Building my first custom gaming PC, Under $1000

[Xarath]

I've never build my own PC before, so I'm looking for guidance building my first. I've been wanting a gaming PC that will last me a couple of years and play some of the newer PC games on high settings. I've decided to build my own PC for much of the same reasons most do: cheaper prices, extreme customisability, and, of course, as a hobby project. Now I've talked to one of my friends from another forum, and we discussed this topic and we've come up with a list of parts. I'm not completely confident that he's 100% positive about what he's doing, so naturally I did some googleing and I ended up here.

Basically I'm trying to get peak performance along with the ability to run modern games on high settings for under $1000. If this list I've put together is anything to go by, this looks easily in reach. I'd like it if someone could help me out and tell me if there are any problems with this list, better deals I can get, or things that I have completely forgotten. So far, all the parts on this list retail for a grand total of merely $668.91, giving me a bit of wiggle room (but I'd like to spend any extra money on a monitor). So, without any further rambling, here's the list:


CPU:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115018

CPU Fan:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118019

Motherboard:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138075

RAM:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145184

Video Card:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814143119

Hard Drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822145167

Power Supply:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817171031

DVD Drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827136153

Case:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811146025

[not important]

Go with a better brand of Motherboard. Asus are highly respected here.
I prefer Seagate HDD's. Very reliable and a 5 yr. warranty.
Using an aftermarket heatsink and fan will void the CPU warranty. The sock unit will be fine unless you are doing some heavy OC'ing.

[Doom]

Here are my thoughts on an overall decent list:

- CPU: Thumbs Up

- CPU Cooler: Unless you are going to OC... that may be overkill. Here's what I use on an OEM Q9300 quad core and it works like a charm (and will bring down the cost a little bit).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103051

- Mobo: I'll second the motion to go with an ASUS. You can also check out the EVGA nVidia 780i as it's a board I have used and like. It will bring up the price a little bit though... so ASUS may be a good compromise.

- Video Card: If you want to make your gaming better, this is one of the most important components. Go up in price $30-$40 and move up to a 9800GTX+ if you can. Here's an option.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130376

- HDD: Hitachi does't get too many high marks in these forums usually. Most builders here will recommend Seagate drives for reliability and the 5 year warranty. I've also used Western Digital in the past with good results. Prices should be the same if not better.

- Thumbs up for the most part: This PSU only hax one PCI-e power connection. If you buy any graphics card that requires two... make sure the card comes with an adaptor so you can fully power it. The other option would be to move up to a 550w or 620w system. I know it's a bit to spend on the PSU, but this is an absolutely critical component and one of the most important things not to skimp on. Corsair, Cooler Master and Antec are recommended in these forums.

- DVD: Thumbs Up

- Case: I haven't used that one... but it looks like a decent setup. Cases really come down to personal choice unless you pick one out that anybody here vehemently dislikes.

My ultimate thoughts... cut costs on the CPU cooler by using stock cooling... and see if you can shave a few bucks on the HDD (unless you really need the full 1TB). Put those savings into the PSU, Graphics card and motherboard to ensure better reliability and greater gaming potential. All of this can fit in your budget easily enough. Good Building.

[Xarath]

For the PSU:

Is this a better alternative? Or should I just go all the way and go with the 550w?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139001

Also, any recommendations on a Seagate Hard Drive (500gb-1tb) for at or under $90?

[minsonngo]

Good choice on the PSU.

The 1TB hdds from Seagate are 109.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148274


The 750GB ones are 99.99.

[Xarath]

Great. Now all I need to do is change my hard drive. As per your recommendations, I have chosen this drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148288

Look good?

Also, am I going to need a bunch of cables and stuff when I do finally put this thing together? I'm not sure if everything will come with the parts or not.

[Doom]

The new PSU is a winner and the hard drive looks good. If you ever want more storage space, it's extremely easy to add in another hard drive with the SATA setup (oh yeah... be sure to get all SATA drives to make things easier and faster). You can also build your own external hard drive w/ a disk and an external enclosure. I bought a second HDD that was the exact same model as my regular one. I put it in an enclosure and now I have a perfect copy backup I make each month. That way, if my primary HDD ever fails, I've got a plug and play replacement ready to go.

Next up, all products will come with all the necessary cables... and then some. The Corsair PSU box makes a perfect place to put all the leftover cables and screws.

It does help to make sure you've got the right tools. A phillips screwdriver, pair of needle-nose pliars, tweesers and wire cutters are nice. The wire cutters are for cutting the cord ties... you wont actually need to do any stripping. I got a small tool-kit that has all of those parts and a precision screwdriver set for about $5. It's a solid buy and you'll end up using it for other stuff.

The build you've currently got picked out should be able to play pretty much anything out there now at the highest or near highest settings, and the quad core means your CPU will be able to handle lots of demanding programs.

If you decide to go through with the build, remember to use these forums in case you run into problems... and let us know how the build goes. Cheers.

[Xarath]

Alright, thanks for your help everyone. I'm not sure if I'll be ordering the parts immediately, or if I'll wait until Christmas season. But I definitely will come here first to get help.

Real quick, NewEgg calculates my shipping at about $111, but all the parts are listed as free shipping. I haven't put in the credit card number yet, so will it calculate shipping as free when I'm about to make my final purchase, or am I doing something wrong?

[Xarath]

Yeah, the problem was that one of the products did not have free shipping and I must have missed it. Odd that the shipping was $111 on a $50 thing though. :P