Skrub (Me) + Computer Building = Help please

[Polo]

Ok, let me put this out there, I know how to use a screwdriver and screws. Now that that is out of the way, I am a complete and utter newbie to building a computer from scratch and want to start learning.

 

Objectives to complete in this thread:

Obtain a good source/website for help to newbie comp building (<CURRENT PRIORITY)

Listen/Obatin to good ideas for a gaming PC part wise/build wise

 

BUDGET: Under 1k (preferably ~800 USD)

 

The only reason I want to BUILD a PC is for

A: Entertainment

B: Knowledge

C: Good FPS

 

Lit my here ur knewlege

 

 

PS : Don't turn this into a "Yea, but the 14362kATXrapidfirethingofgoodnessgraficzcard is better performance wise over the 36YYU"

[Liddojunior]

I dont know off a specific site. I learned from friends and family and this big ass textbook. 

 

Newegg will be the pace to get your parts and so will frys. 

 

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k1LE - This build will work out nicely. Assuming you have speakers, monitor, keyboard, mouse, and OS. 

[Christley </3 Peelz]

I dont know off a specific site. I learned from friends and family and this big ass textbook. 

 

Newegg will be the pace to get your parts and so will frys. 

 

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k1LE - This build will work out nicely. Assuming you have speakers, monitor, keyboard, mouse, and OS. 

idk why you would go for a 750w power supply, he's not running tripple sli.

this computer will run just as good as your computer but 250$ cheaper: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k5Y1

[There]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k7lF

 

This has good quality parts. If the price is too high, you don't have to buy the SSD (Samsung 840), but it will make it a lot faster!

[There]

idk why you would go for a 750w power supply, he's not running tripple sli.

this computer will run just as good as your computer but 250$ cheaper: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k5Y1

Why get the K processor with a B75 motherboard? You could make it slightly cheaper by going down to a 3570.

[Christley </3 Peelz]

Why get the K processor with a B75 motherboard? You could make it slightly cheaper by going down to a 3570.

you save 10$, and if he wants to learn, overclocking is something he probably will do at some time. and k processors overclock so much better. then that 10$ isnt much

[There]

you save 10$, and if he wants to learn, overclocking is something he probably will do at some time. and k processors overclock so much better. then that 10$ isnt much

You save $5 with the non K version, and you cannot overclock on the B75 chipset. Overclocking is only for Z75 and Z77.

 

Oh, and to answer your question about a site for newbie comp building, go to pcpartpicker.com and look at what other people have built, and then look at the feedback people give them. You'll learn quickly.

[Christley </3 Peelz]

You save $5 with the non K version, and you cannot overclock on the B75 chipset. Overclocking is only for Z75 and Z77.

 

Oh, and to answer your question about a site for newbie comp building, go to pcpartpicker.com and look at what other people have built, and then look at the feedback people give them. You'll learn quickly.

but to keep under 800$ i had to take that motherboard. and i know you cant overclock on it. but i hardly doubt he will keep it like that forever, but that processor works for several years to the future.

[There]

but to keep under 800$ i had to take that motherboard. and i know you cant overclock on it. but i hardly doubt he will keep it like that forever, but that processor works for several years to the future.

I guess so.

I think he would rather spend a little bit more now than have to spend $120 or $130 on an Z77 in the future. Not to mention how they may be discontinued.

[Pyrocide]

Some tutorials on building a PC.

http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/04/30/how-to-build-a-gaming-pc/

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/step--step_guide_how_build_gaming_pc_amds_bulldozer_cpu

 

This is a guide I wrote a LONG time ago. Some information may not be accurate but the base underlying information is still viable in helping with hardware.

 

 

Guide to Building/Upgrading your Custom Gaming PC

Reason behind this guide.

I have noticed a lot of “rebuilding my PC, upgrading my PC, building a custom PC†threads and they almost all the same sentence, what works for this game? A lot of games theses days work with lower end hardware than what is currently “top shelf†hardware. Crysis for instance, one of the more graphically amazing games out right now, and Age of Conan, are graphics hoggin’ gold diggers. This quote is relating to the CryEngine 2 from Roy Taylor, Vice President of Content Relations at NVIDIA, “…[Crysis] has over a million lines of code, 1 GB of texture data, and 85,000 shaders.â€

I have played both of these games on high specs with my system (located in my sig). My review on them is that I could have overclocked SLI GTX 295s and a quad core 4.0GHz overclocked i7 and still have some video issues on Crysis. I have played AoC on FIOS internet connection and with my current system it ran flawlessly but still could use an upgrade in hardware to make it even more beautiful. 
This thread is not going to make a monster $6k machine. Its purpose is to give information about what needs to be taken into account for building a gaming machine. Being who I am, I have biased opinions of certain manufacturer’s of hardware for instance I despise all things made by Creative Labs, because of how they treat their customers like a endless bag of money. But I am only going to write about things I personally have experience with, not with what Newegg or Amazon reviews type. 

Step 1: What is right for you?

What is this machine going to be for? You have to answer this yourself because no one else will be able to know what you want it for including odd jobs or what not. You have to know if you are going to make it a media burning center plus being a quality gaming rig etc. 
There are, IMO, different levels of gaming rigs, performance, quality and a combo of both. Do you want to have the BEST graphics possible but limiting your performance possibly? Or do u really not care that much about eye candy and just love playing the game, or again a combo of both?
This next question has come up often, but never really answered more times than not. What OS? Untouched, modified, activated, SP1-2-3 etc all of these DO NOT matter. What matters is the version of the OS and the processor support, x86 (32-bit OS) and x64 (64-bit OS). The rest of it you can determine on your own with research and the search function. Most people run Windows, and a lot more run XP over Vista/7-Beta. There are some capability issues with games made on the XP platform and running them in Vista. For instance, old school games like original Icewind Dale, Starcraft + Exp, Warcraft 2 etc, run on XP, but have glitches or do not run at all under Vista (I am not able to run Diablo 2 Exp under Vista Ultimate 64). It is all your personal views on it. Some features you get on XP that you will not have under Vista, Vista is a RAM whore, Vista looks flashy and is newer, reverse compatibility on Vista made products running on XP. There is too big of a list to list off the pros and cons of running XP or Vista. They again there is Linux. I personally think Linux is amazing so many apps and freeware that just makes life easier. Again, then again, if you pirate programs, crack the serials or whatever it is we do, there is no need to venture from you “happy place†to try a new OS. Once you determine you OS or OS’s and use of the comp you can move onto the next part of the guide, choosing the right hardware. PS: I did not mention Mac gamers because lets face it, they do not exist.

Differences in x86 and x64 bit OS.

The question here is whether to go with x64 or x86 operating system. Well that depends on what you are doing with your computer. An x64 is a 32-bit and 64-bit OS, plain and simple; commonly referred to as (x86-64). A 64-bit OS can use 32-bit software and hardware, but a 32-bit OS cannot run 64-bit software. 

Now as far as protection, there's a little feature called KPP, or Patch Guard that prevents unauthorized software from modifying the kernel. This reduces the risk that malware, especially rootkits.

Then comes into view the issue with drivers and compatibility. In a x64 Windows OS, only drivers that have been scanned and "digitally signed" by MS can be downloaded and installed. Prevents buggy drivers from being installed that can possibly harm your system or crash it on a daily basis. 

Next we come into utilizing the "+4 GB of ram". Those of you, at least most, that need +4GB of RAM, and you know who you are (me included) will agree with me when I say, running multiple programs and doing multiple tasks at the same time, that extra RAM is a blessing. For those of you that don't use 4 or 5 programs at once don't need it. More RAM means faster start up of programs, all around better performance where its needed. Programs that are RAM whores: CAD, Adobe CS3/4, etc. If all you do is just browse, do a little gaming here and there, listen to music, 4 GB of RAM is plenty. Thus ending your question "Which OS is best for me". But if you are constantly using your computer as a work horse, programming, home brewing, ROM Hacking, ripping movies/music, burning movies (even multiple at the same time), browsing, drafting, and hardcore gaming, do not limit yourself by getting a 4GB max RAM OS.

Overall, I prefer x64 because of the extra RAM I need for my daily computer habits. I am constantly ripping music, burning DVDs, converting movies, playing a game and listening to music all at once. 

Step 2: Hardware (I am not doing a A+ class here or a history session)

Central Processing Unit aka CPU
Ok this is the powerhouse of the computer. You can have the best hardware plugged into the MoBo and your performance will only be as good as your CPU. The basic four functions of the CPU is the get the information, decode it, perform the action and then send the information to the user. Basically think of it like this, to run a program. Double clicking on Internet Explorer (gathering information), processes the information (decoded it) opens it up (perform it) you see IE (send user information). Now as far as Intel and AMD go, they leap frog each other in terms of performance. I prefer Intel because they have had a decent stretch of good years without epically failing a couple years then making a comeback. 

Multi-core vs. Single Core
A multi core is as it says, its multiple processing units on a single silicone cores. Common sense suggested that more units equal more heat, more chances of failing of data streaming, etc. This isn’t the case. A multi-core will process the multiple cores at a lower frequency and send the information in sync to the other hardware devices. Meaning less heat is produced and syncing will prevent data loss. A single core over clocked to 4.0 GHz will produce much more heat and potentially damage the CPU itself and be LESS effective than a dual-core stock clocked at 3.0 GHz. Most new gaming hardware utilizes multi-core and develop hardware for multi-core CPUs Search Google for tests against them. 

Hyper-threading.
Intel’s trademark, hyper-threading enabled CPUs, such as the Core i7, sees a single CPU as two; one physical and one virtual. Think of an ISO virtual mount basically. I myself have not had experience with them so I cannot give my opinion of experience review on them. The purpose behind it is improved response time and processing of data. 

Mother Board/Main Board aka MoBo
This in the top three most important pieces of your computer. It not only determines what hardware you can use, but also will determine you performance by what is compatible with it. Almost all components are very important to building your next gaming rig.

PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect)
One of the earlier forms of plugging a hardware device into a MoBo. Although a lot of MoBo come standard with PCI-E and x16 slots, this remains a commonly used slot. A lot of companies still produce hardware that utilizes these expansion slots including the recent 9 series video card from Nvidia.

PCI-E (PCI-Express)
As the name hints “express†means PCI but only faster. There is now PCI-E x16 which has an even faster data transfer and receive rate than the original express. To go even further there are 2.0 and the makings of 3.0 express slots. Express slots are made so that the original PCI cards with fit into a PCI-E slot but not the other way around. For higher end video cards you will need at least 1 or 2 of these slots if you plan on cross-firing ATI or SLI’ing Nvidia cards.

North and South bridges
The North and Southbridge connect the CPU to different components of the computer. The north bridge will connect the CPU to the AGP, PCI slots, RAM and a few other not worth mentioning pieces.
The Southbridge connects the CPU to the rest of the peripherals connected to the computer; SATA ports, USB, IDE, Firewire, and onboard audio.

IDE / P-ATA ports (Integrated Drive Electronics / Parallel-Advanced Technology Attachment)
IDE or ATA1 ports are more commonly used that people give credit for. A good amount of media drives and hard drives today still use IDE ports. They transfer data between 33 MB/s and 133 MB/s. Media drives are common because the amount of HDDs using SATA ports. Most IDE/ATA ports are much slower than SATA in terms of transferring data. There is a limit though on how many IDE ports come on MoBo’s, which is two (master and slave)

SATA (Serial ATA)
SATA ports are the new fad for plugging in HDDs and media drives. The SATA is better in everyway in terms of building a new rig. Processing data between 150 MB/s and 600 MB/s. So far I have seen MoBo with 15 SATA ports with use of multipliers. So I can only assume the possibly number of max SATA drives is limitless. I am not entirely sure though

RAM (Random Access Memory)
RAM is the storage of active data being processed. Rule of thumb, IMO, more RAM the better your computer will like you. Think of it as protein to a body builder, or vodka to a White Russian. More is always a good thing. Now remember that your mother board determines what you can and cannot use in your computer. This applies to RAM too. RAM can be overclocked to produce even more processing speed but not really, IMO, needed. There is DDR2 and DDR3. (DDR will not be covered as it is obsolete and DDR2 is the standard now.)

DDR2 is RAM that is processing processes data twice as fast as DDR memory. 

DDR3 is RAM that processes data twice as fast as DDR2. Same functionality, but faster. 

Video Card
Ah, the powerhouse of the graphics. This, IMO, is the second most important part of the computer, second to the processor. It basically acts as a gateway from the computer to the display. While going from the GPU to the display it translates the data into a picture, depending on the quality of the GPU determines the clarity and detail of the picture. The GPU acts like a CPU but solely relating to graphical information instead of program processing. RAM and GPU speed are very important. Also the Direct X support is a good factor to use when building a gaming comp. I personally would not look at anything that has less than 700MB of graphics RAM for a single video card. Or something that doesn’t support at least Direct x9. Direct x 10 if you plan on running Crysis or the like.

Sound Card 
Not really a important part of a gaming machine. Most MoBos come with great on board audio for just plugging in a pair of speakers if all you need is sound. If you are a sound freak and need a sound card and information on them do some research.

HDD / SSD (Hard Disc Drives / Solid State Drives) 
There are two different types of drives, Solid State and Hard Disc. Hard Disc is the most common, and cheapest. Solid State is the newest kid on the block in terms of performance. Along with being the newest kid on the block, its also the most expensive, the least space allotting, and the fastest to find data. By definition they are a single piece of hardware instead not a moving disc and reader like HDs. Pro’s and Con’s are listed on numerous sites, for the purpose of a gaming rig, I would suggest keeping to a HDD. There are 3 different commonly used speeds, 5400RPM, 7200RPM and 10kRPM. They suggest how many times the data disc inside the HD will spin a full rotations a minute. Faster the RPM faster the access to the data. However, when playing a game, the speed of the HD will not be much of a factor, RAM does (hint hint, more RAM the better, ring any bells?). Stick with a 7200RPM HD and you will be fine.

Power Supply Unit (PSU)
This is also something that important to match with your other hardware. Especially the video card. Almost all cards come with a recommended PSU rating. I personally like to go over the recommended specs of all hardware by at least 20-25%. So for example a recommended rating of 750 watt for a video card would be close to 900-1000 watt power supply.

"What is that 80 Plus® sticker I see on PSUs?"

80 PLUS is an innovative, electric utility-funded incentive program to integrate more energy-efficient power supplies into desktop computers and servers. Participating utilities and energy efficiency organizations across North America have contributed over $5 million of incentives to help the computer industry transition to 80 PLUS certified power supplies. 

To date, over 1300 power supplies have been certified and many local and major computer manufacturers are selling qualified computers. Additionally, large commercial and institutional consumers are specifying 80 PLUS in their procurement policies at increasing rates. 
80 PLUS now certifies power supply products for high efficiency performance in server applications with the inclusion of a category of testing for Redundant Single Output server power supplies. 

Industry efficiency performance has improved dramatically over the four years of 80 PLUS' existence enabling 80 PLUS to announce higher efficiency levels of Certification (Bronze, Silver, Gold)

What is the 80 PLUS specification? 
The 80 PLUS performance specification requires multi-output power supplies in computers and servers to be 80% or greater energy efficient at 20%, 50% and 100% of rated load with a true power factor of 0.9 or greater. This makes an 80 PLUS certified power supply substantially more efficient than typical power supplies and creates a unique market differentiation opportunity for power supply and computer manufacturers.


What is "multiple +12V rails", really?

In most cases, multiple +12V rails are actually just a single +12V source just split up into multiple +12V outputs each with a limited output capability. 

There are a few units that actually have two +12V sources, but these are typically very high output power supplies. And in most cases these multiple +12V outputs are split up again to form a total of four, five or six +12V rails for even better safety. To be clear: These REAL multiple +12V rail units are very rare and are all 1000W+ units (Enermax Galaxy, Topower/Tagan "Dual Engine", Thermaltake Tough Power 1000W & 1200W, for example.)

In some cases, the two +12V rail outputs are actually combined to create one large +12V output (Ultra X3 1000W, PC Power & Cooling Turbo Cool 1000W, for example.)

So why do they do they split up +12V rails?? 

Safety. It's done for the same reason that there's more than one circuit breaker in your house's distribution panel. The goal is to limit the current through each wire to what that wire can carry without getting dangerously hot.

Short circuit protection only works if there's minimal to no resistance in the short (like two wires touching or a hot lead touching a ground like the chassis wall, etc.) If the short occurs on a PCB, in a motor, etc. the resistance in this circuit will typically NOT trip short circuit protection. What does happen is the short essentially creates a load. Without an OCP the load just increases and increases until the wire heats up and the insulation melts off and there's a molten pile of flaming plastic at the bottom of the chassis. This is why rails are split up and "capped off" in most power supplies; there is a safety concern.

Is it true that some PSU's that claim to be multiple +12V rails don't have the +12V rail split at all? 

Yes, this is true. But it's the exception and not the norm. It's typically seen in Seasonic built units (like the Corsair HX and Antec True Power Trio.) It's actually cheaper to make a single +12V rail PSU because you forego all of the components used in splitting up and limiting each rail and this may be one reason some OEM's will not split the rails, but say they are split. Some system builders adhere very closely to ATX12V specification for liability reasons, so a company that wants to get that business but also save money and reduce R&D costs will often "fib" and say the PSU has it's +12V split when it does not. 

Why don't those PSU companies get in trouble? Because Intel actually lifted the split +12V rail requirement from spec, but they didn't actually "announce" it. They just changed the verbiage from "required" to "recommended" leaving system builders a bit confused as to what the specification really is.

So does splitting the +12V rails provide "cleaner and more stable voltages" like I've been told in the past?

It is true that marketing folks have told us that multiple +12V rails provides "cleaner and more stable voltages", but this is usually a falsehood. Quite frankly, they use this explaination because "offers stability and cleaner power" sounds much more palletable than "won't necessarily catch fire". Like I said before, typically there is only one +12V source and there is typically no additional filtering stage added when the rails are split off that makes the rails any more stable or cleaner than if they weren't split at all. 

Why do some people FUD that single is better?

Because there are a few examples of companies that have produced power supplies with four +12V rails, something that in theory should provide MORE than ample power to a high end gaming rig, and screwed up. These PSU companies followed EPS12V specifications, which is for servers, not "gamers". they put ALL of the PCIe connectors on one of the +12V rails instead of a separate +12V rail. The +12V rail was easily overloaded and caused the PSU to shut down. Instead of correcting the problem, they just did away with the splitting of +12V rails altogether. Multiple +12V rail "enthusiast" PSU's today have a +12V rail just for PCIe connectors or may even split four or six PCIe connectors up across two different +12V rails. The rails themselves are capable of far more power output than any PCIe graphics card would ever need. In fact, Nvidia SLI certification these days REQUIRE that the PCIe connectors be on their own +12V rail to avoid any problems from running high end graphics cards on split +12V rail PSU's.
There's less components and less engineering to make a PSU that DOES NOT have the +12V rail split up, so it's cheaper to manufacturer (about $1.50 less on the BOM, $2 to $3 at retail) and typically this cost savings is NOT handed down to the consumer, so it actually behooves marketing to convince you that you only need single +12V rails.

But some people claim they can overclock better, etc. with a single +12V rail PSU

B.S. It's a placebo effect. The reality is that their previous PSU was defective or just wasn't as good as their current unit. If the old PSU was a cheap-o unit with four +12V rails and the new one is a PCP&C with one +12V rail, the new one isn't overclocking better because it's a single +12V rail unit. It's overclocking better because the old PSU was crap. It's only coincidental if the old PSU had multiple +12V rails and the current one has just one. 

The only "problem" the occurs with multiple +12V rails is that when a +12V rail is overloaded (for example: more than 20A is being demanded from a rail set to only deliver up to 20A), the PSU shuts down. Since there are no "limits" on single +12V rail PSU's, you can not overload the rails and cause them to shut down..... unless you're using a "too-small" PSU in the first place. Single +12V rails do not have better voltage regulation, do not have better ripple filtering, etc. unless the PSU is better to begin with. 

So there are no disadvantages to using a PSU with multiple +12V rails?

No! I wouldn't say that at all. To illustrate potential problems, I'll use these two examples:

Example 1:

An FSP Epsilon 700W has ample power for any SLI rig out there, right? But the unit only comes with two PCIe connectors. The two PCIe connectors on the unit are each on their own +12V rail. Each of these rails provides up to 18A which is almost three times more than what a 6-pin PCIe power connector is designed to deliver! What if I want to run a pair of GTX cards? It would have been ideal if they could put two PCIe connectors on each of those rails instead of just one, but instead those with GTX SLI are forced to use Molex to PCIe adapters. Here comes the problem: When you use the Molex to PCIe adapters, you have now added the load from graphics cards onto the rail that's also supplying power to all of your hard drives, optical drives, fans, CCFL's, water pump.. you name it. Suddenly, during a game, the PC shuts down completely. 

Solution: To my knowledge, there aren't one-to-two PCIe adapters. Ideally, you'd want to open that PSU up and solder down another pair of PCIe connectors to the rails the existing PCIe connectors are on, but alas... that is not practical. So even if your PSU has MORE than ample power for your next graphics cards upgrade, if it doesn't come with all of the appropriate connectors, it's time to buy another power supply.

Example 2:

Thermo-Electric Coolers (TEC's, aka "Peltiers") take a lot of power and are typically powered by Molex power connectors. I, for one, prefer to run TEC's on their own power supply. But that's not always an option. If you had a power supply with split +12V rails and powered your TEC's with Molexes, you would be putting your TEC's on the same +12V rail as the hard drives, optical drives, fans, CCFL's, water pump.. you name it, just as you did with the Molex to PCIe adapters. The power supply could, essentially, shut down on you in the middle of using it. A power supply with a single, non-split, +12V rail would not have any kind of limit as to how much power is delivered to any particular group of connectors, so one could essentially run several TEC's off of Molex power connectors and not experience any problems if one had a single +12V rail PSU.

Typical multiple +12V rail configurations:

• 2 x 12V rails
  • Original ATX12V specification's division of +12V rails.
  • One rail to the CPU, one rail to everything else.
  • VERY old school since it's very likely that "everything else" may include a graphics card that requires a PCIe connector.
  • Typically only seen on PSU's < 600W.
• 3 x 12V rails
  • A "modified" ATX12V specification that takes into consideration PCIe power connectors.
  • One rail to the CPU, one rail to everything else but the PCIe connectors and a third rail just for PCIe connectors.
  • Works perfectly for SLI, but not good for PC's requiring four PCIe connectors.
• 4 x 12V rails (EPS12V style)
  • Originally implemented in EPS12V specification
  • Because typical application meant deployment in dual processor machine, two +12V rails went to CPU cores via the 8-pin CPU power connector.
  • "Everything else" is typically split up between two other +12V rails. Sometimes 24-pin's two +12V would share with SATA and Molex would go on fourth rail.
  • Not really good for high end SLI because a graphics card always has to share with something.
  • Currently Nvidia will NOT SLI certify PSU's using this layout because they now require PCIe connectors to get their own rail.
  • In the non-server, enthusiast/gaming market we don't see this anymore. The "mistake" of implementing this layout was only done initially by two or three PSU companies in PSU's between 600W and 850W and only for about a year's time.
• 4 x 12V rails (Most common arrangement for "enthusiast" PC)
  • A "modified" ATX12V, very much like 3 x 12V rails except the two, four or even six PCIe power connectors are split up across the additional two +12V rails.
  • If the PSU supports 8-pin PCIe or has three PCIe power connectors on each of the +12V rails, it's not uncommon for their +12V rail to support a good deal more than just 20A.
  • This is most common in 700W to 1000W power supplies, although for 800W and up power supplies it's not unusual to see +12V ratings greater than 20A per rail.
• 5 x 12V rails
  • This is very much what one could call an EPS12V/ATX12V hybrid.
  • Dual processors still each get their own rail, but so do the PCIe power connectors.
  • This can typically be found in 850W to 1000W power supplies.
• 6 x 12V rails
  • This is the mack daddy because it satisfies EPS12V specifications AND four or six PCIe power connectors without having to exceed 20A on any +12V rail
  • Two +12V rails are dedicated to CPU cores just like an EPS12V power supply.
  • 24-pin's +12V, SATA, Molex, etc. are split up across two more +12V rails.
  • PCIe power connectors are split up across the last two +12V rails.
  • This is typically only seen in 1000W and up power supplies.

Ok... What's the bottom line?


The bottom line is, for 99% of the folks out there single vs. multiple +12V rails is a NON ISSUE. It's something that has been hyped up by marketing folks on BOTH SIDES of the fence. Too often we see mis-prioritized requests for PSU advice: Asking "what single +12V rail PSU should I get" when the person isn't even running SLI! Unless you're running a plethora of Peltiers in your machine, it should be a non-issue assuming that the PSU has all of the connectors your machine requires and there are no need for "splitters" (see Example 1 in the previous bullet point).

The criteria for buying a PSU should be:

• Does the PSU provide enough power for my machine?
• Does the PSU have all of the connectors I require (6-pin for high end PCIe, two 6-pin, four 6-pin or even the newer 8-pin PCIe connector)?
• If using SLI or Crossfire, is the unit SLI or Crossfire certified (doesn't matter if a PSU is certified for one or the other as long as it has the correct connectors. If it passed certification for EITHER that means it's been real world tested with dual graphics cards in a worst case scenario).

Figure out if there are any variables that may affect the actual output capability of the PSU:

• Is the PSU rated at continuous or peak?
• What temperature is the PSU rated at? Room (25° to 30°C) or actual operating temperature (40°C to 50°C)
• If room temperature, what's the derating curve? As a PSU runs hotter, it's capability to put out power is diminished. If no de-rate can be found, assume that a PSU rated at room temperature may only be able to put out around 75% of it's rated capability once installed in a PC.

After that, narrow selection down with finer details that may be more important to others than it may be to you....

• Does the unit have power factor correction?
• Is the unit efficient?
• Is the unit quiet?
• Is the unit modular?
• Am I paying extra for bling?
• Do I want bling?

Source OCForums

Cooling (Includes case, water cooling, heat sinks and fans)
Ok so what comes to mind when you hear cooling? Middle of July, 3 o’clock in the afternoon in the middle of Texas country and what do you wanna do? Stick some soaking wet boxers in the freezer, come back 20 minutes later and slip those bad boys on…ohhhhh yea. Well your CPU thinks the same exact thing. If your CPU gets too hot, bad things happen. Even with multi-core technology helping the spread of the processes across the multiple cores your CPU can only handle so much before it starts to heat up. To dissipate this heat its suggested to have a good airflow, a CPU heat sink or water cooling. Some upgraded fans over the stock ones in a full size tower are great addition to keep airflow going. To know how heat sinks work is to understand metals and their physical properties such as conduction. The top four common metals that have the highest thermal conductivity properties are Silver, Copper, Gold and Aluminum respectively. Now, unless your pockets are lined with silver and gold you aren’t going to find many silver and gold heat sinks. There are alloys of these metals that conduct even more heat but for now, copper and aluminum are the best choices. So a good rule of thumb, more metal that is has the most airflow surface area the better. As far as water cooling goes, the price going down, but to be honest, I don’t consider them to be worth buying in today’s age unless you are a hardcore over clocking master. In which case there is no need to be reading this guide.

Peripherals
This section included monitor, speakers, mouse and keyboard. Obviously your monitor determines the resolution of the screen and quality of the picture being translated from the GPU through to your output jack. A off brand cheap monitor will get you what you paid for in terms of quality picture. Don’t be cheap about your monitor, get a good monitor for a good sale price, they do exist, trust me. Speakers, again not a speaker freak, I got my Asus card for media and audio sampling/editing. Do the research when trying to find your sound card as well. Mouse and keyboard…well here is a bit tricky. You have two options when it comes to mouse and keyboard. Wired or wireless? Which one is better? To be honest, neither have more pros over cons. For me wired has the pro of never having to replace flippin’ batteries right in the middle of a fire fight 

– BAM - HEADSHOT “Unlimited is on a Rampageâ€. <- Just a taste of what would happen if your batteries were to epically slap you in the face with a “failure fiveâ€

But seriously it is a personal preference. I chose wired. Now as far as keyboards with macro buttons and multiple function buttons go, don’t even worry about them, unless you actually will utilize them. Otherwise it’s just a waste of money. 

It is very doable to build a high end gaming rig for less than $1500 USD including peripherals. Hopefully this guide will let those of you that want to build a high end gaming rig in on some information that was previously spread across pages upon pages of hardware explanation guides and so on.

PS Please, please, please, read the instructions that come with the hardware or ask someone that knows what they are doing instead of just plugging stuff in, in hopes that it comes out right. There is nothing worse than plugging in something and frying the CPU because you were impatient and don’t stop and ask for directions. 

 

I would use partspicker or newegg to build a projected parts list and post it here to get worked over. 

[Christley </3 Peelz]

I guess so.

I think he would rather spend a little bit more now than have to spend $120 or $130 on an Z77 in the future. Not to mention how they may be discontinued.

seeing how 775 is still supported, i hardly doubt he will run into troubles with 1156 being discontinued

[There]

seeing how 775 is still supported, i hardly doubt he will run into troubles with 1156 being discontinued

You mean LGA 1155, and yes, but some motherboards will be cancelled.

Notice how you can't buy any new ASUS P67?

[Christley </3 Peelz]

You mean LGA 1155, and yes, but some motherboards will be cancelled.

Notice how you can't buy any new ASUS P67?

yeah, but in the same time. its not really hard to find a used one with that socket+ivy bridge wont go out for atleast another 5 years. if he havent overclocked by then, he wont ever do so on that particular processor. its not even worth it anymore

[Pyrocide]

I will still be rocking my 4.6 2500k until i burn it out. Does everything i need it to in the amount of time i like. Plus it runs slackware...I am about maxed for latest hardware in terms of stable linux compatibility

[Liddojunior]

idk why you would go for a 750w power supply, he's not running tripple sli.

this computer will run just as good as your computer but 250$ cheaper: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1k5Y1

 

Most cards recommend 500-650 watts and i rather jump at the 750 Just in case in the future you ever will need more power. If you do upgrade. 

[Christley </3 Peelz]

Most cards recommend 500-650 watts and i rather jump at the 750 Just in case in the future you ever will need more power. If you do upgrade. 

currently running 7770 in cf with 600w and the computer havent complained at all. even with overclocks on the processor over 4.2ghz and 3 harddrives.

 

500w for singlecards is more than enough

[There]

currently running 7770 in cf with 600w and the computer havent complained at all. even with overclocks on the processor over 4.2ghz and 3 harddrives.

 

500w for singlecards is more than enough

This is from the specifications page on NVIDIA's website for the GTX 760:

As you can see, minimum recommended system power is 500W. 

 

I would recommend going over that to 600W or so.

 

But the power supply Liddojunior recommended isn't modular, which makes things messy if you don't know what you're doing.

[Liddojunior]

This is from the specifications page on NVIDIA's website for the GTX 760:

As you can see, minimum recommended system power is 500W. 

 

I would recommend going over that to 600W or so.

 

But the power supply Liddojunior recommended isn't modular, which makes things messy if you don't know what you're doing.

 

If he gets the phantom or another very roomy tower there isnt much clutter to worry about. It is 80plus gold which is really nice. 

[There]

If he gets the phantom or another very roomy tower there isnt much clutter to worry about. It is 80plus gold which is really nice. 

I guess that's true. But unnecessary wires never look nice, even if there is easily enough space for them. Plus that's a Micro ATX board, which'll look ridiculous in a full tower case. He said he wants to go with a PC that's around $800, and I don't think he would want to spend an unnecessary $60 on a case.

[Christley </3 Peelz]

This is from the specifications page on NVIDIA's website for the GTX 760:

As you can see, minimum recommended system power is 500W. 

 

I would recommend going over that to 600W or so.

 

But the power supply Liddojunior recommended isn't modular, which makes things messy if you don't know what you're doing.

yeah, that means that every single thing in his computer is calculated with that. im standing firm that its not needed. but sure, if he wants to be on the safe side, id go for 80 plus gold or platinum power supply. those deliver so much more stable wattage and then the 500w limit isnt even close since it performs better. but thats my opinion. i feel no need to overdo something.

and modular power supply isnt really something to look at if you're on a budget, they usually add like 50-100$ extra to the price

[Liddojunior]

I guess that's true. But unnecessary wires never look nice, even if there is easily enough space for them. Plus that's a Micro ATX board, which'll look ridiculous in a full tower case. He said he wants to go with a PC that's around $800, and I don't think he would want to spend an unnecessary $60 on a case.

 

Im not someone with a glass side cover to show off whats inside the pc so i was thinking about how it looks haha

I would prefer him to get the full size motherboard but i dont think he has plans to sli so i went with the micro to be cost effective but he can get the full size one for 23$ more. 

 

But the phantom is the nicest case its well worth the 100$ lol

[Christley </3 Peelz]

But the phantom is the nicest case its well worth the 100$ lol

 

i have a fractal define r4, quiet as fuck and looks really good (god i love white). but it weights like a rock. but thats due to all the soundproof material. and that case costs probably 20-30$ less. but idk dollarprices since i bought it for ~700sek

[There]

yeah, that means that every single thing in his computer is calculated with that. im standing firm that its not needed. but sure, if he wants to be on the safe side, id go for 80 plus gold or platinum power supply. those deliver so much more stable wattage and then the 500w limit isnt even close since it performs better. but thats my opinion. i feel no need to overdo something.

and modular power supply isnt really something to look at if you're on a budget, they usually add like 50-100$ extra to the price

Look at the power supply I suggested. It's $90 + modular + from a lesser known, but very good brand.

 

PCPartPicker lists it as modular, but from the pictures it is semi modular. Either way, cable management will be slightly easier with it.

And although he is on a budget, it's a $800-$1000 budget, so you have room to fit in things like a modular PSU, SSD, etc.

[Vegan T-Rex]

Off the top of my head:

i5 3570K

Cheapest Z77 mobo you can find

GTX 760 Graphics Card

600W PSU (If you do decide to OC)

Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO

Cooler Master CM 690 II

1 Terrabyte Hard Drive

A random pair of 2x4GB RAM

Windows 8

An Optical Drive.

Ill explain more when I have time. 

[Christley </3 Peelz]

Off the top of my head:

i5 3570K

Cheapest Z77 mobo you can find

GTX 760 Graphics Card

600W PSU (If you do decide to OC)

Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO

Cooler Master CM 690 II

1 Terrabyte Hard Drive

A random pair of 2x4GB RAM

Windows 8

An Optical Drive.

Ill explain more when I have time. 

 

Off the top of my head:

i5 3570K

Cheapest Z77 mobo you can find

GTX 760 Graphics Card

600W PSU (If you do decide to OC)

Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO

Cooler Master CM 690 II

1 Terrabyte Hard Drive

A random pair of 2x4GB RAM

Windows 8

An Optical Drive.

Ill explain more when I have time. 

how is that even close to 800$? that sounds more like 1-1.1k

 

Look at the power supply I suggested. It's $90 + modular + from a lesser known, but very good brand.

 

PCPartPicker lists it as modular, but from the pictures it is semi modular. Either way, cable management will be slightly easier with it.

And although he is on a budget, it's a $800-$1000 budget, so you have room to fit in things like a modular PSU, SSD, etc.

idk what my price for it was, nor do i know the brand. because here in sweden we dont have like 50% of the brands america has.

 

but he did say in his post that he would prefer it to be 800usd. and a modular psu is one of the last things id invest in. 50$ for some extra space, no thanks. rather spend that extra cash on an ssd.