDs
Stuffed in a Antec LanBoy (Used to be a 902)

Logitech G700
Logitech G930
Razer Anasi

1x 22in Samsung 226cw
1x 32in Sony Bravia IDon'tRememberTheModelNumber

The best part of all of this? With the exception of the external HDs and the video card, it was built back in 2009 for $1400. The first gen i7 is probably the best bang for your buck processor EVER. I can't remember a processor that has lasted me this long since the 2000+ way long ago.

I still play most games on high at 1920x1080 -- including BF3. Hell, I'm even able to record BF3 without lag. Same for Skyrim. And WoW/SC2/D3 basically can be running in the background.

And honestly, BF3 was the big hit my system was supposed to take. I can't see anything next year that will challenge my setup or force me to upgrade, although I might do it anyway just to get back to a 3x monitor setup. Though, finding something with input lag is a challenge.

I also might upgrade to go play with water. I don't need to at all... but... well, you know.

I was so close to doing the same but I wussed out on the thought of a possible leak and destroying other components...which seems like video cards depending on how your motherboard sits.

Yeah, this is what happened to me when I built this rig.

It wasn't just the risk, though. The extra time involved in doing things right was just too much at the time.

Damn that is so nice, it should rock the sh1t out of any game i what to play. So i should be able to get all the parts on newegg or there and somewhere else.

Sorry but i'm a bit drunk right now...

My Build:
Mobo - GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58
CPU - i7-950
Memory - Patriot 6GB DDR3
PSU - Corsair 750TX
GPU - Radeon HD4850 (from my old old old setup)

Most of my stuff was bought a bit over a year ago except the graphics card. that was from a few years ago.

Yeah on a single monitor it would handle pretty much anything you could throw at it.

If you decide you want to try multi-monitor gaming, all you need to do is get a second GPU and upgrade the CPU if it turns out to be a bottleneck.

With regard to pricing, you'd just have to shop around. I don't know if you have any Microcenter stores near you, but I have always found good deals in store on hardware. For example, this past weekend I bought my Core i7-2600K for $279 ($90 off full retail price) and because I was buying a Motherboard with the processor, I received $50 off my ASUS P8Z68-V/Gen3.

I paid $429 for my CPU + Mobo. If I ordered now from Newegg, I'd pay $488. Not a big $$ difference, but it's still 12% less.

Now, you mentioned you were a few months away from building. I am sure prices will come down some in that time, since the Radeon 7xxx series cards should be coming out soon, and we should get more details on Ivy Bridge which may drive the pricing on the Sandy Bridge processors down. Any differences will probably not be too big, though... I wouldn't hesitate to do this build (although personally I would choose the i7-2600K over the i5) because it's more than enough to handle everything you can throw at it right now. It also helps that you've got a good motherboard that will support an upgrade to Ivy Bridge and multiple GPUs. :tup:

Also, if for some reason you decide you'd rather keep your build much cheaper, say under $750, but you still want the ability to enjoy today's games on one monitor, we can sort out a setup for that too. But it will limit your ability to upgrade... but that really might not matter to you if you could save hundreds of dollars. The build I did for my GF is pretty stout, and you can really beef it up for not much less... spend a little bit more on the processor and the GPU and you've got a very nice budget gaming system.

No real computer parts stores here. At most we've got best buy and the like here. Maybe in new orleans they would have something real.

someone buy my i7 2700k!!!! Give me a price I can't refuse. BNIB

Selling chips is tough without them being dirt cheap. Too many variables!

Here's mine:

- CoolerMaster HAF X Full Tower Case
- Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 Mobo
- Intel Core i7-2600K @ 4GHz
- Corsair H100 Liquid Cooling for CPU
- 16GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3-1333 (4x4 GB)
- 2X 1.3GB PNY GeForce GTX 470 cards in SLI (stock clocks)
- WD Caviar Black 1TB Hard Drive
- Lite-On Blu-Ray DVD Burner
- Onboard HD Audio outputting via Digital Optical to Yamaha home theater receiver
- Silverstone 1000W PSU
- Asus VG236H 23" 3D 120hz LCD Monitor @ 1920x1080
- Dual JBL Northridge E30 Bookshelf Speakers @ 70W, one on each side of the monitor

Iz fun but I am considering a pair of Radeon 7970s when they are actually available. :)


Current Games:

Battlefield 3
Skyrim (with tons of mods)