Need help with building a Gaming/recording PC

[heavy7-665]

Hey guys. Thanks to tax season coming up I'm looking to build a decent gaming computer with some music tracking on the side.
Now, I'm a total idiot when it comes to computers so I had to enlist the help of buddy to plan it out. This is what it came out to. Now I want some other opinions on this stuff so I know it will work and maybe I'll find other options that will save me some cash

So please have a look and tell me if it will explode or be ok

Case
Newegg.com - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001BK Black Steel / Plastic Enthusiast ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Motherboard
Newegg.com - MSI 990FXA-GD65V2 AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
Video Card
Newegg.com - EVGA 04G-P4-2649-KR GeForce GT 640 4GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card
Power Supply
Newegg.com - APEVIA WARLOCK POWER ATX-WA900W 900W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply
Processor
Newegg.com - AMD FX-6100 Zambezi 3.3GHz Socket AM3+ 95W Six-Core Desktop Processor FD6100WMGUSBX
RAM
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL9D-8GBXM
HD
Newegg.com - Seagate Barracuda Green ST1500DL003 1.5TB 5900 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Monitor
Newegg.com - ASUS VH232H Glossy Black 23" 5ms Widescreen Full HD 1080p LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ASCR 20000:1 w/Speakers & HDMI
Disk Drive
Newegg.com - Sony Optiarc 24X DVD Burner, Bulk Package 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model AD-7280S-0B - CD / DVD Burners
Sound Card
Newegg.com - Creative Sound Blaster Recon3D Fatal1ty Champion (70SB135400000) 5.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Express x1 Interface Sound Card with Sound Blaster I/O

Sorry about the mess. Just need the help.

 

[Superwoodle]

How much are you trying to spend?

I would defiantly look into a different power supply, probably gold certified. They are more efficient, deliver cleaner power and produce less heat.
Also you won't need 900W with the other items you listed. A few other of my friends and I own one of these and highly recommend it: Newegg.com - CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

I not quite sure, but I don't know how beneficial a discrete sound card would be. Unless you have had experience with them before, I would be more inclined to purchase studio headphones if you don't have a pair. For $200 I think you would benifit much more to get some form of aftermarket cooling, and an SSD as a boot drive.
Examples:
CPU fan heatsink
Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel 2011/1366/1155 and AMD FM1/FM2/AM3+
SSD
Newegg.com - OCZ Vertex 4 VTX4-25SAT3-128G 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Another note, if you have a desktop now, you could just steal the disk drive out of it.

If you have any questions on other hardware you listed or are considering just ask away.

 

[baptizedinblood]

1. Case looks fine, more of a preference really as long as everything fits in it.

2. Motherboard is fine, your selected processor will fit, but that processor is a bit on the lower end.

3. Power Supply...as mentioned above, gold certified is a good idea. 900w is also a bit overkill for what you are getting.

4. That video card won't do you much good as far as gaming goes. Look at the 650ti or a 660. Maybe get a cheaper case and power supply so you can get a better card.


Everything else looks good, you probably don't need a soundcard though, most modern motherboards have decent on-board sound, and you'd be better off getting an Interface for recording.

 

[heavy7-665]

So should I just ditch the sound card thing?

I'm trying to keep the price around 1200 or so. But if you can post a few video card I'd be grateful because all the numbers make no sense.
I'm gonna take your advice on the power supply too. Feel free to throw links at me.

 

[Aztec]

I've heard nothing but bad stories about Creative soundcards.

 

[Superwoodle]

Yea your probably not going to need the soundcard.

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2662-KR GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Newegg.com - EVGA 02G-P4-3660-KR GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Newegg.com - EVGA 02G-P4-2670-KR GeForce GTX 670 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

I know the 670 and Ti cards are great, I've used them both.

--------

Parts you listed:
Case
Newegg.com - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001BK Black Steel / Plastic Enthusiast ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Motherboard
Newegg.com - MSI 990FXA-GD65V2 AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
Processor
Newegg.com - AMD FX-6100 Zambezi 3.3GHz Socket AM3+ 95W Six-Core Desktop Processor FD6100WMGUSBX
RAM
Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL9D-8GBXM
HDD
Newegg.com - Seagate Barracuda Green ST1500DL003 1.5TB 5900 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Display
Newegg.com - ASUS VH232H Glossy Black 23" 5ms Widescreen Full HD 1080p LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ASCR 20000:1 w/Speakers & HDMI
Disk Drive
Newegg.com - Sony Optiarc 24X DVD Burner, Bulk Package 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model AD-7280S-0B - CD / DVD Burners

I reccomend:
PSU:
Newegg.com - CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
SSD:
Newegg.com - OCZ Vertex 4 VTX4-25SAT3-128G 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
GPU:
Newegg.com - EVGA 02G-P4-3660-KR GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

Total: $1,241.90

You can also save a couple bucks if you can find combos, like the CPU and Mb
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

2. Motherboard is fine, your selected processor will fit, but that processor is a bit on the lower end.

^

 

[troyguitar]

I'm using a 650W power supply with my 3570k overclocked to 5GHz and an overclocked GTX 670, those super high wattage units are only necessary if you're running 3-4 video cards.

 

[heavy7-665]

Thanks so much guys. Now as far as the processor, what would you recommend?
Sorry about all the dumb questions, my knowledge of the inner workings of a computer is "Hey the computer is on"

 

[troyguitar]

I know absolutely nothing about the current AMD offerings other than that they are supposed to be worse for gaming than the Intel stuff. Most people seem to look at the i5 stuff as the best gaming processors, but those are nearly twice as much as that AMD processor. I'm not sure how it compares to the i3 that costs the same amount.

Personally I'd go for a quad core as that seems to be the new standard and games will take advantage of it more and more. Something like the cheapest i5 or the AMD equivalent (8100?) combined with either a GTX 660 or AMD 7950 video card is probably the best mid-range gaming setup.

 

[BillNephew]

AMD GPU's are a little bit tricky to tweak for gaming. Their drivers can sometimes even take away performance where I've yet to find a problem with any newer Nvidia cards.

 

[heavy7-665]

These picks look good?
Newegg.com - AMD FX-8150 Zambezi 3.6GHz Socket AM3+ 125W Eight-Core Desktop Processor FD8150FRGUBOX

Newegg.com - EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2662-KR GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

 

[baptizedinblood]

If you want my personal opinion, get an Intel-supported motherboard and grab an i5 processor, along with a 660ti. It's approx. 50$ more for a slightly stronger card. Definitely worth it. Those two together will be plenty powerful, along with 8gb of RAM, and you'll have yourself a very solid machine.

It's not that AMD is bad, I've just always had better experiences with intel/nvidia combos.

Edit: Definitely drop the soundcard. It'll draw more power from your PSU and will make your rig harder to troubleshoot should any hardware/drivers fail. Most modern motherboards have pretty high end on-board sound integrated, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

 

[baptizedinblood]

I'm using a 650W power supply with my 3570k overclocked to 5GHz and an overclocked GTX 670, those super high wattage units are only necessary if you're running 3-4 video cards.

Same here, got the i7 3770k running at 4.9ghz with an EVGA GTX670 4gb Superclock Edition OC'd higher than the factory OC and I'm only using a 650w power supply.