Tomnevers said:
Basic Desktop Questions:
Your Current Specs: My last gaming rig essentially died two years ago and this is a brand new replacement.
Budget: $1500 US approximately, with some flexibility. Also I'm hoping to find a case with clean lines (I don't like glowing lights or windows!). I would also like to buy a pretty massive hard drive, thinking 3TB or more (or at least a 2TB with the option to add a 2nd HDD).
Main Use: heavy gaming, photo / video editing, storage of tons of photos, general web browsing, and Word / XL etc.
Monitor Resolution: I need to buy a new monitor. Looking for something at least 24"; am also considering buying a larger monitor that can also be used as a TV / Xbox screen in addition to the PC.
List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Battlefield 3, SWTOR, Diablo III, you get the idea!!
Are reusing any parts?: Nope, I'm building from scratch!
When will you build?: Hoping to have the build ready at the end of October.
Will you be overclocking?: Probably not.
This has been a super helpful thread and I look forward to hearing some specific responses!
Bulldozer should be out by the time you build, so this is kind of a brainstorming build rather than actually picking parts out. That and prices at the time + combos will make a difference for specific parts.
Check out the $1000 build in the OP and start from there.
Upgrade RAM to 8GB (should be about the same price due to price changes).
Get a similar Z68 instead of the P67, that will benefit you with video encoding.
If you do a LOT of editing, a 2600 will be better than the 2500 due to hyperthreading, but it's a $100 upgrade for that alone and it won't benefit you for normal usage and gaming.
If you're not going SLI/CF you could drop to a 650W PSU instead.
Then with what's left pick a case, the ones in the OP are good choices. Can't really go wrong with anything in the $70+ categories, just pick the one that has the best combination of features and looks to you.
You will probably have enough left over for a SSD, but I don't know enough about those to recommend anything specifically. Or alternatively you could upgrade the GPU, not sure when the 7000 series is launching but for now the only upgrade would be the 580, outside of SLI/CF.
You won't need a k CPU if you're not overclocking, but since you will want a board capable of OCing anyway, it might be nice to get one just to have that option. And with your budget, you might as well get an aftermarket cooler even if you stay at stock speeds, it will be quieter if nothing else.
