HELP!! - Need A New Computer

[Chess Gator]

Hello group,

My computer is several years old and I am not up to date anymore on the new hardware. I will be using it for some gaming and general computer usage. Here is my first configuration. Are all of the component compatible, is there better hardware configuration available that I have missed, i.e. cost/benefit?? Please don't hesitate to critique my specifications!!

LIAN LI PC-X2000F Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16811112289)

ASUS Rampage III Black Edition LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16813131726)

ZOTAC ZT-50103-10P GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) 3G 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16814500199)

CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX1200 (CMPSU-1200AX) 1200W ATX12V v2.31 / EPS12V v2.92 SLI Certified 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16817139014)

Intel Core i7-980 Nehalem 3.33GHz LGA 1366 130W Six-Core Desktop Processor BX80613I7980 (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16819116402)

OCZ RevoDrive X2 OCZSSDPX-1RVDX0240 PCI-E 240GB PCI-Express x4 MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16820227661)

G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Fan Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2200 (PC3 17600) Desktop Memory Model F3-17600CL9Q-16GBXLD (http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/cgi-bin/redirect.pl?user=u00000687&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newegg.ca%2FProduct%2FProduct .aspx%3FItem%3DN82E16820231462)

Thank you in advance!

CG

[mariush]

Are you made out of money?

That motherboard is Extended ATX, the case is ATX and I'm not sure that motherboard fits. (later edit, looks like the case does support e-atx so it's ok there)

The i7-980 is way too much money for the performance and you say you're going to do some gaming and general computer usage - it doesn't make sense.
Unless you're going to do video encoding or play some very specific games like flight simulators, a more average processor would be better - games don't need that much processing power and you can basically overclock the current processors a lot if you'll needed.


i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz would be enough at about 300 Canadian dollars: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070 But this is socket 1155 so you'd have to change the motherboard as well.

If you plan to stick with that motherboard, again, it's Extended ATX and you have to make sure the motherboard can fit the case. If it does, again it seems like a pointless purchase. It's more expensive because it supports 3way sli or quad crossfire but you're going to use only one video card so it makes no sense.

The motherboard if you look at the pictures supports 6 memory slots and in theory you get the best performance if you use 3 memory modules or six memory modules - it's triple channel unlike the other more "normal" motherboards. So the memory selection is a bit bad, if you stick to this motherboard you should pick three sticks or six sticks.

If you decide to go with my proposal of getting the Sandy Bridge processor, these motherboards would have a good set of features at a good price:

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157263
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128513
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128506

The 1155 socket architecture works only with dual channel, so you need to get either 2 or 4 memory sticks.

Your choice of memory is good but from various tests and benchmarks made by various websites, there's not much improvement going over 1600 Mhz. What you chose is good but way too expensive for the performance increase they bring compared to cheaper memory sticks.

I would recommend going with a 1600 or 1866 Mhz memory module with low latency, such as this:

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233183
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231456

For both your original system and the one I'm proposing, 1200 watts is a bit too much for a power supply - that would be more suitable if you had 2 GTX 580 in the system. A good 750-800 watts power supply would be enough in my opinion.

As for video cards... I'd rather not get into it, I'm biased towards ATI (AMD) video cards but GTX 580 is nice. Not sure if it's best money for performance... maybe you'd be better off with two 560 TI in SLI mode or even just one, if you're going to do just "some" gaming.

The SSD... I really have no clue what's better nowadays... check Anandtech's articles, they recently tested a bunch of drives. I seem to remember they rated Intel drives best for stability in time and Sandforce 2 based drives for speed (but they were not reliable).

[Original Sin]

I agree with Mariush on one thing.. 1366 is an EOL platform, with 0(Zero) benefits over Sandy Bridge and a lot of drawbacks.. beside that, the RIII Black Edition has one real purpose, and that is LN2 sessions with a Gulftown, meaning it's pointless unless you're really Really hardcore in regards to overclocking..

AX1200 is complete and utter nonsense for any single and even dual GPU config.. and besides, HCP 1200 is a more elegant solution.. but really, go with a Golden Green solution..

The 580 is a reference board which is not bad, but considering the rig you have in mind you really want some high end custom PCB solution, and the best one is the MSI Lightning..

Revodrive X2 is old and buggy, it uses two first generation SandForce controllers, it is not a native PCIe solution, it doesn't support Trim, and offers no real benefit over a high end SATA III solution, only shortcomings..

The Lian Li X2000 is an awesome case, very cool concept, however it's not on par with other high end solutions cooling wise, like the A77 also from Lian Li for example..
------------------------------------------------

My suggestions(considering the limitless budget you seem to have for this build) below:

Processor -> 2600K, the best CPU and the best platform available at the moment, for gaming and pretty much everything else.
Motherboard -> Asus Maximus IV Extreme-Z, hands down the best SandyB motherboard.
Graphic Card -> MSI GTX580 Lightning, also the best GTX 580 solution on the market.. you could go with the 3Gb version, but the returns are small to nonexistent, also the larger memory chips used translate into a higher memory latency, but if you play @ 2560x1600 it might be worth it.
Power Supply -> NZXT Hale90 850W, as stated previously, 1200W for a single GPU system is nonsense.
SSD -> Crucial M4, SandForce 2k drives are all the rage at the moment, and also extremely buggy, that's why i'd go with the best Marvell solution available atm.
Memory -> G.Skill RipjawsX 2133/CL7, badass memory for a badass system ;)
Case -> Lian Li P80 or A77 or maybe a Silverstone Fortress Two, that's what i'd pick.
CPU Cooler -> Prolimatech Super Mega, far smaller than the Noctua D14 and the Thermal Right Silver Arrow but offering the same level of performance, meaning the best.. far better than any AIO water cooling solutions, will easily allow you to keep the 2600K @ above 5Ghz for daily use(with proper fans).

[walterm]

Generally agree with above, fwiw, the monitor resolution (and the number of monitors) to be used and /or wanted would make suggestions easier.
Samsung F3 or F4 hard drives seem to have the most convincing reliability/cost/ performance envelope at the moment.
Strictly speaking there is no advantage to the I7 2600K over the I5 2500K for gaming.

[Chess Gator]

Hi fellows, thank you for your support. :D

Here is a revised partial build. I will still need some guidance on the missing components, to much information to assimilate! :wall:

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL11Q-16GBXL (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231473)

MSI N580GTX Lightning Xtreme Edition GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) 3072MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127589)

ASUS Maximus IV Extreme-Z LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131760)

Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600K (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070)

Prolimatech Supermega Intel Socket 1156, 1366 and 775, 6 Dual Heatpipes, Twin Tower CPU Cooler (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242006)

Does everyone agree the Prolimatech is the appropriate/best CPU cooler for the Sandy Bridge CPU?

The things I still need help with are the appropriate:

PSU - wattage and manufacturer and model.

Computer case - I want to acquire a full tower.
Would you please provide me a link to the Lian Li PC-A77 case at newegg.ca I cannot seem to locate it, thank you. :)

Harddrive - type and manufacturer.
Some questions on the HD - Which SATA III SSD is the right one for my system build? The Crucial M4 with Marvel controller (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148443) or another manufacturer with the Sandforce 2 controller?

Thank you in advance

CG :D

[Original Sin]

Oh and what is this Sandforce 2 about :confused:

Various SSDs use various controllers, SandForce makes some of those controllers and performance wise, the best on the market, however they're not the most stable or reliable.. that's why at this moment in time, Marvell based drives(like the above suggested Crucial M4) which are also top performers, are the way to go.

Here you go, again:

SSD ->Crusial M4 128GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442)
HDD -> Samsung Spinpoint F3 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185)
Case -> Lian Li PC-Z70 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112327) or Lian Li PC-P80 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112324) or maybe Silverstone Fortress FT02 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163161)
VGA -> Msi GTX 580 Lightning (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127579)
PSU -> Kingwin Lazer Platinum 550W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121080) or Kingwin Lazer Gold 850W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121076)
First one if you're sticking with a single graphic card configuration, the second one for a dual GTX 580 setup.

[Chess Gator]

Various SSDs use various controllers, SandForce makes some of those controllers and performance wise, the best on the market, however they're not the most stable or reliable.. that's why at this moment in time, Marvell based drives(like the above suggested Crucial M4) which are also top performers, are the way to go.

Here you go, again:

SSD ->Crusial M4 128GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442)
HDD -> Samsung Spinpoint F3 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185)
Case -> Lian Li PC-Z70 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112327) or Lian Li PC-P80 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112324) or maybe Silverstone Fortress FT02 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163161)
VGA -> Msi GTX 580 Lightning (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127579)
PSU -> Kingwin Lazer Platinum 550W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121080) or Kingwin Lazer Gold 850W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121076)
First one if you're sticking with a single graphic card configuration, the second one for a dual GTX 580 setup.

Hi, thanks for the tips. Unfortunately, some of those components are not available at newegg.ca only at newegg.com :(

[Original Sin]

Well, if you go with the Maximus motherboard you need a case that will support EATX boards and that excludes the Silverstone mentioned above, if however you go with the AsRock board you'll be ok with pretty much any case..
The A77 is not available it seems, but the P80 and Z70 are out there performance wise so essentially is a question of taste.. in the end pretty much any case at that level will do, so pick what you like..

If you can't find the PSUs listed above, look for other rebrands of the same platform, as mentioned before.. Sentey Golden Steel, NZXT Hale, Kingwin Lazer Gold or Rosewill Lightning.. You can always go for a Seasonic X variant but you don't really get anything for the price difference.

In regards to the cooler, you need to pick something that will fit next to those memory sticks with raised heat sinks.. the Super Mega should fit, but the safest bet would be the ThermalRight Archon.

[Chess Gator]

Hello group,

Thank you for your help. Based on the information you have provided on the forum and by private messaging, here is my latest build. Let me know what you think. Did I forget a component :confused: I want to order the components by next weekend.

PSU: Kingwin 850W Lazer Gold Power Supply (http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/Kingwin-850W-Lazer-Gold-Power-Supply/5560023/product.html?TRACK=affcjfeed&PID=2707744&AID=10654384&CID=207442&fp=F)

Case: LIAN LI PC-Z70B (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112327)

Mobo: ASUS Maximus IV Extreme-Z (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131760)

Video Card: EVGA 025-P3-1579-AR GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi) HD 2560MB 320-bit GDDR5 (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130687)

CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070)

Heat Sink: Prolimatech Supermega Intel Socket 1156, 1366 and 775, 6 Dual Heatpipes, Twin Tower CPU Cooler (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242006)

Heat Sink Fans X2:Thermalright TY-140 160x140x26.5mm 900~1300 RPM PWM Case Fan (http://canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=8_130&item_id=033373&sid=2013j3pm6bp4seq6ggc6u2jjs6)

SDD: Crucial M4 CT256M4SSD2 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148443)

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533)

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231473)

Optical Drive: LITE-ON Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 12X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM 8MB Cache SATA 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu-ray 3D (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106346)

Cordially,

CG :)

[mdk777]

Did I forget a component I want to order the components by next weekend.

Well, the OS of course...;)

I always look to see if I can get some of my core components with a combo price discount.

EX. http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.717848

Finally, you will need to pick fans for the CPU cooler...again obvious, but something to think about. ;)

[Chess Gator]

Well, the OS of course...;)

I always look to see if I can get some of my core components with a combo price discount.

EX. http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.717848

Finally, you will need to pick fans for the CPU cooler...again obvious, but something to think about. ;)

Holy crap, you just saved me $25 bucks :)

I added the heat sink fans to the list, I forgot to put them. Perhaps, you know of better ones. The heat sink recommends up to 1600 speed, but these fans will not hit that.

Cordially,

CG

[Original Sin]

I added the heat sink fans to the list, I forgot to put them. Perhaps, you know of better ones. The heat sink recommends up to 1600 speed, but these fans will not hit that.


This fans develop excellent static pressure, they don't need more RPMs;).. superb performance at excellent acoustic levels.. this fans are good enough for light benching;)

Regarding your setup.. the VGA is poor compared to the rest of the system.. reference 570 from EVGA..
GTX 580 Lightning or Matrix, that's what you want;).. or if that is too much, 6970 Lightning or GTX 570 SuperOverclock ;)

[mariush]

Holy crap, you just saved me $25 bucks :)

I added the heat sink fans to the list, I forgot to put them. Perhaps, you know of better ones. The heat sink recommends up to 1600 speed, but these fans will not hit that.

Cordially,

CG

You can save more by getting the motherboard separately and buying a Intel 2500k for 90$ less: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

For God's sake, you're paying 90$ extra for 100 Mhz and 2 MB cache more - pointless when both processors can be overclocked much higher than their default frequency.

ps. Nevermind, I checked the specs now and I see the cheaper one doesn't have hyperthreading support - about 70$ extra (if you buy the bundle) is worth that in some cases.

[Chess Gator]

This fans develop excellent static pressure, they don't need more RPMs;).. superb performance at excellent acoustic levels.. this fans are good enough for light benching;)

Regarding your setup.. the VGA is poor compared to the rest of the system.. reference 570 from EVGA..
GTX 580 Lightning or Matrix, that's what you want;).. or if that is too much, 6970 Lightning or GTX 570 SuperOverclock ;)

Hi, would you mind providing links to your recommendations at newegg.ca I am not sure, which one's you mean.

Thank you,

CG

[Original Sin]

Asus GTX 580 Matrix (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121467)
MSI GTX 580 Lightning (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127579)
MSI HD 6970 Lightning (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127581)
Gigabyte GTX 570 SO (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125382)

[Chess Gator]

Asus GTX 580 Matrix (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121467)
MSI GTX 580 Lightning (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127579)
MSI HD 6970 Lightning (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127581)
Gigabyte GTX 570 SO (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125382)

Hi thanks

I notice the heat sink is for an 1156 but my cpu is an 1155, will it fit?

Looks like it wil heat sink video (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070&AID=10592396&PID=3332167&SID=u00000687&nm_mc=AFC-C8junctionCA)

Cordially,

CG

[Original Sin]

Yes

[Chess Gator]

Hello fellows,


Placed the order at newegg.ca on Sunday afternoon, seems to have already shipped !!

Thanks again

CG

[Original Sin]

Expecting pics of the assembled system;)

[Chess Gator]

Expecting pics of the assembled system;)

Okay you got them :D

I was impressed by the speed of newegg.ca shipping. I ordered the system components last Sunday and half arrived on Tuesday and the balance on Wednesday. If a noob asks how to build a computer, send to them to the three neweggTV videos here (http://www.newegg.ca/Store/Computer.aspx?name=Computer-Hardware). I just followed the videos, without them I would not have been able to do this. In addition, I did build this first build entirely myself, without any help, but it must have been the slowest build in history :)

Thanks again.

CG

[Chess Gator]

Hi group,

A couple of questions for you:

1) I purchased at bestbuy.ca this monitor (http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/viewsonic-viewsonic-27-led-monitor-with-1ms-response-time-vx2753mh-vx2753mh-led/10168005.aspx?path=dbaab737faabec35d13346a6d2dc16b aen02). The recommended resolution setting is 1920 x 1080 at 60hz; however, this resolution makes the screen picture overflow over the screen!! I have to use 1600 x 1200 @ 60hz. The picture is much nicer at the recommended setting, so how do I get it to work at the recommended resolution :wall:

2) I thought I would add a Sound Card to my system, which one or two are you recommending these days?

3) A high quality set of headphones for gaming and listening to music?

Thank you in advance,

CG :D

[Original Sin]

1. Windows/Nvidia control panel settings need to match the monitor settings, it should display 1080p(the native resolution) without an issue.

2. For Gaming: Asus Xonar DX or Asus Xonar Xense
For Music: Asus Xonar Essence STX
There are some good Auzentech options too but they're not that commonly available.

3. Good headphones for both gaming and music is a tough request;)
For music, anything from the Sennheiser HD 5xx line would be a good choice.. for gaming check Psyko Audio and Tritton, i'm sure you'll find something you like.

ps. that is a HUGE case, very cool system and an excellent job for your first build!

[Chess Gator]

1. Windows/Nvidia control panel settings need to match the monitor settings, it should display 1080p(the native resolution) without an issue.

Hi, I am using the HDMI connector. I am wondering if I should have used the D-Sub?


2. For Gaming: Asus Xonar DX or Asus Xonar Xense
For Music: Asus Xonar Essence STX
There are some good Auzentech options too but they're not that commonly available.


3. Good headphones for both gaming and music is a tough request;)
For music, anything from the Sennheiser HD 5xx line would be a good choice.. for gaming check Psyko Audio and Tritton, i'm sure you'll find something you like.

Okay, I will take a look!


ps. that is a HUGE case, very cool system and an excellent job for your first build!

Thanks, definitely a good test for myself. NeweggTV video deserves the real credit, without the videos I would have been doomed!

Cordially,

CG

[Original Sin]

Hi, I am using the HDMI connector. I am wondering if I should have used the D-Sub?

You can always swap the connectors and check if it makes a difference but i doubt that's the case.

[Chess Gator]

You can always swap the connectors and check if it makes a difference but i doubt that's the case.

Problem solved. I had to go into the monitors on-screen control panel and set the HDMI connector to PC. Now it works fine for me :)

CG