Intel i7 Build... come on in.

[BlueHiddenSun]

Well, it has been a while since I've been on the forums and I'm back to build a gaming rig.

I had intended on building one a couple of years back, but toned it down and just did a mild PC build.

Below is the wish-list of what I want to create, but just wanted to make sure I had all my ducks in a row before I order and make sure I didn't miss something. My current PC runs like a top, but definitely won't cut it for a gaming rig. This forum has been great to me, lots of help from the members, and plenty of knowledge learned just browsing the forum.

The list...

CPU/MOBO
CPU - Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623I72600K
MB - ASUS P8P67 EVO (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA

GPU
EVGA 012-P3-1570-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP

PSU
CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX850 V2 850W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE

RAM
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)

HD
Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s

Randomess...

I already have a case, but it only has 3 fans, so I am not 100% sure if I am going to use it or not. I don't have a need for a Blu-Ray drive, so I will just use a spare DVD-rom drive I have still new in the box. All of this will be running on 64-Bit version of Windows 7.

All advice and suggestions are more than welcome. You guys really helped me out last time I did this, and I feel better asking the pros before I take the plunge.

Thank you.

 

[Roark]

If this is primarily for gaming I would go for the 2500K and save $100.
You can get the same MB/CPU combo if you liked that Asus (link).

Not sure how I feel about that PSU personally.
If you are sticking with 1 GTX570 a 650W will do you fine, for future SLi there are better options.
Corsair TX650 V2 or XFX Core Pro 850W / Corsair TX850 V2.

For $3-$5 more you can get DDR3 1600, not a huge increase, but also not going to break the bank.
8GB Mushkin Blackline / 8GB G.Skill Ripjaws X.

 

[patonb]

I'm with Roark on the psu, at that price it should be atleast a bronze certified unit.

 

[tj_extreme]

Also, that HDD is, well... SLOW. Assuming you need a new HDD for OS/Storage, and you can't swing for an SSD, go for this one:

Newegg.com - Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

 

[patonb]

Um, no Blue is your mainstream user drive. I think you may be thinking of WD Green drives. They are the slow ones.

However, I'd switch up for the one TJ linked as you get a free dvd-rw drive!

 

[Talyor]

Seagate ST31000524AS Barracuda Hard Drive - 1TB, SATA 6Gbps, 7200 RPM, 32MB at TigerDirect.com for the hard drive

 

[BlueHiddenSun]

The primary use of the computer would definitely be gaming, but a close second to that would be video-editing. I do quite a bit of short movies and have lots of video of my days at the track, so I like to edit most of the videos I have.

The top 3 games I am playing are Battlefield 3, GTA IV "LCPDFR", and Skyrim. So it would be nice to play these games on higher settings than I do now, plus I have lots of Mods added for GTA IV and the game crawls even on the lowest settings I have now.

I wanted to be in the 800+ ranges for the PSU just incase I decide to step up the GPU. The more I think about it, the more I want to just buy the GTX580 and call it a day.

I honestly, don't know what the hell I was thinking when it came to the hard drive, I have a WD 500GB 16MB HD in my current computer, so I thought that would suffice for my new build.

I really don't want to spend the money on SSD's at the moment, I would rather take the money and put it towards the GPU/CPU.

I will edit the first post with the suggestions you guys have made. I will spend a little time this weekend on the forum/Newegg and try to make a more definite decision on what I want to get. I was hoping to stay under $1000 (not including Case/Monitor/Mouse/Keyboard etc.) but I can slowly see I am creeping more towards $1200-$1300

*EDIT*
If I were to pick up the i5 CPU and also upgrade to the GTX580, I kind of feel like that GPU is too much paired with the i5, correct me if I'm wrong. I guess I am trying to make a great gaming rig from the start without having to do (too much) upgrading within the next couple of years.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

 

[Roark]

I would look at benchmarks specific to the editing software that you use comparing the 2500K and 2600K.
From what I see at AnandTech and HardOCP, while the 2600K is faster, its not by much (source | source).

If you leave everything at stock (no overclocking) then a quality 650W power supply should handle any single chip GPU available today, that includes the GTX 580 and HD 7970.
Unless you are going for multiple graphics cards I don't see a reason to go over 750W, which will leave headroom for overclocking.
Personally would go with the Silverstone Strider 750W. Same price as the Corsair 850, but is fully modular and 80+ Silver efficient.

I can't really see a 2500K bottlenecking a GTX 580; however, if you find it does its easy enough to overclock it a little.
The stock CPU cooler should let you get to around 3.7-4.0GHz, and for ~$30 you can get a cooler that will get you over 4GHz.

 

[Slaymate]

I can't really see a 2500K bottlenecking a GTX 580; however, if you find it does its easy enough to overclock it a little.

If you can overclock the cpu and the video card performance increases then your cpu is bottlenecking the video card. Pretty much every cpu presently made will bottleneck most high performance cards, the trick is to minimize the amount of bottleneck per dollar. With that said the i5 2500K is really an excellent buy for the performance.

 

[Roark]

I think you're over spending on the "TURBO BOOST" crap. Just get the original i7 2600k overclock it yourself.

AFAIK all available i5 and i7 Sandy Bridge CPUs have turbo boost, have a link to this "original" 2600K?