I7 gaming build review

[chedderslam1976]

Newegg has a great deal on the spinpoint f1s so I think i am going to buy my system today.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: today

BUDGET RANGE: less than $2000

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, web design, folding@home

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS, case, video cards(for now)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com, whoever has the D0 stepping i7

PARTS PREFERENCES: Intel, evga

OVERCLOCKING: Yes SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200 (dell UltraSharp 2408WFP)

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
No video card for now, waiting for the new ones to come out.
I saw the leaked price sheet for the new intels, and it looks like the 920 will remain the same price, so why not get it now?
Need help choosing thermal compound to use. Arctic Silver 5 or Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal?
Also, considering getting the Vista ultimate 64 bit, but what does the coupon get me when windows seven comes out. I would prefer the full version rather than an upgrade so I can do a clean install. If the coupon does not get me the full version I will just use the release candidate for now.
Need to know where I can get a d0 stepping 920. Do you get that if you buy from newegg?
I am getting three of the 1tb spinpoints for raid 5. I get three of the 500gb ones for free with them, which I will raid 0 for os/programs. Can I raid 0 three drives? They are oem, so do I need to buy cables?
Case I have is an antec p182. Concerned about the power supply fitting in there. Will it?

CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail

OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LV6GK - Retail

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

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail

3x SAMSUNG F1 RAID Class HE103UJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM

3x SAMSUNG F1 RAID Class HE502IJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM

Total: $1,149.92

 

[stevensl2]

Everything Looks terrific but, Instead of those platinum ram, why not something that looks more sick, maybe something from Patriot or something from the Dominator series, not just for looks but they offer better cooling xD

The i7 is being discontinued next month, I strongly suggest you buying one now.
As for your thermal compound why not try the Arctic Mx-2, it beats both of the ones you've listed, if you really wanna stay with the 2, go with AS-5.

If your Hard drives are OEM then Yes you will need to buy additional SATA cables I believe.

Everything should fit fine in the antec p182, its quite a big case from what I've heard.

 

[chedderslam1976]

Thanks for the reply.

The leaked price sheet that was on tomshardware listed the 920 @ something like $279, so I thought it would still be around?

I've read quite a few builds on here and everyone always seems to recommend the ocz. Usually people say the dominators are over priced? I will look at the gskill though.

Where can I get the d0 stepping i7?

If I get vista ultimate now, what does the coupon get me for windows 7?

Thanks.

 

[Helloworld_98]

^ @stevensl2, the i7 isn't discontinued next month, have you seen the latest roadmap?

pretty much any i7 920 you buy today will be D0.

any reason for the 1000w PSU? your case won't have enough cooling for 3x 5870's, so you'd have to stick to 2x, and they will easily run on an 850w PSU.

 

[daidalas]

SATA Cables should come with your motherboard, and i agree with stevensl2 on the AC MX-2 thermal paste (or MX-3, but they dont have it on newegg yet)

Build looks great, let us know how it works out for you!

 

[hunter315]

I hope you have a PCI-E video card to test the system out and make sure it works without waiting several months for the new ones before putting it together.

While the i7 may remain at the same price the ram, motherboard, and hard drive prices will all go down if you wait and buy it all as a unit when the new GPUs come out. Im not sure if the 1000HX will fit into a normal ATX case, the 850HX will fit just fine and will give you plenty of power for anything you need.

 

[chedderslam1976]

I do have a pci video card and will use the system for just web design and surfing until the cards come out.

The reason I feel complelled to make my move now is because of this combo:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.232810

If I buy three, I am saving $240 on storage. I wanted the 1tb anyways, and was going to get something for just the os and programs until ssds come down.

I do not think I will be able to beat the price down the road. What are the chances of this combo reappearing in a couple of months? How often does newegg redo combos like this?

 

[DataCabbitKSW]

Cheddarslam, you will likely get the upgrade version with the coupons, but you will have to check with your provider to be sure. I totally feel you on the waiting on a video card issue. However, a good number of the DirectX 11 features are available to DX9 and DX10 compatible cards. Newer memory models and texture management paths, plus possible use of the DirectX Compute Shader (think CUDA or Stream or OpenCL). Just some of the new shader model and things like that will have to wait on the newer hardware. So if you have a decent card lying around, you could still get some good usage in the meantime. Also, if you were extra anxious to be on Windows 7 final bits, rather than RC, you could sign up for MSDN or TechNet Plus. They got access to all that back on the 6th ( source: http://tinyurl.com/nu26jt ).