Need to build future proof gaming rig for 80k

[pain4ever]

1. What is the purpose of the computer? What all applications and games are you going to run? (Stupid answers like 'gaming' or 'office work' will not work. Be exact. Which games? Which applications? Avoid the word 'et cetera.')
Ans: Gaming and watching HD movies. Games like BF3, Crysis2, Metro, etc. Also should be able to play future titles like Crysis 3, GTA 5, etc

2. What is your overall budget? If you can extend a bit for a more balanced configuration, then mention this too.
Ans: 80k.. can be extended by 5k if really needed..

3. Planning to overclock?
Ans: Never

4. Which Operating System are you planning to use?
Ans: windows 7 home premium (I already own a licensed copy)

5. How much hard drive space is needed?
Ans:1 TB

6. Do you want to buy a monitor? If yes, please mention which screen size and resolution do you want. If you already have a monitor and want to reuse it, again mention the size and resolution of monitor you have.
Ans: Already have monitor. 22 inch.. 1920x1080

7. Which components you DON'T want to buy or which components you already have and plan on reusing?
Ans: - Keyboard and Mouse

8. When are you planning to buy the system?
Ans: before 10th Jan 13

9. Have you ever built a desktop before or will this be done by an assembler?
Ans: This will be my first one..

10. Where do you live? Are you buying locally? Are you open to buying stuff from online shops if you don't get locally?
Ans: Pune.. Prefer to buy locally (Pune or Mumbai)

11. Anything else which you would like to say?
Ans: I will be playing only at 1920x1080.. Motherboard should be future proof so that I can upgrade to SLI/Crossfire in next 1 year.
So far, I have done research on only graphics cards.. But still not sure if I should go for GTX670 or 7970..

 

[hitman4]

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K , 13900
GC: Sapphire HD7970 OC 2Gb, 28500
MB: Asus p8 z77 v pro 15500
RAM: 8GB DDR3 G Skill RipjawsX (2133Mhz), 4000
PSU: Corsair TX 850, 7500
COOLER: Cooler Master 212 Hyper Evo cooler 2100
CASE: Corsair 500r, 6460
HDD: WD Black SATA 1TB 7200rpm, 6040
OD: Asus DVD Burner DRW-24B3ST, 1000
TOTAL 85000

 

[pain4ever]

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K , 13900
GC: Sapphire HD7970 OC 2Gb, 28500
MB: Asus p8 z77 v pro 15500
RAM: 8GB DDR3 G Skill RipjawsX (2133Mhz), 4000
PSU: Corsair TX 850, 7500
COOLER: Cooler Master 212 Hyper Evo cooler 2100
CASE: Corsair 500r, 6460
HDD: WD Black SATA 1TB 7200rpm, 6040
OD: Asus DVD Burner DRW-24B3ST, 1000
TOTAL 85000

Thanks.. Will I be able to mount 2 7970 in crossfire on the ASUS motherboard you suggested? I am planning to have second GPU in next 12 months..

 

[Cilus]

Yes you can but the belive me, you're never going to add another HD 7970 after 1 year. Reason, on that time newer GPU will be available with at lesser price point.

 

[hitman4]

i would suggest asus maximus v gene for single gpu and asus z77 v pro for multi gpu because its an atx motherboard

 

[pain4ever]

Yes you can but the belive me, you're never going to add another HD 7970 after 1 year. Reason, on that time newer GPU will be available with at lesser price point.

Agreed. But after 1 year I will have two options, first is to get another 7970 and run it in crossfire mode and second to get top graphics card at that time and get rid of existing 7970. I guess 7970 in crossfire mode will perform much better than top single graphics card (8970 or whatever) after one year.
Please correct me if I am wrong.

i would suggest asus maximus v gene for single gpu and asus z77 v pro for multi gpu because its an atx motherboard

Point noted. Micro ATX for single Graphics card and ATX for double..

 

[hitman4]

Agreed. But after 1 year I will have two options, first is to get another 7970 and run it in crossfire mode and second to get top graphics card at that time and get rid of existing 7970. I guess 7970 in crossfire mode will perform much better than top single graphics card (8970 or whatever) after one year.
Please correct me if I am wrong.

Most probably you are right...... But we cannot predict the performance of the card and also the release of new drivers after one year.....

 

[pain4ever]

Most probably you are right...... But we cannot predict the performance of the card and also the release of new drivers after one year.....

Yes. So, I just want to have a motherboard, cabinet and PSU which will be able to hold 2 graphics card.. I am fine with 7970 but I am just concern with it's huge size occupying 3 slots making it hard to fit in second 7970..

 

[hitman4]

Yes. So, I just want to have a motherboard, cabinet and PSU which will be able to hold 2 graphics card.. I am fine with 7970 but I am just concern with it's huge size occupying 3 slots making it hard to fit in second 7970..

sapphire cards occupy only two slots.....
so no need to worry

and for motherboard you will be fine. but if you can spend more go for asus z77 sabertooth.
same with psu 850 watts are enough for dual crossfire but if you plan on triple or quad crossfire than better get Corsair AX1200.... Which is again quite a bit expensive.

 

[The Incinerator]

Thanks.. Will I be able to mount 2 7970 in crossfire on the ASUS motherboard you suggested? I am planning to have second GPU in next 12 months..

How many displays are you gonna use and at what resolutions? If its 1920 x 1080 and one , you will be wasting money with two HD7970 in CF. Simple

 

[pain4ever]

How many displays are you gonna use and at what resolutions? If its 1920 x 1080 and one , you will be wasting money with two HD7970 in CF. Simple

Thanks for highlighting this.. I am going to use only one monitor with 1080p and can't see using multiple displays in future as well. All I want is to have more than 60 FPS on titles such as Crysis 3, GTA 5 and games coming out in next 3/4 years at 1080p resolution with all settings maxed out.

So, do you think 7970 CF will be overkill for my requirement? If yes, will GTX 670 SLI be a better option for me?
Please note than I am planning to build the rig which will be able to handle games @60FPS and @1080p for next 3/4 years.

 

[The Incinerator]

I dont know honestly as to what Crytek and Rockstar is up to ,even if I say an yes or no that you will be ON for the next 3/4 years on a 670SLi it will be a mere prediction.

But for a single monitor running at 1920 x 1080 lines Horizontally and Vertically (Progressive or Intrelaced)and refreshing at 60 frames a second, I think you are pretty secured with a good variant of an HD7970 OC at least for two years down the line, IMO and under predictions!

 

[pain4ever]

I dont know honestly as to what Crytek and Rockstar is up to ,even if I say an yes or no that you will be ON for the next 3/4 years on a 670SLi it will be a mere prediction.

But for a single monitor running at 1920 x 1080 lines Horizontally and Vertically (Progressive or Intrelaced)and refreshing at 60 frames a second, I think you are pretty secured with a good variant of an HD7970 OC at least for two years down the line, IMO and under predictions!

I guess I will go with single "Sapphire HD7970 OC 2Gb" which hitman4 suggested for now. With "Asus p8 z77 v pro" I will be able to go for Crossfire in future if needed.

I am happy with Graphics card, Mobo and Processor which hitman4 suggested. Is Corsair 500r good enough to handle 2 HD7970? (Just trying to be future proof here)

 

[The Incinerator]

500R is around Rs 7500 ... IMO for Rs 300/400 more it is better to get a NZXT Phantom any damn day. 500R is way too overpriced for what it is. 400R makes more sense. A Phantom with a side 200mm Intake moving 166 CFM of air and two 200mm Exhausts on the top will be the best bet when its cooling. It has a 5 Channel fan controller built in too.

 

[d6bmg]

500R is around Rs 7500 ... IMO for Rs 300/400 more it is better to get a NZXT Phantom any damn day. 500R is way too overpriced for what it is. 400R makes more sense. A Phantom with a side 200mm Intake moving 166 CFM of air and two 200mm Exhausts on the top will be the best bet when its cooling. It has a 5 Channel fan controller built in too.

500R IS overpriced.
Price of 400R is 4.5K, which is VFM, but not 500R.

 

[hitman4]

go for 400r and get a better cooler....

 

[The Incinerator]

go for 400r and get a better cooler....

He wants to cool the GPUs.......primarily.

 

[mandarpalshikar]

@OP - Do not buy anything from Pune... I repeat.. do not buy anything from Pune... Sellers here just rip off the customers. Its better to get components shipped from Mumbai from likes of primeabgb. You can try contacting havoknation (Rajat) here on TDF. He owns a shop in KP and would be able to give you a competitive pricing.

 

[vickybat]

I guess I will go with single "Sapphire HD7970 OC 2Gb" which hitman4 suggested for now. With "Asus p8 z77 v pro" I will be able to go for Crossfire in future if needed.

I am happy with Graphics card, Mobo and Processor which hitman4 suggested. Is Corsair 500r good enough to handle 2 HD7970? (Just trying to be future proof here)

If you are planning for multigpu in future, opt for Gtx 680 instead. Sli gives a better experience than crossfire in most games. Note that i said better experience and not outright better fps.
A custom gtx 680 is more than enough to start with. A factory overclocked gtx 680 ( 50-70 mhz) performs almost on par with a 7970 ghz edition. So you don't sacrifice much even for a single gpu.

When you sli, the difference will be there as it will give a much smoother experience.

The card to get is this imho:

GIGABYTE GRAPHIC CARD GTX 680 2GB DDR5 OC

You can also consider a 670 sli and lower the overall cost.

GIGABYTE GRAPHIC CARD GTX 670 2GB DDR5

 

[Cilus]

Vicky, he isn't talking about SLI or CF setup for now, he is thinking within 1 year. On that time span, there is a high chance that newer AMD driver will reduce Micro shuttering out of the box which still can be achieved using RadeonPro third party tools. And GTX 680 sock versions alone cost higher than some of the factory overclocked version of HD 7970, the factory overclocked versions are priced way higher. You can find a MSI 7970 OC edition around 28.5K whereas a stock GTX 680 costs around 32K.