New build advice on $1500 Intel i5 2500 system (First time builder)

[teknix360]

Hello! I want to do my very first PC build and am looking for advice, suggestions, corrections, thoughts, any knowledge. I'm most afraid that I won't have an adequate PSU or something isn't compatible with something else! :s

Top of budget is $1500.

I have decided to go with the i5 2500k CPU as according to the benchmarks it seems it will work best for my use case. I will use it for Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Dreamweaver (all CS4), Sony Vegas (minimal use), DVD ripping, video converting, MKV playback, HD video streaming/playback, and some gaming (I don't care if it runs demanding games crazy good, just needs to run all games good.) I already have all my apps and my OS (Win 7 Pro 64-bit). I'm not interested in overclocking at this time. Just want a fast, cool (temp-wise) system.

Here are the parts I've chosen:

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=22896647

My thinking:

I am aiming for a system that meets my current needs and is as much future-proof as I can get for $1500. I certainly wouldn't mind saving money if you noticed somewhere I could cut back.

I wanted a mobo that supports 32GB RAM even though I can't afford it 4x8GB sticks right now. Maybe I am wrong on this, but I think that is a good idea?

I don't have a need for SLI/Crossfire at the moment, but I'm trying to think ahead as maybe I would want to take advantage of that in the future. Currently, I'm most concerned with video and graphics editing performance, rather than games.

I am going to use the SSD for OS (Win 7 Pro) and apps install. I just did a fresh, bare-bones install of my current system with all apps and it's at 45GB. I looked at 60gb SSDs, but I am worried that is not enough cushion both now and going forward with more and bigger apps or future OSes.

I would have the 2 mechanical HDDs set to RAID 1. When are prices coming down again? lol

I will be buying a monitor, probably 20" or so (what is that? 1920x1080?). Maybe connecting a 27" TV at some point for video output.

Really appreciate any feedback. I have never built from scratch before and this will be my most expensive PC ever. I want to do it right and make sure I don't overlook anything or waste money where I could save. Thanks!

[ARchamps]

Great choices! The parts you picked are really good quality and should be able to crunch what you are intending to do with your system. The i5 2500K is a great choice for gamers. Take a look at the Corsair 500R. It's a little more expensive but has USB 3.0 front ports and more cooling options. Good choice on the 128GB SSD. I was surprised that mine 120GB Vertex3 filled up so fast! You'll be able to fit your OS, some programs and games on it just fine.

Other than that, nice build!

[teknix360]

Thanks for the input! I looked at the Corsair case, but...I don't know...it's just doesn't do it for me aesthetically. :rofl: I would have liked those front USB 3.0 ports though. I was thinking about the Storm Enforcer which does have those 3.0 ports, but just couldn't get over that stupid plastic grill.

A lot of reviews and articles I've been reading say 60GB is plenty for an OS install on SSD, but they must have like no apps installed on their machines! 45GB is just the basics for me and doesn't include any games. It's comforting to hear you filled up 120GB, because I was starting to think I must be doing something wrong.

Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to comment. I just pulled the trigger and bought all the pieces, so cross your fingers for me. Eek! :woot:

[mudslag]

Id drop the western digital as they are dropping their warranties to 1 yr, it just hasnt been updated on neweggs site yet.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/246456/hard_drive_manufacturers_slash_warranty_periods.html#tk.rss_news

[Snake89]

go here: http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=57962&vpn=BX80623I52500K&manufacture=Intel&promoid=1301

An get ur core i5 2500k, it's on sale because intel is trying to get rid of them.

[Raa]

Id drop the western digital as they are dropping their warranties to 1 yr, it just hasnt been updated on neweggs site yet.

Get a WD black and you won't have that problem (recommended choice). Seagate are going (gone?) to 1 year.

[Boxster17]

NCIX will also price match any other parts, if you're considering ordering anything from them. I've always had good experiences with them in the past.

Other than that, the parts you had listed there look great. I've never had any issues with WD Black drives, though I swapped them out for some lower RPM drives. All my programs fit on my SSD and I wanted a quieter drive for what was mainly media so that was my reasoning behind it.

[teknix360]

Thanks for the input. I decided to forgo the WD's to save a little cash. I ended up finding two Seagate 1TB drives on sale at Best Buy. In scouring the reviews, it looks like they have about the same reputation as the WD Caviar Black drives I was considering. But the Seagate offers a 3 year warranty whereas WD model is indeed only offering 1 year.

I'm going to put them in RAID 1, so fingers crossed they don't both fail at the same time! Ha.

Total with tax and shipping and all that jazz came to $1427 -- before Newegg rebates ($15) and Fatwallet cash back ($20). It's fun to save up for these purchases, but man, when you buy all the parts at once it's kind of...overwhelming. :omg: lol

I skipped the card reader for now, because I couldn't make up my mind on that model and it's not a necessity. Hopefully, I'll have some luck finding a used monitor and be all set!

[mrp04]

You don't need a power supply that fancy, it won't do anything for you really unless you are absolutely sure you want to get dual graphics later. I have a 600W OCZ ModXStream which is about half the price.

Also ask yourself if you really need that motherboard. A $120 board will probably do you just fine unless there is some killer feature you really need on that board.

Great SSD, I have the same one.

Good choice on RAM.

You definitely don't need 7200RPM hard drives. Your SSD is where you want the speed. Hard drives at this point are just for mass, cheap storage. Go for something cheaper and more capacious if you need hard drive space. I'd recommend getting one 5400RPM 2TB hard drive. Or even a 1TB if that's all you need for now. Hard drive prices are now very inflated due to the shortages. Such a shame. Almost a year ago I bought a 2TB 5400RPM drive for only $70.

Here is what I'd recommend: $1181.90 before $50 rebates

https://secure.neweg...spx?ID=18228292

I'd say about 95% of the performance at 78% of the cost, not counting rebates. The only thing that would be noticeable is the less storage. Maybe the hard drive speed would be noticeable if you use your hard drives for something other than storage of huge large files that are read slowly and sequentially.

Finally, if you live near a Micro Center, get your motherboard and processor from there. They have the i5-2500k for $180 and $50 off a compatible motherboard. If you decide you only really need a $120 board, you can get it for only $70. You'll save another $80 or so.

[mudslag]

Thanks for the input. I decided to forgo the WD's to save a little cash. I ended up finding two Seagate 1TB drives on sale at Best Buy. In scouring the reviews, it looks like they have about the same reputation as the WD Caviar Black drives I was considering. But the Seagate offers a 3 year warranty whereas WD model is indeed only offering 1 year.

Just a thought....Dont forget Seagate is also dropping their warranty lengths on a number of their drives, check to find out if the drive you are looking at is one of them.

Hitachi 1TB 7200 RPM 32mb cache Sata 6GB, 3 yr warranty $119.

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822145533

[bgjerlow]

Nice picks. I have the HAF 922 case myself, and I can absolutely recommend it.

As for the PSU, I would say you should go for a Corsair instead. The Corsair CX600 should do you fine.

As for the rest of the parts, everything looks good. Just remember with the SSD, not to EVER format it.

[Girr]

I just built this computer for around that budget and it is very similar, great list of parts! If you read through my post on the process, there were a lot of good suggestions and information that may help you (titbits and links to monitor selection and other part features to look out for). You can also see my quick summary of how the build went. I have the smaller Crusial SSD (64gb) and the larger WD (2TB) and they are both great! The i-5 is amazing and you will be happy with the Gigabyte card. I was very impressed with Gigabytes build quality. The corsair vengeance RAM is also great. I think the ASUS MOBO is a great pick as well, I went with something a little bit cheaper (MSI) and it works fine, a few cons that the ASUS MOBO doesn't have so that's a plus.

Here is a link to the thread:

http://www.neowin.ne...#entry594566659

[neo158]

An get ur core i5 2500k, it's on sale because intel is trying to get rid of them.

Because?

Source?

[teknix360]

Just a thought....Dont forget Seagate is also dropping their warranty lengths on a number of their drives, check to find out if the drive you are looking at is one of them.

Thanks for the tip. I did read up on the warranty situation, and the models I bought are covered under a 5 year warranty. I'm pretty paranoid about hard drives, so I also chose to buy these local at Best Buy. The price was actually not bad ($300 for both including tax)--considering the market. I was scared to go with bare drives my first time out (I don't have any cables, don't know what all I need, etc.), so I got the retail models.

I just built this computer for around that budget and it is very similar, great list of parts! If you read through my post on the process, there were a lot of good suggestions and information that may help you (titbits and links to monitor selection and other part features to look out for). You can also see my quick summary of how the build went. I have the smaller Crusial SSD (64gb) and the larger WD (2TB) and they are both great! The i-5 is amazing and you will be happy with the Gigabyte card. I was very impressed with Gigabytes build quality. The corsair vengeance RAM is also great. I think the ASUS MOBO is a great pick as well, I went with something a little bit cheaper (MSI) and it works fine, a few cons that the ASUS MOBO doesn't have so that's a plus.

Here is a link to the thread:

http://www.neowin.ne...#entry594566659

Thanks! I will read through your thread. I'm really glad to hear your build was a success. Of course, if I run into a problem with my build, I might be pestering you for help! :happy:

[Seahorsepip Veteran]

with such a budget why don't you choose a i7 :/?

[teknix360]

with such a budget why don't you choose a i7 :/?

Well, the i7 is $100 more. In the benchmark studies I read, there was not a huge leap in performance from the i5 to the i7 for the applications I would use, so I decided it was not worth the extra money.

[patseguin Global Moderator]

Great list of parts. My only suggestion would have been to wait for AMD's 7000 series card but I'm sure you're happy with what you've got there.

[Snake89]

Because?

Source?

http://www.gadgetoz.com/post/intel-to-drop-price-of-core-i5-and-core-i3-by-15/

[Lucas]

Holy ****, look at the price on that HDD, dang.

[neo158]

http://www.gadgetoz....-core-i3-by-15/

All Intel are doing is dropping the price, not "getting rid of them".

[teknix360]

Well, I built it! And it works! :woot:

I'm posting from it right now. Only thing I screwed up was I connected all the hard drives and then installed Windows to the SSD. It decided to created a partition on one of the HDDs as its system partition. So I had to wipe everything, only connect the SSD and do a fresh install of Windows. Now it's all good.

I also couldn't seem to attach the SSD to the 2.5" adapter brackets that came with the HAF case. So I ordered a Rosewill adapter that is supposed to work better with the toolless hard drive bays in the case.

After installing the driver for the Marvell SATA ports, I got a couple of BSODs courtesy of mv91xx.sys. I haven't had any BSODs after several reboots and use, so...fingers crossed.

Kachow! :punk:

Building my own system was something I have wanted to do forever, and I feel so proud now that I've done it. :D