Critique ~2k gaming system

[kadintc]

Monitor: ASUS VW266H 25.5-Inch Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black

Mobo: ASUS P6X58D Premium LGA 1366 Intel X58

CPU: Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core

RAM: 12GB G.Skill DDR3 PC3-12800 1600MHz Ripjaw Series (9-9-9-24) Triple Channel kit 3x4GB

Video: RADEON HD 5870 1GB DDR5 HDMI Graphics Card HD587XZNFC

Power: Corsair CMPSU-750HX 750-Watt HX Professional Series 80

Storage 1: OCZ Technology 60 GB Vertex 2 Series SATA II 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive (SSD)
Storage 2: Western Digital Caviar Black 1 TB Bulk/OEM Hard Drive 3.5 Inch

Case: Lancool PC-K7B - Mid tower - ATX/MicroATX

I'm a complete novice when it comes to hardware so I was hoping that you guys could vet this configuration before I throw down my hard earned cash. I am well aware that sandy-bridge is right around the corner but my current system is quite literally toast and I am not going to be able to wait that long to make a purchase unfortunately.

In any case your input is greatly appreciated and I thank you for your time!

(PS I have keyboard / mouse / speakers etc. already which is why they are not included)

 

[Maziar]

Instead of P6X58D Premium,go with P6X58D-E.Its cheaper and have pretty much the same features.
12GB RAM is completely overkill,6GB is more than enough for games/apps.
Other specs look great

 

[GenericUser]

I agree completely, definitely do not get the 12 GB of RAM unless you have a very specific need in mind for that amount of RAM. You will save a good amount of money going with 6 GB which is a more than adequate amount.

 

[kadintc]

Good points. I think I'll make both changes, thanks.

 

[aftcomet]

Go with the 6870 instead of the 5870. It's better and will get even better when new drivers come out.

 

[HeyImGodly]

Don't get the western digital hard drive.
get the Samsung Spinpoint F3 1tb
its cheaper, faster, and better.

 

[HeyImGodly]

hmm, id avoid the gtx 470 unless your sure you can keep it cool.

 

[vindictive]

get the Gigabyte GTX 470 super overclock.. $300 + free mafia 2.
It's faster than any other factory OC + was cooler than all other 470's + was quieter.

 

[HeyImGodly]

get the Gigabyte GTX 470 super overclock.. $300 + free mafia 2.
It's faster than any other factory OC + was cooler than all other 470's + was quieter.

+1 ^

 

[bavman]

Ehh, if I was gonna dish out 2 grand id at least wait a month to month and a half till sandy bridge comes out. Id be a little ticked to spend that much money and have it outdated so fast. But if your need it right now id at least go for dual gpus just for the extra kick.


haf 922 -----$90
spinpoint f3 1tb - $70
23'' 1080p emachines display - $120
2 x 480 gtx - $800
corsair 950w - $150
6gb g.skill - $140
sabertooth x58 - $180
i7-950 - $280
hyper 212+ - $30
ocz 60gb - $95

Total: $1995 shipped - $130 mir's = $1865 Toss in $85 for win7 if you need it.

 

[vindictive]

^emachines display? how are those?

gigabyte SOC gtx 470 is right behind the 480 (stock) if you wanted 2 buy two of those for $600 and get a 120GB SSD. you could also save more buy only needing a 750W psu.

 

[bavman]

surprisingly 5 eggs on newegg from 57 people. I admit not the best manufacturer but at $120 it seems like an good deal.

You can also overclock the 480's But its all about what you need and how your willing to spend your money. A bigger ssd does sound pretty tempting.

 

[exhail]

uhm.... I think a 750w would be underpowered for 2 gtx 470s the gf100 cads are extremely power hungry, and i think what malmental said that intel pairs better with nVidia is bull.... and no i am no ATI fanboy.... anyway for this kind of build i would look at two hd 6870s, ATIs crossfire scaling has improved dramatically 2x hd 6850s (remember the 6850 is meant to replace the 5750) is better than 2x hd 5870s (and no this is not a typo) now imagine what 2x 6870s can do, the 6870s are not power hungry nor do they run hot like the gf100 cards, but maybe could you wait a little bit into december as the ATI 69xx cards are coming out and you could bag yourself an hd 6970 or even two! and the rest of the gtx 5xx series is coming out so you could look at 2x gtx 570s (as they are not gf100 cards they will not run as hot and will draw less power) just my 2c

 

[vindictive]

negative.
http://www.guru3d.com/article/gefo [...] -review/23

"Our test system is a power hungry Core i7 965 / X58 based and overclocked to 3.75 GHz. Next to that we have energy saving functions disabled for this motherboard and processor (to ensure consistent benchmark results).

I'd say on average we are using roughly 50 to 100 Watts more than a standard PC due to higher CPU clock settings, water-cooling, additional cold cathode lights etc."

"Remember that these are peak / maximum wattages that we are showing. 2-way SLI was consuming a lot of power as well, roughly 550~575 Watts."

"Bear in mind that you are not looking at the power consumption of the graphics card, but the consumption of the entire PC. "

 

[Timop]

^eMachines are just rebadged Acers with a different case, so its actually decent monitors.

Duals 480s are pretty overkill though, the 950W isnt going to cut it either if he pushes for an extreme OC.

Id suggest a 760 build with 2 460s/6850s/6870s, a nice 650/750W PSU and pocket the cash.

 

[vindictive]

EXTREME oc needs a 1000W but if no overclock is done you can get by with an 800W

 

[batuchka]

Frankly for a healthy budget like yours i would await just a wee bit for Cayman Pro/XT seeing how sweet CF scaling was with Barts Pro/XT hehe

 

[exhail]

Frankly for a healthy budget like yours i would await just a wee bit for Cayman Pro/XT seeing how sweet CF scaling was with Barts Pro/XT hehe

agreed...

 

[exhail]

EXTREME oc needs a 1000W but if no overclock is done you can get by with an 800W

yes it can run on an 800 watt but its not a very good thing to do as it will be under load most of the time, think about it this way you could get that PSU but what if it dies and take your whole system with it, rather be safe and get a decent PSU for that $20-30 more

 

[vindictive]

Just because it has less Watts doesn't mean its not a decent PSU.
you could plug it into a 1200Wpsu. Plug it in, and everything starts smoking as well.

 

[exhail]

its about the brand and the wattage as a good brand of PSU (seasonic, corsair ,antec etc) with a high wattage, will not stress as much under load therefore it has a longer lifespan but there will always be some faulty PSUs

 

[vindictive]

Agreed, only brands I'd buy are: Seasonic, Corsair, Antec, and XFX black editions.
and in mass production environments your going to have some defective products, thats why we have warranties

 

[Timop]

Agreed, only brands I'd buy are: Seasonic, Corsair, Antec, and XFX black editions.
and in mass production environments your going to have some defective products, thats why we have warranties

You forgot Enermax, Nxzt, Silverstone, PCp&Cg, and some surprisingly nice CMs and OCZs, the first four are just as good as the "top-tier" brands.

 

[kadintc]

Best answer selected by Kadintc.

 

[Maziar]

This topic has been closed by Maziar