It's computer building time.

Well, I'm almost done with college and as I've said from time to time that I was planning on building during or after my last year of college. The time has come and my mom is also helping me fund it.

EDIT: Look, a fancy excel sheet that makes switching out parts easier!
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmvSdHovU_kqdERXYlZvYklQdnp6TVlVekR0a2Y5TFE
To add a part in, ctrl+x the price in the OFF column and move it to ON
To remove a part, do the opposite.

Here's what I got so far. I'll be using it for 2D/3D CAD modeling and of course, gaming.
Better to just look at the spreadsheet. That's more updated.


Thanks to my friends Casey for his lovely PC building guide and Omar for some quick advice.

Get a solid state hard drive. It will be worth it.

I'd probably go for the 3570K so you'll have the option to overclock in the future.

That PSU seems waaay expensive. I can't particularly recommend a specific one, but here's an Antec 80+ Bronze 750W model for $80 after rebate. I paid $50 A/R for my 750W OCZ PSU, so spending more than double that seems wasteful. The difference in Bronze to Gold, if you think that will save you money in electricity, is fairly minimal. It won't pay for the difference between the two for years, and even then that assumes you'll max the PSU constantly (which would be highly unlikely).

With the savings on the PSU, I'd consider a 660Ti. They're around $300, though it's up to you to decide if it's worth it. Honestly, if it were me I'd trim $70 from the PSU (or more) and add it to the GPU, as the 660 Ti is a fantastic card. Here's a quick comparison of it vs an overclocked 7870. Here's an additional comparison of the 660Ti vs several other cards. It's definitely a great performer, and when you're close to paying for it anyway, I'd be tempted. Also, since you're doing CAD, I'm pretty sure Nvidia's CUDA technology is supported more than what AMD has to offer, but I can't speak for all programs.

I can't say it's definitely worth an extra $6 or not, but the 212+ Evo is the next-version of the popular 212+. It doesn't have the same $10 MIR that the 212+ does, so you can weigh the benefits.

SSDs are quite nice, but on an already fast machine, it's not a game changer. I enjoy mine, and for the price it was a decent buy. Get one when they're a bit cheaper, or if you're feeling a bit of a slowdown on your machine. They are, however, fantastic on older machines. Makes them feel snappy, and probably better-than-new.

Looks like it'll be a great build!