Core i7 build, mostly for video editing and radiology

[abaugh]

I'm planning on building my own. I live in the US, this is the parts list from Newegg. The systems most challenging tasks will be editing AVCHD (1080p compressed video). It will do a fair amount of transcoding of video and audio. I don't do much gaming, but I might with the new machine. The other thing (for which I don't expect many people here to have input on) is reviewing CT scans and MRI's. I'd like to mildly overclock it (3+) on air cooling.


SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S223Q - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151173

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129042

Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS 1TB SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822136317

SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814102801

PC Power & Cooling S61EPS 610W Continuous @ 40°C EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817703005

Crucial 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model CT3KIT25664BA1067 - Retail
Item #: N82E16820148246

MSI X58 Pro LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813130221

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115202

1) Any general tips would be appreciated.
2) Power supply, case, and an aftermarket fan are things I feel like I could probably improve.
3) I consider adding a second 4870 in the future in crossfire, but it's definitely not a selling point now. Price is more important at the moment.
4) Hard drives will be a later improvement, but wouldn't mind a different starting one. (I'll probably move later to an SSD as competition goes up, and prices go down).

 

[abaugh]

No advice at all from anyone?

 

[fullmetall]

For harddrive to start off, Wd Black is probably the best version of hdd to go with IMO.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284
wd 1tb black

Seems as if your making this a budget building i7 core on a low end.

crucial 1066... antec 300..

Whats the budget like before i go any further?

 

[cjl]

Looks pretty good. As for your point #2, I don't see that much you need to improve. The case and PSU are fine. If by aftermarket fan, you mean CPU cooler, the TRUE is a good (but pricey) choice, and IIRC, there's a bracket to fit the Xigmatek to LGA1366 now - that's also an excellent cooler.

Not sure why you're getting the Caviar Green drive though - might as well go with at least the Blue model even if you are on a budget, and the Black model if you can.

 

[aevm]

Here's a cooler that works with i7 920 and it already includes the bracket:

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029


Dump the PC Power & Cooling 610W and get a Corsair 650TX instead. You save $10, get 3A more, the PCI-E connectors are 6+2 instead of 6-pin (doesn't matter for the HD 4870 but it might matter for your next card).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

+1 for the WD Black. The extra speed will matter if you process large image files. I'm guessing those MRIs are huge bitmaps of some sort, right?

Good build, btw. I hope your software supports quads properly so you can get full advantage of the hardware.

Add Vista Home Premium 64-bit OEM.

Case: if you have the cash and want a nicer case, check out the Antec P182.

 

[MykC]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007 Artic 5 Compound $7
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 Xigma Dark Knight CPU cooler $40

Whether your going to overclock or not, I'd recommend those two product.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119150 CM 690 $80.
I really like the case, I've had hands on experience and its easy to work with, roomy and cool wells. The tooless design is the thing I like about it the most. Its heavy and its the thing I dislike about it the most.

If you want to crossfire, your going to need more power. 650w-750w
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005 $100 - $20 MIR Bare minimum. There is a 750W version for $20 more.

edit: my post was more or less usless, should of refreshed the page before I started the post.

 

[aevm]

If you're going to do Crossfire, the 750TX is a good idea because it has 4 PCI-E connectors. (Each HD 4870 card needs 2 PCI-E connectors.)