Old system died, need some help on the new build

[vectorm12]

Alright, blew a voltage regulator or two on my old C2Q system so it's time for me to go shopping.

CPU: i7 920 (aiming to hit atleast 3.8GHz)

Cooling: Noctua NH-U12P or Thermalright Cogage True Spirit

Mobo: Asus P6T6 WS Revolution(want the NF200s for future addon cards)

RAM: Corsair 6GB 1600MHz CL7 DOMINATOR GT

GPU: 2x ATI 5850(Haven't decided on make yet but I'm leaning towards XFX or Gigabyte)

PSU: Zalman ZM850-HP

HDD: 4x 74GB Raptors in RAID 0+1 (from the old system)

Chassi: Lian-li PC-X2000ish chassi(it's about four years old and I can't remember the model name, it's huge and I love it anyway)

Now this is going to be a gaming/workstation which means Crysis at 1680x1050 WoW at 2x1680x1050 (if I've understood how the new multi display feature works correctly) and some video/audio encoding compiling work.

Now I do have a few concerns, first of all is the PSU. Is a 850W PSU going to be enough to handle two 5850s and a overclocked i7 without any hitches?

Second, with the design of most CPU coolers being upright and the NB/SB being passively cooled is the airflow through the chassi going to be enough to keep things nice and cool?

Appreciate any ideas for improvements/alternatives in order to make this as affordable as possible without giving up large amounts of performance or 24/7 operation ability.

 

[dndhatcher]

That Zalman you listed (i looked at the specs on newegg and Zalmans site) has four PCIE connectors and is designed to handle two graphics cards. It has two 28amp rails and four 18amp rails. It is really designed for two GTX 295s which are much bigger power hogs than 5850s. With the new manufacturing, the 5850s consume less power than even a 4870 so power needs are less than prior generations.

 

[vectorm12]

Okay, I was under the impresseion that the higher transistor count of the 5800 series made them even more powerhungry than the previous generation under load. So I can save some cash on a cheaper PSU and put it into something else instead.

Any idea about average NB/SB temps on a i7 system running at around 4GHz? I've tried to find thermal specs but haven't found any that deals with the chipset itslef.

 

[obsidian86]

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/page-221745_11_0.html

 

[vectorm12]

Actually found a Cooler Master UCP 1100 roughly 10% cheaper than the Zalman one, which means I'm likely going to go for that instead.

Also the prices on 5850/5870 seems a little scewed here in sweden which means I am actually considering sticking two 5870s instead of the 5850s.

The PSU questions have been answered but what I'm still a little concerned about is keeping the NB/SB cool in this build. Still trying to find someone who can provide me with some temp figures (preferably in celcius) for a x58 under load.

 

[dndhatcher]

Now you have the option of a 5970 (5870x2) instead of a pair of 5870s.

Coolermaster is noted for good cases and CPU coolers, not power supplies. Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling are more noted for PSUs. Of course the coolermaster could be an OEM Seasonic so it would be a good idea to google for professional reviews. I doubt anything 80+ certified will damage your PC. A heavy concentration of amperage on the 12V rails is also something to look for. Older PSUs would have more amps on the 5.5V and 3.3V rails.

 

[vectorm12]

Actually noticed it when I was reding the 5970 review as it's a part of the test system that tom's US used. Should proove that it's a capable part in my world atleast.

The reason I'm willing to go for a oversized PSU is mostly related to the fact that I am planning on sticking a sixcore i7 in this rig as soon as it becomes availible here. I would have postponed my purchase if it hadn't been for the fact that my old rig died and I need a new one fairly fast.

 

[dndhatcher]

Look at the Antec TruePower Quattro 1000 or Corsair HX1000 instead of the coolermaster.

 

[obsidian86]

cooler master silent pro 1000 watt is good

 

[vectorm12]

Okay so I've more or less nailed the spec for the new system now.

i7 920

COGAGE TRUE Spirit

Asus P6T6 WS Revo

OCZ3G1600LV6GK 6GB tripplechannel kit

2x Asus EAH5870/G/2DIS/1GD5/A 5870s in crossfire

Corsair CMPSU-1000HXEU

Win7 Ultimate x64

Just feel like I want a final sanity check before I go ahead and push the order through...

 

[dndhatcher]

Better do it fast. 5870s dont stay in stock long.

 

[vectorm12]

Order has been pushed through and I've already recieved most of the components except for one 5870, mobo and PSU.

Had to make a last minute change on the mobo choice as I was reading up on the asus forums on the P6T6 WS Revolution.
Not to be too specific but it looks like the P6T6 WS Revolution is going the same way as the A8N32SLi Deluxe fiasco.

In other words I didn't dare putting that much cash into another ASUS mobo that seems to have lost all support/development back in June(not a single BIOS upgrade since then, seriously?!), which means I placed an order for a EVGA Classified E760 instead which seems to have some manpower to support it for now. I also changed the order to include Sapphire branded 5870s instead of the ASUS ones just to be on the safe side(not hyper x equipped though)

I hate not having ASUS components in my system but at this point I'm not willing to go through the hell of trubbleshooting like I did with the A8N32SLi deluxe just to find out that crappy chips have been put on the board in the first place.

I'll post an update once I've gotten everything set up and tuned in, with temps, settings and benchmarks.