First timer

[John_D]

Heyo everyone.
Today is my birthday, so I thought a fun little project would be to be building my first computer. I am aiming toward more of a gaming computer. Let me know if I am missing anything or need to change something. Would also be great if I could reduce the price a little bit as well. I am very close to if not over my budget.

Case:Cooler Master HAF 912 Mid Tower ATX Case (http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Tower-Case-RC-912-KKN1/dp/B003ZM7YTA/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=INSSYJ62CJO3O)
PSU:OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W Modular High Performance Power Supply (http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-ModXStream-Modular-Performance-compatible/dp/B001IZ7MHU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I12VRJN941GF7K)
Motherboard:GIGABYTE GA-990FXA-UD3 (http://www.amazon.com/GIGABYTE-GA-990FXA-UD3-990FX-SATA-Motherboard/dp/B0055QYKQO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I5MVGMISVUSXV)
CPU:AMD FX-8120 8-Core Black Edition (http://www.amazon.com/AMD-FX-8120-8-Core-Edition-Processor/dp/B005UBNKZG/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pdT1_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I4EY2HZR4LNG3)
RAM:Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 (http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-240-Pin-Platforms-CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9/dp/B004CRSM4I/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I27ADN4YAZYP51) OR Corsair XMS3 16GB (4x 4GB) PC3-10666 1333MHz DDR3 (http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-PC3-10666-1333MHz-Processors-CMX16GX3M4A1333C9/dp/B0054KPK9C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I1K14RCWHHFP2TPC3-10666)
Graphics card:XFX AMD Radeon HD 6950 (http://www.amazon.com/XFX-Radeon-MiniDP-PCI-E-HD695XCNFC/dp/B004ULZ7YY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I2SH4TDRXFPSNW)
Sound card: Now here's an issue. With these parts, I was mainly following a basic guide as to what goes together. The guide neglected to mention a Sound Card. If anybody can recommend a low(ish) price card that's good quality (or at least won't regret buying) it would be much appreciated.
Hard Drive(s):Western Digital Caviar Green 750 GB SATA III (http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Intellipower-3-5-Inch-Internal/dp/B0053YKN0K/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I5HIYZG99ZT7E)
Optical Drive(s):Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive (http://www.amazon.com/Asus-24xDVD-RW-Serial-Internal-DRW-24B1ST/dp/B0033Z2BAQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I2D4FQKX2WYCPI)

Monitor:Asus VH236H 23-Inch 1080P (http://www.amazon.com/Asus-VH236H-23-Inch-Integrated-Speakers/dp/B002453K5G/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I3HLVS21C2F1C8)
Speakers:The aforementioned monitor has speakers built in. If they are utter crap, I have some other speakers lying around to use.

Operating System:Windows 7 Home Premium

[RickyTick]

It's hard to tell, but it looks like that video card is $475 (new) from Amazon. If that's right, then you need to shop around for a better deal. Try looking at a Radeon HD 7950 or maybe a 7850.

The hard drive is the Green version, which means it spins at 5400 rpm. This is not a good choice for a primary hard drive. Look at either the Black or Blue drives from Western Digital. They both spin at 7200 rpm.

Otherwise, you build looks good.

[John_D]

It's hard to tell, but it looks like that video card is $475 (new) from Amazon. If that's right, then you need to shop around for a better deal. Try looking at a Radeon HD 7950 or maybe a 7850.

I think the issue is that it isn't from Amazon. I did a little research on it, apparently it is an older version of this (http://www.jr.com/xfx/pe/XFX_HD695XCDFC/).


The hard drive is the Green version, which means it spins at 5400 rpm. This is not a good choice for a primary hard drive. Look at either the Black or Blue drives from Western Digital. They both spin at 7200 rpm.

Otherwise, you build looks good.

I think the newbie mistake there was assuming "Green" meant environmentally sound. This one look good? (http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Caviar-Cache-Desktop/dp/B00461LT6S/ref=reg_hu-rd_add_1_dp)

[RickyTick]

Looking good. :)

[John_D]

Hopefully my last post for a little while. Updated a little bit.
Found a few issues with the motherboard in the reviews. Thusly chose a new motherboard (http://www.amazon.com/Intel-Desktop-Generation-Processors-BOXDP67BGB3/dp/B004PQBT8C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I3LFLY9K00Y6EI), accompanied with a new processor (http://www.amazon.com/Intel-i5-3450-Quad-Core-Processor-Cache/dp/B007SZ0ECE/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I1IU1B0E45GWBL).

Also chose a new GPU (http://www.amazon.com/HD7850-DC2-2GD5-DisplayPort-Utilities-PCI-Express-Graphics/dp/B007JLFV7U/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I3CRF0UQX91TEM) and PSU (http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-800-Watt-Certified-Compatible-Platforms/dp/B004H1XXGQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=108JNKNSSZXK1&coliid=I2QBWUNY6T751M) to accompany.

[RickyTick]

Even better. Game on!