First build "looking for feedback"

[valakas]

So im looking to build my first computer , ive been doing alot of reading and roaming. Its main use will be for gaming. I wanna stay in the $700-$900 range.. I wanna stay on the side of not having to upgrade in the near future also.


CPU:
Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz 3 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor - Processors - Desktops

From my understanding there are no games that utilize more than 2 cores. I looked into both the amd and intel. Seems that without going up to a quad core the phenom II x3 series are the cheapest way to get L3 cache. Im not really sure exactly how much of an impact it really has but i was thinking it was quite an impact.

Mobo:
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-MA770T-UD3P AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards

I liked the price and Raid options. I was interested in both doing raid and crossfire when i was initially deciding to build my own computer. Though I have no experience with either and thought it would be best to put those on the back burner because ive simply been taking in too much information. I do realize that this board only has 1 pci e 2.0 slot. The other board I intially was looking at was

Newegg.com - ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards

But i was trying to cut some cost. If i can save else where then that would proly be my choice.

Ram:
Newegg.com - G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10600CL8D-4GBHK - Desktop Memory

My choice of ram changes all the time. I dont really know what I want. I figure ddr3 was the way to go since it seems to cost about the same as ddr2 and i wont have to upgrade anytime soon.

GPU:
Newegg.com - XFX HD-489X-ZSFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
or
Newegg.com - XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

I dont really understand this. same core clock same streaming processors. but the 128 bit has a higher memory clock over the 256 bit.?.? The dx11 feature is of no importance i guess being as there are no games that even use it.

PSU:
Newegg.com - OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ600MXSP 600W ATX12V V2.2 / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply compatible with core i7 - Power Supplies

Mainly price here and brand. I wanted to stay with a quality brand. Ive seen this brand on a number of good psu lists. Im unsure exactly what I need. I was thinking 2-12v rails and about 550 watts.

HDD:
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

I dont really need alot of hd space. I was unsure if the cache really makes that big of a difference. I initially was looking at the 32mb but to cut some cost i went down to the 16mb.

CD/RW:
Newegg.com - Sony Optiarc Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD/CD Rewritable Drive - CD / DVD Burners

I just really need to be able to load my games from disks.. Looked like this could do pretty much anything cd related. watch burn load listen etc..

OS:

Newegg.com - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - Operating Systems

So thats what I got.. I am also interested in over clocking, but that will be later down the road after i have the system. I dont wanna do too much at once. Any feedback would be great.

P.S. I proly wont be doing this for a month or so.. So i havnt really payed to much attention to combo deals as they seem to change often.

 

[Muffin Man]

all pretty good choices.

but i would get 1600mhz ram though just because you can find it for the same price as 1333mhz ram.
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL - Desktop Memory

either way though, post back when youre ready to buy to take advantage of the combos because almost always youll be able to save money or get something a little better.

 

[aliasaid]

For sheer power, i would go with the 4890. And just because games don't utilize more than 2 cores, its pretty good to have quad core for multi-tasking and such. I don't think it'll cost too much more for a phenom quad core.


Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops
$45 more than your cpu, but its quad core and 400mhz faster.

 

[valakas]

Right on thanks for the info.. I initially was looking at the quad cores depending on what deals are going on that will definitely be an option ill be wanting. Ill post back when am ready to buy. : )