$1300 i7 gaming build

[rvilkman]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: within 1 week

BUDGET RANGE: ~$1300

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Surfing, Movies

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Newegg.com

PARTS PREFERENCES: Aluminum case, i7

OVERCLOCKING: Yes

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Yes , CrossFire in the future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

MB choice seems to be the biggest deal
Lian-Li look for case is nice, good simple design aluminum preferred

Link to wishlist for planned computer

 

[Klon0pin]

I went with with an Asus p6t, but only because the store didn't have the Asus p6t deluxe v2 in stock (and I'm impulsive). I am 100% happy with my mobo. I and am running sli and have no problem with the southbridge lacking a heatpipe (one of the main differences between the p6t and p6t deluxe).

But a lot of the reading I did praised the Gigabyte x58 board over the asus.

 

[astrodudepsu]

just a few comments,

HDD: The WD Caviar Black 1TB drive should be a bit faster than the seagate.

HSF: Save some money and go with the Xigmatek S1283 or Scythe Mugen 2

MOBO: with the savings upgrade to the V2 or the gigabyte x58-ud4p, although the vanilla p6t is just fine for most users.

PSU: It's overkill for 1 4890 (really overkill actually). I assume you plan to add another 4890 in the future, and even if that is the case a 750W PSU will suffice. say, PC Power and Cooling, Corsair, Enermax take your pick.

 

[gkay09]

^+1

You have chosen all good components no doubt...but there are few things that you can consider changing...
1. As you will be overclocking, change the mobo to this ASUS Rampage Gene...
Reason - If you check out this review, you can see that this board overclocks better than P6T and surely better than the P6T SE
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/rampage-gene-lanparty,2302.html
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131371

2. Like astro said, change the PSU to the 750W range...
Corsair 750HX...As these PSUs are 80+ Gold certified, they will have no trouble handling 2x HD 4890s and o/c i7...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010

3. +1 for WD Black 1TB...

4. +1 for CPU cooler choices...
Scythe Mugen 2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185093
or
Xig Dark Knight...

Rest the RAM, Case, graphics are all very good choices...

 

[rescawen]

GO for the sapphire vapor-x edition.

 

[rvilkman]

The HDD is something which I will look at when I order to see what is available.

HSF the Xigmatek might be a good choice although they are running a nice deal on the Zalman atm.

MOBO: i think i will do fine with the P6T SE, the V2 seems quite a step up pricewise and the ud4p seems to be plagued with some problems I'd rather not face with coldboots and networking and such.

PSU: Yes I know it is overkill for a single 4890, but I want to have a plug and play upgrade possibility to a dual 4890 setup. As for the wattage, I prefer to overdo it a bit and the reviews on the 850HX are pretty convincing so I think I will stick with it.

 

[croc]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: within 1 week

BUDGET RANGE: ~$1300

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Surfing, Movies

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Newegg.com

PARTS PREFERENCES: Aluminum case, i7

OVERCLOCKING: Yes

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Yes , CrossFire in the future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

MB choice seems to be the biggest deal
Lian-Li look for case is nice, good simple design aluminum preferred

Link to wishlist for planned computer

Zalman HSF is crap... OK, not crap, but certainly not the best choice. TRUE or Noctua. Silverstone fortress is a better case for cooling, but will require a bit of work to get there. Not enough room behind right-side panel, MB tray is not removable.

 

[rescawen]

+1

 

[Klon0pin]

Noctua dropped my i7 temps from 100c (crashed in minutes) to 61c (max temp of all cores over about 6 hours) in Prime 95 Torture Test. But I never tried the zalman.

 

[falkun]

Try this build on:

CPU/Mobo combo:
i7 920
Gigabyte UD4P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.203722
$525

GPU/Memory combo:
Sapphire 4890
OCZ Platinum DDR3 1600 6GB (3x2)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.197122
$298

Case/HDD combo:
Antec 300
WD 640GB Caviar Black
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.204205
$120

PSU:
Corsair 650w
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
$100

DVD Burner:
LITE-ON 22x DVD-R
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106282
$25

CPU Fan/Heatsink:
XIGMATEK Dark Knight
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029
$40

Thermal Compound:
Arctic Silver 5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
$9

Monitor:
ASUS 21.5" 2MS 1900x1080
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236051
$180

Price: $1,296.80, after MIR: $1206.80 (Not including shipping)

Put this build in another thread. You could swap out the XIGMATEK for the Noctua for total $1332/$1241 after MIR

 

[terr281]

<<<Recently bought the below system parts for a build for a friend. Doesn't completely match, especially with my buying over the past few months, but shouldn't be that far off current pricing. And, without the OS, falls in your price range.>>>

Finished the purchasing today, and I always update:

Case: Antec 300 (Bought months ago w/ free shipping for $48)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042

OS Hard Drive: WD Caviar Black 1 TB ($90 last week)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284

Storage Hard Drive: Hitachi 1 TB ($75 last week)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145233

PSU: Corsair 750w ($120 w/ $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

CPU: Intel i7 920 ($280)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

MB: MSI X58 Pro LGA 1366 ($190 w/ $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130221

Ram: Patriot 6GB DDR3 1333 ($95 w/ $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220367

CPU Cooler: ZALMAN CNPS9700 ($49 w/ free LGA 1366 retention bracket)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019

Case Fans: Scythe 120mm x4 ($7.50 x 4 = $30)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185057

DVD Burner 1 (Retail): HP Black 22X ($25)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827140040

DVD Burner 2 (OEM): SAMSUNG 22X ($28)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173

GFX, "Top" Slot: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 4870 1GB ($150 w/ $10 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102825

GFX, "Bottom" Slot: ASUS Radeon HD 4870 1GB ($160 w/ $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121291

OS: Win Vista Home Premium with Win 7 Upgrade, OEM ($110)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116677

Total Price: $1,450, w/ MIR $1360

Reasonings on parts selection:

1. Lots of disk space needed.
2. It seems LGA1366 MB reviews show that all of them have more issues than LGA 775 MBs did. Further, the major issue with the MSI board I selected was the Northbridge heatsink temperature. Easy fix: Replace the thermal grease myself.
3. Chose the Patriot ram due to the low timings at DDR3 1333 speeds.
4. With the MB, Case (Antec 300), and Case fan replacements, the open design of the Zalman will allow the case fans to pull air past the Zalman heatsink very easily. (And, space will be tight.)
5. Replacing the 120mm tri-cool fan and putting fans in all other available 120mm slots with low noise decent throughput fans. Thus, the Scythe fans.
6. Duel DVD burners, as always for systems I build. (With two of the same kind never going in the same machine.) Further, avoided the adware one from LG.
7. Crossfire 4870 1 GB graphics solution, 3 total games included for free. The side panel 120mm fan on the Antec 300 will be set for exhaust to pull hot air directly away from the Asus card in the bottom of the case.
8. Free upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium for the user, no complete reinstallation required.