How is this build?

[Guest]

Thinking about building a computer from Cyberpower.com and this is what I initially came up with. The main question is with the video cards. Is it better to go with 2 or just 1? Also the ram, is it really to my advantage to get 12 GB of RAM? I'm really kinda new to a lot of this so any help would be appreciated, thanks.

# CASE: Ikonik RA-X10 Smooth Black Full Tower 420W Case
# Neon Light Upgrade: NONE
# Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Default case fans
# POWER SUPPLY Upgrade: 1, 000 Watts Power Supplies (Corsair CMPSU-1000HX - Quad SLI Ready)
# POWER SUPPLY Upgrade: 1, 000 Watts Power Supplies (Corsair CMPSU-1000HX - Quad SLI Ready)
# CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-965 Extreme Edition 3.2 GHz 8M L3 Cache LGA1366 with Factory OverClocked to 4.0GHz
# COOLING FAN : Asetek Liquid CPU Cooling System (Extreme Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
# MOTHERBOARD: Asus P6T Deluxe Intel X58 Chipset SLI/CrossFireX Mainboard SAS Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA, Dual GbLAN, USB2.0, IEEE1394a, & 7.1Audio
# MEMORY: 12GB (2GBx6) PC1333 DDR3 PC3 10666 Triple Channel Memory (Corsair Dominator)
# FREEBIES: None
# VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GeForce GTX260 896MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
# VIDEO CARD 2: NVIDIA GeForce GTX260 896MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
# VIDEO CARD 3: NONE
# LCD Monitor: NONE]





# 2nd Monitor: NONE
# HARD DRIVE: Extreme Performance (RAID-0) with 2 Identical Hard Drives (256GB (128GBx2) Ritek RiDATA 2.5 inch SATA Gaming MLC Solid State Disk (Nearly Instant Data Access Technology))
# Data Hard Drive: 250GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 8MB Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive -- Recommended
# USB PORTABLE DRIVE: NONE
# Optical Drive: LG GGC-H20L BLU-RAY/HD-DVD Reader / DVD±R/±RW Writer (Black Color)
# Optical Drive 2: NONE
# SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
# SPEAKERS: NONE
# NETWORK: ONBOARD 10/100 NETWORK CARD
# MODEM: NONE
# KEYBOARD: Logitech Deluxe 104 PS/2 Keyboard (Black Color)
# MOUSE: NONE
# Extra Thermal Display : NONE
# Wireless 802.11B/G Network Card: LINKSYS WMP54GS 802.11G PCI Network Card

 

[merlinbadman]

CPU - Save yourself lots of money and get the 920. I know its the lowest of the i7's but it can be overclocked (if your into that) to 4GHz like the other i7's. In comparison the 920 is great value for money.

Graphics card - I wouldnt go for 2 X 260's, get the 295 (which is 2 X 260's in one card). Better value, more energy efficient, take up less space than 2 cards, only requires one "set" of power cables so less of a PSU requirement.

RAM - IMO 12GB is complete overkill and a waste of money, 6GB (which I have) doesnt even get used fully.

With the money you have saved on the parts above you can buy:

X-Fi Soundcard
Good keyboard (Legitech G15 etc) and mouse

 

[huron]

Looks very expensive.

You'd be better off getting and i7 920 and overclocking it and saving the $700 and getting something else.

I think you could build a similar performing build for far less.

 

[Guest]

Thanks this is exactly the kind of stuff I needed to know because honestly I have no real idea of just how different the processors are from each other and the ram.

I obviously plan on using it for playing high end games, so even with the 6 GB of RAM I'm good? Even for the future?

Also is the SSD hardrive really worth it or not? That's another thing I'm kinda struggling to decide on.

Edit: Keyboard and mouses make no real difference to me, the basics of that are fine, as is the sound card really.

Another thing, do I really need a second optical drive if all I really plan on doing is occasionalyl burning CDs, DVDs? I definently want it to be able to play Blu Ray though.

 

[huron]

+1 to the GPU suggestion - if you're willing to spend, get the 295.

SSD is up to you. I think the prices will continue to drop, but it's up to you whether it's worth it or not. I personally am a fan of the Western Digital 640 GB drives.

You won't need another optical drive, but you can use one if you want to go disc to disc. They are only like $25, so it's up to you.

You may want to list your list again once you think it's more finalized - we'll take a look again.

 

[Guest]

Yeah I made some adjustments. Is there a huge difference between the i7 920 and i7 940? How easy is it to overclock it, I've never done it before. Also, is the power supply good enough?

# CASE: Hot !!! Apevia X-Telstar Junior 420W Case w/ Temp Display and Fan Control (G Type Black Color with Side-Window)
# Neon Light Upgrade: NONE
# Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Default case fans
# POWER SUPPLY Upgrade: 800 Watts Power Supplies (CyberPowerPC XF800S Performance ATX 2.0 Power - Quad SLI Ready)
# CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-940 2.93 GHz 8M L3 Cache LGA1366
# COOLING FAN : Asetek Liquid CPU Cooling System (Extreme Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
# MOTHERBOARD: Asus P6T Deluxe Intel X58 Chipset SLI/CrossFireX Mainboard SAS Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA, Dual GbLAN, USB2.0, IEEE1394a, & 7.1Audio
# MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1800MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (Corsair or Major Brand)
# FREEBIES: None
# VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GeForce GTX295 X2 1.7GB 16X PCIe Video Card (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
# VIDEO CARD 2: NONE
# VIDEO CARD 3: NONE
# LCD Monitor: NONE
# 2nd Monitor: NONE
# HARD DRIVE: Extreme Performance (RAID-0) with 2 Identical Hard Drives (160GB (80GBx2) Intel X25-M 2.5 inch SATA Gaming MLC Solid State Disk (Nearly Instant Data Access Technology))
# Data Hard Drive: 500GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive
# USB PORTABLE DRIVE: NONE
# Optical Drive: LG GGC-H20L BLU-RAY/HD-DVD Reader / DVD±R/±RW Writer (Black Color)
# Optical Drive 2: NONE
# SOUND: Creative Labs SB Audigy SE
# SPEAKERS: 120 WATT STEREO SPEAKERS (BLACK COLOR)
# NETWORK: ONBOARD 10/100 NETWORK CARD
# MODEM: NONE
# KEYBOARD: Logitech Deluxe 104 PS/2 Keyboard (Black Color)
# MOUSE: Logitech Optical Wheel Mouse (BLACK COLOR)
# Extra Thermal Display : NONE
# Wireless 802.11B/G Network Card: LINKSYS WMP54GS 802.11G PCI Network Card
# Flash Media Reader/Writer: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLO

 

[Oakley707]

Just to add my $.02. I have heard nothing but mediocre things from MLC SSD's. They are super fast but do have some shortcomings. I don't know all of the details but for the price you could probably get either VelociRaptors for speed, or two 640 AAKS in RAID0 as mentioned above by Huron. I have had great success with the AAKS myself. It's up to you though. Also, if you do 2 640's you might be able to eliminate the extra storage drive. That's also up to you. Hope this helps.

 

[Pete32]

I have that motherboard and love it.

To use that much memory, you have to use a 64 bit OS.
I'm sorry I stopped at Vista Home Premium (64).
I should have gone all the way.

Core i7 920 & 940 are locked, minimal overclocking.

Hard Drive: the latest Seagate 750GB (32mb cache) has new technology
that makes them faster than the 500GB. They are suprisingly cheap too.
(Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3750330AS 750GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive)

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Core i7 920 & 940 are locked, minimal overclocking.

That is not true. I've personally seen an i7 920 stable at 4.2GHz on air.

It's also a good idea to avoid the 7200.11 series of hard drives. They're having major problems with them. +1 for the 640GB WD drives mentioned above.

 

[huron]

LOL to the minimal OC comment. I have heard of people pushing that 920 pretty far.

Are you building or buying? It's not hard to build a rig if you're interested. Go with a quality PSU manufacturer - PC Power and Cooling, Corsair, Antec.

 

[ahslan]

+1 to huron...build it yourself...then you get everything you want...

 

[Guest]

Nah I'm not building it myself. There;s just no way I could with the limited knowledge I already have on this. I don't mind spending the money, I'm just trying to get the best I can. I want to not go over any more than 3,500 and thats just around where that last list I posted is at. Now I'm just trying to figure out just how good the components I picked are and if it would be better to go with something different.

How easy is it to overclock the processors? If it's pretty easy, I'll go with the 920 instead of 940.

 

[Pete32]

Yep, you CAN overclock 920's & 940's but I suggest you read this article before decide what you want:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/overclocking-core-i7,2063.html

 

[Shadow703793]

Asetek Liquid CPU Cooling System (Extreme Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)

What's the price on that? If it's more than $125 it's too much. That thing is pretty cheap (as in performance/quality) compared to a custom WC loop. Save some money and get a TRUE 120. Or get a quality WC set up for $200-250 (CPU and may be NB only, no GPU with GPU ~$350+).

For review: http://hothardware.com/Articles/Asetek_Low_Cost_Liquid_Cooling_LCLC_System/Default.aspx?page=5

It's about the same as a TRUE or may be a bit more/less. TRUE 120 ~$60-75

+1 for DIY build! (It's not that hard, truest me.)

 

[Guest]

It was $54.00. It was the highest end cooling system available for that build.

All this was from cyberpower.com.

Can anyone recommended any other custom built PC websites like that?

 

[Shadow703793]

^ Falcon NW, Velocity Micro, Hardcore PC ( http://www.hardcorecomputer.com/Index.aspx ),

If it's only $55 that's not bad. I would keep it.

 

[Guest]

Holy **** tone, those prices at hardcorecomputer.com are ridiculous. I already checked out Falcon NW, same deal there. Maybe cyberpower is the best bang for the buck.

 

[huron]

Wow - that is a ridiculous price. I think you could build for a little more than half that. It's doesn't take all that much knowledge. You just have to take your time.

i7 920 - $300 ish (a little lass)
X58 - $300 ish
GTX 295 - $500
6GB DDR3 - $180
PSU - $120 or so for quality
HDD - $70
OS - $100
DVD drive - $25
CPU cooler (for OC) - $40
Quality Case - $80 - $150

We're in the $1600 area. Shoot, I will build it for you and send it to you.

IF it were me, I would seriously consider building - the money you are saving would allow you a GREAT monitor or another killer computer.

 

[Guest]

See I'm not going to be one of those people who constantly upgrades their computer that much. So what I get I want to be sure I am set for at least a little while, there's just way too many things I don't know about to build my own, like which components would interfere with or not work with some other certain components, things like that.

You said it was easy to overclock the i7, what exactly do you do?

 

[jthorn]

Wow - that is a ridiculous price. I think you could build for a little more than half that. It's doesn't take all that much knowledge. You just have to take your time.

i7 920 - $300 ish (a little lass)
X58 - $300 ish
GTX 295 - $500
6GB DDR3 - $180
PSU - $120 or so for quality
HDD - $70
OS - $100
DVD drive - $25
CPU cooler (for OC) - $40
Quality Case - $80 - $150

We're in the $1600 area. Shoot, I will build it for you and send it to you.

IF it were me, I would seriously consider building - the money you are saving would allow you a GREAT monitor or another killer computer.

I have seen MaxforcePC shipping I7-920 custom overclocked systems for $1900. Tom's has a nice article on that company if you are interested.

http://maxforcepc.com/component/option,com_fireboard/Itemid,26/func,showcat/catid,3/

 

[huron]

I know someone who is using microcenter as well. There prices are for the most part pretty competitive - you could get it a lot cheaper if you are willing to shop around for a bit, but I have a friend who is getting:

i7 920
EVGA x58
6GB DDR3
1000w PSU
GTX 295
1 TB HDD

for only a little more than $2000 - That's more than I would spend since I know I can do it for cheaper, but that's a WAY better price.

It's not hard to build a computer - the compatibility issues are what you are posting parts here for. All the items in the build will work together, so no issues there. The rest is just putting the parts in the slots and clicking them together.

For $3500, I could build it and pocket well over $1000. Shop around a bit, or give it a go - it's not bad to to put it together - just need some time an patience.