Firstly, thank you guys so much. This is why ive been coming to this site for over 5 years, for the quick and super knowledgeable input that hasnt steered me wrong yet. From my first pc build to to cleaning viruses off of others' pc's to overclocking and more. Cant thank you guys enough.
That being said, im going to make my first upgrade purchase tonight. My limit is $400 bucks tonight. My plan is to get a MoBo, CPU, and RAM. Then in 2-3 weeks i will be purchasing a graphics card, a new HD, and a new OS (thinking windows 8 but havent looked into it at all, ill address those later though).
BUT I DIGRESS!
proposed upgrade stage 1:
mobo:
MSI Z77A-G41 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
cpu:
Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
edit: i see the i5 2500k is the same price. the only difference i can see is that this is 32nm and the 3570k is 22nm... i assume smaller is better. what is the difference here guys? which should i go with?
with a
cooler master 212 (do i want the evo or the plus, they seem the same to me, i was gonna go with the evo)
RAM:
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL
Id like to send the order soon. just waiting for the go ahead from you pros. Please advise.
Id say my only true concern is the mobo. it should be fine for everything i want to do, but ill let you guys judge that, i frankly dont know.
also i am a little uncomfortable applying my own thermal paste on the cpu. i was going to leave the stock pad on there and apply the coolermaster. tho i suppose i could do it. just want a little input on to whether thats a good idea or if i even need a cooler, ive heard mixed reviews, some people have said the stock heatsink is fine.
