Help Me build it

[NexCyber]

Hi. New here

I havent built a system since 2002-03, as back then I followed one of THGs builds pretty close and had a very stable long lasting system based on AMD/Ati platform. Its still great for many things but not so much for gaming, graphics (photoshop) etc, so I fugured I would relegate it to an audio based PC for my small home studio and build a top of the line system based on the newest platforms available. I have been researching for a week and figured out that I want to build an i7 based platform for the obvious reasons. Now heres the dilemma, Im not much of a gamer, but I always have OCd the system to its fastest stable environment. Its been a while tho. Now many of you will say this guy is nuts because what you will see is me building a bad ass game platform that might not get used for games, but then again, maybe it will if I decide to let my 19 y.o touch it : ). SO, heres what I am building and I need advise on a few things. This is the box only, monitors etc are already in hand.

Case. Coolermaster Storm Sniper
CPU. i7 920, i dont think the extra $ is worth the 940 0r 965 (im working on the cooling)
MB Asus Extreme II Rampage , I know, I dont need it but it seems to be the fastest most stable board from what Ive read
GPU Sapphire Radeon HD 4870x2 (one for now)
PSU Need advise: 800 to 100w
HDs Need Advise 1TB combination of fast quality drives for now
Mem Need Advise 6gb 1333 of something high quality

I will have the usual a bluray/dvd etc combo etc
a second dvd player burner
3.5" card reader

Please feel free to make suggestions on this build, especially on the hard drives, PSU and memory. Your comments and help are appreciated.

 

[aevm]

I like that case

A Corsair 1000HX would support two HD 4870X2 cards and it's very high quality.
Silverstone also makes a decent 1000W PSU that usually is cheaper than the 1000HX.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256043

HDD: I like the WD6401AALS and the WD 1TB Black. Avoid the WD 2TB, it's very slow.

RAM: G.Skill and Corsair seem to get the best reviews these days. Since you're overclocking and have a good budget, I think this would do best here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231236

Here's a good cooler:
Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 $85, comes with two excellent fans
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608007

 

[RiotSniperX]

+1 for the Noctua NH-U21P...is an AMAZING cooler, top 3 best.

Um, i would say, well this is the ddr3 im getting for my i7 im building

Corsair Dominator 6gb 3x2 set...i like dominators for there large heat sinks...and...stuff...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145224

I'd rather go with a 1000HX seeing as how its modular http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145224

I have a better site for the Noctua, unfortunatley its selling like hot pancakes and i cant seem to snatch one
$70 http://www.moddersmart.com/en/noctua-nh-u12p-se1366.html

 

[NexCyber]

Definitely will go with the corsair dominator ram. I have to ask about poser supply. Do I really need 1000w. That is a pricey pricey modular rig, and I just have to wonder if the Corsair 620HX might be good enough for this build as described. Yes, someday I will maybe add a second 4870x2 in crossfire, but the 620 is rated for that, and possibly one more hard drive. This PC wont see my wigging out to the limit with long term hi temp heavy loads, so I just need stability. That 1000 watt PSU could be overkill? Need professional opinions and or other options and how important is modular and right angle for this MB?

 

[aevm]

The 620HX can handle one HD 4870X2, no problem there. It is a very good PSU.
However, it can't handle two cards like that.

Here's ATI's official list of PSUs:
http://game.amd.com/us-en/crossfirex_components.aspx?p=3#ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 X2

Look in the rows that have 2 cards in the last column. The Corsair 750TX is the smallest one, and the rest are 900W to 1200W.

BTW, there's a PC Power & Cooling S75CF 750W for $80 at Newegg. If the 750TX can handle those cards then so can the PC P&C 750W.

 

[NexCyber]

thanks very much for the link

 

[kubes]

I would suggest going with 1600mhz ram if your planning on overclocking. Most likely you'll be stable around 4.0ghz with the i7. I don't think you'd get 1333mhz Ram up that high. So if you plan on going with the Corsair dominators make sure to go with the 1600.

I'd reccomend these over the dominators however due to better timings:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226030

They may not have as good of heat sinks as the dominator but 1.65v ram doesn't produce the heat that ddr2 use to produce. There for they do not need the amount of cooling that was required in the past. Just my opipion on the best ram for your buck. Both of those ram kits should allow plenty of head room for a good Overclock.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The DDR3 1600 RAM is nice, but don't feel to bad if you have to go with 1333 RAM. The i7 chips have a separate multiplier just for the RAM, so high speed RAM is not necessary to get a high overclock with i7 chips. You could use DDR3 1066 RAM and still overclock your CPU to it's max (even though I wouldn't recommend it).

 

[NexCyber]

Im sold the corsair for the stability reported in the reviews. Time is money. I would rather spend the extra money than have to start over 3 for or five times. That is why Ill spend the extra dough for the best quality components to promote stability. With these components, a pretty nice OC should be possible from the get go. Now I just gotta figure out the cooling. I never did water but am considering it. Im more concerned about the heat that is being reported from the 4870x2 GPUs. Granted, If I dont game it to death, probably wont be an issue, but why not give ti the best cooling anyway. I want this to last me another 6 to 8 years like this one did.