Help me build a new computer(I love you long time)

[sono]

Hey all, because of TERA and because I need to do it anyway I've decided to build a new computer. Sadly when it comes to the actual hardware I'm a retard, with the help of a friend I've got a basic idea of what I want, but could always use more than one opinion. That's where you guys come in. This is the rig i will at this point in time be building http://pcpartpicker.com/p/5fok . Please tell me what you guys think and any suggestions you may have. I don't plan on or want to OC this machine if I need to upgrade I'd rather save up and buy the part vs risk my entire machine. In terms of what I want to do with this machine I only plan on gaming, streaming, and doing everyday everyday school work/work work.

Because I was only planning on upgrading my graphics card and PSU before I realized that my prefab i got as a graduation present couldn't be upgraded. I'd like to not spend any more money than I already am unless what I'm currently buying is inferior trash.

I'm mainly looking for the following feedback
Does my build just plain suck/are all the parts i chose horrible
Is there something better that's cheaper I don't know about
Am I overpaying for these parts at this given store
Is there a decent upgrade I don't know about that won't add another $200 to my build
ect

I'm also still having trouble deciding on the graphics card, and have a couple questions. I'm currently debating between the one I listed in my build an identical HIS card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161372 , and a comparable Nvidia card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130683 . Of the two AMD whic is a better manufacturer? Which is better all around AMD or Nvidia? Based on my own semi research AMD is suppsoed to be better preformance, but Nvidia is supposed to be a better bang for your buck. and finally, Do i really need the 2GB version of these cards?

Thanks in advance to anyone that can help as this does confuse the hell out of me, and I don't wanna spend this much cash on a pile of crap.

[Fetzie]

Get the i5 2500K. It is currently the best CPU on the market for gaming. That will save you about 100 dollars. For a gamer, there is zero difference in performance between an i7 and an i5. Hardly any games use Hyperthreading (the only thing that an I7 has which an i5 does not) and those that do will still be perfectly fine on the i5.

Motherboard: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-...68extreme3gen3 would be an alternative, it is widely considered the best bang-for-buck motherboard out there. The only thing it is missing is an internal USB3.0 connector, but the case you have chosen doesn't have an internal header (plug) for the front USB3.0 port anyway. It would save you another 60 bucks.

Change the motherboard and the CPU and you will have ~160 dollars to spend on an SSD, which will improve your boot times considerably, as well as the game loading times. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820148448 is the one that I would buy if it was my computer and my money.

As for the graphics cards, the 6950 should play any current game at 40+ FPS, and WoW at 60+ FPS on maximum/close to maximum settings. Whether you take it or the 560ti is really just a matter of preference in my opinion.


Don't forget that you need an operating system for the computer (Windows 7 Home Premium is 99 dollars at newegg), and you have not included an optical drive. Depending on how old the one in your current PC is you may not be able to use it (IDE drives cannot be plugged into a SATA port) and would therefore need to buy one (20 bucks).

[sono]

Get the i5 2500K. It is currently the best CPU on the market for gaming. That will save you about 100 dollars. For a gamer, there is zero difference in performance between an i7 and an i5. Hardly any games use Hyperthreading (the only thing that an I7 has which an i5 does not) and those that do will still be perfectly fine on the i5. Motherboard: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-...68extreme3gen3 would be an alternative, it is widely considered the best bang-for-buck motherboard out there. The only thing it is missing is an internal USB3.0 connector, but the case you have chosen doesn't have an internal header (plug) for the front USB3.0 port anyway. It would save you another 60 bucks. Change the motherboard and the CPU and you will have ~160 dollars to spend on an SSD, which will improve your boot times considerably, as well as the game loading times. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820148448 is the one that I would buy if it was my computer and my money. As for the graphics cards, the 6950 should play any current game at 40+ FPS, and WoW at 60+ FPS on maximum/close to maximum settings. Whether you take it or the 560ti is really just a matter of preference in my opinion. Don't forget that you need an operating system for the computer (Windows 7 Home Premium is 99 dollars at newegg), and you have not included an optical drive. Depending on how old the one in your current PC is you may not be able to use it (IDE drives cannot be plugged into a SATA port) and would therefore need to buy one (20 bucks).

get a hard drive and an SSD? and do you know if I'll need or want that 2gb on the card? I can save like 60 if i get the 1GB Nvidia card

[Fetzie]

The SSD is only 128 GB, I know I couldn't run my system on a drive that small.

Put the OS and a couple of often used programs/games on the SSD for lightning fast loading, and everything else on the hard drive.

I'd get the 2GB card simply because some games take a lot of VRAM (BF3 is a prime example). Kren can probably tell you how TERA manages system resources, I don't know about that game.

[sono]

The SSD is only 128 GB, I know I couldn't run my system on a drive that small. Put the OS and a couple of often used programs/games on the SSD for lightning fast loading, and everything else on the hard drive. I'd get the 2GB card simply because some games take a lot of VRAM (BF3 is a prime example). Kren can probably tell you how TERA manages system resources, I don't know about that game.

Should i get a smaller Hard drive then? not sure how the hell i'll ever fill up a TB. one of the reasons we passed up SSD was because of how big the hard drive is

[Fetzie]

SSDs are faster than normal HDDs. A typical SSD will read and write data 5-6x faster than a 7200 RPM hard disk. this means that for stuff that needs a lot of data being read at the same time (system booting, gaming, video rendering) an SSD will get you working and gaming much faster. A typical WoW loading screen with a normal HDD is 4-10 seconds, with an SSD you can expect it to be under 2 seconds all the time. the relatively small size of an SSD means that its usage as the sole data storage in a computer is, while doable, not really feasable.

When we go to LFR, my guildies with SSDs have counted the amount of players on each token and are already complaining about 18/20 players being on their token while I am stuck at 70% of the loading progress bar.

This is why you can use both an SSD and an HDD in your computer at the same time. Applications that benefit from the fast read and write operations can go on the SSD. Due to the current prices of Hard drives (they still haven't recovered from the flooding in thailand last summer) I wouldn't necessarily go for a 1 TB drive, perhaps a 300-500GB one that costs half the price.

[sono]

k I'll keep that in mind when I finally decide. what's the diffeence between the i5 2500k and the i7 2600k? I want to stream once i get this built

[sono]

here's my updated build http://pcpartpicker.com/p/5fXs deciding to wait on the SSD for now in case the i7 CPU is worth it depending on what you say

[Fetzie]

If you aren't going to do a lot of video rendering or graphics rendering, you don't need the i7.

The i7 has hyperthreading. Basically it has 4 virtual cores alongside the actual physical ones. Sounds good right? Trouble is, pretty much all the games on the market are not coded to use this technology and thus with respect to gaming the i5 and the i7 are identical in performance, with the i5 costing 100-120 dollars less. Those very few games that do support HT will run just as fine on the i5.

[sono]

If you aren't going to do a lot of video rendering or graphics rendering, you don't need the i7. The i7 has hyperthreading. Basically it has 4 virtual cores alongside the actual physical ones. Sounds good right? Trouble is, pretty much all the games on the market are not coded to use this technology and thus with respect to gaming the i5 and the i7 are identical in performance, with the i5 costing 100-120 dollars less. Those very few games that do support HT will run just as fine on the i5.

well because I'm soo ignorant when it comes ot comp tech how likely is it we'll see HT in the next year? I want to at elast halfway future proof this comp and I'd rather spend an extra 100 now then 300 in a year. so since I'm wanting to future proof would you recommend it

[Fetzie]

Long story short, don't plan on what things are like in a year's time. Get now what you know you need now. Nobody knows what games will be like in 1 year, 2 years, 3 years.

If I were to buy a computer tomorrow, it would have an i5 2500K. It is the best gaming CPU on the market.

[sono]

omg i love this guy thank you

[sono]

If you aren't going to do a lot of video rendering or graphics rendering, you don't need the i7.

The i7 has hyperthreading. Basically it has 4 virtual cores alongside the actual physical ones. Sounds good right? Trouble is, pretty much all the games on the market are not coded to use this technology and thus with respect to gaming the i5 and the i7 are identical in performance, with the i5 costing 100-120 dollars less. Those very few games that do support HT will run just as fine on the i5.

sorry last question just because I'm iffy on the CPU still. I get the i5 is the best for gaming ATM, do i really need the i7 for streaming too or will the i5 suffice? Once I get this comp and get some better shape and get my room the way I want it. I want to try and stream and hopefully make a lil extra money every month. I wanna stream at where it's visible in both reg and full screen like prob 720

[Fetzie]

As far as I know, you do not need hyperthreading for streaming.