I've settled on a prospective build -- feedback?

After much deliberation I've come up with the following build candidate for my new system.

A few comments before I list the parts:

This is my first time homebuilding, but I will be going for a reasonable overclock -- probably 3.66GHz on the CPU. Not sure if I will be OCing the RAM or GPU yet, but it is a possibility.

In terms of high load tasks, the system will primarily be used for gaming. I understand that quad core CPUs (and the i7 in particular) are not highly cost efficient solutions right now for gaming, but here is the kicker: I plan on using this build for the next 3-5 years. The decision to go I7 is based significantly on the assumption that over time more and more apps (including games) will take advantage of quad cores.

The two portions of the build that I am least certain about are the GPU and the HDD. In particular, I have not decided yet if it would be worthwhile to grab a second HDD and RAID them. Thoughts on this question?

As far as the GPU goes, I'm really not sure what would be the best solution for me. Most likely, I will aim to get a solid GPU now and then buy a second for SLI/Crossfire 1-3 years into the lifespan of the computer. Of course, if this option is not viable then I'll probably just straight upgrade the GPU. I selected the GPU listed below mainly because it seemed like a high performance option that was still reasonable on the value chart, and it has a nice combo discount at newegg.

I currently have a Samsung SyncMaster 204 BW monitor that I am not planning on replacing for the time being, although I may upgrade at some point during the lifespan of the computer. As such, for the time being I'm not likely to be using super-high resolutions.

Overall, I am looking at a total outlay of somewhere around ~$1800 over the life of the computer. Given the parts listed below, that would leave me with about $330 for a possible second HDD and a GPU upgrade.

***Also, for what it's worth I want to clarify that I know I will not be getting top of the line performance over the entire life of the computer. I kept my current computer for 4 years and my computer before that for 4 years. In both cases, I got great performance up front, adequate performance at year 3 and poor performance in year 4 on a similar budget. However, In those cases I did not OC and got prebuilt systems, so I am expecting that this current build will probably stretch out the "adequate" phase through the fourth year. I'm not going to be upset if I can't play the newest FPS games at top settings four years from now. I know I won't be able to, and I'm OK with that. If I can play new games on modest settings in 4 years I'll be happy.



CPU: Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920

MOBO: EVGA E758-A1 3-Way SLI (x16/x16/x8) LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard

RAM: CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D

GPU: EVGA 017-P3-1175-AR GeForce GTX 275 1792MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 SLI Supported Video Card

CASE: Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply

COOLING: XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler, Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

OPTICAL: SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache IDE 22X DVD±R DVD Burner

CARD READER: SABRENT CRW-FLP2 All-in-one USB 2.0 Floppy Drive and 68in1 Internal Memory Card Reader & Writer - SDHC/VISTA

OS: Windows 7 RC

TOTAL COST: $1470 shipped


Thanks in advance for your comments!

Hey there,

Great build, I think you've got a solid system with good performance for the price. Some more specific comments:

-Great cooling
-Great HDD
-The corsair dominators are a little expensive; you could go with a 6GB OCZ platinum 1600 kit for ~$99 on newegg right now for essentially identical performance
-With only one GPU the antec 1200 might be unneccesarily large, in fact you could probably get away with the antec 900 even if you do end up using SLI and save some more cash
-You'll only need a power supply that strong for 2 cards; you could go with a 650W unless you're sure you'll use SLI.

Overall, totally solid build.

Yeah, I'm going to go for the 1200 and the larger PSU mainly because there is a good chance I will SLI at some point with this build, and if I want the flexibility of doing it in the next build. If the case is as good as advertised I'll be using it for a long time, and if I'm lucky the PSU will hold up for the next build too.

Great advice on the RAM, I'll strongly consider switching to the OCZ -- although that may result in a bit more tweaking here and there due to combo savings.

Do you have any thoughts about whether or not it'd be worth it to grab a second HDD to RAID? I don't think I'll be using nearly 640GB (I have a 74GB raptor in my current computer and do fine) let alone 1280, so RAID would be for performance only really.