~1k - i5 build - need a quick sanity check

[padme]

Hey all, this is my first time building – this is a similar build to others on the forums, but I want to make sure my PSU/Case/CPU fan all work together with this build.


APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: This week
BUDGET RANGE: around 1k

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Work – CS3 (Photoshop, Illustrator & InDesign), MS Office (Word, Excel, Publisher), Internet, Random Entertainment (like hulu, netflix, etc), Random Games (WoW, Starcraft – not as important). I use 2 monitors for work.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Mouse, Currently using a Samsung SyncMaster 2232BW 22” Monitor 1680x1050, will be looking for another one though.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg

PARTS PREFERENCES: No real preferences

OVERCLOCKING: probably not. SLI OR CROSSFIRE: SLI maybe in future

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1680x1050 on one, not sure what the other will be.


Here is what I have so far:

I5 CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115215
200

GIGABYTE GA-P55-UD4P LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128400
170

PNY XLR8 VCG98GTEE5XEB GeForce 9800 GT EE 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133279
100

x 2 for 8GB ---
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-4GBRH - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231276
180

LITE-ON Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW SATA CD/DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289
30

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM
&
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.273732
100

Cooler Master Intel Core i5 compatible Hyper TX3 Socket 775/1156/AMD 130W 92mm "heatpipe direct contact" CPU Cooler RR-910-HTX3-GP - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103064&Tpk=cooler%20master%201156%20cpu
20

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
90

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754
100

Thermal Grease
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
8

total: 998 w/o monitor

Will that fan work with the case? Its 92mm, but the case says 80 for the Mobo, but that it can hold 4 more 120mm fans – so I’m a little confused. Did I forget anything? Any other recommendations?

Thanks for your help!

 

[arrghushakaboorga]

Hey there. It looks like the case has enough room... the heatsink is 139mm high which is 5.5 inches. The case has a width of 8.4 so after the MB is in there it looks like it should still be able to fit. You may want to get a slightly higher wattage power supply just in case you decide to upgrade in the future, though it should be fine for now.

http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp
That is a good calculator to see wattage needs. just something to play around with to see if you satisfy the requirements. Always good to give some leeway as a just in case. But you can't go wrong with corsair PSUs.

The 120mm fans are case fans by the way. They are for intake and exhaust from the case. It does not correlate to the Heatsink fan

 

[padme]

Thanks arrg -

so when the case desc reads "You can also add an 80mm fan to the back of the motherboard tray to cool the CPU from both sides." Thats something entirely different than the heatsink fan i'm switching out....

Now I'm realizing I read that wrong - and cringing with my newbness.

 

[WR2]

Hello Padme;

Excellent value on the RC-690 case and WD Caviar Black 640 HDD

A couple ideas for you to think about.

Thermal Grease is already included in the Hyper TX3 accessory pack.

PSU: OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ550FTY 550W ($44.99 after $25.00 Rebate and 10% off w/ promo code cz10, ends 10/18
Plenty of power for 2x 9800GTs or a future upgrade to a HD 5870/5850 or the equivalent nVidia GPU

 

[padme]

Thanks WR2,

Does it matter that the fan on your recommended PSU is on the top considering it goes at the bottom of the case?

This review for the case made me think I should stay away from a PSU with a fan on top:

"The power supply mounted on the bottom may seem like a bad idea... Until you realize there's a fan hole right under it. If you get a two-fan power supply, it will drag cold air out from the bottom of the case, and straight out the back."

 

[arrghushakaboorga]

Actually it should not be a big deal, A lot of people get worried about PSU's on the bottom, but they are designed to have airflow out of the back of the case. So the PSU will not exhaust its heat into the case and actually will remain cooler itself since it doesn't have heat from every other component passing through it.

In this case, there is a vent on the bottom to keep the PSU even cooler, however you can feel safe either way you go. just keep in mind that the PSU recommended has a 6pin GPU connector and an 6+2pin GPU connector. Fine if you want to SLI with 9800GT, however newer cards are using 2 6pin connectors per card. so if you want to SLI with newer cards in the future you will not be able to. Though you may not be as grab happy with new parts as I am (I'm going broke haha).

 

[WR2]

As arrgh mentions there usually isn't a problem with that PSU fan / case configuration.
And you can always flip the PSU upside down and run it safely that way too. That will keep any dropped screws, etc., from dropping into the fan housing into the case.

For any possible future graphic card upgrade that PSU and PCI-e pin configuration should handle any HD 5870 or GTX 275 single card. Or CF/SLI of 2x 5770 or GTS 250 cards which only need 1 6pin connector.

 

[WR2]

You might even save enough on the PSU change out and leaving out the duplicate thermal compound to slip into a GTS 250 and still remain under budget.

 

[DummyCtrl]

wow, Padme, I just built the SAME EXACT desktop this month.(same: core, mobo, case, AND same exact RAM chips, and also my 1st build, we're like twins right now) I have yet to switch out the stock cooler bc I wanted to research more before I did, and then I found this thread hahah. Lucky me arrgh already has addressed the issue of fitting a good heatsink into this build, somewhat, it seems larger heatsinks will fit into our chassis width-wise. But, I'm a beginner like you and I dont trust my measurement skills for getting a heatsink that also won't conflict with the DIMM spots. I was wishing I could find out in advance rather than rely on my measuring tape. Also, I have found reviews pointing to

http://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NH-U12P-Cooler-Heat-Pipe-Bearing/dp/B002N2JVEE/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1253984010&sr=1-5

and

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RR-B10-212P-GP-Universal-Heat-Pipe/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1253818749&sr=1-1#moreAboutThisProduct

as the "best heatsinks available for 1156 socket mobos"

the coolermaster hyper 212 is supposed to be great but noisy...

I got my purchases from newegg like you, but newegg doesnt supply those heatsinks, but amazon does. I noticed the one you picked out here and also the thermaltake but I'm just not sure which ones will not conflict with the RAM chips and their fairly tall heatsinks. Of course there is the option of moving the ram chips into the spots farther to the right, but I'd rather futureproof my build now and provide for upgrades, and I bet you feel the same yea? did you find a good heatsink already?

 

[DummyCtrl]

update: I'll have a CM hyper 212 heatsink by friday (50$ total w/ 1day shipping from amazon) But to be honest, I've researched that others have tried this without reports of conflict with DIMMs and I don't forsee any problems!! will report back here if I have any, though.

 

[cory1234]

wow, Padme, I just built the SAME EXACT desktop this month.(same: core, mobo, case, AND same exact RAM chips, and also my 1st build, we're like twins right now) I have yet to switch out the stock cooler bc I wanted to research more before I did, and then I found this thread hahah. Lucky me arrgh already has addressed the issue of fitting a good heatsink into this build, somewhat, it seems larger heatsinks will fit into our chassis width-wise. But, I'm a beginner like you and I dont trust my measurement skills for getting a heatsink that also won't conflict with the DIMM spots. I was wishing I could find out in advance rather than rely on my measuring tape. Also, I have found reviews pointing to

http://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NH-U12P-Cooler-Heat-Pipe-Bearing/dp/B002N2JVEE/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1253984010&sr=1-5

and

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RR-B10-212P-GP-Universal-Heat-Pipe/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1253818749&sr=1-1#moreAboutThisProduct

as the "best heatsinks available for 1156 socket mobos"

the coolermaster hyper 212 is supposed to be great but noisy...

I got my purchases from newegg like you, but newegg doesnt supply those heatsinks, but amazon does. I noticed the one you picked out here and also the thermaltake but I'm just not sure which ones will not conflict with the RAM chips and their fairly tall heatsinks. Of course there is the option of moving the ram chips into the spots farther to the right, but I'd rather futureproof my build now and provide for upgrades, and I bet you feel the same yea? did you find a good heatsink already?

The hyper 212+ is not noisy at stock settings. I could barely hear it at stock. Overclocked @3.8ghz 750 it is fairly quiet...I imagined it would be louder because of the price but I was wrong.

If your not overclocking I would suggest dropping down the motherboard to the next model or look for a better deal on that one...and get the 4870 instead of the 9800gt in exchange of the price difference...the performance difference is definitely worth the $25.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150441&cm_re=4870-_-14-150-441-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128401&cm_re=p55-_-13-128-401-_-Product

 

[padme]

Nice Dummy!

I put the $20 coolermaster tx3 heatsink in the computer, and so far everything is working fine. Everything fit pretty well, even though I'm using all my DDR3 slots. Runs super quiet.

I won't be overclocking though or anything.