New Build, Advice Needed on Cutting Cost

[jimmyrules712]

Hi, I've been away from this board for a while but the time has come for a new PC build. Primary use will be the main home PC (storing all files, photos, videos, etc., use for a large variety of programs (including MS Visual Studio) and some modern gaming (Starcraft 2)). I don't have a hard budget, I'd love for all of the parts below to add up to close to $500 but I'd rather not sacrifice a lot of performance to save a few dollars so I'll spend up to $1,000 if I have to to hit the sweet spot in value. Currently if I get all of the cheaper options listed it comes out to $722. I'm open to any suggestions where I can save money without losing much or gain a lot without spending much more.

I've done some research and came up with the following:

CPU:
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 - $220
OR
Intel Core i5-2500 3.3 GHz 6 MB Cache Socket LGA1155 Processor - $189

I can't decide if the $31 savings plus the savings of not needing an aftermarket cooler are worth losing the ability to overclock. I'm not a hardcore overclocker but if it's as easy on this CPU as I've read it's tempting. Thoughts on if the overclocked performance gain is worth the $50+ additional cost?

Motherboard:
ASRock P67 PRO3 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 - $100

Seems like a good value and feature combination. I've had good experiences with ASRock in the past.

RAM:
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) - $42

Video:
SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 - $130

I'm not very confident in this choice. I plan to run dual 22 or 24inch monitors, so I do need something that gives me that ability, but I may not be doing hardly any gaming on it at all. Should I do something cheaper? If this is overkill I'm open to suggestions on cheaper alternatives.

Hard Drive:

I've noticed the HD prices are spiked currently. When prices become reasonable again I will buy a 2TB Caviar Black for storage. In the meantime I would like to use this as an excuse to jump on the SSD bandwagon. This would be a drive just for OS and program installs. If I don't need the extra 60GB then I don't see any benefit to spending the money on the 128GB drive. Think the 60GB will suffice? I suppose I could always move some program installations to the Caviar black if it runs out.

Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive - $106
OR
Intel 510 Series (Elm Crest) SSDSC2MH120A2K5 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive - $280


Optical:
SAMSUNG Black 12X BD-ROM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA Internal Blu-ray Combo Model SH-B123L LightScribe Support - $60
OR
LITE-ON Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 12X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM 8MB Cache SATA 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu-ray 3D feature IHBS112-29 - $100

I want the ability to read blu-ray and burn dvds. I don't think I have a current need to burn blu-rays, but for only an extra $40 is it worth it?

Case:
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $45
OR
COOLER MASTER Silencio 450 RC-450-KKN1 Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $70

I can't decide if the Cooler Master is worth the extra money over the Antec. I like the appearance of both. The Cooler Master has front USB 3.0 ports and is advertised to be quieter. Opinions on if the 3.0 ports will come in handy anytime soon and if the sound proofing is noticeable?

PSU:
OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W Modular High Performance Power Supply - $50

I have a feeling that some may not agree with this choice, I don't see OCZ PSU's recommended often here. Is the quality difference between this and an Antec or Corsair that big? I know it would cost twice as much to get a modular from either of those brands.

OS:
Win 7 64bit Premium (already bought)

[glc]

1. If you aren't going to be overclocking or using the onboard video, you don't need the "K" series processor.

2. I would spend a bit more and get an Asus board with a Z68 chipset. Look at the P8Z68-V LX or LE.

3. With the Z68, you can use SRT. This would allow you to use a 64gb or less SSD to "cache" a standard hard drive. Personally, I'd get a 40gb Intel 320 and a 500gb WD Blue for now. You will run out of room REAL fast if you use only a SSD. Don't expect to see hard drive prices back down before summer.

4. Good ram choice.

5. I'll take a Lite-On optical over a Samsung optical in a heartbeat.

6. No opinion on the case, that's more of a personal choice.

7. The only *cheap* modular I trust is the Antec BP550 Plus, but I'd probably wait for one of the new Corsair TX-M models to go on sale.

8. You can cut back on the video card, but your gaming performance will be impacted.

[jimmyrules712]

Originally Posted by glc 1. If you aren't going to be overclocking or using the onboard video, you don't need the "K" series processor. 2. I would spend a bit more and get an Asus board with a Z68 chipset. Look at the P8Z68-V LX or LE. 3. With the Z68, you can use SRT. This would allow you to use a 64gb or less SSD to "cache" a standard hard drive. Personally, I'd get a 40gb Intel 320 and a 500gb WD Blue for now. You will run out of room REAL fast if you use only a SSD. Don't expect to see hard drive prices back down before summer. 4. Good ram choice. 5. I'll take a Lite-On optical over a Samsung optical in a heartbeat. 6. No opinion on the case, that's more of a personal choice. 7. The only *cheap* modular I trust is the Antec BP550 Plus, but I'd probably wait for one of the new Corsair TX-M models to go on sale. 8. You can cut back on the video card, but your gaming performance will be impacted.

I went with the Antec BP550 Plus PSU as recomended. I took your advice on the Z68 recomendation, but due to the amount of negative reviews on newegg for the ASUS wasn't comfortable with it so I went with an ASROCK instead. I also decided, for now, to drop the videocard and get the K process and use onboard. I found a LITEon DVDRW optical drive and a WD Caviar Green 1 TB hard drive laying around that I'll use for now, so I dropped the new optical drive and went with the 64 GB SSD for my OS drive. Final build is below:

Motherboard:
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 - $115

CPU:
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 - $205

Video:
Onboard

RAM:
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) - $42

Hard Drive:
Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive - $106

+old WD 1TB Caviar green

Optical:
Old LITEon DVDRW drive

Case:
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $45

PSU:
Antec BP550 Plus 550W - $70

OS:
Win 7 64bit Premium (already bought)

Total cost (excluding components I already owned) = $583

[jdeb]

You may be adding a negative to the ASRock but I hope not. My experience with them is that they are flaky and have voltage issues within a short period of time. I have worked on many of them and they are consistent in those areas.

Do not trust those reviews, most of them are from inexperienced users. The recommendation that glc gave you were from experienced builders who build a lot of machines. The board he linked is the best Z68 board for stability, reliability, and performance. Asus uses the highest quality components and has an excellent manufacturing process.

[mjkovis]

The only component on that list that is speculative is your motherboard. ASRock is definitely NOT on many lists as a quality manufacturer in most instances. Think of the motherboard as your foundation. You wouldn't build a brand new house on a foundation that isn't solid, would you?

If money is an issue, Gigabyte has a decent board for the same price and free shipping. BTW, it is a micro ATX board, but it shouldn't matter with your system.

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Personally, I would go with the ASUS recommendation above, if you can squeeze a few more dollars out of your budget.