Building my first gaming PC

[ASTROCREEP]

UPDATED

This will be my first computer build and from the videos I've watched it is now easier to build your own than ever before. What I'm looking for is a mid to high level 1080 build. I'm not into overclocking or pushing the hardware too much. I just want a easy slap together rig that I can expand on if needed.
Here's what i'm looking at.

intel i5 4570 I have heard talked about it being Haswell (whatever that means) and it's good for gaming since most games are GPU dependent.(graphics card)

I'm not sure if I should get a Z87 or H87 motherboard. I'm not sure what the differences are other than the Z cards are more for overclocking. Overclocking....sounds like something you do with a rooster that is illegal in 16 states.
Anyway, I'm looking at the Asus line of cards because I like there easy to setup bios and have everything I need....I think. But and it's a big BUTT, they have so many cards that to me seem to do the same thing and the prices can double and the specs seem pretty much the same. They come in different sizes too. It's hard to know what will fit with each different card type.

For graphics I'm looking at the EVGA GTX760 supercharged or overclocked. I hate these terms they use. If it's supercharged does it have an inter-cooler and blow off valve? The reviews on this card are positive for 1080 gaming but not that good for when you go into the higher resolutions. Fine by me.

Memory I'm looking at 8GB 1833 or 1600 2x 4GB cards. I'm not sure what the performance advantage is to buying an 1833 then clocking it down to 1600 but I heard somewhere it makes it last longer.

As for the case I'm looking for something on the smaller size. Is Cool Master a good brand? I like the simplistic design. I don't need any of LED's or it looking like a transformer. If I get a Cool Master case I'll also get the same brand power unit. In the 500-600w range.

So what do you guys think? Should I go for building it myself?

[CropDuster]

CPU, the non K intels are what you want if you don't plan to overclock, and you can go with the H87 mobos in that case as well. However, overclocking nowadays is easy as pie, as it's just a matter of raising the multiplier on the K CPUs. The AMD FX 8350 is about on par with the i5s, but is a little slower in single threaded apps and a little faster in multi, and should be cheaper for it and a mobo for it.

GPU: the 760 will be fine at 1080, but will suffer if you start throwing AA at it and will have little future proofing. WHat games do you play?

RAM: don't waste your money on higher frequency RAM. 1600mhz is fine. Put the money saved towards a good SSD instead.

PSU: I recommend Seasonic. A 500W should be more than enough for a mid range GPU and CPU that aren't OC'd.


My rig for reference
Asus Sabertooth X58
Intel Xeon X5650 @ 3.8GHz
XFX Radeon R9 290 Double Dissipation
3x2GB Adata 1600MHz RAM
120Gb Samsung 830 SSD
1Tb Western Digital Caviar Black HDD
Seasonic X 650W PSU

[ASTROCREEP]

CPU, the non K intels are what you want if you don't plan to overclock, and you can go with the H87 mobos in that case as well. However, overclocking nowadays is easy as pie, as it's just a matter of raising the multiplier on the K CPUs. The AMD FX 8350 is about on par with the i5s, but is a little slower in single threaded apps and a little faster in multi, and should be cheaper for it and a mobo for it.

GPU: the 760 will be fine at 1080, but will suffer if you start throwing AA at it and will have little future proofing. WHat games do you play?

RAM: don't waste your money on higher frequency RAM. 1600mhz is fine. Put the money saved towards a good SSD instead.

PSU: I recommend Seasonic. A 500W should be more than enough for a mid range GPU and CPU that aren't OC'd.


My rig for reference
Asus Sabertooth X58
Intel Xeon X5650 @ 3.8GHz
XFX Radeon R9 290 Double Dissipation
3x2GB Adata 1600MHz RAM
120Gb Samsung 830 SSD
1Tb Western Digital Caviar Black HDD
Seasonic X 650W PSU

Derp questions;

Where is this K? All the ads I see have it listed as i5 4570. How can I tell if this is a K or not?

How much real world performance gain is there by overclocking? Seems like a can of worms that a Newb derp like me should not be opening. Even though they have motherboards with one button overclocking. If it's so easy, why not make the overclock speed the standard speed?

What's a Mobo?

How can I tell if I have a single thread or multi thread apps?

Games I want to play:
War Thunder
iracing
Steam games

What is AA?

I agree on the SSD. I didn't mention it because I thought this is the new standard now. I don't want to even put an mechanical in there. I don't need much storage and if I do. I have 6 sata ports on all of the motherboards I have seen.

What kinda coin are you looking to spend?

Where can you buy from? Newegg/Amazon?

I'm looking to spend around 1,000 USD.

Newegg and Amazon are a no go for me. I live in Taiwan so I will be buying from brick and mortar stores. They do have E malls that supposadly have the good deals. Of course I cross check prices with Amazon and Newegg to make sure they are close. Turns out Electronics here are about 10% more than in the US.

[ASTROCREEP]

ok, I got the part number wrong on the CPU, it's i5 4670 3.4 ghz 1150 Local price $225 USD Newegg $219 USD

Since i'm not very interested in overclocking here's the Mobo ( I figured that one out)
Asus H87 Pro Local price $100 USD Newegg $87 USD

Keep in mind local prices are at a store. No shipping and no tax. Well, there is tax but not charged at the store. It's the value added tax scheme.

Now this H87 pro is a ATX mobo so I would need a full size case right?

[carlton_fritz]

The only thing I will mention is getting a case that is big enough with enough fan slots so you can keep it cool. Get one that will allow another 120mm fan. I recommend Noctua fans.

[ASTROCREEP]

The only thing I will mention is getting a case that is big enough with enough fan slots so you can keep it cool. Get one that will allow another 120mm fan. I recommend Noctua fans.

I'm liking this one.
Cooler Master: N200 (http://www.coolermaster.com/case/mini-tower/n200/)

Simple style with plenty of cooling.

[CropDuster]

Derp questions;

Where is this K? All the ads I see have it listed as i5 4570. How can I tell if this is a K or not?

How much real world performance gain is there by overclocking? Seems like a can of worms that a Newb derp like me should not be opening. Even though they have motherboards with one button overclocking. If it's so easy, why not make the overclock speed the standard speed?

What's a Mobo?

How can I tell if I have a single thread or multi thread apps?

Games I want to play:
War Thunder
iracing
Steam games

What is AA?



The K series CPUs would be listed like i5 4670K. Intel just started doing the K series with the second generation iX processors. Previously CPUs were overclocked by raising the BCLK in BIOS and finding other compatible settings. It is mostly market segmentation on Intel's part. Some of the virtualization instruction sets are disabled on the K series for example. The Xeon E3-1230 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116906) is essentially an i7 4770 with the integrated GPU disabled, but if you're going with a real GPU it wouldn't matter.

Mobo = motherboard

Google the games you play. Battlefield 4 and Crysis 3 I think are two of the current games that take advantage of multi core CPUs. But I expect this to become more common soon.

AA = Anti Aliasing. Makes edges of models look smoother, at the expense of more GPU power and associated VRAM.

[ASTROCREEP]

This is interesting. The Xeon chip here is only about $30 usd more than the i5. I think it might be the best of both worlds for me because I will be running a separate GPU.

Now the question will the H87 motherboard work with the Xeon chip and I read this from Asus tech suport.
ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- CPU Support H87-PRO Xeon E3-1230 V3 (3.3GHz, 4C, HT, L3:8M, 80W, rev.C0) (http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/detail.aspx?SLanguage=en&p=1&m=H87-PRO&cpu=Xeon%20E3-1230%20V3%20(3.3GHz,%204C,%20HT,%20L3:8M,%2080W,%20rev.C0)&pcb=ALL&sincebios=0903&memo=*Intel%20Xeon%20Processor%20Family%20is%20designed%20for%20servers.%20Some%20features%20may%20not%20support%20when%20installed%20on%208%20series%20chipsets.%20For%20more%20details,%20refer%20to%20ASUS%20support%20site%20at%20http://support.asus.com.)
*Intel Xeon Processor Family is designed for servers. Some features may not support when installed on 8 series chipsets. For more details, refer to ASUS support site at http://support.asus.com.

My questions are what features may it not support? I couldn't find it on their site.

Newegg is recommending server motherboards for this chip too.

Now i'm not so sure about this chip. It sounds good but it might be buggy since I would be using it for something else than it is designed for.

[NeedSpeed]

Intel Core i5-4670K Processor, MSI Z87-G41 PC MATE Intel Z87 Motherboard, Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB Desktop Memory, Ultra 550W PSU, ULTRA Etorque Mid-Tower ATX Gaming Case w/ USB 3.0 Port Bundle at TigerDirect.com (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=8595228&Sku=B69-1766)

Or, I was lazy. You can customize from their starting point and they'll build it for you:

Magic MICRO (http://www.googlebb.magicmicro.com/pricelist.asp?cid=88)

[Cybercowboy]

I like lots of big fans (never any small fans) and then run them at like half-speed. Make sure your motherboard has plenty of speed-control fan power plugs. Most do. My case has 7 120 mm fans and is so quiet you can barely hear it.

[CropDuster]

This is interesting. The Xeon chip here is only about $30 usd more than the i5. I think it might be the best of both worlds for me because I will be running a separate GPU.

Now the question will the H87 motherboard work with the Xeon chip and I read this from Asus tech suport.
ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- CPU Support H87-PRO Xeon E3-1230 V3 (3.3GHz, 4C, HT, L3:8M, 80W, rev.C0) (http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/detail.aspx?SLanguage=en&p=1&m=H87-PRO&cpu=Xeon%20E3-1230%20V3%20(3.3GHz,%204C,%20HT,%20L3:8M,%2080W,%20rev.C0)&pcb=ALL&sincebios=0903&memo=*Intel%20Xeon%20Processor%20Family%20is%20designed%20for%20servers.%20Some%20features%20may%20not%20support%20when%20installed%20on%208%20series%20chipsets.%20For%20more%20details,%20refer%20to%20ASUS%20support%20site%20at%20http://support.asus.com.)
*Intel Xeon Processor Family is designed for servers. Some features may not support when installed on 8 series chipsets. For more details, refer to ASUS support site at http://support.asus.com.

My questions are what features may it not support? I couldn't find it on their site.

Newegg is recommending server motherboards for this chip too.

Now i'm not so sure about this chip. It sounds good but it might be buggy since I would be using it for something else than it is designed for.

That board should work fine. I originally had an i7 950 and replaced it with the X5650 back in February and it was simple plug and play. The Xeon should run a bit cooler than the i7 too.

[carlton_fritz]

I'm liking this one.
Cooler Master: N200 (http://www.coolermaster.com/case/mini-tower/n200/)

Simple style with plenty of cooling.
Looks interesting. I just hate small cases. My hands are too big to be installing parts in a small case.

[ASTROCREEP]

I like lots of big fans (never any small fans) and then run them at like half-speed. Make sure your motherboard has plenty of speed-control fan power plugs. Most do. My case has 7 120 mm fans and is so quiet you can barely hear it.

The board I'm looking at has this fan control app which should work ok.
1 x CPU Fan connector(s) (1 x 4 -pin)
3 x Chassis Fan connector(s) (3 x 4 -pin)


Fan Xpert 2
Comprehensive controls for the perfect cool and quiet balance
Seeing an opportunity for more fine-tuned control, hardware-level ASUS Fan Xpert 2 featuring Fan Auto Tuning, providing an tailored fan speed setting for each fan with the exclusive, automatic fan speed detection to achieve the best balance of cooling performance and low noise. It even provides a "RPM Fixed Mode" for users who wish to reduce noise levels to near 0dB with a specific fan speed control.


I'm also looking at a sealed liquid cooler for the CPU.

[ASTROCREEP]

Intel Core i5-4670K Processor, MSI Z87-G41 PC MATE Intel Z87 Motherboard, Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB Desktop Memory, Ultra 550W PSU, ULTRA Etorque Mid-Tower ATX Gaming Case w/ USB 3.0 Port Bundle at TigerDirect.com (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=8595228&Sku=B69-1766)

Or, I was lazy. You can customize from their starting point and they'll build it for you:

Magic MICRO (http://www.googlebb.magicmicro.com/pricelist.asp?cid=88)

Importing electronics into Taiwan is a hassle. I would have to pay custom fees.

[NeedSpeed]

Importing electronics into Taiwan is a hassle. I would have to pay custom fees.

Oh, that changes things a little http://bannedcampforum.org/Images/Emoticons/lol.gif

[ASTROCREEP]

Ok, I have finished the gaming rig.
mobo: Asus H87me
CPU:Intel Xeon E3-1230 v3
GPU: MSI GTX770 gaming
Ram: 8g 4x2 kingston green
HD: Intel 530 SSD 120GB
PSU: Cooler master v650
Case: Xigmatek Aquila microATX with big ass fan!
Oh and a Pioneer DVD RW drive. I needed it since they didn't have Windows 7 pro on a thumb drive. Good thing I put it in. My wife had me rip a couple of baby book cd's already.

So far it's running very well and damn near silent. I think it looks good too.
There's plenty of space to add more SSD's or HDD's.

I'm hoping for a long trouble free life with this rig.

Thanks for the ideas guys!:cert:

http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/rr299/astrocreep13/20140424_180708_zps2ca2f815.jpg
http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/rr299/astrocreep13/20140424_180812_zpsf7720b14.jpg
http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/rr299/astrocreep13/20140424_180836_zps1169c6c0.jpg

[Cybercowboy]

That's a funky case. I like it.

[jaxgator]

That's a funky case. I like it.

:iagree: I've never seen one where the mobo lays flat like that.

[CropDuster]

Glad you got it sorted. That is a cool case, will have to look into those in the future.

[carlton_fritz]

You don't need more HD space than 120Gig?

[ASTROCREEP]

You don't need more HD space than 120Gig?

I do need more space but not right now. The 120 GB SSD is mainly for the operating system and games I play most. I'll add either HDD or more SSD when needed. It's literally a plug and play type of hook up.

I'm am now spoiled by the speed of SSD's I don't think i'll go back. It boots up in seconds, game load screens are very short. For instance in War Thunder I'm usually the first one on the map.