Advice on a gaming rig.

[Scruffy]

With the computer build I plan on mostly gaming and for it to be sort of a hobby. I've been interested in computers for a while. So gaming.

My budget is pretty flexible actually. I don't really plan on getting everything at once. Strictly the tower would cost around 1k. You guys have shaved off $200 off of the cost so far ^-^. It doesn't include Windows or hardware apart from the tower. I haven't really looked much into the extras, but once I get a solid list of components I will look further into those.

U.S.A. New York. You guys seem to swear by Newegg so definitely that! Microcenter seems worth the drive.

I do plan on overclocking, but maybe not right away, what with extra money in cooling in such. Size for the build is completely irrelevant to me. I'd actually prefer it to be larger with extra space for cable management and such, but the case I plan on is just fine. As for noise, I don't want it too loud but silence isn't vital to me. Chances are I will use headphones a lot, because I like them.
I definitely want to keep upgrading it. Like I said, I would like this to become a sort of hobby. If I spend now and let it rest then it will be outdated and that would be sad for when Ivy Bridge gets going. I think it's called Ivy Bridge.
As for Crossfire I have seen things about it and such but it definitely isn't a priority. It just isn't.

I hope that answers some questions.

 

[Scruffy]

The H80 is a sealed water cooling unit, meaning you never have to perform maintenance on it. I doubt the hoses would ever crack for as long as you use the system, and you'd probably be ready to upgrade long before that as I plan to regarding my sealed water cooling unit. Mine will probably fail before that one too, but I can expect it to last at least a few years if need be.

I will definitely look into the H80 then. Thanks so much. :]

 

[Scruffy]

So does anyone know where I could get a slightly cheaper hard drive? I have a Seagate Barracuda listed but I feel like it's a bit pricey for 750GB.

 

[EarthDog]

Try Western Digital Caviar Black drives...

 

[Scruffy]

Much better. :]

If I were to get a SSD as a boot disk, what would you suggest for that size and brand wise?

 

[EarthDog]

Corsair M4, OCZ Vertex4 to name two. Size is up to you. No less than 60GB for a boot drive though. That will handle windows and a few major apps.

 

[Scruffy]

This isn't corsair, but is it still good? I've only been seeing Crucial ones. If 64GB will handle windows alone I'll probably go wit that one.

 

[EarthDog]

Oops, I meant Crucial, my bad.

Windows 7 is around 20GB installation, we have ways to easily trim that down a bit (shrinking the page file, disabling hibernation/system restore). Get the biggest one you can afford is my advice.

 

[Scruffy]

Well I'm thinking mostly about that if I make an SSD my boot disk, then I need a special program to make it work like that (I think) and if i run out of space then I've in quite a bit of trouble, right?

 

[EarthDog]

Nope and Nope.

Just format the SSD, like any HDD, and install windows to it. You can install other applications to your HDD, you just have to change the drive ID (for example C:\ to E:\ or whatever your HDD is).

 

[Scruffy]

Then I might end up going with the 64GB SSD just because I'm trying to keep my budget as close to 1k as I can.
Do you think I'm spending too much on my case? Obsidian cases are awesome but do you think it's overkill?

 

[EarthDog]

They are great cases, but you can have similar for less. Try the Corsair Carbide 400r or 500r.

 

[Scruffy]

Meh I love the look of the Obsidian series. I think I'll stick with my choice then.

Well that means I can move on to looking for the little extras like cathodes, cooling, monitors and things :3

 

[Conumdrum]

64GB is a small SSD you will fill it way fast. 128GB is great for system, 2 games, office, and all drivers with some room to spare. 64 will limit you so think about it.

A case is important, but the drives are more important.

 

[Scruffy]

I know but I plan on getting the SSD as simply a boot drive and keep games and such on a 1TB 7500 RPM drive. I will consider it but I might even end up on putting everything on the hard drive. /: I have to consider all of my funds.

 

[Conumdrum]

You'll regret it. Your stuff. You want the benefits of an SSD and in the first 3 months it will be full. Then you have to manage your stuff it's a pain.

 

[PolePosition]

you still shouldn't have your SSD maxed out with an OS alone, which is what Windows 7 will do it, then when updates happen down the road, you begin getting error "Running out of disk space, remove programs to free up space", which you won't have to free up since Windows took it all.

 

[EarthDog]

Meh I love the look of the Obsidian series. I think I'll stick with my choice then.

Well that means I can move on to looking for the little extras like cathodes, cooling, monitors and things :3

Skip the bling in favor of a larger ssd.

 

[Scruffy]

Okay well that and the monitor that I found is about 1.3k. Should I be worried about 60hz vs. 120hz?

 

[Knufire]

120Hz is if you want to do 3D or have abnormally good eyesight and can actually tell the difference.