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Age old question… Which build should I use?

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That's a pretty good start. What you selected would play games much better than the aformentioned rigs, and is fully compatible. The only thing is that some of the parts, such as the PSU, motherboard, case, are overly expensive.

I'm assuming you'll be sticking to a single video card? You can add multiple of the same video card for added power, but it's rather unnecessary for single-screen gaming.

Also, are you going to overclock? Basically you can force a CPU to operate at a higher-than-stock frequency, but have to adjust some voltages higher in order for it to remain stable, which in turn requires more cooling. If you don't go multiple cards, or overclock, you can drop your motherboard down to the $60-70 level. Even with both...$140 level is about where you'll probably end up.
 
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:welcome: slim

As Knufire already asked, do you live nearby a Microcenter?

You can get a MOBO/CPU bundle for really cheap. I believe the i5 3570K will be 80$ cheaper if you do the bundle and you can also get a deal on the MOBO. You have to pick it up in the store though, no delivery. Also, I would recommend that you, go to a 600W PSU from the list here -> http://www.overclockers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=589708

Here is the Microcenter deal right now:
CPU: Intel i5 3570K --> 169.99$
MOBO: ASUS P8Z77 --> 99.99$ (89.99$ with mail-in rebate)
 
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Hmm ok, thanks guys for everything so far, I found a micro center about 2 hours from me, in Denver. I will take what i've learned so far and try to throw together some builds.
 
TBH you could make things simpler/smaller/easier by going m-atx IMO.

i5 3570k + Hyper 212 Evo
Asus P8Z77 M Pro
GTX 670/HD7970 Whatever floats your boat (7970 is faster for pure throughput of FPS)
8GB whatever 1600mhz CL9 RAM
120-256GB SSD (Samsung 840 250GB non-pro might be solid for the price?) + 2tb Storage
Corsair 350D/Silverstone TJ08-E/PS07/Fractal Arc Mini/Define Mini
500-550W PSU. Corsair CX 500M or Antec HCG 520, etc etc. Anything around that range.

Etc etc. You get the idea. Most people don't need the huge cases anymore.. It's... Pointless. The average gamer won't need a case bigger than M-ATX. If you want room for SLI/Xfire later, then sure. But if you're sticking to 1080p, stick to a single GPU and stick to a smaller form factor (IMO). Just giving my opinions.
 
Cool, thanks again for the info, I'm really learning a lot and my build keeps getting better and better, closer to what I want. Thanks guys! :)
 
Cool, thanks again for the info, I'm really learning a lot and my build keeps getting better and better, closer to what I want. Thanks guys! :)

If you tell us for sure where you're buying all the parts, Knufire is really good at putting together a definitive list of parts. You shouldn't have to put the partslist together yourself. There are people here that do that.
 
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