# First Gaming Rig Around 4k budget



## alfredoPC (Jul 20, 2013)

I've saved up a a few bucks and have been planning on getting a gaming rig. I'm looking for some suggestions on my rig, I have been doing some research on how to build my own and came up with 3 builds around the same price this would be my first ever gaming rig and would really appreciate the help thanks.

1) http://pcpartpicker.com/user/alfredoPC/saved/1RH1

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($279.99 @ Microcenter) 
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM  Liquid CPU Cooler  ($109.99 @ Newegg) 
Motherboard: Asus Maximus VI Hero ATX  LGA1150 Motherboard  ($205.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($129.71 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Corsair Force Series GT 240GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  ($226.48 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DSX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card  ($49.49 @ NCIX US) 
Case: Corsair Air 540 ATX Full Tower Case  ($129.37 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 1050W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($189.99 @ Microcenter) 
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($124.00 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG278HE 144Hz 27.0" Monitor  ($380.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG278HE 144Hz 27.0" Monitor  ($380.99 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Corsair Vengeance K70 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($129.99 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Razer Naga Hex Wraith Red Edition Wired Laser Mouse  ($69.99 @ NCIX US) 
Speakers: Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500 232W 2.1ch Speakers  ($189.99 @ NCIX US) 
Other: Razer Carcharias 3.5mm Gaming Headset ($79.99)
Total: $4103.91
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-20 01:37 EDT-0400)

2) http://pcpartpicker.com/user/alfredoPC/saved/1Z1l

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($279.99 @ Microcenter) 
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM  Liquid CPU Cooler  ($109.99 @ Newegg) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte G1.SNIPER 5 ATX  LGA1150 Motherboard  ($389.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($177.98 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Corsair Force Series GT 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  ($129.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DSX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card  ($49.49 @ NCIX US) 
Case: Corsair Air 540 ATX Full Tower Case  ($129.37 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 1050W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($189.99 @ Microcenter) 
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($124.00 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG278HE 144Hz 27.0" Monitor  ($380.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG278HE 144Hz 27.0" Monitor  ($380.99 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($120.56 @ Amazon) 
Mouse: Razer DeathAdder 2013 Wired Optical Mouse  ($57.24 @ Amazon) 
Speakers: Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500 232W 2.1ch Speakers  ($189.99 @ NCIX US) 
Other: Razer Carcharias 3.5mm Gaming Headset ($79.99)
Total: $4217.51
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-20 01:37 EDT-0400)

3) complete water cooled http://pcpartpicker.com/user/alfredoPC/saved/1YEe

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($279.99 @ Microcenter) 
Motherboard: Asus SABERTOOTH Z87 ATX  LGA1150 Motherboard  ($240.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($177.98 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Corsair Force Series GT 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  ($129.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($659.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Corsair 900D ATX Full Tower Case  ($339.99 @ Microcenter) 
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Performance Edition (2-Pack) 63.5 CFM 120mm  Fans  ($26.98 @ Outlet PC) 
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Performance Edition (2-Pack) 63.5 CFM 120mm  Fans  ($26.98 @ Outlet PC) 
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 1050W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($189.99 @ Microcenter) 
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($124.00 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor  ($250.52 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor  ($250.52 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Razer BlackWidow 2013 Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($79.99 @ Microcenter) 
Mouse: Razer DeathAdder 2013 Wired Optical Mouse  ($57.24 @ Amazon) 
Other: Razer Carcharias 3.5mm Gaming Headset ($79.99)
Other: Swiftech MCP655-B 12v Water Pump ($89.95)
Other: Aquacomputer Airplex Modularity System 480 Radiator ($194.99)
Other: FrozenQ PC Mods 250mm Liquid Fusion V Series "2nd Generation"  ($99.99)
Other: EK EKoolant Premium Liquid Cooling Premix Coolant - 1L - UV Lime Green ($14.99)
Other: EK Supremacy Universal CPU Liquid Cooling Block - Full Nickel ($96.99)
Total: $4179.02
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-20 01:40 EDT-0400)

I'll take any suggestions personally I'm liking the Green Build (2) thank you d-_-b


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## KingPing (Jul 20, 2013)

I would buy a better sound card if you are going to spend that kind of money, minimum a Xonar DX. Xonar Phoebus, Xonar STX, Creative SB Zx or ZxR are the ones i would buy.


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## alfredoPC (Jul 20, 2013)

*sounds card*



KingPing said:


> I would buy a better sound card if you are going to spend that kind of money, minimum a Xonar DX. Xonar Phoebus, Xonar STX, Creative SB Zx or ZxR are the ones i would buy.



ye I just read it was a very good sound card for the price and i was looking around any better sound car was around 100+ I'm not going to go crazy with sound but what would be the benefits for getting a better sound card  noobie


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## Jetster (Jul 20, 2013)

alfredoPC said:


> but what would be the benefits for getting a better sound card  noobie



Much nicer low range sound


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## KingPing (Jul 20, 2013)

alfredoPC said:


> ye I just read it was a very good sound card for the price and i was looking around any better sound car was around 100+ I'm not going to go crazy with sound but what would be the benefits for getting a better sound card  noobie




 Better audio quality (even with the carcharias), better positional audio (comes handy in multiplayer FPS) more detailed audio (you will hear stuff the onboard audio or low end SC won't reproduce).


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## Jstn7477 (Jul 20, 2013)

The onboard ALC 1150 really isn't bad, but I'd get a decent card if I were building a $4000 computer.


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## alfredoPC (Jul 20, 2013)

*sounds card*



KingPing said:


> Better audio quality (even with the carcharias), better positional audio (comes handy in multiplayer FPS) more detailed audio (you will hear stuff the onboard audio or low end SC won't reproduce).





Jetster said:


> Much nicer low range sound



Thank you ill look into getting a better sounds card then


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## HammerON (Jul 20, 2013)

As far as audio - 
cadaveca was real impressed with the ASUS Maximus VI Hero audio performance results (onboard):
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/MAXIMUS_VI_HERO/11.html


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## alfredoPC (Jul 20, 2013)

*Asus Mobo*



HammerON said:


> As far as audio -
> cadaveca was real impressed with the ASUS Maximus VI Hero audio performance results (onboard):
> http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/MAXIMUS_VI_HERO/11.html



Wow I didnt even know that thanks for the info


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## shovenose (Jul 20, 2013)

I'm in love with my Sound Blaster Z - I've always thought onboard sound was good enough... last week I put in that sound card. Holy $h!t amazing!!

Save $2 and get Lite On iHAS124-04 DVDRW drive $17.99 (Newegg) not the $19.99 Asus one.

I highly recommend going with either one or three monitors - two kinda sucks because you're always looking into the crack between them.

A good air cooler will do better the Corsair H* liquid cooling. And I would not recommend actual custom liquid "water" cooling - it's unneccessary unless you're doing major overclocking but there is not much of a point on a nice build like that and the GTX 780 has a great stock cooler.
Here is a good CPU cooler for you:
Noctua NH-D14 CPU Cooler - Newegg.com

Oh, one last thing, while it's more expensive buy this power supply it's even better than the Corsair:
SeaSonic Platinum-1000 1000W ATX12V / EPS12V 80 PL...


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## alfredoPC (Jul 21, 2013)

**



shovenose said:


> I'm in love with my Sound Blaster Z - I've always thought onboard sound was good enough... last week I put in that sound card. Holy $h!t amazing!!
> 
> Save $2 and get Lite On iHAS124-04 DVDRW drive $17.99 (Newegg) not the $19.99 Asus one.
> 
> ...



Thanks for the info  ye one of the main reasons i was thinking about water cooling was cause of the uv green tubing lol  for the parts of the pc i like to stick to one brand that is well known and for the sound card I've been looking into it and will probably spend some cash on a good card  thank's for taking the time to look at the builds   (but will look into that cpu air cooler since the case is mainly for air cooling lol)


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## Vario (Jul 21, 2013)

Not sure why you'd only do two monitors if you are running a system that powerful.  Buy a third and a fancy VESA stand and do Nvidia surround, also the system really seems like overkill...


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## alfredoPC (Jul 21, 2013)

amp281 said:


> Not sure why you'd only do two monitors if you are running a system that powerful.  Buy a third and a fancy VESA stand and do Nvidia surround, also the system really seems like overkill...



well i will be getting another monitor sooner or later atm im trying to stick to a budget. And for the system I'm trying to keep this Tower for a while without any major upgrade at least in 3 years


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## FordGT90Concept (Jul 21, 2013)

I would swap the Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500 232W 2.1ch Speakers for Klipsch ProMedia 2.1.  I would also look at HT|OMEGA an HT|OMEGA sound card and a 80+ Platinum certified PSU (would recommend Enermax Platimax) instead of silver.  Costs a bit more but much higher quality.  You're also really skimping on HDD space.


If you're looking for a place to save money, look at different monitors and video cards.  Those monitors are only 1920x1080 and stretched to 27" at that (should be closer to 23").  You're paying a fortune for 144 Hz refresh rate and...that doesn't make much sense.  There's not much sense in spending $1400 in graphics cards when $600 is maybe only 20% slower.


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## Vario (Jul 21, 2013)

alfredoPC said:


> well i will be getting another monitor sooner or later atm im trying to stick to a budget. And for the system I'm trying to keep this Tower for a while without any major upgrade at least in 3 years



If your only gaming on a single monitor and using the second monitor for multitasking, you should consider instead buying one 780 and then buying an 880/980 in 2-3 years and selling the 780 at that time.

Are you planning to overclock?

edit: also seconding recommendation for that seasonic plat psu, seasonic makes the best in the biz.  its okay to buy non corsair products once in awhile 

also if you can wait a bit longer for Ivy-E it might be worth it in terms of the ultimate rig

edit2: why do you need a $400 motherboard?

edit3: consider going with faster ram (like DDR3 2133) and a $200 motherboard instead like this one GIGABYTE GA-Z87X-OC LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6...


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## drdeathx (Jul 21, 2013)

If your spending that kind of bread, why use a H100? Build a custom loop. makes no sense to me



amp281 said:


> If your only gaming on a single monitor and using the second monitor for multitasking, you should consider instead buying one 780 and then buying an 880/980 in 2-3 years and selling the 780 at that time.
> 
> Are you planning to overclock?
> 
> ...



Cause he has $4 grand? Now your not making sense. you taking why go with a $400 board and X79 ain't cheap and neither will be Ivy-E.

I will say the Sniper is a great board and I would recommend that build


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## happita (Jul 21, 2013)

drdeathx said:


> If your spending that kind of bread, why use a H100? Build a custom loop. makes no sense to me



If I had $4k to burn on a PC, I wouldn't want to build a custom anything. I'd want to buy parts that are compatible and just simply work great.




drdeathx said:


> Cause he has $4 grand? Now your not making sense. you taking why go with a $400 board and X79 ain't cheap and neither will be Ivy-E.
> 
> I will say the Sniper is a great board and I would recommend that build



Even though a person has x amount of money to spend, doesn't mean he HAS to. He can still get a great board without overdoing it with unnecessary features that he will probably never use. A board in the ~$300 range would do great, but I don't know anything about Z87 boards, so I can't really suggest anything


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## silkstone (Jul 21, 2013)

The Corsair 900D is a great case. But I would not go with a Corsair AIO. Look into H220 so you can add to it later if you want to put other components under water.

Edit - Oh, you might consider going for 3 screens with 7970's and setting up eyefinity, rather than a single screen for gaming. Either that or see if you can save on other components and get a 3rd screen with your dual 780's


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## drdeathx (Jul 21, 2013)

happita said:


> If I had $4k to burn on a PC, I wouldn't want to build a custom anything. I'd want to buy parts that are compatible and just simply work great.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



it is called watercooling....(custom, not a prebuilt). maybe research it. It cools better


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## alfredoPC (Jul 21, 2013)

*respond *



FordGT90Concept said:


> I would swap the Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500 232W 2.1ch Speakers for Klipsch ProMedia 2.1.  I would also look at HT|OMEGA an HT|OMEGA sound card and a 80+ Platinum certified PSU (would recommend Enermax Platimax) instead of silver.  Costs a bit more but much higher quality.  You're also really skimping on HDD space.
> just saving some pennies here and there but thats the reason i want the ability to add more to my rig in the near future
> 
> If you're looking for a place to save money, look at different monitors and video cards.  Those monitors are only 1920x1080 and stretched to 27" at that (should be closer to 23").  You're paying a fortune for 144 Hz refresh rate and...that doesn't make much sense.  There's not much sense in spending $1400 in graphics cards when $600 is maybe only 20% slower.


 ye i looked into that and did alot of research on my monitors i was going to go with 3 24" 144hz 2 response but i decided that i could just add another 27" monitor once i gathered the money also I'm not 100 sure if its going to be a IPS(movies) or just another 27"(3 screen gaming) (maybe 47" vizio tv  for the movies )



amp281 said:


> If your only gaming on a single monitor and using the second monitor for multitasking, you should consider instead buying one 780 and then buying an 880/980 in 2-3 years and selling the 780 at that time. I've read that 780's shouldnt have a problem when sli for a few years another thing i thought about thats why i did the green build (2) it has 4 way sli if i ever needed a little bit more of a boost in the near future i would be able to add 2 more to the setup that was the first reason for looking at that motherboard 2 reason was that it looks fancy lol
> 
> Are you planning to overclock?
> 
> ...


i thought the faster you had your ram you would affect the speed of the cpu if it would ever get overclocked ?


drdeathx said:


> If your spending that kind of bread, why use a H100? Build a custom loop. makes no sense to me
> ehh i only got around 4k to spend lol water cooling isnt my biggest concern when it can be done at anytime/ and im going to try and learn how to overclock
> 
> 
> ...





silkstone said:


> The Corsair 900D is a great case. But I would not go with a Corsair AIO. Look into H220 so you can add to it later if you want to put other components under water. ill look into that tanks
> 
> Edit - Oh, you might consider going for 3 screens with 7970's and setting up eyefinity, rather than a single screen for gaming. Either that or see if you can save on other components and get a 3rd screen with your dual 780's


 i will get a 3rd screen its just a matter of time and how fast i save more money im just trying to get my first rig going


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## happita (Jul 21, 2013)

drdeathx said:


> it is called watercooling....(custom, not a prebuilt). maybe research it. It cools better



No need to insinuate, I know what watercooling is. Anyone who builds their first PC will NOT want to build a custom loop. But that's just me, unless some people have balls of steel and like to take a huge risk of something going wrong their very first time. No offense to the op, but the guy doesn't exactly sound experienced (in building).


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## d1nky (Jul 21, 2013)

$4K id want something that stands out and looks great

a rig with high end components should be cooled like a high end rig. id go full custom loop on everything and ditch some of the add ons.


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## silkstone (Jul 21, 2013)

a WC loop would bring minimal benefits for the price. Sure, they look cool, but they really are not good value for money.

I completely understand why someone wouldn't think about going with a WC.

Personally, I would love to build a custom loop (and really hope to sometime in the future), but I have other priorities when it comes to spending money on my rig.


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## Aquinus (Jul 21, 2013)

I would go with custom water cooling down the road. For a first rig I wouldn't go down that road until your comfortable with everything else first. Going with air/AIO simplifies things. Also, I think you'll be wanting the 240Gb SSD at least. 120Gb isn't very big.


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## Fourstaff (Jul 21, 2013)

So why are we going on with the idea of splashing $4K on a gaming rig when you can easily build something half the price and much more sensible?


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## silkstone (Jul 21, 2013)

I don't really see anything OTT on his prospective builds. Some people build up slowly, other just want to do it all in one go.

If you don't approve of his choice in parts, you really should make some suggestions as to how he could improve it.


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## Vario (Jul 21, 2013)

I would recommend buying in stages: Go with a single graphics card, the onboard audio, and start with 3 monitors plus a VESA stand.  If the single 780 isnt enough, buy a second.  Id do a closed loop cooler for now and upgrade later, remember that the OP is new to building custom pcs.  Once its all working well then do full water. I doubt anyome wouls norice a differemce between a 200 and a 400 dollar motherboard beyond bragging rights.  If I was spending 4k Od want to see a difference, so I'd go for a nice surround monitor setup rather than expensive mobo, etc


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## d1nky (Jul 21, 2013)

dont those fully modded rigs sell for about $4k??

the ones that are sponsored/custom made and look the shizz!


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## radrok (Jul 21, 2013)

Don't get the 27" 1080p, it's too big of a monitor for that resolution, the PPI drops to an unacceptable level.

That watercooling setup on the third build is awful, especially the radiator choice.

The AMS is really overpriced based on its performance, not on build quality though.

I'd say get an XSPC kit, something like this:

http://www.xs-pc.com/watercooling-kits/raystorm-d5-ax360-watercooling-kit
or this:
http://www.xs-pc.com/watercooling-kits/raystorm-d5-rx360-watercooling-kit

Dual GTX 780 3GB, best high end graphics array at the moment imho, good choice.

It still can be dropped to single GPU if you don't plan going surround, a single 780 can handle ANY game on 1080p JUST FINE.

Any 4770k+Z87 motherboard will suffice, I'd say get the GD-65 or the Maximus Hero, no need to spend anything more than that on a Z87 motherboard as they just give superficial features after that price point (unless you are a storage nut or an extreme overclocker).

I personally own TWO Xonar Essence ST/X soundcards and I wouldn't recommend anything else for the price, they are the best bang for the buck audio on PC.


Don't buy Razer things, they are good but they don't withstand abuse.

Good Luck


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## Vario (Jul 21, 2013)

The Razer drivers are kinda annoying too..


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## Fourstaff (Jul 21, 2013)

silkstone said:


> I don't really see anything OTT on his prospective builds. Some people build up slowly, other just want to do it all in one go.
> 
> If you don't approve of his choice in parts, you really should make some suggestions as to how he could improve it.



Knock processor down from 4770K to 4670K, you wouldn't notice much difference in gaming. 
212 EVO is more than enough if not overclocking, if overclocking Noctua U14S + another A15 fan
Keep motherboard to M VI Hero, best bang for buck OC board
Get 2x 770 instead of 2x 780, that is boatloads of money saved. 
Dump audio card, the M IV Hero's onboard is pretty good, if you want better you will need to spend more than that. 
900w PSU is more than enough, eg Antec HCG 900W
Get a 1440p screen instead of 2 1080p screens

Speakers, keyboard, mouse and headset are all very hard to recommend, its very personal. For example, I would recommend Razer Blackwidow keyboard, Microsoft Sidewinder X5, Steelseries Siberia V2 or Sennheiser PC 3x0 series, and some bookshelf speakers depending on availability.


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## Delta6326 (Jul 21, 2013)

Don't buy Corsair computer case, if you want true quality and want your case to stand out, plus have great versatility for WC'ing the go with CaseLabs I would get a SM8.
http://www.caselabs-store.com/merlin-sm8/

The only cases I would buy pre-built is CaseLabs.

Plus if your looking to go WC, get 
Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 Rad
Koolance 380-i CPU block
Koolance GPU block for what ever your getting
ETC. will update with more stuff if I have time.

EDIT: the Hardware I suggest getting.
And what games do you even Play? this budget is more for showing off then actually gaming.


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## radrok (Jul 21, 2013)

Fourstaff said:


> Dump audio card, the M IV Hero's onboard is pretty good, if you want better you will need to spend more than that.



I strongly doubt, for how much good it is, that the onboard on the MVI Hero can come close to a dedicated sound card like the STX.


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## Vario (Jul 21, 2013)

Delta6326 said:


> Don't buy Corsair computer case, if you want true quality and want your case to stand out, plus have great versatility for WC'ing the go with CaseLabs I would get a SM8.
> http://www.caselabs-store.com/merlin-sm8/
> 
> The only cases I would buy pre-built is CaseLabs.
> ...



Not to mention case is money well spent if you plan to keep building pcs for the next decade.


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## IggSter (Jul 21, 2013)

OK - $4k to spend, here would be my approach.

1. Pick a case: this will be with you by far the longest and should last many many years.. How i would choose: Must have easily removeable/accesible filters for all intakes. Must have room for growth/upgrades. Must not be noisey. (Antec p280, Raven RV02, Corsair 900D
2. Pick a PSU: similar to the case is a foundation part for your PC. (Corsair HX/AX)
3. Pick cooling: So many to choose from here - I like Noctua for their quality and relative silence.
4. CPU - I would go with the 4770K
5. GPU - I would go with the GTX 780
6. Memory - Minimum of 8gig - probably 16gig
7. Motherboard to suit above - almosty certainly Asus or Gigabyte
8. Soundcard - again I would go Asus (I will never use Creative after the way they shafted their customers a few years back (my opinion))
9. Headset - If you want a gaming headset the sennheiser 350 (closed) and 360 (open) are right up there in terms of quality. I would recommend NOT buying a gaming headset and buying HiFi headphones and a separate mic if required (sennheiser HD-25s, Grado SR 80i)
10. Monitor - I currenty use a Dell PVA 16:10 24", a Dell IPS 16:10 30" and an IIyama TA 16:9 27". 
The Dell PVA 24" has the best screen by far - ideal for multimedia/graphics work - bad for games as v slow response
The Dell IPS 30" has a great screen and again is great for media and graphics work - terrible for fast games as its even slower than the 24 and you have to push so many pixels. Also screen is really to large for gaming (good for RTS etc.
The IIyama 27" has a typically meh screen - calibration helps this a ton! This, for me is the perfect size and speed for gaming. 1ms response and 120Hz refresh are REALLY noticable in fast paced games.
11. Keyboard - I love the corsair K series - mechanical ftw!
12. Mouse - Had the G9(was ok nothing really special), Deathadder (Better feeling than G9 imo, but material/Build/software quality is not as good as logitech), Sensei (best mouse I've ever used - feels like a deathadder with excellent material/build quality also the software just works.
13. Speakers - please dont buy PC speakers - they are a rip off in most cases. If you must then the Acoustic Energy Aego M speakers are incredibly good (made by a proper hifi company)


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## Kaynar (Jul 21, 2013)

I at budget I would be looking at MUCH better sound than PCI-E soundcards and cheap plastic gaming crap headphones.

Example:
Audiolab M-DAC using Coaxial connection to motherboard
Beyerdynamic DT880PRO


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## Tonduluboy (Jul 21, 2013)

I bet the OP getting confuse which one to go with so many suggestion atm 

Anyway, i just wanna add this item TP-LINK TL-WN722N Wireless N150 High Gain USB Adap... 

A wireless internet USB. Been using it for a while.
I did used 20m cable vs this one 20m inside my room close door (router in my living room). Well there is not a diff in signal received at all. Beside you do wanna surfing right.


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## erocker (Jul 21, 2013)

Heck no! Never use a USB lan adapter, or sound adapter if you can help it.


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## acerace (Jul 21, 2013)

Kaynar said:


> I at budget I would be looking at MUCH better sound than PCI-E soundcards and cheap plastic gaming crap headphones.
> 
> Example:
> Audiolab M-DAC using Coaxial connection to motherboard
> Beyerdynamic DT880PRO



This! With a $4K budget, it is very sensible to go high end in audio department.


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## alfredoPC (Jul 22, 2013)

happita said:


> No need to insinuate, I know what watercooling is. Anyone who builds their first PC will NOT want to build a custom loop. But that's just me, unless some people have balls of steel and like to take a huge risk of something going wrong their very first time. No offense to the op, but the guy doesn't exactly sound experienced (in building).


Hit it on the money lol yes I'm not experienced on computer beyond a high school web mastering and some computer books i read  but in one of the forums and when i was looking for the supply for water cooling i found out that the "Water" cooling wasn't actually water anymore and its some form of non conductive liquid that can be spilled on your equipment and not cause any/major damage but for any rig i choose from i will water cool in the future as soon as i get the money saved up 



Fourstaff said:


> So why are we going on with the idea of splashing $4K on a gaming rig when you can easily build something half the price and much more sensible?


well i just came back from a tour to afganistan and saved up some cash i have always wanted a crazy gaming rig since i was a kid and now sounds like the best time to build my gaming rig


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## alfredoPC (Jul 22, 2013)

silkstone said:


> I don't really see anything OTT on his prospective builds. Some people build up slowly, other just want to do it all in one go.
> 
> If you don't approve of his choice in parts, you really should make some suggestions as to how he could improve it.


Ye i was going with the go big or go home concept lol water cooling and added memory should only be the things that i need to add in the future and maybe a 3 way sli if needed thats what i went with the $300 sniper gigabyte mother board 




amp281 said:


> I would recommend buying in stages: Go with a single graphics card, the onboard audio, and start with 3 monitors plus a VESA stand.  If the single 780 isnt enough, buy a second.  Id do a closed loop cooler for now and upgrade later, remember that the OP is new to building custom pcs.  Once its all working well then do full water. I doubt anyome wouls norice a differemce between a 200 and a 400 dollar motherboard beyond bragging rights.  If I was spending 4k Od want to see a difference, so I'd go for a nice surround monitor setup rather than expensive mobo, etc


 Thats one of the reasons i came up with three rigs so i can get a little bit for info on them and choose which would just be the best first mother board only is able to do X2 sli while the $300 dollar mother boards would be able to do 4x sli dont get me wrong i severally doubt ill max out my cards shortly but if i every run into that problem i would just like to throw a card into the case and call it done without having to upgrade my motherboard and for the surround monitor setup i will add one once i save up money to get another monitor  



radrok said:


> Don't get the 27" 1080p, it's too big of a monitor for that resolution, the PPI drops to an unacceptable level.
> 
> That watercooling setup on the third build is awful, especially the radiator choice.
> 
> ...



thanks for the suggestions ye i still a new born on water cooling dont know anything or any brand just looked up the highest rated things lol and threw everything into a wish list  for my mother board only reason i added that 300 dollar mother board was for the 4 way sli, just thinking about the future and if i ever max out my card witch i think will take a while i would love to just throw another 780 inside my case and call it done   and the razar i heard very good reviews for the head sets and they withstand alot of abuse the average life time for them is around 2 years for the key board idk i was thinking about ducky


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## alfredoPC (Jul 22, 2013)

IggSter said:


> OK - $4k to spend, here would be my approach.
> 
> 1. Pick a case: this will be with you by far the longest and should last many many years.. How i would choose: Must have easily removeable/accesible filters for all intakes. Must have room for growth/upgrades. Must not be noisey. (Antec p280, Raven RV02, Corsair 900D
> 2. Pick a PSU: similar to the case is a foundation part for your PC. (Corsair HX/AX)
> ...


 Thanks alot for the info !! for the head set what would be the diffrence from the headset with a seprate mice and a gaming headset?// only reason i got those speakers was cause the reviews and the sub woofer looks mean lol  



Kaynar said:


> I at budget I would be looking at MUCH better sound than PCI-E soundcards and cheap plastic gaming crap headphones.
> 
> Example:
> Audiolab M-DAC using Coaxial connection to motherboard
> Beyerdynamic DT880PRO


 ye atm when making with wish list didnt know much about sound cards and how much of a difference they made but the headphones i heard were the best for the price im getting a sound system so i really dont care about sound quality in the headphone



Tonduluboy said:


> I bet the OP getting confuse which one to go with so many suggestion atm
> 
> Anyway, i just wanna add this item TP-LINK TL-WN722N Wireless N150 High Gain USB Adap...
> 
> ...


ahaha ye its awsome tho i love the feedback im getting its helping me out alot to choose which rig to go with  and thanks on the wireless adapter if i ever need it i usually just go wired


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## drdeathx (Jul 22, 2013)

silkstone said:


> a WC loop would bring minimal benefits for the price. Sure, they look cool, but they really are not good value for money.
> 
> I completely understand why someone wouldn't think about going with a WC.
> 
> Personally, I would love to build a custom loop (and really hope to sometime in the future), but I have other priorities when it comes to spending money on my rig.



Bullcrap, this is misinformation.... Custom water gets much higher overclocks or will run much cooler. Where did you get this theory from?


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## Vario (Jul 22, 2013)

Heres some more case ideas:

*Silverstone Raven RV-01*





motherboard is actually 90 degrees so the graphics cards hang vertical, pretty cool

*Coolermaster Cosmos II*





These things are wild.  Basically big as fuck and looks amazing.


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## silkstone (Jul 23, 2013)

drdeathx said:


> Bullcrap, this is misinformation.... Custom water gets much higher overclocks or will run much cooler. Where did you get this theory from?



How much does a custom WC loop cost over and AIO cooler?

You can get an AIO cooler or good air cooler for $50 and bump your cpu up to 4.5ghz making it about 5c per mhz.

You might get up to 5 ghz for a $200 custom loop making it 13c per mhz.

I'm not against customs loops, I love them. But they are not good value for money, if you are  looking at the performance bump that they provide.


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## Huddo93 (Jul 23, 2013)

Not to burst your bubble alfredoPC, but $4k is rather huge, and in someways its being spent on what most of us seem to see as a little overkill for your applications. If you want to spend the 4k more "wisely" in the eyes of some of us. Try cut down on the graphics cards (2x 770 or single 780), maybe rethink the monitor strategy (3x 23" / 24" 1080p 60Hz, or if your really a huge FPS fanatic, 120Hz) for surround, use money saved into building a custom watercooling loop, possibly go for a corsair 900D to show off all the watercooling madness, or even a 350D with a more compact and clustered up but clean look. 

I understand that you have been saving, and I really hate to burst your dreams on what you are looking for, but there are better ways to spend your gaming rig budget. 

I agree with most of your choices, apart from the graphics cards and monitors as that is where most of the money is being spent. Also, with the high end Gigabyte and Asus the power phase cooler next to the cpu socket is now also come compatible for adding to your water cooling loop, which to me if your looking to make a beast of a gaming rig, why not do custom water cooling.

Another monitor option is to go for a 2560x1440 27" monitor and possibly a smaller 23" or 24" monitor on the side for multitasking and play your games on the large 2560x1440 monitor. I recently bought a ASUS PB278Q in January and even though its expensive, the image quality due to the IPS panel and pixel density is amazing over a standard TN Panel HD 1080p monitor. 

So overall, my suggestions would be:
- Downgrade on graphics cards, possibly 770 2-way SLI or single 780. I feel the GTX780 should be adequate for most games even on 3x 1080p monitors. 

- Look into other monitors, possibly not go for 144Hz monitors unless you a serious FPS fanatic and want the best reaction times. Possibly a single 2560x1440 27" monitor and a smaller cheaper 23" 1080p monitor for multitasking.

- Use money saved for the above to and look into building a awesome custom water cooling loop especially with the high end motherboards having VRM coolers that have barbs already installed so you can run your water cooling loop through it for extra awesome. 

Hope this may give you some ideas on what you could do with $4k, it really is a huge budget and I'd hate to think it may go into possibly redundant and expensive hardware. We all, really want you to get the best experience and find the best way for you to spend your savings!


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## FordGT90Concept (Jul 23, 2013)

Huddo93 said:


> - Look into other monitors, possibly not go for 144Hz monitors unless you a serious FPS fanatic and want the best reaction times. Possibly a single 2560x1440 27" monitor and a smaller cheaper 23" 1080p monitor for multitasking.


Even at 144 Hz, you're still dealing with the limitations of TN LCD technology.  If he is a fanatic about FPS and everything else be damned, a plasma would be second best to CRT.  Plasma and CRTs have a delay measuring less than a nanosecond compared to LCDs at no less than 2 millisecond.

I completely agree though, one or two 2560x1440 27" 60 Hz monitors is better than two 1920x1080 27" 144 Hz monitors.


@alfredoPC: do you have an updated list of what you're looking at?


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## puma99dk| (Jul 23, 2013)

as Huddo93 and FordGT90Concept is talking about if u r going with a 2560x1440 and a pair of GTX 770 go for the 4gb versions or else u may hit a wall of the 2gb memory for that high resolution ^^

but with 4k u can get a good i5/i7 "K" setup.


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## alfredoPC (Jul 23, 2013)

Huddo93 said:


> Not to burst your bubble alfredoPC, but $4k is rather huge, and in someways its being spent on what most of us seem to see as a little overkill for your applications. If you want to spend the 4k more "wisely" in the eyes of some of us. Try cut down on the graphics cards (2x 770 or single 780), maybe rethink the monitor strategy (3x 23" / 24" 1080p 60Hz, or if your really a huge FPS fanatic, 120Hz) for surround, use money saved into building a custom watercooling loop, possibly go for a corsair 900D to show off all the watercooling madness, or even a 350D with a more compact and clustered up but clean look.
> 
> I understand that you have been saving, and I really hate to burst your dreams on what you are looking for, but there are better ways to spend your gaming rig budget.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the info and my original setup was the 3 24" monitors that came with 144Hz and 1 sec response rate for the 3 screen. If i would add just one IPS monitor to the mix of TN it would probably look very bad. I've been looking into solutions and i kinda came up with what you suggested in a different way getting a 27" monitor with 144Hz and 2 second respons rate with a vizio tv 32" M series 120Hz and ye i understand that the tv will have a low response rate but it would probably be used for movies and slow pace games. Also i have been looking into water cooling and the whole idea of it is great but at the same time there is still a risk for water cooling leaks. I've been doing my homework  and i found out that the corsair water cooling series has a 5 year warranty and they are well known for replacing whatever the water cooler damaged if it would leak during that time frame I'm not a very big fan of overclocking and i would seriously doubt that i would need the extra cooling from an  open water cooling setup. Reason for the 780s and the gigabyte motherboard if i would go with 780's 2-3 years i should still be able to play any game of my choosing without a big problem, gigabyte motherboard with the 4x sli would help in the future ability  for another card at my wish if i would ever need that extra power thats the only reason I'm going with 780's just planning for the future


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## alfredoPC (Jul 23, 2013)

FordGT90Concept said:


> Even at 144 Hz, you're still dealing with the limitations of TN LCD technology.  If he is a fanatic about FPS and everything else be damned, a plasma would be second best to CRT.  Plasma and CRTs have a delay measuring less than a nanosecond compared to LCDs at no less than 2 millisecond.
> 
> I completely agree though, one or two 2560x1440 27" 60 Hz monitors is better than two 1920x1080 27" 144 Hz monitors.
> 
> ...



I acutally do have an updated list but i might spend a little over the budget price lol i decided to go with the 2 build and add a few more things that can be bought at its own time http://pcpartpicker.com/user/alfredoPC/saved/1Z1l


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## Vario (Jul 23, 2013)

alfredoPC said:


> I acutally do have an updated list but i might spend a little over the budget price lol i decided to go with the 2 build and add a few more things that can be bought at its own time http://pcpartpicker.com/user/alfredoPC/saved/1Z1l



I'd strongly advice the H100 over the H110.  The 120mm fans are better than the 140mm at radiator use.  Also, again, if you are only going with the one monitor try a single 780 first and see if it does what you want.  Theres just not too many high static pressure 140mm fans with 140mm fan holes and the fans corsair ships with the 100 are much better than the fans with the 110.

 Also I am not sure if you want to overclock but if not then you can save money by buying a smaller cooler like a H80 and a locked processor like a Xeon 1230v3 (basically a locked i7 4770) or a non-K series.  Theres no shame in saving money when you get the exact same performance/ end result.  This saves you money on the motherboard as well.  Instead of setting out to spend $4000, maybe you should set out to have the fastest pc you can build, which will probably come out at $2500   Remember, it all goes obselete eventually and its foolish to spend $1200 on two 780s when in two years a 960 will probably be equal or greater than a 780 and only cost $230.


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