Gaming PC Build

[Who Dares Wins]

So since the PC Enthusiast group has been a bit quiet for some time (thanks go to bam13302 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/view/bam13302] who has helped me quite a lot, thanks dude, you're awesome), I'm making this thread to ask the good folks of Escapist to tell me what they think about this gaming PC I'm planning to buy:

Case
-Corsair Graphite 600T

Motherboard
-ASRock Z68 Extreme4
OR
-ASUS P8P67 PRO (B3)

CPU
-i5 2500k

Video Card
-MSI GTX 580

RAM
-2X4GB DD3 RAM 1600Hz Corsair

PSU
-Corsair 850W TX Series

HDD
-2XSamsung F3 Spinpoint 1TB

SSD
-OCZ Vertex 2 60GB
OR
-Intel SSD 80GB 320

I really don't know what budget I'm on, but I can afford the above so try to incorporate your suggestions into it. Also, could someone tell me how will it run stuff (I'm planning to play on 1920x1080, all highest settings, really tough games: Witcher 2, Crysis, Metro 2033...). If you need more details, just ask.

Thanks in advance.

 

[shado_temple]

Looks like a fairly well-rounded setup to me. You probably don't need a PSU that heavy-duty, but you can never be too careful when it comes to that sort of thing.

EDIT: I checked some stuff, and yeah, you could easily survive on a 650 watt PSU, though I wouldn't suggest going lower than that. Oh, and definitely go for the Vertex 2 SSD. That thing is too awesome.

 

[Arehexes]

I think you have a nice build to be honest. Some of the stuff you listed I'm looking at for my build.

 

[tokae]

The things that could be improved are the CPU (well, barely atleast) and the your choice of graphics card. Even though the latter is more personal choice really, I always go for ATI cards it seems (looking through piles of old hardware-boxes).
As for motherboards you could always check up the Republic of Gamers: http://rog.asus.com/ . They got some great stuff on both motherboards and video cards.

 

[MrTub]

I would get a ssd with the latest sandforce or the latest Intel ssd.


If you are planing on to get a second card later on I would suggest that you go with at least 850w psu since fermi cards love their watt.

 

[Who Dares Wins]

Are bumps allowable after so much time?

I would get a ssd with the latest sandforce or the latest Intel ssd.

I'm not really wild on the idea of better SSDs. I'm getting this one just so I can say I have one and to put my OS and some games on it. HDDs are just fine (and less expensive)

 

[MrTub]

Are bumps allowable after so much time?

I would get a ssd with the latest sandforce or the latest Intel ssd.

I'm no really wild on the idea of better SSDs. I'm getting this one just so I can say I have one and to put my OS and some games on it. HDDs are just fine (and less expensive)

Well where I live there is about 100kr=17-18$ difference between the latest sandforce and the older sandforce so if I would get another ssd I would buy the latest considerin 500mbit/s vs 200mbit/s for just 17-18$ more.

 

[Plurralbles]

How much is this costing you, any estimate?

 

[Who Dares Wins]

-snip-

Well where I live there is about 100kr=17-18$ difference between the latest sandforce and the older sandforce so if I would get another ssd I would buy the latest considerin 500mbit/s vs 200mbit/s for just 17-18$ more.

Okay, but could you be more specific, what should I get?

How much is this costing you, any estimate?

I think it's around 1600$.

 

[Baneat]

Looks good, you'll be able to run all current games at very good settings. Not sure about Metro 2033 but everything else I can think of will run at max or near max

 

[Cyberjester]

If anything you'd get an Nvidia card, simply because they can be more stable. Think Fallout 3/NV or.. What else, Brink? Some recent game had hassles with ATI cards again. ATI cards aren't that stable. High powered, but not fully compatible. Not sure about MSI.. 'shrugs'

Up the SSD maybe? A 120GB would mean you could load a little more onto it. Not maxing it out by any means, just 60GB will go by pretty fast once you've loaded Windows and various programs. An office suite, Steam, etc, etc. Should be able to load games onto the regular hhd and link to Steam, but just in case you can't.

You could try and future proof it. For example, the Z68 Extreme4 supports SLI or Quad Nvidia set up. So grab a compatible Nvidia card, then later on if your comp is slowing down or you want more power (If you fold then using graphics is a great idea, likewise for cryptography) you just throw in another gfx card.

Ignore the part about dropping the PSU to 650. You won't ever max out a PSU. If it says 650, run it at 600. 300 if it's a dodgy brand. lol. 850 means that if you do go for a SLI setup later you don't need to mess around calculating voltages to see if you need an upgrade.

Other than that, you can run pretty much anything at decent settings.



EDIT:

It was The Witcher 2 which is having ATI problems. The game wasn't fully using Nvidia cards in SLI either, but they were working. Fallout 3 and NV remain Nvidia win though

 

[MrTub]

-snip-

Well where I live there is about 100kr=17-18$ difference between the latest sandforce and the older sandforce so if I would get another ssd I would buy the latest considerin 500mbit/s vs 200mbit/s for just 17-18$ more.

Okay, but could you be more specific, what should I get?

How much is this costing you, any estimate?

I think it's around 1600$.

Agility 3, Vertex 3, Corsair force 3. Any of these should be alright

 

[octafish]

Looks good, you'll be able to run all current games at very good settings. Not sure about Metro 2033 but everything else I can think of will run at max or near max

That is pretty much my rig (with the asus pro) and no it won't play Metro maxed. Crysis is for wimps.

Very Similar build. I have WD black HDDs, a 120gb Vertex 2, and an EVGA 580 GTX. I can't remember what brand RAM I have but the ASUS board is unstable when it is run at 1600, that isn't the same for everyone but my RAM is listed in the official documentation as compatible. I have to run my CL9 RAM at 1333 when I was hoping to overclock it a little, which is a bugger. I haven't bothered to check for BIOS updates that may have addressed that though.

The big thing missing from your build is cooling. The i7 2600k heatsink is OK for an Intel cooler, but the i5 2500k is crap, to overclock you will need a cooler.