New Builder- Gaming/Art Rig, Critique please! :)

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dahlia13

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Hello! After becoming frustrated with pre-built computers, I have finally decided to give a shot on building my own... I have done some research and messed around with the insides of my computer, so I hope this build is okay! Please let me know if it is all compatible and if there is any way I can save money. :) I plan to use this rig for gaming on high settings (WoW, SWtoR, Skyrim, Arkham Asylum, etc) and for graphic designing/illustrating. I hope to learn from you guys and this experience!

Case - $55
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153Newegg.com - Rosewill CHALLENGER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 140mm Fan, 1x Rear 120mm Fan, option Fans-2x Side 120mm Fan

Processor - $190
Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2400 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I52400

RAM - $50
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B

GPU - $210
Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

Mobo - $115
Newegg.com - MSI P67A-G43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

PSU - $90
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Gaming Series GS600 600W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

Hard Drive -119
Newegg.com - Seagate Barracuda Green ST1500DL003 1.5TB 5900 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

OD - $17
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 22X DVD Burner 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM SATA Model SH-222BB/BEBE - CD / DVD Burners

TOTAL = ~ $846 (excluding rebates)

Some questions...
1) Can I go with a lower processor like an i3?
2) Can I salvage parts from my old HP or would I have to buy new ones? (OD, flash reader, USB expansion)
3) If any of you know of good LED monitors for art and color consistency, please let me know of any decent priced 22/24 inch monitors!

I did not list OS since my sister can snag me a copy of Win7 with a student discount hehe.

Thanks in advance!!
 
Don't go with that RAM as the heatspreaders are way too tall and will cause trouble if you later go with an after-market heatsink. Go with this set instead:
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL

Do NOT go with a 5400RPM hard drive as your main system disk. Trust me on this one. You want a smaller, faster drive as your main (a solid state would be ideal) and a different drive for data (and programs if you opt for a solid state drive, or even a separate disk for them like I use). A 250GB main drive, or a 60GB OS SSD would be good.

Unless you just want a lit PSU (your case has no side window so it would serve no purpose) I would go with this one instead. Same amps, solid manufacturer, a little cheaper:
Newegg.com - Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-620 620W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

1) I wouldn't go with an i3 unless you had to. Today's games now are utilizing multiple cores and running a dual core could hamper your gaming. If money is the issue you can go AMD; you lose speed compared to Intel but could afford a quad easier.

2) Yes. Salvaged parts will work unless there are no hookups for them (as in they are way old).

3) It all depends on your budget.
 
Thank you so much, Trotter- this helps tremendously!
So, it would be better to get two HDs then?

Would this suffice as the main?
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKX 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

I am not too sure what to go with for the data drive- should it hold a lower/greater capacity? I was never too sure how to use multiple HDs or partitions. From what I am reading and from what you have mentioned, the main drive (C?) is used for programs and the OS and the second (D?) is for files/images/other data? I also have a 1 TB external Seagate HD that I recently purchased for backup purposes.


I also forgot the heatsink, now that you mention it.
Newegg.com - Rosewill RCX-Z90-CP 92mm Long Life Sleeve CPU Cooler

Would this work? The case has three fans in it, so if I could hold off for a better heatsink in the near future that's fine too.

Sorry for my nubiness! :p
 
Yes, two drives would be a better setup than a single huge one.

That WD Blue will do nicely. The Black series are faster but recent prices are way too high.

A data drive should be bigger as music, movies, and whatnot tends to accumulate over time and eat up space. ;) You can go with just the 320 to start with (I originally had an 80GB :p) and them move your stuff once you get a storage drive. Incidentally, if a drive is just for storage then a 5400RPM drive will work fine.

Honestly, the cooler than comes with that CPU is probably better then that one. If you want an improvement in cooling you would want something like this (or better):
Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7
 
Sorry about reviving this, but after reconsidering and browsing forums, I have thought about getting a SSD for my main rather than a HDD! I was actually a little confused as to what "solid state" meant until now lol. >.<
Would Newegg.com - Corsair Force Series 3 CSSD-F60GB3A-BK 2.5" 60GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) be alright for progs/OS and Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD7500AALX 750GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive for data/storage (maybe even a refurbished Black)? I have decided to up my budget a tad for a better system and hold off for a while on a shiny new monitor haha.
 
Thanks Skip, I actually may go ahead and do that. :) I apologize for the repetition, I am getting a little cold footed here as I am going to make purchases withing the next two weeks. I want to make absolute sure everything is compatible and "perfect"...Here is my updated list. I would like to keep the budget around $950 ideally and may buy a few components off of Ebay or something (maybe the case...possibly the SSD and HDD unless that's too risky) or refurbished/recertified items from Newegg to lower costs. If everything looks good here or if there's anything I could possibly change around to save money and still have a nice system, do let me know and I cannot thank you all enough. :)

Case- $35-$55
Newegg.com - Rosewill CHALLENGER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 140mm Fan, 1x Rear 120mm Fan, option Fans-2x Side 120mm Fan

CPU- $210
Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000 BX80623I52500

RAM- $47
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL

GPU- $250 (damn, did the price jump? could have sworn it was $210 just the other day o_O)
Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1561-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

MoBo- $115
Newegg.com - MSI P67A-G43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

PSU- $75
Newegg.com - Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-620 620W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

SSD- $130-$180
Newegg.com - Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

HDD- $75
Newegg.com - Refurbished: HITACHI Deskstar 7K1000 HDD-HDS721075KLA330-NDW-R 750GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Total=
~$990

If I could lower costs on SSD or HDD, that would be nice...I decided I will need at least 80G SSD since I have alot of programs and games I need to install and don't want to run out of room too quickly. Right now I have a single 750G HDD which I've used only about 400G of and, assuming since I don't have a SSD on here, both my progs and data are all on here meaning I could probably get a 80G+ SSD and maybe a 500G HDD. Is it even possible to re-use my current HDD? It's actually a Seagate 750G, 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s HDD (not sure about exact specifics as it's a hassle to get into my case atm...) I'm afraid of getting certain parts off of Ebay for obvious reasons, but if anyone has had good experience with used/refurb/recert parts let me know.

Will Newegg have any good sales in February that I could look out for? I want to get this project started ASAP since my current gpu or mobo is having issues and I've figured I may as well do this project now since I'd been on the fence with getting a new system these past few months anyways, rather than waste money on new parts for my old one.
 
Yeah! I think that may have been it. I have no idea why I bookmarked the other one instead. XD *NEWB* Thanks!
 
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