I am going to build a new computer. I am starting with a Mother Board.

Give me you sugs:


EDITED: Was misleading.

($600) Core i7-3930K
($94) Corsair H80 or ($120) H100
($270) Gigabyte X79-UD3
($160) 4x4GB or ($300) 4x8GB DDR3-1600
($1100) 2xRadeon HD 7970's (or [$1000] 2xGeForce GTX580's)
($480) 2xOCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS 120GB's (RAID0)
($270) Seasonic X-1250 Gold

I personally love the Lian-Li PC-Z60B ($210) but it's not compatible with the H100 cooler (at least not without a little modification). If you want an H100, most any Corsair chassis will work.

So overall, about $3300 with a new Windows license.

For storage, I'd suggest holding off on that for now--considering how massively overpriced hard drives are right now. You just got a windfall--don't waste it all.

Nice Bobsama! Sorry for the confusion. I want to build a computer that is pulling close to 100 fps on BF3. I have the tower ( if it will work ) and I'm hoping my cooler will work. I just wanted to start with a Motherboard and go from there. I think Red was telling me he was pulling 100+ fps and Renno was getting over 70.

Originally Posted by Duke

Nice Bobsama! Sorry for the confusion. I got a check but I don't want to spend it all to build a computer. I want to build a computer that is pulling close to 100 fps on BF3. I have the tower ( if it will work ) and I'm hoping my cooler will work. I just wanted to start with a Motherboard and go from there. I think Red was telling me he was pulling 100+ fps and Renno was getting over 70.

X79-UD3 & an i7-3930K. That's my recommendation. Otherwise, an i7-2600K & Asrock Z68 Extreme4 Gen3.

Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623I52500K

Newegg.com - Antec Kuhler H2O 620 Liquid Cooling System

Newegg.com - Crucial m4 CT128M4SSD1 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC 7mm Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Newegg.com - ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Plus a nice video card (depends on how high you want to go and what company, pick out some ram, use your old case, old hard drive for storage, your old optical drives (or new ones -- they are cheap) and, if you are nor sure about the power supply, you can get one that will handle everything and run well for 100 - 150 depending.

The 2500k overclocks REALLY well and you could save the cash from the processor for a kick ass video card.

I am a fan of the Kuhler because it is effective, quiet, and easy to install. The x79 platform is really expensive for little in game performance increase over the 2500k. With this setup you could have more cash for a monitor upgrade (I love a 120hz monitor)or just going balls to the wall on video; perhaps both.

Wait till March. A new line up of MB are coming out. With the real PCI.E 3.0 and more video cards taking advantage of this. No reason to buy old when the new is coming :)

What do you like AMD or intel? Also what card company?

Here's what I built for just over $1000:

1 x ASUS Crosshair V Formula AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Gaming Motherboard with 3-Way SLI/CrossFireX Support and UEFI BIOS
Newegg.com - ASUS Crosshair V Formula AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Gaming Motherboard with 3-Way SLI/CrossFireX Support and UEFI BIOS
1 x AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HDZ980FBGMBOX
Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HDZ980FBGMBOX
1 x Antec DF-85 Black Steel / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
1 x Antec CP-850 850W Continuous Power CPX SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC "compatible with Core i7" Power Supply
1 x Western Digital Caviar Black WD5002AALX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
1 x XFX HD-695X-CNDC Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Newegg.com - XFX HD-695X-CNDC Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
1 x CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9

Runs BF3 with everything on high/some ultra around 70-80 fps.

Chuck that was the CPU I was looking at and I like the MB you picked. Is SLI still the way to go? I read an article which was saying the LGA 1155 was plenty for a good gaming computer and the LGA 2011's were over rated and not really necessary.

I'm not really sure what the Z68 HDMI is ??? I've never used a liquid cooler but I guess now is as good as time an any to start.

Originally Posted by Sgt.SID

Wait till March. A new line up of MB are coming out. With the real USB 3.0 and more video cards taking advantage of this. No reason to buy old when the new is coming :)

I don't think I can wait that long SID...

I read the same thing -- that the extra money is better spent on manlier graphics. The Kuhler is a closed system so it is really easy. You can get better performance other ways, but unless you are going stupid on the overclock it is not really necessary. I personally like my system as stable as possible. As for frame rate, I run around 70 with most setting on high, a couple on ultra, with an i7 920 OC'ed to 3.66 and a 5870. With that cooler and a HAF 932 case my system runs at about 45 degrees with an ambient room temp of 69 - 70. Sixer gets better performance out of his cooler but either way my system is silent. That system I put together above would easily bury mine and get the frame rates you want quite easily -- again, it depends on the graphics. As far as SLI I prefer single card solutions -- for the cost difference the ease of never fucking with things and not dealing with the extra heat I just stay with a single card. Remember, if you are cannibalizing parts from your old rig you can sell them for at least a few hundred on ebay. If you want a nice article on ssd, graphics, and cpu performance head over to Tom's Hardware and check out their charts -- the CPU and video card segments include "best gaming for the money" write ups that are helpful.

Duke, is there a microcenter near you?

If you are going to go big on the RAM, it's worth the extra $$ to go 16 to cancel out the paging file.

Originally Posted by ChuckTheHammer

Duke, is there a microcenter near you?

Probably one in Memphis (65 miles). Our they just privately owned business?