New Build HELP

[McGetMoney]

OK guys heres a bit of background info before i go into my new build.

around 2-3 years ago i built a HTPC zalman HD160 case, Pentium D 2.66 O/C 3.5, 2GB ram, Asus P5W DH Deluxe Mobo, Zalman PSU. This pc is still working flawlessly, but can only have 3 hard drives running safely due to heat.

So now its time for me to build another pc but i will still be keeping my HTPC running to dont want to strip it down or jus do a case transplant.

The new PC will Need 8+ sata connections on the mobo and i just dont know if i really need to go for the i7 or if i should stick with a core 2 quad.

Also not sure on my psu if 550watts will be fine or if i need to go upto 800watts.

I definatly want a cpu that can be overclocked and will need a better cpu heatsink+fan.

The pc will mainly be used for storage playin/encodin music and video and lots of heavy downloading. I wont be playing any games always use my ps3 an 360 for that.

All parts need to be availble on www.scan.co.uk
the case gpu and harddrives i already have purchased and i want to stick with the gigabyte psu just not sure which wattage to get. Also if possible want to run it on a gigabyte mobo.
ok so here is what i have got so far

CASE

CoolerMaster Stacker RC-832 V2 Black Tower/Black Trim Case w/o PSU


CPU

Intel i7 920, Socket 1366 (B), Nehalem, 2.66GHz, Cache 8MB, OEM
Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 Exclusive Dual Fan CPU Cooler, LGA1366 only


GPU

512MB Gigabyte HD 4670, PCI-E 2.0(x16), 2000MHz GDDR3, GPU 750MHz, 320 Cores, D-Sub/ DL DVI-I/ HDMI


HDD

1x 74GB WD Raptor
6x 1TB Samsung Spinpoint
1x 2TB ????


Motherboard

Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5, Intel X58, Sok 1366, PCI-E 2.0, DDR3 1066/1600/2000, SATA II, ATX

Optical Drive

LG GGW-H20L Super Multi Blu-Ray Writer & HD ROM Black L/S SATA & Cyberlink BD & HD Software *Oem


PSU

500W or 800W Gigabyte ODIN Pro PSU Modular 80%+ Eff' ???


RAM

3GB (3x1GB) CorsairXMS3, DDR3 PC3-10666 (1333) 240 Pin, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 9-9-9-24

 

[evongugg]

That's a fine build.
500W PSU is fine for that system, unless you want to do Crossfire or SLI.

 

[aevm]

A hard drive consumes only 10W or so, so no worries there.

"will need a better cpu heatsink+fan" - forget it. The Noctua NH-U12P is the best you can get, stick with it. As far as cooling performance is concerned, the NH-U12P and the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme are tied at the top. I consider the NH-U12P the winner between the two because it's a bit quieter than the Thermalright.

The 2TB drives (WD20EADS) have a 90 MB/s average read/write rate. That's important if you use them to compress video a lot, and it's a pretty bad rate IMO. Compare with the Spinpoint F1 1TB at 120 MB/s and the Seagate 1.5TB at 105 MB/s.
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2339787,00.asp