# Ready to Build a Gaming PC



## sage19 (Mar 4, 2013)

After after what feels like countless hours of browsing the internet for the parts to my new gaming PC I feel as though I'm finally done. This is my first build I've done and will be using it mainly for gaming. I'm already a bit above my budget so I can't spend anymore. If it's important the monitor I will be using is 1280x1024 which has a VGA port, but I plan on getting a 1080p during the holidays. Also I will be installing Linux.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

*CPU:* AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($139.99 @ Newegg) 
*CPU Cooler:* Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($31.00 @ Amazon) 
*Motherboard:* Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
*Memory:* Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg) 
*Storage:* Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US) 
*Video Card:* PowerColor Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($269.99 @ Newegg) 
*Case:* NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($35.65 @ Amazon) 
*Power Supply:* Rosewill 600W ATX12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ Newegg) 
*Total:* $725.59
_(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)_
_(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-27 17:52 EDT-0400)_


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

Your set looks . . . alright, but only just. To me it looks like you are trying to cheap out in the one place you should not, the power supply. 

If budget is an issue, drop the aftermarket cooler. Put the savings toward a good quality power supply such as:
XFX 550W PRO550W Core Edition Single Rail ATX 12V 44A 24PIN ATX Power Supply 80PLUS Bronze
SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Newegg.com


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Most definitely replace that Rosewill PSU with a good quality unit, with sufficient power, like the 620W SeaSonic listed above.
G.Skill or Corsair for the RAM.
The OEM CPU cooler will be fine so you could apply those saving to the better PSU.
Look over our suggested build list and use it as a guide for top quality components: http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f255/tsf-hardware-teams-recommended-builds-2013-a-668661.html

This list was fine: http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f255/are-these-computer-parts-compatible-724337.html


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## sage19 (Mar 4, 2013)

Here is the Revised version
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

*CPU:* AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($139.99 @ Newegg) 
*Motherboard:* Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
*Memory:* G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg) 
*Storage:* Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US) 
*Video Card:* PowerColor Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($269.99 @ Newegg) 
*Case:* NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($35.65 @ Amazon) 
*Power Supply:* SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($71.30 @ Newegg) 
*Total:* $709.90
_(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)_
_(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-27 19:10 EDT-0400)_


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

Don't forget about the OS. Otherwise looks good to me.


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## sage19 (Mar 4, 2013)

Masterchiefxx17 said:


> Don't forget about the OS. Otherwise looks good to me.


Like I said I'll be using Linux.


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

Alright then.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

sage19 said:


> Here is the Revised version
> PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks
> 
> CPU: AMD FX-6350 3.9GHz 6-Core Processor ($139.99 @ Newegg)
> ...


Much better.


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## a_kamini (Dec 23, 2005)

i think if you replace the case and the power supply for a case WITH good power supply you'll save about $20, and you should get an OS that is media ready.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

a_kamini said:


> i think if you replace the case and the power supply for a case WITH good power supply you'll save about $20, and you should get an OS that is media ready.


PSU's included with cases are rarely good quality. 
A $20 savings would not justify risking damage to components using a poor quality PSU.


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## BombCenter (Oct 26, 2013)

Don't skimp on the PSU. It is the one component that can destroy your entire PC.

Seasonic S12II/M12II/M12D 620-650W. Or SS or X Series if doable.


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## janesman2007 (Feb 11, 2007)

I like your list for your new build except for 2 things I would do differently, switch out that caviar blue for a black for your boot disk, I made that same mistake and suffer slower boot times now, and install an extra pair of the same ram and make it 16g. You didn't mention which Linux you wanted to use, do you know yet or are you still trying them on for size


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

@ BombCenter - The OP has a 620W SeaSonic PSU listed in the revised list in Post #4.
16GB of RAM would offer no advantage. 8GB (2x4GB matched pair) is more than enough for gaming.
The WD Black & Blue versions are basically the same. The Black will offer a 5 yr. warranty and the Blue will be 2 yrs.


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## z28Nemesis (Nov 10, 2009)

Not quite. WD is improving the speeds on their Black series a good bit.. the bigger ones now holding up 175MB/s transfer rates.. I think the 1TB version is going from 150-ish to 175MB/s unless my memory's fuzzy.. but they're getting upgrades. Also, consider the AMD APU's.. A 4.1GHz quad-core running Radeon 8670D is $139 on Newegg. This provides decent performance, but is cheaper than buying a $180 video card plus everything else. I know you want more cores, but there is a point when "extra" just becomes "waste" .. I'm running an FX quad-3.6 and so far I haven't spiked past 60% running a very addon-heavy WoW with 2 displays (meaning plenty of other progs as well)


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## Dragon Wizard (Apr 15, 2008)

Hmm, that card seems to suffer from a lot of problems and is pretty unreliable according to those Newegg reviews. You should probably spend the extra $10 on the MSi brand one:

Newegg.com - MSI R7970 TF 3GD5/OC BE Radeon HD 7970 3GB Twin Frozr OC Boost Edition 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

Edit: I just refreshed the page and the price changed from $299 to $389. O.O

I would think I'm going mad, but it still says $299 in the search...


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## Dragon Wizard (Apr 15, 2008)

Alright, their customer support said they just happened to decide to make that item $90 more expensive...so, $20 more for Newegg.com - XFX Double D FX797ATDJC Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit DDR5 PCI Express 3.0 CrossFireX Support Video Card then...unless its price decides to randomly go up a hundred dollars too.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

Prices and availability change daily, often hourly. And web pages do not always update as they should. I take very few of those Newegg reviews seriously. If I did, I would notice that four of the first five, and seven of the first ten reviews of the Twin Frozr to which you linked describe defective cards.


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## Dragon Wizard (Apr 15, 2008)

Yes, however you are supposed to take the big picture out of it. The percentage of bad reviews out of 'the first x reviews' is kind of irrelevant. It has far less negative reviews on average. It also has double the reviews, making the rating more reliable. 

More importantly, there seems to be a pretty significant amount of the reviews showing the first card breaking or malfunctioning somewhat after a period of use, whereas a good portion of the bad reviews you mention on the Frozr's are due to the card arriving dead (which is immediately noticeable and replaceable) and it being a noisy card (not so important). Furthermore, the first bad review on the PowerColor is someone stating he ordered three cards from the brand in a row and they were all defective. It just sets off some alerts. 

The other was only $10 more, so it seemed a small price to pay for a little extra insurance to me. You could also consider long-term value. That card is already worth $90 more, so was clearly a better investment!


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## janesman2007 (Feb 11, 2007)

This card: ASUS HD7750-1GD5-V2 Radeon HD 7750 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Newegg.com , is close to what I have in my new system and it games really good, don't know what frame rates I get but I have no lag and no problems playing, working really great for me. For less than the one your looking at you can crossfire 2 of these.


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## Dragon Wizard (Apr 15, 2008)

You can't run most newer games on full settings with the 7750; you can with the 7970 on almost all of them and it performs approximately 253.66% better according to benchmarks. I'd say it's worth the price difference for a dedicated gaming PC.


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## janesman2007 (Feb 11, 2007)

Dragon Wizard said:


> You can't run most newer games on full settings with the 7750; you can with the 7970 on almost all of them and it performs approximately 253.66% better according to benchmarks. I'd say it's worth the price difference for a dedicated gaming PC.


I'm not sure what new games you are referring to but I have over 25 and have no issues on any of them, anything from COD to RE3,4,5, LFD 1 n 2, Far Cry 1 n 2, Crysis 1n 2 and plenty others, my settings are on max on all of these and no blips. What NEW games are you referring to, just wondering.


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## Dragon Wizard (Apr 15, 2008)

It apparently can't run Battlefield 4, Arkham Origins, Rome II, Saints Row IV, Blacklist, DOTA 2, CoH2, GRID 2, Metro, Bioshock Infinite, Heart of the Swarm, Tomb Raider, Crysis 3, Far Cry 3, Assassin's Creed III, Hitman Absolution, Black Ops 2, or Guild Wars 2 at max without issues...but that's just what I'm seeing online. It could be capable. In any case, games are only going to start having more levels of higher graphics such as in most of those. The 7970 ensures a lot more longevity.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

OP hasn't posted since 10-27. Let's hold any more postings and see if the OP has decided to stay with their last posted build.


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## Geekgirl (Jan 1, 2005)

I still feel you are under using a 620W PSU. Your CPU is requiring 125W and the Vid card is a minimum of 600W, that 620W will not be sufficient enough. 

Heres a nice ThermalTake 750W w/ a [email protected], that should work with that vid card. AND has a 5yr warranty with a sweet price :wink:
Thermaltake Tough Power TP-750P 750W ATX 12V 2.3 & SSI EPS 12V 2.92 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Newegg.com

Sorry, wanted to get my .02 in heh


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

Your going to want to buy a XFX, Seasonic or Anetc HGC branded PSU, not Thermaltake.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Unfortunately, Geekgirl has opted to ignore the request to refrain from posting until the OP has replied as well as offered some less than accurtae advice advice.

The TT Tough Power series "used" to be top quality but have went to lower quality manufacturer.
The 620W SeaSonic will be more than sufficient for the 79970 GPU as well as the other components you listed.


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## loshi12321 (Sep 7, 2012)

Alright here are some tips i picked up from my dad who owned a computer store with 20 years experience: 
CPU, Intel all the way. Amd CPUs are unreliable and crash oftens actually happened to me when I bought a laptop bundle which had two laptops and they were both AMD APUs. They both had a BSOD within a week. Yeah they may be cheaper and have more cores, but they are pretty crap.
Motherboard: Gigabyte or Asus. Mostly Asus. NEVER Asrock. Pretty much same story.

I dont live in 'murica so i cant reccomend parts.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

> Amd CPUs are unreliable and crash oftens


Total nonsense. The same thing has been said about Intel procs and probably every other manufacturer, past and present. Bottom line, both AMD and Intel make solid reliable processors available at all price points.


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