1200-2k Autocad and gaming computer

CPU/Mobo: i7-930 and Asus P6X58D Premium $570
RAM: 2x G.Skill Pi 3x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $380
GPU: HD 5870 $415. Or the GTX 470 if your AutoCAD software works better with nVidia cards.
HDD: 2x Samsung Spinpoint F3 1 TB $180
PSU: Corsair 750W 80+ $100 after rebate
Case: Coolermaster 690 $70 after rebate
Optical: Cheap SATA DVD burner $22
HSF: Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus $35

Total: $1,772.

Leaves enough room for a wireless card, OS (if needed) and a sound card. I would try onboard sound first though, as it's very good now.

I'd highly recommend getting the HAF 922 at $10 more.

Wow im very impressed with how everything keeps a blue ish theme. Can i ask why you would recommend that case. Now means i said i was going to crossfire/sli my gpu's should i just save for a second hd 5870? And yes autocad would work better with the GTX 470 or whatever works best with 3-D applications, i just read somewhere that nvidia cards do better

Oh and one more thing, with the video cards being the size they are and witht he pci ports i have would there be room for a sound card and wireless card there? and would there be anycooling issues with the cards so close?

The HAF 922 is the best case on the market. It's big enough to be a full tower (in fact it's bigger than many full towers), yet is priced like a mid-tower. It also has great cable management and many very nice features.

I would wait to Crossfire/SLI. It's a great way to improve the performance of an older build, but it's a waste of money to start a build with two cards.

You will not have to deal with the PCI ports being covered. The card will likely block one slot, but there are several.

The only cooling issues would be with dual GTX 4xx. They run extremely hot, so you'd need a large case with lots of fans (hence the HAF 922).

One thing MadAdmiral forgot to mention (which he usually doesn't miss) is that onboard sound is very good these days. Most people can't tell the difference between onboard and a dedicated sound card. The recommendation around here is to try onboard sound at first, and then buy a discrete sound card later if you aren't satisfied with the onboard.

actually he did mention it   in his first post

Excellent build. And yes, nVidia has better drivers than ATI for CAD type work.

So i found the asus p6t6 revolution for 30 bucks more it the I7 930

Is this mobo better?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite...

So I'm putting the order in the basket at newegg and the whole page of nvidia 400 series cards are all out of stock, can someone recommend somewhere with good service to get my video card out of?

nvidia 400 series cards don't get released to public until the 26th

For the i-7 CPU, I suggest MicroCenter - compare prices. And good performance and phenomenal customer service with EVGA.

^Agreed. Microcenter has the i7 930 for $200. HOWEVER, it is In Store ONLY.

Yep i live in washington, no microcenter here

^ Aww.... any other local stores (ie Frys,etc) that have it cheaper?

frys 288.00 same price as new egg

I don't particularly think that board is worth it. You're paying extra for a bunch of PCIe 2.0 slots, and multiple card solutions don't scale well past two cards. Also, the board doesn't have USB 3/SATA III.

I build a lot of CAD boxes. To allow for OC'ing (4.0 Ghz +) and twin GFX cards, going full tower....drop to mid tower if dropping one of those.

Antec 1200 w/ CP-850 PSU $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite...

Alternate Full Tower HAF 932 w/ Corsair HX850 $330
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Alternate Mid Tower Antec 900 w/ EA-650 $180
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Alternate Mid Tower HAF 922 w/ TX650 $160 (180 - $20 MIR)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

ASUS P6X58D-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 w/ Intel i7-930 $515
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?Ite...

RAM - (avoid tall heat spreaders which may interfere w/ heat sink)
CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600CAS 7 Model CMX6GX3M3C1600C7 $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
NOTE: AutoCAD 2010 and 2011 runs just dandy on 6 GB of RAM. Grab 12 if you start doing rendering w/ Maya etc.

Hard Drives - Check out the performance charts and pick whatever 500 GB per platter drive performs best under your usage patterns. The 2 TB WD Black and XT from Seagate are good choice but at smaller capacities, you are limited to the Seagate 7200.12 or the Spinpoint F3. The 7200.12 excels in gaming, multimedia and pictures whereas the F3 wins at music and movie maker. See the comparisons here (copy past link in manually, link won't work in forum):

(http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/2009-3.5-desktop-har...[2371]=on&prod[2770]=on)

Look at the tests that reflect your usage and choose accordingly.
2 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST31000528AS $180
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Heat Sink - For top notch performance and ease of installation
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_conten...
Prolimatech Megahalems ($100) ($65 for the HS, $7 for TIM, $11 each for two PWM fans and $7 for a Y cable splitter).

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/8807/cpu-pro-01/Proli...
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7038/thr-41/Innovatio...
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/10026/fan-639/Scythe_...
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/8418/cab-150/FrozenCP...

If that's a budget breaker, look at the Xigmnatec S1283 or one of the others here:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_Heatsinks
http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm#INTELHEATSI...
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_conten...

pick a TIM from the top few here:
http://www.hwreviewlabs.com/index.php?option=com_conten...
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/therma...
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_conten...

GFX Card - ASUS ENGTX470/2DI/1280MD5 GeForce GTX 470 (Fermi) $350
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Optical - Wanna watch movies ?
Plextor Blue Ray Combo Model PX-B320SA LightScribe Support and 50 LS disks $125
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Alternate Optical
Any $25 burner

Totals $1600

I don't particularly see why you think the size of the RAM is such a problem. The Hyper 212 allows you to raise the fans slightly, so if the RAM is in the way, you can adjust it. Also, you can simply mount the fan on the opposite side of the HSF in a pull configuration to avoid the RAM altogether.

i thought the revolution was true 3way sli 16x16x16x, anyways i was just wondering because it was close to the price, ill go with the first one stated

Question: Im interested in the coolmaster V8 cpu cooler. The reason is im into cars and it looks bad ass, but of course looks arnt everything, it also looks like it would do a kick ass job, would it fit?

OR Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme

MadAdmiral, I would like to use a Megahalem in a push-pull setup in my HAF 932 case along with Corsair dominator RAM (CMD12GX3M6A1600C8) that I have at present. Are there any tricks of the trade that will permit me to do this?
Thank you for your suggestions.

So i belong to a couple other forums, how are people around here about thread jacking? ^^^^^^

It's frowned upon, but it's not like moderators nuke the thread-jacker from orbit.

Looking at the specs of the revolution it looks like it's not even 16x/16x. It seemed to be 8x/8x at the most. However, even if it was 16x/16x, it's still not that great. 16x/16x only has a 4% performance gain over 8x/8x. That gain is only noticeable when using HD 5970s.

When I said multiple card solutions don't scale well past two cards, it's not because of the boards. Even using 16x/16x/16x you don't get much performance gain from the third card or not enough to make the investment worth it.

As for the V8, it looks cool, but that's about all it's got going for it. The Hyper 212 Plus is a better cooler and cheaper.

@ubrales: Start a thread in the overclockers area. Though I'm sure there is no trick to it as long as the RAM isn't so tall that it will block the HSF.

Thanks MadAdmiral. Sorry about posting in the wrong area.

Ok so i bought part of the order yesterday witch included"

CoolMaster HAF 922 (bought a 200mm blue fan to replace the red)

Corsair 750w power supply

Intel I7 930

Asus P6X58D

Anyways new question, Will the new GTX 480 fit in the case

Definitely. The HAF is huge.

Ok for my piece at mind i was looking into finding a good hd cooling thing with a temp gauge on it 5.25 or 3.5. can someone recommend one in black? maybe even with a blue accent?

^Imo, no need for doing that. The front 80/120mm fans provide plenty of airflow for the HDDs.

I just want a temp gauge

^ Bling eh?  

Sure if thats what you want to call it