So my budget for this build after tax is about $750 CAN (about $664 before tax) after rebates and I think I have a fairly good choice of parts, but as this is my first build I'm still a little unsure in some areas. Also I already have an hard and optical drive, and all other peripherals so those aren't needed. This is planned to be built within 2-3 weeks. CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K - 229.99 GPU: AMD Radeon HD 7850 - 249.99 RAM: Corsair XMS3 4GB - 19.99 CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 - 25.99 Case: Thermaltake V3 Black - 29.99 These parts I'm fairly certain about, I don't think I can get anymore performance for the price at the moment (if I'm wrong please correct me). For the GPU I was considering the GTX 560 TI, but for the extra, I think the 7850 is a better choice. Also GTX 480 looks promising for the price, but I'm a little hesitant buying a GPU from two series ago. That brings the total to $555.95, so that means I've got $108.05 to play around with for the PSU and motherboard. I know that seems kind of tight for the parts but that's all my budget really permits. PSU: Thermaltake TR2 600W - 45.99 Motherboard: MSI H64AM-P23 B3 Intel H61 - 59.99 Asus P8H61-M LX PLUS (Rev. 3.0) - 64.99 Gigabyte GA-H61M-S2PV mATX - 64.99 I think a 600W power supply should be fine to power these parts, my only concern is that down the line if I decide to add a second 7850 in crossfire; would the 600W power be sufficient or should I bump up to 750W? From what I know (which isn't much) with overclocking the motherboard can be just as important as the processor itself. I plan to do some overclocking, nothing extreme, so I think these boards will suffice. The main reason for this thread is regarding the PSU and mobo, and just general feedback for the build/things I may have overlooked. I just want to make sure I'm prepared before jumping into things. SIDE: If it wasn't obvious this rig is meant for gaming primarily (sc2, diablo 3 - soon my pretty, bf3, you get it) and light image/video editing. EDIT: This hec Zephyr MX 750 PSU looking really good for 69.99
