First Time Build, Need Some Help!

[porkpork]

Hey guys I'm building my first computer and I need some help with compatibility so that I don't buy parts that can't be used together. Here's what I got so far:

- I Live in Canada and want to buy all my parts from here
- $2000 or less budget
- Trying to build a nice gaming comp that can be upgraded later if needed
- I plan to use my old optical drive and speakers (which aren't too old and should work fine)
- I wanna setup another graphics card along side this one in the future (when I get $$$)


Motherboard: Gigabyte G1.SNIPER2 ATX LGA1155 Z68
CPU: Intel Core i7 2600k
Graphics: Gigabyte Radeon HD 6970
Power: OCZ Elitexsteam 800W
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB DDR3-1600
HDD: Hitachi Deskstar 2TB 7200RPM
Case: Corsair Graphite Series 600TM Mid-Tower Case
Mouse/Keyboard: Logitech Cordless Desktop MX5500 Revolution


Will I need a different power supply since that one has 4x8pin connecters but no 6pin for my graphics card? Or can I get some sort of adapter? Are there any other things I need to switch or change?

[ilya]

As much as I love Gigabyte boards, the G1 series are a tad overpriced for what they are. Not to mention their UEFI is a little behind. I'd suggest an Asus Maximus Gene-Z as long as you don't mind the smaller board.

You won't need a 2600K for most games on the market. If you don't do anything thread intensive, save yourself $100 and get a 2500K.

That PSU is a terrible unit for the price and you won't find much love for OCZ PSU's here. At $145, (really $165 since OCZ MIR's suck) you could easily get a fully modular Gold unit of vastly higher quality. Seasonic X-760 or Corsair AX-750 comes to mind, (both are the same unit) though there are other good choices too.

If you plan on any kind of competitive gaming, you might want to drop the wireless mouse/keyboard.

EDIT: might want to get an SSD for caching on the Z68 chipset and reuse an old hard drive, with the floods in Thailand it doesn't seem like prices are going to get any better.

[porkpork]

Awesome man, I'm lovin these suggestions, saving me some good money too. Alright so this is what I got so far:

Mobo: ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z Z68
CPU: i5 2500k
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 6970
PSU: Corsair TX750
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB DDR3-1600
HDD: Hitachi Deskstar 2TB 7200RPM
Case: Corsair Graphite Series 600TM Mid-Tower Case

I'll use my old mouse and keyboard and buy a nice wired set later. Anyone have a better idea for a computer case than that, or is that fine?

Oh and what do I need an SSD for exactly? To install windows on or some demanding apps/games for faster boot and read/write? And does it install internally in a drive bay like an HDD or is it PCIe?

Thanks for all your help!

[EDIT]: OIC, the SSD goes in a 2.5in drive bay, but I still dont quite understand the need for one O.o?

[ilya]

For the case, you can't go wrong with Corsair, despite the fact that they carry a bit of a price premium. For a first time builder that can afford a Corsair case, there isn't really anything else I would recommend. (unless you really want to cut your costs down)

SSD's are essentially hard drives with no moving parts. They're infinitely faster and come in both SATA and PCI-E formats. (the latter being way out of your budget) Price per GB is higher and they have a limited number of writes. I suggested one because your motherboard has a Z68 chipset which can take advantage of Intel SRT, which is essentially software that allows your hard drive to use the SSD as a giant cache. Which basically makes everything you use often a whole lot faster. With current HDD prices skyrocketing due to floods in Thailand, it doesn't make much sense to me personally to buy a new HDD if you have any old ones you can reuse/salvage. For half the price you can get a 64GB SSD and use it for caching. Speed of your old drive won't be a huge issue either and you don't have to worry about any SSD tweaks to prolong the lifespan.

AKG wrote a little buyer's guide on SSD's, it's a little dated but it'll give you the general idea: So you wanna buy a SSD? Read this first.

[dandelioneater]

If you think you might get a second 6970 later on or any second card for that matter, it might even be worthwhile to bump that PSU up to the AX850 It will give you a little extra headroom, and you will be running your psu at 50% load, its most efficient level.

[Bl4ck_rainbow]

Cooler Master Haf 932 Advanced Full Tower EATX Case 7X5.25 2X3.5 5X3.5INT USB3.0 eSATA 1394 Black - DirectCanada

i would go with this case because its only 10$ more BUT the major diffrence is thats its a full tower

so you wont EVER need to worry about parts dimensions
HAF 932 - Cooler Master
it DOES support micro-ATX mobo as seen on manufacturer website
+ some more features your other mobo didnt had :D

only thing you need to check is for the actual dimension on the case :P

enjoy
-BR-

[porkpork]

Hmmm okay okay, after all the info here's what I've got:

Mobo: ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z Z68
CPU: i5 2500k
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 6970
PSU: Corsair AX850
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 2x4G 1600
Case: Corsair Graphite Series 600TM Mid-Tower Case
SSD: Corsair Force Series GT 60GB Sandforce

- I'll use my old HDD as was suggested
- And as for the other case, its sexy but has 9 built-in fans and I fear it will sound like a mini tornado =\ (I actually doubt I have that many fan connectors to think of it)

Think that should be good?

[Pabz0r545]

Looks good. You do know the Gene-Z is an mATX form factor, and you will only have space for 2 dual slot video cards and nothing else right?.... incase you wanted a sound card or some other device.

I have a gene-z sitting in my closet waiting to be used. Not tryin to scare you away from the board just wanted to let you know

[porkpork]

Originally Posted by Pabz0r545

Looks good. You do know the Gene-Z is an mATX form factor, and you will only have space for 2 dual slot video cards and nothing else right?.... incase you wanted a sound card or some other device.

I have a gene-z sitting in my closet waiting to be used. Not tryin to scare you away from the board just wanted to let you know

Yeah thats a good point. Hmm, I might have to get an ATX mobo then, and not a micro...yeeeaahh

[keto]

The 600 case is great to work with, very roomy (note: I did remove the middle HD cage, and moved the bottom one closer to the PSU - there's a mounting point for it there, but you have to remove the front fascia to get at the cage screws in its original position - bottom pic shows it from the back with the front fascia (on the left) removed temporarily), and has great ventilation potential. I did replace the top 200mm fan with 2x120 but might go back, it is rather loud that way :P