PC build thread

[s1mplehumar]

Have several builds scattered throughout the house, but here's the one that gets all the loving:

Mobo: Asus P8Z77-V Deluxe
CPU: i5-3570K @ 4.5GHz
Memory: G.SKILL Ares 16GB DDR3 (1866)
GPU: x2 Sapphire 7970 (Xfire) 1200/1700
SSD/HDD: SAMSUNG 840 Pro (512GB) + 3TB Seagate Barracuda
Display: Crossover 27" @ 2560x1440
Case: Antec 900 decked out with Cougar silent fans
PSU: SeaSonic X-1250 1250w - got it for a steal!

That's pretty much the future proof bang for you buck build.. Except I would try for a 3770 or 3770k.. I bet the SSD is probably the highest priced item in the set.. Not overall just saying relative to their placement.. Actually the monitor is pretty pricey as well..

Well, this isn't a new build. I assembled the majority of it between May and June of last year. The PSU is the only item that's fairly new. Yeah, the 840 Pro was the single most expensive purchase. I actually got it for cheaper than the non Pro version though, so it was a no-brainer. I shop HARD for lowest possible prices. I'm content with this build for the foreseeable future. The last time I ran BF3 I was getting between 65-72 FPS @ 2560x1440 in Ultra mode w/ everything maxed.

[flex wood]

So I have been in the process of trying to figure out a good build to put together. I'm going to be using this for gaming almost exclusively. I will be running it on my tv not sure if this matters at all though, I'm mostly thinking about sound and not sure if can run audio through the hdmi.

So far I've decided on a few things I know I want to go with:
cpu: i5 3570k
ram: I want to do 8 gigs
gpu: r9 280x
case: white nzxt switch 810 (this is up in the air, but I want to go full tower)
memory: 64 gig ssd and a 1 tb hd

The thing is I have no idea what kind of features I am going to need or want in a mobo, although cross fire would be nice down the line. I also am not sure what I should shoot for wattage wise on a psu. Budget wise I've got about 1200. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Hazerd]

I will be running it on my tv not sure if this matters at all though, I'm mostly thinking about sound and not sure if can run audio through the hdmi.

Any modern video card with a HDMI port will put sound out your TV, and if you get a Motherboard with a HDMI port, it will also put sound to your TV.

[ZenErik]

Something wrong here.

[Hazerd]

Something wrong here.

yes, it is upside down

[Valkyrie-Favor]

I wish mobos still came with the old PS/2 connectors. I have some really comfortable mice and keyboards I'd like to use.

[AppleQueso]

I wish mobos still came with the old PS/2 connectors. I have some really comfortable mice and keyboards I'd like to use.

There are plenty of PS/2 to USB adapters you can get for cheap.

[MrPopo]

I wish mobos still came with the old PS/2 connectors. I have some really comfortable mice and keyboards I'd like to use.

My ASRock x79 I got a year ago has a PS/2 connector.

[s1mplehumar]

I wish mobos still came with the old PS/2 connectors. I have some really comfortable mice and keyboards I'd like to use.

My ASRock x79 I got a year ago has a PS/2 connector.

I was gonna chime in with something similar. Most ASRock mobos still have IDE connectors too.

[isiolia]

I wish mobos still came with the old PS/2 connectors. I have some really comfortable mice and keyboards I'd like to use.

Plenty of them do, albeit often a single PS/2 port - some prefer to stick to it for the keyboard due to it being interrupt based, and supporting full n-key rollover.

The board I have has one, for example.

I'm mostly thinking about sound and not sure if can run audio through the hdmi.

As mentioned, any modern video card with HDMI will pass audio through it as well. It'll show up as a separate audio device.

So far I've decided on a few things I know I want to go with:
cpu: i5 3570k
ram: I want to do 8 gigs
gpu: r9 280x
case: white nzxt switch 810 (this is up in the air, but I want to go full tower)
memory: 64 gig ssd and a 1 tb hd

The thing is I have no idea what kind of features I am going to need or want in a mobo, although cross fire would be nice down the line. I also am not sure what I should shoot for wattage wise on a psu. Budget wise I've got about 1200. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

CPU is a gen back, though perhaps that's intentional?

Motherboard features are partly going to be a matter of what (if any) overclocking or expansion you intend to do.

PSU will also depend on if you're seriously looking at multiple GPUs or not. Personally, I would lean towards not worrying about it unless you're planning a robust monitor setup to go along with it/etc. For a single card, 500-650W is generally sufficient, depending on how high end the card is.

I would suggest working a larger SSD into your budget, if possible. My experience is that a ~120GB is sufficient for relatively "hands-off" management. Keeping in mind that you benefit by keeping at least ~25% of an SSD free. I did fine with a 120GB with just keeping games/media on HDDs, and just remembering to shift downloads over every so often. Smaller drives can require much more proactive management, or tweaking settings (by default, virtual memory, sleep images, and so on will be proportionate to RAM for example).