Building a Gaming Computer : Input Appreciated! [PARTS UPDATED 2/23/12]

Hmm...Additional fans? Depending on your case, If your case has good airflow then you wouldn't really need any extra fans, the stock fans would work fine. If fan noise bothers you, then you can always get extra fans later.

If I remember correctly, the Z68A Series lets you use the built in gpu and a video card, while the Z68X Series lets you use a video card only.
Correct me if I'm wrong.

I'd say go for the z68a as it's cheaper by $40.

Quote from sirbrandino

Honestly, I'm unsure. If that's the only difference, then I should go with the Z68A, right?

the difference between p67 and z68 is that 1. z68 lets you use the graphics on your proccesor as well as your video card (so if your video card is down for some reason or even debugging it or something you have a backup graphics card kinda even though its not very powerful) and 2. it has better performance with ssd's and 3. it came after p67 so i guess you could say it evolved slightly more (well i mean it has the other 2 bonuses listed above).

Also the 2500 and 2500k have 2 differences you probably know the k means you can overclock it (well more than 100mhz or so that you can do with a locked multi) and it has slightly more powerful integrated graphics (what i talked about in #1 in z68).

and with the cpu i would go as powerful as you can if you are going to be rendering, so if you could get an 2600k and it will render about 50% faster but as that isn't really in your budget i would definately not go lower than the 2500 because rendering is the one thing that will max out almost any proccesor.

Quote from sirbrandino

I believe you may be mistaken. Not sure tho. We were talking about the Z68A and the Z68X. Obviously, I would like to keep 40 bucks in my pocket, as I'm buying a graphics card, and if that quits I'll have to buy a new one anyways.

Yeah, I see basically no difference between the Z68A and X. Both have the nifty looking Virtu stuff. On that note I think you'll want to plug your monitor into the motherboard, not the video card for that to work. The manual will say more. (*gasp* read a manual? say it isn't so! :))

MAKE sure that PSU has bronze 80+ certification otherwise it is most likely a crap piece of equipment that will destroy every chip in your PC. This basically means it is reliable and delivers more than %80 of the power it chews :).

The NZXT M59 Classic is a very nice looking case for only $35-45 which comes with two very quiet fans :).

Quote from bbqroast

MAKE sure that PSU has bronze 80+ certification otherwise it is most likely a crap piece of equipment that will destroy every chip in your PC. This basically means it is reliable and delivers more than %80 of the power it chews :).

The NZXT M59 Classic is a very nice looking case for only $35-45 which comes with two very quiet fans :).

overgeneralization much? I've got one that's 80%+ efficient yet isn't certified, been working great for a long time.
It's a Xclio brand. It's one of those same manufacturer as a big brand sort of deals, I forget who though but I did do a bunch of research beforehand.
Chose the genericy one based on good (professional) reviews as it was the only way I was going to afford a modular one.

still: i'd recommend hitting up hardocp to check on a review there, they've got the best review process i've seen. (very hard on the PSU)

Quote from Ook

overgeneralization much? I've got one that's 80%+ efficient yet isn't certified, been working great for a long time.
It's a Xclio brand. It's one of those same manufacturer as a big brand sort of deals, I forget who though but I did do a bunch of research beforehand.
Chose the genericy one based on good (professional) reviews as it was the only way I was going to afford a modular one.

still: i'd recommend hitting up hardocp to check on a review there, they've got the best review process i've seen. (very hard on the PSU)

Fair enough.
If the reviews from independent sites are good than it should be fine. I'm just saying that certificate is held in high regard, I personally would always buy a 80% certified PSU mainly because it is responsible for supplying safe power to all your chips. Once again research is good, I imagine the certificate has costs so it may not be on more budget PSUs. Just check they say something about the typical operating efficiency being a decent amount (if you get a 500watt PSU with 50% efficiency your only getting 250watts and if it that bad it may do worse).
I normally just go for Corsair.
As Alblaka said "to each his own".

Quote from sirbrandino

I'm currently unsure how much wattage I need. I'm going to update my part list soon.

Any recommendations for a psu around the 600w range? The psu is currently the part I'm researching the most. I am looking at this psu, but I haven't heard good reviews from Rosewill, hoever, this model seems like it has good reviews. Any advice? I'm kinda leaning modular, as the case I'm going to be getting is small (either the m59 or the 430).

I love the look of the NZXT M59, and the fact that it has 2 fans, however, it does not have any front fans. Currently, I think having a bottom front mounted fan is the way to go, though I could be wrong. What do you think of the one I selected?

[UPDATED THE PART LIST!]

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Looks nice, you should definitely get some intake fans as sucking air out of the case results in low pressure which will suck in dust (add input fans and turn around the side fan?). The i5-2500k is a great choice...
Once again is the Corsair option to expensive? You should be able to get away with a 500 but I would stay at 600 (my server has a 305 but then again no GPU) The PSU you linked has good reviews but some bad ones two (6% gave it lowest rating possible- people with good experiences don't review as much thou) one said that he had "read Rosewill had a terrible reputation for PSUs".
Really not sure about Rosewill overall but it is your choice- I order internationally so RMAing is very difficult.

Oh and Modular is a bit more $ also budget plugs (PSU-Cable) can cause serious issues (the first Modular PSUs were made by budget companies meaning many people still avoid them for being "unreliable").

Quote from sirbrandino

I ended up going with this case. Any recommendations for additional fans?

looks like it already has a rear fan. As the front will take a 140mm i'd suggest one of those, it'll be quieter than a 120mm.
here a few that look nice: one two three. Plus they're all around the same noise level as the back fan.

as a side note: Not really fond of the PSU on the bottom units myself but if it works for you then whatever.

Quote from sirbrandino

Thanks, I was planning on putting a fan in the front. Why do you not like psu's on the bottom?

The airflow ends up being rather odd, plus there's the dust situation, if the thing's going to sit on the floor like most do that just invites dust to invade the PSU something fierce.