New Computer Build

[Hawksguard]

This will be the first time I've attempted to assemble a computer myself, as in the past I've usually bought pre-made brand-name systems. My current system is a 27' iMac w/ 2.8 Ghz i7, 8GB RAM and ATI Radeon HD 4850 GPU w/512MB RAM. I'm a graphic designer so I required some industry-standard hardware, and my gaming needs were pretty much restricted to being able to play World of Warcraft, which it does more than adequately.

I'm looking to put together a high-end gaming rig, something I want to be able to play pretty much anything I want on the highest settings without so much as a cough. I'm looking at games like WoW, SC2, GW2, Neverwinter, Rift, Skyrim, ESO, Civ5 and Simcity. I'm aiming for game resolutions of 1440p.

I'd like to keep the budget as far under $3500 (US) as possible without sacrificing quality or upgradability.

Here's a list of components I've put together so far. Sorry for the lack of links, MMO-Champion won't let me post 'em.

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus Sabertooth X79 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card
Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 800D ATX Full Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair Professional Gold 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor
Keyboard: Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013 Wired Gaming Keyboard
Mouse: Razer Naga Molten Wired Laser Mouse
Other: Cyber Acoustics ACM-1B Charcoal 3.5mm Connector Monitor/Lapel Microphone
Total: $3365.16

[Deleted]

Is this being used for work related stuff like rendering or 3D modeling and perhaps streaming as well?

- - - Updated - - -

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($339.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermaltake Water 2.0 Pro 81.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($154.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($116.45 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($184.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($349.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($349.99 @ Newegg)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($77.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair Air 540 ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.88 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($549.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: Corsair Vengeance K70 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Corsair Vengeance M95 Wired Laser Mouse ($65.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $2801.18
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-08-18 23:04 EDT-0400)

Either keep the dual 7970GHz which is only $25 more than a 780 or drop the one 7970GHz and save $325, there is 3 free games included with each 7970. Late September or early October we should be seeing 9000 series AMD cards so if you go with one card maybe you can sell that later on and swap to a 9000 series depending on price and performance of course, I imagine the high end card will be around 780 price point. There is also a $700 7990.

You could swap to a WD Black drive if you prefer the 5 year warranty that comes with it, otherwise the Blue is perfectly fine and actually has faster reads.

Which headphones and/or speakers are you using, before deciding on a sound card that's nice to know.

Perhaps a better mic as well?

Blue Microphones Snowball iCE Condenser Microphone (there are other designs/options just search Snowball mic)
Samson Go Mic Compact USB Microphone

[Hawksguard]

I'll still have my Mac for work related stuff, e-mail, internet browsing and the like. I do a little bit of amateur 3D rendering with it. It's running Adobe Creative Suite 5 just fine; its workflow productivity and multitasking ability really makes me wish newer games ran better on it so I could just have to worry about one system that did everything.

The Asus 27" Monitor has built-in speakers. I also realized after posting that the Sabertooth X79 has Realtek onboard sound, so an additional sound card wouldn't actually be necessary on my build. High quality sound is probably at the bottom of my list of priorities, however if I can get good or excellent sound quality for a minimal amount of cost, all the better.

The mic was pretty much a last minute addition when I realized I'd actually have to buy something since my i'm accustomed to my mac's integrated mic. Thanks for the suggestions.

[Samurai]

I have a GTX 780 running an ASUS PB278Q and they work together great! Runs everything i throw at it on Ultra, BF3, Crysis 3, WoW etc...

However i would go with Notarget's CPU too, unless you are going to be using your computer for loads of rendering, like hours-days at a time, the extra cost is probably not worth it.

[Deleted]

I'll still have my Mac for work related stuff, e-mail, internet browsing and the like. I do a little bit of amateur 3D rendering with it. It's running Adobe Creative Suite 5 just fine; its workflow productivity and multitasking ability really makes me wish newer games ran better on it so I could just have to worry about one system that did everything.

The Asus 27" Monitor has built-in speakers. I also realized after posting that the Sabertooth X79 has Realtek onboard sound, so an additional sound card wouldn't actually be necessary on my build. High quality sound is probably at the bottom of my list of priorities, however if I can get good or excellent sound quality for a minimal amount of cost, all the better.

The mic was pretty much a last minute addition when I realized I'd actually have to buy something since my i'm accustomed to my mac's integrated mic. Thanks for the suggestions.

If it's mainly gaming then even a cheaper i5-4670k is all you need. i7 is more or less wasted for gaming. 8GB RAM is fine too.

The onboard sound on the MSI motherboard is about same quality as a Asus Xonar DGX sound card, except for mic/line in which is superior on the sound card.

[Deleted]

If it's mainly gaming then even a cheaper i5-4670k is all you need. i7 is more or less wasted for gaming. 8GB RAM is fine too.

The onboard sound on the MSI motherboard is about same quality as a Asus Xonar DGX sound card, except for mic/line in which is superior on the sound card.

I kind of disagree, and think that the OP should aim for a 4770k+GD65, unless the Xonar is essential, in which case I may recommend one of the Asus ROG boards, which seem to have the Xonar chip built-in.

[Deleted]

I kind of disagree, and think that the OP should aim for a 4770k+GD65, unless the Xonar is essential, in which case I may recommend one of the Asus ROG boards, which seem to have the Xonar chip built-in.

Why should he aim for the i7? And why would he need the G65 instead? I think with his budget he can easily fit an i7, well we've already proven that above but if there isn't a need for it why buy it? i5-4670k+G45 is perfectly fine and so is i7-4770k+G45 should he so choose.

[Deleted]

Why should he aim for the i7? And why would he need the G65 instead? I think with his budget he can easily fit an i7, well we've already proven that above but if there isn't a need for it why buy it? i5-4670k+G45 is perfectly fine and so is i7-4770k+G45 should he so choose.

I was thinking more because of the "Graphic Designer/Renderer" part of the job. That's the thing I'm bearing in mind. I'm willing to be overruled on the "going for ROG motherboard," though.

[Deleted]

I was thinking more because of the "Graphic Designer/Renderer" part of the job. That's the thing I'm bearing in mind. I'm willing to be overruled on the "going for ROG motherboard," though.

This is why I mentioned "if it's mainly for gaming":

I'll still have my Mac for work related stuff, e-mail, internet browsing and the like. I do a little bit of amateur 3D rendering with it. It's running Adobe Creative Suite 5 just fine;

[Hawksguard]

So later this week I will have cash in hand to start purchasing parts. Based on info I got here as well as from some gaming friends and an acquaintance who works on computers for a living, here's my current parts list. Again, sorry for the lack of links, but MMO is blocking me.

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($339.99)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.99)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($159.99)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($139.08)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($212.99)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($364.99)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($364.99)
Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 800D ATX Full Tower Case ($229.99)
Power Supply: Corsair 860W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($199.99)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($16.97)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.88)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($553.99)
Keyboard: Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($129.99)
Mouse: Razer Razer Naga 2014 Wired Laser Mouse ($79.99)
Other: Samson Go MICT Portable USB Condenser Microphone ($39.99)
Total: $3086.79