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barmaley   08-31-2009 at 09:19:37 AM

Thinking about putting my new i7 build together. Here's the component list:

i7 920 D0 OC'd to 4Ghz
GTX 275 SLI OC'd (as much as it lets me)
3x2GB RAM
PSU CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX
1XHDD
1XOptical Drive
Fans

Looking for a nice and stable motherboard and a good set of RAM on the budget. Mother board preferably around $200 and RAM under $140.

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AGirlsBuild   08-31-2009 at 12:32:54 PM
- 0 +

barmaley wrote :

Thinking about putting my new i7 build together. Here's the component list:

i7 920 D0 OC'd to 4Ghz
GTX 275 SLI OC'd (as much as it lets me)
3x2GB RAM
PSU CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX
1XHDD
1XOptical Drive
Fans

Looking for a nice and stable motherboard and a good set of RAM on the budget. Mother board preferably around $200 and RAM under $140.



Take a look. ;) These are all good parts.
Combo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.240720
M/B-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813130226
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813135229
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128375

Ram-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820144281
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820148246

PSU-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139010
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139011


Message edited by AGirlsBuild on 08-31-2009 at 12:34:33 PM
Reply to AGirlsBuild
Yoosty   08-31-2009 at 01:39:27 PM
- 0 +

Lets see what I can come up with for you.

Could you also tell us what Case and OS you will be using for this Build, if your already have or need them.

*note: If you live near Microcenter you can get the Core® i7 920 w/DO Stepping for $199.00 but you have it buy it at the store.
http://www.microcenter.com/single_ [...] ntel_i7920

Micro Center: 22 Locations Nationwide
http://www.microcenter.com/at_the_stores/index.html

Here is the dark horse of the x58 mobo's, that is basically the same as P6T, but lower in price as a Austek subsidary if NewEgg can keep it in stock.
ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $169.99 (ETA:09/07/2009)

Ram
OCZ OCZ3P1600LV6GK DDR3 PC3-12800 1600MHz 6GB Platinum XTC Triple Channel Kits $113.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.

PSU
Corsair 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Power Supply $239.99 ($199.99 after $40.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping* ($229.99With Promo CodeEMCLWNW35)

HDD
Corsair 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Power Supply $94.99 Free Shipping* $89.99 With Promo Code EMCLWNW36

Other Hardware you should look at.
CPU Cooler's
CoGage True Spirit Heatpipe CPU Cooler with 120mm PWM Silent Fan for Intel LGA1366 $37.95
(It is similar to the ThermalRight and cools within 1 or 2 degrees' of it.)

If you do get the CoGage True Spirit, I would suggest this Mounting Bracket, instead of the Push-Pin one that come with it.
Thermalright LGA1366 Bolt-Thru-Kit Retail BOX Bolt-thru Board Mounting kit $9.95

If you want one of the Best CPU HSF Cooler for the Core i7 then I would suggest this one, but it is more expensive.
Thermalright Ultra120 eXtreme-1366 RT Premium Heatpipe Cooler for Intel LGA1366 $74.95

One of the latest Reviews on 1366 CPU HSF Coolers'.

Thermal Compound.
ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound - Retail $7.98

Hope this helps you out some. :)


Message edited by Yoosty on 08-31-2009 at 01:50:22 PM
Reply to Yoosty
barmaley   08-31-2009 at 06:37:18 PM
- 0 +

CPU: Already picked up my i7 920 D0 stepping from Microcenter - $210 (199.99 + TAX)
CASE: Will be reusing my old full tower case with a dozen of extra fans and filters. Thinking about trying to create a positive pressure inside. by having 10 fans blowing in through air filters and 4 out. Will probably sound like a jet engine but I don't care.
Thermal Paste: I already have Arctic Silver 5
OS: Windiws 7 RC 64-bit

Motherboard: I decided I want to get a 6 memory slot MB, even though I'll only have 3 of them occupied at frist. Will add 6Gb RAM next year. Also, personal preference wise I'd like to stay away from ECS brand. So far I'm looking at:
- GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - 239.99 - Newegg after MIR
- ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - 169.99 - I read very promising reviews about that one from different sites
- Corsair PSU CMPSU-1000HX + EVGA 132-BL-E758-TR Combo for $419.98 after MIR
- EVGA 141-BL-E757-TR 209.99 after MIR
- MSI X58 Pro-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - 189.99 Looks good, but seems to be a lot of people having problems with it.
- ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 - 279.99 with promo code, which I can afford but not sure if I need/want to spend this much on the mobo.

I never OC'd an i7 myself, but I read somewhere that slow/bad quality RAM can prevent you from getting to 4GHz.I also read that for real life applications low latencies have greater effect on productivity than higher freq. But, at the same time you need your RAM to be able to work at higher Mhz in order to OC to 4GHz. Not sure how all that works, hopefully someone will put me straight on this. That's my RAM dilema: want something decent without paying a fortune (don't we all? :P)

As far as CPU cooler I hear these have recommended themselves as great performers:

- Thermalright Ultra120 eXtreme - No idea why Newegg discontinued it...
- Prolimatech Megahalems - $59.99 - comes with no fans but no big deal since I have some laying around or can pick some up real cheap
- Thermalright IFX-14 - $60.99 - The "pain in the butt" as I call it. Best performance reviews I've seen but most expensive: no fans, not clear if it comes with that extra little heatsink which costs another $35, not clear if it comes with LGA1366 brackets. So, all together could come in at $120 shipped, which is kinda outrageous. Would be kind of cool if I could get all parts needed for under $80 delivered

Reply to barmaley
Yoosty   08-31-2009 at 11:21:39 PM
- 0 +

Here is some more breakdown on some of the Mobo's you are looking at.
Asus P6T Deleuxe v2: very good board that you can do either SLI or Crossfire on but you can OC higher due & more stablitiy with the 16+2 phase capacitors it has.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131365

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P: similar as the P6T Deluxe v2, that has 12+2+2 phase capacitors.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128374

ASUS Rampage II GENE: good small form mobo that kicks butt, 8 phase capacitors, SupremeFX X-Fi built-in and iROGtweaking features.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131371

EVGA 121-BL-E756-TR X58 Micro ATX SLI Micro: good small form mobo that kicks butt, do Crossfire or SLI and can moderately OC at a low price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813188051

*note: the EVGA 141-BL-E757-TR will only do SLI in 16x8 speed, thats is why I included EVGA X58 Micro, it does SLI in 16x16 speed.
Get the Corsair 1000w PSU in this Deal, since you can not use it in Combo Deals.
Corsair 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Power Supply $279.99 Your Price: $229.99With Promo CodeEMCLWNW35 ($189.99 after $40.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*

DDR3 Triple Channel Ram sweet spot seems to be 1600 (PC3 12800), after that you start paying higher for the Ram with the lower Cas Latency.
OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800): good ram at CAS7 at lower price.
http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-OCZ3P160 [...] 988&sr=8-1

mushkin 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model 998691 - Retail $185.99 Free Shipping*

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C7D G - Retail $193.00 Free Shipping*

[ur]=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226064] mushkin Ascent 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2000 (PC3 16000) Desktop Memory Model 998732 - Retail $259.99 Free Shipping* [/url]

Best Place to get the CPU Coolers' you mention is at Performance-PCS.com.
Thermalright Heatsinks

Prolimatech Megahalem for Intel Socket 775 /1366

HardOCP Latest Review on 1366 CPU HSF Coolers'

CoGage True Spirit Heatpipe CPU Cooler with 120mm PWM Silent Fan for Intel LGA1366 $37.95
(It is similar to the ThermalRight and cools within 1 or 2 degrees' of it.) And it is a subsidiary Thermalright.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cat [...] s_id=26022

If you do get the CoGage True Spirit, I would suggest this Mounting Bracket, instead of the Push-Pin one that come with it.

Thermalright LGA1366 Bolt-Thru-Kit Retail BOX Bolt-thru Board Mounting kit $9.95
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cat [...] s_id=24667

Reply to Yoosty
masterasia   08-31-2009 at 11:35:04 PM
- 0 +

If you have the money, EVGA Classified motherboard. I don't like the color scheme of the Gigabyte boards. I built a rig for my bother using the ASUS P6T and it turned out pretty good. He's got it overclocked to about 3.8 GHz and he's using the Cooler Master V8. I myself have the Foxconn Bloodrage motherboard with the Mushkin redline ram. I have mine overclocked to about 3.8 GHz and my ram is running at 1800Mhz at 6-7-6-18 timing. If I had the money, I would have gotten the EVGA Classified with Corsair Dominator GT ram. For $700 you're better off investing in a good GPU.

Reply to masterasia
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