My new PC Build... Could use some tips!

[Sir_Hans]

Ok so I'm finally getting around to upgrading my almost 10 year old PC.
This will be my first time building a PC.

I want to know what other people think of this particular build... Maybe tell me if anything is going to be incompatible (that would be a huge help).
My targeted budget is about 1000-1100$, but would be much more pleased to get it as low as 800-900$ without sacrificing too much performance.
Also I've always used AMD systems, in the past. But this time I opted for Intel, my reasoning for this is I've heard performance can be a little better than AMD's once you go above the 150$-200$ processor price range. Also I've read that the Intel processor runs a lot cooler than the comparable AMD processors I was looking at. (My room/house often gets up to 80f-85f during the day/afternoons)
I'd always prefer to have the system be idiot-proof. Easy installation of drivers etc... The software side of things is what intimidates me of building a rig. So any suggestions to help this be an idiot proof rig would be appreciated as well.
And I know some of you are going to say I should get a SSD... I'll save that for a future upgrade. I'm pretty patient when it comes to boot/load times...


So here's what I came up with.

Mobo: MSI Z97-GD65 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (179.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130769
MSI Z97-G45 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (144.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130771

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K Haswell Quad-Core 3.4GHz LGA 1150 84W Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80646I54670K (239.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116899

GPU: XFX Double D R9-270X-EDFC Radeon R9 270X 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 (224.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150704
MSI Gaming N770 TF 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 770 2GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 (349.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127741

Ram: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory (83.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314

Power Supply: Cooler Master Extreme Power Plus - 600W Power Supply (59.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171039
CORSAIR RM Series RM650 650W ATX12V v2.31 and EPS 2.92 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply (119.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139054

Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 - High Air Flow Mid Tower (59.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233
NZXT Phantom 410 Series CA-PH410-W1 Black/White Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (89.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146087

HD: WD BLACK SERIES WD1003FZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive (69.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236625

Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm (34.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM (99.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832416806

SSD PNY Optima SSD7SC240GOPT-RB 2.5" 240GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (109.99$)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820178720

Total Cost: $1348.89


That's all! Thanks in advance for input.

[Vibe]

your CPU is your Mobo

[Sir_Hans]

your CPU is your Mobo

Oh werd... thx for pointing that out.
fixed*

[Thryn]

1) Yes, I'm running an R9 270x with an i5-3570k
2) Power is sufficient, though if you plan to add an extra card, you'll need upgrading. I believe your PSU isn't modular, so wiring will be more of a hassle. If I were you, I'd put extra cabling in the lowest drive bay on your 912.
3) Don't shit out on cooling. Your case (and the gfx card's fan itself) will handle most of what the GPU gives off, and your CPU will last longer with better cooling. Preventative maintenance also helps with the longevity of your machine.

If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me. I have many of the parts you're looking to get.

600w is plenty of power for this current build, and good cooling will help with OCing your CPU.


edit: a new feature to the R9 series is that AMD has removed crossfire bridging, your motherboard takes care of that now
If you end up adding another GPU, go ahead (your motherboard has 2 x16 slots)

edit 2: I used to use AMD CPU's, but after some trouble I've had - never again.
regarding drivers: AMD Catalyst is easy enough to install, but I know people who have had trouble using either AMD or Nvidia software.

[Sir_Hans]

Oh great thanks for those answers... What would u suggest a good upgrade to that heatsink would be?

[Thryn]

Oh great thanks for those answers... What would u suggest a good upgrade to that heatsink would be?

That heatsink is just fine for your build. The place you could save money would be in the motherboard, gpu, and cpu areas. But if your build is already in your budget, your PC will work out nicely.

Currently, the only games I get FPS drops on is the ArmA series.

I also did get some FPS drops on M&B, but that's when I had 2000 bodies on xD

[Nehvar]

XFX got a bad reputation for their GPU heatsinks last generation so make sure you do a little research on their performance this generation before you send any money their way;  especially if you live in a warmer climate.  Also, don't skimp on the PSU.  A faulty PSU can cause a lot of damage to your system and may even do it repeatedly if you can't figure out the cause right away.  I only trust Seasonic or Seasonic rebrands (Corsair) myself but there are probably other good manufacturers out there too.  Johnny Guru is the best site for reviews and other information on PSU's and I highly recommend purchasing only PSU's that he rates well.

[Sir_Hans]

Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out Nehvar... Was contemplating getting a better PSU just to get a modular one and lessen the mess of wires I'll have to deal with.

[Thryn]

XFX got a bad reputation for their GPU heatsinks last generation so make sure you do a little research on their performance this generation before you send any money their way;  especially if you live in a warmer climate.  Also, don't skimp on the PSU.  A faulty PSU can cause a lot of damage to your system and may even do it repeatedly if you can't figure out the cause right away.  I only trust Seasonic or Seasonic rebrands (Corsair) myself but there are probably other good manufacturers out there too.  Johnny Guru is the best site for reviews and other information on PSU's and I highly recommend purchasing only PSU's that he rates well.

The CoolerMaster listed above doesn't seem to have an 80 plus certification (it's not very energy efficient). For a few extra dollars, you can find some other PSU's (Corsair makes fine ones) that may end up working for the benefit of your PC.

[Sir_Hans]

Cool, well I just found out today I'm getting some cash from a shipping company who damaged my car wheel when shipping... So my budget is a bit higher now.
I revised the parts I'm purchasing... Different Mobo, Case, PSU, and graphics card. And I decided to throw in an SSD as well.

Any thoughts on the new setup?

I might throw in a few extra 120mm or 140mm fans because the case has room for extra ones.
Will I be able to overclock the cpu safely with that heatsink?

Also for the GPU, I Was looking at an EVGA GTX 770, which gets better reviews on newegg than the MSI GTX 770 I have listed...
But the MSI Mobo claims there is some sort of extra boost when it is paired with a MSI GPU, know anything about this or is it likely an un-noticable gimmick?

[Christo]

But the MSI Mobo claims there is some sort of extra boost when it is paired with a MSI GPU, know anything about this or is it likely an un-noticable gimmick?

That sounds like crappy marketing move to me.

[Thryn]

That sounds like crappy marketing move to me.

pretty much

[KaleLord]

I think on couple hardware review websites the MSI beats out EVGA on noise and temperature forgot which ones

[Sir_Hans]

I think on couple hardware review websites the MSI beats out EVGA on noise and temperature forgot which ones

Oh ya?
That would justify the MSI one being 20$ more than the EVGA one...
Not sure which one i should go for...

Another question: Do you there would be any noticeable difference between a Intel Core i5-4670K haswell, and the i5-4690k haswell?

[Thryn]

EVGA doesn't build with AMD GPU's O.o