I7 920 Build

[Sanadar]

I'm looking to build a new system to be used mainly for gaming, movie/TV show viewing and software development. Being able to game and watching movies/TV shows simulanteously is a big plus.

I do plan to overclock (CPU and Video) as much as air cooling will allow. (I'm not fond of the idea of water cooling.) The 2 video cards will be configured for SLI. My display is a Dell 2408WFP (24" Widescreen) LCD. I also have a second 20" LCD monitor that I plan to use in both SLI mode and not.

Current operating system will be Vista Ultimate 64-bit with plans to upgrade to the Windows 7 equivalent when available.

I plan to purchase the system within the next week or so, with most of the parts coming from MWave. (MWave has the lowest price one the case I want.) I do tend to shy away from NewEgg because I have to pay sales tax for my state.

I would appreciate any and all feedback on this system. I am extremely interested in my choice of CPU cooling, especially since I plan to overclock.

Case: LIAN LI ARMORSUIT PC-P50 Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower

Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX

Motherboard: eVGA 132-BL-E758-TR Intel x58

CPU: Core i7 920

CPU Cooler: Thermaltake SpinQ CPU Cooler

Memory: Corsair 6GB TR3X6G 1600C8D

Video Cards: 2 EVGA GTX 275 896-P3-1171-AR (SLI)

[strike]OS/App Drives: 2 WD VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10,000 RPM (Raid 0)[/strike]

OS/App Drives: 2 WD 500GB WD5001AALS SATA-300 7200RPM 32MB Caviar Black

[strike]Storage Drives: 2 SAMSUNG 1TB HD103UJ SATA-300 7200 RPM 32MB[/strike]

Storage Drive: 2 WD WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA 7200 RPM 32MB

 

[Helloworld_98]

get two WDC black 640GB drives instead of the VRaptor's as they will be just as fast.

 

[tecmo34]

I would recommend this cooler over what you listed for $10 more. Corsair CWCH50 hydro series H50 high-performance CPU Water Cooler - Retail. It should allow you to get your OC to 4.2+ and it is easier or just as easy to install as a standard heatsink, plus it is quieter than a standard heatsink.

 

[philipV]

I would recommend this cooler over what you listed for $10 more. Corsair CWCH50 hydro series H50 high-performance CPU Water Cooler - Retail. It should allow you to get your OC to 4.2+ and it is easier or just as easy to install as a standard heatsink, plus it is quieter than a standard heatsink.

What have you been smoking? That cooler sucks. A good cooler is the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme or "TRUE".

 

[eylee86]

a good water cooling will cost you at least 3 times of a decent air cooling, which i feel isn't that necessary for the amount of extra oc it allows you to do.

I'd recommend Prolimatech MegaHalem, TRUE, or Cooler Master V8. Prolimatech Megahalem is made by the people who use to work for Thermalright and they have a better installation process than TRUE in my opinion.

 

[eylee86]

get two WDC black 640GB drives instead of the VRaptor's as they will be just as fast.

i agree. Or you could also get just 1 WD Caviar Black 1TB and then wait couple months for Solid State harddrives to lower the prices. Using SSD for OS/Programs should give you much better performance.

 

[tecmo34]

What have you been smoking? That cooler sucks. A good cooler is the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme or "TRUE".

I'm smoking nothing... Please read this review... http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=getarticle&articID=939

The H50 actually beats the "TRUE" by a few degrees at the same price, along with being quieter. I will agree the "TRUE" is the best air cooler... IMO.

 

[Sanadar]

Thanks for your advice so far. I've updated the original post to use WD Caviar Black drives. I wasn't able to find the 640GB drives from the places I'm ordering, but did find the 500B drives.

[strike]As for the cooling, I've been doing a bit more searching. What do you all think about the Ultra ChillTEC Thermoelectric CPU Cooler? That looks like an interesting approach that might be better than straight air cooling, though perhaps not as good as liquid cooling.[/strike]

Nevermind. I should have searched the forums first.