Category Item Price
Processor Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz $229.99
Motherboard ASRock Z77 Extreme 4 $134.99
Memory G.Skill Ares F3-1600C8D-8GAB(2X4) 8G $54.99
Graphics EVGA GeForce GTX 670 FTW $407.99
Storage Samsung 830 256G $228.99
Seagate Baracuda 3TB $149.99
Optical Drive LG Black SATA 24X DVD Burner $14.39 (Purchased)
Enclosure NTZX Phantom 410 $99.99
Power supply Seasonic X650 Gold $118.99 (Purchased)
CPUFan COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO $34.99
Monitor ASUS VG236H 23” 120Hz $329.99
Total: $1805
Reserve: $105.5 left in my budget for Thermal Paste/Price changes/Any hardware changes.
and I get these reviews/recommendations when I posted on .anandtech.com(nobody mentioned these in my build threads on Tom or TR)
"CPU i7-2600K $270 @ Amazon
BF3 likes threads and so does your budget! It also overclocks to 4.5 more easily than 3570K.
&
Ivy's lower power consumption only counts for a few dozen watts at 4.5GHz, it pales in comparison to the value of the extra threads for a BF3 enthusiast.
Are these people correct in that I should get a i7 processor(Ivy or Sandy) over a i5 because it could significantly improve my gaming or should I stay with my Ivy i5 CPU?
I am doubtful of that because this review in Techreport.com's summer system guide
Compared to the Core i5-3570K, all the 3770K has to offer are slightly faster base and Turbo speeds (3.4GHz and 3.9GHz, respectively, up from 3.3GHz and 3.8GHz) and Hyper-Threading capabilities. Having eight graphs in the Task Manager is nice, no question about it, and the extra threads can help with heavy multitasking. If you think that's worth $80, see the alternatives section on the next page. We think the i5-3570K is a better deal.