Building computer.

S

spr250

New Member
Alright, right now I am in the planning stages of building a computer. I can put them together but I have never been good in finding what parts I am looking for. What I am trying to build is a gaming, movie, internet surfing rig. I know some parts will be overkill which is fine. I am a firm believer in getting something now so I don't have to upgrade for a long time. OK for parts.

Heres what I am planning,

DVD/blu-ray players

2 or 3 3/4TB drives for mass storage (have alot of movies and music. Got deployed alot.)-tend to perfer WD.

1 SSD drive to handle the OS and other programs

Intel® Core™ i7-3770 Processor
(8M Cache, up to 3.90 GHz)-From Intel.com

Intel® Desktop Board DZ77GA-70k Extreme Series-from Intel.com

Not sure what RAM but will run the 32GB.

No idea on sound card but I will be hooked up to my 5.1 Surround sound.

No idea on Graphics Card. Just 1080P HD is needed.

Overall, performance and not having to update for along while is key.
I'm not set on man. or what I picked just perfer Intel.
I also plan on using fans and water cooling. If I forget something let me know.
 
i7 processors are more for professional workstation PC's. The i5 is just as good of a gaming processor for 2/3 the price.

Most people cannot even use 8GB of RAM, so that is a good amount to have especially since 8GB of 1600Mhz DDR3 is so cheap now days. Bump it to 16GB if you feel like going overkill.

most Z77 motherboards will do for the LGA 1155 socket Ivy Bridge processor. Price ultimately depends on versatility when it comes to adding additional hardware and the ability to overclock. You can easily get everything you need on a $140 mobo or even less.

Graphics card depends on the games you play. You don't have to worry about playing HD movies since you can do that on integrated graphics.

If you don't play very demanding games like LoL, Diablo 3, Starcraft: Radeon 7750

If you play MMO's or mid-high end games usually: Radeon 7850

take it up a notch from there: a Radeon 7870 or Geforce 660

If you want to be able to max out the graphics of high end games: Radeon 7950, Radeon 7970, or a Geforce 670.

the rest is basically personal preference or has to do with hardware I haven't paid much attention too.
 
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Just get an i5 3570K, no need for a 3770K here.

32GB of RAM is serious overkill, just get 8GB. Honestly, that's all you need.

I'd get a Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H board, that'll work great with the i5.

Graphics card wise I'm going to recommend a Radeon HD 7850 or 7870. Get the 2GB model of either.

What case and power supply are you going for? I'd recommend a Fractal Desing Define R3 or R4 and a Corsair CX 600 PSU.
 
I would suggest something that looks like this:

  • Intel Core i5-3570k
  • Kingston HyperX 8/16GB 1600MHz
  • AMD Radeon HD 7950 / NVIDIA GTX 670
  • Corsair Force GT 120GB + 1x 2TB or 2x 1TB Western Digital Black (Why 750GB units? 1TB platters = better performance)
  • ASUS P8Z77-LE Plus or Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H (I prefer ASUS, but Gigabyte is my #2 option for sure)
  • Fractal Design R4 or Corsair 300R depending on your preference, both are great cases.

32GB is indeed overkill, big overkill. You can be cool and buy 2x8GB and then add 2 more sticks in the far future if you should need it one day.
But daily use such as gaming, surfing and movies doesn't use more than 8GB.
 
Thanks for the input. Yes I know alot of overkill on some. I am ex military so I LOVE overkill. Why kill a fly with a swatter when you can use a grenade and kill its friends to. I am a firm believer of its better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it. I don't like rebuilding things multiple times when I could have want I want in one shot. So update here,

Case:
Thermaltake Chaser MK-1 or Armor Revo

CPU:
Intel I7 3820 3.6GHz LGA2011

Motherboard:
Asus Rampage IV Extreme

HD:
Western Digital 4TB 7200 RPM Sata 6.0 Gb/s Qty 5. For mass storage of movies/music/pics

SDD:
Unknown yet. Its to house OS, and other programs

GPU:
Unknown yet. I looked at was told and liked a few. Just don't know what to go with. Possible SLI or Crossfire. Must have HDMI.

RAM:
Unknown yet. Motherboard and CPU can take 64GB DDR3 1600

Power Unit:
Unknown yet. Still need to get everything so I can figure out the power requirements needed to get appr. size. Probably a 1KW.

Let me know what you think about this and if its compatible. Like I said, for me overkill is nothing, I actually prefer it. So if everything else works, the only thing I need to figure out is Graphics card, RAM and power unit. Also, would I need a sound card so I can hook it up to my surround sound and will i have room for it. I will also be running water and air cooling. If its a worthwhile benefit and if theres room, is it worth it to water cool my graphics card, RAM too? I think I saw one more thing to water cool but can't remember. Thanks for all your input, gave me something to compare and a starting point.
 
If you are going to use 4TB drives, be warned the price is not worth it (seeing as you can get 2 3TB's for the same price and have 50% more space). If you still want 4TB drives, please use RAID 1/10. That will at least save you when one of them fail.
Personally, I would do a RAID array with 3TB drives.

CPU: Do you really need a LGA2011 system? a 3770k would do the same, but be cheaper and have a cheaper board, allowing you to get a better board for the same price. I personally would get the sniper3 or UP7 if you can afford it. Best on the market there.

SSD: 128GB is enough, but 256GB/512GB is enough for everything + some. I generally recommend Samsung, the 840pro. Intel and Corsair (or is it crucial?) are also good.

GPU: on a top end, don't care about overkill system, look at the GTX680 or GTX 690. Don't even look at AMD for this system.

RAM: Samsung again. You don't need above 16GB at all. Overclock it as far as it will go, and tighten the timings and you will have some great RAM. Mine does 2133 @ 9-10-10-24 1T @ 1.36V (I think, its one step above the stock voltage). Needed a little bump on the memory controller voltage too.

PSU: 850 watts is more than enough on a quality brand unless you plan to do dual 690s or quad 680s.

Case, that is your choice.
 
Yeah I agree with the above, just get a 3770K and a good board for it.

I don't recommend Corsair drives, I recommend Crucial, Samsung, OCZ and SanDisk. Intel are good too but are expensive. I'd just get a Samsung 840 Pro or a Vertex 4 from OCZ.

GTX 680 or 7970 would be good for this system graphics wise. Which one you get usually depends on who you prefer - NVIDIA or AMD. For me right now, it's AMD, so I'd get a 7970. If you like NVIDIA, get the 680. The performance difference between the two is close http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/508?vs=555 sometimes the Radeon is faster, sometimes the GeForce is.

If this is for gaming, get 8GB of RAM and save the money for a rainy day. If this is for anything like CAD, video/photo editing, virtual machines, then 16GB would be a good option, maybe 32GB (I'd only bother with that much for virtual machines though).

For a single 680 or 7970 750W is more than enough. The Corsair TX 750 or one of the XFX, Seasonic or OCZ units in that wattage range would be good too.
 
Thanks for the input. After work I'll have to sit down and look at what you've told me and hope start finalizing. Once again, thanks.
 
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