Looking to build gaming PC--first time

Hey, I'm thinking about building my own gaming PC (due to the reduced cost). My budget is about $1000, and I really have no clue what to go for and where to start.

I need some help here, if you guys could post the ideal setup for around this price ($1000 - $1200), that would be of great help. I live in Canada, so any tips on a good website etc. Also, I will not be needing another monitor, mouse or keyboard because I'll just reuse my previous ones, if that's possible.

I'd like to be able to play some of the newer games that have come out on favourable graphics settings (Crysis, Warhammer etc.) My current computer is about 5ish years old and it sucks knowing that I'm missing out on all these great games.

mm true okay i recommend newegg.ca (not .com thats american) and tigerdirect.ca

heres wha you would be looking at

core 2 quad q6600?

antec 900 or 900 two case

ati hd 4830 or 9800gt possibly a regular gtx260

2-3GB ddr2-1066 (varies if u want to run vista or XP)

sata hard drive (pref. sata 3.0)

matching mobo

dvd-rom drive

thats probably the best guideline i can give as im answering this right before i head to bed unless this can wait till morning. now in the words of ongar from oblivion: "*yawns* i need a nap"

Hm I was looking at Duffman's build in another thread (http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=26820671&tag=topics;title) and it seemed perfect. However I don't need the monitor so instead I put in Vista Home Premium 64-Bit and I couldn't find the exact graphics card that he had listed so I picked another similar one.

Would this setup work?

$24.99

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

$119.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail

$50.99

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

$149.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM

$208.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail

$123.99

GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

$29.99

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S223Q - OEM

$99.99

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

$68.49

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK - Retail

$39.99

Logitech S-220 17 Watts 2.1 Multimedia Speaker System - Retail

$300.99

EVGA 896-P3-1258-A1 GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 SSC Edition 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

TOTAL: $1,218.39

I would recommend for first time builders to go and research as much as possible instead of just asking people what to buy. Try some great sites like www.bit-tech.net, www.overclockers.com and the like to really get a feel for the ins and outs of building and also to compare the many options out there. Just asking someone to build you a rig for x amount of dollars isn't really the best way to go.Is it strictly a gaming pc? Do you do any music or video editing? Video encoding?What kinds of games do you play, whats the resolution of your monitor? Looking at these and many many otherthings will be important when deciding which CPU GPU motherboard and other parts are needed.Once you really get a feel for the way things work and the ups and downs of certain hardware, I think it makes building your own computer much more fun than asking someone what to buy. Also putting a computer together for the first time, whilst easy to do, is something you should research before you jump in. Anyone can throw out a bunch of part lists for you but only you can truly build a computer that's right for you. Please don't take my post the wrong way, if you have any questions I would be glad to help. I just think there are too many people around here and all together that if they took the time to research a little they would enjoy the building process much more, and also learn to build a computer that fits their needs to a T and fits in their budget. Some of the recommendations I see here, while good, might not be what you need.

that setup would work but out of sheer favouratism id up to an antec 900 or 900-two as both have much more room in them.

Alright so I'll take the Antec 900 instead as you recommended. So far, it looks good. One more question though, I was thinking of trying my hand at overclocking the CPU from 3.0 GHz to 4.2 GHz. To be honest I have absolutely zero knowledge of how to do this, but I'm willing to try. My only concern is overheating; would overclocking it to 4.2 GHz be safe for this particular setup?

I was reading this review: http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/intel_e8400/15.htm

Apparently the maximum overclock is 4.5 GHz, but 4.2 GHz would be more stable. It seems like a huge jump in performance so that's why I was hoping to try it for myself.

this is a good guide for overclocking although you have to have a lot of free time on ur hands to read through this:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/240001-29-howto-overclock-quads-duals-guide

try http://pcgamingessentials.weebly.com/

I'll take your advice on that: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

After upgrading the cooler and case, the total cost for this setup is now at $1,298.89. Hopefully I'm all set now, a little over budget but I'm sure it's worth it. Any other concerns or recommendations regarding this build?

EDIT: Thanks a lot for the overclocking guide, I appreciate it. It looks a bit intimidating though, but I'll try and get more familiar with it

For future-proof, would spending an extra $50 and going with a Quad Core be better?

I was thinking of this one: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor - Retail

Which one would give me the better performance for gaming overall, the 3.0GHz Dual Core or the 2.4GHz Quad Core? And would it require me to get a better PSU etc.?

the E8400 would give you better performance in games since games r optimized for duo-cores, but quad core is really good for future-proofing. In a few years quad-core will be the best for gaming so its all up to you. If you get the Q6600 you wont have to upgrade for a while. Its all up to you.

the E8400 would give you better performance in games since games r optimized for duo-cores, but quad core is really good for future-proofing. In a few years quad-core will be the best for gaming so its all up to you. If you get the Q6600 you wont have to upgrade for a while. Its all up to you.

Tagerh

what you say is true he/she could also get an amd tri-core and have the best of both worlds.

Get a quad - your case costs more than your cpu now !

1000 dollars isnt budget.

Tough decision. You mentioned that the Dual Core performs better for the games of today, is it a siginificant difference compared to the Quad Core? So if I go for the Q6600, games like CoD5, Warhammer Online etc. would run at noticeably lower settings/FPS? I did a quick google search, and it seems that game releases 2009 and onward are beginning to utilize multiple cores.

Also, would I need to buy a better cooler than the one I've already picked (ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler) if I do go for the Q6600? What about the PSU?

EDIT: Sorry about all these questions, but which processor I go with also depends on whether or not I'm planning to overclock correct? Because 2.4GHz seems a bit slow. I mean, I'm thinking of overclocking but I'm not sure if I can pull it off (risk of me screwing something up).

Bump

Tough decision. You mentioned that the Dual Core performs better for the games of today, is it a siginificant difference compared to the Quad Core? So if I go for the Q6600, games like CoD5, Warhammer Online etc. would run at noticeably lower settings/FPS? I did a quick google search, and it seems that game releases 2009 and onward are beginning to utilize multiple cores.

Also, would I need to buy a better cooler than the one I've already picked (ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler) if I do go for the Q6600? What about the PSU?

EDIT: Sorry about all these questions, but which processor I go with also depends on whether or not I'm planning to overclock correct? Because 2.4GHz seems a bit slow. I mean, I'm thinking of overclocking but I'm not sure if I can pull it off (risk of me screwing something up).

B3RZERK

Ya, man the Q6600 was practically MADE for overclocking. Would be nice to have a 45nm Q6600 :D

This has been helpful. I was looking at similar setups, but my budget should be around $1500.

;)

Hm I was looking at Duffman's build in another thread (http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=26820671&tag=topics;title) and it seemed perfect. However I don't need the monitor so instead I put in Vista Home Premium 64-Bit and I couldn't find the exact graphics card that he had listed so I picked another similar one.

Would this setup work?

$24.99

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

$119.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail

$50.99

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

$149.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM

$208.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail

$123.99

GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

$29.99

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S223Q - OEM

$99.99

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

$68.49

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK - Retail

$39.99

Logitech S-220 17 Watts 2.1 Multimedia Speaker System - Retail

$300.99

EVGA 896-P3-1258-A1 GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 SSC Edition 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

TOTAL: $1,218.39

B3RZERK