Building a new PC, ~$1400 to spend

[Naturalistlol]

I havent worried about the OS because I get it for next to nothing through my school

[Deleted]

Any chance you could do an updated pcpartpicker with the changes you'd make? me luff you long tiem.

Should be the same as before:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek GAIA SD1283 56.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($128.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($109.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Hard Drive: Mushkin Chronos 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($274.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($118.85 @ Mac Connection)
Power Supply: Antec 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($174.98 @ NCIX US)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($174.98 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1442.71
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

Okay changed the CPU heat sink to a cheaper solution as you don't seem that much into overclocking, you still have the option with this one, or simply drop it to save money if you don't care.

As mentioned before:

The case aesthetics is more of a personal taste kind of thing, just aim for high quality components, airflow, cable management etc. I recommend the 500R (comes in white/black as well), Fractal Design Arc midi or Antec P280 (Google them if you're in doubt).

Case: Antec P280 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $99.99
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi Tower ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $99.99
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

A cheaper but still decent option:

Case: NZXT Source 220 ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.70 @ Mwave)
Total: $64.70
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

[Gouca]

Should be the same as before:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek GAIA SD1283 56.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($128.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($109.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Hard Drive: Mushkin Chronos 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7870 2GB Video Card ($274.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 500R Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($118.85 @ Mac Connection)
Power Supply: Antec 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($174.98 @ NCIX US)
Monitor: Asus VE247H 23.6" Monitor ($174.98 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1442.71
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)

Definitely go for a better CPU-cooler, such as the Scythe Ninja / Mugen 3

Save 30 bucks by choosing Z77 Pro3 as motherboard.

Save 15 bucks by choosing Crucial 1333 MHz RAM instead. No real gaming difference. Also note the low-profile heat-sinks that allow larger CPU-cooling system to be applied.

Take a proper SSD instead - either Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. You don't want to take anything else, as they have dramatically higher rate of BSODs.

Save 20 bucks by taking a Modular SeaSonic 520W PSU. The wattage output is enough for HD7870 in CrossfireX. You also get rid of waste of space cables with the modularity.

[Deleted]

Definitely go for a better CPU-cooler, such as the Scythe Ninja / Mugen 3

Save 30 bucks by choosing Z77 Pro3 as motherboard.

Save 15 bucks by choosing Crucial 1333 MHz RAM instead. No real gaming difference. Also note the low-profile heat-sinks that allow larger CPU-cooling system to be applied.

Take a proper SSD instead - either Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. You don't want to take anything else, as they have dramatically higher rate of BSODs.

Save 20 bucks by taking a Modular SeaSonic 520W PSU. The wattage output is enough for HD7870 in CrossfireX. You also get rid of waste of space cables with the modularity.

If you read the thread you'll know why the Xigmatek Gaia is in that build, it's one of the best air heat sinks in that price range. Also it was a suggestion instead of the stock heat sink.

I prefer the quality of an Asus motherboard over the Asrock (nothing bad about Asrock but that's my personal opinion).

RAM - there is $5 difference not 15. 1600MHz is optimal for this CPU but yes there isn't much difference performance wise. Mushkin Blackline is low profile so please if you're just going to comment and confuse for the sake of doing that then don't comment at all.

As for the snide remark about the SSD, please don't post if you have nothing useful to say. The Mushkin SSD is proper and an excellent deal at that price.

The Antec PSU is modular and if (again) you read the thread you'll see I also recommended the SeaSonic 520. Dual 7870 could run on a this 520 unit even with an overclocked system but there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting or recommending the 620 unit instead, considering some again and the dual GPU's I'd probably prefer running my system at a lower load as well.

[Naturalistlol]

The reason I was going with this case is it was one a friend recommended based off the size. The area where I store my tower is somewhat limited, 19.75" tall, 11" wide, 19.5" depth, with a 7" opening at the bottom of the back.