first custom gaming pc build

[OhSnapWord]

That hard drive setup is more than ideal.

 

[BadReligion83]

That hard drive setup is more than ideal.

From that response it sounds like a little too much. Maybe a smaller ssd?

 

[OhSnapWord]

If you're using an SSD as the system drive, ~240GB is ideal. That will give you more than enough room to install your OS, some programs and games as well as any future updates.

 

[BadReligion83]

If you're using an SSD as the system drive, ~240GB is ideal. That will give you more than enough room to install your OS, some programs and games as well as any future updates.

Cool works for me. Ok so onto the gpu. Here is what I had in mind

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121466

I'm thinking that for now I'll only need one gpu, as I'm not going to run an sli set-up

 

[aimforthehead]

Not sure about the 560, but I know the 560ti is pretty good.
What price range are you looking at for gpu?

 

[BadReligion83]

Not sure about the 560, but I know the 560ti is pretty good.
What price range are you looking at for gpu?

My budget for the gpu was originally $150 - $200 but the ti is only $14 dollars over that so I think I can swing it

Even better is its got a mail in rebate so it would fall within my price range

 

[Hameister]

Yeah no excuses I'll admit I'm a little lazy sometimes but I'll do more in the future. Thanks for the link.

Speaking of research I'm guessing that the next item, since all the big things are out of the way, is going to be memory? Here is what I came up with:

For the main hard drive, I wanted to go ssd just because of the speed and a regular hdd for storage.

Ssd:
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 830 Series MZ-7PC256B/WW 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Hdd:
Newegg.com - Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

The main reason I want an ssd and a hdd is due to the fact that most of the research I've done says that you use the ssd for the os and the hdd for storage. I had originally wanted to go with 2 ssds' but thought that would be a little too much overkill for what I want to do.

I think your choice of SSD is solid, excellent SSD, stable, with a good reputation.

Your choice of HDD is also a good one, however, if it were my build, I would choose this...

Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD10EZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Why? Simply because in 22 years of buying hard drives, I have never had a Western Digital fail me....not one! We are all creatures of habit, and I always choose WD for that reason. But, like I said the Seagate is a fine choice as well.

 

[BadReligion83]

OK so I think there is only the memory, the optical drive and the anti-virus left. Obviously I've already chosen windows 7 64 bit

The memory I was going to go with this, but I think it might be overkill again

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233246

Now the optical drive is what is confusing me. I see all these different types and I'm honestly not sure which one I should get. This is the one I had picked out

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106276

 

[Hameister]

Cool works for me. Ok so onto the gpu. Here is what I had in mind

Newegg.com - ASUS ENGTX560 DC/2DI/1GD5 GeForce GTX 560 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

I'm thinking that for now I'll only need one gpu, as I'm not going to run an sli set-up

Here again, if I'm making a suggestion, it is always EVGA. Why? The same reason I buy WD HDDs, I have never had a failure in many, many years, never! And, I have mercilessly pounded on my vid cards, overclocking to the limit, and then 5% more, then benching, and contesting, and never a failure! So EVGA has become my brand of choice.

Also, when it comes to the GPU I always suggest going for the absolute best, most powerful, you can possibly afford, because they are generally the first piece of hardware to be upgraded as new more demanding games are released. You want your purchase to last as long as possible, and you want the best bang for your buck if you ever decide to go SLI.

If you can handle the few extra dollars, go for this...

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2662-KR GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

If that is simply out of your budget, then my next choice would be here...

Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1561-KR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

The only difference between these two cards is generally around $25.00, but the GTX 660 is the superior card.

 

[BadReligion83]

Here again, if I'm making a suggestion, it is always EVGA. Why? The same reason I buy WD HDDs, I have never had a failure in many, many years, never! And, I have mercilessly pounded on my vid cards, overclocking to the limit, and then 5% more, then benching, and contesting, and never a failure! So EVGA has become my brand of choice.

Also, when it comes to the GPU I always suggest going for the absolute best, most powerful, you can possibly afford, because they are generally the first piece of hardware to be upgraded as new more demanding games are released. You want your purchase to last as long as possible, and you want the best bang for your buck if you ever decide to go SLI.

If you can handle the few extra dollars, go for this...

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2662-KR GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

If that is simply out of your budget, then my next choice would be here...

Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1561-KR GeForce GTX 560 Ti FPB (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

The only difference between these two cards is generally around $25.00, but the GTX 660 is the superior card.

Well fortunately for me I contacted newegg and asked them if they had a promo code or discount for first time buyers and since I was dropping so much money. They sent me a coupon and that would cover the difference of the gpu I picked out vs the gtx 660. So yeah I can swing it. Not to mention the mail in rebates will bring the price even lower after its all said and done.