New Gaming PC build

[skittzle]

Hello fellow [H]ers. It is finally time to make one of these threads of my own. I am looking to build a gaming PC that will last me a few years. I really don't want to skimp on any of the parts. I look forward to seeing what you guys can come up with. Thank you!

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

This machine will be used for Gaming mostly. I also do a lot of 3D CAD work.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

3000.00 (money is not a problem. I just want quality parts.)

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.

I live in Fairbanks, Alaska. I would like to use Amazon for all purchases if possible.

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.

-CPU (Intel)
-Aftermarket CPU cooling
-MOBO
-RAM
-SSD ~500GB
-SSD ~500GB Raid 0
-HDD 7200rpm Storage 1TB
-Case High quality case (I have a Lian Li PC-V1200 plus but im ready for a new look)
-Blu Ray burner
-Gaming Keyboard
-Gaming Mouse
-Gaming Headphones
-Sound Card (are they worth getting these days?) I have a 5.1 surround system
-Wireless Router for house

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

-PSU Corsair HX620W (Replace?)
-EVGA GTX 680 SC 4GB

6) Will you be overclocking?

Yes

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?

-Dell U2412M 1920x1200 24"

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

I would like to order next week. 8/14/13 or soon after

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.

-USB 3.0
-SATA 6GB/s
-SLI support
-RAID

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?

-Windows 7 Ulitmate 64bit

 

[linziyi]

You can just go all the way for ALL SSD no HHD given the budget.

 

[tiraides]

Let's focus on the PC tower first:

$219 - Intel Core i5-4670K
$86 - Corsair H80i
$187 - MSI Z87-GD65
$240 - 2x Crucial Ballistix Sport 2x8GB DDR3 1600
$445 - Samsung 840 Pro 512GB SSD
$94 - Seagate Barracuda ST2000DM001 2TB HDD
$74 - Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS SATA Blu-ray burner (Retail)
$110 - Corsair HX750 750W modular PSU
$115 - Corsair 600T ATX mid-tower case
=====
$1577 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

Based on my research on the recommended specs for a CAD machine, you'd benefit from lots of RAM but not Hyper Threading. That's why I went with the i5-4670K and 32GB of Crucial Ballistix RAM. Your overclocking preferences are why I went with the MSI Z87-GD65 and the Corsair H80i.

I went with a retail version of a Blu-ray drive to ensure that you have Blu-ray playback software. There's no guarantee that you'll get anything with an OEM version of the same drive.

I know that you only wanted 1TB of HDD, but the second terabyte was only $30 more. As for the Samsung 840 Pro SSD, it's one of the best performance SSDs currently available (that, and I'm a personal fan of it).

Try the onboard sound out first before deciding upon a sound card. If you decide to go the sound card route, Asus Xonar and (yes, still) Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi are the popular options.

I went with a new power supply because I personally believe that it's better to be safe than sorry. Since you're going with a basically new system, it's better to have a "fresh" new power supply than worry whether or not your old "reliable" PSU can handle your new system. (The HX620 is a good PSU even by today's standards, but depending on its age and how hard it was pushed, it may not be capable of handling its rated load over a long period of time.)

As for the Corsair 600T, I just imagined throwing a dart a one of Danny Bui's many lists of wonderful cases:

$100 - Corsair Carbide Series 400R ATX Case
$100 - Antec 1100 ATX Case
$105 - Corsair Carbide Series 500R ATX Case
$115 - Corsair Graphite Series 600TM ATX Case
$144 - Silverstone RV03B-W ATX case
$144 - Silverstone RV03B-WA ATX case
$154 - Corsair Special Edition White Graphite Series 600T ATX Case
$168 - Silverstone TJ04B-EW ATX Case
$167 - Corsair Obsidian Series 650D ATX Case
$230 - Silverstone FT02B-USB3.0 ATX Case

Since cases are a very subjective matter, feel free to choose something you like.

Honestly, I believe that gaming keyboards and mice are just as subjective as cases. Going off my personal tastes alone, I'd probably choose something along the lines of:

$89 - SteelSeries 6Gv2 mechanical gaming keyboard
$49 - SteelSeries Sensei Raw (Rubberized Black) laser gaming mouse

Unfortunately, finding the perfect mouse and keyboard for your needs may be a lengthy trial-and-error process.

... And I can't really help you on finding a "good" headset. I've heard of a couple of models, like the SteelSeries Siberia and the Corsair Vengeance, but I don't know enough to recommend a good pair for you to use.

As for the wireless router, what do you need? You could go for one of the best in the Asus RT-AC66U (based on draft 802.11ac, which is "backwards compatible" with the 802.11n standard), but you could do just as well with a cheaper router like the Netgear WNDR3700 (which is what I use at home).

 

[skittzle]

You can just go all the way for ALL SSD no HHD given the budget.

I think I will add 1 more ~500GB SSD for raid 0. I added it to the list up top.

 

[skittzle]

Thanks tiraides. Those are great suggestions. I like all of it really.

How would you rate this board? ASUS Maximus VI EXTREME
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CRJUG10/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

[Dangman]

I think I will add 1 more ~500GB SSD for raid 0. I added it to the list up top.

Not really worth getting that second SSD for RAID 0 since it won't speed up the random read/write speeds AFAIK. But if you want to burn your money, go for it.

Thanks tiraides. Those are great suggestions. I like all of it really.

How would you rate this board? ASUS Maximus VI EXTREME
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CRJUG10/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Not Tiraides but: That mobo is really overpriced for what it is. If you're going to spend that much on a motherboard, you might as well go with a platform where that much is actually justified like the socket 2011 platform.

 

[tiraides]

I think I will add 1 more ~500GB SSD for raid 0. I added it to the list up top.

If you want it that bad, go for it.

But be aware that you lose TRIM support when using SSDs in any RAID arry. TRIM helps prevent long-term performance degradation in SSDs, but to be fair, I haven't found any long-term study (of at least three to five years) of SSD performance over time while operating under RAID.

How would you rate this board? ASUS Maximus VI EXTREME
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CRJUG10/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

I don't believe that it's worth the money. Then again, I'm not a heavy overclocker myself.

Part of the reason why I went with the MSI Z87-GD65 was the positive [H] review on it. In fact, the [H] team found the comparatively cheaper (than the Maximus VI Extreme) Asus Z87 Deluxe to be pretty good at overclocking (though they went with the more expensive DDR3 1866 RAM to eke out whatever clock speed they could from the processor).

What does the Maximus VI Extreme offer you that neither the Z87 Deluxe or the Z87-GD65 have?

 

[skittzle]

I think I am going to get the MSI board. Given your recommendation and that gold award review from [H], I don't think I can go wrong. I like the overall look of it more as well.

I read some good things about the ROG series is why I was initially interested.

I am not stuck on Raid either. I think one good SSD and some higher storage drives would be fine.

If you want it that bad, go for it.

But be aware that you lose TRIM support when using SSDs in any RAID arry. TRIM helps prevent long-term performance degradation in SSDs, but to be fair, I haven't found any long-term study (of at least three to five years) of SSD performance over time while operating under RAID.



I don't believe that it's worth the money. Then again, I'm not a heavy overclocker myself.

Part of the reason why I went with the MSI Z87-GD65 was the positive [H] review on it. In fact, the [H] team found the comparatively cheaper (than the Maximus VI Extreme) Asus Z87 Deluxe to be pretty good at overclocking (though they went with the more expensive DDR3 1866 RAM to eke out whatever clock speed they could from the processor).

What does the Maximus VI Extreme offer you that neither the Z87 Deluxe or the Z87-GD65 have?