New System Build using Asus P6T with i7 920 CPU

[Big Bruce]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this forum and need some advice.

I took a look at the $2500 system that Tom's Hardware built using the EVGA MB and an i7 920 CPU. I would like to build a very similar system using the ASUS P6T Deluxe MB with 6 or 12 Gigs of ram. I'm not sure if I should go with a single nVidia 285 GPU or 2x nVidia 260 cards.

Has anyone used the ASUS P6T MB with the Cooler Master 830 Evolution Case? If so, how well did everything fit?

I would also like to know what OC settings you used. Would it be better to go all out for liquid cooling or will air cooling be sufficient?

If you have a full system build using the Asus P6T Deluxe MB with i7 920 CPU, please post so I can take a look at the setup.

Any help is greatly appreciated.


Thanks

 

[will31]

Hello Big Bruce,


Here is my setup:

ASUS P6T Deluxe
Core i7 920 oc'ed @3.00ghz
6gb of Corasair XMS3 Ram 1333mhz
Diamond HD4870 XOC Black Edition
WD 640x2 in Raid 0
Samsung DVD Rom
Samsung DVD Burner
Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 Cooler
Cooler Master CM690
Utlra X2 Modular Power Supply 750 watts
Vista Ultimate 64bit
Creatvie Xtreme Musice X-Fi sound card
Asus 22 inch monitor


I have no complaints about the system whats so ever. Had the CPU running at 3.4 ghz with no problem as well but brought it back down to 3.0ghz for now. By far the easiest setup that I had. With the case I have there are no space issues. So I'm sure the CM 830 is not issue at all. My opinion would be to go with a good air cooler i.e. the Zalman 9900, but either way can't hurt.
Hope this helps.

 

[Big Bruce]

Hi will31,

Thanks for the quick reply. Your setup looks very good. When did yout do the build? If you don't mind me asking, what was the total costs?

I am looking at going with the BFG GeForce 260 or 260 OC+ graphics card. Then later, adding a second graphics card if I need the better performance to run multiple sessions of Eve. Was there a particular reason you selected the Diamond HD 4870 XOC card?

I am currently running a Raid 1 for fault tolerance. Are you running Raid 0 for performance only? With the new build, I plan to run a Raid 5 setup so I can get the best of both worlds.

I also see that you are using a 750 watt pwr supply. Is this PS an 80% efficient model? I was looking at a 1000 watt PS but would love to do without the added heat.

 

[Jack64]

Hello Big Bruce,

Here is my build:

CM Haf 932 ~$170
Asus P6t Deluxe~$280
I7 920 @ 3.2~$280
Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme or TRUE 120~$70
6 Gigs Corsair Dominator 1600~ can't remember 140 or so
EVGA Gtx 295~$500
WD 1 tb~$130
LG 22x dvd~$25
Thermaltake Toughpower 1000W Modular 2 yrs ago was ~$400
Samsung 2493HM 24" monitor ~$400
Vista Home Premium 64 bit OEM ~$100
Cost was (when I built it 2 month ago) about 2000 us, but I already had the PSU from a previous build, and there are better and cheaper PSU's out there, Corsair make a nice 1000W modular for less than what I paid for mine!


Have really enjoyed this build, does everything I want with ease. I play games like cod4, cod 5, Going to get more games also. I also use it to edit photos with Adobe Photoshop Platnum edition.

 

[Jack64]

Hey Bruce, thought I would tell ya bud....If I had to do this build again, I think I would have gone with 2 GTX 285 in sli instead of the gtx 295, the 285's in sli will kill the gtx 295. And there are faster monitors out there, mine is 5 ms and have never hindered any game I have ever played, but they say go for the fastest refresh you can get. but I went with the best colors and a good refresh rate. I do love my 2493hm samsung, it rocks, but listen to these gents they will not steer you wrong!!

I just got farcry 2 and run it at 1920X1200 and EVERYTHING turned up as high as it will go and am getting great FPS. 90-91FPS according to the game fps counter, I bet the 2X285's in sli would be even better!!! I should get fraps to measure it, but I haven't...my bad!! But this system is ROCK solid and so far has kicked my other builds butt in every way!! Can't say enough about the quality components I chose, these folks here recommend the same stuff I have, although I wasn't a member when I built mine, I did months of research and came to the same conclusion they have on here....quality components == Quality build!!! Remember, take your time and do it right!!

 

[Big Bruce]

So far, this is what I have come up with.

Antec 900 Black Steel ATX Mid Tower or ThermalTake VH800BWS Aromor+ MX ATX Mid Tower

Core i7 920 CPU

3x WD Caviar Black 1TB drives in Raid 5

2x BFG Tech BFGEGTX260MC8960CBE Geforce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB GPUs

Antec Signature SG850 850W PSU or Corsair CMPSU-1000-HX 1000 Watt PSU

Xigmatek Dark Knight-S1283V CPU Cooler or Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 CPU Cooler

2x G.Skill 6GB(3x2GB)240 Pin DDR3 1600 Triple Channel or Corsair XMS3 Tri Chanel 6GB PC12800 DDR3 1600MHz

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 MB


Please let me know what you guys think.

Thanks

 

[Helloworld_98]

make sure you get the D0 version of the i7 920, it will overclock a lot further.

oh and have a look at the xclio/a+case blackhawk, it's basically a counterfeit version of the antec 1200 but it's priced about the same as the 900.

 

[Big Bruce]

How do I recognize the D0 version of the i7 920?

I will check out the case too.

Thanks.

 

[falconerh92]

You dont realy need 12GB of ram, 6 is plenty.
Helloworld_98 I bought my i7 920 in january so would it be D0?

 

[Jack64]

You dont realy need 12GB of ram, 6 is plenty

This is true, ya don't need 12 gigs. I cant say about the D0, I bought mine in february and it is a C0 So as far as that goes....I don't know!!
but it OC's just fine!! I'm running a very mild Oc at 3.2 and it was easy!! I won't push mine that hard because of the enviroment it is in...My garage and if it if 100 outside it is 90 inside even with the refridgerated air on....no insulation!!

 

[Big Bruce]

yes, but how do I tell which version of the processor I have. I just assembled my system and would love to know. I had already gone with the 12 gigs before reading the post so that is already in it. If I build a second system, I will just move 6 gigs over to the new machine.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

I wouldn't worry about the stepping. CPU-Z will tell you what stepping your CPU is if the system is already running. You can also tell what stepping the CPU is by looking at the code on the CPU box. A D0 stepping CPU will have a SLBEJ code.

 

[Big Bruce]

ok, well on my box, the S-spec is SLBCH. What does that equate too?

 

[shortstuff_mt]

SLBCH is a C0 stepping CPU.

http://processorfinder.intel.com/details.aspx?sSpec=SLBCH

Like I said, I wouldn't worry about it. There's certainly nothing wrong with your CPU.