[New Build] - High End Developer Machine - Purchasing Tonight

[ozzman]

Max Budget $2,000.
Current Total: $1,644.89
Timeframe: Tonight

Summary: About to pull the trigger on this developer build. I dont need to spend the full 2k, but if there is something that would make a big difference than I would consider spending extra. Looking to get feedback on part choice and quality/price. This build is for software and graphics development on an x64 windows 7 machine. I wanted a quad core with lots of ram, a fast main HDD for my apps and a second for storage + Multi Monitor setup. Any recommendations or feedback are very much appreciated.

I already purchased 2x 23" HDMI/DVI Monitors

What do you think?

CPU:
Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor BX80601950
$299.99

Cooling:
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-G1 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long life sleeve CPU Cooler
$29.99

Power:
CORSAIR TX Series CMPSU-950TX 950W ATX12V v2.3/EPS12V v2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
$139.99

GFX:
XFX HD-583X-ZAFV Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity
$194.99

Mobo:
EVGA 131-GT-E767-TR LGA 1366 Intel X58 SLI3 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
$199.99

HDD1:
OCZ Vertex 2 OCZSSD2-2VTX100G 2.5" 100GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
$239.99

HDD 2:
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
$89.99

Memory:
2x CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8 G
$319.98

Case:
COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
$129.98

 

[Pyroflea]

That will be quite the rig. Some ways to save money:

- Unless you plan on overclocking, you don't need an aftermarket heatsink. It won't hurt, but it's not required.
- 950W is WAY more than you need for a rig like this. 500W would probably suffice. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005 That'd be a great choice, quite a bit cheaper as well.

Besides that it looks pretty good to me. Nicely done

 

[ozzman]

Thanks Pyroflea. One thing I didnt mention up front is that I might be adding another GPU in the near future and was thinking I might need the extra power.

 

[Pyroflea]

650W should still be enough if you added another GPU on top of that

 

[sp12]

Then get a silver-efficiency 750 watt unit.

You don't really need anything more than a very basic graphics card for non-gaming work, if you have high-end 3D rendering then a pro graphics card may be worth looking into.

Samsung f3 is faster than that Caviar, and cheaper. Ram would not be my preference, it's high-voltage.

If this is fully professional, then you may want a Xeon/ECC ram.

 

[ozzman]

sp12;

is there a downside to the highvolt ram? is there better ram for this board?

havent looked much into the xeon/ecc combo, whats the advantage and major benefit there? Worth it? What are some combos youd recommend? Would need a different mobo?

 

[sp12]

Yes, it puts more stress on your IMC, there have been reports of fried procs at 1.7 volts for DDR3. It also uses slightly more power/reduces overclocking headroom.

Here's some kits with 4GB DIMMS, allowing you to move to 24 if needed. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&N=100007611&IsNodeId=1&PropertyCodeValue=521%3A29233%2C523%3A21736%2C523%3A38973%2C523%3A47381%2C523%3A23986%2C523%3A46982%2C524%3A29248%2C524%3A35212%2C524%3A30325%2C524%3A29371%2C525%3A29367%2C525%3A29245%2C525%3A26967%2C525%3A28354%2C2599%3A56443%2C2599%3A49137%2C2599%3A50618%2C2599%3A29232%2C2599%3A42331&bop=And&Order=PRICED&PageSize=20

If you only need 12GB, I would get 3 of the G.skill 2*2 Eco kits. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231321&cm_re=g.skill_eco-_-20-231-321-_-Product


Xeons have a nicer IMC, have a lower TDP, and support ECC, but are more expensive, and can have compatibility issues with desktop boards. Whether it's worth it or not is up to you. Here's a study google did recently: http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/11/02/new-study-proves-that-ecc-memory-may-well-be-worth-the-extra-cost/.

It really depends, it could be a nasty error that randomly kills your computer during an overnight render, it could be an error in a random address file that never affects anything. It might not have a single error once during it's entire lifetime. If this is for high-end, professional work, then it's probably worth it. If it's low-scale, probably not.

And if this is really high-scale, I urge you to go get a Dell business machine with tech support. If this machine breaks and it's your job on the line, what's your contingency plan?

 

[ozzman]

sp:

This will be my main machine and Ill also be backing up to another PC. I'll probably stick with standard for now but that article was interesting and it could be a move for the future.

I like the 4gb dimms idea, I wasnt even thinking about it. Would this still be compatible with the mobo tho? The mobo says DDR3 1600 standard.. does this mean I need 1600?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231356

Any ideas or recs on 4gb kits and mobo combo compatible with above that can actually utilize 24gb successfully? No idea there.

And does it mean anything when the corsair says 'The ultimate Intel X58 Core i7 performance memory' or is that marketing jargon.

Thanks

 

[sp12]

Yep, 1600 just means it can support that speed. AFAIK, all i7-based boards with 6 DIMMS can use up to 24GB, but some have compatibility issues. I'm not all that well-versed in what specific kits are out there for 4GB, seeing as there are only like two different physical ram chips that go into 4GB, so I imagine differences will not be as significant as with 2GB DIMMS.

Marketing jargon.