[xTidal_Wavex]

So after years of playing on a slow laptop, and not being able to play any of the bigger games like CoD and Battlefield, i decided i would finally start to build my own Gaming computer. But my biggest concern? Are all my parts compatible with each other.
Here are the parts

1.Processor : Intel Core i5 4670k
2.Cooler : Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
3.Motherboard : MSI Z77A GD-45
4.RAM : G.Skill Ares 8GB
5.PSU : Corsair TX750M
6.GPU : MSI GTX 660 Ti PE (Non-OC)
7.Case : Corsair 300R / 200R
8.Hard Drive : Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003
9.DVD Writer : Asus DRW-24B1ST

I have never built a pc before, nor do i have much experience doing it. so if you do have any suggestions, try to make it a little more understandable for my lack of knowledge.

-Thanks!

[cgfirecoral]

Grab a copy of "Upgrading and Repairing PCs" by Scott Mueller ideally from the library.

Be really careful with the pins when you install the CPU. Most retailers won't take the motherboard back if you bend them. And it doesn't take much.

[xTidal_Wavex]

Grab a copy of "Upgrading and Repairing PCs" by Scott Mueller ideally from the library.

Be really careful with the pins when you install the CPU. Most retailers won't take the motherboard back if you bend them. And it doesn't take much.

ok thanks for the information! I'm not too worried about actually putting the build together. Mostly worried whether or not the computer will work with the parts i'm getting

[cgfirecoral]

Okay. For the most part, it looks really good. The power supply should be more than ample for anything you put in.

There are a couple of things I wondered about:

Why are you getting a hard drive instead of an SSD? The speed difference is amazing and you haven't skimped elsewhere on price.

If you choose in the future to add a second graphics card, will both be able to get PCI Express 3.0 x16? I haven't built a PC in a couple of years, but that getting full graphics bandwidth for SLI and crossfire used to be tricky.

Your motherboard and CPU include onboard graphics. Can you find an alternative that allows you to avoid these? It just seems like a waste of money since you're buying a really good graphics card.

[xTidal_Wavex]

Okay. For the most part, it looks really good. The power supply should be more than ample for anything you put in.

There are a couple of things I wondered about:

Why are you getting a hard drive instead of an SSD? The speed difference is amazing and you haven't skimped elsewhere on price.

If you choose in the future to add a second graphics card, will both be able to get PCI Express 3.0 x16? I haven't built a PC in a couple of years, but that getting full graphics bandwidth for SLI and crossfire used to be tricky.

Your motherboard and CPU include onboard graphics. Can you find an alternative that allows you to avoid these? It just seems like a waste of money since you're buying a really good graphics card.

what are the differences in an SSD and a hard drive? is there certain things that an SSD will block? and is there any other Motherboard that you would reccomend other that the one i currently have chosen? thanks

[gallinka]

The pisks look good. I would only make a few changes.

First, I was going to suggest a video card from XFX. They are guaranteed for life. Unfortunately, they don't have very many offerings with nVIDIA chipsets.

Second, while SSD are great, they are no substitute for a traditional hard drive. All modern OS have page files and/or swap partitions. These will kill an SSD no matter how good or new it is. Your options are to disable this (which I don't think you can do with UNIX and prob. not with Window 7/8). The drive you suggested is fine. However, I highly suggest you augment it with an SSD if you have the money. I hear they are amazing.

If I have any other suggestions I will let you know.
PS: try mint instead of windows, you may like it.

[TechnoProdigy]

Second, while SSD are great, they are no substitute for a traditional hard drive. All modern OS have page files and/or swap partitions. These will kill an SSD no matter how good or new it is. Your options are to disable this (which I don't think you can do with UNIX and prob. not with Window 7/8). The drive you suggested is fine. However, I highly suggest you augment it with an SSD if you have the money. I hear they are amazing.

You don't really need a page file if you have enough RAM. My page file is located on my 2TB HDD and I've not had a single problem. Removing the page file from an SSD is one of the first things you should do, as the read/writes will wear down your drive like crazy. I also recommend an SSD, as it's a game changer (literally, and figuratively).

[xTidal_Wavex]

Second, while SSD are great, they are no substitute for a traditional hard drive. All modern OS have page files and/or swap partitions. These will kill an SSD no matter how good or new it is. Your options are to disable this (which I don't think you can do with UNIX and prob. not with Window 7/8). The drive you suggested is fine. However, I highly suggest you augment it with an SSD if you have the money. I hear they are amazing.

You don't really need a page file if you have enough RAM. My page file is located on my 2TB HDD and I've not had a single problem. Removing the page file from an SSD is one of the first things you should do, as the read/writes will wear down your drive like crazy. I also recommend an SSD, as it's a game changer (literally, and figuratively).

Ok, as of right now I'm leading towards an SSD. Do you have any recommendations for a good SSD That isn't too expensive. I don't want to go over my $1500 budget. One last question, I'm a little skeptical about the SSD, because I have little knowledge of them, is there anything I should watch out for? Thanks for the information!

[cgfirecoral]

I'm going to disagree on the page file. Most people seem to feel that you'll be buying a larger replacement drive long before the wear becomes an issue. Do some research on google. In fact, most people seem to think having the page file on the SSD improves performance (if you're paging).

Most of the arguments hover around the amount of space it uses. BTW, I found a 120GB SSD just too small for Win7 and the stuff I do. I've been happy with a >200GB drive. If you're doing crazy video editing, you're going to need a regular hard drive (or a lot of cash).

One thing you could do is probably double your memory to 16 GB. That would certainly reduce paging, and I would move up to 16GB (I currently run 8GB) if I were building a computer today.

I agree with Technoprodigy: there is nothing you can do today that will change your experience more than an SSD.

I'm not up-to-date with motherboards, so I wouldn't want to recommend anything. You'll have to do that research yourself.

[xTidal_Wavex]

I'm going to disagree on the page file. Most people seem to feel that you'll be buying a larger replacement drive long before the wear becomes an issue. Do some research on google. In fact, most people seem to think having the page file on the SSD improves performance (if you're paging).

Most of the arguments hover around the amount of space it uses. BTW, I found a 120GB SSD just too small for Win7 and the stuff I do. I've been happy with a >200GB drive. If you're doing crazy video editing, you're going to need a regular hard drive (or a lot of cash).

One thing you could do is probably double your memory to 16 GB. That would certainly reduce paging, and I would move up to 16GB (I currently run 8GB) if I were building a computer today.

I agree with Technoprodigy: there is nothing you can do today that will change your experience more than an SSD.

I'm not up-to-date with motherboards, so I wouldn't want to recommend anything. You'll have to do that research yourself.

Ok I got it. I really can't thank you enough, I really appreciate the help!