New system - Looking for any compatibility issues or other problems

Codewrangler

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I'm going to be ordering the following system very soon, but I'm a little behind the times as far as some of the new hardware goes. I'm looking for someone to give the setup a once-over and identify any possible problems I may encounter.

System Setup

CPU: i7 920 (BX80601920)

Mobo: EVGA X58 SLI Classified (141-BL-E760-A1)

RAM: OCZ PC12800 Obsidian Triple Channel (3x2048) (OCZ3OB1600LV6GK)

GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 285 Classified (01G-P3-1190-TR)

PSU: BFG EX-1200 1200W (BFGR1200WEXPSU)

I will also be liquid-cooling the CPU for now, and possibly the GPU at a later date. The pump and extra fans will add to the PSU load.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Solution

+1 ^^ to everything you said! With that in mind, I'll try and suggest a few part chagnes for the OP...
* Well the PSU is WAY overpowered and seems a bit spendy at $230!! I'm not familiar with water cooling setups, but a quality 650w PSU generally has no issues with single GPU condifigurations. Even if you want a bit more power a 750w PSU would be just fine. If you stick with air cooling, the BFG 550 gs is plenty for the GTX 285. You have some wiggle room, but it'll work just fine.
* Spending nearly $400 on a mobo seems quite extreme to me. You can do 95% of what you need with a $170-250 mobo, IMHO.
* The RAM set worries me a bit. OCZ as of recent has been having quality issues, from what I've been reading. The RAM set also runs at 1.65v (stock is 1.5v). I prefer to get RAM sets that run at stock voltages for a couple of reasons. The sticks run cooler (less voltage) and when you do decide (if you decide) to OC, your OC's generally will go higher, due to having more voltage available.
* The GTX 285 is a good GPU. I'd myself would seriously consider the 5850 or 5870 over it. They have Dx11 (not a big deal right now) and are generally better performers.

With the savings on the Mobo/PSU, you could easily fit the 5870 (~$400) into the budget and have a better gaming system! I'm not sure if that is an option that you considered, but it's something to think about.
 
You dont need a 1200W PSU, a good 750W unit will run a dual card setup easily, you only need 900-1kW if you intend to run a triple card setup, a 1200W PSU would handle QuadFire or QuadSLI.

Your build will be compatible and should work quite well, but you could cut your build price in half and take no performance penalty. The classified board isnt needed unless you plan on some pretty extreme OCing. For the $420 price tag on the GTX285 classified you can get a 5870 that will easily out perform it. For about 2/3 the price of that PSU you can get a super high quality 750W or 850W unit with high efficiency and excellent stability.
 

Codewrangler

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I'm also looking for some scalability. I would like room to go to an SLI setup later on. Would I be able to get away with an SLI setup on a lower wattage PSU?



I agree. I chose this board from a quality standpoint. I've had many a bad experience in the past with low-priced boards failing. What would you recommend for a board that can stand up to OC?



Hadn't realized that. Thanks. I'll look into some different RAM.



I'll have to look into that. I've always been pretty loyal to nVidia, but I agree that DX11 will be going mainstream very soon.
 

+1 ^^ to everything you said! With that in mind, I'll try and suggest a few part chagnes for the OP.

Mobo - $170 shipped!! For the $ and the good reviews, this is a hard one to pass up on the s1366 based builds!
ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157163

or

Mobo - $200 shipped!! It has SATA 3 and USB 3.0!!
GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128423

RAM - $180 - $20 MIRc = $160! Runs at stock voltage and should do just fine! Man, RAM has got expensive!
CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1333C9 - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145220

PSU - $116 - $10 MIRc = $106!! One of the better PSU's in this price range! Has 60A on the 12v rail and comes with 4 x 6+2pin PCI-e power connectors for those power hungry GPU's!!
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W 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=N82E16817139006&Tpk=corsair%20750

So hopefully this answers a few questions.
 
Solution

Codewrangler

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Here goes:

CPU: i7 920 (BX80601920)

Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX

RAM: CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 Triple Channel (TR3X6G1333C9)

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91

GPU: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100281VX-2SR Radeon HD 5870

I haven't finished putting together the hard drives, dvd drives, etc. but right now the price is at $1248.95 for all of the above. This is a HUGE savings over my previous build.

What do you think?