Newbie wants to build gaming computer - build advice?

S

Syve

New Member
Hello everyone!

After seeing a YouTube tutorial on building computers I decided to build my own gaming computer. Because I am a complete newbie, I decided to stop by my local Micro Center and a nice employee gave me a list of components to start me off with. My budget is ~$800, including Windows 7. I want a mid-high end computer that can handle current games like AC: Brotherhood on high settings.

I would really appreciate it if you guys/gals could give me some input on the parts that were picked out for me, especially the video card. I did some google searches, but I'm a bit overwhelmed with all the info and I'm not sure how to properly compare different parts and brands.

1. Intel Core i5 2500K LGA 1155 Boxed Processor
2. ASUS P8Z68-V LX LGA 1155 Z68 ATX Intel Motherboard
3. Kingston HyperX blu 8GB DDR3-1333 (PC3-10600) CL9 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit
4. EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti 1024MB GDDR5 PCIe 2.0 x16 Video Card
5. Thermaltake TR2 Series 600 Watt ATX Power Supply
6. Hitachi 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
7. Samsung 22x DVD±RW Burner with Dual/Double Layer Support
8. Cooler Master HAF912 Mid Tower ATX Computer Case

I'm not really picky about where I get the parts from, so any place that has good service and can save me money is fine by me.

Thanks!
 
Yeah, I've been thinking of upgrading to the 560 Ti too, and also downgrading to 4GB RAM instead of 8 since games usually don't use more than 2 or 3GB.

But what sort of performance boost would I be getting by upgrading to the SATA 6" HDD?
 
Syve said:
Yeah, I've been thinking of upgrading to the 560 Ti too, and also downgrading to 4GB RAM instead of 8 since games usually don't use more than 2 or 3GB.

But what sort of performance boost would I be getting by upgrading to the SATA 6" HDD?
Click to expand...

from what i have heard on these forums, an HDD wont ever even get to those speeds so the 3 gb/s is just fine. and you might as well keep the 8 gb ram, that seems to be the usual on a gaming computer, its so cheap anyway. and yeah just an upgrade on graphics card would be good
 
well there are several probs, mainly the psu brand just sucks, get a corsair/antec/xfx/pc p&c/seasonic/silverstone, hitatchi does too, go samsung/wester digital/seagate, also you will need a oem copy of windows 64-bit along with 4gb's of 1600mhz ram might be better for you.
 
Looks okay but 1333MHz CAS9 RAM is slow. You want 1600MHz CAS9, minimum. Also try to avoid anything Thermaltake... their day has come and gone.

If microcentre is good for you, then go there. If you want to try ordering online, www.newegg.com

If prices don't differ too much I'd go to the local store so I don't have to wait for shipping.
 
also look at these cases, better quality, free shipping, same price and then there's a 15% off code too so they are cheaper, but the haf is a little better looking,

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112237

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112318

and then look at this ram, has a 10 off code too so it will be cheaper faster and i'm not sure but i think g.skill might be slightly better brand.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...012B&PID=4169961&SID=1zarofrtybz&AID=10521304
 
Thank you very much, everyone!

I'll upgrade to the 8GB 1600MHz RAM that jonnyp11 found for me, and I'll switch PSU to one by Antec or Corsair.

As for the case, what makes one better than another in terms of quality?
 
really it goes back and forth from brands and indevidual models, the cooler master hafs are supposed to be good, but lian li is supposed to be one of the all around best brands, and the main diff will be the quality of metal and construction, the warranties, and the cable management, along with how much room there is for the gfx card and stuffs like that.
 
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