Solved Questions on a gaming computer

[solomonkane]

I am in the process of trying to figuer out the best components to use in the gaming computer I am planning to build and any advice would be most welcome. The parts list I have so far is:

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3P

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA
1155 95W Quad-Core

PSU: Corsair Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 750W

Hard Drives:
OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-120G SSD for OS and apps
Samsung EcoGreen F4 HD204UI 2TB for Storage

Case: Antec Twelve Hundred V3

Monitor: ASUS VH232H

Gaming Keyboard: Tt eSPORTS CHALLENGER ULTIMATE

Some questions that I have are, is 8 GB enough RAM?
I was planning to go with G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB x 2. Also, is this a good GPU to get: XFX FX-795A-TDBC Radeon HD 7950
Newegg.com - XFX Double D Black Edition FX-795A-TDBC Radeon HD 7950 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card?
Lastly, I was wondering if this would be the way to go for the optical drive:
Pioneer Black 4MB Cache SATA Blu-ray Burner
Newegg.com - Pioneer Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 5X DVD-RAM 10X BD-ROM 4MB Cache SATA Blu-ray Burner With BDXL Support BDR-2207

Thanks for any and all help

 

[Solarstarshines]

Looks good

Im not sure what anyone else thinks and yes 8GB is plenty of ram for Gaming

 

[M1GU31]

Yeah that's pretty good setup and 8gb is more then enough.

 

[smarteyeball]

It will do the job + another 8GB being enough.

And have you considered a GTX 670 - a little more pricey than the 7950's but arguably superior.

 

[solomonkane]

So, would the $100+ difference between the XFX 7950 and the GTX 670 be worth it?

 

[solomonkane]

Actually, I just read the reviews for the XFX 7950 and no one had anything good to say about it, so I guess the GTX 670 is the winner

 

[Maguscreed]

I have 16 gigs of ram and I have yet to manage to use more than about 6 of it, I game heavily.
You should be fine with 8.
The biggest concern is the make/model tier of graphics card for you at this point.

Which you seem to be looking at a fairly decent upper-middle class one.
Which is fine as you'd likely have to spend a couple of hundred more dollars to break into the flagship tier of cards.

That being said my backup machine has my old 5850 in it (2 generations before the card you are looking at) and it still manages to run pretty much everything without trouble, though it does choke a bit on batman arkham city.

 

[solomonkane]

I should probably point out that I'm a total noob at this, this will be my first build. What would be a couple of the top tier graphics cards?

 

[Solarstarshines]

if you want Nvidia Gtx 680 670 660 ti

Radeon Ati 7950 7970 6970 6990 2 different generations

With overclocking the 7950 will be just as fast but if you are looking for performance with out touching your cards the 670 is better

But keep in mind you really want to spend a extra hundred might as well go for a 7970 even though a 680 is slightly faster also Power color has a 7990 which is 2 7970's on a single die

something to think about also if you are doing multi monitor set ups ATI is alot better for that

 

[Poimetheus]

Couple of red flags for me. I don't trust Gigabyte boards. I've seen more than one DOA Gigabyte come through these doors (I work for an IT company). The OCZ SSD's are cheap at the moment, but have a reputation of BSOD'ing after about a thousand hours. Also, I didn't look into your PSU, but make sure it's a single 12v rail and not two.

Other than that, looks pretty good, especially if you're looking at overclocking that i5.

 

[solomonkane]

Any recomendations on a Mobo and SSD? The PSU has a single 12v rail

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Any recomendations on a Mobo and SSD? The PSU has a single 12v rail

SSD: Samsung, Intel, or Crucial

What other model Corsair PSUs can you get, such as AX or HX series?

Do you have access to Antec, XFX, or Seasonic PSUs?

 

[Maguscreed]

For motherboard ASROCK
I switched to them after having nightmares with ASUS's support system/staff and I couldn't be happier with this board.
MSI is also an option.
I wrote off gigabyte personally nearly a decade ago when they sold me a motherboard that literally could not function with nvidia graphics cards.

 

[Solarstarshines]

+1 for Asrock I had an Asrock board for a P4 that thing was a monster

Msi is also alright I run a Msi board similar to the boards for intel mine is AMD version though

 

[Poimetheus]

Listen to these guys. Look at compatibility for your GPU and CPU and case. I'd personally go with the Intel SSD. You'll most likely have equal luck with a Crucial.

 

[Maguscreed]

Listen to these guys. Look at compatibility for your GPU and CPU and case. I'd personally go with the Intel SSD. You'll most likely have equal luck with a Crucial.

I'll support this post primarily because what little information is available on the subject suggests intel ssd's are the most reliable.

 

[solomonkane]

Here's what I found:
Mobo: ASRock Z77 Extreme6 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Newegg.com - ASRock Z77 Extreme6 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
SSD: SAMSUNG 830 Series MZ-7PC128B/WW 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 830 Series MZ-7PC128B/WW 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
PSU: Antec NEO ECO 620C 620W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC
Newegg.com - Antec NEO ECO 620C 620W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply

Would these be better?

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Would these be better?

Yep.

The Antec Neo is high quality, made by Seasonic, more than enough power.

The Samsung SSD is highly regarded by all accounts---all components including the controller are made by Samsung.

Asrock at one time was part of Asus, but is now a separate company and well thought of.

 

[solomonkane]

There were some pretty bad reviews on the Mobo, so I'm wondering if it's the right way to go?

 

[ignatzatsonic]

You have to take reviews with a cubic yard of salt, especially from Newegg. Half of the reviewers are doofuses. Some of the complaints are legit---but you can find many complaints about any motherboard you choose.

They ALL have DOAs and issues in some cases. Nothing you can do about it.

I'd stay with Asus, Gigabyte, Intel, or Asrock.

Get the features you need.

Then cross your fingers and hope that:

1: It is not DOA

2: You never have to deal with the manufacturer's customer support, particularly RMA.