First time building custom computer, need help and reccomendations

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blahbrah

New Member
Hi everyone! I have been planning on building a new computer for a while now and have done quite a bit of research, finding there are nearly endless choices. This is my first time building a pc or even messing with much electronics at all, I am 20 years old. I plan on using my pc for normal everyday use, but I would like it to be all-around fast system for at least 3-4 years. I would also consider myself a fairly heavy gamer. I plan on playing games such as Crysis, Skyrim, Battlefield 3, ect. I am a big fan of heavy graphics and will basically be trying to play the latest and greatest games as they come out in the years to come. I have put together a list of parts, and would greatly appreciate any recommendations or changes you would make for my needs and budget of around $1000, possibly a bit more.

First, my computer case. I am considering purchasing a "Danger Den Torture Rack" acrylic case, mostly for aesthetic reasons, but I also plan on changing some parts out semi-regularly. Would this build be too ambitious for someone who has never assembled a computer from component parts?


Western Digital 1 TB Caviar Green SATA II 64 MB Cache Bulk/OEM Desktop Hard Drive WD10EARS


Gigabyte Intel Z68 Micro ATX LGA 1155 Motherboard (GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3)

EVGA GeForce GTX 570 Superclocked 1280 MB GDDR5 PCI-Express 2.0 Graphics Card with Lifetime Warranty 012-P3-1572-AR

Logitech B100 Optical USB Mouse (Does this mouse suck for gaming, as far as precision? Its very cheap.)

Crucial CT2KIT51264BC1067 8GB 204-PIN PC3-8500 SODIMM DDR3 (4GBx2)

Lite-On LightScribe 24X SATA DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive IHAS424-98 - Retail (Black)


Intel Core i5-2500K Processor 3.3GHz 6 MB Cache Socket LGA1155

Some kind of fan and power supply (Any recommendations for this type of setup?)


-Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (Full) System Builder DVD 1 Pack

Would this graphics card be a good choice? Or in your opinions, would it be a better use of my money to buy a $150 video card, and wait for the $350 GTX570 to substantially drop in price when the next card series comes out? Lastly, I do have quite a bit of free time to figure out how all this works. So whaddya think?

Any help you guys could provide would be VERY appreciated. Thank you!
PHP:
 
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yeah, the motherboard has to be socket 1155. Socket 1156 won't work with 2500K. Also, what size screen are you running? It depends for what kind of video card you get, to keep it nicely under budget.
 
Thanks for the responses guys, I changed the original post to include links to my parts, and changed some of the parts with your suggestions: new hard drive, correct motherboard, and specified I was getting the 64 bit home premium version of windows 7.

I dont plan on buying a SSD, I assume I could always add one if I thought it was too slow?

I am planning on using an hdmi to connect to my 42' LCD as my primary monitor, and a 12 or so inch screen when I want to sit at a desk.

I was thinking I might skip the video card for a couple months while I save money for a nice one, would I be able to do this and still run the basic setup on the 42 inch screen?

And as far as the acrylic case: are there any real downsides to having an open case, besides the obvious problems that things can drop onto the parts, and dust? I would also assume an open case is probably much better for cooling.

Here is the link.

What size PSU will I need? Should a 550-650 W be good?
 
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No, you actually want a closed case with good air flow. It's better than having an open computer. You could add an SSD later, but you'd have to reinstall windows and all the drivers onto it.
 
what exactly is the problem with having an open case? I think it would be easier to work with, better access to everything and more space. I'll be getting a decent fan, so airflow shouldn't be a problem.
 
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It attracts dust which can really damage your system. And just having a decent fan won't solve it. I was one of those people who thought an open case was better, but once I upgraded my MoBo and CPU (And figured out my brother jammed a 24-pin PSU cable into a 20-pin connection, and that's why it was restarting all the time...) my temps for everything increase with a closed system.
 
As far as GPU's, which would probably be the better choice: one GTX570, or two GTX 460s? Would the Z68 mobo even fit two video cards?
 
blahbrah said:
I dont plan on buying a SSD, I assume I could always add one if I thought it was too slow?
Click to expand...

The caviar green drive is pretty slow. They are best for storage if you want something fast look at the samsung f3

I was thinking I might skip the video card for a couple months while I save money for a nice one, would I be able to do this and still run the basic setup on the 42 inch screen?
Click to expand...
Should not be a problem


What size PSU will I need? Should a 550-650 W be good?
Click to expand...

This will depend on the GPU you want to use later. Don't cheap out on a PSU
 
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