- Joined
- Oct 30, 2011
- Messages
- 21
- Motherboard
- MSI-z77ma-g45
- CPU
- Intel Core i7 3770k
- Graphics
- Gigabyte AMD R9 280x
- Mac
- Classic Mac
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HackGamer
GA-Z77-DS3H / i5-3570k / MSI GTX 660 Ti Power Edition
GA-Z77-DS3H / i5-3570k / MSI GTX 660 Ti Power Edition
So I was asked by a close friend that he wanted to create a new gaming build, for Guild Wars 2 and the games to come for the next few years. I first asked budget, originally $700 its now at $1000 plus any overhead (sadly our hopes at the $1500 was diminished due to his college's financial aid). So now we are looking at a stable $1000+ gaming build suitable for both gaming on Windows and editing and creation on OS X.
So first things first, here's the build as of late (All Components are in amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77-DS3H (No SLI support)
Gigabyte Intel Z77 LGA 1155 Dual UEFI BIOS ATX Motherboard GA-Z77-DS3H
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K
Intel Core i5-3570K Quad-Core Processor 3.4 GHz 4 Core LGA 1155 - BX80637I53570K
CPU Cooling: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler with 120mm PWM Fan (RR-212E-20PK-R2)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB DDR3 1600MHz
Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) 240-Pin DDR3 Memory Kit for Intel Core i3, i5, i7 and AMD Platforms SDRAM CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
Graphics: MSI GTX 660 Ti Power Edition (best performing 660 Ti due to enabled over voltage)
MSI GTX 660 Ti Power Edition Graphics Card with Triple Overvoltage and Enhanced PWM Design (N660TI PE 2GD5/OC)
WiFi: Sanoxy Micro Mini USB (was looking for a USB solution, supposedly the driver enables native use of the WiFi Menubar option)SANOXY Micro Mini USB Wireless b/n/g 802.11n Wifi LAN Adapter Windows Vista/xp/7/Mac-Wireless N WiFi 150Mbps Mini USB Network Adapter for Mac OS, Linux and Windows with WiFi Protected Setup (WPS) one click set up
SSD: OCZ Agility 3 Series (120GB SATA III)OCZ Technology 120GB Agility 3 Series SATA 6Gb/s 2.5-Inch Midrange Performance Solid State Drive (SSD) with Max 525MB/s Read and Max 85K IOPS- AGT3-25SAT3-120G
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500 GB SATA III 7200 RPM 16 MB Cache Bulk/OEM Desktop Hard Drive - WD5000AAKX
DVD Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B
Sony AD-7280S-0B 24x SATA Internal DVD+/-RW Drive (Black)
Power Supply: OCZ Z750FTY 750w
New OCZ Technology OCZ750FTY ATX12V & EPS12V Power Supply 85% 750 W Glowing Red LED Lights
Case: Raidmax ATX-902WR
Raidmax ATX-902WR Computer Case (subject to change, this is purely because of aesthetics)
Total: $1,064.55 (prices fluctuate from $1-10 daily)
Already Owned: basic keyboard and mouse (temp), 1080p TV, Install app/files for both Mountain Lion and Windows 7
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Questions and Concerns
Will Audio over HDMI work with the 660 ti?
As his display is really a TV and has built in speakers I was wondering if audio will properly come from those speakers.
Thanks to tonymac member slugnet his post confirms that with the adition of another patch along with the Open CL enabler and CUDA drivers that the 660ti works perfectly in OS X (graphics wise). It can also open Final Cut X, which is what concerned me. http://www.tonymacx86.com/golden-bu...d5h-i7-3770k-gigabyte-geforce-gtx-660-ti.html
GA-Z77-DS3H USB3 support in OS X?
Also in slugnet's post was enabling support for USB3, using Gigabyte's XHCI function in the UEFI. However he spoke about the UD5H and not the step down the DS3H so I was wondering if the same method would work.
WiFi USB. If not Sanoxy what is the best USB WiFi solution for OS X (that works with Windows too, naturally)
The reason I'm concern is the OS X driver on Sanoxy's website is for Snow Leopard. I'm pretty sure it'll work under ML but it still concerns me. If not this USB then is there any other great alternatives that do work? (Bluetooth is not an issue as he has no accessories)
Any suggestions? Improvements?
I'm looking to build the best gaming rig for the buck thats still within the 1000-1060ish range and works great for OS X and to the extent Windows.
Thanks and please if you have any remarks let me know, I would love to have my questions answered so I can help out my friend with this build.