Looking at some all around upgrades....

[kyranvale]

Hello - Can anyone give me some input on this new build? I have a GTX 470 that I will pair with the system, and then put my old 775 socket with my intel duo core processor to work in a computer I plan on keeping in my garage (8800GTX). Let me know if this new system build seems optimal or if there's anything that would scream out "don't do it." I will be trying liquid cooling on both PC's, although I'm not sure if that's something that would even be nessecary? Anyhow - thanks in advance for any input!

Rosewill LIGHTNING Series LIGHTNING-800 800W ATX12V/EPS12V 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active-PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16817182238

Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor BX80601950
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16819115211

CoolIT SYSTEMS ECO-R120 Advanced Liquid Cooling (ALC)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16835227006

ASUS Sabertooth X58 LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16813131665

Western Digital VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16822136296

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16820231277

Will be using the same Antec Case that I already have.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16811129021

 

[Wamphryi]

Seems like a good build to me. Dont worry about liquid cooling. Just run the equipment at stock and it will be plenty fast enough.

 

[blackjellognomes]

UH. If you can't wait for SB, going with an i7 isn't a bad choice, but's it's not the best either. I'd suggest going with an i5 instead.
There are some problems with the build you listed though. First, Rosewill doesn't make very good PSUs, and despite the five 5-egg reviews, I think it's too early to determine it's quality.
Second, you picked out dual-channel RAM. You want triple-channel for an LGA 1366 rig.
And lastly, Velociraptors just aren't worth the money. Either get a fast 7200RPM mechanical or get an SSD. If you need performance in between, put two mechanical drives in RAID.
I also don't think any liquid cooling is necessary; even if you want to OC your i7 to 4GHz, you can do so with a nice aftermarket air cooler.

 

[duk3]

I would go with an i5-760 if you can't wait for Sandy Bridge/Bulldozer and you are going to be mainly gaming.

If you really want watercooling, I'd go with a kit like this one:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/11743/ex-wat-159/XSPC_Rasa_750_RS240_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_Hot_Item.html

However, air cooling is fine in basically all circumstances.

 

[Atotalnoob]

I'd suggest going with an i5 instead.

Why? because it is cheaper? a I7 will last longer then a i5....

i5-760

if you DO want to go with an i5, get 750.... practically the same thing.

Western Digital VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

drop the 10k drive completely.... it is worthless... The only reason for them is for Servers(IMHO... I have 3 15k RPM drives... wish I just bought SSDs....)... Get a Spinpoint F3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185&cm_re=spintpoint_F3-_-22-152-185-_-Product ~ 69.99 Then add a SSD (now if your budget allows it) later on.... any Sandforce drive is good....

I also don't think any liquid cooling is necessary; even if you want to OC your i7 to 4GHz, you can do so with a nice aftermarket air cooler.

+1... if you aren't confident with Liquid in your computer, stay away from LC... get a Hyper 212 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065 ~ 30$

put two mechanical drives in RAID.

But make sure you don't put SSDs in RAID, it lowers lifetime..... RAID for SSDs gets rid of TRIM, and a couple other stuff....

First, Rosewill doesn't make very good PSUs, and despite the five 5-egg reviews, I think it's too early to determine it's quality.

+1.... stay away from "unbrands" which is what Rosewill is.... a Good 650 watt Corsair PSU should do nicely... or the Antec Earthware....

Just run the equipment at stock and it will be plenty fast enough.

it will, but your temps would be high... plus, it is a sense of pride saying "I have an I7 @ 4ghz...." =p

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231277

BlackJello is right about the dual channel... get G.skill 6 gigs http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247 ~ 129.99

HTH...

I also don't think any liquid cooling is necessar

I have it... it owns... you just have to be careful, my firneds systems' LC exploded.... he is out 2000$(nothing works, he let it dry and put it in new systems...)..... And another friends leaked..... and it is fine... lol go figure....

 

[duk3]

An i5 is better because it's 1. Cheaper and 2. Same performance in games(other than a few FPS), the i7 is only better at editing/heavily threaded workloads.
The i5 760 vs 750 doesn't matter, either works and there are usually better combos at newegg with the 760.

 

[Atotalnoob]

An i5 is better because it's 1. Cheaper and 2. Same performance in games(other than a few FPS), the i7 is only better at editing/heavily threaded workloads.

.... if you want to be able to use the system for games farther along, then stay with i7... it'll remove a potential bottleneck for future GPUs... Besides, if he can afford the i7, get it....

The i5 760 vs 750 doesn't matter, either works and there are usually better combos at newegg with the 760.

ugh I hate combos, and always forget about them.... =p

 

[duk3]

Most games don't use 3 cores, let alone 8.
I can't justify the i7 unless you are going for tri-sli or you need to do editing work.
If you want to spend more, go for it.
But if you are going to spend more, I'd wait for January 5th and Sandy Bridge.

 

[Atotalnoob]

Most games don't use 3 cores, let alone 8.

eventually they will.... Battlefield 3(mid to late 2011) is supposed to be 64 bit, and DX 10 and higher, no DX9...

I can't justify the i7 unless you are going for tri-sli or you need to do editing work.

I can't justify tri-SLI.... it is HORRIBLE scaling, over 2 GPUs...

But if you are going to spend more, I'd wait for January 5th and Sandy Bridge.

+1!

 

[duk3]

There are exceptions of course, BFBC2 uses 4 cores, hopefully all games will be coded for multiple cores in the future, especially once consoles with more cores are released, and if you are planning on keeping this computer for a long time, the hyperthreading *might* be worth it.

 

[Atotalnoob]

the hyperthreading *might* be worth it.

*confusion* i5s have hyperthreading????/

hopefully all games will be coded for multiple cores in the future,

I'd be surprised if they DIDN'T push towards more cores... then again I WAS surprised to hear BO was going to be DX 9 only... sheesh, if anyone can afford to push into DX10/11 it is Activision/their subsidiaries.

 

[kyranvale]

I'm really only playing World of Warcraft. I'm currently running an E6850 overclocked to 3.45 Gigs with the GTX 470 (recently replaced). I guess I was just looking to upgrade and make my PC somewhat future proof. I'm running a large Zalman aftermarket fan at the moment and my CPU always stays cool. Would I be better off just slamming some more RAM in on my current setup? Or just wait until the SB drop on January 5th? Sorry...a bit new to this stuff, just curious what direction is best. WoW runs okay on my current setup, but I'd like to see a bigger boost from what I'm seeing with my setup right now.

Here's the RAM I'm running:

CORSAIR XMS2 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5DHX

And my Mobo:

ASUS P5N32-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard

 

[kyranvale]

Or maybe take the other poster's suggestion and use an SSD for WoW along with moving up to 8 gigs of memory?

 

[duk3]

I mean the hyperthreading on the i7.

I would wait for Sandy Bridge if you want more of an upgrade as it's not too far off now.

 

[Atotalnoob]

I'm currently running an E6850 overclocked to 3.45 Gigs with the GTX 470 (recently replaced). I guess I was just looking to upgrade and make my PC somewhat future proof. I'm running a large Zalman aftermarket fan at the moment and my CPU always stays cool.

yeah I'd stay with this setup, maybe OC a bit more... 6850's stock is 3.0GHZ.... so you can probably hit alot higher, especially with an aftermarket cooler.... and a GTX 470'll last longer(in usefulness) then the core 2 duo....

Or maybe take the other poster's suggestion and use an SSD for WoW along with moving up to 8 gigs of memory?

I'd do this personally, take a look at this http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ram-memory-upgrade,2778.html for the ram... not always a good thing, upgrading RAM....

On SSDs... I'd get this one, right now, since it has such a great deal on it.... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231378 or if that is tooo expensive, go and buy a Mushkin SSD (60gig) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226151 ~ 129.99
or anything with a SandForce controller...

Remember, the SSD is most likely going to be an investment you use for a while(PLUS, you get faster load times), and can transfer into a new build.... Personally, I don't really know much about the benchmarking of WOW.... but I think there is a new one coming out (cataclysm?)... I'd go from once that comes out to see if you want a new build...

Also, is the OS 64 bit? (on the current system)

Edited for posting wrong link =p

 

[kyranvale]

Thanks for the info! The OS is 64 bit, yes. Which by the link you just attached looks like investing an extra hundred bucks in DDR2 memory might be a good investment? I'm currently only running 4 gigs. I'm also not extremely versed in overclocking. I'm using the AI Extreme Tweaker option of "15%" overclocked. When I try to push it to 20%, the system won't boot up.

 

[Atotalnoob]

turn that off, and try to change the "BLCK", move slowly.... check your clockrate with CPU-Z....

 

[kyranvale]

Or maybe not.....just read that 32 bit games (WoW) don't get much increase in FPS performance once you hit the 4 gigs mark. Maybe a wait and see approach would be best when the expansion drops in 2 weeks.

 

[duk3]

Try learning to OC:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/259899-29-core-overclocking-guide
4gb is enough for games.