Tweaking build for sub-$1600 USD

[razercultmember1]

UPDATED

CPU
Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Model BX80601930
+
RAM
OCZ 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model OCZ3X1600R2LV6GK
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.419174

CPU HEATSINK
COOLER MASTER Intel Core i7 compatible Hyper N 520 RR-920-N520-GP 92mm Sleeve CPU Cooler
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103057

MOTHERBOARD
GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
+
PSU
Antec CP-1000 1000W Continuous ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.410528

HDD
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136074

CASE
Rosewill DESTROYER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case ,comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 120mm Fan, 1x Rear 120mm Fan, option Fans-2x Side 120mm Fan,1x Top 120mm Fan,1x Bottom Fan
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147144

VIDEO CARD:
GIGABYTE GV-N480D5-15I-B GeForce GTX 480 (Fermi) 1536MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
--> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125319

Resolution: ~1680x1050 to 1920x1080

I'll add information as requested

(Thanks so much! I never realized building one's own computer required so much research )

 

[143miah]

You'll need a triple channel set for the CPU and mobo.

If you're looking only into gaming, you'd be better of with just an AMD PII or i5-750 build. The i7s provide minimal gain in games while costing about 200 dollars more.

 

[razercultmember1]

but would i7's be better future proofing? because i have the usb 3.0 and sata 6.0 mobo already so when upgrading comes around i'll be set

Also I was thinking of overclocking the i7 920 to about 3.0 something

 

[AMW1011]

REVISED

CPU:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200471932858&rvr_id=&crlp=1_263602_263622&UA=?*S?&GUID=e27840f21280a02653141b94ff83911f&itemid=200471932858&ff4=263602_263622

Phenom II X6 1055T $170. As fast as an i7 for most tasks, will need to be overclocked to game well but when you do it will game just as well as an i5 or i7.

Mobo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131637&cm_re=750a-_-13-131-637-_-Product

Asus 750a $100. A good motherboard.

Heatsink:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835124022


Kignwin 1264 $25. It is a rebranded Xigmatek HDT-s1284 which is one of the top performing heatsinks.

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

HAF 922 $90. It will cool anything.

Memory:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211364

Good RAM $100.

HDD:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152181

Samsung Spinpoint F3 $55. Its fast and well priced.

GPU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121372&cm_re=gtx_470-_-14-121-372-_-Product

2x GTX 470s. $700

PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121037

Kingwin Mach 1 1KW. $165

Total: $1405

That is a monster!

 

[AMW1011]

Intel Setup :

Core I7 930 : 289.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115225

Hyper 212+ : 29.99 - For some reason it's 59.99 on newegg.. WTF NEWEGG
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RR-B10-212P-G1-Universal-Heat-Pipe/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1276803980&sr=8-1

EVGA X58 : 179.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188049

OCZ 850W : 99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341003

G.Skill 6GB DDR3 1600 : 164.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231304

640GB Western Digital Black : 74.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

EVGA GTX 480 : 502.99 - I like EVGA because of the Lifetime warranty
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130552

Total : 1342.93

Amd Option :

Phenom II X6 1090T : 295.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103849

Biostar 890FX : 139.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138193

Hyper 212+ : 29.99 - For some reason it's 59.99 on newegg.. WTF NEWEGG
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-RR-B10-212P-G1-Universal-Heat-Pipe/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1276803980&sr=8-1

G.Skill 4GB DDR3 1600 : 109.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

OCZ 850W : 99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341003

640GB Western Digital Black : 74.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

EVGA GTX 480 : 502.99 - I like EVGA because of the Lifetime warranty
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130552

Total : 1253.94

Both systems are very comparable and would perform about the same. The X6 and 930 should both overclock past 4Ghz quite easily. The X6 likes 4.2Ghz on air and the 930 has gone from 4.2 to 4.4Ghz on air. It's all about how much Vcore you wanna run.

If you have any questions please post them or PM me as i have owned both a 930 and now an X6

Why the insistence on such expensive CPUs? An i5 750 will hang with both of those easily.

No case? Umm...

 

[coldsleep]

For that AMD build, you could go with a Phenom II X4 955 for less than the 1055T, and it should be slightly faster for gaming.

 

[AMW1011]

Wow $170 for the 1055T is a great deal.

That said it is the i7 930 and the $180 X58 motherboard that I am not a fan of. If he can squeeze out 2 GTX 470s, he is going to have a real monster.

That said, I'm tempted to revise mine with that 1055T and an SLI motherboard.

Actually I am.

MY ABOVE RECOMMENDATION HAS BEEN REVISED!

 

[razercultmember1]

Is a core i7 1366 necessary for gaming though? someone up there said i5 750 is enough and its 80 bucks cheaper which inevitably makes the mobo cheaper aswell

also im a bit wary on the SLI stuff with Fermi's keep in mind i want a mid tower and sli fermi's would probably melt it

 

[razercultmember1]

How about going 5870 with 8600gts or 9800gtx + for physx? i have the latter two laying around so no cost

 

[razercultmember1]

is sandy bridge also replacing 1366? i wouldnt think so since the pin count is higher?

also why pay 10 dollars extra for a .2mhz increase with the core i7 930?

 

[AMW1011]

The 750 is a good processor BUT Socket 1156 is a dead platform meaning it's being replaced by 1155 and sandy bridge in about 6 months. Thats why i don't recommend it.

And unless he wants to upgrade his CPU in less than two years, it won't matter. CPUs aren't nearly as important as they once were, hardware is far ahead of software at this point. There is no reason for him to upgrade his CPU to an LGA 1155 processor.

If you want to save money just keep the GTX+ and add another for SLI.

Take it from me 2 9800 GTX+'s aren't that compelling...

 

[coldsleep]

Socket 1155 is replacing 1156, and socket 1365 is replacing 1366. Both of Intel's current sockets are scheduled to be replaced within the next year.

 

[razercultmember1]

I'm going to keep this build for many many MANY years at least until the six core drops way low so i wana future proof it as best i can i.e. DX 11

updated at top

 

[razercultmember1]

true its 10 dollars more but is the 10 dollars worth it?

updated ^

 

[AMW1011]

If you are going to keep it that long then get the 1055T, the six cores will become more beneficial with time.

If I put my 8800 GTS 512mbs to 9800 GTX+ speeds I get a GPU score of 14k on vantage Psycho. A single GTX 480 gets 20k stock...

 

[razercultmember1]

(the + is a combo deal fyi)

 

[razercultmember1]

QQ sold out

 

[razercultmember1]

the 1055t is sold out at new egg

which is not good the cpu combo or the psu combo?

 

[AMW1011]

What is sold out?

That combo deal isn't very good also.

 

[razercultmember1]

random noob question:

how does ram affect a system?

from what i know:

1. more ram = more multi tasking, which i really only need 4-6 gigs
2. faster ram = faster loading of programs?

 

[AMW1011]

The 1055T can be found for $170 on ebay in the above link (Here it is again: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200471932858&rvr_id=&crlp=1_263602_263622&UA=?*S?&GUID=e27840f21280a02653141b94ff83911f&itemid=200471932858&ff4=263602_263622 )

Really the 1055T is the best processor for your uses.

As for the PSU and motherboard combo, the PSU is a good one but that mobo is overpriced and you should be looking at an AM3 mobo anyway.

As for RAM 4GB is plenty, the speed doesn't really matter and it won't make much of a difference. For instance there is no performance difference between a good kit of DDR2 and a good kit of DDR3, we just don't need that much RAM speed right now.

 

[razercultmember1]

I don't think I should be spending on USB 3.0 and SATA 6.0 Gbps right now but i'm kinda leaning towards psycho's intel setup :|

rephrase: should i be spending on usb 3.0 and sata 6? because those features bump the mobo price kinda alot however i found really good deal on it

 

[AMW1011]

I don't think I should be spending on USB 3.0 and SATA 6.0 Gbps right now but i'm kinda leaning towards psycho's intel setup :|

rephrase: should i be spending on usb 3.0 and sata 6? because those features bump the mobo price kinda alot however i found really good deal on it

No offense to Psycho, you won't notice ANY difference in performance going with that i7 920/930 and an X58 motherboard over a much cheaper LGA 1156 i5 750 or X3440 centered build.

 

[razercultmember1]

>_< srsly?

 

[razercultmember1]

the one at the very top?

Ok I think im set for those components up top and now to commence the great...

ATI vs Nvidia War!

right now im at 892.82