Don't Know Where to Begin W/ Building My First Computer

[Slacker22]

Im new to the forum, and I am wanting to build a computer. I however have no idea where to even start at. I am looking the type of computer that can handle online gaming and be able to complete schooling. I am planning on hooking 2 maybe 3 monitors to it eventually, but i need something i can play games on and be able to chat with people on the other screen. I am studying to be a software programmer so i know alot about making software but not so much on the hardware or how to put it together. Please help me out.

[Deleted]

this would make a good start,
Budget
Resolution
Games / Settings Desired
Any other intensive software or special things you do (Frequent video encoding, 3D modeling, etc)
Country
Parts that can be reused
Do you need an OS?
Do you need peripherals (e.g. monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc)?

[Slacker22]

Budget- am a college student so will be putting this together as i go really, im thinking $1500 to start with, and upgrade as i need to
Resolution - Best resolution for the price, i dont have monitors yet
Games - MMO and First Person Shooters
Most software i can get pretty easy and cheep, I will be doing a lot of coding and application software
United States
I want to use Windows
Need 2 or 3 Monitors, Mouse and Keyboard, Speakers are the last thing.
I also want 4 or more usb ports and would love a blue ray player (and burner if not too expensive)
I just don't really know what the best is, I see all these motherboards and such and idk what they do...

[googz]

I put this together for another thread today. You could play around with a few things to get it down to the $1500 range if you need to:
You could drop the SSD, but I'd recommend changing the HDD to a WD Black. (Shave ~$100)
Could opt for a less powerful GPU. (shave ~$100-150)
You could change the keyboard here to the Microsoft Sidewinder. (shave ~$50)

The 2-3 monitor thing is really going to kill your budget however being that a good monitor will run you around $200 (perhaps this is one of the things you upgrade as needed).

This is a good place to start at least.

This gives you the advantage of including a SSD in your build which will make your general use much more enjoyable and will benefit some games. Changed the case to the 600T which IMO is a much better case and the price is quite nice right now. Included the previous suggested AsRock MoBo and Sapphire GPU. The PSU you had selected was far to much for what you had selected.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.23 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($115.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($445.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 600T Mesh (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($134.99 @ NCIX US)
Monitor: Asus VS248H-P 24.0" Monitor ($180.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Keyboard: Logitech G510 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Logitech G500 Wired Laser Mouse ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1750.01
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-25 10:48 EDT-0400)

Edit: Would the OS be included in this budget?

[Slacker22]

If i change things around, how do i know if i can power it all and keep it running...What do i need to look for to make sure i can power things safely?

[googz]

Well if the 650w PSU will power the system I posted, wouldn't it make sense that It'll still work fine if you start downgrading that system? 650w will go a long way with todays parts.

p.s. If you wish to change things around, just post about the changes and somebody will probably look over it for you.

[jholdaway]

Here's what I came up with. It's a little over $1500 but it has almost everything you wanted. Granted it's going to be a little more if you don't have a microcenter close by.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($61.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($112.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($297.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.98 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MK III 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Keyboard: Cooler Master Storm QuickFire Rapid Wired Gaming Keyboard ($65.96 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Mionix NAOS 5000 Wired Laser Mouse ($57.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1591.29
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-26 03:00 EDT-0400)

[googz]

Keep in mind that if you wish to watch blurays you will have to purchase some sort of third party software.

[Slacker22]

This is what have have as of right now. Please look it over and let me know if this is ok or good, and what i can change or need to change to start. If i need more things for cabling or assembling please let me know (such as tools). Let me know if i can cut some costs or something somewhere. I put an OR where i havn't made up my mind or am confused, so if you would let me know which one you would choose.

CPU:
pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80637i73770
CPU FAN:
pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2
MOTHER BOARD:
pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z77extreme4
MEMORY:
pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-memory-cmz12gx3m3a1600c9
SSD:
pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-internal-hard-drive-ct128m4ssd2
INTERNAL HARD DRIVE:
pcpartpicker.com/part/western-digital-internal-hard-drive-wd10ezex
VIDEO CARD:
pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-video-card-04gp43673kr
OR
pcpartpicker.com/part/sapphire-video-card-100351vxsr
CASE:
pcpartpicker.com/part/thermaltake-case-vo200m1w2n
POWER SUPPLY:
pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-cmpsu650hx
OPTICAL DRIVES:
pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-optical-drive-bw12b1stblkgas
OS:
pcpartpicker.com/part/microsoft-os-fqc04649
OR
pcpartpicker.com/part/microsoft-os-gfc02050
Monitor:
pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-vs247hp
Key Board:
pcpartpicker.com/part/logitech-keyboard-920002530
Mouse:
pcpartpicker.com/part/logitech-mouse-910001259
OR
pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-mouse-sgm6010kllw1
Thermal Compound:
pcpartpicker.com/part/arctic-silver-thermal-paste-as512g
OTHER:
microcenter.com/product/234572/18-Piece_Tool_Kit


Do i need any extra things?


ps. sorry it wouldn't let me post links