Build Review and Advice

[Gnom3]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: 1 Week - 1 Month

BUDGET: This is close to my maximum budget ($2100ish.) The monitor does make up 1/4 of the cost, so I might consider less expensive 1920x1200 options that meet my needs (See my other post here.)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Software Development with the ability to game on the highest settings. System to last several years with minimal upgrades. (i.e. Ability to add a 2nd Geforce GTX 470 at some point)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg, amazon

PARTS PREFERENCES: Intel, nVidia

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Eventually

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Worried about heat, noise and the future like everyone else. Also want to make sure the graphics card will fit easily in the case with enough clearance and airflow (especially after adding a 2nd.) Where could I possibly skimp to save some $$$ without losing out on performance.

Thanks in Advance!

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MOBO ($190): ASUS P7P55D-E Pro - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131621

CPU ($279): Intel Core i7-860 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115214

HSF ($27): COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

GPU ($378): EVGA GeForce GTX 470 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130549

OR

GPU ($399.99): GIGABYTE Radeon HD 5870 1GB - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125316

HDD ($225): Intel X25-M 80GB SATA II (System drive with an existing 500GB drive) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167023

RAM ($280): G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (4 x 2GB) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231279

CASE ($100): COOLER MASTER HAF 922 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197

DVD ($22): LITE-ON 24X DVD Writer - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106335

PSU ($140): CORSAIR 850W - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139009

OTHER ($10): Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007

MONITOR ($548): Dell UltraSharp U2410 24" LCD - http://www.amazon.com/Dell-UltraSharp-U2410-widescreen-DisplayPort/dp/B00302DNZ4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1273604533&sr=8-1

OR

MONITOR ($400): 2x Asus VH242H - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

 

[banthracis]

Alternative Monitor
$162
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=A3615405&dgc=BF&cid=27740&lid=1422082&acd=10780641-1727683-

Or if you prefer newegg,
$199 w/ $10 MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

i7-860 uses dual channel not tri channel RAM

Get this G Skill ECO DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24 kit $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231321
Ripjaw performance at a lower voltage.

You can just get a HAF 922. No need for a 932. $100

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197&cm_re=haf_922-_-11-119-197-_-Product

Can grab this optical drive for cheaper. Doesn't actually make a diff. $22
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106333

Can also consider grabbing 2 Intel X25-V 40gb drives and throw em into RAID 0.
$115 each, will be back in stock next week.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167025&Tpk=x25-v

This is more performance for your money, and Intel now supports TRIM in RAID 0.

Benchs below.
http://anandtech.com/show/3618/intel-x25v-in-raid0-faster-than-x25m-g2-for-250/3

Rest looks fine.

edit: Oh would like to point out that a 5870 is only $20 more than that 470.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125316&cm_re=5870-_-14-125-316-_-Product

Anand's summary of the 470 vs 5850 vs 5870. This was in reference to a 470 at retail price of $359

Moving on, we have the GTX 470 to discuss. It’s not NVIDIA’s headliner so it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle. With a price right between the 5850 and 5870, it delivers performance right where you’d expect it to be. At 5-10% slower than the 5870 on average, it’s actually a straightforward value proposition: you get 90-95% of the performance for around 87% of the price. It’s not a huge bargain, but it’s competitively priced against the 5870. Against the 5850 this is less true where it’s a mere 2-8% faster, but this isn’t unusual for cards above $300 – the best values are rarely found there. The 5850 is the bargain hunter’s card, otherwise if you can spend more pick a price and you’ll find your card.

http://anandtech.com/show/2977/nvidia-s-geforce-gtx-480-and-gtx-470-6-months-late-was-it-worth-the-wait-/20

 

[Gnom3]

Thanks for the reply banthracis.

Thanks for catching my Memory mess up. I really wanted to go with 6-8GB of memory for some reason. If I really wanted to go with more memory, what would my best options be?

I had already considered the monitor you suggested, but I was really hoping to match the 1920x1200 resolution of my existing 24" monitor. Even my 20" is 1600x1200. I do like that Asus though. I could almost buy 2 for the same cost of my dell and run with 3x 24" monitors even though my existing monitor is 1920x1200. hrm. Something to think about.

I've also heavily considered the 5850 and I must admit that Eyefinity interests me (even though I'll probably never really use it.) I'll have to re-evaluate before I click the BUY button!

I'll update the case and dvd drive with your suggestions. I'll wait a reply about memory and then update my original post.

 

[banthracis]

Unless you're into graphic design/video editing, the extra RAM won't do anything. If you want more, you'll need to upgrade to 8gb, so you can just grab another kit of the eco.

 

[banthracis]

Oh, regarding monitor. There really is no need for x1200 monitors. It's a huge price premium for not much difference, especially when you take into account 1080p (1920x1080) is the industry standard for movies and TV.

x1200 is really just a dying resolution.

 

[Gnom3]

I updated the original post with a couple of secondary options and some of banthracis suggestions. Anyone else willing to weigh in on the subject? I would really appreciate it.

 

[asteldian]

Simply that I would not get the 470 instead of a 5870.
The whole power and heat issue aside, the 470 is really a contender (and winner) against the 5850 but priced right by the 5870. For $20 more you get the 5870 a clearly better card in performance, then factor in the less heat, less noise, less power and t is a no brainer.

I would actually buy a 5850 over the 470 too, far cheaper and the 5850 can easily be OC'd to equal the 470, technically you can argue you could OC the 470, but at the temps it already dishes out I know I wouldn't want to!

So, I would say your choice is between 5850 and 5870

 

[paigeinfull]

if you're looking for 1920 x 1200 monitors check these out:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236047

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254043

you could get two of those for almost the same price as the dell, granted you would have to get a displayport adapter for eyefinity but they now have passive adapters that can power up to 1920 x 1200. Personally, I would still invest in an active adapter though, I just don't trust the passive ones.

here's a link for the eyefinity validated adapters:

http://support.amd.com/us/eyefinity/Pages/eyefinity-dongles.aspx

Oh and goes without saying but I would say get the 5870

 

[Gnom3]

Best answer selected by Gnom3.