Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hey guys I'm putting together a new AMD gaming system for a cousin of mine and would like some input. I've been out of the building scene since I last rebuilt my own machine about 3 years ago so I really appreciate your help.
[list]
AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727

ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131366

EVGA 012-P3-1470-AR GeForce GTX 470 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130550
OR
MSI N460GTX CYCLONE 1GD5/OC GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127510

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 HD322GJ/U 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152244

ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042[/list:u]

Anybody have thoughts or suggestions?

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EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20

Id slap a bigger hard drive in there. Go with the gtx 470. What resolution will your cousin be gaming at?

GTX470, unless you fancy trying a 6950 with a quick BIOS flash to a 6970... and a 1TB Samsung F3. If cousin does anything not-gaming (like encoding) would suggest perhaps a 1090T too; I'm very impressed with the performance of mine.

He's got a very nice HP monitor and even though the actual size of the screen isn't too bad the resolution is only 1600x900. Which is nice because he wont have to worry about framerate issues due to a large resoultion. I thought the MSI card would be nice because of its large heatsink since the fermi cards have a rep for running hot.

He doesn't do any encoding or anything like that, in fact the only game he plays so far is WoW. I'm trying very hard to break him of the habit and expand his horizons.

Paradigm Shifter, I'm assuming this 1090T is another AMD processor? I really don't know.

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EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20

the 1090t is a six core cpu from amd. if he is only playin wow at that resolution just about any card will do. if he plans to expand, go with the best you can.

The GTX460s run a lot cooler than the 470s, so if it's just WoW, and more importantly, 1600x900, then a 460 will be better I think. I don't think even Crysis would make a 460 sweat too badly at 1600x900. 1920x1200 is another matter, where the extra VRAM would help in some situations.

Yeah, the 1090T is a hexacore AMD CPU. Great for encoding (I swear my 1090T at stock gives me encoding times very, very close to my overclocked i7 with the same settings) and just as good for gaming... but total overkill if all you do is game. ;)

If plays WoW, he will want an intel CPU. They eat the AMD ones for breakfast in WoW.

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If plays WoW, he will want an intel CPU. They eat the AMD ones for breakfast in WoW.

+1 on that:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/CPU/62

This one is not that far away from the current one in OP and should be a good choice for WOW:
Intel Core i5-2300 Sandy Bridge 2.8GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115076&Tpk=i5-2300

So sandy bridge is the way to go, eh? I was kinda wary about going that way since they are new. I usually like to wait a while and see how it goes and let them iron out the kinks.

Thanks for your suggestions and pointers guys! Keep them coming!

Edit:
Well I had a look around based one your comments. And here the core of the new system now.
[list]
ASUS P8P67 EVO LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131695

Intel Core i5-2300 Sandy Bridge 2.8GHz (3.1GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52300
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115076

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

MSI N460GTX CYCLONE 1GD5/OC GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127510[/list:u]

Edit again: What do you guys think about qualified vendor lists for memory on motherboards? I don't really know what to think about them.

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EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20

Looks good. :)

From a cooling perspective, he don't need an aftermarked CPU fan. SB CPU's run very cool compared to other I7 and I5's. Several reviews spoke of "the death of aftermarked cooler". From a noise perspective, the Zalman should be better.

From a noise perspective, the TX750W is noisy. I have one of those in one of my machines. Its a soft noise, like a wosh, but it uses a too high RPM when idle. There is nothing to complain about the power though. Its powered both a Gainward 4870X2 tri-slot dual fan and I've also tried it with a 5870. Seems like a reliable PSU and I had no issues with it besides sound (and long cables/non-modular). If you don't have a spesific low noise build, I wouldn't mind, but I thought I'd mention it.

As for memory, make sure that the voltage is 1.5 for SB. Thats the most important thing. The motherboard compatibility list is useful sometimes, since there is a lot that can go wrong and it decreases the chances of some things at least. But, major vendors is often well supported anyway. I haven't used G.SKILL memory as far as I can recall, but the specs should be good for your build otherwise. They are 1.5V also.