[NocOne]

My buddy wants to start gaming on PC.
I've finally convinced him.
He has 1000 bucks to spend.
He asked me to ask you guys to help him with a build.
Thanks in advance!

 

[adridu59]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($127.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($73.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Plextor M5S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($289.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($52.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $919.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-17 16:26 EST-0500)

Should be nice.

BTW, the Caviar Blue althrough being a Blue has a single 1TB platter thus it has better performance.

 

[oldmud]

I don't have a lot of time to respond... But I would recommend starting with and 1155 intel platform (3570k from microcenter if you can saves about 60 bucks) and a good z77 motherboard. From there get at least a 128 GB ssd or bigger... and I would recommend either a 7870 or 7950 gpu depending on what you can fit into the budget. at least 4 gigs of ram 8 is nice sometimes though. 700 watt psu should be fine. other than that the rest of it is pretty much personal preference and budget. but with those components he should be able to rock games at 1080p .

sorry for mis-spellings and crappy grammar ... GL

 

[twerk]

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Quote:

Originally Posted by adridu59

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($127.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($39.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($73.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Plextor M5S Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($289.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($52.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $919.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-17 16:26 EST-0500)

Should be nice.

BTW, the Caviar Blue althrough being a Blue has a single 1TB platter thus it has better performance.

This.
I'd probably go with a better PSU and if you can afford it go with a better case because the 200R has limited features.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/E9go

 

[twerk]

Double post.

 

[adridu59]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndyM95

I'd probably go with a better PSU and if you can afford it go with a better case because the 200R has limited features.

Good call on the PSU!

Honestly, I think that for most users the Corsair 200R should be just fine.

 

[AlphaC]

The biggest question should be "do you have a microcenter near you" , resolution and settings, thunderbolt needed, overclocking?, and "what games"? You can get a i5-3570k+ Z77 motherboard like the Z77x-UD5H for $300 or less but the caliber of the motherboard will be different if you don't have a Microcenter near you.

In general:
$220 i5-3570k ($150-160 at Microcenter)

$180 z77 motherboard like the GA-Z77x-up5 TH, GA-Z77x-ud5h, or P8Z77-v Pro ($180-200) , if overclocking
* $100-120 z77 motherboard like the GA-Z77x-D3H if low 10-15% OC like 4GHz (note the UD3h is a different model with $150 MSRP) .. it's better than the Asus P8Z77-V LK and Asrock extreme4 is analog VRM which provides less stable power

$280ish HD 7950 of choice (MSI, gigabyte, Sapphire,HIS, Asus etc) or $250ish Sapphire HD 7870 XT tahiti LE to save some money due to not living near microcenter

$40ish Corsair Vengeance low profile RAM or Gskill ripjaws

$100ish for 64 /80/120/128GB SSD like Samsung 840 Pro, Samsung 830, Intel 520,etc.

$50ish for a HDD to dump stuff on

$20ish for a Coolermaster 212 Evo or 212+ , or other aftermarket cooler

$80ish Decent 550 or 650W PSU unless you plan on crossfire such as Rosewill HIVE 550W modular, Rosewill Capstone CAPSTONE-650-M, Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM , SeaSonic M12II 650 , CORSAIR Professional Series HX650 , Antec HCG M Series HCG-620M 620W...

$70-100ish Decent case of choice such as Fractal Define R4, NZXT Phantom 410

If you're playing RTS or Starcraft II, then you don't need any more than a HD 7850 or GTX 660 to get 60FPS. For First Person Shooters (Battlefield, Crysis 2), Action RPGs like Elder Scrolls Skyrim, etc. you will need more like a HD 7870 because even the GTX 560ti will have some issues on higher settings.

P.S. The Corsair 200R is pretty bad for $50 when the 400R/500R are on sale for $70ish-80ish. The only time it's a decent case is when it drops to $30-40ish because then you can get more fans & a filter for the bottom of the case.

 

[NocOne]

Thanks for the builds.

Battlefield and skyrim will probably be the most graphic intensive games he'll play.
No overclocking or anything.
He just wants a reliable fast pc.

 

[KeyboardXpert]

FOR GOD'S SAKE, DON'T GET A GIGABYTE FOR RELIABILITY!

If reliability is the primary concern, get an Intel Extreme Series motherboard. Otherwise, this.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Ea4Y

There ya go!

 

[AlphaC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KeyboardXpert

FOR GOD'S SAKE, DON'T GET A GIGABYTE FOR RELIABILITY!

If reliability is the primary concern, get an Intel Extreme Series motherboard. Otherwise, this.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Ea4Y

There ya go!

I don't know what you mean , since Intel is ending all motherboards so support will be sparse.

Asus has crap RMA and customer support these days.

 

[KeyboardXpert]

Doesn't matter. If it's DOA, return it. I've never had nor heard of anyone having a non-DOA Asus board that was RMA'd outside of return period. Maybe it's just me.

Intel used to be king of reliability, hadn't heard about that, too bad.

 

[oldmud]

I have a gigabyte z77 and 3570k from microcenter running at 4.7+ since August zero problems.

 

[oldmud]

Sorry double post

 

[KeyboardXpert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldmud

Sorry double post

What? Anyways, my Gigabyte P67 coughed at 4.5 gHz and 2v to the RAM after 6 months. It started doing that double-boot stage thing to recalibrate voltage automatically.

 

[oldmud]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KeyboardXpert

What? Anyways, my Gigabyte P67 coughed at 4.5 gHz and 2v to the RAM after 6 months. It started doing that double-boot stage thing to recalibrate voltage automatically.

My phone posted twice couldn't delete it...... and i've never worked with a p67 and I'm no expert but I do know my z77 has zero problems... same board this guy uses and he seems to stand by it

http://www.overclock.net/t/1247413/ivy-bridge-overclocking-guide-with-ln2-guide-at-the-end

anyway I would just say go with a z77 and you'll be good all the features and good overclocking. As to brand I've dealt with asus/asrock/gigabyte/msi for multiple builds all no problems either at all or if their was I was able to get a replacement.

 

[twerk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KeyboardXpert

What? Anyways, my Gigabyte P67 coughed at 4.5 gHz and 2v to the RAM after 6 months. It started doing that double-boot stage thing to recalibrate voltage automatically.

Gigabyte are the king of reliability now that Intel aren't making boards anymore, they use the highest quality components on all their Z77 boards and never skimp on anything.

 

[adridu59]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KeyboardXpert

FOR GOD'S SAKE, DON'T GET A GIGABYTE FOR RELIABILITY!

Any source for this claim mate?

I'll leave this here:
RMA rates as recorded up to October 2012 by hardware.fr:
- ASRock 1,67% (previously 1,90%)
- Gigabyte 1,77% (previously 2,17%)
- MSI 2,24% (previously 2,11%)
- ASUS 2,34% (previously 2,66%)

http://www.hardware.fr/articles/881-2/cartes-meres.html

Honestly, Gigabyte has had some hiccups with P67/Z68 with cold boot issues on some models but it's over now. Their Z77 lineup has been flawless from the beginning.

 

[KeyboardXpert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by adridu59

Any source for this claim mate?

I'll leave this here:
RMA rates as recorded up to October 2012 by hardware.fr:
- ASRock 1,67% (previously 1,90%)
- Gigabyte 1,77% (previously 2,17%)
- MSI 2,24% (previously 2,11%)
- ASUS 2,34% (previously 2,66%)

http://www.hardware.fr/articles/881-2/cartes-meres.html

Honestly, Gigabyte has had some hiccups with P67/Z68 with cold boot issues on some models but it's over now. Their Z77 lineup has been flawless from the beginning.

Sorry about all my whining about Gigabyte. It looks like they're fine for Z77. I will try out the UD3H for my next build. My P67 Gigabyte sucked ass and I just hated it, but I guess it's time to give Gigabyte another try. Is that ASUS for France or ASUS for USA or ASUS for worldwide? My source for reliability is recommendations from all my builder buddies and personal experience.

 

[adridu59]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KeyboardXpert

Sorry about all my whining about Gigabyte. It looks like they're fine for Z77. I will try out the UD3H for my next build. My P67 Gigabyte sucked ass and I just hated it, but I guess it's time to give Gigabyte another try. Is that ASUS for France or ASUS for USA or ASUS for worldwide? My source for reliability is recommendations from all my builder buddies and personal experience.

It's for France. I see that you had problems with a specific model - it happened to all manufacturers in the past honestly and Gigabyte has had it's hiccups - but that doesn't mean that their whole actual and/or future products are all bad and this applies to any manufacturer.

 

[KeyboardXpert]

Well, it put me on edge. I also like ASUS. Many people do. Their mobos won the CCA awards, for god's sake!