Time for a new gaming rig, please critique.

[njg2982]

This is what I've built so far. What I'd like to do is trim it back a bit and cut a little cost.

One goal i want to achieve is Quiet and Efficient. I have an Antec 900 now and i hate it. I don't need flashy LED's and it's just way too loud for my liking.

The Build:

Antec Sonata Series SOLO IICase
Antec EarthWatts Platinum Series EA-650 650W
ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (REV 3.0)
Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost)
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 16GB
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2
Intel 510 Series (Elm Crest)120GB SSD
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5

Totaling, roughly $1500.

I'd like to be closer to $1000. Suggestions?

Some other notes:
- I most likely will not be Over Clocking.
- I don't need any HDD (have 3).
- I don't need any optical drives either, will keep my Combo for now.

I need Monitor suggestions as well, currently set up with 2 Samsung 2253bw but one has a bit of blurring/off color spot due to an unknown reason. Plus I'd like to go higher res. My set up goal is Dual monitors and a HDTV for watching movies and what not. The 3 of them most likely will not be used at the same time, either HDTV only or Dual Monitors.

Thanks!!!

[Pitabred]

For just gaming? I'd get an i5-2500K instead of the i7. That'll save you $100, and be almost no difference in gaming. If you're not going to be overclocking, even an i5-2300 would work. But I'd suggest you get a K-series so you can overclock for a free upgrade in the future. A 1GB 6950 might save you some cash, too. Drop the SSD... it's darn nice to have one, but it won't work with your budget. You can also drop the RAM to only 8GB, and a more budget-friendly brand to save a bit. The Sonata cases are also relatively expensive. You can get a pretty decent case in the $60-$100 range. You also don't need the Freezer 7 if you're not going to be overclocking. The boxed processors come with a pretty functional and relatively quiet heatsink.

[Jessekin]

Pretty much exactly what Pitabred said, (You only need 8GB, SSD's are not part of a budget system, and unless you're running eyefinity, you don't need the 2GB model of the GPU, NO after-market cooler.) EXCEPT that if you REALLY want a budget gaming machine, AMD is the better way to go. There isn't that much of a loss in gaming performance, and they are a lot cheaper. I'm in no way speaking as a fanboy, just stating that AMD is cheaper. The motherboards tend to be cheaper for AMD as well.

Also, this goes for no matter which cpu brand you get, if you don't plan on overclocking and running 3-way Crossfire or SLI, get a cheaper board.

I've made that mistake plenty of times in my past thinking I would always just add another card down the road, but I never do. Because when I have the money for a new card, I tend to also have the money for a new Mobo and CPU.

As for a monitor, you can never go wrong with a 22-24 inch Samsung or Asus monitor. I'd prefer Samsung for the image quality, but to each their own.

That's my two cents. Hope it helped. - Jessekin

[iViNtaGe]

Not sure what your thought process is here but whatever.

1. SSDs are quite expensive for budget builds. Also, why on earth would you pay 239$ for an Intel 510 120gb, when you can buy an Intel 520 120gb (which is a faster SSD with a longer warranty) for 219$ on the same site?

2. Buy a cheaper mobo. You can get by fine with a Z68 mobo like this: Newegg.com - Open Box: ASUS P8Z68-V LE LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

3. As the people above me said, the 16gb ram is not necessary for gaming purposes and neither is an Intel 2600k. You would be fine with a 2500k or lesser.