Jennifer G.
09-10-2011, 09:30 AM
Now that computer parts on my nearly 8 year old rig (seems like it's longer than that!) are starting to go up, I'm putting together a new rig. First, my personal criteria:
- My budget is typically $2000-$3000, although I could go higher *if needed*.
- The specs on this rig were taken from another site on building a "super pc" (basic, economic, high end) and then scaled back on parts I didn't really need (like a $170 gaming keyboard!)
- The goal of the build is to buy high end parts for longevity, and upgradability.
- The type of gaming I play are RPGs (Elder Scrolls), strategy and simulations. Although, I might play a game like Starcraft. I'm not into FPS, so I don't need to overclock or see every polygon/pixel.
- I'm not looking to overclock (water cooling), which sounds dangerous in of itself.
- My room is a former attic, meaning it gets hot, and I have sloping roofs, so large 27" monitors won't fit nicely, unless I rearrange the room. (basement's not an option - too messy, and more than enough crickets that could use the PC as their 'nest' in the winter!)
- I'm not interested in fancy looking cases with LEDs all over the place. A nice, simple case would do.
- I'm going for a higher end video card since the last two I had were outdated pretty quickly.
- Also, I'm going for 12 Gigs of RAM this time partially because I don't trust Windows 7 and memory. The other reason is I have older games that may or may not work on Windows 7, but I could play them in XP Mode (requiring more RAM).
I have a few questions on my build -
1. Are these parts compatible with each other/interfere with each other (i.e., CPU fan being too bulky and covers a slot)?
2. I'm undecided on the CPU cooler and case. Any recommendations? I'm looking at the Cooler Master cases, but I also like Antec, which happens to be the case I used on my first major build back in the 90s. I want a case that looks clean and simple (I don't care for cases that look like it's a spaceship).
3. Are there any motherboard slots (PCIe, etc.) that are being phased out/newer standards? My old computer has 5 PCI and 1 AGP slot (which is obviously outdated now).
4. Any other recommendations to add/change?
Motherboard ASUS LGA 1155 SATA 6Gbps USB 3.0 (Z68) ($195)
CPU Intel Core i7-2600K ($315)
CPU Cooler Noctua NH-C14 Heatsink ($85)
RAM Corsair Vengeance 12 GB ( 3 x 4 GB ) ($80)
Video Card EVGA GeForce GTX 580 ($460)
Sound Card Creative Labs SoundBlaster X-FI Titanium ($140)
Hard Drive Western Digital Caviar Black 1 TB SATA III ($80)
Optical Drive Lite-On 12X Internal Blu-Ray Writer ($150)
Case Cooler Master CM690 II Advanced Midtower ($90)
Power Supply Corsair Gaming Series GS800 800W ($125)
Keyboard Microsoft JWD-00046
Black USB Wired ($17)
Mouse Logitech B100 Wired Optical Mouse ($12)
Speakers Logitech S220 2.1 Speaker System w/Subwoofer ($30)
Monitor ASUS 23.6" Widescreen ($180)
Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64BIT ($140)
CPU Cooler Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme Rev. C (?) ($65)
ALT1: Noctua NH-C14 Heatsink ($85)
ALT2: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 ($30)
Case Cooler Master HAF 932 Full Tower Black Case ($140)
ALT1: Cooler Master CM690 II Advanced Midtower ($90)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216
COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced Black Steel ATX Mid Tower
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1173/3/
ALT2: Cooler Master Centurion 5 II
ALT3: Antec 900 ($120)
APC Back-UPS ES 8 Outlet 550VA 120V ($60)
Western Digital 2 TB External Hard Drive (for backups) ($90)
- My budget is typically $2000-$3000, although I could go higher *if needed*.
- The specs on this rig were taken from another site on building a "super pc" (basic, economic, high end) and then scaled back on parts I didn't really need (like a $170 gaming keyboard!)
- The goal of the build is to buy high end parts for longevity, and upgradability.
- The type of gaming I play are RPGs (Elder Scrolls), strategy and simulations. Although, I might play a game like Starcraft. I'm not into FPS, so I don't need to overclock or see every polygon/pixel.
- I'm not looking to overclock (water cooling), which sounds dangerous in of itself.
- My room is a former attic, meaning it gets hot, and I have sloping roofs, so large 27" monitors won't fit nicely, unless I rearrange the room. (basement's not an option - too messy, and more than enough crickets that could use the PC as their 'nest' in the winter!)
- I'm not interested in fancy looking cases with LEDs all over the place. A nice, simple case would do.
- I'm going for a higher end video card since the last two I had were outdated pretty quickly.
- Also, I'm going for 12 Gigs of RAM this time partially because I don't trust Windows 7 and memory. The other reason is I have older games that may or may not work on Windows 7, but I could play them in XP Mode (requiring more RAM).
I have a few questions on my build -
1. Are these parts compatible with each other/interfere with each other (i.e., CPU fan being too bulky and covers a slot)?
2. I'm undecided on the CPU cooler and case. Any recommendations? I'm looking at the Cooler Master cases, but I also like Antec, which happens to be the case I used on my first major build back in the 90s. I want a case that looks clean and simple (I don't care for cases that look like it's a spaceship).
3. Are there any motherboard slots (PCIe, etc.) that are being phased out/newer standards? My old computer has 5 PCI and 1 AGP slot (which is obviously outdated now).
4. Any other recommendations to add/change?
Motherboard ASUS LGA 1155 SATA 6Gbps USB 3.0 (Z68) ($195)
CPU Intel Core i7-2600K ($315)
CPU Cooler Noctua NH-C14 Heatsink ($85)
RAM Corsair Vengeance 12 GB ( 3 x 4 GB ) ($80)
Video Card EVGA GeForce GTX 580 ($460)
Sound Card Creative Labs SoundBlaster X-FI Titanium ($140)
Hard Drive Western Digital Caviar Black 1 TB SATA III ($80)
Optical Drive Lite-On 12X Internal Blu-Ray Writer ($150)
Case Cooler Master CM690 II Advanced Midtower ($90)
Power Supply Corsair Gaming Series GS800 800W ($125)
Keyboard Microsoft JWD-00046
Black USB Wired ($17)
Mouse Logitech B100 Wired Optical Mouse ($12)
Speakers Logitech S220 2.1 Speaker System w/Subwoofer ($30)
Monitor ASUS 23.6" Widescreen ($180)
Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64BIT ($140)
CPU Cooler Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme Rev. C (?) ($65)
ALT1: Noctua NH-C14 Heatsink ($85)
ALT2: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 ($30)
Case Cooler Master HAF 932 Full Tower Black Case ($140)
ALT1: Cooler Master CM690 II Advanced Midtower ($90)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216
COOLER MASTER RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced Black Steel ATX Mid Tower
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1173/3/
ALT2: Cooler Master Centurion 5 II
ALT3: Antec 900 ($120)
APC Back-UPS ES 8 Outlet 550VA 120V ($60)
Western Digital 2 TB External Hard Drive (for backups) ($90)