Spec check please, for gaming mostly

moocluck · 18 Jul 2011 at 21:59

Hey guys, I think I've got my new spec sorted out but would like some input just in case. Will be used mainly for gaming, with the intention of getting a 2nd GTX 570 later on for SLI.

Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - £155.99
Asrock Z68 Extreme4 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - £139.99
MSI GeForce GTX 570 OC Twin FrozR III Power Edition 1280MB GDDR5 - £254.99
XFX 850W Black Edition Modular Power Supply - £95.82
Corsair XMS3 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit - £55.99
Akasa AK-CCX-4002HPV2 Venom CPU Cooler - £38.99
OCZ Vertex 60GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive (OCZSSD2-1VTX60G) - £70.32
Seagate Barracuda Green 2TB SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM (ST2000DL003) - £54.95
Cooler Master HAF X Gaming Tower Case - £134.99
Asus Xonar DX 7.1 PCI-Express Sound Card - £59.99
Samsung SH-B123L/RSBP 12x BluRay ROM DVDRW DL & RAM Lightscribe SATA-II Optical Drive - £49.64
LG W2363D 23" TRUE 120Hz 3D Widescreen LCD Monitor - £161.99
NVIDIA 3D Vision Kit with Duke Nukem Forever - £107.99

TOTAL - £1381.64

Thanks in advance.

Pickman · 18 Jul 2011 at 22:05

That's pretty awesome.

The only small issue I see is that the SSD is old tech. you might want to look at Sata 6BGs one like the Crucial M4, Vertex 3 or Agility 3.

Also I don't think 3D offers much yet, you should check it out before you buy it. If you have checked it out then fire away =)

Pickman · 18 Jul 2011 at 22:11

Additionally I am not sure there is much need for a sound card these days, but I don't know much about the subject.

kristmace · 18 Jul 2011 at 22:23

I've heard those sound cards are really good (though never used one), so if you have the ££ for it then get it.

Agree with Pickman about the SSD. The latest ones are about £20 more for 60GB but are almost twice the speed.

Lemin · 18 Jul 2011 at 22:25

Very nice, got win 7 64bit ?

Jony27 · 18 Jul 2011 at 22:34

kristmace said:
I've heard those sound cards are really good (though never used one), so if you have the ££ for it then get it.

you would need decent speakers to make use of the sound quality of the soundcard.

moocluck · 18 Jul 2011 at 23:46

Lemin said:
Very nice, got win 7 64bit ?

Yeah I've already got it thanks.

Pickman said:
That's pretty awesome.

The only small issue I see is that the SSD is old tech. you might want to look at Sata 6BGs one like the Crucial M4, Vertex 3 or Agility 3.

Also I don't think 3D offers much yet, you should check it out before you buy it. If you have checked it out then fire away =)

I've had a look at the newer SSD's now and I think I'm gonna switch to the Crucial M4, thanks for the advice. A few of my mates have 3d already so I've played with it quite a bit.

Jony27 said:
you would need decent speakers to make use of the sound quality of the soundcard.

I've already got Logitech Z-906 speakers so I need a half decent sound card.

Pickman · 19 Jul 2011 at 09:27

moocluck said:
I've already got Logitech Z-906 speakers so I need a half decent sound card.

wow, well if you have sunk that kind of cash into speakers then a sound card is probably a very good idea.

I use a 128GB Crucial M4. It is the greatest single upgrade I have ever made, by a long way. And the extra room of 128 over 64 is fantastic.

JulioH · 19 Jul 2011 at 13:32

Jony27 said:
you would need decent speakers to make use of the sound quality of the soundcard.

To make use of its full potential that is. I have a dedicated sound card and only a Fatal1ty headset and I can certainly tell the difference, I couldn't go back to onboard.

Certainly worth it.